matt.mitovich

Script OK'd for "Best" Indiana Jones Yet, to Film in '07

During a break from preparing for his duties as grand marshal of Monday's Rose Parade, George Lucas told the Associated Press that he and Steven Spielberg recently finalized the script for the fourth Indiana Jones entry, to film in 2007 and hit theaters in May 2008  some 19 years after Last Crusade. Said the filmmaker, "It's going to be fantastic... the best one yet." Though mum on plot details, Lucas teased Indy 4 as a "character piece" filled with "very interesting mysteries," adding, "It's going to be really cool"  if only due to all the ice packs Harrison Ford, 64, will have on hand.

Sat, Dec 30, 2006

Splits Final for Tree Hill Twosome, Nick-Jessica

Chad Michael Murray's marriage to One Tree Hill costar Sophia Bush is now final, according to court documents obtained by People. The couple wed in April 2005 and separated five months later. Also per the mag, Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey have resolved the splitting of their assets  for some reason, she is now letting him have the Dolly Parton CDs  officially bringing their divorce to a total and complete close. Fish, start swimming! Faster!

Sat, Dec 30, 2006

Casting Quickies: 24, 30 Rock and More!

Jamison Jones, who bosses around Peter Parker at the Bugle had a role in the 2003 crime drama Hollywood Homicide, has been cast on 24 in the recurring role of the head of President Wayne Palmer's Secret Service detail. Interestingly (I suppose), Jones played a deputy in a pair of 24's Season 2 episodes.... Peter Hermann is a fabulously coiffed MSNBC reporter whom Tina Fey's Liz falls for on the Jan. 18 episode of 30 Rock.... John Legend guests as himself on the Jan. 19 Las Vegas.

Sat, Dec 30, 2006

Ellen Pompeo: No More Heated Frays at Grey's

In speaking to TheEnvelope.com about her Golden Globe nod, Ellen Pompeo says that things have "completely" calmed down on the Grey's Anatomy set since the October fracas between Isaiah Washington and Patrick Dempsey. In fact, she cops to being "surprised more hasnt happened" backstage at the under-the-microscope hit show. "If it wasnt such a great group of people, we could have a lot more chaos," she says. "We are pretty blessed."As for whether she will be blessed with a statue come Jan. 15, Pompeo is hedging her bets. "I don't have a chance," she says. "Edie Falco and Kyra Sedgwick [are nominated]. Come on!" And by "Come on," she meant, "Seriously."

Fri, Dec 29, 2006

Julia Roberts Expects No. 3; Baby-naming Books Cower

Sigh. Just as she was churning out new films again, Julia Roberts is pregnant with her and hubby Danny Moder's third child, the New York Post's Page Six reports, due to arrive next summer. Roberts, who gave birth to twins Phinnaeus and Hazel in November 2004, is currently lensing Mike Nichols' Charlie Wilson's War, and was set to next star in The Friday Night Knitting Club, though it is likely she will instead take some time off first.

Fri, Dec 29, 2006

Road to Oscar: Chicago Critics Are Loopy for Departed

Stop me if you have heard this prattle before: The Chicago Film Critics Association on Thursday lauded Martin Scorsese's The Departed with honors for best picture, best director and best adapted screenplay, continuing the crime drama's veritable sweep of the pre-Oscar kudosfests. Likewise, Helen Mirren and Forest Whitaker copped the top acting trophies, while Rinko Kikuchi (Babel) and Jackie Earle Haley (Little Children) took supporting honors. Letters from Iwo Jima and An Inconvenient Truth won in the best foreign-language film and doc categories, while Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat, Ricky Bobby) was named most promising performer.

Fri, Dec 29, 2006

Heather Mills Accuses Paul McCartney of Art Theft

Sussex police were summoned to the country estate of Paul McCartney after his estranged wife, Heather Mills, accused him of removing a Picasso and a Renoir from the home they once shared, and then reprogramming the alarm codes. Smelling a woman scorned, authorities dismissed the dispute as "a civil matter," declaring, "There's been no theft." Well, this certainly resolved itself better than James Patterson's Lifeguard.

Fri, Dec 29, 2006

Love Notes: Dallas Star Ends 21-year Marriage

According to court papers filed Wednesday in Superior Court, Victoria Principal is officially single, having reached a financial settlement with husband No. 2, plastic surgeon Henry Glassman, whom she wed in June 1985.... Model Niki Taylor tied the knot with NASCAR driver Burney Lamar on Wednesday in La Jolla, California, says Us. Taylor has twin 11-year-old sons from her first marriage.... Having Christmased with Colombian refugees  many of whom, surprisingly, have PlayStation 3s  Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie continue to make our own holiday itineraries pale in comparison by ringing in the new year at the Four Seasons in Papagayo, Costa Rica.

Fri, Dec 29, 2006

The Year in Cinema: Financial Boom or Bust?

