Adam Sandler feels that when audiences finally see his upcoming Netflix comedy, The Ridiculous Six, they will realise he wasn't trying to offend anyone. The spoof takes its name from the Western classic The Magnificent Seven and pokes fun at the genre. But not everyone found it funny. Earlier this year, a group of Native American actors walked off a New Mexico film set over complaints that content in the film was offensive to their culture. The actors objected over the vile names of some of the characters, as well as a Native American woman urinating while smoking a peace pipe. "It was just a misunderstanding and once the movie is out, it will be cleared up," Sandler said on Saturday on the red carpet for the world premiere of his new film, Pixels. Sandler called The Ridiculous Six "100 per cent pro-American Indian". Produced by Sandler's Happy Madison production company, the all-star cast includes Sandler (who also co-wrote it), Taylor Lautner, Steve Buscemi and Luke Wilson. It debuts on December 11 on Netflix. – AP
Silent Heroes is like an adventure thriller, says Mahesh Bhatt
The Silent Heroes, an upcoming film starring 13 hearing-impaired children who dream of scaling the Himalayas, has all the makings of an international adventurous thriller that will entertain family audiences, says the director Mahesh Bhatt. The celebrated filmmaker says he is "disgusted with the insensitive attitude of the society towards people with special needs". "It's bizarre that the world looks at deaf people as if they are oppressed, handicapped and helpless. But I have always felt that they are more competent than us, they have superior IQ and sharper senses than us," he said. "I wanted to show people that they are not helpless or a burden on us. Being silent is not an impediment for them and they are still heroes, which prompted me to name the film The Silent Heroes." The film's first teaser will be unveiled tomorroww. The movie is being produced by Kamal Birani and Bhatt, presented by Hans Productions and Reality Films and will be released worldwide in September. – IANS
Deposition: Cosby paid women to keep affairs secret
Bill Cosby, in sworn testimony a decade ago, said he had paid women after sex to keep the affairs from his wife, suggested he was skilled at understanding non-verbal cues for sexual consent and called one of his accusers a liar. The New York Times reported the revelations on Saturday after obtaining a copy of a transcript from a deposition Cosby gave in a lawsuit filed by a former Temple University employee who alleges he drugged and molested her. According to excerpts from the deposition released a month ago, and first obtained by the Associated Press, Cosby admitted he procured Quaaludes with the intent of giving them to young women he wanted to have sex with. The Times reports that Cosby told lawyers for Andrea Constand, who filed the suit, that he was a "pretty decent reader of people and their emotions in these romantic sexual things", according to the transcript. He said he offered to pay for Constand's education and paid another woman whom he had met in 1976. He said he funnelled money to one of the women he had sex with through his agent so his wife wouldn't find out. – AP
A Clockwork Orange actor Aubrey Morris dies at 89
British character actor Aubrey Morris, best known for his role as Mr Deltoid in A Clockwork Orange, has died. His agent, Larry Corsa, confirmed that Morris died in Los Angeles on Wednesday at the Barlow Respiratory Hospital, where he'd been under care for several weeks. He was 89. In his five-decade career, Morris, who brought a memorable touch of eccentricity to many of his parts, appeared in films including The Wicker Man, Woody Allen's Love and Death, and Lisztomania. But it was his portrayal of the snivelling probation officer to Malcolm McDowell's Alex in Stanley Kubrick's 1971 classic A Clockwork Orange that will stand as his most beloved and famous role. Morris was also a prolific television actor in the United Kingdom and United States. His small-screen work included roles on The Avengers, Murder, She Wrote and Deadwood. His last on-screen role was earlier this year in the sitcom It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. – AP
'The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas are Setting up a Generation for Failure'
Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt, Penguin Randomhouse
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
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The specs
Engine: 2.3-litre, turbo four-cylinder
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Power: 300hp
Torque: 420Nm
Price: Dh189,900
On sale: now
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
