talent buzz

All together now: awwwww: Welsh actor Ioan Gruffudd deliberately sabotaged his audition for new movie The Edge Of Love – in a bid to help his pal Matthew Rhys land a part. Director John Maybury says Rhys is now indebted to Gruffudd after helping him secure a part in the movie based on Welsh poet … more…

Apparently it’s almost a done deal: Scottish actor James McAvoy has been tipped to take the lead role in the new movie version of Lord Of The Rings prequel The Hobbit…. Sir Ian McKellen will reprise his role as Gandalf and McAvoy is rumoured to be the favourite to take the lead role of hobbit … more…

I thought I saw Sydney Pollack recently on the streets of New York. That happens a lot in Manhattan — you pass someone who seems kinda familiar, and then you second-guess yourself. Was that someone I went to high school with? Someone I see at the laudromat once in a while? Or was it that … more…

Oh noes! People magazine has to change its production schedule because the companies that drive the trucks that deliver the final printed magazines to stores and newsstands are cutting back on their schedules, in an effort to save gas. The New York Post explains: People magazine, under pressure from wholesalers, is moving its deadlines up … more…

I’m just so pissed. Because John Scalzi is supposed to be my Official Stalker, and it looks like he stole a gig that should have been mine: writing about SF/F films at AMC.com. Bastard. His first column, on Guillermo del Toro taking the helm of The Hobbit, is up now. Enjoy. Cuz I sure can’t … more…

Miley Cyrus — aka Hannah Montana — is writing a memoir. She’s 15 years old. “I am so excited to let fans in on how important my relationship with my family is to me,” Cyrus is quoted by Reuters. “I hope to motivate mothers and daughters to build lifetimes of memories together, and inspire kids … more…

It’s true: Joss Whedon of Firefly and Buffy fame is in the process of creating a new musical serial for the Web. It’s called Doctor Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog. Geek-a-licious, no? It will star Neil Patrick Harris, Nathan Fillion, and Felicia Day, and it will come at us as a three-part, 30-minute serial. (Whether that means … more…

It’s Monday night here in Paris, which means that in a few hours I’ll be missing Medium on NBC back home. To console myself, here’s some tidbits from a phone press conference I did recently with the show’s stars, Patricia Arquette and Jake Weber, who play Allison and Joe Dubois: Weber: [on whether he pratices … more…