We have a curated list of the most noteworthy news from all across the globe. With any subscription plan, you get access to exclusive articles that let you stay ahead of the curve.
We have a curated list of the most noteworthy news from all across the globe. With any subscription plan, you get access to exclusive articles that let you stay ahead of the curve.
We have a curated list of the most noteworthy news from all across the globe. With any subscription plan, you get access to exclusive articles that let you stay ahead of the curve.
We have a curated list of the most noteworthy news from all across the globe. With any subscription plan, you get access to exclusive articles that let you stay ahead of the curve.
Judge removed from Karmelo Anthony self-defense case
In Texas, Judge John Roach has been removed from overseeing the case involving Karmelo Anthony after defense attorneys expressed concerns over potential bias. Anthony is challenging his 35-year sentence for the murder of Austin Metcalf, insisting it was an act of self-defense. A new judge will take charge of the proceedings tomorrow to address the argument that Anthony’s constitutional rights were compromised during the original trial.
On Friday, Karmelo Anthony’s efforts to overturn his murder conviction will proceed in McKinney, Texas. This development follows allegations by his former attorney regarding an unwritten agreement that reportedly prevented Anthony from testifying on his behalf.
The case is now under the scrutiny of retired District Judge Michael Chitty, who will consider Anthony’s plea for a retrial. This shift in judicial oversight comes after Judge Sid Harle decided to remove Judge Roach from the case earlier in the week.
Judge Harle concluded that an unbiased observer might doubt Judge Roach’s impartiality, particularly after Roach publicly declared that the jury’s decision was correct and supported several of his own trial rulings.
Anthony, aged 19, was found guilty in June for the murder of Austin Metcalf, a 17-year-old. Prosecutors argued that Anthony stabbed Metcalf to death during a confrontation at a Frisco track meet. His conviction resulted in a 35-year prison sentence handed down by a Collin County jury.
Karmelo Anthony is pictured after being transferred to the custody of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. He was transported to his unit of assignment at the Pack Unit near Navasota.(Texas Department of Criminal Justice)
At the center of the new-trial hearing is an oral agreement between Anthony’s original defense team and prosecutors to keep potentially damaging character evidence about both sides from the jury.
Former lead defense attorney Mike Howard testified Thursday that he understood the agreement to allow Anthony to testify if his testimony remained focused on the confrontation under the tent at the track meet.
Howard said that changed on the final day of trial, when prosecutors told the defense the agreement would not apply if Anthony took the stand and that the defense had already opened the door to character evidence.
Austin Metcalf, 17, was stabbed to death at a Texas track meet.(Jeff Metcalf)
He said the dispute led to a heated break in the proceedings and made Anthony unwilling to take the stand.
Under cross-examination, Howard acknowledged the lawyers never expressly agreed on whether a testifying defendant was covered by the arrangement. He said he could not say whether prosecutors acted in bad faith.
Lead prosecutor Bill Wirske said the agreement was mutual and that the parties were aligned on the need to keep character evidence out of the trial. Wirske said the state did not believe the agreement applied to Anthony’s testimony.
Wirske said the agreement kept jurors from hearing allegations involving Anthony’s history with knives and violence. Anthony’s new legal team has argued it also excluded school records, social-media posts and videos that they say could have supported his self-defense claim by showing prior aggressive behavior by Metcalf and his twin brother, Hunter Metcalf.
File photo of Austin Metcalf, a junior at Memorial High School in Frisco, who was stabbed in the chest allegedly by 17-year-old Karmelo Anthony, a student-athlete from Frisco Centennial High School.(Courtesy Jeff Metcalf)
The court has not made findings on those allegations.
Anthony’s motion also argues that courtroom-access restrictions violated his Sixth Amendment right to a public trial and that jury instructions limited jurors’ ability to consider his self-defense claim.
Howard testified that the lawyers and Roach held more than a dozen off-the-record meetings before trial. He said no pretrial motions were formally filed because the parties used what he described as an “old-school” system of filing materials directly with Roach.
Judge John Roach is depicted in a courtroom sketch during the Karmelo Anthony murder trial.(Pat Lopez)
Howard also said the defense discussed waiving some public-trial access because of security concerns, but that no Sixth Amendment waiver was made on the record. He testified that the decision not to use an overflow room was tied to technology concerns, not a specific security threat.
