Today in Deadpan Hyperbole: "Why Revolutionary Road is going to be a big, practically zeitgeist-defining, hit," wherein Glenn Kenny deduces that because Mad Men is a hit (though not quite), the show's viewers will race to see Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet as an ad man and his wife splintering in early 1960s Connecticut. Titanic isn't mentioned. If he isn't serious, then it's the best poker face we've seen in a long, long time. [Some Came Running]
♦ Diane von Furstenberg has not only designed a collection inspired by Wonder Woman, she's also authored a comic book featuring superheroines Diva, Viva and Fifa. [WWD, DVF]
♦ Backstage at Marc Jacobs' Louis Vuitton Paris show, the models flipped up their skirts to show Cathy Horyn an important detail: lace underwear monogrammed with LV. [On the Runway]
♦ Jessica Stam's East Village apartment, designed by Rafael de Cardenas, is sickeningly fabulous for a 22-year-old. [Jezebel]
Chelsea Clinton walking in flip-flops with a cup of espresso in hand ... Penn Badgley and Ed Westwick filming scenes for Gossip Girl outside the Palace Hotel ... Kate Winslet and Sam Mendes laughing with friends in Times Square ... Tom Cruise and daughter Suri leaving their apartment ... Rachel Bilson making an in-store appearance at Macy's in Herald Square ... John Mayer leaving his apartment with a big bag ... Madonna's kids Lourdes and Rocco arriving at the Kabbalah Center ... Tim Robbins and Brian Williams outside the Letterman show ... Sarah Silverman and Jimmy Kimmel getting in an SUV after Howard Stern and Beth Ostrosky's wedding at Le Cirque ... Angelina Jolie outside Lee's Art Shop on West 57th Street with her kids, and later leaving Nobu with Brad Pitt.
Lyor Cohen and Al Sharpton are both celebrating today: The Warner Music chief (and boyfriend of Tory Burch) turns 49; the rabble-rousing clergyman is 54. Others marking the special occasion: socialite Alexis Bryan is 32. Clive Owen is 44. Jake Shears is 30. Gwen Stefani is 39. Ashlee Simpson is 24. Composer Steve Reich is 72. Tommy Lee is 46. Neve Campbell is 35. Actor Sean William Scott is 32. And the notoriously precise Times TV critic Alessandra Stanley is 53. Weekend birthdays after the jump.
♦ Whitney Port's clothing line is now available! Needless to say, it's overpriced and underdesigned. [FabSugar]
♦ A juicy bit of gossip from Vivienne Westwood's Paris show last night: Kate Winslet is in the running to play the legendary designer in a Universal Pictures biopic. [SassyBella]
♦ Polygamist bouffants are now très chic, if we're to believe W and Vogue, which have the bizarre hairstyles on Linda Evangelista and Isabeli Fontana, respectively. But what's Tim Gunn going to say? [NYO]
No distance seems far enough, no HazMat suit thick enough to defend against the radioactivity let off by Harvey Weinstein and Scott Rudin's toxic Reader mess. This morning we're getting an idea of the clean-up cost for both parties — none more prohibitive than Harvey's, who today pledged $1 million to charity if Nikki Finke could turn up Rudin's alleged e-mail accusing him of "harrassing" ailing Reader co-producer Sydney Pollack for a 2008 release date. Even Rudin told Page Six: "That is not my e-mail. The contents of it are categorically untrue." Those gambits could have gone a lot better, as both men were soon to discover.The contents may in fact be untrue — just Rudin doing his malevolent macher business as usual. Harvey's survived worse. Alas, the e-mail itself turned out to be quite real, as Nikki proved last night in a post to Deadline Hollywood Daily. But what about Rudin's Page Six denial? Oh, that? Never mind:
