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Michael Douglas Skipping the Oscars

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Awards, Celebrity Gossip,

Michael DouglasMichael Douglas is skipping the Oscars on Sunday. The 68-year-old actor has decided not to accompany his wife Catherine Zeta-Jones to the ceremony at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood in favor of staying home with their children Carys, nine, and Dylan, 12.

A source close to the Side Effects actress, 43, told RadarOnline.com, "Catherine is attending the Academy Awards with a family member, as Michael just doesn't feel like going. Michael will stay at home with son Dylan and daughter Carys, while Catherine will attend the ceremony and the after parties with her pal. He has been very busy of late, promoting his forthcoming biopic Liberace, as well as ringing the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange. But Catherine looks forward to the Oscars every year. She loves the glitz and glamour of the event and wouldn't miss it for the world."

The Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps star - who has been married to the Welsh actress for 12 years - recently admitted he thinks she is "more beautiful than ever." He said, "Catherine and I are doing well. She is more beautiful than ever inside and out. I support her with everything and she is simply the best."


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Rooney Mara Joins Side Effects

Rooney MaraRooney Mara has replaced Blake Lively in Steven Soderbergh's Side Effects.

The 26-year-old actress - who recently won an Oscar-nomination for her performance in Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - will now play the leading role of Emily Hawkins in the movie about a woman with a prescription drug addiction, Deadline.com reports. Her problems increase when she is forced to come to terms with her husband being released from prison after three years, and she begins an affair with her doctor.

Jude Law, Channing Tatum and Catherine Zeta-Jones are also set to star in the movie, which has been written by Scott Z. Burns. Greg Jacobs and Lorenzo di Bonaventura are producing the film, and shooting begins in April.

The role will be Rooney's first major signing since appearing in the English language version of Girl with the Dragon Tattoo alongside Daniel Craig.


Elizabeth Taylor Movie Role Up for Grabs

Elizabeth Taylor, Richard BurtonThe tumultuous, romantic relationship between film icons Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton (who were wed twice) will be the subject of a new film based on the book Furious Love: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and the Marriage of the Century.

Some of the material for the book was offered by herself, who provided love letters written to her by Burton and an unpublished first draft of Taylor’s 1965 autobiography.

The part of Taylor is one of the best movie roles to come along in a long, long time - and all of Hollywood is chomping at the bit to get involved. Sources say that Angelina Jolie and are both interested in the role. Clive Owen, Colin Farrell and Russell Crowe are all eager to play the part of Richard Burton.

Read More | Entertainment Tonight

This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: December 1, 2009

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian Blu-rayHere are some of the options available this Tuesday:

  • A Christmas Tale: DVD, Blu-ray
  • The Evil Dead: DVD
  • The Green Mile: Blu-ray
  • Gremlins: Blu-ray
  • The Jazz Singer: 30th Anniversary Edition: DVD
  • Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels: Blu-ray
  • The Mask of Zorro: Blu-ray
  • Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian: DVD, Blu-ray
  • Paper Heart: DVD, Blu-ray
  • Secondhand Lions: Blu-ray
  • Snatch: Blu-ray
  • Terminator Salvation: DVD, Blu-ray

Make sure to also check out the TV-on-DVD options for this week.

Read More | Amazon

Catherine Zeta-Jones Quit Hollywood For Kids

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Celeb News, Celebrity Gossip, Rumors,

Catherine Zeta-Jones with husband Michael Douglas and kidsEver wonder what happened to Catherine Zeta-Jones? Word is that the actress quit living in Hollywood for the sake of her children.

The Welsh starlet, who lives in Bermuda and New York with her actor husband Michael Douglas and their children, nine-year-old son Dylan and six-year-old-daughter Carys, was so frustrated with the constant paparazzi presence that she gave up her glamorous Los Angeles lifestyle to focus on her family life.

“When you live in Los Angeles you can’t go anywhere without being critiqued—on your purse of the fact that you have gained weight or that you have got spots on your face. That’s not the life I want. Deciding to live in beautiful Bermuda was the healthiest thing Michael and I ever did. Now that I have kids, that’s what my life is about.”

