#Brazil bans WhatsApp#,The two-day ban of WhatsApp in Brazil lasted just a few hours as the ruling was overturned by a higher court, according to The Financial Times. The ban was ordered after WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook, failed to cooperate in an investigation in the country. Over 100 million people use the service in Brazil making the ban a big deal. “Thank you to everybody in Brazil for your support in getting WhatsApp back online,” said Jan Koum, the founder of WhatsApp, in a pos
Maggie Gyllenhaal has been in a relationship with actor Peter Sarsgaard, a close friend of her brother Jake, since 2002. They announced their engagement in April 2006,and married on May 2, 2009, in a small chapel in Brindisi, Italy. They have two daughters: Ramona #x0028;born in 2006#x0029; and Gloria Ray #x0028;born in 2012#x0029;.The family lives in Brooklyn, New York.
Sony Pictures Classics took North American rights to the latest film by Woody Allen , starring Alec Baldwin , Cate Blanchett , Bobby Cannavale and more. Also in Tuesday’s news round-up, Australia’s Academy picks its nominees just two days before the Oscar noms; the Domestic Box Office hits a record; Mark Romanek is exiting Cinderella ; and R.I.P. director David R. Ellis. Woody Allen’s Blue Jasmine Headed to Theaters Allen’s latest starring Alec Baldwin, Cate Blanchett, Bobby Cannavale, Louis C.K., Andrew Dice Clay, Sally Hawkins, Peter Sarsgaard and Michael Stuhlbarg, which centers on the final stages of an acute crisis and a life of a fashionable New York housewife will head to theaters via Sony Pictures Classics. Silver Linings Playbook , Lincoln and Zero Dark Thirty Tom Australian Academy Nominations The nominees for Australia’s International Award for Best Film include: Argo , Les Misérables , Life of Pi, Lincoln , Silver Linings Playbook and Zero Dark Thirty . More nominations from the organization available on Deadline . Domestic Box Office Sets 2012 Record The U.S. box office hit a record $10.8 billion with a 6 percent rise in admissions, the largest in more than a decade. The foreign box office is also ahead of the $22.4 billion set in 2011, Variety reports . Mark Romanek Exiting Disney’s Cinderella The studio and Romanek are parting ways on the updated fairy tale that has Cate Blanchett attached to star. The two apparently did not see eye to eye on how to re-tell the story, with Romanek preferring a darker version of the story, Deadline reports . Director David R. Ellis Dead at 60 The veteran stuntman and director of Snakes on a Plane and Final Destination 2 died Monday morning in Johannesburg, South Africa prepping to direct is anime adaptation, Kite . The project wold have re-teamed Ellis with his Snakes on a Plane star Samuel L. Jackson, Variety reports .
Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Sarsgaard became the proud parents of their second baby girl a week and a half ago, a rep for Gyllenhaal confirmed today. Born April 19 in New York, the parents named their daughter Gloria Ray. Gyllenhaal, 34, and Sarsgaard, 41, are already parents to daughter Ramona, 5. Together since 2002, the couple tied the knot in Brindisi, Italy, in 2009. Since first becoming a mother in 2006, Gyllenhaal, like so many other working moms, says she’s struggled to balance her personal and professional life. “I had been so focused on Ramona and she’s been everything to me, but I’m also an actress,” she said recently. “It’s not possible to do it perfectly.” Sarsgaard, meanwhile, had another set of concerns. “I’ve seen kids with siblings – I don’t have any, so I don’t know – but they generally go for about five minutes, ‘Oh, cool! Anyway, what are we going to do now? Can we return it?’ I think it gets boring quickly, at first, and it takes them awhile to bond.” We have a feeling Ramona will manage. Congrats! [Photo: WENN.com]
Sigh. The mom of young Isabella Barrett of Toddlers & Tiaras fame is suing the MEDIA for over-sexualizing her daughter … by reporting on Isabella’s “Sexy And I Know It” cover . Susanna Barrett claims media outlets, in reporting that event, portrayed her five-year-old daughter in an “overly sexualized manner.” Right. All the media’s fault. In court papers, Susanna claims Isabella “did not act or portray herself sexually, erotically or provocatively” and that coverage of her performance was unfair.’ Isabella Barrett Sings “Sexy and I Know It” “She was not ‘gyrating’ at a ‘nightclub’ or singing ‘about her sex appeal,” the elder Barrett claims incredulously. “On the contrary, it is the defendants who, through their articles … thrust these false and vulgar characteristics on to Isabella.” Yes, this is a real story. The delusional mother seems to see nothing wrong with having her daughter sing a sexually-themed LMFAO song. The media talking about it though? Shame. Thanks to TMZ, The Huffington Post, The Daily Mail and other celebrity news sources, “Isabella is now perceived sexually, erotically and pornographically.” Suing for $30 million, Barrett adds, “[The articles] place Isabella in physical danger, attracting the attention of others who would seek to sexualize a child.” Well, on those grounds, can someone sue her for $30 million too then?
