Friday, April 1, 2011

Beyonce, Leonardo DiCaprio Lead Flurry Of Movie Remakes

Russell Brand, Willow Smith, Jonah Hill are just a few stars looking to revamp film and TV classics like 'Arthur', 'Annie' and '21 Jump Street.'
By Terri Schwartz


Beyoncé
Photo: Jemal Countess/Getty Images

What do Willow Smith and Beyoncé have in common with Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill and Kenny Wormald? They're all starring (or in talks to star) in the latest round of remakes of beloved films and TV shows coming down the pike.

On Thursday, news broke that Beyoncé would be starring in a Clint Eastwood-directed remake of the 1976 Barbra Streisand classic "A Star Is Born" (which was a remake of a 1954 movie that remade a 1937 film). In the meantime, Will Smith is reportedly petitioning Sony to remake "Annie" (the 1982 movie and 1977 musical) starring his 10-year-old daughter, Willow, best known for whipping her hair.

In October it was announced that Leonardo DiCaprio and best bud Tobey Maguire would be starring in Baz Luhrmann's 3-D retelling of F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel "The Great Gatsby," with Carey Mulligan joining as Daisy Buchanan.

Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum have been working on bringing the '80s Johnny Depp-starring television series "21 Jump Street" to the big screen since 2008, and they might even get Depp to cameo in it in time for the film's March 16, 2012, release date.

And let's not forget the long hunt for a Ren McCormack (the character Kevin Bacon made famous in 1984), after Zac Efron and Chace Crawford dropped out of the planned "Footloose" remake that finally landed dancer Kenny Wormald the role of his life.

Then there's "Arthur," the Russell Brand-starring remake of the 1981 screwball comedy about a happily drunk millionaire who risks everything for love. The film has tapped everyone from Helen Mirren to Greta Gerwig and Nick Nolte.

Two recently announced remakes are "Lethal Weapon" and "The Wizard of Oz," which are still in early development and without stars attached. Warner Bros. announced their plans to reboot the Mel Gibson-starring franchise on Thursday and tapped writer Will Beall to pen the script with completely new characters. And director Robert Zemeckis announced back in November that he planned on remaking the 1939 Technicolor classic using the script from the original film, with Warner Bros. hoping Robert Downey Jr. will play Oz.

Just this past year, films from "Clash of the Titans" to "The Karate Kid" to "A Nightmare on Elm Street" were remade for the big screen and were well-received by audiences. "Alice in Wonderland" and "Clash of the Titans" went on to become two of the top 10 highest-grossing films of 2010, while "Piranha 3D" and "The A-Team" also went on to strong successes, proving that there definitely is a market for these kinds of remakes.

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

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Usher To Donate Gadhafi Money To Charity

'I will be donating all of my personal proceeds...to various human rights organizations,' singer says of concert linked to Libyan dictator.
By Shawn Adler


Usher (file)
Photo: Getty Images

R&B superstar Usher announced Friday (March 4) that he was donating to various charities proceeds from appearing at a private event at St. Barts linked to Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi, according to a statement made to the Associated Press.

The Grammy award winner's renouncement comes after similar announcements from singers Mariah Carey, Nelly Furtado, and Beyoncé, all of whom were revealed to have performed at private concerts linked to the Middle Eastern leader, who has faced open revolt and major political uprisings since February.

"I am sincerely troubled to learn about the circumstances surrounding the Nikki Beach St. Bart's event that took place on New Year's Eve 2009," Usher said of the concert, at which he appeared alongside Beyoncé but did not perform. "I will be donating all of my personal proceeds from that event to various human rights organizations."

Usher has already begun the process, having made a donation to Amnesty International, the AP reports. The exact size of the donation is not known.

The New Year's Eve gig was reportedly for Moammar's fourth son Muastassim, who an unnamed music industry source told MTV News has a history of throwing lavish parties "jammed" with supermodels.

Beyoncé, who sang at the event, donated all proceeds from her performance to the Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund, established in the wake of the Haitian earthquake.

"All monies paid to Beyoncé for her performance at a private party at Nikki Beach St. Barts on New Year's Eve 2009, including the commissions paid to her booking agency, were donated to the earthquake relief efforts for Haiti over a year ago," the "Halo" singer's publicist said in a statement to The Huffington Post. "Once it became known that the third-party promoter was linked to the Qaddafi family, the decision was made to put that payment to a good cause."

Singer Nelly Furtado tweeted February 28 that she plans to make similar amends.

"In 2007, I received 1million$ from the Gadhafi clan to perform a 45 min. show for guests at a hotel in Italy," she tweeted. "I am going to donate the $."

The leader of Libya since a successful military coup in 1969, Gadhafi has reportedly lost control of much of his country as a result of widespread uprisings. The United Nations voted unanimously to refer the dictator to the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity.

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Gisele Bundchen: Week Ending Workout

As one of the top models in the world, Gisele Bundchen was spotted keeping her beautiful body perfect on Friday (April 1).

