Swimming with Sharks

Dallas' most famous shoe entrepreneur jumps into Shark Tank as newest judge

Blake Mycoskie is heading back to TV.

Photo courtesy of TOMS

The year 2020 may be the stuff of nightmares, but it's not stopping one Dallas-native entrepreneur from swimming with sharks. TOMS founder Blake Mycoskie will be the newest guest judge on the ABC smash-hit Shark Tank, the network says.

Mycoskie, along with Austin jewelry maven Kendra Scott, will join sharks Mark Cuban, Barbara Corcoran, Lori Greiner, Robert Herjavec, Daymond John, and Kevin O’Leary in various episodes during the 2020-21 season, according to a release. Since the series is still filming and editing, it's unclear yet exactly which episodes Mycoskie and Scott will appear in, a rep adds.

Mycoskie — who was (technically) born in Arlington and attended SMU before dropping out to start his first business — is a serial entrepreneur, philanthropist, and bestselling author most known for founding TOMS Shoes, the innovative company that shot to success by giving a pair of shoes to a needy child for every pair sold. To date, TOMS Shoes has provided almost 96 million pairs of shoes to children around the globe.

In 2014, after selling half of the company to Bain Capital, Mycoskie stepped down as CEO of TOMS and used half his proceeds to start the Social Entrepreneurship Fund, which helps early startups with core social missions get off the ground. Since then, he has invested in more than 25 social enterprises. His newest company, Madefor, "helps people learn and sustain positive habits and practices that have the greatest impact on their lives," the release says.

It's not Mycokie's first foray into reality TV. In 2001, he and his sister, Paige Mycoskie, competed in the second season of The Amazing Race and finished in third place. He now lives with his family in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Scott will be the only female guest judge on Shark Tank's next season, the release notes. 2020 has been a banner year for her. Earlier this month, the Austin-based entrepreneur was added to the faculty of the University of Texas at Austin — the same university that launched the Kendra Scott Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership (WEL) Institute last semester.

All the while, she's continued to grow her billion-dollar jewelry company, Kendra Scott, and continued on with the philanthropic arm of her business. It appears nothing, not even a pandemic, can slow her down.

"According to a 2018 PitchBook study, Scott is among only 16 women in the United States to carry the title of founder of a company valued at $1 billion," notes the release. "Today, Scott’s company continues to operate out of Austin, Texas, with their state-of-the-art corporate office complete with a design lab and an industry-leading distribution center, both catering to her employees’ career goals and family-life balance."

For viewers who haven't yet dipped their toe in the show's waters, a quick primer: Shark Tank is an Emmy Award-winning reality show where real-life millionaires and billionaires invest in startup businesses and products. Guests come on, pitch their idea, and the sharks can choose whether or not to invest. Among the show's most successful products have been the Squatty Potty, a contraption that helps with bowel movements, and Scrub Daddy, the reusable sponge.

For season 12, which is shooting in Las Vegas, Mycoskie, Scott, and crew will hear pitches from a whole new batch of entrepreneurs. The new season of Shark Tank premieres Friday, October 16. After airing on ABC, new episodes will be added to Hulu the following day.

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Movie Review

Michelle Pfeiffer is an unappreciated mom in Oh. What. Fun.

Photo courtesy of Amazon MGM Studios

Michelle Pfeiffer in Oh. What. Fun.

Of all the formulaic movie genres, Christmas/holiday movies are among the most predictable. No matter what the problem is that arises between family members, friends, or potential romantic partners, the stories in holiday movies are designed to give viewers a feel-good ending even if the majority of the movie makes you feel pretty bad.

That’s certainly the case in Oh. What. Fun., in which Michelle Pfeiffer plays Claire, an underappreciated mom living in Houston with her inattentive husband, Nick (Denis Leary). As the film begins, her three children are arriving back home for Christmas: The high-strung Channing (Felicity Jones) is married to the milquetoast Doug (Jason Schwartzman); the aloof Taylor (Chloë Grace Moretz) brings home yet another new girlfriend; and the perpetual child Sammy (Dominic Sessa) has just broken up with his girlfriend.

Each of the family members seems to be oblivious to everything Claire does for them, especially when it comes to what she really wants: For them to nominate her to win a trip to see a talk show in L.A. hosted by Zazzy Tims (Eva Longoria). When she accidentally gets left behind on a planned outing to see a show, Claire reaches her breaking point and — in a kind of Home Alone in reverse — she decides to drive across the country to get to the show herself.

Written and directed by Michael Showalter (The Idea of You), and co-written by Chandler Baker (who wrote the short story on which the film is based), the movie never establishes any kind of enjoyable rhythm. Each of the characters, including competitive neighbor Jeanne (Joan Chen), is assigned a character trait that becomes their entire personality, with none of them allowed to evolve into something deeper.

The filmmakers lean hard into the idea that Claire is a person who always puts her family first and receives very little in return, but the evidence presented in the story is sketchy at best. Every situation shown in the film is so superficial that tension barely exists, and the (over)reactions by Claire give her family members few opportunities to make up for their failings.

The most interesting part of the movie comes when Claire actually makes it to the Zazzy Sims show. Even though what happens there is just as unbelievable as anything else presented in the story, Showalter and Baker concoct a scene that allows Claire and others to fully express the central theme of the film, and for a few minutes the movie actually lives up to its title.

Pfeiffer, given her first leading role since 2020’s French Exit, is a somewhat manic presence, and her thick Texas accent and unnecessary voiceover don’t do her any favors. It seems weird to have such a strong supporting cast with almost nothing of substance to do, but almost all of them are wasted, including Danielle Brooks in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo. The lone exception is Longoria, who is a blast in the few scenes she gets.

Oh. What. Fun. is far from the first movie to try and fail at becoming a new holiday classic, but the pedigree of Showalter and the cast make this dismal viewing experience extra disappointing. Ironically, overworked and underappreciated moms deserve a much better story than the one this movie delivers.

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Oh. What. Fun. is now streaming on Prime Video.

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