Yesterday, Jonathan Rhys Meyers was linked with a role in Star Wars Episode VII . Today, we get to see him in a poster for a movie he’s definitely in, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones . Check out his poster below, then click the link to see all the new The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones character posters . Meyers plays Valentine Morgenstern in the adaptation of the first book in the Young Adult series by Cassandra Clare. Lily Collins, Lena Headey, Jamie Campbell Bower, Robert Sheehan, Jemima West, Godfrey Gao, and Aidan Turner also star. Harold Zwart directs the film, which premieres August 21.
‘He brings this wit and charm that only Jamie can bring,’ co-star Lily Collins tells MTV News, also marveling at his stunt prowess. By Amy Wilkinson, with reporting by Josh Horowitz Jamie Campbell Bower Photo: Jerod Harris/ Getty Images
Industry insiders catch a screening of ‘MTV2 Presents: Lil Wayne Unplugged,’ premiering Sunday at 9 p.m. ET/PT on MTV, MTV2 and MTV.com. By Rob Markman, with reporting by Rahman Dukes Lil Wayne performs during “Unplugged” Photo: MTV The music industry’s biggest movers and shakers were on hand Wednesday night for a screening of “MTV2 Presents: Lil Wayne Unplugged.” Weezy’s “Unplugged” premieres Sunday at 9 pm ET/PT on MTV, MTV2 and MTV.com, but the specially invited guests gathered in New York City’s Bar Basque for an advanced preview. “I haven’t seen an intimate portrait of Lil Wayne in a while,” said Hanif Sumner, director of PR for The Source. “He’s been away, came back, had to jump into Young Money, and this is a good opportunity for us to see why we’re still fans of Lil Wayne. He did a new track off of Tha Carter IV that I didn’t expect, and he did a lot of joints that weren’t commercially all over the place but fans would know. So it’s really something for the fans.” Brian “B.Dot” Miller, content director for RapRadar.com, was also impressed. “I thought it was really good. Wayne definitely deserved to have his ‘Unplugged,’ ” he said. “I think he stands up against Lauryn Hill, the Jay-Z ‘Unplugged’ — he’s right there. The energy was there, Wayne was in the zone and, you know, he’s the best rapper alive.” While Miller placed Wayne’s special on equal footing with Hov’s 2001 “Unplugged” performance, Vibe music editor John Kennedy wasn’t ready to make comparisons. “I think his kind of stands on its own. I don’t know where it really compares with Jay’s. You know, Jay had the Roots; that was crazy. And LL [Cool J], like, there has been a lot of great ones. I think [Wayne] held his own, though.” For veteran journalist Shaheem Reid, the key to the New Orleans lyricist’s performance was his versatility. “Sitting down [and] watching the MTV ‘Unplugged’ is just a testament to the fact that Wayne is one of the premier performers — and not just hip-hop, but in all of music,” he said. “He’s hip-hop to the core, but he always brings in the rock element, he brings in a little bit of the R&B. He’s one of the biggest, if not the biggest, pop star in the world.” For longtime Weezy fans, “MTV2 Presents: Lil Wayne Unplugged” puts a new twist on some old favorites. “The best thing about it was a lot of the songs that you really don’t have an appreciation for that you’re already familiar with — songs like ‘I’m Single,’ ‘How to Love’ and ‘Lollipop.’ I kinda got a better appreciation for it when you have live instrumentation and a lot of crowd participation,” said Kazeem Famuyide, online editor for The Source. “It was really dope, it was real intimate. Wayne put on a really great show, and he’s the most charismatic dude in hip-hop.” Don’t miss “MTV2 Presents: Lil Wayne Unplugged,” premiering Sunday, June 12, at 9 p.m. ET/PT on MTV2, MTV and MTV.com. Related Videos Lil Wayne Goes ‘Unplugged’ Related Artists Lil Wayne
‘Twilight’ experts point out inconsistencies and omissions in the MTV Movie Awards-debuted sneak peek. By Eric Ditzian Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart in “Breaking Dawn” Photo: Summit Entertainment On Sunday morning, a few hours before the 2011 MTV Movie Awards went live and while the red carpet at the Gibson Amphitheatre was still a hive of pre-show activity, we welcomed three “Twilight” experts into the fray with a simple assignment: Take an early look at the “Breaking Dawn” teaser trailer, which we would be debuting during the Movie Awards, and let us know what you think. They more than came through. Kara Hassell of TwilightersAnonymous.com , Laura Byrne-Cristiano of TwilightLexicon.com and Kallie Matthews from TwilightSeriesTheories.com analyzed the trailer like only die-hard “Twilight” specialists can. But there was too much info to pack into one story . And now that a few days have passed since the trailer’s debut and the bloggers’ opinions are still fresh in our minds, we have a few lingering questions we want answered in the future. Two Wedding Rings? Early in the trailer, we see Kristen Stewart’s Bella Swan wearing a large diamond-incrusted ring — a family heirloom, as explained in the book. But as Matthews pointed out, when Bella notices she is pregnant in the trailer, she is wearing a simple silver band. What gives? Will the two-ring situation be explained? Matthews thinks she knows the answer already. “I’m thinking it’s one of those things where the one ring really is an heirloom,” she told us. “You put it away and wear it on special occasions.” Too Hot for PG-13? Last summer, Summit Entertainment distribution chief Richie Fay assured us that, despite the book’s sex scenes and horror-like elements, the adaptation would not be rated R . That hasn’t