August 02, 2006

In its effort to bring up "Deceit" to the surface, Universal Pictures has assigned screenwriter duo Michael Brandt and Derek Haas to pen the film's script with Lorenzo Di Bonaventura to produce, so Variety has revealed.

Brandt and Haas previously have teamed up together in building the story of "2 Fast 2 Furious" (2003) also for Universal. Their next writing collaborations include "Wanted (2006)", "The Courier", "3:10 to Yuma", and "Countdown" among others.

Warner Bros. did it quick, really. The company wasted no time to gain screen rights to a novel by Tom Sniegoski which has just been published last month by Penguin, Variety has reported.

Titled "Sleeper Code" as the novel was, the movie will be produced by Peter Donaldson, Stacy Maes and Jay Sanders with Jason Keller writing the scripts. The story is likely to follow the book version which tells about a man who suffers from an extreme form of narcolepsy and is involved in a mystery when his psychologist is murdered and his files go missing.

It is all done for alternative rock band My Chemical Romance. The music act is said to have finished working on their next album, the follow-up to the 2004's "Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge," which has sold more than 1.4 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

"We all have records that shaped our childhood and teen years," says bassist Mikey Way. "When you hear a song, it shoots you back to a moment in time. We want this album to do that for people. We want the entire world to be moved."

Fans of horror flicks, prepare yourself to face "Dead Daughters" for Gold Circle Films has successfully obtain English-language remake rights to a Russian feature, "Myortvye docheri", to be brought up on U.S theaters for sure.

While the original version was both directed and written by Pavel Ruminov, the U.S adaptation relies on Jared Rivet to work on the scripts with Paul Brooks and Scott Niemeyer as the producers. Norm Waitt will executive produce and Zak Kadison will co-produce. No words yet about the helmer and cast.

Multi-platinum recording artist Hilary Duff performed a free concert for military families Tuesday night August 1st.

The actress singer performed the so-called "Hilary Duff Rocks for the Troops" in Fayetteville, home of Fort Bragg.

Pamela Anderson has received what she called as her "first wedding present", a deal with haircare giant Bed Head to launch a range of ethical hair products for people and their pets.

Is thrilled about the new deal, Pammy commented "I received my first wedding present! From my friends at Bed Head. I got the call that it is confirmed."

Film remake apparently is still be seen as a profitable project in the industry as Paramount Pictures has set to bring up "Death Race", a remake of the 1975 flick entitled "Death Race 2000", on the big screen.

While cast remains a big question, the studio has appointed Paul W.S. Anderson to both direct and write the movie, the latter task to be carried out alongside J.F. Lawton. In the meantime, Anderson will also take the producer's seat, lining up with the likes of Jeremy Bolt and Roger Corman who has been known to be the producer of the original version.

The 64-year-old singer Aretha Franklin has been slated to receive the Award of Excellence from the United Negro College Fund, and thus becoming the first female artist ever to receive the honor.

Franklin is being honored for her work with the college fund to provide deserving students with access to higher education as well as for her activism and philanthropy on behalf of other causes.

Looks like the charm of Brandon Routh still works its magic effectively this time. Continuing to draw vast public attention, especially through his impressive portrayal of the titular hero in "Superman Returns", the actor has successfully maintained his position on the top spot of AceShowbiz.com's Celebrity Buzz of July 2006 edition, marking his second time in a row to be the best on the list.

On the second place, here comes Jenna Jameson who goes up one step higher from last month's position followed by newcomer Johnny Depp at 3rd, much thanks to his memorable reprised portrayal of Captain Jack Sparrow in this summer's box office hit "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest." Great boost also strikes the beautiful Vida Guerra as she bounces 13 ranks from her last-month position to be the 4th best. Seating on the 5th rank is another newcomer, Carmen Electra, whose marriage to Dave Navarro sadly encountered its end in July.

Subsequent to the success of their October 8 tour in Regina, The Rolling Stones has announced plans to play a second concert in the Canadian city during their fall North American tour, and have accordingly rescheduled their dates for Missoula and Wichita.

The music act is said to kick off the gig October 6th later this year with tickets go on sale to the general public starting from Friday August 4th.

Glowing screen stars namely Michelle Williams, Nathalie Press, Emily Barclay, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Ben Chaplin, and Brian Cox have all been enlisted to make a promising cast list in "Bronte", a saga of Bronte sisters who were known for their works in literature.

