Is Timothée Chalamet A Rapper?

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Happy Wednesday, Future Party. You are officially halfway to the weekend — and one week away from Christmas. Or, as it’s also known: the Super Bowl of package delivery. Hope you’ve already gotten those last-minute gift orders in.

Several actors have seemingly adopted alter egos this year, drumming up awareness of traditional film projects… and maybe some artistic ventures the public doesn’t know about yet.

The Big Picture: Getting a movie to break through the noise is harder than ever, so some internet-savvy talent is realizing that adding a little mystery — not just to the marketing, but to themselves — is a powerful way to spark rumors, engage fans, and go viral.

Behind The Masks: Will the real talent please stand up?

Last Looks: While Matt Taylor is clearly a marketing stunt for James’ upcoming movie, Solo Mio, no one is quite sure what’s up with Mr. Fantasy and EsDeeKid — assuming they really are Apa and Chalamet. But it’s not the first time actors have adopted outlandish public personas to draw attention to a project — Sacha Baron Cohen’s Borat is legendary, and Joaquin Phoenix’s 2010 personal transformation in I’m Still Here remains controversial.

Alter egos are even more popular in music — from David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust, to Abel Tesfaye’s The Weeknd, to our underrated personal favorite: Bon Iver frontman Justin Vernon’s rapper alter ego, Jason Feathers.

Alter egos are basically method acting in public. Are you not entertained?

Coming Soon: As evidenced by EsDeeKid, actors may use alter egos to break into new artistic mediums, giving themselves the psychological distance needed to try something new.

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Google is testing two new internet browser products — “Disco” and “GenTabs” — that combine the best of searching the internet yourself with a little help from AI.

Why It Hits: As AI revolutionizes how we use the internet, tech companies are waking up to the fact that people still like manually browsing webpages… and publishers are big mad about traffic being diverted away from their sites, wrecking their web revenue. Google’s new tools could address both issues.

Behind The Code: Google’s Chrome team may have just built its future.

Final Task: Users can then continue refining their searches in Disco and edit the GenTabs, which Chrome innovation lab leader Manini Roy says creates a “virtuous cycle” of users collaborating with AI rather than passively relying on it. 

Roy showed The Verge various demos, including using Disco and GenTabs to plan a trip to Japan and build an itinerary planner, an interactive model explaining how the human ankle works, and an entire toolkit for planning a cross-country move. In other words, all refreshingly positive use cases for AI.

The Future: If people get the hang of the tools, they could be what replaces Chrome — the world’s most-used browser.

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39.5% of you voted It’s a big part of the season for me. in yesterday’s poll: How does Christmas music fit into your holiday season?

“I’m one of the weirdos who may tune in a few times a year… it’s actually a programmed spot on our devices closer to the holiday season.”

“It’s not Christmas without Dean Martin, Cyndi Lauper, BNL, and their surprisingly tasty Christmas albums — with a little Bing Crosby thrown in.”

“Christmas music always lifts my spirits going into the New Year.”

“I like it, but it starts to get really repetitive.”

“Hearing the same songs every single year for the entirety of my lifetime — I can live without it.”

Let’s keep the conversation going. Join our Poll Of The Day newsletter, so your opinions can shine. Discover how your views line up with your peers’, check out cool insights, and have some fun. It’s data with personality.

👎 Warner Bros. Discovery’s board is set to recommend that the company’s leadership reject Paramount’s takeover offer in favor of Netflix’s.

🎙️ Netflix has struck an exclusive deal with iHeartMedia to show its video podcasts.

⚽ FIFA will offer some $60 tickets to every upcoming World Cup game after fan revolt.

🏦 PayPal has filed to become a bank so it can provide loans to small businesses.

🥡 DoorDash is rolling out a new AI social app called “Zesty” to power restaurant discoverability.

🪙 A small bank in Kansas City is responsible for international stablecoin transactions… so it’s tightening its risk controls as demand increases.

🤳 DraftKings co-founder Matt Kalish has launched HardScope as “the operating system for the creator economy.”

📺 Instagram has debuted its first-ever TV app focused on Reels.

🥊 X and a startup called Operation Bluebird are fighting over the name “Twitter.”