Author: business

Diddy, Cassie relationship was ‘mutually violent,’ defense will say

As jury selection wound down and opening arguments inched closer in the trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs, lawyers for the embattled music mogul previewed part of their argument in a courtroom back and forth.

The defense team for Combs, who is accused of sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution, made clear that they planned to paint his fraught relationship with ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura as violent on both sides.

In an extensive courtroom exchange on May 9, Combs’ lawyers insisted that they wanted to be able to cross-examine Victim-1, widely believed to be Ventura, about a “propensity for violence.”

How these New York City laws opened the door for Cassie and more to sue Diddy

Their line of questioning, they said, would center on “other instances where she has been violent” in an attempt to illustrate her her character and nature for “getting into physical altercations with other people.”

Lawyers for Combs, who has pleaded not guilty on all counts, are attempting to rewrite a narrative that the music producer’s relationship with Ventura featured one-sided abuse − a narrative aided by CNN’s release of a video in 2024 depicting Combs throwing his ex-girlfriend to the ground, kicking her and dragging her down a hotel hallway.

Defense lawyers fought unsuccessfully to exclude the video from evidence and many potential jurors were asked whether they had seen the footage.

On May 9, Combs’ lawyers said they wanted to question Ventura regarding past violence to illustrate she was “a strong, capable person who does not shy away from confrontations,” therefore eroding prosecutors’ argument that she was “coerced” throughout their relationship.

Rather than deny any violence, Combs’ lawyers said they want to show that there was “mutual violence in their relationship” and “hitting on both sides.”

“Domestic violence, we are absolutely admitting that,” Combs’ lead attorney Marc Agnifilo said, but added that it was “mutually violent.”

Characterizing how they will portray Ventura’s alleged violent behavior, Agnifilo leaned on the very language that has been levied against Combs, saying: “I think we’re probably going to refer to that as domestic violence,” according to Reuters.

Which charges does Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs face – and could he go to jail?

In November 2023, Ventura sued Combs, accusing her former partner of rape, sex trafficking and physical abuse. The lawsuit was settled a day after it was filed for an unspecified amount.

Ventura’s filing is now widely viewed as the initial string pulled in what has become the unraveling of one of music’s most powerful men.

In addition to the federal case, Combs faces a torrent of civil suits that paint the one-time hip-hop kingmaker as a longtime abuser.

May 10, 2025
New pope conclave and ‘The Sopranos’: The odd link

You couldn’t have written it any better − the first American pope and a “Sopranos” connection.

As the 133 cardinals who voted during the papal conclave became more known to the public in recent days, enjoying a brief bout of internet fame, some close watchers began to notice that one looked shockingly similar to a television mafioso.

Father Robert Alan Sirico, who was in Rome for the religious vote which ultimately anointed Pope Leo XIV as the next pontiff, is, in fact, the younger brother of Tony Sirico, who played Paul “Paulie Walnuts” Gualtieri on “The Sopranos.”

Now that the smoke has risen, here’s how to stream the movie ‘Conclave’

Tony Sirico, who died in 2022, played Gualtieri, Tony Soprano’s eccentric and paranoid henchman, for all six seasons of the hit HBO mob show.

His brother, Robert Sirico, is both a cardinal and a co-founder of the Acton Institute, a conservative religious think tank based out of Michigan.

The pair grew up on the edge of the Brooklyn borough, in the Bensonhurst and East Flatbush neighborhoods of New York City. From a family of Italian descent, the brothers took wildly different paths, with Robert Sirico going the route of the faithful and Tony heading first for some run-ins with the law, then to Hollywood.

“Where I grew up, every guy was trying to prove himself. You either had to have a tattoo or a bullet hole,” he told the Los Angeles Times in a 1990 profile. “I had both.”

He was arrested over 25 times before and spent two stints in prison before landing his defining role on “The Sopranos.”

‘Sopranos’ actor Tony Sirico, known for role as Paulie Walnuts, dead at 79

Robert Sirico became a priest in 1989 and spoke fondly of his brother at his funeral in July 2022, according to local publication The Brooklyn Reporter.

“As many of the professional actors who are here know, people often confuse the actor with the act,” he said of his brother. “When you look beneath that rough defensive armor, as Michael Imperioli called it last night at the wake, you begin to see a softer, gentler interior.”

