The surprise announcement of co-hosts Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin for the Oscars next year hid the declined invitations of actors Robert Downey Jr and Ben Stiller, according to a report.

Academy Awards organisers Bill Mechanic and Adam Shankman were reported to have asked Downey Jr and Stiller, a pair of dark comedians, to share hosting duties for the 2010 bash, which rose in viewer popularity this year on the back of Hugh Jackman’s hosting.

Jackman, too, indicated he did not want to go back for a second consecutive round as host. This year, he used old-fashioned showbiz routines and a business-like approach that viewers found fresh and enticing for the most part.

Jackman is instead preparing for his next cinema turn in the movie Real Steel. The Academy of Motion Picture, Arts and Sciences announced its co-hosts.

The 82nd Academy Awards will take place on March 7, 2010.

Source: Splash News

The Oscar-winning actress has revealed she loves taking mixed martial arts (MMA) classes and has an ‘inner ninja’.

Connelly, 38, started taking MMA classes after watching her husband, Brit actor Paul Bettany, 38, training for a new action film role.

She said: “I’ve taken on mixed martial arts. My husband is doing an action film so he’s been doing some martial arts, I thought it looked like fun so I gave it a try.

“What happened was I threw my first punch and I heard that really loud crack as my fist hit the pad and I got this huge smile on my face.

“I was a little embarrassed and frankly confused that hitting something was bringing me so much pleasure.”

Jennifer – who will next be heard voicing a character in the animated action film 9 – said she has come to terms with her violent urges: “I’ve discovered that inside this mild-mannered woman beats the heart of a ruthless ninja. It’s brought something out of me – now I’m feeling a little nervous and I realise I want to punch your face.”

Blogs I like:

He said the country now focuses on celebrity and red carpet goings-on rather than creative movie-making.

Rush said recently: “When I was starting out in film no-one knew who Toni Collette was, no-one knew who Baz Luhrmann was, no-one knew who I was. We were just the right people in the right place and the right actors for specific roles that made those films into something we all became terribly, terribly proud of.”

He continued: “I’m not disparaging the commerciality of certain areas of cinema because I go to the biggest blockbusters as much as the next person, [but] we shouldn’t be distracted by thinking we have to make high-powered commercial box office success films. I just think we need to try to keep pursuing that kind of fundamental creative endeavour.”

The Pirates of the Caribbean star is one of 16 actors to have won an Oscar, an Emmy and a Tony award.

Oscar chiefs are reportedly worrying about the shortage of women eligible to win the Best Actress gong at next February’s ceremony.

Academy insiders fear there are simply not enough “good” lead roles by women for voters to choose the winner from.

Kate Winslet won the award at this year’s ceremony for her role in The Reader.

One Academy insider said: “It’s only just dawning that there’s a distinct lack of potentials in the Best Actress category.

“Not that there have been terrible performances, far from it, it’s just that there have been few good leading roles for women.”

He added: “It’s been a pretty lacklustre year for movies in general but it seems that no one wrote any decent lead roles for women.”

He continued: “It looks like Meryl Streep may do it again as she has played the lead to acclaim in two films out this year.”

Source: Splash News

Oscar-winning actor Matt Damon has visited India as part of his work with the H2O Africa Foundation and been hailed by its Hindu people.

Damon, 38, co-founded the foundation in 2006, which aims to raise awareness about clean water initiatives.

The foundation has already set up projects in countries such as Uganda, Central African Republic, Ghana, Kenya, Ethiopia, Rwanda and Niger.

It is claimed Damon plans to set up a similar project in India after he visited Delhi and Chennai.

Hindu statesman Rajan Zed has praised Damon’s efforts to ensure people around the world receive clean water and Zed has urged other celebrities to take a similar stance and help in other projects such as this.

Zed, the president of the Universal Society of Hinduism, said all religions say to help the homeless and he also offered his support to Damon if he needs it for the project, as well as other charity missions in India.

Zed revealed that Damon stayed in the Radisson Hotel in Mahipalpur in Delhi and reportedly ate dal, chapatis and kebab during his stay there.

