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Hi again! Tiffany here. Welcome to today’s edition of Internet Insider.
The latest MCU installment, Thor: Love and Thunder, is out today, and we’ve got both a review of it and a story about its queer representation for you. In other pop culture news, Doja Cat is thirsting on a Stranger Things fan-favorite.
And in my column, I discuss the explosion of Hot Ones memes. Scroll down to the bottom to see my pick for Meme of the Week.
— T.K.
TIKTOK: Lawmakers are asking the FTC to open an investigation into TikTok after BuzzFeed reported that U.S. user data was leaked to the app’s China-based parent company, ByteDance—which goes against previous privacy statements from the company.
REVIEW: Our critic Gavia watched the latest Marvel blockbuster, Thor: Love and Thunder, which she reports is a “massive disappointment” that pales in comparison to Taika Waititi’s 2017 film Thor: Ragnarok.
MCU: Speaking of Thor: Love and Thunder, director Taika Waititi and actress Natalie Portman are being called out for maybe overhyping how ‘gay’ the movie is, just a little. Waititi called it ‘super gay,’ but people who saw the film say it could have done more for queer representation.
STRANGER DM: Stranger Things‘ Joseph Quinn is the breakout star of season 4, playing outcast and Dungeons and Dragons fan Eddie Munson. Fans are thirsting hard for the actor, and that includes singer Doja Cat, who tried to get help from another member of the cast.
People are creating some spicy ‘Hot Ones’ memes
You may have noticed some memes on your feed over the last week that showed characters from pop culture eating wings with an array of hot sauces in front of them. One included a still from Ingmar Bergman’s film The Seventh Seal, another showed Laura Palmer from Twin Peaks. They’re all referencing the popular YouTube series Hot Ones, which has been hosted by Sean Evans since 2015.
Over the last few years, as the show rose in popularity and continued to feature high-profile guests—like Paul Rudd, Idris Elba, and Scarlett Johansson—it took on a life of its own online. Clips and memes are posted on social media hours after new episodes drop, and people discuss the content of the interviews for days. The premise of the show is simple yet genius: Each guest is given a plate of wings covered in sauce that increases in spiciness. Evans asks them questions right after they take a bite. Seeing the guests’ reactions in real-time is the most satisfying part of the show; some don’t flinch, while others are clearly in pain.
But why did Hot Ones memes spike again this weekend? It wasn’t related to a real guest on the show. Instead, it was tied to a viral clip of Maya Rudolph in the Apple TV+ series Loot—whose character is a guest on Hot Ones. Twitter user @BrendanOde posted it on July 1, along with the caption “Maya Rudolph is a comedic genius.” Some people initially thought the clip was actually from the web series—although the mention of an ex-husband is a clear giveaway that it is not actually about Rudolph (the actress has been with director Paul Thomas Anderson for more than 20 years). The clip went viral for parodying the popular show and received more than 10 million views from that one tweet.
Sure, it’s an accidental ad for Loot. Yet the clip resonated with so many people because we’ve all been watching Hot Ones for years. We know the setup. We know when guests are uncomfortable. It’s not surprising that the discussion around it inspired memes about other fictional guests.
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👀 TODAY ONLINE
Here are some key dispatches from across the ‘net.
📱 A GOP state rep wants to ban kids under 18 from using social media.
🎬 Allegations about director David O. Russell are resurfacing after the release of the trailer for his new film.
💵 Should a parent make their teenager sign a lease for their house?
📜 These spoofs of guided meditations are the perfect antidote to scrolling fatigue.
🥝 BookTok’s infatuation with ‘sad girl’ novels is as complex as the books themselves. Subscribe to Passionfruit, the Daily Dot’s weekly creator economy newsletter.
🥞 IHOP customers find raw chicken in their Minions meal.
🍴 Master the art of cooking for one with these kitchen hacks for single living.*
🌌 The problem with Disney’s new ‘Star Wars’ VFX technology, ‘The Volume’.
*The Daily Dot may receive a commission in connection with purchases of products or services featured here.
📅 MEME OF THE WEEK
This isn’t the first time a performance from NPR’s Tiny Desk series gave us a meme, and it likely won’t be the last. The Usher “watch this” meme became big so quickly because it’s easy to apply to just about any scenario.
Now Playing: 🎶 “I Love the Nightlife (Disco ‘Round)” by Alicia Bridges 🎶
