And he might not just be one of the greatest of Brits, as Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight branded the Liverpudlian ‘one of the best actors on the planet’.

This comes as the pair team up again for the new Disney+ series, A Thousand Blows, with Graham making a ‘physically scary’ transformation to turn him into a beast for it.

Created by Knight and produced by the actor’s company with his wife Hannah Walters, Matriarch Productions, the show is inspired by true life stories in London’s East End in the 1880s.

Releasing later this month, the star’s appearance as the boxer has already been wowing fans as he put in the ‘hard graft’ to change his body. The 51-year-old tells LADbible he ‘wanted to completely change his shape’ over the six months from the project being greenlit.

Graham ‘loved’ the process, working hard with a trainer and boxing coach to ‘try and make a brawler’. Well, bulked up he did, as trailers show him looking intimidatingly brawly as the Victorian boxer with tattoos across his chest.

“I’m only little, so I wanted to have a little bulldog kind of thing,” he adds. “So it was a cross between Mike Tyson and this Bare Knuckle fighter called Lenny McLean that we wanted to use.”

And the result was something that left his cast mates and crew stunned, with an ‘impressed’ Kirby admitting he felt ‘a little bit vulnerable’ knowing he’d have to fight Graham. While Doherty said it was ‘gorgeous’ as it’s a ‘physical representation’ of the impressive work Graham normally applies ‘internally’.

For creator Knight, it was ‘unbelievable’ to see but also a little bit ‘annoying’.

“You have to look at yourself like, ‘therefore, I could do that possibly, if I committed myself’,” he jokes. “And it makes you feel like ‘Why am I not doing that?’”

The writer says Graham produced a transformation that made him ‘scary’ but that also helped the storyline.

“The scariness physically is what is tempered by the emotion that he shows,” Knight explains. “He’s such a great actor that it means I was able to delay his appearance on screen for quite a long time, knowing that when we finally reach that destination, it won’t be a let-down, it won’t be disappointing.”

Graham plays boxer Sugar Goodman. (Disney+)

It’s Graham’s abilities as an actor that’s a key reason why Knight continues to work with him.

“He’s one of the best actors on the planet, to start with,” he says. “He’s great person, great person to work with. When he’s on a project, everybody else becomes better because they know they have to bring their best performance.”

With Graham having appeared in Knight’s Peaky Blinders series and set to appear in the film, the writer therefore names A Thousand Blows ‘a dream project’.

The stars were once the duo that made up many fans’ favourite comedy bromance, having worked together on the likes of The Interview, This Is the End and Pineapple Express.

At the time of the allegations, Franco described them as ‘not accurate’ but added he didn’t want to ‘shut down’ those who ‘didn’t have a voice’.

The American agreed to pay out $2.23 million (£1.67 million) to settle a lawsuit brought by two former students of his now-defunct film school, Studio 4.

Following that, Franco was largely out of the spotlight and told Variety he had ‘changed his whole way of life’ before going into the changes of his relationship with Rogen.

Published yesterday (11 February), Rogen was asked in an Esquire profile how it felt ‘to have something so personal become so public’.

According to interviewer David Holmes, the 42-year-old was ‘clearly not surprised to get the question’ but was ‘just as clearly not happy about it’.

Referring to Franco’s comments, Rogen said: “Honestly, I absorb so little media that it really wasn’t on my radar.” And Holmes added: “That is all he wants to say about that.”

Well, fair enough to be honest. When Franco’s Variety interview went live, he was slammed as people accused him of ‘trying to make Seth look like the villain’.

As others added that ‘Seth did the right thing’ by ‘cutting off all ties’.

Rogen said it ‘wasn’t on his radar’ (Mike Marsland/WireImage)

But while Franco had faced particularly serious allegations that were settled by the suit, there were still fans who called the pair’s partnership the ‘end of an era’ as one even claimed: “Real friends don’t drop you when you’re down.”

Rogen did also publicly speak out in 2021 when he told the Sunday Times about the stance he was taking on Franco.

“What I can say is that I despise abuse and harassment and I would never cover or conceal the actions of someone doing it, or knowingly put someone in a situation where they were around someone like that.” he said.