stopped online talk, as Byrne-Cristiano put it, that “we’ve got to make this R.” Well, now that we’ve seen the first trailer, it seems regardless of the PG-13 rating, the flick is going to be pretty steamy. Just how hot? Though we’ve gotten a peek — Robert Pattinson’s Edward Cullen cracking a headboard mid-coitus and the duo taking a honeymoon skinny dip — the real question about the heat factor will have to wait until we glimpse a different scene: the famous one with the feathers . “There are no feathers on the bed,” she noted. “That’s a well-known point that everyone wants. So in that trailer, there are three moments, and there’s got to be another one.” What Else Has Changed? The eagle-eyed Hassell noted two small but significant changes from “New Moon” to “Breaking Dawn.” For one, Jamie Campbell Bower, who plays the blond vampire Caius, seems to have a reworked ‘do . “His hair is A-plus!” she said. “A lot better than ‘New Moon.’ ” And Hassell also noted the Volturi’s thrones appear to have gotten a makeover. “It seems like the ones in ‘New Moon’ are more intricate,” she said. “The ones in ‘Breaking Dawn’ are very square and not as ornate.” It’s hard to say what accounts for such changes; the same production designer, for example, worked on both films. But it does raise the question: What else has changed in the world of “Twilight” for these final films? Will We See The Wedding Dress Before Opening Night? While the trailer showed us much more than many predicted — a shirtless Taylor Lautner as Jacob Black, Bella quizzically examining her pregnant belly — there was one thing we didn’t catch a glimpse of: Bella’s wedding dress. Might we see the gown in a subsequent trailer? Or will Summit hold that back until the film itself? “I’m hoping beyond hope that we get the wedding dress in the next trailer. I’m not holding my breath. I think we’ll have to wait,” said Hassel, adding, “I hope it’s something classic that fits in with [author] Stephenie Meyer’s vision. But Kristen’s gorgeous. She’ll look great in anything.” Check out everything we’ve got on “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1.” For young Hollywood news, fashion and “Twilight” updates around the clock, visit HollywoodCrush.MTV.com .
Jamie Campbell Bower Photo: Tony Barson/ Getty Images “Mortal Instruments” actress Lily Collins has finally met her magical match in “Camelot” star Jamie Campbell Bower . Deadline Hollywood broke the news that Bower has been cast as demon-slaying Shadowhunter Jace Wayland in the big-screen adaptation of the first “Mortal Instruments” novel, “City of Bones.” Fans immediately took to Twitter to voice their reactions, with many concerned that the 22-year-old “Breaking Dawn” actor just didn’t look the way they imagined the character — described as a well-built, angelic-faced warrior. Yet, for Cassandra Clare, who’s penned four novels in the supernatural “Mortal Instruments” series, Bower couldn’t have been a better fit for the part. “His acting of the role is perfectly spot on,” she told MTV News of the audition footage producers sent her. In fact, Clare was so moved by the performance that she broke into tears. “I literally started crying because that was my Jace and Clary on the screen,” she said. Clare understands this sort of rabid (and often contentious) fan fervor, which has become par for the course for any YA novel getting the big-screen treatment. “I think this is sort of inevitable,” she said. “This is what happened with ‘The Hunger Games’ casting. This is what happened with ‘Twilight’ casting. I’m old enough to remember this is what happened with the ‘Harry Potter’ casting. The reaction is always worried because people feel very passionately about the books, and they just don’t want to see something that is going to mess it up for them.” And just as the naysaying died down after Jennifer Lawrence debuted her Katniss makeover for “Hunger Games” on the cover of Entertainment Weekly, Clare has a hunch that unconvinced fans will soon see things as she does. “I think in the same way that Jennifer Lawrence has transformed herself into Katniss, I think he will have no problem transforming himself into Jace,” she said. “One of the things about being an actor is that you’re a chameleon and you transform yourself. And actors have done amazing jobs transforming themselves in the past, and Jamie is really enthusiastic about the role.” Read our entire interview with “Mortal Instruments” author Cassandra Clare . Will vampires and werewolves own the 2011 MTV Movie Awards ? Can wizards or dream thieves steal the Golden Popcorn? Find out on June 5, when the 20th annual show airs live at 9 p.m. ET/PT. To get into the magical movie mood, we’re kicking off a Sneak Peek Week starting on May 30 — five days of exclusives and interviews with the casts of “Fright Night,” “Horrible Bosses” and more. Check out everything there is to know about Sneak Peek Week and the Movie Awards at MovieAwards.MTV.com ! Will wizards, vampires or dream thieves steal the 2011 MTV Movie Awards ? Find out June 5, when the 20th annual show airs live at 9 p.m. ET/PT. Tune in at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT that night for the “America’s Best Dance Crew” finale and Movie Awards pre-show, loaded with live action from the red carpet, exclusive movie clips and a special edition of “After Hours.” To get into the magical movie mood, it’s Sneak Peek Week — five days of exclusives and interviews with the casts of “Fright Night,” “Horrible Bosses” and more. Check out everything there is to know about Sneak Peek Week, the Movie Awards and the pre-show at MovieAwards.MTV.com !