The Victoria?s Secret babe looked to have had an intense workout session as she made her exit from the Studio City, CA workout facility.

In other news, the security guards who shot at two paparazzi during Gisele and Tom Brady?s 2009 wedding festivities are going on trial for attempted murder.

The trial will take place in Costa Rica where it all went down, and the two men are expected to be there later this month.

Source: http://celebrity-gossip.net/gisele-bundchen/gisele-bundchen-week-ending-workout-493831

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Photos | Ke$ha Gets Electro At Casio's Shock The World Event 2010

Ke$ha Gets Electro At Casio's Shock The World Event 2010

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Michael Jackson - Thriller (Long Vers.)

Thriller (Long Vers.)

Source: http://www.mtv.com/overdrive/?artist=1102&vid=26726

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Lady Gaga Gets Birthday Wishes From Friends, Fans

'You are all the present I need in the world,' she tweets to fans upon turning 25.
By Jocelyn Vena


Lady Gaga
Photo: C Flanigan/FilmMagic

On Monday (March 28), Lady Gaga reached another milestone in her life, turning 25. And it seems that all her pals didn't forget their Queen Bee on her big day. In fact, the singer even got some birthday love from ... herself.

"Drawing on table at restaurant. If I had to give it all back, but got to keep my fans, that'd be ok," she wrote on Twitter. She included a photo of a drawing she made that reads "Happy Birthday Me" with hearts all around it.

As a birthday treat, her fans trended the hash tag "#bornthisday" in honor of their Mother Monster. In another tweet, she thanked her fans for making her a trending topic on Twitter in honor of her big day. "Thank you for trending #BornThisDay monsters! The sweetest tweet! You are all the present I need in the world. I'll be 25 in about 4 hrs!"

Her "Born This Way" producer, Fernando Garibay, also tweeted some love for Gaga. "Happy Birthday @ladygaga; cause you were Born This Day!!!!" Nicola Formichetti, Gaga's loyal stylist and Thierry Mugler creative director, teased the kind of fun the group was having in honor of Gaga. "So much fun!!!" he wrote. "What a party!! happy birth day my love, gaga!!! #mother monster."

Fellow Gaga collaborator DJ White Shadow, who worked on the track "Government Hooker," shared a similar sentiment, adding, "Fun birthday party tonight."

Gaga pal Perez Hilton, who celebrated his birthday just days ago, sent some love to the pop star on his Twitter. "Hey @ladygaga! Happy birthday, bitch!!!!" he wrote. "BornThisDay LOVE YOU!!!! xoxo"

When MTV News caught up with Hilton at his birthday bash, he had this wish for his birthday: tons more success for Gaga. "My birthday wish for this year is for Lady Gaga's new album, Born This Way, to sell over 1.2 million copies the first week," he said. "That would beat Taylor Swift's 1.1-something!"

In addition to all the birthday love from her inner circle, it was announced on Monday that Lady Gaga would be receiving the "Always Next, Forever Now" Award at Logo's NewNowNext Awards, which air on the network on April 11. She receives the prize three years after she performed for the first time on television during the 2008 show.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1660752/lady-gaga-birthday.jhtml

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Justin Bieber In Talks To Co-Star In Ashton Kutcher Buddy Flick

Bieber would reportedly play younger version of Kutcher in 'What Would Kenny Do?'
By Gil Kaufman


Justin Bieber and Ashton Kutcher
Photo: Mike Marsland/ Mike Coppola/ WireImage

Justin Bieber has already notched the third-highest-grossing documentary of all time with "Never Say Never," but now the teen titan is looking at branching out into scripted moves as well.

After his well-received turns on "CSI," the Los Angeles Times reports that Bieber is close to signing on to take the lead role in the buddy comedy "What Would Kenny Do?" opposite Ashton Kutcher. An anonymous source who was briefed on the project told the paper that the film delves into the relationship between a 17-year-old and his 30-something self, with the latter to be played by Kutcher, 33.

The movie, to be produced by Kutcher's Katalyst Entertainment and Will Smith's Overbrook Entertainment, will probably not get moving until next year because Bieber has touring commitments booked through 2012. Though the initial report said Bieber was "eyeing" the movie, an update posted late Wednesday clarified that the project has been under development for months "with Bieber both in mind and on board."

It wouldn't be the first time the dynamic duo has tried to hook up, coming on the heels of a reported meeting in January in which Kutcher discussed Bieber hosting a rebooted version of "Punk'd."

The "Kenny" script was originally described as an R-rated comedy about "a teenager who meets a hologram claiming to be the adult version of himself; the hologram then helps guide the teen through high school." It got a more PG-13 revision from "(500) Days of Summer" writers Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber, who had Kutcher's successful character going back in time to help the awkward present-day Bieber.

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1661014/justin-bieber-ashton-kutcher-movie.jhtml

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