Source: Splash News

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) is actually taking the Oscars back to their historic roots in doing so. Sid Ganis, AMPAS president, said: "After more than six decades the Academy is returning to some of its earlier roots when a wider field competed for the top award of the year… The final outcome will be the same – one Best Picture winner – but the race to the finish line will feature 10, not just five movies, from 2009."

In 1944, there were 10 films in the running for the centerpiece award – and the Best Picture went to … Casablanca.

Ganis continued: "Having 10 Best Picture nominees is going to allow Academy voters to recognise and include some of the fantastic movies that often show up in the other Oscar categories but have been squeezed out of the race for the top prize."

He added: "The field is vast – there were around 300 eligible movies this year and last and 10 nominees out of 300 is still spectacular. It’ll be less cloistered and more open with possibilities."

The announcement got a warm reception in Hollywood. LA Times critic Tom O’Neil, wrote:

"They’ve got to do something to make the show more sexy and hip and expanding the Best Picture race is a brilliant solution."

Oscar-winning actress Emma Thompson has admitted she has more fun at funerals than at weddings.

Emma, 50, is starring in new film Last Chance Harvey with Dustin Hoffman, which centres around a wedding day.

She said: “I have never known a wedding where the bride and the groom aren’t sitting there fretting about who’s been invited and who’s not.”

Emma admitted she has more fun at a funeral.

She added: “I was at a wonderful funeral for my father-in-law.

“The only sad thing was that he was not there because he would have loved that party.”

Oscar winner Gwyneth Paltrow may not be much of a movie buff but she is a certified “Revenge of The Nerds” fan. Despite this Gwyneth Paltrow said she is a big fan of cinema and relies on the taste of her celebrity friends when it comes to her movie choices from classic, documentary to the new films being shown. Among the people she relies on when it comes to recommending a good watch are Steven Spielberg, Jon Favreau, Wes Anderson, Sophia Coppola and James Gray.

These five Hollywood heavyweights have named their top picks for DVD rentals and you can either say great or pass to their choices. Steven Spielberg’s top choices included “The Godfather”, “The Best Tears of Our Lives” and “Tootsie”. Director Wes Anderson’s rental choices are however not the mainstream movies you always see on everyone’s list. Among his recommendations are “Neon Genesis Evangelion”, “Terror’s Advocate” and “Life Lessons”. Iron Man Director Jon Favreau however have more contemporary recommendations like “Kung Fu Panda” which he said is his son’s top favorite placing Ironman on the second place. Sophia Coppola on the other hand, recommends “Tootsie” and “The Heartbreak Kid”.

The actor who hosted this years Academy Awards admitted that he could not calm down until he performed his musical together with Anne Hathaway. Hugh Jackman said: “After that I was able to relax. I knew we were going to be OK after that. But when we were planning that whole thing for live TV, it was a bit tense.” You have to wonder if it wasn’t the fact that Anne Hathaway was there on stage with him that made “Wolverine” loosen up a bit, especially since he carried her on stage. Hugh Jackman however said that he would host the awards once more if asked to, so I guess the experience proved much more exhilarating for him than he would’ve imagined.

Best Actress winner Kate Winslett may have won the coveted Oscars but she still could not help getting mesmerized by her trophy. The actress regaled the Academy audience when in hr acceptance speech, she revealed that she had been obsessed about the Oscars even as a child and mimicked the winners using her shampoo bottles. Well, nothing has changed except that Kate Winslet is no longer holding a shampoo bottle now but the Golden Boy statuette. Kate Winslet however admits she could not stop looking at her very first Oscar which she won for her performance in “The Reader”.

Kate Winslet apparently has a new man in her life and she would not let go of “it” even during the Oscar party and even during her guesting at the Oprah Winfrey show the next day. The statuette was also with her when she arrived at the JFK airport albeit covered in protective green covering. She even admitted to Oprah that she is so obsessed with it she keeps on looking at it even noticing that her statuette has a very nice little bottom. Kate Winslet said she was expecting that the award would go to Meryl Streep.

Post winning the Best Actor Award at this year’s Academy Awards Sean Penn has wasted no time to send a message across to people who are opposed to gay marriage and also those who took to the streets outside the Academy Awards on Sunday to protest against same-sex marriage.

