Actress Jodie Foster revealed the reason that she passed up an iconic film role — Princess Leia in the original “Star Wars” trilogy — during a recent talk show appearance. Foster joined “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” on Wednesday to promote her new HBO series‚ “True Detective: Night Country” — and Fallon asked her whether it was true that she turned down the role. WATCH: Jodie Foster was almost Princess Leia in @starwars! #FallonTonight pic.twitter.com/Ac1JVeHJYE — The Tonight Show (@FallonTonight) January 18‚ 2024 “I saw this on the internet‚ it resurfaced somehow‚ that you were offered the role of Princess Leia from ‘Star Wars‚'” Fallon prompted. “I was‚ yeah. And they were going for a younger‚ you know‚ Princess Leia‚ but I had a conflict‚” Foster said. The actress‚ now 61‚ would have been just 15 when the first film was released in 1977. “I was doing a Disney movie‚ and I just didn’t want to pull out of the Disney movie because I was already under contract so I didn’t do it. And you know‚ they did an amazing job‚” Foster added. “I don’t know how good I would have been.” The Oscar winner went on to say that she might have gone with a different hairstyle if she had taken on the role of Leia‚ joking‚ “I might have gone with a pineapple.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP The role of Leia‚ the princess-turned-general‚ ultimately went to the late actress Carrie Fisher. Others who were considered for the role reportedly included Jane Seymour (“Dr. Quinn‚ Medicine Woman”)‚ Geena Davis (“A League of Their Own”)‚ Sigourney Weaver (“Alien”)‚ and Meryl Streep. The Disney movie Foster had already committed to was 1977’s “Candleshoe.”

Chris Pratt definitely got everyone’s attention on Thursday when he dropped news that production will soon get underway for a prequel to “The Terminal List‚” titled “The Terminal List: Dark Wolf.” In a post on Instagram‚ the 44-year-old actor shared a poster revealing the title for the prequel to the 2022 Amazon Prime hit series. It will once again star Pratt along with actor Taylor Kitsch from the original show. “From the Producers of [TheTerminalList] and NYT Bestselling author [Jackcarrusa]–introducing THE TERMINAL LIST: DARK WOLF‚ a prequel series featuring Ben Edwards and James Reece‚” the post read. “Production begins early this year.” From the Producers of #TheTerminalList and NYT Bestselling author @JackCarrUSA-introducing THE TERMINAL LIST: DARK WOLF‚ a prequel series featuring Ben Edwards and James Reece. Production begins early this year. pic.twitter.com/i5lbMaVWXn — The Terminal List (@TerminalListPV) January 18‚ 2024 In the first season‚ Pratt’s character‚ former Navy SEAL officer James Reece‚ must investigate “why his entire platoon was ambushed during a high-stakes covert mission‚” a description on IMDb reads. Kitsch‚ who plays Ben Edwards‚ also shared the post and wrote “swear I had nada to do with the ‘Dark Wolf’ part” and he included a smiley face‚ along with the hashtag “getting the band back together.” The universe of “The Terminal List” continues to grow after series author Jack Carr and Pratt confirmed last February that Amazon had given the green light for a second season — titled “The Terminal List: True Believer” — following the first season’s success. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP The second season will pull from Carr’s book of the same name‚ picking up where the series left off with Reece as a wanted fugitive‚ “who gets pulled back into government service after a series of terrorist attacks‚” ScreenRant.com noted. Showrunner David DiGilio (Black Sails) said the second season is an “epic blueprint for an epic season.”  The first season was a huge hit for the streaming site‚ scoring the No. 2 spot on Nielsen’s weekly Top 10 streaming ratings chart‚ Deadline noted.  In July‚ the “Guardians of the Galaxy” star reminded fans the second season was still in the works. “One year ago today‚ we brought James Reece to your living room!” Pratt captioned his post. “The amount of love you all have for this show is overwhelming. Nothing brings me greater joy than sharing these thrilling stories with you. You ain’t ready for what we have in store for you! [The Terminal List].” The Carr series was a massive hit with audiences‚ despite critics trying to slam it as “anti-woke” and more‚ as previously reported. It hit the streaming site on July 1‚ 2022. The author previously reacted to “triggered critics” who have trashed the series and said it wasn’t made for them. “We didn’t make it for the critics‚” Carr shared. “We made it for those in the arena. We made it for the soldier‚ sailor‚ airman‚ and Marine that went downrange to Iraq and Afghanistan‚ so they could sit on the couch and say‚ ‘Hey‚ these guys put in the work. They put in the effort to make something special and make a show that speaks to them.'”

