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Meet the Parent: Ben Stiller

Ben Stiller knows a thing or two about overprotective fathers. He went up against one (Robert De Niro) in last year's hit comedy Meet the Parents, and in his new family satire The Royal Tenenbaums (opening Dec. 14), he plays an obsessively cautious doomsday dad who dresses his offspring in red sweatsuits and guides them through rigorous emergency drills. Now that Stiller and his wife, actress Christine Taylor, are expecting their first child, the funnyman admits he can relate to his alter ego's parental paranoia  not that he'll be taking any cues from him. "He's pretty extreme," the

Mon, Dec 3, 2001

Danny Glover's Secret Crush

Lethal Weapon hero Danny Glover has a confession to make about one of his co-stars in Wes Anderson's upcoming family comedy The Royal Tenenbaums (opening Dec. 14). "I have a major crush on Anjelica Huston," the 54-year-old actor tells TV Guide Online. "I'm crazy about her  everything from her intelligence to her unique beauty and her warmth." In Tenenbaums, Glover plays a gentle scholar who courts Huston's matriarch character. Of course, Huston isn't the only Hollywood leading lady Glover admits taking a shine to. "I love

Thu, Nov 29, 2001

Anjelica Huston: She Has a Problem

Playing the mother hen of a clan of eggheads in Wes Anderson's new feature, The Royal Tenenbaums (opening Dec. 14 in select cities), could have driven Anjelica Huston out of her own gourd. Not only were her screen kinfolk all played by Tinseltown VIPs  among them, venerable veteran Gene Hackman and hot properties Ben Stiller and Gwyneth Paltrow  but, for principal shooting, the lot of 'em were squeezed into a cramped Harlem pad that hardly would have accommodated one jumbo-sized ego. Luckily, Huston tells T

Wed, Nov 28, 2001

Ed Burns Returns!

Having starred in big-budget studio films like Saving Private Ryan and 15 Minutes, why would actor/writer/director Ed Burns want to nickel and dime his way through his own indie flick? As he puts it: "I'm sticking to lower budgets so I can maintain [creative] control." In Sidewalks of New York, Burns takes a documentary-style look at six strangers looking for love (and sex) in all the wrong places. And by using a little directorial ingenuity, he pulled it off for under a million bucks. Recalls Burns: "The idea came out of working on Private Ryan, which was all done with handheld cameras and available light. I was sitting there in one of the foxholes one day, and we were banging out scenes and getting so much work done. I thought, 'If I use nothing but [these meth

Fri, Nov 23, 2001

Kevin Kline Seeks The Force

Having worked with two Jedi insiders in the past year, you'd think Kevin Kline could sneak us some preview tidbits about Star Wars: Episode II &#150 Attack of the Clones (due in May 2002). This summer, Kline shared the stage with Natalie Portman  aka Queen Amidala  in a New York production of Chekov's The Seagull. And in Life as a House (opening today), Kline co-stars with Hayden Christensen, the newcomer tapped to play Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader in George Lucas's next two Star Wars films. Yet, despite

Fri, Oct 26, 2001

Hayden Christensen's Jedi Journey

Having nabbed one of Young Hollywood's most coveted roles  he'll play Anakin Skywalker in the next two Star Wars flicks  Hayden Christensen knows his destiny is forever linked to Darth Vader's. Still, the level-headed 20-year-old hasn't gotten carried away by the celebrity that came with joining the "Dark Side." "You need to give it the credence it deserves  which is not too much," says Christensen, who also co-stars with Kevin Kline in Life as a House (opening Friday). "I just don't take it too seriously. As long as I leave my ambitions where they were before all of this, it'll be alright." As a relative newcomer to Tinseltown, the Canadi

Thu, Oct 25, 2001

Jane Fonda's Son Talks Politics

Jane Fonda's handsome son, Troy Garity, has inherited more than just showbiz genes. Born to provocative peaceniks from the Vietnam era, the actor's passion for social justice is also his legacy. While his mother earned the nickname "Hanoi Jane" for her liberal activism back in those days, dad Tom Hayden was on trial with the radical Chicago Seven. (He's since earned a distinguished reputation in politics as a California state senator.) "Growing up, I knew that my parents had a good deal of notoriety and often evoked strong emotions from people," says Garity, who co-stars in the screwball comedy Bandits (opening Friday). "But for every person who threw a stone at our house

