January 28, 2008

The Academy Award-winning actress Julia Roberts is going to be the producer of an adaptation film "Untitled Julia Roberts Project". According to Hollywood Reporter, the "Erin Brockovich" star has signed on with Sony's Columbia Pictures for the position.

Aside from being the producer, she was said to be attached to the project as an actress as well. It was reported that the co-star of Richard Gere in romantic comedy "Runaway Bride" will portray a recently divorced woman who is dissatisfied with her job at a Manhattan ad agency and embarks on an adventure that takes her to places she never expected to go.

As the upcoming sequel of "The X-Files" is in the production, more details information of the movie are leaking. According to Hollywood North Insider, the source close to the production of "The X-Files: I Want to Believe" said that there will be 'Newfies', that is from Newfoundland, in the film.

To the site, the insider shared that "extras are being told that they are playing 'Newfies' i.e from Newfoundland". Further, the source exposed that "they are being asked to bring swimsuits for a particular scene being shot on a reservation in Mount Currie".

The rising young actor Channing Tatum has reportedly nailed the part of Duke in Paramount Pictures' latest project. According to AICN.com, the star of dancing drama "Step Up" has been entrusted with the role of the "G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra" team leader.

Based on Hasbro's line of action figures, "Joe" is a live action film starring Sienna Miller, Ray Park, Marlon Wayans, Rachel Nichols, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje and Said Taghmaoui. It tells the story of an international co-ed force of operatives who use hi-tech equipment to battle an evil organization headed by a double-crossing Scottish arms dealer 'Cobra'. The film is set to start shooting in February 2008 and slated for release on August 7, 2009.

After being rumored that he will take in charge of "A Walk in the Woods" back in August 2005, it is reported that Robert Redford is indeed going to go back behind the camera once again to produce the adaptation drama. The confirmation was made by the star of "The Horse Whisperer" himself as he revealed to The Associated Press that his next project would be "Woods".

To the news agency, the Academy Award-winning American director confessed that he will be the movie's producer aside from portraying Bill Bryson, the lead character in the film. On the phone from California on Friday, January 25, the director/actor of "Lions for Lambs" also expressed his excitement saying, "It'll be fun. I don't know when I've read a book that I laughed so loud. Also it's a chance to take a look at the country. ... The backdrop is pretty terrific, if you stop to think of all the visuals that are possible as they go along that trail."

Is best known as an R&B singer, songwriter, and pianist, John Legend is venturing into liquor business. The musician, who rose to fame with his 2004 album "Get Lifted", has signed on as the new face of Baileys Irish Cream.

Baileys Irish Cream is an Irish whiskey and cream based liqueur, made by R. A. Bailey & Co. of Dublin, Ireland. The trademark is currently owned by Diageo which is the largest multinational beer, wine and spirits company in the world. It has a declared alcohol content of alcohol by volume.

It takes time for Alejandro Sanz to come out of the closet and finally confirm he's dating his former assistant.

The Spanish pop/ballad musician has officially confirmed he's dating his former assistant Raquel Pereda, two years after they first started dating.

MTV has premiered a new music video from Hawaii-born singer Jack Johnson. A clip is premiered for 'If I Had Eyes', Johnson's single from upcoming album 'Sleep Through the Static' which will be released on February 5 via Universal.

'If I Had Eyes' is a self-produced song that is made the first single lifted from the fifth studio album. It was released exclusively on Brushfirerecords.com in November and dropped on iTunes in the following month. Johnson is set to release the title track as the second single from the album.

The star of "La Vie en Rose", Marion Cotillard, is reportedly going to join Johnny Depp and Christian Bale in Universal Pictures' latest project "Public Enemies". The actress nominated for an Academy Award for her portrayal of Edith Piaf in "Rose" has been set to star in the Depression-era crime drama.

According to Variety, Cotillard was chosen by "Enemies" helmer Michael Mann to depict Billie Frechette, the singer girlfriend of the country's most notorious gangster John Dillinger. Aside from starring opposite Depp and Bale, the 32-year-old French actress will play alongside Channing Tatum, Giovanni Ribisi, Stephen Dorff and Jason Clarke.

Ludacris is hit a with a copyright infringement case after three producers claimed they own a track that was released in the rapper's 2004 album 'The Red Light District'.

The Pensylvania producers - Damon Mayfield, Markus Vick and Anthony Turner - filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia, claiming that the rapper and his label Disturbing Tha Peace had used the song they sent without acknowledging them.