The judge presiding over special counsel Jack Smith’s 2020 election case in Washington‚ D.C.‚ delivered a mixed ruling on Thursday in response to former President Donald Trump‘s push to hold prosecutors in contempt for allegedly violating a court order pausing the proceedings while an immunity-focused appeal plays out. U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan‚ an Obama appointee‚ granted the recommendation by Trump’s lawyers to forbid both sides from filing “substantive pretrial motions” without first seeking permission from the court. But she denied the rest of Trump’s motion‚ which included a push for the court to order Smith to “show cause” why prosecutors should not be held in contempt. Lawyers for Trump claimed that prosecutors violated the judge’s stay last month by making filings‚ including thousands of pages of discovery‚ during the appeal. They also accused Smith’s team of seeking to “weaponize” the pause “to spread political propaganda‚ knowing that President Trump would not fully respond because the Court relieved him of the burdens of litigation during the Stay.” Prosecutors argued Trump’s motion should be denied as they prepare for what is currently scheduled to be a trial set for early March. “The Government has not violated — and never intentionally would violate — an order of the Court‚ and the defendant’s recycled allegations of partisanship and prosecutorial misconduct remain baseless‚” Smith’s team wrote in a filing. Prosecutors also said they intended to “comply with its continuing discovery obligations and to voluntarily satisfy the remaining deadlines.” The clash began after Chutkan rejected Trump’s bid to dismiss the case‚ in which the former president is accused of unlawfully plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 election. She paused the proceedings when Trump’s legal team filed an appeal that hinges on presidential immunity and double jeopardy claims. With the Supreme Court refusing to quickly take up the question of whether presidential immunity provides Trump broad protections against prosecution‚ a three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals is considering the matter. Oral arguments took place last week‚ and reporting on the hearing indicated that the judges were skeptical of the immunity claim. A trial is currently set to start on March 4 — one day before Super Tuesday — but that may change depending on how long it takes for the presidential immunity issue to be settled.  Upon freezing the case in mid-December‚ Chutkan said her stay would stop “any further proceedings that would move this case towards trial or impose additional burdens of litigation on Defendant.” But there were some caveats‚ underscoring that stayed deadlines and proceedings have not been “permanently vacated” and protective measures — such as the gag order against Trump — would remain in place unless a higher court ruled otherwise. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP Chutkan stated in her ruling on Thursday that any party seeking permission to make a “substantive” filing “shall state whether the proposed motion is ancillary to the pending appeal and so requires a timely response or other action before the mandate is returned.” She added‚ “This measure is an addition to the Stay Order‚ aimed to further advance its purposes‚ and does not reflect a determination that the Government has violated any of its clear and unambiguous terms or acted in bad faith.” As he runs a third campaign for the White House‚ Trump is facing three other criminal cases‚ including another one led by Smith over the former president’s handling of classified documents‚ as well as civil litigation and ballot access challenges. Trump has broadly denied any wrongdoing and has argued that politically motivated prosecutors are conducting a “witch hunt” against him.

