Relationships Talk

Some superhero movies feature charming, flirtatious female arm candy. That’s not remotely Michelle Williams, who plays the lawyer who dumps a morally misguided reporter in “Venom,” opening Friday.

For those not immersed in the Marvel universe, Venom (played by Tom Hardy), is a journalist whose last assignment goes awry when he becomes infected with a talking parasite that gives out dating advice.

Williams, a newlywed, noted that it was vital to her that the character was both brawny and a brainiac.

“We made a lot of changes. It was important to me that it feels of the time. I know it’s a superhero movie and people aren’t seeing it for relationship details. But these two people are equals. There’s a lot of role reversal,” said Williams. “He’s a little soft and she’s very strong. When she wears a skirt, she wears suspenders with it. It’s the little things. I wanted it to feel like a movie made post-#MeToo. I wanted her to feel like all the pop songs my daughter and I listen to on the radio.”

Williams immediately brings up the Fifth Harmony hit “Worth It,” all about female empowerment. And no, daughter Matilda, 12, has not seen “Venom.”

“She’s too young. It would give her nightmares. She’s not so interested in superheroes. I’m still riding high on ‘The Greatest Showman,’” she joked. “That’s how I stay relevant.”

Soon, she’ll star in the FX miniseries “Fosse/Verdon” alongside Sam Rockwell, from the creator of Hamilton. “Now I’ve got Lin-Manuel Miranda and that keeps me cool at the dinner table,” said Williams.

The actress is thoughtful and introspective, wryly funny and intensely personable. She became embroiled in Hollywood’s pay gap when her salary for “All the Money in the World” reshoots was revealed. And in a more sheltered way, so is her daughter (from her relationship with Heath Ledger).

“She was fully cognizant through the last presidential election. I keep the information really flowing. We keep the news on. I try to be realistic with her about the struggle we’re all in. It isn’t fair. But we have to put our fists up. She’s creature of her own making. I can’t wait to see how her life unfolds,” said Williams.

And for the next installment of Venom: “I’d like an outlet for some righteous anger and indignation. I’d like to conduit everything that my friends, colleagues and women across the country are feeling. I’d like to go kick some (butt) with it.”

As if she didn’t have enough on her plate already right now with her work as a leading actress, continuing to be a general fashion icon, and the small matter of an upcoming Jonas wedding to plan, the multi-talented Priyanka Chopra has added yet another string to her bow by jumping head first into the business and dating world. Hey, she found her Prince Charming, so now she’s going to try and help to find yours, too.

Priyanka, who has previously invested in a U.S. based coding school, has announced that she is set to also invest in major dating app Bumble, as the brand prepares to expand into India later this year. As well as being involved financially, Priyanka will also step up as an adviser to the tech firm, which relies on women sending that awkward first message, in time for the Indian launch. The expansion of Bumble is keen to focus on the importance of women (worldwide, but particularly in India) feeling safe when they turn to dating apps to meet people.

Confirming that the Quantico star will play an all-encompassing role of “partner, advisor and investor” for the app, a statement from Priyanka via Bumble explained: “I’ve always believed that investing in women is key to social transformation and economic growth. Women want love, they want friendship and they want to find a career, and that’s the uniqueness of what Bumble delivers.”

She later described the move to her Instagram followers as “a new chapter for me!” In a celebratory caption, Priyanka wrote: “I’m honored to join two companies that strive to expand gender diversity in the tech space, and make a social impact for the greater good… let’s do this!!”

Hey, if anyone’s going to provide us all with some solid, welcome dating advice, it’s got to be Priyanka. Her relationship with Nick Jonas was like something straight from a fairytale, beginning way back at the 2017 Met Gala when the pair showed up on the carpet together “just as friends”…sure. A year on and it was finally revealed that the couple were officially dating, before their engagement followed just two months later.

Add in a romantic London proposal on her birthday, endless traveling around the world together, and a Prince Harry and Meghan Markle-inspired engagement photoshoot, and you’ve got the ultimate dating app sell. Do I find my own Nick Jonas if I sign up?

Priyanka Chopra on Being a Working Immigrant

CLOSE

The Indianapolis Colts play the New England Patriots Thursday night at 8:20 P.m. Clark Wade/IndyStar, Clark Wade/IndyStar

Glenda Basham was 19 years old when she had Tarell, the son who would turn out to be a professional football player. She raised him as a single mother.

Tarell Basham watched as his mom worked relentlessly to make life just right for him and younger brother Thad. 

Then at 8 years old, he made a promise. Basham wrote his mom a letter. He was going to make it to the NFL and when he did, he wrote to her, she’d never have to work another day in her life.

That NFL dream came true in 2017, when Basham was picked by the Indianapolis Colts in the third round of the NFL draft. Now, the defensive end is working on something else for his mom — finding her a man.

Instead of the usual routes to setting people up, maybe a dating site or a friend of a friend, Basham turned to someone with a little pull — comedian and talk show host Steve Harvey.