The likes of Jessica Biel, Jennifer Lopez, and Marc Anthony are among numbers of Hollywood A-Listers being featured in the "Disney Dream Portrait Series" ads, shot by famous photographer Annie Leibovitz.

The pictures, unveiled Thursday, January 24, were created for the "Disney Dream Portrait Series" to celebrate Disney Parks' "Year of a Million Dreams" which Disneyland Resort in California and Walt Disney World Resort in Florida have decided to extend through 2008.

"Bootylicious" hitmaker Beyonce Knowles will once again appear in the big screen. According to reports, the R 'n' B superstar is set to star in Sony BMG's drama musical about musical legends of the 1950s "Cadillac Records".

Knowles reportedly will be portraying the renowned singer Etta James whose hits include "I Just Want To Make Love To You" and "At Last". On the part, an insider revealed, "Beyonce is a massive fan of the superb Etta. She's honoured to play her." Meanwhile, according to BlackFilm.com, the news about the joining of the 26-year-old singer was outed by Cedric the Entertainer.

Snoop Dogg is offering ABC's soap opera 'One Life to Live' a song written by him. The rapper reportedly is a big fan of the drama and would love to contribute something after hearing that Mary J. Blige will make a cameo in it.

Blige is set for a return engagement on the show for a Valentine special, performing two tracks from her 'Growing Pains' album and accompanied by her band. "It's absolutely amazing to be integrated into a soap opera I've watched since I was a little girl," the R'n'B singer said in a statement.

One year after the release of the song, Arcade Fire finally premiered the music video of 'Black Mirror'. The song that became the lead single of their 2007 highly-acclaimed album 'Neon Bible' has received its picturesque but sophisticated clip.

The video was directed and made by Olivier Groulux and Tracy Maurice using green screen and animation technology. Groulux and Maurice previously worked on the art theme of the band's albums 'Funeral' and 'Neon Bible'. Pitchforkmedia.com gathered some behind-the-scene pictures of the making of the video.

Has just been tapped as one of the many performers at the forthcoming 50th annual Grammy Awards, set to take place February 10 at Los Angeles' Staples Center, Carrie Underwood brings her fans another good news; the launching of her very own YouTube page.

The pop country singer has her very own YouTube page at YouTube.com/CarrieUnderwood, where fans can freely embed all her videos.

After nailing the prestigious DGA Awards for its helmers Joel and Ethan Coen on Saturday, January 26, "No Country for Old Men" once again brought recognitions for its cast ensemble. This time, the drama film about a ruthless Texas oilman won two of the seven kudos in the category of theatrical motion pictures at the 14th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards held on Sunday, January 27.

On the ceremony held at the Los Angeles Shrine Exposition Center, the film got its acclaimed actor Javier Bardem the prize of Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role for his daunting performance as a relentless killer in search for missing drug money. On receiving the kudo, the actor had nothing but kind words for "No Country" directors saying, "Thank you, guys, for hiring me, and thank you for taking the hard work of choosing the good takes instead of the ones where I really sucked."

The arguably biggest reunion in pop history is about to happen as it is reported that members of New Kids On The Block are planning to revive their '90s popularity this year. People.com came up with the report, strengthened with the band's official site that came to life after years of laying dormant.

The group, comprised of Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg, Danny Wood and brothers Jordan and Jonathan Knight, are expected to officially announce their comeback next month. Meanwhile, the revived official site put a new copyright notice, NKOTB Inc and encouraged fans to sign up for updates.

The full version of Atomic Kitten's new music video for 'Anyone Who Had a Heart' has been premiered. The three-piece band covered Cilla Black's 1964 classic of the same name and used it as Liverpool's Number One single of 2008.

The single which reportedly will also go to their new studio album, is now a charity single that aims to raise 1 million pounds for Merseyside. For each download there will be a sum of money donated to various charities conducted in the North West England city.

Serving the extended leg of her double duty tour that has begun since fall last year, Miley Cyrus took a brief halt on-stage. The teen star was performing at a concert in New Orleans on Saturday night (January 26) when she said that she had taken ill.

Miley completed the song 'Rock Star' when she left the stage and announced that she was not feeling well. After a 5 minute indefinite break, she returned to the stage where a stool was placed in the middle of the stage under the spotlight. "Thanks, you guys. I feel a lot better, but I'm going to sit this one down," Cyrus told the crowd.

While Britney Spears' antics continue to escalate, there comes a new shocking report that suggests her paparazzo boyfriend Adnan Ghalib is attempting to sell a stack of personal videos showing the troubled pop star in various stages of distress for a cool $2 million.

