Archive: February 2009 (81-90 of 218)

Feb 19 2009 12:53 PM ET

'Biggest Loser' returns to single-contestant format, targets America's fattest cities

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After a successful foray into couples and family editions, NBC’s hit weight-loss competition The Biggest Loser is returning to the single-contestant format that it launched with in 2004, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Executive producer J.D. Roth says he plans to study which American cities are the fattest and will likely cast contestants for the fall 2009 cycle of Loser from those areas. Roth did not say which tally he plans to use as he preps for the series’ sixth season, but if this Men’s Fitness survey is to believed, Miami residents are likely to hear about a casting call very soon.

Feb 19 2009 10:45 AM ET

'Biggest Loser' producer teams with Nelly for variety show

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Pop-rap star Nelly has teamed with The Biggest Loser producer 25/7 Prods. for a variety show currently being pitched to networks, Variety reports. Nelly’s Night in Vegas, a weekly talkshow-variety hybrid series, would feature Nelly performing and interacting with other celebrities. 25/7′s Dave Broome is set to executive produce along with Nelly and The Daily Show co-creator Madeleine Smithberg. Nelly’s Night looks to join the current variety show revival trend: CBS is working on a variety special starring musician John Mayer, while Fox is launching a show this spring starring the Osbournes.

Feb 19 2009 02:24 AM ET

'The Dark Knight,' 'Gossip Girl' win publicist awards

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Warner Bros. publicity representatives went home with the biggest prizes — for The Dark Knight and Gossip Girl — at the 46th annual publicists awards luncheon in Beverly Hills on Wednesday. The publicity campaign behind the Batman sequel won top movie honors, while the campaign for the CW sensation garnered kudos in the TV field, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Feb 19 2009 02:16 AM ET

Sandra Bullock set to star in 'The Blindside'

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Sandra Bullock will star in the football-based true-life dramedy The Blindside, for writer-director Jon Lee Hancock (The Rookie), Variety reports. The feature is based on Michael Lewis’ book The Blind Side: The Evolution of a Game, about football linemen. Bullock will play the matriarch of a suburban household that plays host to a rising — and homeless — football star.

Feb 19 2009 12:51 AM ET

'Suge' Knight pleads guilty to misdemeanor battery

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Death Row Records cofounder Marion "Suge" Knight, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to misdemeanor battery in Las Vegas, the Associated Press reports. The case stemmed from an altercation Knight had with a woman in a Nevada parking lot last year; police officers had witnessed him striking the woman while holding a knife. The plea was part of a deal which dropped three felony counts against the 43-year-old rap-music icon. He was ordered to undergo counseling, pay a $340 fine, and return to court in August for a status check.

Feb 18 2009 11:41 PM ET

Mickey Rourke may not appear in 'Iron Man 2,' but will be in Stallone's 'The Expendables'

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New York magazine is reporting that Oscar nominee Mickey Rourke may not appear in Iron Man 2, after all. The star of The Wrestler was previously attached to play a Russian villain in the comic-book-movie sequel, but when a reporter caught up with him at a New York Fashion Week event last night, he said, "Right now, we’re not doing Iron Man 2."

Meanwhile, producers confirm that Rourke will appear in Sylvester Stallone’s The Expendables.

Feb 18 2009 11:30 AM ET

Don Johnson sues for overdue 'Nash Bridges' payday

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Don Johnson Prods. has filed a breach of contract lawsuit against Nash Bridges producer Rysher Entertainment and the company’s current owner, Qualia Capital. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Johnson claims his original deal awarded him 50 percent of the copyright to the CBS series if the show ran past 66 episodes, which it did. The suit argues Johnson is due his share of profits (which would include revenue from the syndication of the series) — a figure estimated at "tens of millions of dollars." Johnson also claims his company’s right to exploit the series online and on mobile devices has been denied, and is asking the court to grant Don Johnson Prods. access to the master tapes.

Feb 18 2009 11:29 AM ET

Martin Lawrence eyes new comedy

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Martin Lawrence is set to produce the feature comedy Back to America, the tale of a working-class Queens man who learns he has a birthright to the throne of an African country and ventures there to claim it, Variety reports. Lawrence may star in the picture as well. The actor’s production company, Runteldat Entertainment, will produce, along with Warner Bros.-based Alcon Entertainment and Nicole Rocklin.

Feb 18 2009 11:26 AM ET

Ang Lee in talks to direct 'Life of Pi' movie

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Ang Lee is in talks to direct Fox 2000′s adaptation of Yann Martel’s novel Life of Pi, Variety reports. The book, which won the Man Booker Prize, is about a young man who tells his tale as the sole survivor of a sunkenfreighter who had to share a lifeboat with a hyena, an injuredzebra, an orangutan, and a hungry Bengal tiger. Lee’s latest credits include Lust, Caution and Brokeback Mountain. He most recently completed Taking Woodstock, an adaptation of the Tom Monte book.

Feb 18 2009 11:23 AM ET

'American Idol': WGA to protest at taping

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The drama won’t just be on stage Wednesday night at American Idol‘s results show. Outside, members of the Writers Guild of America will be rallying against Idol producer FremantleMedia North America’s alleged mistreatment of its scribes and other workers. On the WGA’s website, the guild claims: "While Fremantle profits from Idol and its other shows, itswriters, drivers, and other workers who make these shows successful donot. Many Fremantle workers do not receive benefits that are standardin the entertainment industry including minimum compensation, healthinsurance, and retirement benefits. Fremantle has also chosen to usenon-union drivers who work excessive overtime without proper restperiods or drug and alcohol testing."

Fremantle has yet to comment, but Variety notes that its execs have denied the allegations in the past.

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