February 06, 2010

Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith have filed legal papers in Los Angeles in an effort to avoid a cash plea from a former business partner. The Smiths claim the man who financed a movie Jada wrote and starred in is threatening to sue them over what he claims was a "guaranteed" return for his investment - and they're not to blame for the failure of the film, called "The Human Contract".

The project, which went straight to DVD, made no money. The Smiths insist they never promised to pay back investors, and, according to TMZ.com, they want a judge to declare they're not liable for the investor's lost cash.

Actor Christian Slater's new TV show is helping Americans track down missing relatives. The "True Romance" star plays people tracker Alex Donovan in "The Forgotten" and admits the show has had a big impact on viewers.

And he insists it's all down to a public service announcement which accompanies the show on U.S. TV - and encourages fans to do their own investigations about missing loved ones. He says, "We actually have the opportunity to solve some real cases."

Oasis rocker Liam Gallagher has confirmed he has ditched the band's name, following the departure of his brother Noel Gallagher. Noel walked away from the group during their European tour in 2009, following a series of bust-ups with his sibling.

The younger Gallagher brother is now assembling his remaining bandmates to begin work on a new album, and he's promising fans a new name too. Liam tells British radio station XFM, "No, it's not Oasis. That was a s**t name anyway. I'm glad to see the back of it. There's a name that we're digging at the moment, but we're going to get on with the music and see how it goes."

Jermaine Jackson has accused Los Angeles authorities of messing up his brother's murder investigation and causing the family a great deal of heartache. The singer claims an expected involuntary manslaughter charge against the King of Pop's physician, Dr. Conrad Murray, has come too late - and isn't enough.

In an emotional interview with U.S. news show Entertainment Tonight, Jackson says, "I just feel like it took so long to arrest this guy (Murray), and to just let this linger on, it is putting daggers in our hearts." If convicted of involuntary manslaughter, it is possible Murray, who will surrender to police on Monday, February 8, will serve no time behind bars - and this upsets Jermaine.

Billed to play Lt. Sosa, Jessica Biel is the only woman cast among the lead actors in "The A-Team". While she has a small portion in the first trailer for the film, director Joe Carnahan recently sat down with MTV to talk about her character, who will bring a threat to the four United States soldiers.

"Jessie, she's a captain with DCIS, which is the Defense Criminal Investigative Service," Carnahan began to explain about Biel's character, who has an uncomfortable dating history with Bradley Cooper's Faceman. "They're basically the department of the defense, and she supersedes [military officials] - if she goes on a base, it doesn't matter if you're a general, she can supplant you."

Tennis superstar Serena Williams is desperate to start a family with her rapper/actor boyfriend Common - but fears she is too forgetful to be a responsible mother. The sporting ace began dating Common last year and confesses she's starting to feel broody. But Williams is putting the idea on hold after accidentally leaving her pet pooch behind after a training session on the tennis courts.

She says, "I would love to have a baby... But I have two little dogs I take care of and they're so cute, but sometimes I forget them. One time I was in the locker room... I was busy and I left and I was in the car driving home and I was like, 'Oops!' I definitely don't need any kids because I forgot my dog."

Actress Kate Walsh is celebrating after a Los Angeles judge denied her estranged husband Alex Young the right to spousal support in their ongoing divorce battle. The "Private Practice" star has been locked in a war of words with Young since separating from him in 2008 and ending their 14-month marriage.

The split turned nasty when Walsh attempted to block her ex from claiming alimony, prompting Young to demand to know the true value of the actress' TV contract with America's ABC network in a bid to land a big money settlement. The former couple faced each other in court on Thursday, February 4, when a judge dismissed Young's claim to spousal support.

Ne-Yo has cast doubt on Lindsay Lohan's pop return after the actress/singer abandoned plans to record more songs with the R&B hitmaker. The "Miss Independent" singer worked with Lohan in 2008 on her single "Bossy" and made arrangements to head back into the studio to record more music together for her forthcoming third album.

But Ne-Yo has not heard from Lohan since and he's not sure he ever will. He tells PopTart, "We were doing some stuff and then it just fell off and hasn't got back on. I'm not gonna hold my breath."