Next! Hugh Jackman has followed in the footsteps of Viggo Mortensen and won’t star in Snow White and the Huntsman opposite Kristen Stewart and Charlize Theron — TheWrap reports that negotiations between Jackman and Universal broke down. Somewhere, The Brothers Grimm: Snow White is smiling arrogantly. [ Wrap ]
It’s Woody Allen Day here at Movieline! Hot on the heels of the outstanding casting announcement for his next film — Ellen Page and Jesse Eisenberg 4eva — comes word that Allen will be the focus of a new American Masters documentary from former Curb Your Enthusiasm producer-director Robert Weide.
When it comes to movies about relationships — whether they be boy-girl, girl-girl, mother-daughter, waitress-wedding singer — Drew Barrymore gets around. So no one was really surprised when the actress and now director announced that she will helm a new kind of relationship movie, How to Be Single — in which a group of New Yorkers learn how to have relationships with themselves — for next year. Great! Does this finally mean then that Drew Barrymore will have starred in (or directed) every possible iteration of the relationship genre under the sun? Movieline investigates in the customized survey below.
Adorable Harry Potter costars Jamie Campbell Bower and Bonnie Wright — who were born in 1988 and 1991, respectively — are engaged . That’s cute and unsettling. Children! They’re children! How many Toys R Us Geoffrey dollars will this cost them? Will they take their learner’s permits to town hall? Should they dance to their grandparents’ wedding song, Shaggy’s “It Wasn’t Me” (featuring Rik Rok)? I’m confounded! Congrats, though! [ GossipCop ]
‘I think she’s perfect and they did a great job casting those movies,’ actor who plays Caius in ‘Breaking Dawn’ says. By Jocelyn Vena Jamie Campbell Bower Photo: MTV News Jamie Campbell Bower was thrust into the world of “Twilight” as Caius in “New Moon,” and he’ll be back vamping it up in “Breaking Dawn – Part 2” next year. And the actor admits that as he preps to return to the “Twilight” set in 2012 for the final “Twilight Saga” movie, fans of the franchise will get to see just how bad Caius and the rest of the Volturi are. “Well, [director] Bill Condon, he brings something wonderful and a sort of theatricalness to the whole film,” Bower explained to MTV News when he stopped by to talk about his new Starz series “Camelot.” “The film itself, it’s much darker than the first three. It’s got a grittiness to it. From our side, the Volturi side, you really get to find out how messed up these characters are and just how badass they are,” he said. “We’re really evil people. I was always like, we’re not evil, we’re trying to keep it cool, but they are nasty blokes. So from us, you get to see how screwed up we are. That was great fun to play, just screw about on set and do as much as possible and be theatrical.” Much of the chatter about the final films in the “Twilight” series revolves around Kristen Stewart’s turn as vampire Bella , and from one vamp to another, Bower has nothing but praise for her performance. “She’s great as a vampire,” he said. “I think she’s perfect and they did a great job casting those movies. “Again to be a part of something that is such a success and has influenced so many different things, I’m really honored to be able to do that,” he added. Check out everything we’ve got on “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2.” For young Hollywood news, fashion and “Twilight” updates around the clock, visit HollywoodCrush.MTV.com . Related Photos On The Set Of ‘Breaking Dawn’