Set to be filmed in a Yorkshire village this October, pic will feature Williams as Charlotte Bronte while her two siblings, Emily and Anne, will be portrayed by Press and Barclay, respectively. As for the actors, Meyers is billed to be a failed artist who turned to alcohol and opium named Branwell with Chaplin as Charlotte's husband, the Rev Arthur Bell Nicholls, and Cox as the family patriarch, the Irish-born Rev Patrick Bronte.

Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose tells all why he quits the stage before the end of the band show at Wembley Arena on Sunday evening July 30th. The man released a statement, explaining that he was diagnosed with "low blood pressure" and "low blood sugar" on the morning before the show. Doctors had reportedly advised the singer not to take to the stage for the related show.

However, Rose ignored it and decided to perform on stage instead. As a result, he was then forced to bow out of the gig towards the end of the set because he was feeling unwell. Former Skid Row singer Sebastian Bach, who had joined Guns N' Roses for the show, took over lead vocals on the last songs of the night, "Night Train" and "Paradise City."

This week indeed is really hard to go through for Lindsay Lohan. The teen celebrity has had so many things to face, from dehydration to a "spoiled child" claim labeled to her by Morgan Creek CEO, James G. Robinson.

What's next? New rumors surface by the hour that the teen singer has been fired by her UK record label Island Records after she failed to travel to London for a planned promotional campaign for her album "Speak".

The baby face Kerry Katona of music group Atomic Kitten is going to marry her cab driver boyfriend Mark Croft next month.

What prompted the report on the singer's wedding plan is her third pregnancy.

Musician Alice Cooper has revealed plans to develop a teen center on the campus of Grand Canyon University. The singer's Solid Rock Foundation, a Christian non-profit organization, has begun fundraising efforts for a 20,000-square-foot teen activity center on the university grounds in Phoenix.

The $3 million center, called The Rock, will feature a concert hall, recording studio, game room, coffee house, rock climbing walls, sound room, and indoor basketball courts. Construction is set to begin in 2007.

After the many speculation on her status with boyfriend of three years, Indian businessman Arun Nayer, Elizabeth Hurley comes clean about all. The actress says she plans to marry Nayer very soon.

"I can't tell you the exact date, but it is very close," Liz is quoted as saying in the Italian edition of Vanity Fair magazine. "We are also thinking of having a child," she added.

The date has been fixed. "Alien vs. Predator" sequel, "Alien vs. Predator: Survival of the Fittest" finally settles on September 23 to begin shooting process with intention to wrap all things up on December 12, so Fangoria has revealed.

A directorial debut of Colin and Greg Strause, the film will be made based on Shane Salerno's scripts which continue the battle between these two extraterrestrial creatures on U.S ground in the Midwest. Tom Woodruff Jr. and Alec Gillis of Amalgamated Dynamics are back to once again handle the creature FX.

Just three days after issuing an apology to everyone he had offended concerning his DUI charge, Mel Gibson has just issued another apology. The actor has on Tuesday August 1st issued a specific apology to "everyone in the Jewish community for the vitriolic and harmful words" he used when he was arrested for drunken driving last Friday.

As it's been widely reported before Gibson is quoted as having said to the Malibu officer: "The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world," and asking the arresting officer, "Are you a Jew?"

Sony Pictures Animation is on board to make its third animated feature. Variety has learned that the studio will bring up a monster comedy flick entitled "Hotel Transylvania" to theaters based on the scripts penned by Don Rhyme of "Big Momma's House" fame.

Tentatively set for release in 2009, pic will be directed by Anthony Stacchi and David Feiss with Michelle Murdocca as the producer. The story revolves around creatures like Frankenstein, the Mummy, Dracula and the Werewolf as they hide out in a hotel located on the outskirts of Transylvania since the 21st century technology has seemingly made them irrelevant.

While her starring vehicle "The Devil Wears Prada" still circulates in theaters, Emily Blunt has already made a swift move in her next step indeed. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the actress is involved in a negotiation to play the female lead in "The Great Buck Howard", a film project developed by Bristol Bay Productions.

If a deal is settled, Blunt therefore will join the likes of Tom Hanks and his son, Colin Hanks, plus John Malkovich to make a star-studded cast for sure. Tom Hanks himself has been confirmed to produce the picture alongside Gary Goetzman under their Playtone Productions.