December 04, 2010

Following the announcement of 2011 Sundance Film Festival line ups, several films which will have their premieres at the festival have released the first official images. Those which have shared the images include in-competition films "Higher Ground", "Homework", "Here" and "Martha Marcy May Marlene", as well as out-of-competition "Margin Call".

A directorial debut of Vera Farmiga, "Higher Ground" stars the "Up in the Air" actress herself as a frustrated young mother who turns to a fundamentalist community for answers. But after years of dogma and loss, she must find the courage to ask the questions that will help her reclaim her life.

Rap duo Clipse and their collaborator Pharrell Williams share screen in a music video supporting their joint track "Life Change". The clip is full of sad, remorseful scenes, including footage of a man being arrested by a cop and put in a jail.

"Life Change" is taken from Clipse's third studio album "Till the Casket Drops" which was released in 2009. It comes from production hands of The Neptunes and features Kenna in addition to N.E.R.D's Pharrell.

DreamWorks has planned long journeys for their beloved animations. Jeffrey Katzenberg, in an interview with Empire Online, confirms that there are multiple sequels mapped for "Madagascar", "Kung Fu Panda" and "How to Train Your Dragon".

The DreamWorks Animation chief says fans could look forward to another "Madagascar" film after upcoming "Madagascar 3", "Yeah, there's probably a fourth there." He states, "So today I can tell you pretty succinctly where 'Madagascar' goes. Ultimately they will come back to New York, and they will come to terms with that, which they will do in this next chapter. Because of the way that movie concludes there's probably one more for them..."

Pink moves on from empowering single "Raise You Glass" to another "loud and proud" track "F**kin' Perfect". The mom-to-be has recently filmed a music video for the second single in Los Angeles. She is pictured wearing a sun-colored halter dress and high heels despite her pregnancy.

Having Pink pleading her fans to be comfortable in their own skin, "F**kin' Perfect" is one of the new singles taken from her new compilation "Greatest Hits... So Far!!!" which has been on sale since mid November. The song has climbed to the Top 10 list of the singles chart in Australia, while its predecessor is currently enjoying the penthouse of Billboard Hot 100 Stateside.

"The Walking Dead" producers are debunking the rumor about staff firing and confirming a Fall comeback at the same time. Gale Ann Hurd who works with Frank Darabont as executive producers said the story originating from Deadline is not true, saying his co-worker is not firing the writers staff for the option of freelancers.

In fact, co-creator Charles "Chic" Eglee is not dismissed but he left on his own accord. "[In] the writers' room, there are people that have set up other projects that will be their first priority if their own series is picked up as a pilot or if it's a series. I think [Eglee] just decided that he wants to run his own show," Hurd explained to EW.

Simon Cowell's bold comments on various reality singing contests make some people hate him, but that trademark lands him an honorable title at the same time. Evangelical magazine Re has dubbed the 51-year-old British a modern-day Jesus for his straight-talking and drive is believed to be just like The Messiah's.

The journal for the Assemblies of God church even uses a picture of the messianic music mogul on the cover. "Jesus, the one we think of as being meek and mild, gentle and loving and full of compassion, had the ability to talk tough. For some his words were hard to swallow - just like Cowell's - but he spoke truth and doesn't that hurt sometimes?" an article inside the magazine reads.

Troubled teenage reality star Alexis Neiers was jailed on Friday, December 3 after a judge revoked her probation following her arrest for heroin possession. The 19 year old, who starred in U.S. TV series "Pretty Wild", was on probation after pleading no contest to a count of first-degree residential burglary stemming from a raid on actor Orlando Bloom's home last year.

She was freed from jail in July after serving just four weeks of a 180-day sentence for her part in the infamous 'Bling Ring' burglary gang, which targeted celebrity homes across Hollywood. But Neiers was taken into custody by Los Angeles police on Wednesday, December 1 after failing to check in for probation. Cops reportedly found her in possession of black tar heroin and a fake identity card.

