FILE – In this Feb. 13, 2018 file photo, director Ryan Coogler attends a special screening of “Black Panther” in New York. As Hollywood’s awards season properly gets under way, “Black Panther” is poised to be the first comic book film to be nominated for best picture. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
As 2018 draws to a close, take a look back at some of the big pop culture moments that occurred this year. From movies to music and celebrity newborns to world news, you could say it was a pretty busy year.
At the box office, Marvel movies like “Black Panther” and “Avengers: Infinity War” continued to dominate. Other beloved movie franchises added new films, including “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again,” “Incredibles 2” and “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.” Additionally, movie adaptations of novels were popular with movies like “Ready Player One” and “Crazy Rich Asians” getting a lot of buzz.
Popular songs from this year include Camila Cabello’s “Havana,” Drake’s “In My Feelings” and “God’s Plan,” Dua Lipa’s “New Rules,” Post Malone’s “Psycho,” “rockstar” and “Better Now,” Ariana Grande’s “no tears left to cry” and “thank u, next,” Maroon 5’s “Girls Like You,” Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect” and Portugal. The Man’s “Feel It Still.” Singers Justin Timberlake, Charlie Puth, Shawn Mendes, Alessia Cara, Troye Sivan and John Legend also released albums this year.
Bestselling books of the year (according to Barnes and Noble ) include Michelle Obama’s memoir “Becoming,” as well as Angie Thomas’s young adult novel “The Hate U Give,” which was also made into a movie. A.J. Finn’s suspense novel “The Woman in the Window” and Kristin Hannah’s “The Great Alone,” about family and survival, also top the list.
Top international news stories of the year include coverage of the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea in February, as well as reporting on the rescue of the Thai boys soccer team that was stuck in a cave throughout late June and into early July. Pop culture news events include the Yanny vs. Laurel debate, IHoP (briefly) changing its name to IHoB (International House of Burgers) and Fortnite’s popularity.
Celebrities are always up to something, and 2018 was no different. When it comes to weddings, no marriage could outdo the ceremony of this May’s royal wedding of American actress Meghan Markle to England’s Prince Harry. Other celebrities who tied the knot include former tween heartthrob Justin Bieber and Hailey Baldwin in September and Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra in early December.
Other couples welcomed babies into the world this year. Kylie Jenner and Travis Scott welcomed Stormi in February, and Kardashian sister Kim’s third child Chicago was born in January. Offset and Cardi B welcomed Kulture Kiari Cephus in July. Royal couple William and Kate also celebrated their third child Prince Louis’s arrival in April.
It wasn’t such a happy year for other celebrities who called it quits in 2018. Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux split in February, and Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan Tatum did the same in April. Most notably, singer Ariana Grande broke up with her fiance Pete Davidson, and her release of “thank u, next” and its music video kept the public’s attention on the singer.
2018 also saw the passing of many well-loved celebrities and other public figures. In March, renowned physicist Stephen Hawking passed. Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin and Senator John McCain both passed in August. Comic creator Stan Lee passed in November, but will be forever remembered for his work in helping to build the Marvel superhero universe. “Spongebob SquarePants” creator Stephen Hillenburg and former President George H. W. Bush also passed in November.
2018 has clearly been another crazy but memorable year. Enjoy this look back, but don’t forget to look forward. Happy New Year’s!
Stephanie Santillo is a staff writer for The Daily Campus. She can be reached via email at stephanie.santillo@uconn.edu.