“I look back to that interview in 2018 where I comment that I would keep working with James, and the truth is that I have not and I do not plan to right now.

Liam Payne’s ex-fiancée has spoken out about the death of the singer for the first time

Maya Henry and the former One Direction star officially started dating in August 2019 before he proposed that November. The pair then broke up in May 2022, and the singer dated Kate Cassidy until his sudden death in October 2024.

In a written statement for Rolling Stone Magazine, the 25-year-old said while she loved Payne ‘deeply’, he did things that ‘hurt’ her in ways she’ll ‘never fully understand’ and continued to do so after their split.

No public comment came on this from Payne before his death, which was caused by ‘polytrauma’ as he fell from the third-floor balcony of the Casa Sur Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 16 October 2024.

“On drugs, he became someone unrecognisable — so different from his sober self,” she wrote. “I kept hoping each incident would be a wake-up call for him to get help, but it never was.”

The model said she convinced herself she ‘could fix things’ and believed ‘he would change’.

“I put myself in situations that were unsafe and harmful, ignoring every red flag because I didn’t want to give up on him,” she wrote. “I let myself believe that love could be stronger than addiction, that if I endured enough, if I sacrificed enough, he would see how much I cared and finally choose a different path.

“But that’s not how addiction works. No matter how much I tried to save him, I was drowning in the process.”

Payne died in October 2024 after falling from a hotel balcony in Argentina (Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)

Henry went on to say that ‘he was struggling’ with parts of himself and it wasn’t the ‘betrayals or addiction’ that broke them up.

“It was the realisation that I had spent years in something that was never what I thought it was. I don’t fault him for his struggles,” she said.

She added that she ‘stood by him in his darkest moments’ and when it was over, she was ‘left with nothing but emptiness’.

Henry said: “I wasn’t just heartbroken; I felt defrauded, as so many women in my position would. But what I do know is this: It wasn’t about me or anything I did. It was about struggles beyond my control. And in the end, I had to choose myself. I had to walk away, no matter how much it hurt, because staying in his world meant losing myself.”

After Payne’s death, she says what hurts the most is she is ‘left with the aftermath of his actions that continue to unfold’.

“As I’ve uncovered the extent of his non-consensual image sharing — images he acquired during our engagement and shared without my knowledge or consent — I’m faced with the complexity of grieving for someone I cared so deeply about despite the pain they have caused me,” Henry concluded.

Eisenberg is perhaps best known for his role in the film, which earned him a Best Actor Oscar nomination. Despite this, Eisenberg has not been afraid to hit out at the Facebook co-creator.

When asked about Mark Zuckerberg, he said: “It’s like this guy is… doing things that are problematic, taking away fact-checking.

“[There are] safety concerns. Making people who are already threatened in the world more threatened.”

Meta, the company led by Zuckerberg behind Facebook and Instagram, announced recently that they would be doing away with independent fact-checking on both platforms.

Eisenberg went on to say: “These people have billions upon billions of dollars, like more money than any human person has ever amassed and what are they doing with it?

“Oh, they’re doing it to curry favour with somebody who’s preaching hate. That’s what I think… not as like a person who played in a movie. I think of it as somebody who is married to a woman who teaches disability justice in New York and lives for her students are going to get a little harder this year.”

Though Zuckerberg at one time was a critic of Donald Trump, the billionaire has seemingly made peace with the new American president.

Zuckerberg appeared front-and-centre at Trump’s inauguration last month, with the Los Angeles Times saying he and other tech leaders have ‘gone out of their way to position themselves in the president’s good graces, knowing he could help or hinder them in the race to develop artificial intelligence technologies’.

Zuckerberg alongside other tech CEOs at Donald Trump’s inauguration (Pool via Getty Images)

The decision from Meta to end independent, third-party fact-checking was slammed by former POTUS Joe Biden, who said: “I think it’s really shameful, telling the truth matters, completely contrary to everything America’s about.”

In an interview with Joe Rogan last month, Zuckerberg compared the fact-checking operation to George Orwell’s novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, saying: “I think people just felt like the fact checkers were too biased, not necessarily even so much in what they ruled… although sometimes I think people would disagree with that.