Christina Aguilera's new boyfriend pulled out of a concert with his band on Friday, December 3, citing "personal reasons" for canceling the appearance. Matthew Rutler, who worked as a set assistant on the singer's movie musical "Burlesque", was due to rock out with The Nate Mott Band at a gig in Los Angeles, but he bowed out of the show on Wednesday, December 1.

A post on the group's Facebook.com page reads: "Do (sic) to personal reasons Matthew Rutler our guitarist will not be able to perform at Twin Rivers Casino Friday Night." No specific reason was given for Rutler's cancellation, although he was spotted arriving at Los Angeles International Airport on Friday with the pop superstar, reports TMZ.com.

The teenage actress who voiced children's cartoon character "Dora the Explorer" has withdrawn a lawsuit filed against TV bosses over allegations she was highly underpaid. Caitlin Sanchez, 14, launched a legal battle against executives at Nickelodeon in October, claiming she and her parents were handed "unconscionable" documents to sign when she accepted the role in 2007 and were reportedly cornered into agreeing to the terms without the help of a lawyer.

Her attorney, John Balestriere, argued the actress was seriously underpaid and was not properly compensated for the hours of work she put in recording the voice of the hugely popular Latina character.

Actress Vanessa Williams has assured fans her "Desperate Housewives" co-star Eva Longoria is recovering well following the news of her marriage breakdown, branding the Latina "a survivor". Longoria sent shockwaves through Hollywood last month when she filed for divorce from basketball star Tony Parker, citing irreconcilable differences.

Reports suggest the TV beauty moved to end her three-year marriage to Parker after discovering he had been unfaithful. But Williams insists her pal is working through her pain and is confident she will bounce back from the personal crisis in no time.

The first trailer for highly-anticipated "The Tree of Life" which is attached to "Black Swan" has hit the web in bootleg version. It is dominated with scenes featuring a boy named Jack, following him from the day he was born until his childhood. A glimpse of adult Jack who is portrayed by Sean Penn is also inserted.

Jack is raised by parents who teach him two different things. "There are two ways through life, the way of nature and the way of grace. You'll have to choose which one you'll follow," Jessica Chastain's Mrs. O'Brien says to her son. Meanwhile, Jack's father who is portrayed by Brad Pitt urges him to "always be strong, always be your own man," and teaches him how to fight.

In "The Train Pt. 2" music video, Big Boi brings his fans back to April 2008 when he did a special performance with the Atlanta Ballet. The OutKast member is followed by camera as he did rehearsal and jumped on the stage for the actual show. Janelle Monae and Sleepy Brown make cameos in this clip.

Titled "The Train Pt. 2 (Sir Lucious Left Foot Saves the Day)", the song is lifted from Big Boi's first solo album "Sir Luscious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty" which has been in stores since July this year. The track features Sam Chris.

As it was promised, Summit Entertainment drops the first trailer for "The Beaver" on December 3. Making its way out via Apple, the video follows Mel Gibson's Walter Black who was once a successful toy executive and family man but now suffers from depression.

Plagued by his own demons, Walter can't seem to get himself back on track no matter what he tries, until a beaver hand puppet enters his life. While he finds his spirit in the beaver, Walter's family want the loving man back, not the beaver.

Sam's soul will leave his body in the next episode of "Supernatural". The older Winchester would technically be dead when he seeks out Death to help get Sam's soul back. Death tells Dean he will help Sam if Dean will agree to act as Death for 24 hours.

Meanwhile, Sam decides he doesn't want his soul back and asks Balthazar for a protective spell to keep his soul out of his body. Balthazar tells Sam he needs the blood of his father for the spell to work and since John Winchester is dead, Sam decides Bobby is the next best thing.

Star-studded "Digital Life Sacrifice" campaign to raise money for Alicia Keys' Keep a Child Alive reportedly is struggling to meet its $1,000,000 goal. By Thursday, December 2 at 7:30 P.M. EST, it gained only around $180,950, according to The Wrap.