After a brief but concentrated period of friction over the release date for their Oscar-bait drama The Reader, Harvey Weinstein and Scott Rudin issued a joint statement late Sunday confirming the film would arrive in theaters Dec. 12, 2008. Thus anticlimactically ended Rudin/Weinstein Death Match II, their first since The Hours, another Stephen Daldry film that endured a litany of tweaks and torment coming down to the awards-season wire in 2002. While Defamer scorekeepers last week favored Rudin in the tilt, a late flurry of Weinstein jabs sent the superproducer reeling to the canvas — or maybe not quite the canvas, but at least a sort of easy détente few saw coming when Harvey insisted on receiving Daldry's first edit a week from today. Let alone Rudin's congested awards roster also including Doubt and Revolutionary Road, the latter of which positions Reader star Kate Winslet in a potential race against herself for Best Actress. No word yet on whether or not Winslet will promote The Reader so close to Sam Mendes's Revolutionary Road or what kind of platform release the film faces with MGM out of the picture, but official word from Rudin, Weinstein and Daldry after the jump suggests at least three-quarters of a happy family:The Joint statement released Sunday was kind of lovely in an eerie, WTF way: "We are issuing this statement together to emphasize the fact that we are in complete agreement on the date we have chosen to release The Reader," said Rudin and Weinstein. "Working together, we developed a plan to extend the post-production schedule in order to give Stephen Daldry the additional time he needs to successfully complete the film in time to release it on December 12, 2008." One report places that extended schedule at a full month, overlapping with Daldry's current adaptation of Billy Elliott for Broadway. By all indications, a Factory Girl-esque race to final cut was the last thing the director wanted (at least he can skip the reshoots), but he's got his public happy face on for now. "On their own, Scott and Harvey spent this weekend working together to find a way to accommodate my needs so that I may fulfill my obligation to the studio without compromising my vision for the film," he said. "I am thrilled and relieved that we have all found a way forward to work together to bring The Reader to theaters this year." Great — The Harvey Renaissance is back on! Let's keep it this way, Fanboys notwithstanding.
What? Two PrivacyWatches in one week? That's your reward — all of our reward, really — for all of your attentive spying, neck-craning and blabber-mouthiness in recent days. And while we regret we have no epic Kim Kardashian traffic mishaps to report (and eventually debate), we can vouch for primo sightings of a single Ryan Gosling, the renowned pool shark Kevin Federline and a symbolic meeting of A-list and Z-list at one of the city's most glamorous steakeries. Remember, Hollywood PrivacyWatch is brought to us by the letter U, so put "Sightings" in your subject lines and keep those tips coming. The latest installment also includes Kate Winslet, Denzel Washington, Shenae Grimes, James Cromwell, Kevin Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick, Whitney Port, Anton Yelchin, T.R. Knight and more.WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 17 I spotted RYAN GOSLING at the Hotel Cafe last week catching a show by singer AUDRA MAE. He was with a bunch of scruffy dudes - sans Rachel McAdams! Ladies, there may still be hope for us all. He looked super thin and was rocking some stubble. Stayed and hung out after the show until some drunk chick vomited all over the bar, at which point he promptly beelined for the door. THURSDAY, SEPT. 18 Just returned from the new Big Wang's in West Hollywood where KEVIN FEDERLINE was holding court around the pool table. The group that he was with was way too exited to be in a NoHo bar with KFed. Lots of hooting and cheering every time he made a shot. FRIDAY, SEPT. 19 Saw super talented and delicious HGTV's Next Design Star runner-up MATT LOCKE at the Sound of Music