When asked what he would tell the protesters, he responded: “I’d tell them to turn in their hate card and find their better self. It’s very sad in a way, because it’s a demonstration of such emotional cowardice, to be so afraid of extending the same rights to your fellow man as you would want for yourself.”

Well, America is a free country and people have the right to express their own and Sean has the right to say what he feels. The protesters believe it’s a moral issue. It’s not a right until it’s voted a right by the majority of the vote and protesters will always be around for what they believe is right or wrong.

As for Sean’s acting well there are doubts no more that he did a fine job and thankfully the Academy has honoured the right person this time.

The actress from “Vanilla Sky” who managed to nail an Academy Awards for best supporting female role due to her performance in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” was highly grateful to Woody Allen for her success. Penelope Cruz said the following in her acceptance speech: “I’m going to go call Woody right now. I call Woody sometimes to just say hello and I adore him. I think he’s so funny and charming and so peculiar and unique. And of course, today I have to talk to Woody to thank him.” Yeah, too bad Woody didn’t nail a little golden statue for himself too, but then again there’s always next year. We all know how the legends go: try, try again…

Cat fights? This was what war-freaks were expecting with Angelina Jolie and Jennifer Aniston thrown into one location where they could not help but bump into each other. They may not have bumped into each other but everything seemed fine between the women—Jennifer Aniston the past and Angelina Jolie the present—in Brad Pitt’s life. The two were thrown into the Kodak Theater for the 81st Academy Awards last Sunday. In fact, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt were just 12 seats away from Jennifer Aniston and John Mayer.

Capitalizing on the seeming rivalry between the two, the Oscar producers panned the camera on Angelina Jolie when Jennifer Aniston was presenting on stage with Jack Black and Angelina Jolie was caught smiling and enjoying their spiels. It was Jennifer Aniston’s turn when the camera panned on her while she and boyfriend John Mayer were applauding when Angelina Jolie’s name was mentioned for Best Actress and Brad Pitt for Best Actor. It seems that when it comes to Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston, each has already forgiven and forgotten. Or was everything a put on? Wanna bet?

Academy Awards night host Hugh Jackman is taking the Oscars to new heights saying it will be a naked Oscars. That’s the sexiest man alive’s take on those prying to get a little Oscars details from him before the show begins Sunday. Hugh Jackman, who has been known for his affable and humorous nature, said this is going to be a whole new Oscars but continued to shy away from details. He joked that while most of them are doing the whole show naked, they will be singing through the whole show including the acceptance speech. However, Hugh Jackman’s sexy attributes will not be seen as he would be strategically covered by a leaf.

A lot of people are excited about how Hugh Jackman will handle this years Oscars considering that most if not all the hosts in the past have been comedians. The 40-year old Hugh Jackman, who is known worldwide as X-Men’s Wolverine, has been a three-time Tony Awards host. This is his first Oscars hosting job so be gentle.

Oscar-winning actress Halle Berry has turned criminal. Don’t get too excited though because that’s just in the movies. Berry is set to play the role of real-life jewelry theft Doris Payne. Payne is infamous for her long career as an international jewel thief. She dressed herself up in fancy clothes as a ruse to steal high-priced jewelry from stores in broad daylight. Nobody would in fact suspect that this elegant lady is out to steal precious jewelry right from under the clerk’s nose. Payne was already 75 years old when she stole a diamond ring worth $36,000 from Neiman Marcus in 2005. The modus operandi was to try on as many jewelries as possible until the clerk gets confused. She is said to be an astute businesswoman and has expanded her illegal business to Monte Carlo and Switzerland.

The Doris Payne role is actually a great comeback for Berry after her pregnancy. She was not seen in the big screen for a while except for a recent hosting job. Payne is a classy thief, stealing only from well-known jewelry stores like Town and Country as well as Neiman Marcus. Using her good looks, sophisticated clothes and charm, Payne was able to trick clerks into offering her jewelries in a silver platter. Possessing these characteristics herself, Berry is indeed a perfect fit to play Payne.