When this fund-raising effort, which includes Lady GaGa, was first announced, people behind the cause were confident that it would get a casket full of cash in short time since GaGa alone has more than 7.2 million followers on Twitter. On December 3, the singer reminded her Little Monsters that she needs help to be back on the digital world, tweeting "Lady GaGa is still dead. Text GAGA to 90999 and donate $10 to help children fighting HIV/AIDS."

Suede rocker Brett Anderson has blasted the band's final album as "weak" - and he wishes they had split up before they recorded it. The Britpop pioneers disbanded in 2003, a year after the release of their swansong album "A New Morning", but reformed for a series of comeback gigs this year.

Their final record was a commercial flop and received a slew of negative reviews, and now singer Anderson has added his criticism of the album, insisting he regrets ever recording it. He tells German music blog Monarchie & Alltag, "I don't like it. With all due respect to people who liked it back at the time, it's the weakest Suede record and to be pretty frank, I regret making it. It would have been much better for Suede if we had split up before making 'A New Morning'."

Teen pop sensation Justin Bieber is giving fans the chance to meet him backstage on his upcoming U.K. tour to benefit a British children's charity. The "Baby" hitmaker is lending his support to the Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity by auctioning off a special meet-and-greet package for his 2011 concerts.

Devotees can also dress like Bieber - the singer is selling off T-shirts, jackets, jeans and pairs of sneakers from his own closet as part of the auction. The sale kicked off on eBay.co.uk on Thursday, December 2 and will continue until December 12.

Former boxing champion Mike Tyson spent weeks preparing to film a spoof video of Bobby Brown's "Every Little Step" promo - insisting he nearly "had a heart attack" as he practiced the tricky dance moves. The former sports star stunned fans by showing off his fancy footwork in a recreation of Brown's hit 1980 film, which was posted on Will Ferrel's Funny Or Die website.

Tyson was seen dressed in tight black Lycra and dancing with comedian Wayne Brady, while Brown also made a cameo appearance in the clip. But the retired boxer admits he struggling in training for his dance debut.

Actor Josh Duhamel has apologized to airline staff and annoyed passengers after he was booted off a flight from New York to Kentucky on Thursday, December 2 for refusing to switch off his cell phone.

The husband of pop star Fergie was escorted off the plane at the Big Apple's LaGuardia Airport after ignoring a flight attendant's repeated requests to turn off his Blackberry device before take off. A fellow passenger tells TMZ.com the "Transformers" star was "very rude" and had been "taunting the attendant", reportedly laughing at the male crewmember.

Absent from Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) promo the first time, Oprah Winfrey personally introduces her giant project in the second one. The promo uses a new song by Winfrey's favorite Black Eyed Pea, will.i.am, which is aptly titled "Own It" and would appear as the official theme song for the new network.

True to Oprah's vision of what the network will be about, will.i.am croons in the song about dreamers, believers and tomorrow's leaders. Oprah says in the video, "What if I could take every hero who inspired me; every lesson that motivated me; every opportunity that was ever given to me; and give it to you?"

"Spider-Man" has gotten its second villain. After casting Rhys Ifans as an unnamed villainous character, Columbia Pictures reportedly will book Irrfan Khan ("Slumdog Millionaire") to portray another nemesis for Spider-Man named Van Atter. He will be joined by Annie Parisse ("Rubicon") as Van Atter's wife, The Hollywood Reporter says.

Moreover, Campbell Scott ("Damages") and Julianne Nicholson ("Law & Order: Criminal Intent") are going to join the production too, portraying Peter Parker's father and mother respectively. The characters, who were secret agents but died in a plane crash, are rarely seen in the comic book series and have never appeared in the original "Spider-Man" trilogy, so it has not been known whether they will appear in flashbacks, in a prologue or during the course of the movie.

50 Cent is one of the three featured guests in Michael Jackson's upcoming posthumous album which is due in the U.S. on December 14. The rapper joins forces with Michael in a track called "Monster", and he calls the collaboration as the 2010 version of MJ's iconic "Thriller".