Former defense attorney Toby Shook is expected to testify Friday. It was not immediately clear how many additional witnesses Anthony’s lawyers planned to call.
Chitty must rule on the motion by Monday under Texas rules. If he does not grant it by then, the motion will be denied by operation of law and Anthony’s direct appeal will continue.
News Media has reached out to Anthony’s defense team for comment.
There are those who are still cheering over John Harbaugh’s departure from the Ravens.
Veteran receiver Rashod Bateman and offensive lineman Ronnie Stanley have openly critiqued Harbaugh, offering high praise for the approach of new head coach Jesse Minter.
“From our head coach to the offensive coordinator and even down to the receivers coach, there’s a strong emphasis on details and the finer points,” Bateman remarked on Thursday. “This wasn’t something that defined us in the past.”
Stanley echoed this sentiment, telling The Athletic, “[Minter] truly appreciates the finer details.”
While these comments aren’t exactly explosive, they do offer a glimpse into the differing coaching philosophies.
But for coaches, it’s certainly a blow to be considered as lacking when it comes to being detail-oriented — and hearing it come from a multiple-time All-Pro left tackle carries weight.
Not stressing details can be viewed as a lack of preparation, which is quite the dig against a coach.
Bateman certainly had the more pointed comments of the two, and it certainly makes it seem that he welcomed the coaching change.
He previously expressed some frustration with Baltimore’s coaching staff in 2023, with the former first-rounder venting about playing to player’s strengths and calling out finger pointing.
Bateman said Thursday he could “definitely benefit” from the coaching change.
“Wherever these coaches and staff put me,” he said, “I think this team is bound for success.”
There had been some rumblings about a split being needed in Baltimore with Harbaugh after 18 seasons, which included one Super Bowl win in 12 playoff appearances.
NFL Network reported after the Ravens fired Harbaugh following a Week 17 loss to the Steelers that cost them a playoff spot that “simply Harbaugh lost the locker room.”
There had also been rumblings of a rift with star quarterback Lamar Jackson.
Minter, the former Chargers defensive coordinator, replaced Harbaugh, and one big storyline of the season will be whether he can guide Jackson to an elusive Super Bowl appearance.
Harbaugh, meanwhile, has been welcomed like a king to New York, although expectations are far lower and Super Bowl contention is not realistic for at least one more year.
Nick Reiner is rapidly approaching his trial date, facing charges of allegedly murdering his renowned Hollywood parents. In a bid to fund his legal defense, he is scrambling to access his $1.63 million trust fund, but his efforts are being thwarted by his siblings, according to Daily Mail sources.
Jake and Romy Reiner have joined forces to prevent Nick from depleting his inheritance to cover legal fees.
“It’s not about whether they care for him or not; it’s about setting boundaries on what someone can take from you,” a close family friend of the Reiners revealed to the Daily Mail.
The friend added, “They find the idea of the inheritance being used for Nick’s defense unbearable. They are determined to stop it if they can.”
Now 32, Nick has entered a plea of not guilty to charges of murdering his parents. Prosecutors allege he fatally stabbed his father, acclaimed director Rob Reiner, aged 78, and his mother, photographer-producer Michele, 70, within the confines of their Brentwood residence on December 14.
His legal team filed a probate petition in June to give Nick access to his trust fund, claiming his siblings backed out of an initial verbal agreement to pay for his legal defense.
During a Monday hearing in a downtown LA courtroom, Nick’s attorney, Anita Wu, said there have been multiple delays to resolving Nick’s petition.
‘The trust is being consumed and depleted by attorneys’ fees with all of this delay and work,’ Wu said, arguing that attorneys for the trust are spending Nick’s money to keep him from accessing it.
Nick Reiner was indicted on two counts of murder with the special circumstance allegations of multiple murders, murder by means of lying in wait and use of a deadly weapon. He has pleaded not guilty
The Reiner family, with siblings Jake (center), Romy and Nick, pictured together in 2014
Rob and Michelle were discovered dead in their home in California in December 2025
Jake, 34, and Romy, 28, have not responded to Nick’s petition, which Wu claimed has caused even more delays.
‘More than $200,000 has been spent to try to block my client’s petition by hiring attorneys to fight the same petition. The clock is running out on his defense. This is something that cannot continue to wait,’ she claimed.