How accurate is the movie ‘Conclave’ about the election of a new pope?

Telling a story about a time when his brother skipped Mass after failing to attend communion, Robert Sirico recalled: “I said to him, ‘Junior, you are the last bad Catholic in America.’”

“All the rest think they’re entitled to come to communion without that preparation,” he continued. “That revealed to me a seriousness which he had about repairing himself and an awareness of his own completeness and a necessity for confession before encountering a Holy God. I think that was his redemption.”

May 9, 2025
Watch these shows with your mom to celebrate

“Gilmore Girls” is great, but have you ever cackled with your mammy over the Northern Irish shenanigans of the “Derry Girls”?

May 11 is Mother’s Day, and if you are looking for something easy, fun and rewarding to do with your mom, it can be oh-so cozy and comforting to snuggle on the couch and binge-watch a TV show together. And while plenty of TV shows are known for their known for their mother/child (particularly mother/daughter) relationships, like WB classic “Girls,” starring Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel, your mom might want something a little more off the beaten path.

Here are five shows worth tuning into with mom on Mother’s Day, and all the other days of the year that you should appreciate all she’s done for you. Takeout, flowers and a nice gift go well with a binge-watch, too.

‘Derry Girls’

Nary an episode of this supremely funny series about teenagers in 1990s Northern Ireland amid the Troubles violence doesn’t feature the “mammys” and “das” exasperated with their children. Erin Quinn (Saoirse-Monica Jackson), Orla (Louisa Harland), Michelle (Jamie-Lee O’Donnell), Clare (Nicola Coughlan, of “Bridgerton” fame) and James (Dylan Llewellyn) get into some of the most ridiculous and idiotic troubles of their own over the series’ three seasons, but their weary mothers were always there to bail them out in the end. The seasons are short enough (six or seven episodes each) you could watch the whole series with your own mammy in a single weekend, and the Season 3 episode that flashes back to the parents’ teen years is the perfect reminder of the carefree youth mothers have left behind.

How to watch ‘Derry Girls’

Stream on Netflix.

‘Jane the Virgin’

Besides being a dramatic, fun take on the telenovela genre, the breakout role for Gina Rodriguez and a twisty nighttime soap, “Jane,” which aired on CW from 2014-19, is deeply reflective of the very concept of motherhood. When a woman (Rodriguez) who has never had sex is accidentally artificially inseminated, sure, outlandish plot twists occur. But she also gets to understand her mother and grandmother so much more, and reflect on how being a mother will change and define her own life. The villains, romances and surprises will keep you enthralled and the relationship between Jane and her two maternal figures will fill your heart.

How to watch ‘Jane the Virgin’

Available for purchase on Amazon, Fandango at Home and Apple TV.

‘Call the Midwife’

A fantastic medical drama on the one hand and a visceral and vivid reminder of what moms go through to bring you into this world, this long-running British series is a sweet and sentimental watch. “Midwife” follows obstetric nurses in an impoverished area of London the 1950s and ’60s, riding twee bicycles to deliver babies in falling-down flats. At least one birth scene is featured in each episode, plus a host of complications and maladies affecting the mothers who are just trying their best in the rapidly changing post-World War II society. The episodes can be everything from life-affirming to deeply tragic, and there is nothing that will make you appreciate your mother more.

How to watch ‘Call the Midwife’

Stream on Netflix; Season 14 airs on PBS (Sundays, 8 ET/PT; check local listings).

‘Schitt’s Creek’

Not every TV mom is what you might call nurturing, but they can be hilarious and quotable nonetheless. Perhaps one of the most quotable is Catherine O’Hara’s Moira Rose from this 2015-20 Canadian comedy, which aired on Pop TV. As a snobbish actress and socialite stranded in a small town with no money O’Hara’s Moira was an aloof delight over the series’ rolicking six seasons. Her relationship with children David (Dan Levy) and Alexis (Annie Murphy) was combative, competitive, cackle-worthy and ultimately loving. Just don’t ask her to explain what it means to “fold in the cheese.”

How to watch ‘Schitt’s Creek’

Stream on Prime Video, Hulu, Fubo TV and Philo.