Fiddy recalled how the duet happened. "I didn't have the opportunity to physically be in Michael Jackson's presence," he said. "But my DJ, Whoo Kid, he had the opportunity to actually meet Mike, because he was interested in working with me and he said that he had something he wanted me to actually hear, a song he created."

Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler has agreed to perform some of Sir Paul McCartney's greatest hits at the upcoming Kennedy Center Honors after the Beatles star telephoned and asked him for a musical tribute. The "Hey Jude" hitmaker is to be feted at the 2010 ceremony in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, December 5, along with singer/songwriter Merle Haggard, composer Jerry Herman, choreographer/director Bill T. Jones and media mogul Oprah Winfrey.

The show will reportedly feature a set from Tyler after McCartney asked him to cover a number of songs from famous The Beatles album "Abbey Road". Tyler tells American radio station 95.9 WATD-FM, "I also got called up by Sir Paul McCartney and he asked me to sing the last four songs of Abbey Road, so I said 'Umm OK.' (I'm) doing it. So I'm headed down to the Kennedy honors in Washington."

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Justin Bieber became the center of attention during dinner at a posh London restaurant on Thursday, December 2 night, by drawing a mustache on his face and playing around with a toy helicopter.

The pop star has been in the British capital for a promotional visit and took a break from work to visit upmarket Mayfair restaurant La Porte Des Indes. But the 16-year-old singer proved he is still a child at heart by messing around during the meal, scrawling a fake mustache on his upper lip in black ink and using a remote control toy.

Former The Doors drummer John Densmore is adamant Jim Morrison didn't expose himself on stage at a gig in Florida in 1969 - and he's urging officials to finally see sense and offer his late bandmate a pardon.

The band's frontman was handed a six-month jail term and a $500 fine after he was convicted of drunkenly exposing himself on stage at a show in Miami. He was appealing the sentence when he died in Paris, France in 1971.

Mike Tyson is hoping his popular turn in "The Hangover" will lead to a full-time career as a movie star. The former boxer appeared in the successful 2009 comedy playing himself, and he's set to return for another cameo role in the upcoming sequel.

Tyson has also enjoyed small parts in TV shows such as "Entourage" and "Brothers, and he is now focusing all his efforts on becoming a professional actor. He tells TV newsman Larry King, "Yes. I'm pursuing an acting career."

The Script star Danny O'Donoghue once turned down the chance to go on a date with Cameron Diaz - because he already had a girlfriend. The singer reveals Diaz handed her personal phone number over to the group's management team after they both appeared on America's "The Today Show".

But O'Donoghue never called the actress as he's happy with his longtime partner. He tells Britain's Daily Star, "Cameron Diaz once asked me out, it was when we were both in New York on The Today Show."

A trailer for "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" is promised to be released this December 13, but a look at some footage from the film has been obtained in a form of behind-the-scene video from Entertainment Tonight. It shows Johnny Depp's Jack Sparrow in action, standing on a carriage and jumping to another one. Penelope Cruz's Angelica is also seen in the making of another scene.

While this fourth "Pirates of the Caribbean" film is not going to be released until May 20, 2011, Walt Disney Pictures has reportedly planned to make two more sequels. According to HitFix, the studio "has begun quietly telling cast and crew to set aside a major block of time in the very near future so they can shoot 'Pirates 5' and 'Pirates 6'."

British band Take That will ring in the New Year with a massive pay day - they're reportedly set for a $3 million bonus and will celebrate with a special gig for record company bosses. Robbie Williams recently rejoined the group for an album and an upcoming 2011 tour, marking their first full shows with the original line-up since the "Angels" hitmaker left in 1995.

Now they're set to put on a massive concert in Barbados on New Year's Eve as part of a private party for bosses at record label Universal - and they will pocket a huge end-of-year bonus ahead of their reunion tour, according to Britain's Daily Mirror.

"American Idol" finally gives away the first video of Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler as the show's new judges. The two 45-seconds promos released by Ryan Seacrest compiled the footage of audition rounds where it is emphasized that "Everyone deserves a chance" and "Every voice deserves to be heard".