A Georgia judge has ordered a hearing on allegations that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis had an inappropriate relationship with a prosecutor she appointed to work her 2020 Georgia election case against former President Donald Trump.  Willis is accused of going on lavish vacations with private lawyer Nathan Wade at the same time her office paid him hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Trump case. Wade‚ who reportedly has little prosecuting experience‚ is allegedly in a romantic relationship with Willis.  Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee said on Thursday that Willis must respond in writing to the allegations by February 2 and schedule a hearing on the accusations on February 15‚ according to the Washington Post.  The allegations against Willis were made by former Trump campaign aide Mike Roman in a court filing that said that the charges against him should be dismissed and that Wade should not be working the case.  Wade has reportedly received more than $650‚000 since January of 2022 from the Fulton County DA’s office. Willis is also accused of misleading county officials in seeking extra funds to pay Wade‚ and in what could be a state violation‚ allegedly never seeking the county’s approval to hire him‚ as is required by Georgia law. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP Willis has suggested that the accusations against her are racially motivated.  “They only attacked one‚” Willis said on Sunday in response to the criticism of Wade. “First thing they say‚ ‘Oh‚ she’s gonna play the race card now.’ But no God‚ isn’t it them that’s playing the race card when they only question one.” “Isn’t it them playing the race card when they constantly think I need someone from some other jurisdiction in some other state to tell me how to do a job I’ve been doing almost 30 years‚” she added.  House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) is also investigating Wade and his ties to both Willis and the White House. Wade reportedly met with Democrats several times in Washington‚ D.C.‚ including meetings with the Democrat-run January 6 Committee and at the White House prior to the launch of the Georgia election case against Trump. 

Animal rescue organizations and political organizers are teaming up to rescue abused and abandoned dogs in the Colony Ridge development in Texas‚ citing inhumane conditions for hundreds of animals across the sprawling development that’s become a magnet for illegal immigrants. The rescue effort is being held in conjunction with Big Dog Ranch Rescue‚ the biggest no-kill dog rescue organization in the United States‚ and is set to take place on January 19th and 20th. The rescue operation will save dogs in Colony Ridge‚ which is quickly growing thanks to a marketing campaign that appears to be aimed at attracting non-citizens. The development‚ roughly the size of Washington D.C.‚ has become a magnet for illegal aliens due to marketing and financial strategies aimed at attracting non-citizens.   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by John Rourke (@johnjrourke) “We invite you to join us in our efforts to rescue and provide medical help and shelter for grossly abused and neglected animals in Colony Ridge‚” a social media graphic advertising the event reads. John Rourke‚ founder of the Great American Cleanup‚ highlighted the horrific conditions that stray and abused dogs in Colony Ridge are facing‚ posting graphic images of mangled‚ bloodied‚ and emaciated dogs that have been spotted and rescued in the development.   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by John Rourke (@johnjrourke) “I was provided these images and more by some wonderful people who are doing their best to rescue as many animals as possible from this illegal alien sanctuary‚” Rourke stated in another post documenting dozens of more dogs in Colony Ridge. “There are 1000’s of dogs and cats roaming this vast area.” “I can’t see this and not do something about it‚” Rourke‚ who is helping to organize the rescue effort‚ wrote in a post on Instagram. “This is what our nation is becoming. You bring in the third world‚ and you become the third world.” The Daily Wire visited Colony Ridge last year and documented stray dogs roaming the underdeveloped streets. Residents in the area surrounding Colony Ridge told The Daily Wire that the development is home to third-world conditions‚ explaining that it is not uncommon to hear gunshots ringing out at night or to see trash piling up in the ditches. The development has since come under heavy scrutiny‚ now facing an investigation from the Environmental Protection Agency and ongoing lawsuit from the Department of Justice (DOJ) over predatory financing and bait-and-switch tactics. The embattled development is also reportedly under investigation by the Internal Revenue Service and the Army Corps of Engineers. The rescue effort is also being organized by Better Together Dog Rescue‚ an organization that seeks to stop the euthanasia of dogs‚ providing opportunities for adoption and collaborating with veterinarians.

