Valkyrie is recovering reasonably well from the crippling stroke of bad publicity that nearly killed it earlier this year. But only part of that is due to slightly better-than-average word on the street.

The Sopranos and A Bronx Tale star Lillo Brancato Jr., who three years ago was involved in a bungled burglary that left one cop dead and Brancato himself critically injured, was found not guilty.

Though we were enamored of the backwards type and deer-in-headlights look that distinguished the poster for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, others found it terribly generic. Now, Slashfilm presents Paramount's alternate take.

Though we understood why Jeremy Piven's ditched Speed-the-Plow co-stars reamed him onstage Sunday, we couldn't fathom what it was that had made Elisabeth Moss allegedly start "sobbing." Then, we saw the Piven-less box office:

As pro-strike SAG members gathered around their mediation menorahs to light a tiny Eric Bogosian head on fire, thereby commemorating the second night of Yea-nukkah, they were met with a shocking development:

Though Hollywood reserves the holiday movie season for its annual harvest of ambition, prestige and clout, even the most painstaking Oscar husbandry can often fail. For three much-anticipated films in particular, the damage varies.

· "So funny story—I'm getting paid millions to pump Gucci, the same stinky toilet-water I used to swipe at Macy's and sell to my classmates. Did I mention the gun-running and home-ec hooker ring?"

On the same day a Vanity Fair writer delivered the definitive history of the worst Star Wars spinoff ever, another report suggests that infamous show may soon have competition.

· The Polyamorous Affair, Vaginals and Halloween Swim Team at The Echo, The Count Basie Orchestra swings up your Xmas at Disney Hall, and Rockapella at House of Blues.

As much as it has become a punchline for those mocking individuals with little talent, The Hills is a significant part of our culture and we must say goodbye to another installment tonight.

We've once again gathered Defamer's blue-ribbon panel of movie-marketing insiders, this time to assess what's gone wrong on the unfortunate new poster for the sci-fi B-thriller Push.

Something about this time of year really brings out the do-gooder in all of us. Take for example David Spade, who reached deep into his man-purse and pulled out $100,000 worth of new police rifles!

Much as we loved the famous Wall-E bento, the film needs all the Oscar support it can muster. Thus, a food art alternative for the mercury-poisoned SAG faction was born.

When one thinks of Matthew McConaughey, the name evokes Kate Hudson romcoms, a shirt-repelling pair of pecs, and the ability to make both beef and babies seem extra tasty. But does one think "writer"?

In Twilight Nation, expect Dec. 22 to be the date that will forever live in infamy: Floppy-coiffed vampire hunk Robert Pattinson has cut his hair.

Hollywood drives people to choose alternate religions - Buddhism, Scientology, the Zone diet. For this week's horoscopes, we consulted a friend in the Shamanic community, who suggested some power animals to guide you.

In a bold programming gambit that officially solidifies 2009 as the Hollywood Year of the Lycanthrope, Fox is developing Bitches, a "dramedy about a quartet of female friends in New York who are werewolves."

Unwilling to let Roland Emmerich corner the DGA market on topless pool parties, Criterion-approved auteur Michael Bay is opening his Miami mansion up to guests—and all you need is $250!

12/20 — Celebrated my birthday with friends on Saturday night in Los Feliz and ended up at the last night of Tangiers. Down the street sitting out front eating at Little Dom's was DREW BARRYMORE! She looks hot blonde! She was having dinner with that guy from Forgetting Sarah Marshall and How I Met Your Mother, sorry, too lazy to IMDB him. Are they dating? [Well?Hollywood PrivacyWatch is written by and for Defamer readers; send your sightings to tips@defamer.com.]

Maybe it's just her late-night Marley & Me marathon making her punchy, but Jennifer Aniston was at her sauciest (we think) the other night on Conan when her canine castmates' culinary tastes were revealed.