Wu argued Nick should have received the first payment from the trust, which was set up in 1993 by Rob and Michele, two years ago when Nick turned 30.
Attorneys who represent the trust, however, have filed an opposition to Nick’s petition, citing a California law known as the ‘Slayer Statute,’ which says a person cannot be paid the funds if they killed the person who established the trust.
The judge set the next hearing on the trust petition matter for October 23. In the meantime, Nick is scheduled to appear back in criminal court for a pretrial conference on September 15.
Nick is facing two counts of murder with the special circumstance allegations of multiple murders, murder by means of lying in wait and use of a deadly weapon. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Sources close to the Reiner family told the Daily Mail that while Jake and Romy have not written off their troubled brother entirely, they have drawn hard lines in the sand.
‘I wouldn’t say [they] abandoned him for good. I’d say that they are setting boundaries that are appropriate for their healing, and Nick is not a part of their healing,’ the family friend said.
Sources told the Daily Mail that Romy (left) and Jake (right) continue to distance themselves from their trouble brother Nick (center) as he fights for access to his trust fund money, which he wants to use for his defense
The deaths of Rob and Michele rocked Hollywood. They were found with their throats slit in their $13.5 million Brentwood mansion (above) in December
Another family source said Jake and Romy are remaining firm on cutting off their brother from access to the trust.
‘Their parents never turned their backs on their kids and were the best parents,’ the source said.
‘[Rob and Michele] would do anything for their kids but Romy and Jake, who are extremely close and similar, are not budging about helping their brother access the trust. And who would blame them?’
The Daily Mail understands that Tracy, the trio’s older half-sister, was also OK with Nick being cut off from his inheritance.
‘You know people usually fight about money when parents die, but there has been no issues between Tracy, Romy and Jake,’ another source told the Daily Mail.
‘Tracy got a lot of her mom’s money, so she’s doing well. She wanted more sentimental items, not money.’
Tracy, 61, who is Rob’s adopted daughter from a previous marriage with actress-director Penny Marshall, is remaining supportive of Jake and Romy’s decision to cut Nick off from his trust fund.
The Daily Mail has reached out to representatives for Romy, Jake and Tracy for comment.
Nick was set to receive the entire $1.63 million trust when he turned 35, according to his petition. He was allowed to access $558,000 when he turned 30, but he decided not to touch that money, his lawyers said in the court document.
Alan Jackson (center) appeared alongside Nick Reiner’s probate attorney Anita Wu, who said there have been multiple delays on his petition to access his trust. Jackson has said he wants to rejoin Nick’s defense team
Lawyers representing a fiduciary, Jodi Montgomery, who is overseeing the trust, said in an August 11 court filing that the outcome of Nick’s upcoming trial ‘will determine who is entitled to the Trust Estate, and an interim distribution would be irreversible.’
‘The disputed property is therefore ‘reasonably in dispute,’ and the governing framework supports the Trustee’s decision to preserve it rather than pay it out.’
On Monday, Wu said Montgomery had agreed to fund $300 for Nick’s commissary and past legal bills when defense attorney Alan Jackson was representing him.
Jackson, a high-profile attorney who has represented Karen Read, Kevin Spacey and Harvey Weinstein, had previously represented Nick before dropping out as his counsel in January, citing ‘circumstances beyond our control.’
Jackson, who stood next to Wu during Monday’s hearing, said he would rejoin Nick’s defense team if the trust issue could be resolved.
The attorney told reporters that Nick’s access to the funds is ‘time sensitive.’
‘He’s made a determination that he wants to be able to use his funds that are in his trust account to decide on his criminal counsel,’ Jackson said. ‘When he is allowed to do that, he will be able to defend himself in the way the Constitution he should and can defend himself.
‘That’s why this litigation is going forward. It’s about Nick Reiner’s money and I think today was an example of the trustee simply obstructing and not allowing Nick immediate access to funds to which he is entitled to.’
Tuscaloosa, Ala. — In a remarkable legal decision on Thursday, an Alabama jury awarded a staggering $9.25 million to a former college basketball player. This came after The New York Times was found guilty of defaming him by erroneously reporting his presence at a deadly shooting incident in Tuscaloosa.