On Thursday, Glenda Basham will appear on the “Steve” show as her son asks Harvey to find her a man.

“Hey, what up Steve? I need your help with something,” Basham says via a video chat in a preview clip of “Steve.” “It’s about time for Glenda to find somebody that is going to take care of her. You’re the only man for the job, Steve.”

During Thursday’s show, Glenda Basham sits next to Harvey in her Colts No. 58 jersey. 

“I found three pretty amazing guys,” Harvey tells her. “Are you ready to meet them?” 

“Absolutely,” Glenda Basham says.

The three bachelors, all from Virginia, where she lives, are a firefighter/business owner, an optician and an operational analyst.

After setting up Glenda Basham with the three men, Harvey gives her some intense dating advice, revealing 14 questions she should always ask on the first date.   

The Colts did not immediately respond to a request for an interview with Basham. Basham has appeared in one game for the Colts this season.

“Steve” airs at 3 p.m. Thursday on WISH-TV.

Follow IndyStar sports reporter Dana Benbow on Twitter: @Dana Benbow. Reach her via e-mail: dbenbow@indystar.com.

LOS ANGELES — The Marvel Cinematic Universe’s norm is there’s no doubt about who’s good and who’s bad. Think of Thanos, the Vulture or Dr. Doom. There’s plenty of conflict in director Ruben Fleischer’s (“Zombieland”) action-filled “Venom,” but there’s a lot more gray area when it comes to the characters.

Even the film’s central figure of Venom is hard to peg because once the space-traveling Symbiote arrives on Earth, he ends up in the body of no-nonsense journalist Eddie Brock. What the two do together often crosses the line between good and evil.

Then there’s Dr. Carlton Drake (Riz Ahmed), a billionaire whose ambitions to seek sanctuary in space when Earth is no longer inhabitable, who’s behind events that set much of the story lines in motion. The question is whether Drake should be considered good or bad.

Ahmed understands there are some real world parallels to the character he plays, but none of them were a blueprint to create the complicated character of Drake. He took bits and pieces of a lot of people and blended that with what he saw in the comics where Drake appeared. The character first appeared in “The Amazing Spider-Man” No. 298.

Drake became a more important character in “Venom” because unlike in the comic book origin, there is no connection to Spider-Man. That’s why Ahmed’s got more time to play Drake’s many layers.

“My character is someone who is very well-intentioned,” says Ahmed, whose past works include “The Night of …” and “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.” “He’s doing a very ambitious thing. That same ambition that drives that initial mission kind of overtakes him.

“I don’t think of him as a bad guy. I don’t think he’s greedy or trying to hurt anyone. He’s just trying to make sure the human species evolves. Now, granted, he thinks he’s the pinnacle of human evolution as we already have it. There is an element of narcissism about him as he has a hunger for greatness.”

The hunger is what ends up giving Brock an alien version of a Jekyll and Hyde personality as he deals with Venom. The pair become so close Venom even gives Brock some dating advice about his former girlfriend, Anne (Michelle Williams).

This is another place Fleischer blurs the lines when it comes to his characters. Anne is now dating Dr. Patrick Mulligan (Reid Scott), and that should automatically make him and Brock enemies. But, Mulligan is far more textured than that, as he actually comes to the aid of Brock.

“The love triangle allows for the character to be seen in many ways,” Scott says. “We wanted to see him as an advisor — at least from Eddie’s point of view — because he’s with Eddie’s ex-girlfriend. We had a lot of fun with that because I tried to approach the character in that he got a huge kick out of Eddie Brock.

“The fact that he’s always been a fan of Eddie Brock makes for a nice bit of tension. In a movie like this, it’s all about heightening the stakes. The ultimate stake being saving the world, but all the way down the line he can’t even get the woman back he loves because she’s fallen for somebody else.”

It’s not just the roles that are complicated. The actors also have resumes that reflect a blend of comedy and drama. Scott has starred in a broad range of television projects from the deeply dramatic “The Big C” to the political comedy “Veep.” For Ahmed, this is the second big action movie for him, but he also has worked on small films like “Nightcrawler.”

Ahmed says the size of the production doesn’t change how he approaches each role.

“Each character belongs in their own world with their own reality and their own set of circumstances. You just have to commit to that,” Ahmed says.

Scott describes going from a comedy like “Veep” to a dark action movie such as “Venom” is his way of making sure no one forgets he can play a wide variety of roles. Now that “Veep” is coming to an end, Scott is trying to decide what acting road he wants to take next. He sees his role in “Venom” as a perfect bridge because the character is so complicated.

In the case of “Venom,” both he and Scott had to commit to highly textured characters. Blending good and evil is a lot like mixing sharps and flats in a musical composition. Ahmed’s aware of how music can represent a lot of different things because he has been performing as a rap artist under the name Riz MC. His new single, “Mogambo,” will be released Wednesday.

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