How did 2006's film fare fare compared to the year before? Thanks in part to Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest ( which broke too many records to regurgitate here) and despite a somewhat lackluster holiday season, the final box-office tally is headed toward $9.42 billion, marking an increase of about five percent versus 2005. Before you crow, "Well, weren't ticket prices up at least five percent?" the Hollywood Reporter points out that the number of actual tickets sold  1.44 billion  was up nearly three percent.Joining POTC 2 ($423.3 million) in this year's elite $200 mil-plus club were Cars ($244.1 mil), X-Men: The Last Stand ($234.4 mil), The Da Vinci Code ($217.5 mil) and Superman Returns ($200.1 mil).

Fri, Dec 29, 2006

Tours of Booty: Concerts Hit an All-time High Note

Led by the road trips of the Rolling Stones ($138.5 million in gross receipts), Barbra Streisand ($92.5 mil) and the country combo of Tim McGraw and Faith Hill ($88.8 mil), North American concert-ticket revenue hit an all-time high of $3.6 billion in 2006, besting the year prior by 16 percent. Noting that the average ticket price ($61.45) was only up eight percent from '05, the editor in chief of trade mag Pollstar tells the AP, "That's a good sign for business"  especially when you factor in all the K-Fed refunds.

Fri, Dec 29, 2006

Noose at 11: Will TV Broadcast Saddam's Hanging?

U.S. broadcasters are debating whether to share with viewers the videotaped execution of Saddam Hussein, who is likely to be hung before the Sunday start of a Muslim holiday. Expressing the Eye's inclination to snuff the snuff film, CBS News senior VP Linda Mason tells Reuters, "We're very aware that we're coming into people's living rooms, and that there could be children watching." Sharing ABC News' own take, senior VP Bob Murphy says any footage "would have to be viewed by senior management before we put [it] on the air, and we would make a judgment of taste and propriety of what we would show."

Fri, Dec 29, 2006

Short Cuts: Another FNLathon, Betty and More!

Remember how I recently alerted you to NBC's triple-play of Friday Night Lights episodes? Well, Bravo is upping the ante with a 10-episode marathon, starting Saturday, Dec. 30, at 9 am/ET.... Remember how I recently alerted you to ABC Family's 11-hour Ugly Betty marathon (starting Sunday at 9 am/ET)? Well, if you really love Eric Mabius, be advised that SOAPnet will unspool its own, 10-hour Bettython starting New Year's morning at 10 am/ET.... George Takei, already booked to play Hiro's dad on Heroes, will guest-star on Disney Channel's That's So Raven spin-off, Cory in the House (premiering Jan. 12), playing the head steward on Air Force One.... The first batch of Golden Globes presenters includes Reese Witherspoon (hopefully in an unused dress), Salma Hayek (hopefully in a small dress), Felicity Huffman, Ben Stiller and Justin Timberlake.

Fri, Dec 29, 2006

Poll: Britney/K-Fed Was the Year's Juiciest Jilting

You like to see slackers get their comeuppance, dontcha? The results of Parade.com's year-end Pop Culture Poll are out, and Britney's booting of Mr. Federline (earning 22 percent of the vote) was deemed the most deliciously rocky celeb romance of 2006. Other findings:  Y'all would rather smooch your real-life honeys than, say, Angelina Jolie (14 percent) or George Clooney (19 percent) on New Year's Eve. Um, OK.... Thirty-eight percent of the 15,013 respondents pick Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban as the next celeb union to go south. (How many times did that Nashville lingerie model vote?) Jennifer Aniston boasts the closet most women want to raid. (And frankly, she may welcome the company.) Matthew McConaughey and Jessica Alba, meanwhile, are those you imagine look best unclothed, topping their respective gender's lists with 48 and 24 percent of the hottest-bod votes. Good to see that folks have been renting Into the Blue.For more categories and results, go to...

Fri, Dec 29, 2006

Lip Dance: Lindsay Lohan Makes Nice with Strippers

Having summed up exotic dancing's elite as "whores" (and worse) in an e-mail circulated earlier this month, Lindsay Lohan extended an olive branch  at least that's what it looked like, though it was vibrating  to such dancers during a midnight Tuesday visit to New York City's Scores West. "I love strippers," the New York Post's Page Six quotes Lo' as saying as she entered the club, where she ultimately leaped on stage to perform a bump and grind, a "skill" she's honing as preperation for playing a stripper on film. How did she rate on the Scores-cards? "She'll make a good stripper," one professional peeler tells the Post. "She's a natural." And we all know how rare natural is in that biz.

Thu, Dec 28, 2006

YouTube Cues Up Scrubs' Musical "Poo"

The musical episode of NBC's Scrubs doesnt hit the air until Jan. 18, but visitors to YouTube can now check out a pair of numbers starting Friday. In addition to the Zach Braff-Donald Faison duet "Guy Love," which has been making the rounds for weeks, the site will also make available "Everything Comes Down to Poo," sung by Braff, Faison and guest star Stephanie D'Abruzzo (Avenue Q).