The player at the center of the controversy, Kai Spears, once a member of the University of Alabama men’s basketball team, launched a lawsuit against the Times in 2023. The lawsuit challenged a report that incorrectly claimed Spears was a passenger in a vehicle tied to the fatal shooting. The article relied on information from a source who had requested anonymity to divulge what was described as sensitive information.
Subsequent to the publication, the Times acknowledged this significant mistake by issuing an editor’s note and promptly amending the article.
Kai Spears, of the Alabama Crimson Tide, during a practice session at State Farm Stadium in April 2024 in Glendale, Arizona.
Christian Petersen / Getty Images
After an intense nine-day trial held in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, the eight-member jury reached their decision. Matt Glover, representing Spears, expressed satisfaction with the outcome, emphasizing his belief that “this verdict will enhance the standards of journalism nationwide.”
In response to the loss in court, The New York Times is currently considering its legal recourse, as indicated by spokesperson Charlie Stadtlander.
“We’re disappointed the jury found The Times liable for an honest mistake,” Stadtlander said in a statement Thursday. “We thank the jury for its service, but believe the verdict and award of damages are contrary to law and not supported by the evidence.”
Three other basketball players from the school were present at the January 2023 shooting, which killed a 23-year-old mother. In the lawsuit, Spears claimed the inaccurate reporting had caused him emotional distress and forever linked him with a murder.
CBSSports.com noted that, after the story appeared, Spears took to social media and called the report of his appearance at the scene “100% inaccurate.”
“I have one thing to say — the report in the New York Times was 100% inaccurate and the writer had complete disregard for the truth,” Spears said. “I am trying to process and cope with these false statements that somehow have been published and then seen by so many. So thankful to Alabama Athletics for refuting it on my behalf.
“More than anything, I remain completely heartbroken by the tragic death that occurred that night.”
A Times article reporting on the verdict Thursday said the newspaper “had not lost a defamation lawsuit brought in the United States over one of its articles in more than 50 years.”
The article says Alabama law caps jury awards in certain cases and so the damages in this one will be adjusted downward by more than $2 million.
Laken Snelling, a former University of Kentucky cheerleader, admitted guilt on Friday morning to manslaughter charges regarding the tragic death of her newborn son. The young mother was accused of placing her deceased child in a trash bag.
At 22, Snelling originally faced charges including abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence, and concealing the birth of her baby. She had pleaded not guilty to these allegations back in April of last year.
The incident came to light on August 27, 2025, when Lexington police arrived at an off-campus residence. Snelling’s college roommates had made the grim discovery: the newborn was found unresponsive in a black plastic bag stored in a closet.
Following the investigation, the Kentucky Medical Examiner’s Office revealed that the infant had been born alive but died from asphyxia by unclear causes. This led to a grand jury’s indictment of Snelling on first-degree manslaughter charges in March.
During an interview with authorities, Snelling initially told them that her baby had fallen to the floor after birth. She stated she believed at the time that the child was not “breathing or alive.”
However, her story soon changed, claiming instead she had passed out “on top of the baby” and woke up to find him “turning blue and purple.”
In court this week, Snelling finally admitted to “ending” the baby’s life “instead of helping him” and copped to putting the infant in a plastic bag, WKYT reported.
Prosecutors have recommended a 10-year prison term for manslaughter, and one year each for abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence and concealing the birth of an infant.
In a bizarre and chilling case, a Massachusetts woman, known for taking a selfie with an unsettling doll, has been sentenced to prison for her involvement in trafficking human remains stolen from the morgue of Harvard Medical School.
The woman, Katrina Maclean, aged 47, received a 24-month prison sentence on Tuesday. Her sentencing follows her admission of guilt in a macabre operation led by Cedric Lodge, a former morgue manager, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
Maclean’s guilty plea to the charge of interstate transport of stolen goods was recorded in December last year, as the court documents, accessed by the Daily Mail, reveal.
During investigations, the mother of two confessed to storing and selling human body parts through her business, known as Kat’s Creepy Creations, the indictment detailed.
Prosecutors allege that she obtained these body parts from Lodge, who during the years 2018 to 2022, illicitly extracted organs and other body parts from cadavers intended for medical research, diverting them before their scheduled cremations.
Lodge transported the remains from the medical school in Boston to his home in New Hampshire, where he and his wife, Denise Lodge, would then sell them to clients like Maclean, according to prosecutors.