While Demi Moore works to overcome her recent personal problems, we have an update on her professional life: Sarah Jessica Parker has signed on to replace Moore as Gloria Steinem in Lovelace , the upcoming biopic centered around the life of 1970s porn star Linda Lovelace. Demi dropped out of the film almost immediately after being hospitalized earlier this week. Parker joins a cast that includes Amanda Seyfried in the title role, along Peter Sarsgaard, Adam Brody, Juno Temple and Wes Bentley. Moore, meanwhile, is out of the hospital. Her next move is unknown, but the 911 call placed on her behalf was released to the public today.
While Demi Moore works to overcome her recent personal problems, we have an update on her professional life: Sarah Jessica Parker has signed on to replace Moore as Gloria Steinem in Lovelace , the upcoming biopic centered around the life of 1970s porn star Linda Lovelace. Demi dropped out of the film almost immediately after being hospitalized earlier this week. Parker joins a cast that includes Amanda Seyfried in the title role, along Peter Sarsgaard, Adam Brody, Juno Temple and Wes Bentley. Moore, meanwhile, is out of the hospital. Her next move is unknown, but the 911 call placed on her behalf was released to the public today.
It may be a relatively quiet Sundance year – even Pixar’s Lee Unkrich, in town for the festival, Tweeted his dismay at the “mixed bag” of movies – but films are selling. Granted, they’re mostly the ones with name actors and mostly okay-to-decent reviews (with a few exceptions), but buyers continue to be getting busy in the snow. The latest batch of pick-ups (Olsens and robots and scares, oh my!) after the jump. Liberal Arts (IFC Films) – Josh Radnor’s follow up to happythankyoumoreplease , another Sundance pick, features Radnor as a thirty-something man who returns to his college campus and is intrigued by both his former professor (Alison Janney) and a young coed (Elizabeth Olsen). IFC picked up Liberal Arts and plans on releasing it later in 2011. Robot and Frank (Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions/Samuel Goldwyn Films) – It’s Frank Langella and a robot. What more do you need to know? Oh, fine: Directed by Jake Schreier and co-starring Susan Sarandon, Peter Sarsgaard, and Liv Tyler, this charmer won over critics during Sundance. V/H/S (Magnolia) – The horror anthology opened to such a raucous, receptive Midnight debut that it’s no wonder a specialist like Magnolia snapped up the surefire genre pleaser. Did reports of a seizure at this week’s screening help? The Pact (IFC) – This deal’s a bit of a surprise, given the negative-to-lukewarm reviews Nicholas McCarthy’s feature debut (adapted from his own Sundance short of the same name) received this week. Yet another spooky tale, about a young lady investigating bumps and scares in her dead mother’s house, it went to IFC for a reported ” high-six-figure deal ” as the distrib hopes it catches fire in limited release/VOD. Previously: Arbitrage (Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions) – Nicholas Jarecki’s dramatic feature-filmmaking debut stars Richard Gere as a billionaire hedge-fund fraud seeking to cash in before he’s exposed. Susan Sarandon, Brit Marling and Tim Roth co-star. Look for the studio duo to duplicate the multi-platform success they enjoyed in 2011 with Margin Call , another financial-world potboiler picked up in Park City. The Surrogate (Fox Searchlight) – Sundance favorite John Hawkes turns in an brave performance as real life poet Mark O’Brien, who yearns to lose his virginity with a sex therapist (Helen Hunt) despite being paralyzed from the head down. Fox Searchlight paid a reported $6 million for the pic, which may face tricky ratings deliberations due to Hunt’s full frontal nudity. Beasts of the Southern Wild (Fox Searchlight) – The smallest narrative to get a deal thus far at Sundance comes off of strong buzz and acclaim for the tale of a young girl and her ailing father who live in a fantastical alternate version of the American South. Red Lights (Millenium Films) Negative reviews hurt the profile of this Rodrigo Cortes ( Buried ) thriller, despite featuring Cillian Murphy, Sigourney Weaver, Robert De Niro, and last year’s Sundance darling Elizabeth Olsen. For a Good Time, Call… (Focus Features) – The feature debut of shorts director Jamie Travis pairs Lauren Anne Miller and Ari Graynor as frenemies who start a phone sex line together, one of a gaggle of raunchy female-driven comedies in this year’s line-up. Celeste and Jesse Forever (Sony Pictures Classics) – With Rashida Jones and Andy Samberg leading a cast of familiar players, this was bound to attract buyer attention galore. Sony Pictures Classics snatched it up for a reported $2 million, adding C&J to their previous Sundance acquisitions Searching for Sugar Man and The Raid . Searching for Sugar Man (Sony Classics) – The documentary about 1960s musician Rodriguez played well to critics and was snatched up by SPC for a reported six figures. The Queen of Versailles (Magnolia Pictures) – Another well-received doc, Lauren Greenfield’s examination of Florida real estate mogul David Siegel was picked up by Magnolia on Friday. Black Rock (LD Distribution) – Katie Aselton’s thriller about three female friends (Aselton, Lake Bell, Kate Bosworth) surviving a weekend getaway gone wrong was the first Midnight selection to seal a deal, partnering with newbie venture LD Distribution. The Words (CBS Films) – Bradley Cooper, Zoe Saldana, and Jeremy Irons lead a cast of recognizable stars in this literary drama about a writer (Cooper) who claims credit on someone else’s manuscript and is confronted by its real author, so it’s easy to see why buyers were interested. CBS Films reportedly made the most expensive buy of the fest so far, laying down $2 million for the film. Whether or not that move was smart remains to be seen, as this first review over at The Playlist is less than encouraging. Follow Jen Yamato on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter . Get more of Movieline’s Sundance 2012 coverage here .
