Tom Hanks on Acting and "Charlie Wilson's War"

Actor Tom Hanks has been nominated for a Golden Globe award as best actor in a comedy or musical for his portrayal of US Congressman Charlie Wilson in Charlie Wilson’s War. Most of the reviews of the movie have indicated that Tom has managed to give another remarkable performance in the film, but Hanks has grown into such an incredible actor that most of us expect him always to nail the role right on the head.

His co-star, Julia Roberts, plays Joanne Herring, a Houston, Texas, socialite, talk show host and political activist in the film.

When asked how it was to work with Hanks, Roberts, who had never worked with Hanks prior to Charlie Wilson’s War, said, “He’s Mister nice guy, but he’s more than nice. He’s interesting and truthful and amazing.”

“He’s (an) incredibly honest person. So I think that, you know, transcends his work and his art in every way. So, in that way, you sort of really have to bring an authentic game (to your role).”

Hilary Angelo, when talking about a hot tub scene that she appeared in with Tom, said he “never made any sort of remark…never even looked at me below the neck. So I never felt uncomfortable. And in between takes we got to put our own clothes on.”

Jud Tylor, who was also in the same hot tub scene, said “I was wearing a little gold ‘80s bathing suit. Tom Hanks…needed to appear naked in this scene so he was wearing a nude sock. And it was actually the first day of shooting in the first scene.”

“It was a very surreal experience sitting next to Tom Hanks for him to wearing a nude sock and for me to be sure I never had to avert my eyes.”

The video is Tom Hanks explaining his role in Charlie Wilson’s War.



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Angelina Jolie, a Hot Commodity, and the Golden Globe

Angelina Jolie has proven to be a remarkably hot item recently. Not only is her every public move carefully scrutinized by the media and the paparazzi, but she has also been the recipient of late of several awards.

Last week she was nominated for a Golden Globe award for best dramatic actress for her performance in A Mighty Heart.

She was also voted the number one sexiest movie star of all time according to the British film magazine Empire. Empire’s list includes both men and women and includes stars from the last 100 years of film.

This is a list of some awfully hot stars, including Marilyn Monroe, who came in 14th, Brad Pitt, 7th, George Clooney, 11th, Halle Berry, 12th, Paul Newman, 19th, Charlize Theron, 29th, Steve McQueen, 42nd, Cary Grant, 48th, Sean Connery, 49th, Clark Gable, 51st, Robert Redford, 53rd, Julia Roberts, 57th, Rita Hayworth, 59th, Lauren Bacall, 71st, Richard Gere, 77th, Sofia Loren, 78th, Warren Beatty, 87th, Elizabeth Taylor, 90th, James Dean, 95th, Brigit Bardot, 98th.

Not on the list were Humphrey Bogart & Ingrid Bergman, which is pretty ridiculous. There were many lesser know recent stars ahead of James Dean and Warren Beatty, which indicates that many of the voters were on the younger side. No matter what your age, it is hard to understand how Gerald Butler, who starred in 300 and was voted the 10th sexiest, could come in ahead of James Dean or Robert Redford.

Obviously, the younger set has never seen the films, Rebel without a Cause starring James Dean and Natalie Wood or Barefoot in the Park starring Robert Redford and Jane Fonda. If they had, Gerald Butler could never have placed ahead of Redford or Dean regardless of Butler’s abdominal muscles.

And what woman hasn’t drooled at the sight of Clark Gable as Rhett Butler in Gone with the Wind?

Angelina Jolie is also being rewarded for her humanitarian nature, which is considerable, having drawn public attention to the plight of the poor and destitute in Africa.

In the video you will see Angelina, along with Brad Pitt, as they attend the premiere of Beowulf.



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Keira Knightley Talks About Acting and the Golden Globe

At just 22 years old, Keira Knightley has already received the second Golden Globe nomination of her career for her role as leading actress in the recently released motion picture Atonement.

Knightley is in very good company and will go up against some powerful actresses when the winners are announced on January 13th.

Her competition for the Globe is Kate Blanchett in Elizabeth: the Golden Age, Julie Christie in Away from Her, Jodie Foster in The Brave One and Angelina Jolie in The Mighty One.

However, Knightley has as good a chance as any of the other nominees and perhaps better chances than the others because of the fact that Atonement received a total of seven nominations, which could make Knightley the beneficiary from the coattails effect of being in such a powerful film.

Atonement also received nominations for best dramatic motion picture; best actor, James McAvoy, in a dramatic film; best supporting actress, Saoirse Ronan; best director, Joe Wright; best screenplay, Christopher Hampton; and best original score, Dario Marianelli.

While the presentation of the winners of this year’s Golden Globe awards is scheduled for January 13th, the strike by the Writers Guild of America may scuttle a live presentation on television because many actors are saying they will refuse to cross picket lines to attend the event.