The White Stripes star Jack White is set to give another country music icon a cool career boost - he's in talks to produce Dolly Parton's next record. The rocker, who previously produced Loretta Lynn's acclaimed 2004 album "Van Lear Rose", has reportedly approached Parton with a view to working with the "I Will Always Love You" hitmaker on her next release.

The country queen tells Spinner.com, "I've thought about doing it... He (White) seems to be a fan but who knows. You never know what I might do."

Although he previously claimed that his children were the reason he stopped "Jon & Kate Plus 8", Jon Gosselin is willing to put them back on screen. Rumor has it, the father of twins and sextuplet will allow TLC to film his children if the cable drops its lawsuit against him.

Jon is sued for a breach of contract by law firm Williams and Connolly which represents TLC. The lawsuit was filed in October last year, claiming Jon's behavior had contributed to the end of "Jon & Kate Plus 8". TLC won the first round of preliminary injunction and from the process, it looks like it would be an expensive trial.

Madonna whipped partygoers in New York into a frenzy on Wednesday night, February 3 when she held impromptu auditions for dancers at a Manhattan nightclub. The pop superstar spent an evening at hot spot SL scouting the crowd for potential dancers for her next tour, and she quickly drew a crowd of 30 wannabes, all eager to show off their moves.

A source tells the New York Post's gossip column Page Six, "She was looking for new dancers for her upcoming tour. It was pretty epic. Some professionals were doing flips and spins, while the amateurs sort of just stared."

Anne Hathaway's entire family denounced Catholicism after her elder brother Michael 'came out' as gay. The Andrea Sachs of "The Devil Wears Prada" star was a member of the Catholic Church growing up in New Jersey, but the actress and her parents, Gerald and Kate, as well as her younger sibling Thomas decided to leave the faith to support Michael after he revealed his sexuality.

The 27-year-old actress tells Britain's GQ magazine, "The whole family converted to Episcopalianism after my elder brother came out. Why should I support an organization that has a limited view of my beloved brother?"

Carrie Underwood is the first musical act confirmed for the 45th Annual Country Music Awards. Announcing the news is the "American Idol" singer herself by calling a 15-year-old fan named Riley Ahlstrand who lives in Brentwood, Tennessee.

The teenager had e-mailed the CMA organizers and requested for Carrie's performance at the event. "I always look forward to the excitement of CMA Music Festival," the country music singer said after the phone call. "It's fans like Riley that make the week so much fun."

Anna Paquin and her fiance Stephen Moyer are so busy working on their hit TV show "True Blood" they haven't had time to plan their wedding. The couple, who plays onscreen lovers in the vampire series, found real romance on set and announced their engagement in summer 2009.

But Paquin insists they are so wrapped up in filming, they haven't found time to set a date for their nuptials. She says, "We're doing nights on season three now. I have trouble planning anything more than brunch with my friends. But when the time's right, we'll do it."

Several new clips from "Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief" have come out. Sharing a lot of new scenes from different parts of the film, the new snippets give preview to Percy Jackson as an ordinary student who comes to find out that he in the son of a god in addition to following his dangerous journey to take back the lightning bolt.

In related news, Logan Lerman and some of his co-stars including Brandon T. Jackson, Alexandra Daddario and Pierce Brosnan were pictured attending the New York premiere of the film. Held on Thursday, January 4, the special screening took place at the AMC Lincoln Square.

To keep things hype after the two-hour television event this week, "Smallville" will bring back Serinda Swan to reprise her role as magician Zatanna in next week's episode. Clark meets Zatanna at a comic book convention, where she tells him her father charmed a copy of the comic book "Warrior Angel" and it holds magical powers.

A young man named Stephen (guest star Carlo Marks) steals the comic book and develops super powers, transforming himself into Warrior Angel and saving Chloe from a horrible accident. Meanwhile, Lois becomes jealous of Clark's relationship with Zatanna.

British actress Emily Blunt has defended her decision to swap independent movies for big budget blockbusters - insisting she doesn't need to "atone" for her career choices. After a supporting role in hit fashion film "The Devil Wears Prada", Blunt has made her name with a string of smaller films, including "The Young Victoria", "Sunshine Cleaning" and "The Great Buck Howard".

She's now set to hit cinemas with blockbusters including "The Wolfman" and "Gulliver's Travels", but insists she's not chasing big money movies. Blunt says, "I knew what I was signing up for. Really I did. People were, like, 'Why have you strayed away from independent films?'. I thought, 'Give us a break! I've hardly done anything but independent films.'"