He even allowed Maclean and other buyers to visit the Harvard Medical School morgue to examine the cadavers and select remains for purchase, the indictment said.
Lodge was sentenced to eight years in prison last year for stealing and selling body parts ‘as if they were baubles.’
Katrina Maclean poses with an eerie doll. Maclean, 47, was the owner of Kat’s Creepy Creations, a shop in Peabody, Massachusetts that specialized in dolls, oddities and bone art
Maclean was sentenced to 24 months in prison on Tuesday after admitting her role in a ghoulish scheme that involved trafficking human remains from Harvard Medical School
Maclean agreed to purchase two dissected faces from Lodge for $600 in October 2020, the indictment said.
The pair made sale arrangements on the phone and via social media, then met at the Harvard Medical School morgue to conduct the transaction, prosecutors said.
In July 2021, Maclean shipped human skin from Massachusetts to a man in Pennsylvania whom she wanted to ‘tan the skin to create leather,’ the indictment said.
She paid the man with more human skin instead of money, according to court documents.
Kat’s Creepy Creations, which was known to sell dolls, oddities and bone art, was raided by theFBI in March 2023, months before she and the other defendants were charged in the case.
Seven others, including the Lodges, have been imprisoned after previously entering guilty pleas in connection to the human remains scheme.
Maclean’s attorney Edward Rymsza, in a statement to the Daily Mail on Thursday, described her sentence as ‘unreasonably harsh.’
‘We were incredibly disappointed with the sentence imposed. Ms Maclean accepted full responsibility for her actions in this case,’ he said.
‘The sentence imposed was unnecessarily harsh and excessive. An appeal has already been filed.’
Maclean pleaded guilty to a charge of interstate transport of stolen goods last December
Prosecutors say Maclean purchased the remains from former morgue manager Cedric Lodge
Lodge his wife, Denise Lodge, (pictured) were sentenced to 96 months and 12 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in the scheme
Harvard Medical School this week agreed to pay $53 million to settle class action lawsuits by relatives of body donors whose remains were trafficked in the scheme.
The lawsuits were brought by 47 relatives of people whose remains were potentially mishandled and sold. The remains were donated for research and education.
Harvard has said it cannot determine precisely which donors’ remains Lodge stole.
After he was charged in 2023, the school said it reviewed information from federal investigators along with records showing when donors’ remains were sent for cremation and when Lodge was on campus to determine which donors may have been affected.
The settlement covers relatives or designees of people who donated their remains to Harvard Medical School between January 1, 2018, and March 31, 2023.
Harvard Medical School Deans George Q Daley and Bernard S Chang announced the development in a letter to the community on Tuesday, calling the actions of Lodge ‘despicable, abhorrent, and a flagrant betrayal of our values as a medical community.’
In their letter, Daley and Chang said Lodge’s actions ‘do not reflect the reverence we hold for the altruistic individuals who selflessly donate their bodies’ to the school’s Anatomical Gift Program.
‘We reaffirm our deep sorrow and empathy for the families of donors who may have been impacted,’ they said.
Harvard Medical School (file photo) this week agreed to pay $53 million to settle class action lawsuits by relatives of body donors whose remains were trafficked in the scheme
In addition to the payments, Harvard Medical School agreed to provide families with a statement condemning Lodge’s actions and summarizing improvements made to the Anatomical Gift Program.
The school also plans to establish an annual financial aid scholarship for medical students beginning in the 2027-28 academic year to honor anatomical donors.
Harvard said it has enacted recommendations from a panel of outside experts appointed in 2023 to review the program after Lodge was charged.
Pending court approval, Harvard said that two class action settlement funds totaling $53 million will be established to resolve the lawsuits.
The Daily Mail has approached Harvard Medical School and attorneys for Maclean and the Lodges for comment.
The buzz around Camp Rock 3 has created an exhilarating whirlwind for its vibrant ensemble of young stars. When they visited DECIDER’s studio on Wednesday, August 19, the excitement was palpable. They seemed almost stunned that it had already been nearly a week since the film’s grand debut on Disney Channel.
“Really? It’s been that long?” exclaimed Liamani Segura, in disbelief.
“Wait, are you serious?” echoed Lumi Pollack, equally surprised.
