The Hobbit caught some negative reaction when 10 minutes of unfinished footage played at the CinemaCon convention earlier this year in Las Vegas. But Sir Ian McKellen, who stars in The Lord of the Rings prequel, has defended the anticipated film directed by Peter Jackson, after early criticism from fans flared over how it looks in 3-D.
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Skyfall packed some punch at the British box office, becoming the biggest U.K. weekend for any James Bond film. The film is the 23rd putting for 007 and the debonaire spy displayed his ticket selling prowess, taking in £20.1 million ($32.36 million) after opening Friday at 587 theaters in the U.K. and Ireland.
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Also in Monday's round-up of news briefs, RZA is set to direct two new projects; The Loneliest Planet tops the Specialty Box Office in an otherwise uneventful weekend. And Peter Fonda takes on jury duty.
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A bit high-pitched and shrill, the few audiences that have seen Lincoln ahead of its World Premiere next month at AFI Fest may have been surprised by the voice of America's 16th President as played by Daniel Day-Lewis. The two-time Oscar-winner made a rare public appearance speaking before a small audience presented by Time Magazine in New York Thursday. The actor, who appeared along with Steven Spielberg, spoke in his native British accent, which was in audible contrast to his latest on-screen character.
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Poor Jason Momoa. Just a year after he helped reboot the Conan the Barbarian franchise, original Conan, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Universal Pictures have struck a deal to reboot the reboot, putting Arnie back in the role of the muscled, sword-swinging warrior.
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Kristen Stewart gave her first farewell comments to Twilight and her character Bella in Tokyo ahead of the super-popular franchise's final installment, Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2, which opens in November. She said parting with Twilight is hard, but Bella, Robert Pattinson's Edward and Taylor Lautner's Jacob have been able to get "everything."
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Speculation is mounting in the U.K. over who will take over the reins as 007 post-Daniel Craig. Bond girl Naomie Harris delivered a bit of a news flash, saying that the next 007 may be Idris Elba. If so, the star of The Wire and films Prometheus and Thor would become the first non-Caucasian James Bond in his eternal 50 years.
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James Bond may be able to tussle with the world's most notorious evil-doers, but he's not able to resist the alluring sounds of singer Adele's soulful voice. 007 star Daniel Craig said that he cried when he first heard the theme song to Skyfall.
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The time is ripe for a James Bond auction. The latest in the franchise, Skyfall, heads to North American theaters in early November and the 50th anniversary of 007 is a key slot for a memorabilia sale. Posters from every Bond pic, stills, lobby cards, scripts and other memorables will hit the auction block and in December and is expected to take in over $200K. But the loot may pail in comparison to an earlier sale of Bond tidbits, including a bathing suit worn by 007's latest incarnation, Daniel Craig.
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He is the most glamorous four-legged A-lister alive, and Uggie isn't wasting any dog years to cash in. The celebrated Jack Russell who stole the limelight in last year's multiple Oscar-winning film The Artist is pushing his memoirs. The book titled simply, Uggie: My Story just came out and the lovable pooch headed to the City of Lights for a signing and photo call - naturally.
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They're the one percent even in immortality. Elizabeth Taylor reigns as the biggest earner in Forbes Magazine's list of Top-Earning Celebrities, even out-ranking her BFF in life, Michael Jackson. But she may not stay atop the deceased heap for long since most of that bundle came from a record-breaking Christie's auction that cha-chinged $184 million, mostly from the star's fabled jewelry collection.
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James Cameron said last Spring he disbanded his production company's development wing, noting that, aside from his deep-sea submarine dives, he's exclusively in the "Avatar business - meaning Avatar 2, Avatar 3, and possibly Avatar 4. Well, that was then and this is now… But Cameron's production company has picked up rights to Taylor Stevens' thriller novel, The Informationist, which he'll likely direct and produce.
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The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2 machine is underway and the film's on and off-screen couple are headed out on the road - though separately for now. Kristen Stewart headed to Tokyo to talk up the wildly successful conclusion to the vampire franchise, while Robert Pattinson flew Down Under for his whirlwind of engagements in Australia. While Twilight distributor is holding a strict "no-go" as far as questions about the real-life R-Patz/K-Stew drama that gripped segments of the celebrity-fueled chatter world in late summer/early fall, Pattinson did bring her up at a meeting with Oz journalists and more on his final play as Edward Cullen.
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The Jolie-Pitt brood appear to have caught the acting bug from their folks. Last August, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's four-year-old daughter was cast as the young Princess Aurora in Maleficent, starring her superstar mother in the title role. Now, two siblings are set to join the production, and with a 2014 release date, could there be room for more?
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