Vin Diesel returns as ‘Groot’; ‘Jerry Maguire’ kid all grown-up

Bob Dylan

It has been more than two weeks since Bob Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. But as of press time, the American singer-songwriter has yet to issue a statement, and has neither expressed a desire to accept the prestigious honor set on Dec. 10 in Stockholm, Sweden.

Dylan’s silence and perceived indifference has been described by Per Wastberg—a member of the Swedish Academy, which hands out the said prize—as “impolite and arrogant” in an interview with a Swedish newspaper.

While many fans welcomed the news that the 75-year-old pop culture icon is the first musician to become a Nobel laureate, not a few people—mostly from the literary community—had misgivings, and lamented the fact that, for the second straight year, the award was not given to a fiction writer.

Vin Diesel voices Groot anew

The “Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2” teaser trailer reveals the return of Marvel’s lovable space warriors, including the humanoid tree creature Groot, currently a baby.

Actor Vin Diesel lent his booming, gravelly voice to the treelike alien, which only says the line, “I am Groot,” and will do it again in the sequel. Diesel will adjust accordingly, director James Gunn suggested in reports. The film, costarring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana and Dave Bautista is slated for a May 2017 release.

Kanye West at it again

Kanye West is at it again. The controversial hip-hop artist, who’s infamous for making provocative and headline-grabbing statements, has recently declared that he won’t be attending next year’s Grammy Awards if R&B musician Frank Ocean’s latest album, “Blonde,” fails to get a nomination.

“I’ll tell you this right now, if his album is not nominated in any category, I’m not showing up at the Grammys… And as artists, we’ve got to come together to fight the bullsh*t,” Kanye was quoted by Billboard as saying during a show in California.

However, it has also been reported that “Blonde” won’t indeed show up on the list of nominees come Dec. 8, because Frank’s label didn’t submit it for consideration.

Looks like Kanye’s not going to the Grammys, after all.

Kanye West

 ‘Jerry Maguire’ kid all grown-up

Cameron Crowe’s “Jerry Maguire” will be 20 in December. Whatever happened to that bespectacled tyke who played Renee Zellwegger’s kid? Jonathan Lipnicki subsequently appeared in films such as “Stuart Little” and “The Little Vampire.” Now 26, he’s unrecognizable—and he’s gotten really buff. He’s been training in mixed martial arts but is still an actor, and is also producing films. He’s expressed interest in playing the video game hero, Megaman.

Jonathan Lipnicki

Never-ending ‘Scream’

Also turning 20 before the year ends, Wes Craven’s “Scream” film, penned by Kevin Williamson, inspired three sequels. The pop culture-skewering slasher film, starring Neve Campbell as perpetually beleaguered Sidney Prescott, inspired a rebooted TV series. The gory and less-irreverent show recently concluded its second season. Campbell appeared in the latest season of the political drama series, “House of Cards.” —OLIVER M. PULUMBARIT AND ALLAN POLICARPIO

Neve Campbell