Rachel Handler

New York

Features Writer at Vulture

Features Writer at New York Magazine

features writer @vulture @nymag, preeminent mandy patinkin scholar.

Articles

Robert De Niro Says Confoundingly Few Words at Cannes

11 hours ago | vulture.com | Rachel Handler

At Tuesday night’s Cannes Film Festival opening gala, Leonardo DiCaprio presented his friend and co-star Robert De Niro with the Honorary Palme d’Or. “The thing about Bob is, he doesn’t say much, but when he does, it matters,” said DiCaprio. “If I’m lucky, I’ll get a nod from him tonight, maybe even a half-smile, and I will take that as a standing ovation.” Everyone laughed good-naturedly.
Cannes Jury President Condemns Killing of Palestinian Journalist

1 day ago | vulture.com | Rachel Handler |Jasmine Vojdani

“The night before her death, she learned that the film in which she appeared was selected here at Cannes. Fatma should have been among us tonight,” Binoche said at the festival’s opening ceremony.
14 Movies We Can’t Wait to See at This Year’s Cannes Film Festival

1 day ago | vulture.com | Rachel Handler |Alison Willmore

This year’s Cannes Film Festival has everything: A new Lynne Ramsay starring a driven-insane Jennifer Lawrence, Kristen Stewart’s directorial debut, Ari Aster’s certain-to-be-batshit take on the year 2020, Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor as WWI-era lovers, a Kelly Reichardt heist film, and the latest films from Spike Lee, Wes Anderson, Julia Ducournau, and Jafar Panahi. At one point, Tom Cruise will probably parachute directly onto the Croisette to promote Mission Impossible — The Final Reckoning.
At Cannes, Juliette Binoche Says Trump Is ‘Trying to Save His Ass’

1 day ago | vulture.com | Rachel Handler

The long arm of fascism has stretched all the way to this year’s Cannes Film Festival, where, quite suddenly, nobody is allowed to be naked on the red carpet anymore. Just before the fest started, its organizers announced that both nudity and dresses with long trains or “excessively voluminous” attributes would be banned due to “decency reasons.” What has the world come to when you can’t show elegant nip in France?
14 Movies We Can’t Wait to See at This Year’s Cannes Film Festival

1 day ago | flipboard.com | Rachel Handler

Now“Original Sin,” by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson, depicts an aging president whose family and aides enabled his quixotic campaign for a second term. ORIGINAL SIN: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again, by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson In Christian theology, …
‘I’m Not an Ingénue Anymore, and I Don’t Really Know That I Ever Was’

1 month ago | vulture.com | Rachel Handler

Dying for Sex lets Jenny Slate stretch her wings.
Val Kilmer on Val Kilmer’s Documentary About Val Kilmer, Val

1 month ago | vulture.com | Rachel Handler

The actor filmed himself for decades, and then his footage became a surprising and strange documentary, Val. This interview originally ran on July 7, 2021, to coincide with the Cannes Film Festival premiere of Val, a documentary created using footage Val Kilmer filmed of his own life and career. The actor died on April 1, 2025. He was 65. Val Kilmer appeared in other people’s films for 40 years, but, as is revealed in his documentary, Val, he filmed himself for even longer.
How ‘Dying for Sex’ Adapted the Real Molly’s Story for TV

1 month ago | vulture.com | Rachel Handler

Michelle Williams stars in a new FX show as a horny stage-four cancer patient on a quest to figure out what turns her on. Full look by BALENCIAGA. Earrings are stylist’s own. Full look by BALENCIAGA. Earrings are stylist’s own. Full look by BALENCIAGA. Earrings are stylist’s own. This article was originally published on March 24, 2025. FX’s Dying for Sex is out now. Michelle Williams was winding up to kick Rob Delaney in the dick.
A Death-Defying Sexcapade

1 month ago | flipboard.com | Rachel Handler

2 days agoJames Van Der Beek opened up about reconnecting with his Dawson's Creek castmates years after the show went off air. The 48-year-old actor brought Dawson Leery to life in the hit series, which ran between 1998 and 2003. Other core cast members included the likes of Katie Holmes, Michelle Williams and …
"Celebrity" just isn't hitting like it used to... (Live from On-Air Fest)

2 months ago | wrvo.org | Brittany Luse |Rachel Handler |Alex Abad-Santos

When twitch streamers can sway elections and viral videos can turn fifteen seconds of fame into hundreds of millions of dollars, it kind of makes you wonder: who's a real "celebrity" these days? And do they matter like they used to? With fans fed up over ticket prices and endless product pushing, capital-C "celebrity" seems to be in its flop era. But is it gone for good? And, do we even want it back?