‘One Day at a Time’

Shows about mothers and their adult children often get put on lists like this, because so many series with families with young children can be cliché and tiresome. The kids are annoying, the moms are screechy and the dads are checked out. Netflix’s canceled-too-soon 2017-20 remake of the 1970s Norman Lear sitcom falls into no such tropes and traps depicting a single mom, two kids and a grandmother in a Los Angeles apartment. Justina Machado’s Penelope Alvarez is a deeply venerable and vulnerable mom, trying her best to make a living and raise good humans with the help of her mother Lydia (the legendary Rita Moreno). She has the good times and the hard talks, and all of her interactions with her kids feel emotionally believable. Every other part of the series is authentic, heartfelt and hilarious, too.

How to watch ‘One Day at a Time’

Stream on Netflix.

May 9, 2025
Best medical TV shows of all timeTV

Best medical TV shows of all timeTV

May 9, 2025
Diddy lawsuits came after these New York laws opened the door

New York’s highly cited Adult Survivors Act, which gave victims of sexual abuse a one-year window for claims that would otherwise be barred by time limits, is a key factor in the civil lawsuits filed against Sean “Diddy” Combs.

The act, which expired in November 2023, led to an avalanche of complaints and lawsuits filed in its final days, with figures including Combs and his former Bad Boy president Harve Pierre, Jamie Foxx, Axl Rose, Russell Brand, Interscope Records co-founder Jimmy Iovine, music executive L.A. Reid, Cuba Gooding Jr. and more sued for sexual assault ahead of the deadline.

More than 2,500 lawsuits were filed under the law. And not all of the suits were against entertainment figures; the large majority were filed against the state of New York, New York City and local counties and involved allegations of abuse at state prisons and local jail systems.

Over a dozen were filed by Wigdor LLP, a New York-based law firm, partner Douglas Wigdor previously told USA TODAY. The attorney behind Cassie Ventura’s lawsuit against Combs, a woman’s lawsuit against Iovine and Julia Ormond’s suit against Harvey Weinstein, Wigdor said one reason so many lawsuits against people in the entertainment industry came out in the last few days of the law was because of the publicity Ventura’s case had received.

“I think that our case, involving Sean Combs, really got a lot of publicity. And people read about the Adult Survivors Act, and I think that provided impetus for people to come forward even though there were only a few days to do so,” he told USA TODAY in a November 2023 interview. “And so, my hope is that at some point, they’ll extend the ASA again, which is a possibility. And so that way other people can come forward.”

He said at the time that public perception could change the entertainment industry in response to credible sexual misconduct claims.

“With at least Cassie’s case, from what I observed, she received almost uniform support for coming forward,” Wigdor said. “When someone has evidence and support and a story that resonates as being truthful, the public is very receptive to holding people accountable for these heinous acts.”

Combs has denied all the allegations against him, and he’s pleaded not guilty to federal charges of sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution.

What is the Adult Survivors Act?

The act, signed by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Nov. 24, 2022, was modeled after a previous New York law offering people abused as children a temporary window to file claims. Under the new iteration, adults were able to file a lawsuit against their abusers regardless of when the abuse occurred.

Wigdor said similar laws – including New York City’s Gender Motivated Violence Act, which had a look-back period that expired in February 2025, and California’s Sexual Abuse and Cover-Up Accountability Act, for claims occurring between 2009 and 2019, and expires in 2026 – could be another means for victims to receive justice.

Adult Survivors Act: Why so many sexual assault lawsuits have been filed under New York law

Wigdor shared hope that similar laws would be enacted in other cities and states, such as Washington, D.C. “I don’t think politicians should be immune from these sorts of cases,” he said.

One of the first Adult Survivors Act cases filed after the window opened was against former President Donald Trump. His accuser, writer E. Jean Carroll, was awarded $5 million after Trump was found liable for the 1996 sexual abuse. Trump has denied the allegation.

What is the Gender Motivated Violence Act?

New York City’s Gender Motivated Violence Act allows survivors of gender-based violence to file civil lawsuits against their alleged abusers or those who facilitated the abuse, if the incident occurred in New York City. The typical timeframe to file a claim is nine years from the time of abuse, but in December 2022, a two-year “lookback window” was introduced.