“Saturday Night Live” alum Dana Carvey has returned to his podcast for the first time since his son Dex’s death from an overdose last year.  The 68-year-old comedic actor gave an update on the latest episode of the “Fly on the Wall” podcast he hosts with fellow “SNL” actor David Spade‚ per Variety. “If you’re listening to our podcast‚ you probably know about my family’s loss‚” Carvey said during the episode. “I just wanted to say that the amount of outpouring online and emailing and people I still haven’t been able to call back is incredible.” “I thought about this over the holidays and decided to come back to the podcast because I think‚ you know‚ it’s a long day when you’re not working and you get in your head‚” he added. “And I think it’s going to be a great break‚ and I think it’s really cool to laugh.” Spade agreed that it was “nice to do the show again” after Carvey took time off to mourn. Carvey explained how he and his family have been grieving since Dex’s death last fall. “It’s me and my wife and our son’s private journey‚” he said‚ referring to his younger son‚ Thomas. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP “We’re all together‚ and we do a lot of fun things… We hike‚ we go to church. You just want to make sure you keep moving.” Carvey said one reason he wanted to return to the podcast is because “riffing” with Spade is “healthy” for him as he processes the loss of his son. “I’m kind of on the pain train‚” he said. “You don’t know how long you’re going to be on it or when it will stop or when it will get better. In the meantime‚ all this kind of stuff is very healthy.” Carvey’s oldest son overdosed and died at the age of 32 in November. He told fans about his son’s death on social media‚ calling it a “terrible tragedy.”  “Dex packed a lot into those 32 years‚” Carvey wrote at the time. “He was extremely talented at so many things — music‚ art‚ filmmaking‚ comedy — and pursued all of them passionately.”

Communist China conducted its largest military drills around Taiwan in weeks on Wednesday‚ which comes just days after Taiwan once again elected a president that has vowed to confront China. Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense said that China’s military conducted air and naval operations near the island nation last night with 24 planes and five ships. “The security and prosperity of the Taiwan Strait region are closely related to global development and stability‚ and are obligations and responsibilities that all parties in the region must share‚” Taiwan said in a statement. “The military will continue to strengthen its self-defence capabilities by enemy threats and self-defence needs‚ and respond to regional threats.” The military exercises come after Taiwan elected Lai Ching-te of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) last week to become the island nation’s next president. His victory marks the first time that a political party in Taiwan has won a third straight presidential election‚ Bloomberg News reported. The DPP has vowed political independence from China and views Taiwan as its own sovereign nation. “This is a night that belongs to Taiwan. We managed to keep Taiwan on the map of the world‚” Lai told supporters after winning. “The election has shown the world the commitment of the Taiwanese people to democracy‚ which I hope China can understand.” His election victory came despite warnings from China that Taiwan will be reunited with it either through elections or through the Chinese military invading the country. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP A spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs lashed out after the election‚ saying that it does not matter “whatever changes take place in Taiwan‚ the basic fact that there is only one China in the world and Taiwan is part of China will not change.” “The one-China principle is the solid anchor for peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait‚” the spokesperson added. “We believe that the international community will continue to adhere to the one-China principle and understand and support the Chinese people’s just cause of opposing ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist activities and striving to achieve national reunification.” Fears of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan have increased significantly in recent years due to a variety of reasons‚ including but not limited to: China making serious investments in its military‚ China’s economy not being in good shape‚ and weakness from the Biden administration. The Daily Wire Editor Emeritus Ben Shapiro warned in an op-ed this week that if President Joe Biden is not polling well against whoever becomes the Republican Party’s presidential nominee‚ China could view their window for launching an invasion as closing and thus launch an invasion in the coming months.

