Pop Base: Imane Khelif wins gold, Joaquin Phoenix ditches gay romance film project and More!

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Imane Khelif wins gold, files a legal complaint against bashers

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif secured gold at the women’s welterweight championship, winning against Yang Liu of China with a score of 5:0, in the Paris Olympics on Friday, August 9. 

“For eight years, this has been my dream, and I’m now the Olympic champion and gold medalist,” the boxer said.

A day after her historic victory, Khelif declared that her next battle would be in the legal arena, as she filed a complaint against “aggravated cyber-harassment” following heated online debates regarding her gender.

"All that is being said about me on social media is immoral. I want to change the minds of people around the world," the boxer asserted. “We are in the Olympics to perform as athletes, and I hope that we will not see any similar attacks in future Olympics,” she maintained.

Khelif faced intense scrutiny after false rumors spread online, claiming she was a man competing in the women's boxing division. 

This started when she, along with fellow Olympian Lin Yu-ting from Taiwan, was banned by the International Boxing Association (IBA) from last year’s world championships after failing the organization’s gender eligibility test. 

However, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had already cut ties with the IBA in 2023 due to issues in management and corruption. The former also questioned the credibility of gender tests administered against Khelif and Yu-ting.

“The testing, the method of the testing… none of it is legitimate,” IOC Spokesperson Mark Adams asserted.

Adams believed that the two athletes had been unfairly targeted. “Two athletes tested in the middle of the world championships… Is it fair and right that two individuals are targeted in this way…. by a federation that is completely discredited?” he noted.

“As for the IBA, since 2018, I have been boxing under their umbrella. They know me very well, they know what I’m capable of, they know how I’ve developed over the years but now they are not recognized anymore. They hate me and I don’t know why,” Khelif responded when asked about the previous disqualification imposed by the organization. 

“I send them a single message: with this gold medal, my dignity, my honor is above everything else,” the Olympic gold medalist proclaimed. 

“My honor is intact now,” she added.

Joaquin Phoenix ditches gay romance film project

Oscar awardee Joaquin Phoenix unexpectedly withdrew from his latest project, a gay romance movie directed by Todd Haynes, just five days before the production was scheduled to begin.

The 49-year-old actor’s abrupt departure came as a shock to the crew members who had already been situated at Guadalajara, Mexico–the film’s supposed setting. The crew had since been rendered unemployed.

Moreover, the rights to the film had already been sold by Killer Films and MK2 Film to international distributors. This entailed that Phoenix’s withdrawal also caused significant harm to several stakeholders, with losses estimated in the seven-figure range, according to Variety.

Deadline reported that they have no plans to recast Phoenix. Instead, the movie’s production had been terminated altogether. 

The actor was set to star alongside Top Gun’s Danny Ramirez.  The film was centered on two men in a whirlwind romance who leave California for Mexico. Insiders revealed that the movie featured its “fair share of edgy scenes.”

The More You Know

• As the Paris Olympics draws to a close, two countries are tied in terms of gold medal count: the US and China. Both countries clinched 40 gold medals from various sports categories. However, the US still dominated in terms of overall medal count, securing a total of 126 medals.

• EXO Baekhyun confirmed his long-awaited solo comeback. His 4th mini album titled Hello World will be released on September 6.

• In an Instagram post, LISA gave a sneak peek of “New Woman,” her upcoming single featuring Rosalia. It will be released on Thursday, August 15, at 8pm EST.

• “It’s a girl!” Gypsy Rose Blanchard shared a new parenting milestone and posted her gender reveal celebration on TikTok. Blanchard was released from prison in 2023 after being convicted for killing her mother, following years of abuse that stemmed from the latter's alleged Munchausen syndrome by proxy. When Blanchard broke the news of her pregnancy last month, she vowed to be “everything [her] mother wasn’t.”

• Celine Dion called out Donald Trump for unauthorized use of her hit song “My Heart Will Go On” at a campaign rally in Montana. The singer took to X to clarify that she did not endorse such use. 

• At the D23 Fan Expo, Pixar chief creative officer Pete Docter announced Incredibles 3 is currently in the works. He also revealed that director Andrew Stanton is currently working on the story for Toy Story 5, which would revolve around the rivalry between toys and technology. Moreover, the trailer for Moana 2 was unveiled at the same event. This much-anticipated sequel is expected to hit the theaters on November 27.