Lawsuits under the act had a deadline of Feb. 28, 2025.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs hit with lawsuits under Adult Survivors Act, Gender Motivated Violence Act

The first lawsuit filed against Combs under the Adult Survivors Act and the Gender Motivated Violence Act was from R&B singer Cassie.

The November 2023 lawsuit alleged that Cassie, who began a professional and sexual relationship with the rap mogul when she was 19, was trafficked, raped and viciously beaten by Combs over the course of a decade.

Combs and Cassie reached a settlement one day later.

Diddy on trial newsletter: Step inside the courtroom as music mogul faces sex crimes charges

A second lawsuit was filed by Joi Dickerson-Neal under both acts less than a week later, on Nov. 23, 2023. The lawsuit alleges that the then-college student was sexually assaulted and abused by Combs in 1991 and that she was the victim of “revenge porn.” Combs videotaped the January 1991 assault and distributed the tape to others in the music industry, according to the suit.

A third lawsuit was filed the same day under the Adult Survivors Act, by a woman now identified as Liza Gardner, who claimed Combs and Guy singer Aaron Hall took turns raping her and a friend after meeting the pair at an MCA Records event in either 1990 or 1991, when she was 16 years old.

The fourth lawsuit filed against Combs, as well as Bad Boy Entertainment and its former president, Harve Pierre in December 2023, was under the Gender Motivated Violence Act. Pierre, who worked with Bad Boy since its inception in 1993, was accused by a former employee – now identified as Anna Kane – of using “his position of authority” as her boss “to groom, exploit, and sexually assault her.”

Many of the other nearly 70 civil lawsuits filed against Combs now also cite the Gender Motivated Violence Act.

If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence, RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline offers free, confidential, 24/7 support to survivors and their loved ones in English and Spanish at: 800.656.HOPE (4673) and Hotline.RAINN.org and en Español RAINN.org/es.

May 9, 2025
Netflix’s ‘Nonnas,’ ‘The Pitt,’ John Wick doc
Love movies? Live for TV? USA TODAY’s Watch Party newsletter has all the best recommendations, delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now and be one of the cool kids.
Moms rule.

No, really. With Mother’s Day upon us, it’s time to shout out matriarchs everywhere and celebrate the joy they’ve brought to us. (For much of my childhood, my mom was straight up my best friend and mostly encouraged my pop culture loves – though she wasn’t too sure about the pro wrestling or Stephen King books!)

The new Netflix dramedy “Nonnas” is a perfect watch for this weekend, with Vince Vaughn as a dude who starts a restaurant with Italian grandmothers as his chefs. If your mom digs TV, why not share with her one of the many, many medical shows on TV? And if your mom loves action flicks and/or Keanu Reeves by chance? Well, there’s a new “John Wick” documentary out – and also, your mom is crazy cool.

Now on to the good stuff:

See Joe Manganiello celebrate Italian food and grandmas in ‘Nonnas’

Netflix’s new “Nonnas” is a celebration of moms, grandmas and scrumptious food, with Vince Vaughn starring as a man who honors his beloved Italian mom after her death by opening a family-friendly eatery. Joe Manganiello, who plays the best friend of Vaughn’s character, said that huge meals were just a part of the filmmaking process. “For the whole movie, three or four times a week, I’m at home after these giant meals in my hotel room, just staring at the ceiling, just trying to breathe. Then, off to Crunch gym in Hoboken the next day to try to work it all off,” the actor tells my pal Ralphie Aversa in a wide-ranging interview.

“Nonnas” is just one of several new movies hitting streaming services this month. And, yep, you guessed it, I rounded up a guide full of ’em. (Pro tip: Get on “Black Bag” ASAP. ‘Tis a banger.)

Stream ‘The Pitt’ and the best medical TV shows ever

In case you weren’t aware, medical TV dramas are back in vogue. Max’s “The Pitt” has proven to be a popular, real-time binge (think “24” with a lot more stress and ventilators) but there’s also a bunch of other new shows like “Watson,” “Pulse,” “Doc” and my personal guilty favorite, “Doctor Odyssey.” Where else are you going to find shark attacks, medical love triangles AND Hot Tub Week?

