April 12, 2007

Gearing up for production, the filmmakers of "Saw IV" seem to quicken their pace in filling up the flick's cast lineup following the inclusion of Tobin Bell. Arrow in the Head has confirmed with director Darren Lynn Bousman that Lyriq Bent will once again play Rigg in the project while Bloody-Disgusting.com has revealed that Justin Louis has also been billed for a role.

"Yes Lyriq Bent is in fact returning," so Bousman told Arrow in the Head. "He is a great actor - and am very excited to be working with him yet again - on part IV."

Making another progress in developing "Barbarella" following their successful effort to complete a rights deal for the flick, producers Dino and Martha De Laurentiis have hired "Casino Royale" screenwriters Neal Purvis and Robert Wade to both pen the screenplay, Variety has reported.

Purvis and Wade are said to just turn in their draft for "Bond 22" and will make the movie their next project. Already tapped to direct is "Hannibal Rising" Peter Webber, who is set to begin principal photography later this year at Morocco's CLA studios.

Deciding to shift gear to R&B, Madonna brings in the Pros. Justin Timberlake, Timbaland and Pharrell Williams will support her hip-hop flavored album by providing the materials.

Justin revealed to Britain's The Sun newspaper, "I have been working on some new music. But it's not for myself - I'm writing for other people. I'm working on some stuff for Madonna." He was seen entering a West London studio with Madonna for early planning. Timbaland and Williams meanwhile, would act as the producers of the album plus writers of at least 4 tracks.

Finally landing his film feature directorial debut, short movie director Phil Traill has been assigned by Fox 2000 to helm its comedy flick "All About Steve", which has already had Sandra Bullock onboard to topline.

Penned by Kim Barker, the movie focuses on a brilliant crossword constructor who comes to a decision that a CNN cameraman she dates on only one short date is her true love. Trying to convince him they are perfect for each other, she recklessly trails him as he carries out his work hither and yon, leading her to bump into a band of misfits who appreciate her for who she is.

Good luck charm is still by Snoop Dogg's side. The troubled rapper pleaded no contest to charges of sale or transportation of marijuana and possession of a gun Wednesday April 11th and thus avoided what could have been years-long prison sentence.

Snoop was, instead, given a three-year suspended sentence and handed five years of probation by a Californian court, plus 800 hours of community service with one condition that he could still face jail if he breaks the terms of his sentence. In addition, the star will also be barred from employing security guards who have gang affiliations and be required to ensure that any of his staff who carry a gun have an appropriate license.

Lining up together to join Ben Kingsley and Penelope Cruz, Peter Sarsgaard, Patricia Clarkson, Dennis Hopper, and Deborah Harry have all given their agreement to take part in Lakeshore Entertainment's dramatic feature "Elegy", The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

Based on Philip Roth's Pulitzer Prize-winning novella "The Dying Animal", the project sees Kingsley as a cultural critic named David Kepesh who finds his life gets thrown into tragic disarray by her sophisticated student Consuela Castillo, played by Cruz, after they embark on an erotic affair. It is still unclear yet what role the four are set to portray.

Now becoming the meeting point of two Oscar-winning talents, "The Great Debaters" has satisfyingly submitted Forest Whitaker into its cast lineup alongside Denzel Washington, who finally jumps in to also star in this feature directorial effort of him, The Hollywood Reporter has revealed.

Based on the true story of professor Melvin B. Tolson, the picture follows the man as he formed an all-black debate team who rose up to challenge Harvard's best in 1935. While Washington will portray Tolson, Whitaker is said to get billed as the father of one of the debaters and a rival to the professor.

She feels so lucky to be the mother of twin daughters after years waiting to be a mom. Now that her dream comes true, Marcia Cross shares her motherhood experience to People magazine in its April 23 issue, on newsstands Friday April 13th.

Debuted her baby daughters, Eden and Savannah, on the magazine's cover, the "Desperate Housewife" said "I wanted to be a member of that club so badly, and now I'm in and it's so much better than I even imagined." She went on adding, "Even before I was 30 I started thinking about (motherhood). The years started going by and I was anxious about the clock ticking. Now it seems like it was all meant to be."

Reports on her working on her next studio album with the help of pop singer Justin Timberlake has been confirmed. Meanwhile, words got around that Madonna is making her way back to Malawi, Africa with her adopted son David Banda to meet with the boy's biological father.

Greater than that, as reported by Life & Style magazine, Madonna also is considering the option for another adoption, about which an unnamed insider revealed, "She wants David to have a relationship with his biological father. She's going under the guise of a vacation, but she's not on vacation - she's on a mission. She intends to adopt another baby soon, but first she wants to repair her image from all the bad press she got over David's adoption."

As a try out plus a warming up for his newest album, Seal will preview the material in a short US tour. Scheduled for second half of May, the trek will begin May 15 in Westbury, NY and end May 30 in Dallas, TX.

Seal has neither come up with the album's name that follows 2003's "Seal IV" nor did he set the release date. He did though, keeps his fans posted with the recording progress on his official website. "I am having a really good time making this record," he wrote. "There is an excitement in the studio a bit like the first record I made only this time with a lot more peacefulness."

No doubt providing the link between the second and third installment of the hit adventure series, Brendan Fraser finally is positive to reprise his role as Rick O'Connell in Universal Pictures' "The Mummy 3."