Hearing a few worthy voices, Lopez and Tyler sometimes bob their heads along. Both of the promos only show the good auditions with different types of voice. Lopez says to one of the contestants, "I like it, I like you. I feel like your spirit comes out in your voice." Tyler is heard saying to the same contestant, "Okay, I'll say yes".

Flo Rida is already regretting handing out his cell phone number to fans for a second time - he's been bombarded with 10,000 text messages in 24 hours. The "Low" hitmaker revealed his personal digits during an appearance on Chelsea Handler's U.S. TV show "Chelsea Lately" on Tuesday, November 30 so devotees could speak to him one-on-one.

But within hours he had seen the error of his ways, as thousands of fans inundated him with calls and SMS messages. A day after handing out his number, the rapper said, "I can't even answer it, and I can't even check my texts. When I do answer the phone, I'm sitting there for minutes just trying to make them realize that it's me on the phone. They're like, 'No, this has to be the manager. Flo wouldn't answer.' "

Jermaine Jackson's driving license has been confiscated over allegations he owes a massive $91,921 in child support payments. Court documents filed last month by officials at the Los Angeles County Child Support Services Department suggest the former Jackson Five star won't be allowed back on the road until he pays off the debt in full, reports TMZ.com.

In September, the singer told the court he can no longer afford to pay $3,000 a month to support his sons Jaafar and Jermajesty. He asked a judge to cut the costs down to just $215, claiming his ex-wife Alejandra Jackson earns more money than he does and lives for free at his mother Katherine's home.

R&B singer Cee-Lo has become a grandfather at the age of 35. The "Forget You" hitmaker's 20-year-old step-daughter Sierra recently gave birth to a baby boy and the star is thrilled with the new addition to his family.

He tells U.S. talk show host Chelsea Handler, "I'm a grandfather. I'm 35. She had a son so I have a grandson." Sierra is Green's step-daughter from his marriage to Christina Johnson.

Mike Tyson has shown his softer side by staging a TV appeal for a young boy in need of a bone marrow transplant. One of the former boxer's close friends is father to an eight-year-old boy with aplastic anaemia, a potentially-fatal condition in which bone marrow fails to properly replenish blood cells.

The youngster is in desperate need of a transplant and Tyson used an appearance on "Larry King Live" on Thursday, December 2 to urge potential donors to come forward. He says, "He's like my nephew in a way. You know, me and his father, me and his uncle are very tight... They live in Jersey City... I knew his parents before he was born, and we flew pigeons ever since we were all little..."

The Kardashian sisters appeared on "Conan" on Thursday, December 2, only to give too much information. Kourtney Kardashian said Kim Kardashian is "horrified" by her and their sister Khloe Kardashian when they talked about using mayo to groom their vagina on their reality show.

Kim said, "Don't you guys realize that most of our fans are under the age 18 and you are bad influences on them? Talking about putting mayonnaise on your thing is not appropriate advice." Khloe chimed in, "Honestly, women need to know how to take care of their stuff."

CBS Films has started promoting "Beastly" again as the film is getting closer to its March 18, 2011 release in the U.S. The studio has debuted a new trailer via Moviefone, which opens with scenes showing handsome Kyle Kingson with an ugly heart. The video has a lot of romantic footage between Kingson and Lindy after he is cursed into a grotesque monster.

To break the curse, Kingson has to find someone that will love him and he relies his hope on Lindy, a girl who never got his attention before. But when Kingson is close to win her heart, the time given to him to get to his true face back is almost over.

Ahead of VH1 Divas Salute the Troops concert which will take place this coming Sunday, a clip featuring Katy Perry and Keri Hilson rehearsing their opening number is unveiled. They teamed up doing a rendition of The Andrews Sisters' "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy".

Joining them at the rehearsal done at the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, a military base in San Diego, was Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles. The three ladies donned traditional army outfits, sitting on stools in a bar-themed set while delivering the iconic World War II tune.