Catherine is also not concerned about turning 40 this Thursday—the same day her husband turns 65—because she doesn’t feel old: “I feel much younger than I am. When you are 10 or 20, 40 looks really old. When I was nearing 30 that seemed like a major milestone.”


Couples With The Worst On-Screen Chemistry

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Lucasfilm Ltd., Casting, Lists,

Star WarsChemistry, schmemistry.  If you know people are going to be watching your movie anyway—does it really matter?  Whaddya say, ?

Film advertising company Pearl & Dean polled 3,000 British moviegoers to see which couples they felt had the worst on-screen chemistry.  Based on the results, it’s hard to say whether or not those opinions had any affect on the eventual box office receipts.  While I completely agree that Natalie Portman and Hayden Christensen fizzled as secret-lovers, I don’t know that the movie’s storyline (or final numbers) could have improved with a different twosome.

Take a look at the poll results and see what you think.  Which couples would you add to this list?  Three pairings that come to my mind:  / Nick Nolte (I Love Trouble), Julia Roberts/ Brad Pitt (The Mexican) and Julia Roberts/ John Cusack (America’s Sweethearts).

  1. Natalie Portman & Hayden Christensen - Stars Wars: Episode II
  2. Jennifer Lopez & Ben Affleck - Gigli
  3. Keira Knightley & Orlando Bloom -
  4. Madonna & Adriano Giannini - Swept Away
  5. Catherine Zeta-Jones & Sean Connery - Entrapment
  6. Andie MacDowell & Hugh Grant - Four Weddings and a Funeral
  7. Kate Beckinsale & Ben Affleck - Pearl Harbor
  8. & - Eyes Wide Shut
  9. & -
  10. & - Titanic

Box Office Breakdown:  Audiences Not Yet Tuckered Out

Rush Hour 3

Spider-Man 3, Shrek the Third, Pirates, Ocean’s, Bourne and now Rush Hour 3.  All six three-quels premiered directly at the top of the heap this summer.

Unfortunately, a six-year gap between the second and third Rush installments may have led to what some would consider slightly disappointing receipts.  On any other occasion, a $50 weekend would be something to brag about.  But considering it pales to the $67.4 million brought in by the 2001 predecessor, it’s only worth a pat on the back.

But really, the Disappointment of the Week honor should really fall on Cuba Gooding Jr.  When you’re accepting rejected scripts from the man who played Norbit, you have to wonder where it all went wrong (two words: Chill Factor).  Sadly, Daddy Day Camp was originally slated to be a straight-to-video release but somehow tested well enough to be released in theaters.  Who knows?  Maybe Gooding can pull a Halle and go straight-from-Oscar-to-Razzie.

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown:  Audiences Not Yet Tuckered Out


Box Office Breakdown:  Bourne Breaks Bank

Bourne

Matt Damon may still be vying for People magazine’s ‘Sexiest Man Alive’ title—but he has one thing that George Clooney and Brad Pitt don’t have:  the biggest debut for an August opening ever.

The Bourne Ultimatum‘s $70 million take improved upon the previous Bourne installments and gave Damon his largest weekend to date (and that’s including all three Ocean’s movies).

Meanwhile, Lindsay Lohan should be happy that she’s holed up in rehab again—though seeing her movie kicked out of the Top Ten would have probably sent her there anyway.  Apparently theatergoers can only handle one movie about Bratz at a time…

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown:  Bourne Breaks Bank


Box Office Breakdown:  A Homerun For Homer

The Simpsons

Looks like Homer ain’t gonna be needing a deal on donuts anymore….

With a $74 million opening weekend, The Simpsons Movie debuted higher than most of the animated features released…ever.  Only the two Shrek sequels did better.  Quite a head-shaking number since we can still see the series for free on television.  But viewers from every single Springfield in the US—plus a thousand other cities out there—love the family so much, they were willing to pay for more.  Especially when it comes with nudity.

What theatergoers aren’t willing to pay for is more I Know Who Killed Me placed a dismal 9th, possibly due to lack of promotional work by the star.  How ironic that in the end it was Lindsay who was responsible for killing the movie and possibly her career.

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown:  A Homerun For Homer

Read More | Variety

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