Adnan, who has officially parted ways with the paparazzi agency that he'd been working for, is said to have been filming Britney "crying and babbling on about her recent breakdown" and is planning to sell the videos to the highest bidder in anticipation that their relationship might come to an end sooner or later.

The spoof about the ancient Greek warriors "Meet the Spartans" nabbed the top position in the three-day North American weekend box office ended January 27. Pulling in $18.5 million, the 20th Century Fox's comedy starring Sean Maguire, Carmen Electra, Diedrich Bader and Kevin Sorbo edged out the expectant box office champion "Rambo".

On the narrow lead taken by the PG-13 movie, Paul Dergarabedian, the president of box office tracker Media by Numbers commented, "This was a very tight race for the No. 1 spot. I think we tend to underestimate films like 'Meet the Spartans'. Fox has really locked onto something that's extremely popular." He also noted, "I think everyone expected 'Rambo' to be No. 1. There are definitely a lot of serious films out there now but there was a big enough audience looking to have silly, mindless fun at movie theaters"

Despite pushing back the release date of her album once again, Ashanti has also shown some progress in her fourth album, 'The Declaration'. The official first single from it, 'The Way I Love You' has got its cover art revealed on her official site.

With the cover art out, there came a report that a music video for the single will be shot soon. L.T. Hutton, the producer of the song revealed on his MySpace page that Ashanti will shoot the music video either the end of this month or the beginning of next month.

Daniel Radcliffe is single and available. The young British actor, best known for his role as Harry Potter in "Harry Potter" film series, has broken up with girlfriend Laura O'Toole.

The couple who never made their relationship public reportedly split up late last year, with Laura was quoted by News of the World as saying, "Daniel and I are still good friends and have a good time when we see each other. But we just have to be realistic."

R'n'B singer Keyshia Cole recently revealed in an interview with SOHH.com that she is working on the follow up to her Grammy-nominated album 'Just Like You'. The plan is to finish it in time for a Christmas release.

"I'm writing down ideas now, just what I feel like the album should be about," Cole said. "This is the first time I've actually done that so that should be fun. They want it out by Christmas."

It appears that Lindsay Lohan's addiction to men continues to escalate. She reportedly is more than friends with reality TV heartbreaker Brody Jenner with whom she was spotted getting really close at Beatrice Inn in New York.

Lindsay and Brody, according to People, avoided being photographed together Friday night, January 24 as they hit night clubs in New York, but while inside they got pretty cozy.

Britney Spears' 'Blackout' album may be accepted mildly Stateside, but it took a coveted titled at the French NRJ Music Awards as it was announced as 'International Album of the Year', beating Amy Winehouse's 'Back to Black', James Blunt's 'All the Lost Souls', Mika's 'Life in Cartoon Motion' and Rihanna's 'Good Girl Gone Bad'.

The ninth NRJ music awards that was held in Cannes, France on Saturday, January 26 also listed other International figures as the winners. Avril Lavigne and Justin Timberlake were named International Female Artist of the Year and International Male Artist of the Year respectively while Mika took home the award for International Revelation of the Year.

The duo brothers team, Joel and Ethan Coen, can be said one step closer in bringing home the top prize at the 80th Academy Awards as they were chosen by the Director Guild of America as the 2007 Best Feature Film Directors for their edgy crime drama "No Country for Old Men".

The brothers were presented with the top prize by Martin Scorsese, last year DGA's winner for "The Departed", at the DGA's 60th Awards ceremony on Saturday, January 26, at Hyatt Regency Century Plaza in Century City, Los Angeles. The first time DGA winner became the second directing duo to win the award since Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins won the prize in 1961 for helming "West Side Story".

A private memorial service was held at the G'Day USA Australia Day Ball in Manhattan and at the Beverly Hills Hotel in California on Saturday night, January 26 to remember the late actor Heath Ledger.

His parents, Kim Ledger and Sally Ledger Bell, and sister Kim Ledger were seen among some 1000 people attended the New York service. Heath's ex-girlfriend, Naomi Watts, was also among the mourners spotted in attendance at the service.

The official YouTube account of Jonas Brothers has just premiered the pop group's latest music video, 'When You Look Me in the Eyes'. It was shot back in December during concerts in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Somerville, Massachusetts, showing the boys performing live and doing a meet and greet session.

The black and white music video is for the second version of the song that appears on their self-titled sophomore effort. This version begins playing in Radio Disney on Saturday, January 26. In the mean time, the first version of the song was recorded when the three-piece were younger and it was included in the solo album of its member Nick Jonas.