Casey Trotter chimed in with, “That’s unbelievable!” adding to the amazement.
Reflecting on the warm reception of this latest installment in the Disney Channel Original Movie saga, the talented ensemble — Torres, Segura, Pollack, Trotter, and Hudson Stone — expressed their delight. They play the next wave of Camp Rockers vying for the chance to be the opening act for Connect 3, none other than the iconic Jonas Brothers.
“I think good,” Stone said of how fans have taken to the film.
Pollack quipped, “Obviously, we haven’t even had any perception of time because this whole week has been such a whirlwind for all of us. But just all good stuff I think!”
While Segura said she “can second that,” Trotter offered up a sense of gratitude for the experience and the hard work he and his co-stars put into the film, which is streaming now on Disney+.
“I feel so grateful. I feel like, just the amount of work that we all put in is so great and I’m just proud of everyone and so grateful,” he shared.
Outside of their auditions and screen tests, the four young actors hadn’t previously known each other, but quickly took a liking to each other’s company while shooting in Canada.
“I don’t think there were any moments when we weren’t hanging out,” Pollack recalled. “Even if we had been filming all day, we were like, ‘We should just watch a movie in someone’s room.’”
Segura said their group pastimes ranged from the aforementioned movie nights to seafood boils, and the quality time clearly paid off. Here’s what the actors shared about which Camp Rock songs they loved recreating, how long they’ve been privy to Demi Lovato and Milo Manheim’s Camp Rock 3 cameos, and what they’ve been watching (outside of Camp Rock 3, of course)…
Photo: Paige Kahn/New York Post
DECIDER: I’m so excited to talk to you about Camp Rock 3. It’s now been almost a week since the movie premiered on Disney Channel.
LIAMANI SEGURA: It has?
LUMI POLLACK: Wait, what?
CASEY TROTTER: That is crazy.
LP: It’s only been like three days! What do you mean?
I know, it’s crazy!
LP: Wait, sorry? Pause!
Today’s Wednesday, I think it came out last Thursday.
HUDSON STONE: Oh yeah, yeah, yeah.
CT: No, what?
So how are you guys feeling? What has the reception been like?
HS: I think good.
LP: Obviously, we haven’t even had any perception of time because this whole week has been such a whirlwind for all of us. But just all good stuff I think! Yeah?
LS: I can second that, yeah.
CT: I feel so grateful. I feel like, just the amount of work that we all put in is so great and I’m just proud of everyone and so grateful.
Photo: Everett Collection
You guys got to perform some of the most iconic songs from the first two Camp Rock movies. Which song was your favorite to recreate?
HS: I think for me, I loved recreating “Start the Party,” just because that was fun. The dancing, the choreo. We were all together, we were all in that number all at one time, and it just felt iconic.
LS: I think “We Rock.”
LP: I was going to say that, too.
LS: I think “We Rock” was my favorite especially because it was also with…
HS: “We rock!”
LS: … the Jonas Brothers. We got to perform it onstage for the Final Jam with them, and that was really full-circle.
LP: I would say ‘We Rock” too. It was just crazy because I think the day before we actually filmed that, later that night, we got to go to an actual Jonas Brothers concert. So being able to perform onstage with them in a soundstage and then go and watch them in an arena full of thousands of people was one of the most surreal moments of filming.
Two exciting cameos that fans only found out about just ahead of the movie being released were obviously Demi Lovato and Milo Manheim. How early on did you find out they were going to appear in the movie, and how difficult was it to keep this a secret?
LS: Milo Manheim went to the concert with us!
LP: And that was like, such a last-minute thing. I think at the concert — like, we saw him at the Jonas Brothers concert. And then I think Gary Marsh — I don’t know if I’m allowed to say this.
LS: You’re allowed to say that.
LP: Mr. President of Mr. Disney Channel was like, “Hey, you should be in our movie.” And he was like, “Hey, yeah.” So that was cool. Demi we knew.
HS: Demi we knew.
LP: We been knowing.
LS: We knew about Demi, but it was so hard to keep a secret. I swear our lips were so sealed. And I think the fans started catching on, literally a few days before the movie came out. And we were like, “No! We’ve done so good!”
Photo: Disney
With the Demi cameo, Liamani, you got to share a special onscreen moment with her when Mitchie waves to Sage from the wings. How surreal was that to shoot?