Variety has confirmed that the actor has closed a rich deal to return for the third part of the franchise, thereby joining martial arts star Jet Li, who will play a major villain in the project. On the other hand, it is sadly reported that Rachel Weisz, who played Evelyn Carnahan in the previous two installments, has dropped out of talks to reprise the role.

Who has the bad luck in making relationship with opposite sex? According In Touch Weekly magazine it's Sheryl Crow. The singer, sad to say, earns the unwanted title of the Most Unlucky in Love Female in Hollywood for her many failed-relationships with numbers of men.

Crow, who previously dated the likes of Eric Clapton, actor Owen Wilson, and Kid Rock, was once engaged to cycling legend Lance Armstrong. The last also didn't work well that she was once quoted as saying, "I don't want to spend the rest of my life alone. That's the only true fear I have."

It takes 6 years for Ozzy Osbourne to create his ninth studio album titled "Black Rain". Finally he sets the date of release to May 22 via Epic Records. He self-proclaimed this album will be much better than 2001's "Down to Earth".

Ozzy recorded the album in his LA home studio along with guitarist Zakk Wydle whom he believes will be legendary one day. "People say, 'Why do you keep goin' to Zakk?' 'Cause you know what? There ain't no one else like 'em. He comes up with the stuff, plus the fact he's a family member. If he said to me, 'Ozzy, I need you to do this, will you do (it)?' I wouldn't think twice," he said.

Estranged couple Heather Locklear and Richie Sambora are enjoying singlehood in the eyes of the law as their divorce was finalized Wednesday April 11th.

Lawyers for both stars met with a judge to finalize the divorce settlement, a friend of Locklear's revealed while went on adding, "This has been an unbelievably difficult year for Heather. It's a huge relief for her that this part of her life has come to a close."

Getting such a potential big screen project within its grasp, Lionsgate has come onboard as domestic distributor of action epic "The Forbidden Kingdom", known previously as "Jackie Chan/Jet Li Project" or "Untitled J&J Project", Variety has learned.

The company thus will co-release the flick in the U.S. with The Weinstein Co. for a planned September 2008 release as well as distribute it in the U.K. while the other studio handles the distribution for Spain, France, and Latin America regions.

Set to pump up moviegoers' adrenaline, Universal Pictures is getting on the track to develop an untitled adventure flick from writer Chris Morgan's pitch that it has preemptively purchased for reportedly $700,000 against $1.35 million.

The deal marks the fifth project Universal sets up with Morgan, who previously penned "The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift" for the studio. Other flicks the two are collaborating in include "Wanted (2008)", "The Psycho", and reportedly, a fourth "Fast and the Furious" movie.

Heading to the same direction this time, Carrie-Anne Moss, Cameron Bright, Kevin Zegers, and Callum Keith Rennie, are all coming together to make up the cast of drama feature "Normal", The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

Presenting the story about the impact of a deadly traffic crash, the project finds Moss as Catherine, a mother filled with rage and unable to recover from the death of her teenage son in a car crash and Bright her other child, Brady.

A 15.7 per cent increase is gained by the album sales this week, thanks to the highly commercial "Now That's What I Call Music! 24" that moves 213,000 units. Despite the compilation's 7 per cent drop from last week, it enters the chart at #1, a flip-flop position to last week's reigner "Let It Go" by Tim McGraw. The country singer's album has to give up the top position after a 46 per cent drop at 177,000.

A new album from country diva Martina McBride titled "Waking Up Laughing" bows at #3 by selling 144,000 copies at the first week. Just one position behind is teen star-turning mature Hilary Duff with her third studio album "Dignity" that sells 140,000. The biggest surprise of all in the chart comes next. Just when everybody thinks the hottest producer in town will shoot straight to No. 1, they have to question why Timbaland only debuts at No. 5. His " Timbaland Presents Shock Value" moves 138,000 copies despite the first single "Give It To Me" featuring Justin Timberlake and Nelly Furtado that constantly climbs up the Hot 100 chart.

On the heels of a report stating that the marriage of Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony is on the rock, comes a new report claiming the Salsa singer-songwriter has agreed to pay $2.5 million in back taxes, interest and penalties after failing to file returns for five years.

Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said Anthony failed to pay taxes for 2000 through 2004 on $US15.5 million in income. The New York-born singer was not charged though because he relied on his accountant to file his tax returns. "He thought that he could rely on his manager and his accountant," Morgenthau said.

Melanie Brown is taking one step forward in the battle with former boyfriend Eddie Murphy over her daughter's biological father. While the court has yet released official decision on that encounter, the Scary Spice bravely listed the comedian as her newborn daughter's father on the baby's birth certificate.

"He's definitely been named on the birth certificate," a source close to Brown tells People. No comment from Murphy's camp by now.

Rumor has it that Ryan Gosling and girlfriend Rachel McAdams are secretly planning a flashy engagement party and wedding ceremony this year.

A source close to McAdams told Us Weekly, "They're madly in love and plan on getting married this year. [They] want to avoid the press. So they agreed to get engaged and married on the same day - and won't allow their families to talk about it."

After the many films she starred in, Drew Barrymore is jumping on the cosmetics bandwagon. The actress is CoverGirl's newest model and spokeswoman, it has been confirmed.

In addition to appearing in print ads and television commercials for the cosmetics purveyor, Barrymore will also serve as a creative consultant on the campaign, weighing in on the concept, graphics, lighting and photography, as well as details such as her hair and wardrobe.