“A lot of the time, it was just what types of things they chose to even go and fact check in the first place. So I kind of think, after having gone through that whole exercise, it’s something out of, like, Nineteen Eighty-Four – one of these books, where it’s just like, it really is a slippery slope.

“And it just got to a point where it’s just ‘OK, this is destroying so much trust, especially in the United States’.”

Eisenberg spoke out against the Meta CEO (Alex Wong via Getty Images)

He also said of Brexit and Trump’s first presidency: “I think that those were basically these two events where for the first time, we just faced this massive, massive institutional pressure to basically start censoring content on ideological grounds.”

Chloe Broad, 24, had been in the middle of a busy work schedule – as well as navigating a break-up last year – when she started to feel exhausted.

Feeling as though she needed a well-earned break, Chloe booked a three week-long holiday – but she became concerned when she noticed a suspicious looking mole on her right arm.

“I was exhausted all of the time. Obviously being cabin crew, I just put that down to jet lag or fatigue. I’d just finished a busy summer schedule,” said Chloe.

“I’d taken three weeks off work because I was so fatigued. It’s really common in cabin crew to have jet lag, it’s one of those things.

“That was a stressful time. I just didn’t expect to come out of that relationship and was feeling a bit sorry for myself.

“I thought that could be having an impact on my energy levels, I was just moping around.”

Chloe said she’d always enjoyed being tanned (Kennedy News and Media)

After doctors discovered the melanoma, they were able to remove the cancerous cells and Chloe has since ditched her sunbed habit for good.

“I’ve always loved being super tanned. I always tanned really well. As soon as I was 18 I started using the sunbeds,” she said.

“When I moved away from the family home at 19, that’s when I really started tanning.

“I was getting sunbeds every single day. Once I started getting darker I would do the maximum, which was 24 minutes, I was doing that for six months.

“I loved the way I looked with a tan. I used creams from the start then started using nasal sprays around a year-and-a-half into it.

“… I had abused sunbeds. Very rarely would I put a high SPF on, so I knew I was at risk of skin cancer. You just never think it’s going to happen to you.

“People always say you won’t die of it. It was only when I went to the specialist that they told me melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer.”

Doctors discovered that the mole was cancerous (Kennedy News and Media)

Chloe is now in remission and is having checks twice a year for the next five years.

She now uses fake tan out of the bottle, explaining: “Now I just use spray tans. I still love a tan, it’s just not worth risking your health.

“It’s so much quicker, easier, cheaper and safer to do spray tans. I regret ever going on the beds.

“I would much rather not have the scars it’s left and have saved the money.”

Nath Wyld – who goes by @nath_wyld – on Instagram, specialises in ‘making fart videos’ and has racked up a lot of cash doing so.

Writing for Metro, Nath – a former carpenter from Australia – explained that he even eats foods that he knows will make him bloated, to ensure he’s able to perform.

“I specialise in making fart videos,” he explained.

“In fact, I make around $3,000 AUD (£1,540) a month from them alone.”

While Nath started out working as a topless waiter, he soon began getting more and more popular on his social media.

“At the start it was very tame, just photos of me semi-naked and short videos of me posing – just a little bit raunchier than what you could post on Instagram,” he explained.

“… Soon enough, I was making enough to leave my carpentry job. Not having to work eight hours a day and commute was a huge bonus – now I have the freedom to work from home.”

Nath says he eats foods to make himself bloated (Getty Stock Image)

After his success on OnlyFans, Nath ended up getting a fart video request, which at first he wasn’t keen to do.

But soon, he was getting more and more requests and decided to film one in his bedroom.

“I was blown away (no pun intended) by the demand and I have been making them ever since,” he explained.

So how exactly does it work?

Nath explained that the requests vary, with some followers wanting to see his facial expressions.

“In terms of angles, people have specific things they want to see, like close-ups versus full view. Or maybe just staying clothed the whole time,” he added.

“Some people don’t want me to spread my cheeks, while others are the opposite. Some want to see my facial expressions; others just want to see me from far away.