I can kind of see a resemblance between Demi Moore and feminist activist/journalist Gloria Steinem, whom the former Mrs. Kutcher has been tapped to play in Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman’s Lovelace . But at this point the porn biopic — the one starring Amanda Seyfried as Deep Throat star Linda Lovelace, to feature a cameo by James Franco as Hugh Hefner — feels like it’s turning into a bizarrely distracting hit parade-sideshow of stars/names playing real life Lovelace acquaintances. (Further evidence, just announced over the wires: Eric Roberts as… lie detector test administrator Nat Laurendi! For reals.) According to a press release, Moore, Roberts, and Adam Brody are the latest cast members to join Lovelace , with Moore’s Steinem turn described by Variety’s Jeff Sneider as just a cameo-length role. Brody, meanwhile, will play porn actor Harry Reems, who co-starred as the doctor diagnosing Lovelace’s unusual condition in the 1972 XXX flick Deep Throat . Raise your hand if you’re ready to see the guy from The O.C. with a porn ‘stache. (*crickets…*) The popularity of Deep Throat and its crazy, mob-financed backstory notwithstanding, Lovelace’s life is rife with rough drama: Her entry into the porn business under the thumb of abusive husband Chuck Traynor (portrayed in Lovelace by the ultimate guy you can’t trust in movies, Peter Sarsgaard ), her later claims that he forced her into prostitution and unwilling sex acts under pain of violence, including in scenes of Deep Throat , and her eventual foray into the anti-porn movement with supporters like Steinem. Based on Eric Danville’s 2011 book The Complete Linda Lovelace , the film’s supporting cast already includes Franco, Sharon Stone, Juno Temple, Wes Bentley, Bobby Canavale, Chris Noth, Robert Patrick, and Hank Azaria; it’d be a shame for Lovelace’s compelling life story to be lost in a cast almost entirely comprised of actors unable to completely disappear into roles. I imagine Big and the T-1000 talking about porn over ’70s shag carpeting. (Okay, okay: Noth plays Deep Throat backer Anthony Romano, while Patrick plays Lovelace’s father.) Anyway, I digress. Filming is currently underway on Lovelace , so here’s to hoping the pic turns out to be as penetrating a biopic as it promises to be. [Press release]
Actor is deep in talks to cameo as Playboy founder in Amanda Seyfried flick. By Jocelyn Vena James Franco Photo: Dimitrios Kambouris/ WireImage James Franco is no stranger to playing real people on the big screen, so this latest casting news comes as no surprise. Variety reports that the actor is deep in talks to cameo as Playboy founder Hugh Hefner in the Amanda Seyfried-starring Linda Lovelace biopic, simply titled “Lovelace.” If cast, the Oscar nominee would be reunited with his “Howl” directors Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman. The film follows the story of real-life porn star Lovelace, who rose to notoriety as the star of porn flick “Deep Throat.” Franco potentially could be on set for the film for only one day, shooting a scene in which the film screens at the famed Playboy mansion and he, as Hefner, has a talk with Lovelace, real name Linda Boreman. While Franco’s casting has yet to be finalized, four more actors are set to join Seyfried and Peter Sarsgaard, who will play her husband, Chuck Traynor. (Franco had originally been in talks for that role.) Bobby Cannavale and Chris Noth will play “Deep Throat” investors Butchie Peraino and Anthony Romano, Hank Azaria is on-board for the role of writer/director Jerry Damiano and Robert Patrick will play Linda’s father, John Boreman. The flick began shooting this week in Los Angeles. The cast also includes Sharon Stone (playing Lovelace’s mother), Juno Temple (as her best friend) and Wes Bentley (who will play her second husband). While the cast is filling out, Variety adds that several notable positions are still open. They include “Deep Throat” co-star Harry Reems, feminist icon Gloria Steinem and Rat Packer Sammy Davis Jr. “It’s going to be really hard and kind of terrifying at the same time,” Seyfried told ABCNews.com about the role earlier this month. “It’s something completely different. I do have some liberties there but I am playing someone that existed in history and had quite an established reputation for something very extreme.” Seyfried is not the first actress attached to the role of Lovelace. Playboy cover girl Lindsay Lohan was once readying a starring role in a Lovelace biopic before she was dropped . Before Seyfried nabbed the role, Olivia Wilde had also been mentioned as a possible star. For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com .