Some student loan borrowers are refusing to make payments in protest‚ hoping they can force the Biden administration to cancel all student loan debt. According to an Intelligent.com survey of 1‚000 federal student loan borrowers‚ about 25% said they had not made any payments‚ and 9% of those who had not paid at all said they were not paying to pressure the government into canceling their debt. According to the survey‚ about 44% of those boycotting their payments said they believe their protest will result in the government canceling at least some federal student loan debt‚ the survey found. About 28% said they think the boycott is “likely” to succeed in getting the government to cancel all student loan debt. As many as 86% said they think it is “very” or “somewhat likely” that the boycott will bring attention to the student loan issue. The pandemic pause on student loan payments expired in October after more than three years. Close to nine million people missed their first payment‚ the Department of Education said last month. That means about 40% of the 22 million people who had student loan payments due in October still had not made a payment by well into November. For comparison‚ less than 26% of borrowers missed their payment in October 2019‚ before the pandemic pause went into effect in March 2020 in the thick of the COVID pandemic. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP In June‚ the Supreme Court struck down President Biden’s massive $430 billion student debt relief plan that would have forgiven 40 million people’s loans. After the court’s decision‚ Biden said he would “stop at nothing to find other ways to deliver relief to hard-working middle-class families.” Biden has still managed to forgive up to $116 billion in student loans for more than 3.4 million people‚ the administration said in August. Leftist lawmakers and activists have long called for broad student debt relief‚ and for years have urged the Biden administration to grant it. Critics argue that forgiving student loans is unfair to those who sacrificed to pay off their loans‚ especially since taxpayers ultimately pay for any government-funded debt relief. About 69% of the borrowers who had not made a payment after the pause ended said they could not afford to do so‚ the Intelligent.com survey found. About 18% of borrowers who had not started making payments again said they planned to wait until September‚ which is when the more severe consequences for missing payments kick in. For the next few months‚ the Biden administration has an “on-ramp” program to protect borrowers from the “harshest consequences” of missed payments such as delinquency‚ default‚ and mandatory collections.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly said this week that Israel is not just striking Iran’s terrorist proxy groups in the region‚ but Iran itself. Netanyahu made the comments during a press conference on Thursday when asked by a reporter why Israel was “sufficing with attacks on Iran’s proxies rather than attacking Iran directly‚” The Times of Israel reported. Israeli media quoted Netanyahu as saying: “Who says we aren’t attacking Iran? We are attacking Iran.” “Iran is the head of the octopus and you see its tentacles all around from the Houthis to Hezbollah to Hamas‚” he said‚ referring to the three Islamic terrorist groups that are backed by Iran. “Iran is standing behind it. We are in conflict with Iran.” Netanyahu warned that the world needs to take Iran’s quest for nuclear weapons seriously given its threats and support for terrorism. “Imagine if this is what Iran is doing now‚ when it doesn’t have nuclear weapons‚ how critical is it that we stop it from acquiring nuclear weapons‚” he said. “Iran has further phases to go through that I won’t detail on the path to nuclear weapons. I am obligated as the prime minister of Israel to do everything to prevent Iran from attaining nuclear weapons.” Netanyahu’s comment about Israel striking Iran comes after Iran launched strikes inside Syria and Iraq‚ one of which was very close to the U.S. Consulate in Erbil‚ Iraq. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed that they were targeting the “headquarters of spies” and “anti-Iranian terrorist gatherings in parts of the region.” The IRGC claimed the facilities it targeted belonged to Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency. Iran claimed that Mossad was behind “terrorist activities in the region‚” which is false.

“The Vampire Diaries” star Ian Somerhalder ditched Los Angeles for a Southern California farm‚ and he says he doesn’t regret a thing. Somerhalder is married to “Twilight” actress Nikki Reed‚ and the two share one daughter (six years old) and one son (six months old) — and despite his onscreen success‚ the 45-year-old made the decision to step away from acting in an effort to focus on family and other projects. “I love what I did for a really long time‚” Somerhalder told E! News. “I don’t miss any of it. I love making films‚ I just did it for so long. We had an amazing run.” The actor‚ whose latest film is the farming documentary “Common Ground‚” has embraced life away from Hollywood. He told E! News last December that he and Reed had truly become “farm people‚” adding‚ “We produce most of our own food‚ I live in my cowboy boots.” Reed — who also produced “Common Ground” — has made it clear that she is in complete agreement‚ telling the outlet this week‚ “When you see the way that nature operates‚ you find compassion.” “It’s a beautiful thing to see what’s happening with children‚ to watch them participate in the growing of their food and the understanding of what food is and where it comes from‚” she added. Somerhalder also hinted briefly at the couple’s future plans‚ saying‚ “This is our 2.0 version … about to be 3.0 version.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP “Common Ground” is a follow-up to the 2020 documentary “Kiss the Ground‚” which explored “regenerative agriculture” and its potential impact on both the future of farming and climate. “By fusing journalistic expose with deeply personal stories from those on the front lines of the food movement‚ ‘Common Ground’ unveils a dark web of money‚ power‚ and politics behind our broken food system. The film reveals how unjust practices forged our current farm system in which farmers of all colors are literally dying to feed us‚” the website explained.