sing-along. Insert joke about hammering hard wood here. Snicker snicker. I'm walking up Flower street in Downtown LA around noon today walking towards The Standard when all of a sudden TIM GUNN walks out. He looks great, if not incognito. In hindsight I should have asked him to say "holla at ya boy." Right now. A very blond KATE WINSLET in first-class on AA 180 from LAX to JFK. SATURDAY, SEPT. 20 I spotted the USS Enterprise crew member ANTON YELCHIN in Van Nuys on Saturday night at a party at Beer City Studios. He was supporting a friend's band on harmonica and guitar. Much later in the evening, he serenaded the remaining party goers with an 8-minute, improvisational story song about his experience with a "MILF." Also spotted at the party that night was SAM GOLZARI from American Dreamz and 21. He was playing with his band at the party and, needless to say, we were all "Omerized." While eating excellent pizza at Tomato Pie on Melrose, SHENAE GRIMES from 90210 walked past me twice. Petite, cute and NOT ANOREXIC!!!! no matter what the tabloids or the L.A. Times claim. Five minutes later, same place, spotted JAMES CROMWELL with his wife/girlfriend and an unexpected big smile on his face. The MTV Awards may be just a memory now, but on Saturday I actually saw JESSE CAMP, live and in person outside of Cheetah’s. He was accompanied by his wife, and looks pretty much exactly the same as when he won that contest years ago. SUNDAY, SEPT. 21 On Griffith Park Blvd. at the intersection with Los Feliz Blvd. Was waiting for the traffic lights to change, and just glanced in the rear view to check my hotness, and who do I see pulled up to my bumper, baby? None other than delish-o-gay, T.R. KNIGHT. Was at the wheel of his champagne, metallic SUV (not too big). I knew he lived nearby and it was only a matter of time... Was using his cellphone as he drove. Bad man. Needs bottom spanked. Matter of time... At the Aero Theater for a sneak peek of Choke - LAURA INNES (redhead doc from ER) sat just across the aisle from me — she laughed in all good spots, stayed for the Q&A with director CLARK GREGG, looked nice and normal and had no attitude (unlike some other people who flipped their lids over the no-camera rule); also JON FAVREAU was there to support Gregg — someone asked a question about Iron Man 2 and they had a laugh, Favs hung out for a bit and talked to all sorts of fans who were surprised to see him, another no-attitude celeb. MONDAY, SEPT. 22 At BLT Steak: WHITNEY PORT and five others sat at the table next to us, which was fine, she's pretty and all and her manager or whatever wasn't too annoying. But, as we were walking out I noticed DENZEL WASHINGTON sitting in a corner. I feel like he smiled at me when I smiled at him. He is way sexy. Spotted KEVIN BACON and KYRA SEDGWICK in the parking lot at the southwest corner of Ventura and Beverly Glen in Sherman Oaks at noon today. They were walking to their light blue Prius and looked young, cute, and fit. Seriously. At first I thought it couldn't be them, because who is that cute young blonde ponytailed girl? But sure enough, it was Kyra (no mistaking that face). At one point Kevin put his arm around her and they kissed. Genuinely looked like the real deal.
While most of the filmgoing world probably wouldn't have minded seeing Kate Winslet compete against herself for a Best Actress Oscar next February (at this point we'd do anything to improve her odds), we'd sacrifice that opportunity if it means we get to witness and/or feel the seismic power struggle rocking Winslet's war-crime period piece The Reader. It was about a month ago that Harvey Weinstein cited positive test screenings and a Winslet Oscar push while moving the film's release date up to 2008; alas, as we anticipated, co-producer Scott Rudin probably heard the news right around the same time we did. The resulting