Alicia Keys will be flying to Brazil Tuesday, February 9. The singer visits the country to shoot a music video for her latest single "Put It in a Love Song" with her collaborator Beyonce Knowles who is currently staying in the country for her "I Am..." world tour.

The video is going to be filmed against Rio de Janeiro's landscape. "I'm a fan of joy and swing of Brazil. And this is a good time to show the new phase are living communities of Rio," Alicia told Brazilian online publication, O Dia, in a phone interview.

Mary J. Blige has been inspired to pursue more acting roles after she saw Mariah Carey's "incredible" performance in "Precious: Based on the Novel PUSH by Sapphire". The soul singer is preparing to portray jazz legend Nina Simone in an upcoming biopic, "Untitled Nina Simone Project", and insists she was motivated to act after watching glamorous Carey morph into a homely social worker for 2009's "Precious: Based on the Novel PUSH by Sapphire".

She tells the BoomBox.com, "To look at Mariah [Carey] and see what she did with that film, it's like, wow! She really did it because she went past the Mariah we all know - with the hair and beautiful face. All of that Mariah stuff, it wasn't there. She got rid of herself! Wow, incredible. I know acting is something that I need to do."

Veteran actress Shirley MacLaine has blasted movie marketing bosses for failing to include her in promotional posters for new film "Valentine's Day". Early prints of flyers for the movie featured a series of pictures of the cast - but MacLaine and her co-star Hector Elizondo were not included.

A second design was then drawn up which included the pair - and MacLaine is baffled why they were left off the original. She tells Dutch TV network RTL Boulevard, "We both complained. We don't know why we're not on it, frankly... I have no idea. I think it's age discrimination. I really do. Marketing runs the town. I think it's p**sed!"

Sheryl Crow will not only arrive on "Cougar Town" as a one-time guest but a heavily recurring one. Sources have confirmed to some media outlets that the Grammy-winning singer has secured a slot in the ABC half-hour comedy as a major character.

According to EW, Crow will tackle the role of Grayson's new girlfriend. Played by Josh Hopkins, Grayson is a newly-divorced neighbor to main character Courteney Cox's Jules Cobb. Tapping Crow to be his girlfriend is a U-turn since Grayson usually enjoys dating younger women and rubbing it in Jules' face.

Miley Cyrus has been added to the line-up of Rock in Rio Madrid 2010 festival. The "Hannah Montana" star is confirmed to make live performances on June 6, a family day the organizers have set with thousands of children expected to come.

Miley's performance at the forthcoming festivity was announced by the event organizer Roberto Medina in front of cheering and screaming students at a Madrid college on February 5. This will be her first live concert in Spain.

Lindsay Lohan was allegedly involved in a vicious public argument with her ex-girlfriend Samantha Ronson at a bar in Los Angeles on Wednesday night, February 3, which ended with the actress throwing a drink over her former lover. The on/off couple ended their turbulent romance for good in 2009 following a series of spats.

But the dramatic relationship is back in the spotlight again after the former lovers reportedly fell out while Ronson was DJing at the Crown Bar in West Hollywood. Editors of Radar Online allege Lohan became irritated when she failed to gain Ronson's attention and the encounter turned nasty.

Ireland.com has posted the first trailer for "Ondine". Opened with a preview to how a fisherman and his daughter get closer to Ondine after he caught her in his net, the video then shares the intense part as he starts to doubt the woman's origin.

This lyrical, modern fairy tale follows Irish fisherman Syracuse whose life is transformed when he catches a beautiful and mysterious creature in his nets. His daughter Annie comes to believe that the woman is a magical creature, while Syracuse falls helplessly in love. However like all fairy tales, enchantment and darkness go hand in hand.

Rap mogul P. Diddy called on pal Wyclef Jean to consider a run for President of Haiti during Friday night's, January 5 SOS Save OurSelves - Help For Haiti telethon. The former The Fugees star kicked the Miami, Florida benefit off with a musical tribute to his homeland and later teamed up with Akon for one of the night's performance highlights, but Diddy, who was one of the event's hosts, paid tribute to the singer's tireless efforts to help the Haitian survivors of the January 12 earthquake, which ravaged the nation.