“During the shoot, there’s a routine: I start bloated – kind of part of the process – and go through the video until I feel lighter by the end. It’s almost like clockwork now. A big meal is needed to be bloated and gassy and after that it comes naturally.”

Nath revealed he earns over $200,000 AUD (£101,000) a year through his content, with his fart videos apparently making up around 20 percent of his profits.

Bodybuilder and influencer Joey Swoll has taken to social media to praise one particular gym interaction, explaining how it perfectly demonstrates the kind of attitude we need in gyms and workout spaces.

In the clip, a woman who goes by @lilylifts could be seen benching a heavier weight when a man approaches her and asks if she needs spotting.

Lily explains that she would like some help and asks the man if he would be available to spot her straight away, which he was.

The man assists Lily with her lifts, before she explains that she’s been having some problems with her form recently.

The man then went on to offer her some advice, with the pair talking through any challenges she’d previously had.

“This man sees this, sees that Lily is going up in weight, so he offers her a spot… then he takes the time to give her some advice and show her a few things.

“This is why I love the gym community, it is truly a brother, sisterhood. It doesn’t matter your age or your gender, we’re all there to better ourselves and support one another.”

The man could be seen spotting Lily while she lifted a heavier weight (TikTok/@lilylifts_)

People were impressed on social media, with many explaining they wished their gyms were the same.

“No ulterior motive with the exception of trying to help someone get better… The best of Gym Culture,” one person wrote.

While another said: “What an awesome dude. Need more people like him in gyms.”

And a third added: “Love this. having a spotter really makes a huge difference is going past your limit.”

While a fourth wrote: “I wish more people were like this in the gym. The other day, I went to bench and pushed myself too far. I couldn’t get the bar off my chest, not one person tried to help me.

“I was so embarrassed, I wiggled and pushed until I got it off and fought back my tears. I know it was my fault but it really broke my heart that so many just stood by watching me struggle.”

The most underrated film of Denzel’s is a rare claim considering he is arguably one of, if not, the greatest actor of all time.

Add to that the 60+ projects he has appeared in over a 45-year career, including The Equalizer, American Gangster, and Malcolm X.

Many feel, however, that his outing in John Q is the most underrated he’s ever acted in as the movie was added to Netflix.

The film, added yesterday to the streamer, follows Washington as a father whose young son cannot afford a heart transplant.

That won’t stop him though, as Washington’s titular character John ends up taking several members of the hostage until they agree to his demands.

He is joined by an all star cast including Robert Duvall, James Woods, Kimberly Elise, and Anne Heyce.

One viewer tweeted: “John Q is one of the most underrated movies in Denzel’s filmography.”

The film has an average rating of 7.1 on IMDb, with one 8/10 review calling it a ‘effecting drama’. They went on to say: “the intense direction and first-rate performances make this film work.

“I particularly loved Denzel’s work here because this was a character unlike he had ever played before. An emotional drama, wrought with tension, that will rivet you to the screen.”

Denzel in John Q (New Line Cinema)

One viewer on Twitter was discussing how Denzel’s filmography is so deep that fans could have any order of top ten imaginable, with another quoting it saying: “Such a great point. Literally hasn’t missed in 4 decades.

“You can blindly choice any Denzel movie and you will never be disappointed. One of his lowest rotten tomatoes scores is John Q. Which is lowkey one of my favorite movies.”

Despite this being a common opinion, the film received a Rotten Tomatoes score of just 26 per cent.

This puts it lower than Batman v Superman, lower than Joker 2, and only 2 per cent higher than The Room – the consensus worst film of all time.

Denzel’s performance has been praised (New Line Cinema)

Roger Ebert, the legendary film critic, gave the film 1.5/4 stars, saying: “It is so earnest, so overwrought and so wildly implausible that it begs to be parodied.”

Elvis Mitchell of The New York Times gave the film one star, saying: “So ham-fisted that it sabotages its own worthwhile arguments.”

Peter Travers of Rolling Stone concurred, saying in his review: “An exploitative mess trying to pass as social activism.”

Despite this, more than 20 years on it remains relevant and loved by fans, with it debuting at number nine in Netflix’s charts.

After all, it still has a 73 per cent ‘Popcornmeter’ – which has got to be something.