TV critic Kelly Lawler wrote an essay about why we’re so obsessed yet again with doctor shows, writing that “they’ve showed up at the right time to heal ailing viewers.” She also put together a ranking of the best medical TV series ever – “Grey’s Anatomy” is somehow above “St. Elsewhere” and “The Knick” but folks do love that soapy bunch at Seattle Grace!

Revisit the making of Keanu Reeves’ ‘John Wick’ movies with ‘Wick Is Pain’

“John Wick” is one of the coolest franchise success stories in recent years, taking an original idea (ex-hitman gets forced out of retirement when some baddies kill his dog) and creating a deep and expansive neo-noir mythology. Not to mention it revived Keanu Reeves’ movie-star career, plus has given us some awesome and unforgettable action-movie sequences.

The new documentary “Wick Is Pain” chronicles the behind-the-scenes journey of the franchise, including how tumultuous the making of the 2014 original “Wick” was. I talked with Reeves and director Chad Stahelski about the intriguing revelations in the film, from stuntwork and the physical toll “Wick” has taken on its star to the key moment where a tearful John holds his murdered puppy. “To have that moment of grief was really fun for me to play,” Reeves says.

Even more goodness to check out!

Lewis Pullman has a breakout role in Marvel’s “Thunderbolts*” (aka “The New Avengers”) and he’s hoping to share screen time with Robert Downey Jr. in “Avengers: Doomsday.”

A couple of cops are leaving “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”: Octavio Pisano and Juliana Aidén Martinez are off duty following the season finale.

More “Yellowstone,” y’all! Luke Grimes is heading up the new “Marshals” spinoff.

Tina Fey spills on how original “The Four Seasons” star Alan Alda was recruited for a cameo in the Netflix remake.

Amy Poehler is reuniting with her “Parks and Recreation” boss Mike Schur for a new show.

Got thoughts, questions, ideas, concerns, compliments or maybe even some recs for me? Email [email protected] and follow me on the socials: I’m @briantruitt on Bluesky, Instagram and Threads.
May 9, 2025
What we know about release, trailer

“Squid Game” fans awoke to a scintillating and suspenseful new look at the show’s third season earlier this week.

In a new trailer, released May 5, beloved characters return after Season 2’s violent cliff-hanger. Back to battle once again for their lives and a giant cash prize, the wordless preview sees contestants facing a series of high-stakes situations, involving guns, fists and an ominous giant gumball machine.

The viral dystopic show, which centers around main character Seong Gi-hun or Player 456 (Lee Jung-jae), has delighted fans since its 2021 premiere, combining classic thriller elements with a deeper exploration of the human capacity for evil and the perils of an unequal society.

Surprise! The ‘Squid Game’ reality show is morally despicable (and really boring)

What did the ‘Squid Game’ Season 3 trailer reveal?

The new trailer reveals that Gi-Hun, after attempting to take down the creators in Season 2 and nearly paying with his life, is back in the games.

In a description of the trailer, Netflix wrote that he “will be forced to make some important choices in the face of overwhelming despair as he and the surviving players are thrust into deadlier games that test everyone’s resolve.”

Season 2’s finale also revealed In-Ho (Lee Byung-hun), or Player 001, to be the Front Man, who entered the games posing as an ordinary player. In-Ho also returns, serving as a foil for Gi-Hun’s conscience.

“Will Gi-hun make the right decisions, or will Front Man finally break his spirit?” the trailer’s description teases. The preview also ends with a baby’s cry, offering yet another possible plot clue.

‘Squid Game’ without subtitles? Duolingo, Netflix encourage fans to learn Korean

Why did Season 3 of ‘Squid Game’ come so quickly?

While fans waited anxiously for Season 2 after a mid-pandemic release of Season 1, Season 3 is arriving on Netflix more swiftly.

This is because Seasons 2 and 3 were filmed back-to-back, resulting in a short six-month wait compared to the three-year hiatus between the first two seasons.

‘Squid Game’ Season 2 finale: Director spills on cliffhanger, Season 3

When is the ‘Squid Game’ Season 3 release date?

The third and final installment of the series, Netflix’s biggest global hit, will premiere on June 27.

How to watch ‘Squid Game’ Season 3

The third season of “Squid Game” will be available for streaming only on Netflix.