Wed, Oct 10, 2001

Billy Bob Reacts to Sept. 11

Billy Bob Thornton  who co-stars with Bruce Willis in the screwball comedy Bandits (opening Friday)  is accustomed to fielding queries about his love life, quirky hang-ups and general rep as one of Hollywood's oddest individuals. And, in most cases, the actor's equipped with an equally eccentric response. Yet, when asked for his reaction to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Thornton isn't quite sure what to say. "I kind of feel guilty saying, 'Well, I'm just trying to make it through,' because I'm living in Los Angeles, the sun is out, and everything's okay here," he candidly admits. "We have no idea what it's like to be one of the people who are really suffering." Thornton says he and wife

Tue, Oct 9, 2001

Cruel Intentions Stars Reunite!

With her nasty role as Reese Witherspoon's Harvard Law rival in Legally Blonde, Selma Blair fears she's "lost any chance of ever being America's sweetheart." Recalls the actress: "I was in a test screening and people were booing at me like I was a killer in a horror movie  I was just cowering in my seat. So I've decided I don't want to play the devil to Reese's angel anymore!" Though they're nemeses in reel life, the two actresses have been real-life pals since co-starring in 1999's campy Dangerous Liaisons remake, Cruel Intentions. "Reese has been the most caring friend to me," Blair says. "She's really taken me under her wing, always making sure I have somewhere to go for Christmas and Thanksgiving."

Wed, Jul 18, 2001

Reese Witherspoon's Heel Appeal

Who says blondes have more fun? Reese Witherspoon suffers for her art in Legally Blonde (opening tomorrow), in which a California sorority girl goes Harvard Law  but doesn't forego her flashy designer dresses and oh-so-high heels as she struts across the school's staid campus. Too bad the actress's fetching footwear cramped her style big-time. "Seriously, I had a huge podiatrist's bill after making this movie," Witherspoon laughs. "I'm only 25 and I'm at the podiatrist having things shaved off my feet and [getting them] cracked. It was challenging!" While her film aims to debunk the myth that all fair-haired females are brainless bimbos, Witherspoon admits she's contended with other types of prejudice as well. "I've had to deal with stereotypes just being Southern," the Nashville nativ

Thu, Jul 12, 2001

Practice Star Goes Blonde

Looks like The Practice's Holland Taylor is raising the bar on her on-screen law career. An Emmy winner for her randy role as Judge Roberta Kittleson, she also plays Reese Witherspoon's cantankerous Harvard Law professor in the summer comedy, Legally Blonde (opening Friday). "They probably got the idea to use me in this role because [of] The Practice," Taylor concedes, adding wryly: "But that's where the comparison stops  I haven't slept with any of the undergraduates in this film." Indeed, Taylor takes pride in her libidinous Judge Kittleson, who's indulged in naughty fantasies about Dylan McDermott's Bobby, bedded Michael Badalucco's Jimmy  and s

Mon, Jul 9, 2001

Pussycat Purr-plexed by Josie's Bomb

If cats have nine lives, why can't movies? Josie and the Pussycats couldn't scratch up decent box-office results  it has banked a dismal $15 million since its April release  but star Rosario Dawson isn't crying over spilt Meow Mix. In fact, the actress hopes Josie's satirical humor and edgy 'tude will lure a bigger following in time. "I think it's one of those movies that could hit later [on video] through word of mouth," she insists. "The people I know who saw the movie saw it three times. I think a lot more people would have gone to see it if they realized it was smarter, not just a little chick flick." As a result, Dawson  whose kittenish co-stars include Rachael Leigh Cook, Tara Reid and Parker Posey  wouldn't mind sinking her claws into marketers at Universal Pictures. She thinks they failed to appeal to Gen-Xers who remember Josie's original incarnation

Fri, Jun 15, 2001

The Queen of the Hill

Actress Brittany Murphy is ready for her close-up! Unfortunately, she never gets any as the voice of Hank Hill's trailer-trash niece, Luanne Platter, on Fox's animated comedy King of the Hill. "I also used to play Joseph, the little [Native American] boy next door  until his voice changed this season," she grins. Far from frustrated by her as-never-seen-on-TV gig, Murphy is glad the voiceover work frees her up to pursue film roles. Perhaps you'll recall her as Tai, Alicia Silverstone's fashion-deprived pet project in Clueless or as the suicidal Daisy in Girl, Interrupted. "I had spent time in mental institutions for Girl," she says. Indeed, having played her share of movie loons has necessitated some field research. "I got my picture taken behind bars at Bellevue," she quips. "That was kind of cool. I met some very interest