He said, "You've seen him everywhere since the earthquake struck. I don't think he's slept at all. In the future, Wyclef should run for President of Haiti." The fundraiser, held at the American Airlines Arena and beamed live across America and to Haiti, where locals watched at makeshift open-air theaters, was a two-hour spectacular of performances, collaborations and tributes.

The Hasty Pudding "Man of the Year" ceremony honoring Justin Timberlake has taken place at Harvard University's New College Theater on Friday, February 5. The singer, wearing all-gray suit with matching fedora, received the pudding pot from America's oldest undergraduate drama troupe.

Beside doing a little speech, Timberlake was also given the annual parade and the celebratory roast. He was selected to receive the title of 2010 "Man of the Year' because he is "one of pop culture's most influential entertainers". Previous years' honorees were James Franco (2009), Christopher Walken (2008) and Ben Stiller (2007).

In addition to picking up phone calls from the generous people, Justin Bieber also makes a live performance. The young pop star rocks the stage of Miami's American Airlines Arena on February 5 with his three hit singles; "One Less Lonely Girl", "Baby" and "Never Let You Go".

After finishing "Lonely Girl", Justin says to the screaming music fans in front of him, "I need everyone to take out their cell phones." He then belts out "Let You Go" and is joined by Ludacris for a "Baby" live duet. Before exiting the stage, he reminds fans, "Donate to Haiti, everybody. Thank you very much. God bless."

Charlie Sheen received an unwelcome wake-up call in the early hours of Friday morning, February 5 - he was told his car had been stolen, shortly before the vehicle was found at the foot of a cliff. The actor alerted authorities after a security company linked to his sports utility vehicle (SUV) reported the car had been taken from outside his home in Los Angeles, leading to a police search.

The truck was found several hours later, crashed at the bottom of a steep cliff near the city's famous Mulholland Drive, according to TMZ.com. Police have yet to apprehend a suspect. No further details were available as WENN went to press.

Taylor Lautner continues making money by landing a new job. After being tapped to star in Paramount Pictures' "Max Steel", the 17-year-old actor has signed deal with Universal Pictures to play in "Stretch Armstrong", a movie adaptation of Hasbro toy of the same name, the studio's Chairman Adam Fogelson and Co-Chairman Donna Langley confirmed to Deadline Hollywood.

"In the past two years, Taylor has emerged as a real star at the global box office. He brings the perfect balance of energy and athleticism to the role of an unlikely super hero with a fantastic super power," Langley said on Lautner's involvement in the upcoming project. "We couldn't be more pleased that he has agreed to be our Stretch."

More and more performers show their support for the February 5 benefit concert at the Miami's American Airlines Arena and Chris Brown is one of them. Wearing dark-colored outfit, the R&B performer starts his set with his ballad track "Crawl".

"We want to thank all y'all for coming out here tonight," he delivers his message at the end of the song. "Do whatever y'all can to support. For you all watching at home, do whatever you can - donate!" He then makes another live performance, this time singing "With You".

Rockers 30 Seconds to Mars called off a screening of their documentary in Los Angeles on Thursday night, February 4 following a bomb scare. The band, fronted by Jared Leto, was due to show the film to fans at The Hive venue in West Hollywood, but the event was scrapped and the building evacuated after a man rushed the stage and dropped a suspicious looking package at the singer's feet.

Footage posted online shows Leto grabbing the man and pulling him away from the crowd into a back room. Police were called to the venue and the building was evacuated, with cops sealing off the streets around the area.

There's a word in the air that Christopher Meloni is leaving "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" after more than a decade playing Detective Elliot Stabler. An Australian paper, Courier-Mail reported that Meloni will take his final bow in the 12th season which production begins later this year and which episodes will run through Spring 2011.

"I think 12 years is enough, a good number," the actor is quoted as telling the paper. As for how his exit story will go, Meloni admits he has doubts whether they would keep the character alive or dead. "The writers will have fertile ground to figure out how to arc [Elliot] out to another place - whether it's this world or the next," he says.

Amanda Bynes has laughed off reports her new mystery boyfriend is Drake, insisting she's never even met the Canadian rapper. The "Hairspray" star has been regularly updating her Twitter.com page to give hints about a new man in her life, and she prompted speculation of a romance with Drake with one message which revealed her lover failed to win at the Grammy Awards on January 31.

