Panic! At The Disco, aka Brandon Urie, will play at Dickies Arena on September 11.
Photo by Jimmy Fontaine
Rock band Panic! At The Disco has chosen Texas as the launching pad for its worldwide The Viva Las Vengeance Tour, as its first three dates will be in the Lone Star State, including a stop at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth on September 11.
The tour kicks off in Austin on September 8 and moves on to Houston on September 10 before landing in North Texas. From there, the tour will hit 26 more cities across North America through the end of October. They'll then take a four-month break before embarking on an 11-city leg in Europe.
Panic! At The Disco has had quite the interesting journey since debuting in 2005. Formed by a quartet of childhood friends from Las Vegas, three of the original members have gradually left the band, leaving it as essentially a solo project for lead singer Brandon Urie.
Ironically, the "band" has experienced its biggest success since Urie has gone solo, with both of the albums released during that time — 2016's Death of a Bachelor and 2018's Pray for the Wicked — reaching No. 1 on the Billboard 200. This tour is in support of the band's forthcoming album, Viva Las Vengeance, scheduled for release on August 19.
Tickets for the North American leg of the tour, which will include special guests MARINA and Jake Wesley Rogers (with Beach Bunny joining on select dates), went on sale to the general public Wednesday, June 8 through LiveNation.
One dollar from each ticket sold in North America will go to the band’s Highest Hopes Foundation, a fund which supports organizations that advocate support for human rights for all people and communities subject to discrimination or abuse on the basis of gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
In a time when true movie stars seem to be going extinct, Timothée Chalamet has emerged as an exception to the rule. Since 2021 he has headlined blockbusters like the two Dune movies and Wonka, and also got nominated for an Oscar for playing Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown (his second nomination following 2018’s Call Me By Your Name). Now, he’s almost assured to get his third nomination for the stellar new film, Marty Supreme.
Chalamet plays Marty Mauser, a world-class table tennis player living in New York. But reducing Marty to his best skill doesn’t do him justice, as he’s also a motormouth schemer who will do almost anything to achieve his dreams. He doesn’t have any qualms about wooing married women like neighbor Rachel (Odessa A’zion) or actress Kay Stone (Gwyneth Paltrow), or hiding his true ping pong skills to win money in scams with friends like Wally (Tyler the Creator).
Marty is seemingly on the go the entire movie, whether it’s trying to convince Kay’s millionaire husband Milton Rockwell (Kevin O’Leary) to fund his table tennis ambitions; or trying to track down the dog of Ezra (Abel Ferrara), a man he accidentally injures; or trying to avoid the ire of the boss at the shoe store where he works. Just when you think he might slow down, he’s off to the races on another plan or adventure.
Directed by Josh Safdie and written by Safdie and frequent co-writer Ronald Bronstein, the film is an almost continuous blast of pure energy for 2 ½ hours. So many different things happen over the course of the film that the story defies conventional narratives, and yet the throughline of Marty keeps everything tightly connected. His particular type of brash behavior turns much of the film into a comedy as he does and says things that are both shocking and thrilling.
Another thing that makes the movie sing is the fantastic characterization by Safdie and Bronstein. Almost every person who is given a speaking line in the film has a moment where they pop, which speaks to airtight dialogue that the writers have created. Characters will be introduced and then disappear for long stretches of time, and yet because they make such an impression the first time they’re on screen, it’s easy to pick up their thread right away.
Safdie, as he’s done previously with brother Bennie (Uncut Gems), calls on a host of well-known non-actors or people with interesting faces/vibes to inhabit supporting roles, and to a person they are crucial to the film’s success. O’Leary (of Shark Tank fame), rapper Tyler the Creator, director Ferrara, magician Penn Jillette, and fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi each deliver knockout performances. The relative unknowns who play smaller roles are just as impressive, making each beat of the film feel naturalistic.
Leading the way is the powerhouse performance by Chalamet. For one person to believably play both the famously reserved Dylan and also a firecracker like Marty is astonishing, and this role cements Chalamet’s status as his generation’s movie star. A’zion is a rising star who gets great moments as Marty’s on-again/off-again love interest. Paltrow pops in and out of the film, lighting up the screen every time she appears. Fran Drescher as Marty’s mom and Sandra Bernhard as a neighbor also pay dividends in small roles.
Josh Safdie’s first solo directorial effort is unlike any other movie this year, or maybe even this century. Thanks to its breakneck storytelling, a magnificent performance by Chalamet, and countless intangibles that Safdie employs expertly, the film smacks viewers in the face repeatedly and demands that they come back for more.