Thu, Jun 14, 2001

Duchovny Haunted by The X-Files

Having spent the better part of a decade as UFO-chasing FBI agent Fox Mulder on The X-Files, David Duchovny was hesitant about playing another alien-buster in the big-screen comedy Evolution (opening today). The actor says he jumped at the chance to re-team with director Ivan Reitman (with whom he made his first comedic foray in Beethoven). But his heart sank when he realized the script centered on aliens  a subject he felt he'd already covered more than thoroughly. "It was such a weird coincidence, because Ivan doesn't watch The X-Files and doesn't even know what it's about," chuckles Duchovny. "The fact that there are aliens in this movie is just a pain in the ass." After mulling over the dilemma with his wife, actress T&#233a Leoni, Duchovny concluded that the benefits of working with Reitman outwe

Fri, Jun 8, 2001

Julianne Moore's Fall from Grace

If you think Julianne Moore's latest film role falls flat, that's because the two-time Oscar nominee planned it that way. In the sci-fi comedy Evolution (opening tomorrow), Moore co-stars with David Duchovny as a klutzy federal agent who quite literally has a hard time standing on her own two feet. Although director Ivan Reitman initially balked at the idea, the actress convinced him to let her stumble and bumble her way through the movie. "My character really wasn't funny otherwise, and there wasn't any reason for me to be in a comedy if I didn't have anything to do," says Moore, who's best known for her dramatic roles in films like Hannibal and The End of the Affair. "I love to see people walk into walls and fall down and throw pies at each other. It always makes me laugh

Thu, Jun 7, 2001

Evolution Co-Star Defies Duchovny

What's it like to be hoisted 20 feet in the air while suspended inside the slimy rump of a gigantic, amoeba-like alien? Only Orlando Jones  who co-stars with David Duchovny and Julianne Moore in the sci-fi comedy Evolution (opening Friday)  knows the answer to that unsavory question. Though much of the film is filled with computer graphic imagery, Jones couldn't rely on technology to fake this particular scene. "That actual set piece was there," he groans. "I kept slipping as I tried to find my footing on the ladder. When you hear me yelling to David, 'Grab me'  I wasn't joking. I thought, 'If David lets go of me and I fall down and break my neck, I'm going to kill him.' It may have been difficult with a broken neck, but I felt I was up to it!" Jones  who has previously appeared in The Replacements

Wed, Jun 6, 2001

SNL Alum's Pet Project

In The Animal (opening tomorrow), Rob Schneider plays a one-man menagerie plagued with an array of animal instincts  which include sniffing crotches, eating raw meat and seducing barnyard critters. While co-writing the screenplay, the SNL alum was inspired by watching When Animals Attack. Little did he know how prophetic it would prove in working with his creature co-stars! "You don't see orangutans in a lot of movies because they're very dangerous and unpredictable," says Schneider, who so displeased one grumpy primate during production that trainers had to haul the beast off the set. A hulking young orangutan named Louie then took over. "Louie and I got along famously," he recalls. "Although my neck still hurts a little from when he put me in a headlock." Fortunately, Schneider found former Survivor castaway Colleen Haskell a much mo

Thu, May 31, 2001

Survivor's Colleen Has Animal Instinct

Apparently, spending a month on a far-flung island with rats, snakes and Richard Hatch can prepare you for anything  even a movie career. To wit, original Survivor castaway Colleen Haskell, 24, makes her big screen debut on Friday in The Animal, which co-stars a motley menagerie including Saturday Night Live alum Rob Schneider. Though she initially wasn't too confident about her acting ability, the novice says sharing screen time with a cast of critters helped take the pressure off. "I liked having the animals on the set because they attracted attention away from me," Haskell chuckles. "No matter how bad I was messing up, the goat was really messing up!" Unfortunately, when it came time to film one unsavory scene  in which Schneider chews up a live worm and lets a baby turkey vulture eat it from his mouth  her gag re

Tue, May 29, 2001