As to speculation that Keira is the brightest actor of her generation, Knightley rejects that notion.

"The thing with acting is it's not a job where, if you go to drama school, get the best grades and work the hardest, you're going to be successful,” said Knightley.

"It has nothing to do with whether you're the best or the prettiest. It takes a lot of luck."

Keira’s next role will be to play 18th century English socialite Georgiana Spencer in The Duchess.

Spencer, who was the Duchess of Devonshire, was well known for extravagance, a gambling addiction and a role in the French Revolution.

Knightley said that Spencer’s life was so full and rich that much of her scandalized story had to be left out of the film.

Said Knightley, "We didn't have the budget to go to the French Revolution. You could make five films out of her life."

The video below is an interview with Keira on Belgian TV where she discusses the film Atonement.

George Clooney Fights Genocide As He Is Nominated for Golden Globe

While most of Hollywood was excited about the release of the nominations for the Golden Globe awards, George Clooney, who was nominated for a Golden Globe for best actor for his starring role in “Michael Clayton,” was in Rome receiving an award of a different sort.

Clooney, along with fellow actor, Don Cheadle, received the Peace Summit Award for their tenacious work in bringing the World’s eye toward the genocide occurring in the Darfur area of the Sudan.

"Don and I are here today to speak for those voices that can't be heard over the sound of the violence. We're here to plead for help," said George at a news conference in Rome.

The 8th World Summit of Nobel Peace Prize Laureates presented the award to Clooney and Cheadle at a ceremony in Rome.

Clooney, who is the son of Nick Clooney, a reporter, further said, "I'm the son of a journalist. And I understand that freedom of speech doesn't give you the right to run into a crowded theater and yell FIRE. Unless of course there is one.”

“There is a fire!"

Clooney also encouraged the United States to appoint a high level envoy to pursue peace talks in Darfur.

George told USA Today that celebrities have a responsibility to go beyond oneself and look out for others. "In some ways, it's easier for us because we have some financial security, so we can say, 'OK, let's stop worrying about ourselves and look out for other people.'"

The 46-year-old Clooney made a jab at Ms. Britney Spears when he said, "What should you do with all this kind of attention? Should you get out of a car without wearing underwear?"

Clooney plans to make his second trip to Darfur in January saying he will “try to get some cameras in to the tougher camps and have conversations. That's basically all I can do. If you put famous people in front of very ugly sites, people will watch."

The following is a humorous video that Clooney and Brad Pitt created for a presentation honoring Julia Roberts at the 22nd Annual American Cinematheque Awards, which was presented on the AMC channel on Wednesday night.



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Jessica Simpson in the Nude?

Jessica Simpson is dying to be taken seriously as an actress--so seriously, in fact, that she has been telling those near and dear to her that she intends to bare it all on the big screen.

She turned down a role as a porn star earlier this year because her papa Joe said no to nudity. Rumor has it that the role had Oscar potential, so Jessica is now reportedly regretting nixing that role.

She is currently being considered for another role that requires full frontal nudity but also has the potential to jump start her acting career into the Oscar worthy category.

It is being reported that Jessica wants this role so bad that she is going against family wishes and her own better judgment against performing nude scenes.

Jessica has been dating Dallas Cowboys’ star quarterback Tony Romo recently, but there has been nothing reported regarding how he feels about sharing Jessica’s naked body with the rest of the world.

Of course, the Internet has changed what happens to an actress after baring it all for a role. Once those photos are out there, they are out there forever and will pop up on web site after web site.

Baring it all did wonders for Halle Berry’s career. She showed it all in “Monster’s Ball” in 2001 and ended up winning an Oscar for best actress in 2002 for her role in the film as Leticia Musgrove, the wife of an executed murderer.

That Oscar catapulted Berry’s career into the stratosphere, so Jessica is hoping the same can happen to her, if she shows her goods on the big screen.

Of course, her extraordinary acting in her role is what earned Halle her Oscar, not the nudity. The real question is can Jessica give an Oscar worthy performance?

Video is Jessica singing Public Affair

Zac Efron Talks Hollywood and High School Musical 3

20-year-old Zac Efron, the male lead in Disney’s High School Musical, High School Musical 2, and the upcoming theatrical release of High School Musical 3, was eating breakfast in a greasy diner in Tolucsa Lake, California.

"This is my favorite place to eat breakfast, because you don't see the SUVs with the blacked-out windows here," said Zac.

While hiding his celebrity behind mirrored sunglasses and a brown stocking cap, Zac discussed his strategy for success. "As long as I stay boring, I think I'll be fine."

Stay boring? Seriously?

“Yeah, seriously,” he says. “I'm going to try.”

Between bites of scrambled eggs and brown rice Zac almost apologized for his new found Hollywood success.

"I've never done interviews like this before," he said. "I'm still so new to this, it's literally a one-in-a-million chance that I'm here.”