LS: That was so insane. I remember that day… ooh, that day. Oh my gosh! I remember it like it was yesterday. The look that we share is such a special moment in the film, and it kind of feels like she’s passing the torch, which is so crazy to even say out loud. But I definitely look up to her so much. So to have that moment with her just means the entire world, and I can’t wait for the fans to see it.
Lumi, hearing that you learned to play the cello for this role was incredible. How long did it take for you to get down?
LP: Well, we had about a month of prep before we actually were shooting. So I think literally Day 1, we started dance rehearsals, we started all of our musical lessons. So it was like Day 1 of prep, and I think it was about a month of lessons. At first I think there were like two hours every day, to just get the basics down of cello. I feel like everybody who you see playing the cello has had experience since they were 5 years old, and I think Rosie, my character, is the type of character to have had played the cello her entire life. So that was a lot of pressure stepping into that, I think. But I just made sure to stay committed and practice on my own. So yeah, it was about an hour to two hours of practice every single day until we started shooting.
Wow, that’s amazing.
LP: And then also while we were shooting. Whenever I had free time.
We need a Camp Rock album set to strings. Like each song with a strings take on it.
ALL FOUR: [Laugh]
HS: Yeah.
Hudson, I have to tell you I loved the song “Get Ready.” Such a bop.
HS: Thank you!
And you’re a musician outside of your onscreen work. Did you feel like you were infusing any of yourself into the role?
HS: Oh, for sure. I feel like Veronica Rodriguez, our director, helped do a great job of that and bringing me to the role of Desi. And I think, as far as me bringing Hudson to the role, I’m a musician, I write my own music, and I feel Desi is very much in that same vain. And “Get Ready” is a song that’s like him stepping into the spotlight, and that felt like a moment for me to do the same. I’ve never danced before Camp Rock, so a lot of my personal arc meets up with Desi’s in a way. So that’s really cool.
That’s so cool. Casey, I read how you started as a drummer, and that has led you to so many roles that include both acting and drumming, which I think is so cool. Do you have any other dream role that could combine the two?
LP:Whiplash?
CT: Like a Whiplash could be super cool. Something band-related. I feel like a lot of the time, a lot of the focus really isn’t on the drummer because there’s so much else in the band. And I’d love to do something that would be really mainly drummer-focused. That would be super cool.
Photo: Everett Collection
Did any of you four know each other before filming? And if not, how did you bond on set to create this chemistry?
LP: I don’t think we did.
CT: [To Lumi] I met you at the testing.
LP: Yeah, we met on tests.
HS: On auditions.
LP: But no, we hadn’t known each other. But I think, like, filming something — especially filming on location where we all were in a different country together — you bond just so quickly. And with these people, it’s really easy to become friends with them. But I think, like, we were all staying in the same hotel and we were kind of forced to hang out with each other because there’s no one else when we’re in a different country.
HS: Yeah, you don’t know anybody but the people you’re with. Like, it’s crazy.
LS: This is true, this is true.
LP: I’m kidding. We all willingly [hung out with each other].
LS: It was so fun. It was never a dull moment on set.
LP: I don’t think there were any moments when we weren’t hanging out. Even if we had been filming all day, we were like, “We should just watch a movie in someone’s room.”
LS: Like we would hang out in someone’s room, have movie nights, go to seafood boils.
LP: Seafood boils!
CT: [To Hudson] That was so good.
Is there another DCOM that you would like to see revived after Camp Rock?
LP:High School Musical! [Turns to Liamani, who starred in High School Musical: The Musical: The Series] Oh wait, that actually already happened!
ALL FOUR: [Laugh]
LS: Okay, but that was a series! Shoutout Tim Federle.
LP:Lemonade Mouth, Teen Beach Movie.
HS:Teen Beach [Movie], I’d want to see that. That’s incredible. Live-action Frozen.
CT: [Laughs]
LP: Let’s make a new one! Let’s make a new DCOM.
LS: Yeah, I’m down! I’m down for that.
LP: Me and Lia, we’ll work on it. Don’t worry.
LS: We’re gonna write the script.
Photo: Disney/David Astorga
Obviously, I can’t let you go without talking about the Jonas Brothers. What were the tips they gave you for stepping into the world of Camp Rock?