Thu, Dec 28, 2006

Casting News: Drive Is Driven to Recast More

Kevin Alejandro (Sleeper Cell) and Mircea Monroe have been cast opposite Nathan Fillion on Drive, Fox's mid-season drama series. Playing participants in an underground cross-country race, Alejandro and Monroe replace Andres Saenz-Hudson and Taryn Manning, though Manning is expected to stay with the series in a different role. Other roles, including the one filled in the original pilot by Alan Ruck, are also being recast. Poor Cameron.... Also per the Hollywood Reporter, junior middleweight champ Oscar De La Hoya will guest-star as a trash-talking doctor on ABC's George Lopez, which premieres its sixth season on Jan. 24.

Thu, Dec 28, 2006

Coverage of Ford Funeral Won't Rival Reagan's

The consensus is that the networks' coverage of Gerald Ford's funeral won't begin to near that of the nation's most recent farewell to a fallen president. "It will not be of the magnitude of Ronald Reagan, who had two terms and was a dominant figure in American politics," NBC News' Tom Brokaw tells Reuters. "[And] I think the Ford family knows that." Said TV coverage plans have yet to be firmed up, but it is expected that there will be at least some coverage of Ford's laying in state under the Capitol rotunda, and of his state funeral, planned for Tuesday at the National Cathedral in Washington.

Thu, Dec 28, 2006

Bravo Hails Taxicab Confessions

Per the Hollywood Reporter, Bravo has flagged down syndication rights to HBO's Taxicab Confessions, acquiring nine episodes to be edited for basic cable and begin airing in late-night blocks starting Friday. The network will also feature the strip in a New Year's Eve marathon. I have a taxicab confession: As a rule, I tip the driver based on the Scrabble value of his last name. (So yes, my wallet is very light.)

Thu, Dec 28, 2006

Eastwood, Al Gore and YouTube Deemed Significant

The American Film Institute on Wednesday detailed what it is calling the year's Moments of Significance, eight developments that impacted the worlds of TV and film. And they are: Clint Eastwood's double whammy of Flags of Our Fathers and Letters from Iwo Jima The passing of filmmaker Robert Altman The influence of documentaries such as An Inconvenient Truth and Iraq in Fragments The rise of YouTube The migration of TV news to this "Internet" thing The death of VHS The reaffirmation of a moral standard for television, as evidenced by Fox's decision to snuff the O.J. Simpson special The Big Four networks fighting the FCC's indecency crackdownNo mention of Gwen Stefani's "Wind It Up" video.

Thu, Dec 28, 2006

Short Cuts: Pirates, 90210 and More!

SOAPnet has added two more hours of Beverly Hills 90210 to its schedule, airing Sundays from 5 to 7 pm/ET.... Sandra Oh (Grey's Anatomy) and Elijah Wood will announce the nominees for this year's Screen Actors Guild Awards next Thursday, Jan. 4, at 3:05 pm/ET, on E! and TNT.... Starting today, Fox Sports is digitally distributing college-football bowl games and preview shows, via FoxSports.com, iTunes and other outlets. Additionally, the New Year's Day Cotton Bowl Classic will be streamed, a first for a major bowl game.... Pirates of the Caribbean 2 reclaimed the No. 1 spot on the DVD sales chart last week, unseating Ricky Bobby, while The Devil Wears Prada remained the top rental.

Thu, Dec 28, 2006

Masi Oka Previews Heroes' Future for Leno

Call it a meeting of the wonderfully hip and the utterly square. When Golden Globe nominee Masi Oka stops by The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Wednesday, Jan. 3, he will make like Hiro by glimpsing the future  that is, the next new episode of NBC's Heroes, currently on hiatus  and serving up a clip on the late-night talker. The title of the much-missed Heroes' return episode, airing Jan. 22? "Godsend," fittingly. (Seriously, come back, prime-time TV!)

Thu, Dec 28, 2006

Chevy Chase Remembers Gerald Ford as "Sweet Man"

Chevy Chase, who famously lampooned the then-president during Saturday Night Live's early days, remembers Gerald R. Ford, who died Tuesday night, as "a very, very sweet man." Speaking to Reuters, Chase says his bumbling take was born of Ford's status as the United States' first nonelected commander in chief, and Nixon's successor and eventual pardoner. "I never felt that he deserved to be there to begin with," he says. "That was just the way I felt then as a young man and as a writer and a liberal." Years later, Chase says, he and Ford became friends. "He took my wife and I on a whole lovely trip through Grand Rapids to show us where he had been as a child and whatnot. We kept in touch, and he was just a terrific guy."

Thu, Dec 28, 2006