She wrote, "The guy I love is the most talented person ever!!!!!! I'm irritated that a certain guy didn't win certain awards... He deserved them!!!" Drake was nominated for two prizes at the 2010 ceremony but went home empty-handed.

Kristen Stewart's generosity with fans has backfired on her - a court worker faces losing his job after the "Twilight" actress posed for a photo with him while on jury duty. The 19-year-old actress was in Los Angeles Superior Court earlier this week to serve jury duty and was happy to join a security guard and his pal for an impromptu snap.

But the picture has landed the unidentified guard in trouble, after it was posted online by his pal's wife. She hastily removed the photo from the web, stating, "Canceled because unfortunately the photo that went up from Kristen in court was stolen and put on several blogs and got to the media (the press) and reached the ears of the court."

Joe Jonas is no longer attached to "Brothers & Sisters". The Jonas Brothers member who is slated to make his first guest TV appearance in the drama backed out due to scheduling conflict. He was initially tapped to play the younger version of Balthazar Getty's character, Tommy Walker.

However, the series has found a replacement for him in Cody Longo. Known as Nicky Russo on ABC Family's "Make It or Break It", Longo is now the 16-year-old Tommy in a two-hour flashback episode. Executive Producer David Marshall Grant told EW that the episode will go back to three different time periods and expose a "shocking and transformative" secret about the Walker family.

The American Airlines Arena in Miami has been packed with concertgoers on February 5. The likes of Keri Hilson and Robin Thicke come onto the stage to sing their songs for the cause which is part of the "Hope for Haiti Now" effort which has been kicked off earlier in January.

Opening the Friday's fund-raising concert is Wyclef Jean who raps in Haitian Creole. "Get ready - I want to welcome y'all to Haiti. ... I'm gonna teach y'all what I call Creole 101," he says. Afterwards, he delivers verses from "Hold On".

Anne Hathaway turned down the title role in Tim Burton's new "Alice in Wonderland" movie - because she was fed up with playing a "pretty girl in a fairy dress." The actress was asked to star as Alice in the upcoming fantasy film but opted instead to play the White Queen - because she had previously played a pretty protagonist in "The Princess Diaries" movies which launched her career.

The role of Alice eventually went to Australian newcomer Mia Wasikowska, but Hathaway has no regrets about her decision. She tells Britain's GQ magazine, "The studio had the Alice script a long time ago and I was approached back then for the part of Alice."

Another superhero film is going to get a new reboot treatment. Los Angeles Times reported that The Fox-affiliated production company New Regency, which produced 2003 "Daredevil, The Movie", has picked up a new project which is headlined by the blind character.

As one of the first steps, Fox/New Regency has tapped David Scarpa, who previously wrote 2008 remake sci-fi "The Day the Earth Stood Still", to provide script for this untitled Daredevil reboot. The upcoming movie will be produced by former News Corp. executive Peter Chernin, but no director and cast have been named yet.

Despite parenting a 19-month-old daughter together, Jamie Lynn Spears and Casey Aldridge decide to go different path. The younger sister of Britney Spears who conceived Casey's baby without marriage, has split from him according to Us Magazine.

Despite the break up report, there is no proof or quote from the rep yet. However, Star Magazine is supporting the report with a claim that Jamie has dumped Casey since December 2009 and is now seeing another man who is 10 years her senior.

Police officials have urged Michael Jackson's doctor Conrad Murray not to surrender to them on Friday, February 5 over fears his plans would cause havoc in heavy rain, according to his lawyer. The medic was planning to turn himself in to prosecutors amid reports he is to be charged with involuntary manslaughter relating to the death of Jackson last year in June 2009.

The decision not to show at a designated Los Angeles airport courthouse comes hours after a spokeswoman for Murray's legal team told the Los Angeles Times newspaper that overnight talks between his lawyers and prosecutors surrounding the details of the doctor's surrender had broken down.

Kevin Rudolf is tracing back history in a music video for his latest single "I Made It". Joined by his featured guests Lil Wayne, Birdman and Jay Sean, the "Let It Rock" hitmaker shows fans their journey from zero to hero.

The nostalgic video matches the song lyrics which tell about "starting from nothing" and then "building something". It was filmed in Florida and Los Angeles. The track itself is expected to appear in Kevin Rudolf's forthcoming sophomore set.