Contributing: Brendan Morrow

May 9, 2025
‘3 Doors Down’, Brad Arnold and the rise of cancer in young people

Brad Arnold, the lead vocalist for 3 Doors Down, revealed this week on May 7 that he’s been diagnosed with advanced stage kidney cancer.

“I’ve got some not-so-good news for you today,” Arnold, 46, said in an Instagram video. “So, I’d been sick a couple of weeks ago and then went to the hospital and got checked out and had actually got the diagnosis that I had clear cell renal carcinoma that had metastasized into my lung. And it’s stage 4, and that’s not real good.”

Young celebrity after celebrity have recently announced they have (or had) cancer. James Van Der Beek. Jenna Fischer. Olivia Munn. Princess Kate. Elle Macpherson. The list goes on.

What’s going on? There’s no exact cause known for the rise in cancers among young people, according to experts, but researchers are trying to figure it out. The best bet for a health-conscious person is fine-tuning diet and exercise routines, staying up-to-date on screenings, listening to your body and going to regular doctor’s appointments.

Screenings will vary by age group. But given the higher incidence rate in young people, would that mean earlier screenings may be necessary? “We’re not, at this point, recommending that everybody who’s 30 go out and get screening tests,” Dr. John Marshall, director of The Ruesch Center for the Cure of GI Cancers at Georgetown University, previously told USA TODAY. “But what we are recommending is that when people do have symptoms, that they don’t write it off as other things.”

‘Out of the blue’

When Marshall – a self-described “old oncologist” – first started his career, no one under the age of 50 sat down in his clinic. Now they make up about half his patients. A significant portion are in their 30s and 40s, mostly with colon cancer.

“Most of these people are in fact, very healthy, very conscious of what they eat,” he said. “They’re exercise people, they’re the ‘right weight,’ and no family history for these cancers, and it’s kind of out of the blue.”

He’s not alone. “In my own practice I have seen, and statistically we have seen nationwide,” Dr. Emil Lou, professor of medicine at the University of Minnesota previously told USA TODAY, “a stunning rise in cases that we now refer to as ‘early onset’ or ‘young adult’ cancers, generally defined as occurring in individuals younger than 50 years of age.”

What health & wellness means for you: Sign up for USA TODAY’s Keeping It Together newsletter.

A leading theory behind this incidence uptick is all the changes to our microbiome over time – the environment, air, water, etc. “A lot of folks suspect that there’s early life exposures that may have something to do with either our water supply or our food supply,” Dr. Mohamed Abazeed, co-leader of the Lung Cancer Program in the Lurie Cancer Center at Northwestern University, also previously told USA TODAY.

Marshall wondered: Is it our water quality? Is it food processing? All these factors have potential consequences for our health, beyond cancer. But cancer is drawing attention given its grave nature.

‘It could have spread’

Perhaps if people routinely visited their primary care physician, they could catch diseases before they develop or spread. More than three-quarters of Americans put off important health check-ups, according to a recent Aflac Wellness Matters Survey. It’s higher for millennials at 84%.

For those eligible for health screenings like a colonoscopy, physicians could catch and remove precancerous polyps in addition to checking for cancer already present.

Jenna Fischer, 50, said in an Instagram post sharing her breast cancer journey: “My tumor was so small it could not be felt on a physical exam. If I had waited six months longer, things could have been much worse. It could have spread.”

Treat your symptoms ‘seriously’

Of course, it’s critical to think about data in context. People have been less likely to die from cancer over the last few decades despite the increasing incidence rate.

Still, Marshall cautioned both patients and medical professionals to not brush away concerning symptoms just because someone is young. Don’t send a 30-year-old with rectal bleeding away assuming it’s a hemorrhoid; if that person was 60 or 70, you wouldn’t immediately rule out colon cancer.

Lou added: “Ultimately, knowing your body and trusting your intuition if you feel something is wrong is important to recognize at any age. If you report your symptoms to a medical care team and don’t feel that you are being heard, then be persistent and seek out additional opinions.”

The short of it: If you experience dietary or weight changes or a shift in bowel habits that lasts for weeks? Go to the doctor. “That’s generally the way these things show up,” Marshall said, “sort of vague, early symptoms that don’t seem to go away. Treat them seriously.”