HS: Oh, they gave so much advice, let me just put it that way, while we were on set. Every time they could, they were literally talking to us about all things because they’ve had these long careers and they were doing it since they were our age. They had so much wisdom to share with us. I just found it incredible getting to talk to them. They’re such great guys.
LP: I think, for me, not even just the tips that they gave us, but just being able to observe them on set and watch how they carry themselves professionally and just as talented people. Also, I was just watching them and observing them stepping onto a set that kind of was like probably deja vu for them. And I think just learning to take everything in, because 15 years ago it was them right there, our age, doing all this. So I’m like wow, imagine that’s us in 15 years!
LS: I agree. I literally feel like they could have easily been so protective over the film because it’s their baby, you know? So I feel like they could have easily been protective. But they really allowed us to be our own people, be artists, and be creative, and do what we want to see, and bring ourselves to the film. So it was really cool.
I know you mentioned that you got to go to their concert. Will any of you be at their concert coming up?
LP: I’m actually going on the 21st I think! And I think Ava Jean from Camp Rock [3] is also going.
HS: Maddie the Baddie.
At DECIDER, we’re a site that’s dedicated to all things streaming. So what are you guys watching right now?
LP: Oh my gosh.
HS: So much.
LP: Well, I will say, a show I’m watching right now is Sterling Point on Prime [Video].
LS: Oh my gosh, I started it last night!
LP: You did?
LS: I did!
LP: It’s so good! And also shoutout Megan Park! She created that show, and she also wrote and directed the first movie I was in, The Fallout. So it’s like so amazing to watch that now. And I’m actually obsessed. It’s so good. And also, [I] go to the movies. Watching The Odyssey, Spider-Man: [Brand New Day], all that good stuff.
HS: I’ll say for me, I’m a little late to the party, but I just started Severance. I’m, like, halfway through Season 1 and it’s incredible. Adam Scott is incredible. And I’m watching Season 3 now of Silo, which is on Apple [TV], and that’s a great show. I’ve never really been into that sci-fi kind of world, but I’ve really gotten deep into this show and the plot just thickens at every turn, so I’m loving those two.
CT: So I saw an announcement for Grown Ups 3, and that was my movie. So I just recently rewatched those. And then The Hangover trilogy, I also rewatched that. A bunch of comedies. Like a lot of comedies.
LP:Camp Rock 3!
HS: Camp Rock 3, I’ve watched that one a few times.
Progressive lawmaker Aisha Wahab is set to replace the disgraced former Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA), marking a historical milestone as the first Afghan-American elected to the U.S. Congress.
Wahab made headlines back in 2018 by being the first Afghan-American to secure an elected position in the U.S., serving on the Hayward City Council. She overcame her Democratic rival, Melissa Hernandez, in a special election decided Thursday evening, according to the Associated Press (AP).
As the vote tally reached 95 percent for California’s Fourteenth Congressional District, Wahab led with 53.1 percent compared to Hernandez, who garnered 46.9 percent.
The rivals faced off in a special runoff after emerging as the two frontrunners in the June 16 special primary. This election followed the exit of Swalwell from politics due to a suspended gubernatorial campaign and resignation from office amid multiple unresolved allegations of sexual assault, which he denied. Earlier primary results had Wahab eclipsing Hernandez by 21 points for the upcoming full term starting in January.
Despite significant backing, Hernandez fell short. As president of the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) board and former Dublin, California mayor, she still lost against Wahab, though high profile super PACs, including the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), reportedly invested millions in her campaign, mainly through oppositional advertisements.
“I’m very proud of this district for not listening to the hate-mongering and really knowing and believing the work that I’ve done,” Wahab told KQED on Tuesday night after she took a slight lead over Hernandez.
In a recently unearthed interview with Indian-American outlet PunjabiTV, Wahab pledged to be an advocate for foreign H-1B visa workers:
“This is far more crucial than I think people understand … Why are we not training our next generation of leaders and technologists and doctors and nurses and so much more?” she said in the clip.
Swalwell’s seat has been open since his April resignation, and will still have to be fought for in the November election, where both Wahab and Hernandez will again be on the ballot, this time vying for a full two-year term.
Olivia Rondeau is a politics reporter for – News based in Washington, DC. Find her on X/Twitter and Instagram.
