After a long battle with rheumatoid disease, Barbara Billingsley passed away in her Santa Monica home yesterday; she was 94. Best known for playing June Cleaver in Leave it to Beaver, she also provided the voice of Nanny on the Muppet Babies and assured the world that she spoke jive in Airplane!. After the jump, relive some of the highlights of Billingsley's long, wonderful career.[E!]
Now that Sam Raimi is officially in the director's chair for the new Oz: The Great and Powerful movie, we're all anxious to hear what kind of shenanigans he and star Robert Downey Jr. have in store for us. The answer: sexy shenanigans.
Pity the poor Green Hornet. The poor man's Batman -- hell the poor man's Blue Beetle -- he's long been the also-ran of the superhero set. And even though his movie adaptation has got some major league star-power in the form of director Michel Gondry, it's been pushed around from opening date to opening date. But, in my opinion, its new poster does everything right in its quest to get its groove back: Minimize the oddly-cast Seth Rogen and maximize the cool-ass car with the giant guns on it. Click through for all the green glory.[Coming Soon]
Proving the old Romanian adage that people will never tire of watching a bunch of painful, homoerotic stunts,Jackass 3D climbed to the top of the Friday night box office, while Bruce Willis and his merry band of geriatric ninjas of Red came in at number two. Your Friday box office is here.
Wow! Friday already? Kidding! This day is the light at the end of what often felt like the longest tunnel ever built, and our Week in Review is your sign that you are in the clear to enjoy the bright light of the weekend. And you'd better get your sunglasses, because Dixon Gaines is on the beat tomorrow and Sunday. Huzzah! Have a great weekend!
· Take a look at the first five minutes of the forthcoming Megamind, which stars Will Ferrell in the title role and Brad Pitt as his nemesis as they compete to become the heroes of Metro City. The all-star supporting cast includes Tina Fey, Jonah Hill, Amy Poehler, Paul Rudd, Will Arnett and Sean Combs. But only one one of those bit players is featured in this video. Try to ID him (or her) after the jump. [YouTube]
Thursday's news that Angelina Jolie and James Cameron are Sony's choices to steer a new, 3-D Cleopatra on to screens caught pretty much everyone in the world off-guard -- partly because of the expense and magnitude of such a project, partly because of its fascinating creative prospects, and partly because it will never happen. In fact, while thinking it over today at Movieline HQ, we came up with 20 other actress/director pairs you're likelier to see collaborate before the titans Jolie and Cameron ever get on the same page. Surely you have a few of your own; let's hear them below.
· "This is flippin' fun!" "How come we just can't ever be satisfied with tranquility?" "I'd rather be doing this than in some stuffy, old political office. I'd rather be out here bein' free." Those are just some of the bons mots dropped by former Alaska governor, current Fox News contributor and future presidential candidate Sarah Palin in her new TLC series, Sarah Palin's Alaska. Click ahead to watch the promo and stick around for more Buzz Break.
File this under: There are no small parts? Via The Awl comes a solicitation that an aspiring actor recently sent to a "TV person" in California. How did this particular thespian hope to get hired? By writing a note that contains the following bit of self-description: "Just finished playing a rapist in a film." Well, then. Expect to see him on Law & Order: Los Angeles in time for November sweeps. Click ahead to see the note and the questionable hand-writing style.
The East and West Coast versions of the live 30 Rock episode last night didn't teem with differences -- unless you consider punchline tweaks, a different opening song, and the pamphlets in Dr. Spaceman's office major changes -- but it was still easy to conclude which version was better. Join Movieline for nine reasons why EST 30 Rock managed to trump PST 30 Rock. Sorry, Pacific Ocean!
Angelina Jolie isn't going to let a canceled permit disrupt her directorial debut. The Oscar-winning star released a statement yesterday in the wake of news that the Bosnian government had revoked her permission to shoot there. "There are many twists in the plot that address the sensitive nature of the relationship between the main characters and that will be revealed once the film is released," Jolie said in a statement. "My hope is that people will hold judgment until they have seen the film." The untitled drama, reportedly about a Muslim woman who falls in love with her Serbian torturer, is currently filming in Budapest. [Reuters via NYT/ArtsBeat]
This new picture from Scream 4 doesn't really tell us much about the film, but it certainly begs for a caption. Is Detective Dewey intervening in a domestic dispute? Acknowledging the elephant in the room? Or actually addressing the problem of all those murdered teenagers? And what's Neve Campbell thinking about in the background? Check out the picture and let us know after the jump!
Also in this morning's edition of The Broadsheet: ABC is developing an Incredible Hulk series... one Hangover star reportedly won't return for the sequel... the Chilean miners are the most wanted men in the world... and more ahead.
Happy Friday! Seriously, it is a very joyful day at Movieline HQ any time a new Jackass movie opens. Or any time the Director With the Best Name in Hollywood can round up four Oscar winners (and one nominee) for a brain-cell vanquishing, shoot-'em-up popcorn thriller. Or any time a fine Australian export lands on our doorstep after a nearly 18-month journey. But will they make any money? Read on and let's make some calls.
Paul Verhoeven, the man who brought us Basic Instinct, Showgirls, Starship Troopers, and a novel about the life of Jesus Christ, is gearing up to direct the erotic, supernatural thriller Eternal. The plot involves a recovering alcoholic who sleeps with a mysterious woman only to find out that she's actually a ghost trying to steal his soul. Wow. With Verhoeven at the helm, this could either be amazing or terrible (or both), but it will not be boring. Hopefully the MPAA doesn't spoil it. [Deadline]
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