Arts & Entertainment
Jonathan Groff joins ‘Matrix’ reboot

Out actor Jonathan Groff has joined the cast of the upcoming “Matrix 4” reboot.
According to Collider, Groff has been added to the roster of names confirmed to be involved in the much-anticipated sequel to the now-classic mind-bending sci-fi trilogy. Details about his role are being kept quiet, for now, but the Broadway veteran (“Spring Awakening,” “Hamilton”) is the second openly gay actor to be cast in the film, following the previously announced Neil Patrick Harris, who is rumored to be playing a villain. The film will be directed by trans filmmaker Lana Wachowski, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Aleksandar Hemon and David Mitchell. She returns to the franchise she helped create with her sister Lilly, who is also trans. They are also known for helping create the popular Netflix series, “Sense8.”
The 34-year-old Groff is probably most widely familiar as the voice of Kristoff in Disney’s mega-hits “Frozen” and “Frozen 2,” but he is also known for his current starring role in the Netflix psychological crime drama, “Mindhunter,” as well as his work on LGBTQ fan-favorite shows “Glee” and “Looking.”
Groff will appear in the film with Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Ann Moss, and Jada Pinkett Smith, all of whom are reprising their roles from the original trilogy, along with fellow newcomers Harris, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and Jessica Henwick.
The film begins production at the beginning of next year, according to Variety.
Baltimore
This John Waters interview has been edited for readability — but perhaps not human decency
Pope of Trash dishes on Trump, plane etiquette, last meal, and more
By WESLEY CASE | At 80 years old, John Waters is still the ideal dinner guest — incisively sharp, quick-witted and funny as hell.
The chic Baltimore native proved it again and again in a recent Zoom interview, calling from his summer home in Provincetown, Mass.
The occasion was the Blu-ray releases of two of his movies — the 1977 dark comedy “Desperate Living” and his enduring 1988 musical “Hairspray” — on June 23 by the Criterion Collection, which publishes restorations of films it deems culturally important. The Criterion stamp of approval has become the gold standard among cinephiles.
“It’s like getting an award,” said Waters, who wrote and directed both films.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
The Washington Blade held the seventh annual Pride on the Pier at The Wharf DC on Saturday, June 13.
(Washington Blade photos by Landon Shackelford)



















The 2026 Lost River Pride Festival was held on the scenic grounds of the Lost River Farmers Market in Lost City, W.Va. on Saturday, June 13. Headliner Tom Goss performed at the festival and gave a second performance at the nearby Guesthouse Lost River.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)




















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