May 9, 2025
Joe Manganiello’s girlfriend has an Instagram page for his dog

NEW YORK − While filming the movie “Nonnas,” Joe Manganiello stayed in Hoboken, New Jersey. He settled into a routine there, from his favorite coffee shops to his dog-walking route. The actor also became familiar with his local gym, thanks to the cast dinners he indulged in.

“We’re out at some Italian restaurant eating giant meals,” Manganiello, 48, recalls to USA TODAY, noting that chefs would send out appetizers on the house. “Nobody’s eating it all because they’re trying to fit into their costumes. So there’s all this food leftover and all the actresses are like reverting to character and going, ‘Here, honey, eat it.’ And pushing it to me, like I’m the kid.”

Manganiello obliged his elders. “Nonnas” (streaming now on Netflix) is based on the true story of Enoteca Maria, a restaurant in Staten Island that employees “nonnas” (Italian for grandmother) as chefs. In the film, Vince Vaughn takes on the role of the restaurant’s owner, Joe, and Manganiello plays his best friend, Bruno. The grandmothers are portrayed by Lorraine Bracco, Susan Sarandon, Brenda Vaccaro and Talia Shire. In real life, they’re all old enough to be Manganiello’s mother.

Join our Watch Party! Sign up to receive USA TODAY’s movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox

“For the whole movie, three or four times a week, I’m at home after these giant meals in my hotel room, just staring at the ceiling, just trying to breathe,” he says. “Then, off to Crunch gym in Hoboken the next day to try to work it all off.”

Joe Manganiello’s dog is a social media star, thanks to his girlfriend

A few guests join Manganiello for the interview. His girlfriend, actress and host Caitlin O’Connor, sits off-camera. The actor’s chihuahua Bubbles rests comfortably on his lap. Manganiello rescued Bubbles from Dogs Without Borders six years ago. It’s his first pet.

“The first time I held a dog in my lap was her,” he says of Bubbles, who came into his life when the actor was still married to Sofia Vergara. They split in 2023 after seven years of marriage. “She wanted me to pick her up like right away. It was the universe telling me it was time to have a dog.”

Bubbles has come a long way literally and figuratively since then: The chihuahua overcame a number of health complications, including cancer. Now she travels the world with Manganiello and O’Connor.

“I swore I was never going to do an Instagram account for the dog, I wasn’t going to be that guy,” he says. “But my girlfriend started one. And so she posts and she’s doing a great job.”

Both O’Connor and Bubbles joined Manganiello at the “Nonnas” premiere. On Instagram, the couple’s attire had fans doing a double take, thinking it was a wedding photo.

“Traditionally, the guy doesn’t hold the wedding bouquet,” says Manganiello, referencing Bubbles, which was in his arms and could be mistaken at a glance as a bouquet of flowers. “Traditionally, the guy isn’t holding a five-pound chihuahua, either.”

Joe Manganiello honored his great-grandmother with Capitol Hill speech

Manganiello is an Italian last name, but the actor is also of Armenian descent. His maternal great-grandmother survived the Armenian genocide by the Ottoman Empire during World War I.

In April, the actor traveled to Washington to give a speech for the Armenian Assembly of America. His purpose was to commemorate the 110th anniversary of the genocide and advocate for the release of 23 hostages detained in Azerbaijan.

“I felt like my great-grandmother would’ve been proud of what I did,” Manganiello says of his trip to meet with lawmakers. “But it was also very difficult emotionally to drum (those memories) up.”

While President Joe Biden formally recognized the genocide in 2021, Manganiello says the recent conflict with Azerbaijan has Armenians “worried that they’re being left out to the wolves.”

“I don’t think any of the survivors would’ve thought that any of their stories would be told a century later,” he says of his great-grandmother and others. “I really feel like it’s my obligation to speak about what she went through. I meet Armenians all over the world who stop me and thank me for speaking up. So I know that it means something.”

May 9, 2025
'Nonnas' star Joe Manganiello explains why he hit the gym for new filmEntertain This!

‘Nonnas’ star Joe Manganiello explains why he hit the gym for new filmEntertain This!

May 9, 2025