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SNL has prepared a treat for its fans tonight. Natalie Portman will host for the first time in over a decade, and Dua Lipa will be this evening's musical guest.
Portman last hosted in 2006, and is taking the SNL stage to promote her upcoming science fantasy film Annihilation, which co-stars Oscar Isaac, Tessa Thompson, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Gina Rodriguez. The film will be released February 23, 2018.
That isn't all Portman has been making headlines for recently. At the Golden Globes, the mother-of-two called out the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for snubbing female directors for the award. Portman introduced the category saying, "And here are all the male nominees," as Ron Howard laughed awkwardly. (Many people believe Greta Gerwig was snubbed for her directorial debut, Ladybird. Gerwig has been nominated for Best Director at this year's Oscars, making her just the fifth woman to be recognized by the Academy with a best-director nod.)
Portman currently has two other projects in various stages of production: Vox Lux and The Death and Life of John F. Donovan. Vox Lux is still in pre-production and is set to star Portman, Jude Law, and Stacy Martin. Its IMDB summary currently reads "An unusual set of circumstances brings unexpected success to a pop star." The Death and Life of John F. Donovan stars Portman alongside Jessica Chastain, Bella Thorne, Jacob Tremblay and Kit Harington. On IMDB, the film's summary reads, "A decade after the death of an American TV star, a young actor reminisces [about] the written correspondence he shared with him, as well as the impact those letters had on both their lives."
This Is Dua Lipa's First SNL Performance
Tonight marks 22-year-old Dua Lipa's SNL debut. The British singer's song New Rules recently soared to No. 1 on Billboard's Pop Songs radio airplay chart.
Lipa was born in London to Albanian parents. In 2008, she moved to Kosovo with her family. Like many young artists, Lipa got her start in music by uploading cover videos to Youtube. In 2015, she signed with Warner Music Group. Lipa released her first single, "New Love," in August 2015. She released her second single, "Be the One," just two months later. The song did well across Europe and reached No. 1 in Belgium, Poland and Slovakia.
Lipa's self-titled studio album was released on June 2, 2017. "New Rules" became the first song in nearly two years to reach the top in the UK since Adele's "Hello" in 2015.