He is trying hard to be a normal 20-year-old in a town where the gossip media take no prisoners. Any tweener that has seen HSM1 and 2, which is most of them, knows that Zac Efron is no normal 20-year-old.

HSM1 and 2 are arguably the most watched made for television movies in history. The target market is the pre-teen set, and that group of kids refuses to let Zac be any kind of normal.

The term Hollywood idol doesn’t do him justice. He has become a tween heartthrob, and the tweens won’t let him forget it.

The HSM CD is the biggest selling CD of 2006, and Zac plays Troy Bolton, who acts, sings and dances his way into the hearts of his fans, although Zac was not allowed to do the actual singing in HSM1.

"I didn't even sing on the first album," he admits. "It wasn't my voice in the movie. Even though I wanted to do it."

HSM2, however, is all Zac, including the singing.

Troy is the high school jock who is romantically linked to Gabriella Montez, a brainy transfer student, played by the gorgeous Vanessa Hudgens. Ironically, Zac and Vanessa are also romantically linked in real life too.

Watch and listen to Zac in his own words in the video below.

Zac is already tiring of his role in HSM and seems to be itching to move on to other things.

"If I had to hear the High School Musical songs anymore," he confesses, "I probably would have jumped off something very tall."

Although HSM may have countless sequels, Zac said he'd "hopefully not" do many more.

Thankfully, to all of his fans, Zac is signed and primed to star in HSM3, which begins production in January, 2008.

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MADD Goes after Kiefer Sutherland

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) is asking Ford Canada to fire Kiefer Sutherland as its celebrity spokesperson.

Sutherland is currently in jail serving a 48 day sentence after his third DUI conviction. Like so many other celebrities who have been living life on the edge, Sutherland has been working extra hard at playing life for all that it is worth.

So it is not surprising that MADD does not want Sutherland rewarded with a lucrative deal endorsing Ford vehicles to Canadians. MADD Canada president Margaret Miller has been urging Ford to chose a different celebrity to sell their vehicles.

MADD’s objections to Sutherland are, of course, his three DUIs and his infamous video from last Christmas where he attacked a Christmas tree in a hotel. He was reportedly a bit inebriated at the time of the tree attack according to media sources.

Sutherland was pulled over by police on September 25th after exiting a Hollywood party. At the time, he was on probation from a DUI in 2004. Plus, he was convicted of alcohol-related reckless driving back in 1993.

Andrew Murie, CEO of Mothers Against Drunk Driving Canada, said that "literally, there's (sic) thousands of people out there that meet the moral standards of our society today that would love to have that kind of endorsement contract and they should be honored for their ethical behavior."

The video showing the Canadian actor attacking the tree is below.



However, Ford Canada is having none of it. Ford Canada spokesperson Gina Gellert confirmed that Ford has no intention of removing Sutherland, although she admitted that Ford will continue to monitor Sutherland’s behavior.

As for Sutherland, he seems to have adjusted well to prison life and spent his first day in the slammer folding laundry. "He's not happy to be here, but you can tell from his demeanor that he's sorry and takes responsibility for what's he's done," said Glendale City Jail spokesman John Balian.

Sutherland also received 60 months probation as part of his sentence, must pay a $510 fine, complete an 18-month alcohol-education class and attend weekly alcohol-therapy sessions for a six month period.

Vanessa Hudgens Talks Showbiz and High School Musical 3

While down under in Australia recently Vanessa Hudgens talked about show business, celebrities and High School Musical 3.

Vanessa said that she has always wanted to be an entertainer, but she would rather skip the celebrity part.

“I became an actress and started singing and dancing because I truly loved it,” said Vanessa. “I did it because I genuinely enjoy doing it.”

“I did not want to be a celebrity. … I think fame is just something that comes along when you are in something that is such a success.”

"Fame is an interesting thing but my fans are very supportive and I thank them so much."



"It is a dog-eat-dog world," said the singer. "People want to know about people's business; no one really has a sense of privacy because everyone is trying to get into your business.

"And people become jaded and infatuated with Hollywood. I think it happens to a lot of celebrities and it messes with their head."

Vanessa said the extra attention is not for her. "I don't like people staring at me all the time and I don't want people following me around," she said.

As for HSM3? The word is now that junior year is over with, the East High Wildcats are trying to relax, if they are able to get some decent summer jobs. Troy thinks he has landed a dream job at a country club, Lava Springs. But in reality, Sharpay is using it a way to lure him away from Gabriella.

Troy, the star jock, is played by Zac Efron, Vanessa plays the brainy Gabriella Montez, while Ashley Tisdale plays Sharpay Evans, the drama club queen.

Said Vanessa about HSM3, “It’s their senior year, so there’s going to be graduation - and prom!”

The video below is from High School Musical, Bop to the Top!



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