squabble can be seen from outer space, but thankfully we've wrangled a closer vantage point than that. We handicap the bloody duel and predict our winner after the jump.HISTORY: Rudin and Weinstein last clashed when Paramount sold Miramax the international rights to The Hours, also helmed by Reader director Stephen Daldry. Everything was fair game to Harvey — Nicole Kidman's prosthetic nose, Philip Glass's score, final cut — and the drama is generally blamed for costing The Hours its Venice Film Festival premiere. But it worked: Kidman won, Glass was nominated, and the $25 million film did more than $108 milion worldwide. EDGE: Even. PRAGMATICS: Whatever version of The Reader test audiences saw last month in New York wasn't the final cut; we hear it's still at least a month away, which plunks cash-strapped Harvey in a late-December marketing and release-date dilemma. Not that he gives a shit just as long as he has an actress to threaten suicide over, but Rudin does care, as well he should — he has Winslet's other Oscar bait, Revolutionary Road, opening Dec. 26 (not to mention Doubt on Dec. 12). EDGE: Rudin. CLOUT: Rudin may be the incumbent Best Picture winner, but he shares co-producing credit on The Reader with the late Sydney Pollack and Anthony Minghella — the latter of whom was on the very short list of Harvey BFF's before he died last spring. Depending on how the duo's Mirage successors play along, Harvey has enough political juice to hold out for his way. EDGE: Weinstein. MONEY: Weinstein did nicely with Vicky Cristina Barcelona, but not well enough to bet the house on Reader, Shanghai and The Road within a month of each other. And that's not counting the Oscar push, which the Mirage gang will want done right or not at all. EDGE: Rudin. OSCARS: Rudin has Harvey's ex-Miramax miracle workers at his disposal in New York, but even if Winslet is stronger in The Reader, she'll win or lose based on the campaign that DreamWorks mounts for Revolutionary Road. Harvey's cheap ass is counting on the subsequent comparisons, of course — even he doesn't know if he'll be around to pay his own way next year. That strategy might work for Kevin Smith films, but it won't work here. EDGE: Rudin. WINNER: Scott Rudin. The Reader — coming in 2009 to a theater near you!
Sienna Miller walking through SoHo with a cigarette in her mouth ... Kelly Ripa running on a treadmill for a segment on Regis & Kelly ... Sofia Coppola pushing her daughter in a stroller ... Joey Fatone and a friend walking back to their hotel ... Kate Winslet giving her son a piggyback ride ... Jon Bon Jovi and his wife on a street corner in SoHo ... Matthew Broderick riding a scooter with his son ... Katie Holmes walking to a waiting car ... Kirsten Dunst posing for photos with fans at Yankee Stadium ... Sandra Bernhard hailing a cab ... Parker Posey sipping iced coffee and walking her dog ... Dylan Lauren and Mickey Boardman posing with a giant Swedish Fish at a party at Dylan's Candy Bar ... and John Mayer making his way into Butter.
The last news we'd heard about Kate Winslet's post-WWII drama The Reader was less than reassuring: While the film ultimately got its first choice of leading lady after a pregnant Nicole Kidman backed out, the successive passings of co-producers Anthony Minghella and Sydney Pollack left Scott Rudin on his own with the broke-ass Weinsteins to maneuver the Oscar push everyone had in mind. Then, as recently as last month, Defamer operatives whispered that The Reader wouldn't make it to 2008 at all, instead landing somewhere of TWC's choosing in 2009 — if it could afford to release it at all. Today, however, brings renewed optimism from Harvey, who planted a sigh of relief in Variety that The Reader has legs:
The zaftig British actress and Oscar winner is one of the most beloved and critically acclaimed actresses of the last 20 years.
