The Cut - The Tormented Rise of Rose Byrne

Somewhere between Hillary Clinton’s first and second presidential bids, it became passé — and utterly dull — to ask women of note whether they were feminists. Any answer to the once-Zeitgeist-y question, foisted upon female actors, pop stars, and doctors, was the wrong one, and would make headlines in the days that followed. This is a good thing for Rose Byrne, who, given her recent track record, would almost certainly have been interrogated on the belief that people should be treated equally, every time she faced the press.

The one-two punch of her latest projects in particular would have really landed Byrne in the F-word hot seat: Last year, it was FX on Hulu’s Mrs. America, in which she portrayed the mother of white feminism herself, Gloria Steinem. And beginning June 18, it’s her AppleTV+ series Physical, which, incidentally, picks up in 1981, exactly where Mrs. America left off.

The polls in New York City are open until 9 p.m. — do you know your polling site? How the most messed-up Disney movie, Hunchback, ended up with a G rating. Editor-in-chief Michelle Lee is leaving Allure after six years for greener ($$) pastures at Netflix. Avril Lavigne made her TikTok debut with Tony Hawk and, of course, a “Sk8er Boi” tribute. A mom in Florence, Alabama, is facing felony charges for refilling a painkiller prescription while pregnant. Britney Spears has quietly been pushing to end her conservatorship for years. And it’s entirely unclear what this Adam Driver–Marion Cotillard film is about, but the new trailer’s piquing our curiosity.

It happened this week — let’s talk about it. Sign up for My Week in New York: a new newsletter from the editors.