With yesterday's news that Nicole Kidman is pregnant with husband Keith Urban's baby (his little Cowboy-hatted fish can swim!), the one irrefutable bit of evidence that Kidman's privacy-guarding flacks used to dispel the circulating rumors ("She can't possibly be having a baby! She's far too busy filming a movie that would render any such dramatic physical fluctuations a major inconvenience!") has now revealed itself to be utterly obsolete. Not only has Kidman left production on The Reader, but People is now reporting that she's been replaced by another A-lister:
· After stumbling upon some screeners for its new season, Var's Peter Bart finally discovers The Entourage, which he believes pampers Hollywood's sexy underbelly but neglects the stepchildren. [Variety]
· Starz is suing Disney because it believes that offering its movies for download at places like iTunes and WalMart.com violates their distribution rights, an internet-related legal action that refreshingly does not involve YouTube. (We think?) [THR]
· In a development that all entertainment news outlets will be contractually obligated to refer to as a "Titanic Reunion," Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio will star in a Sam Mendes-directed DreamWorks adaptation of Revolutionary Road, the grandaddy of all suburban angst novels. [Variety]
· While pitching media buyers on his ongoing turnaround plan for his fourth-place network, NBC president Kevin Reilly expresses hope that beloved-but-low-rated series Friday Night Lights and 30 Rock will evolve into this generation's St. Elsewhere and Cheers. However, he had no historical comparison for breakout hit Deal or No Deal, as the brain-smoothing innovations of reality television had not yet arrived to make viewers stupid enough to watch people shouting at briefcases back in the 80s. [THR]
· Grey's Anatomy is still huge on Thursday nights, while Are You Dumber Than This 10-Year-Old We Plucked From A Special-Ed Class? seems to be sliding in popularity. [Variety]
PrivacyWatch celebrity sightings are submitted by our readers, and are posted several times a week, so send them in with the kind of enthusiasm you usually reserve for new episodes of Medium and lovemaking. Submit yours to tips[AT]defamer.com (please put "sighting" or "PrivacyWatch" in the subject line) and let everyone know about the time you saw Jay Mohr having his toenails done.
· Sony Pictures Classics unofficially begins the Oscar season by sending out screeners of Junebug five months before the awards ceremony, ensuring that their little film will be forgotten long before any ballots are mailed. Meanwhile, no one seems to want to use Cinea's magic antipiracy DVD players. [Variety]
· NBC wins a bidding war with ABC over Victor Fresco's high-concept sitcom "centering on a twentysomething average Joe whose world is turned upside down when he realizes that his life is being driven by supernatural forces representing good and evil." Sounds considerably more interesting than Life on a Stick, Fresco's last show, which was high-concept only in that it seemed designed to invite immediate cancellation. But a new, lucrative deal always takes the sting out of a quick hook, doesn't it? [THR]
· Renee Zellweger, taking a break from the exhausting work of entering into and quickly annulling marriages with gay-seeming country music stars, is in talks to crinkle up her face in Miss Potter, the story of writer Beatrix Potter. [Variety]
· Fox and NBC get nutty with early series pick-ups, ordering more episodes of Prison Break, American Dad, and The Office. [THR]
· HBO gives a script commitment to the Owen "The Butterscotch Stallion" Wilson, Larry Charles, and Rick Rubin (Rick Rubin? Wha?) comedy project Bert & Dickie, about an "odd-couple standup comedy team that can't ever manage to come out on top — personally or professionally." Nice to see The Stallion finally conquer the small screen, even if he's just writing. [Variety]
· Kate Winslet is in final negotiations to give Cameron Diaz some much-needed acting lessons. [THR]
· Pop star Fred Durst is a big fan of Chelsea Clinton's. [Page Six]
· Rudy Giuliani's ex-wife Donna Hanover is engaged to marry her high school sweetheart, California lawyer, Ed Oster. [Page Six]
· GQ staffers are afraid that if Men's Health Editor Dave Zincenko replaces long-time GQ Editor Art Cooper, he'll "come in and expect them to eat granola and go jogging at lunch hour." [Page Six]
· Kate Winslet on nude scenes: "My bum's massive. My back's spotty. I have chicken arms. And I personally think my bosom's sagging. Hard for me to do that but I know it is liberating." [Cindy Adams]
· Senator John Kerry at a fundraiser at Cipriani on recovery from prostate cancer surgery: "I've learned a lot in the last three weeks. But nothing beats watching C-SPAN on drugs." [NY Daily News]
If you missed the Kate Winslet brouhaha at GQ or the current one at Harper's Bazaar, here's the back story: Winslet's GQ cover was airbrushed without her approval. (She's been very vocal about her belief that beauty should not and does not equal "thinness.") Now Women's Wear Daily is saying that Winslet's Harper's Bazaar cover is actually a shot of her head digitally grafted onto the fashion director's body. In light of all the controversy, we're having a Kate Winslet photoshop contest. Send us your work and we'll publish the best ones.
