Clooney, Gosling and Wood: "The Ides of March" Workday

Gathering together to film their new movie, the stars of "The Ides of March" were busy on the set in Cincinnati, Ohio on Wednesday afternoon (February 23).

Doing his best to brave the frigid conditions in the Midwest locale, director/star George Clooney seemed to be having quite the enjoyable time as he cracked jokes with crew members while joined by cast member Ryan Gosling.

Also partaking in the production of the drama due out in 2012 was the lovely Evan Rachel Wood, who busily sucked on a lollipop while toting a Mexican churro during the midday shoot.

Based on the play by Beau Willimon, "The Ides of March" is the story of "an idealistic staffer for a newbie presidential candidate who gets a crash course on dirty politics during his stint on the campaign trail."

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'Apollo 18' Trailer Premieres Online

'Cloverfield'-style found-footage flick posits aliens are reason man hasn't been back to moon.
By Shawn Adler


Official poster for "Apollo 18"
Photo: The Weinstein Company

Everybody knows that man last set foot on the moon in 1972. The brand-new trailer for "Apollo 18," which premiered Friday on Apple.com, asks the question: "Why haven't we been back?"

From director Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego and producer Timur Bekmambetov, the trailer for "Apollo 18" mixes what appears to be archival footage of early space shuttle launches with "Paranormal Activity" -style "found footage" of a secret 1973 mission to the lunar surface, supposedly kept hidden from the public because of what the astronauts discovered.

"In the years following [Apollo 17] there was unconfirmed intelligence of an 18th mission," the trailer reads. "No evidence has ever been found. Until now."

Although not made explicit, the "Cloverfield" -style flick showcases several alarming incidents in its trailer, including a number of shots where it's clear the astronauts are not alone on the seemingly barren and deserted satellite. One particularly jarring shot shows one of the astronauts infected to the point of possession; another shows several non-human footprints in the gray lunar dust.

Conspiracy theories aside, and depending on your perspective, there actually was an Apollo 18 mission. Launched in 1975, the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project was a joint mission between US and Russian forces, officially and symbolically ending the great space race of the preceding decade.

The alternate history story is the English language debut of Spanish auteur Lopez-Gallego. Released by Dimension Films, "Apollo 18" will hit theaters April 22.

Check out everything we've got on "Apollo 18."

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more -- updated around the clock -- visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

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Jennifer Aniston Hair-Cut: Fashion Fail!

Jennifer Aniston?s hair-cut more than qualifies for this week?s edition of Fashion Fail. I mean, how dare she shed the ?Rachel? look. That would be something like Joey graduating from an Ivy League school?it?s just plain awkward. Yeah, you remember the one where Rachel chops off her trademark blonde highlights for a shorter cut that makes [...]

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2011 Academy Awards Nominees

2010 Academy Awards

Here's the complete list of Oscar nominees is as follows: Best Picture 'Black Swan' 'The Fighter' 'Inception' 'The Kids Are All Right' 'The King?s Speech' '127 Hours' 'The Social Network' 'Toy Story 3' 'True Grit' 'Winter?s Bone' Best Director Darren Aronofsky, 'Black Swan' David O'Russell, 'The Fighter' Tom Hooper, 'The King's Speech' David Fincher, 'The Social Network' Joel and Ethan Coen, 'True Grit' Best Actor Javier Bardem, 'Biutiful' Jeff Bridges, 'True Grit' Jesse Eisenberg, 'The Social Network' Colin Firth, 'The King's Speech' James Franco, '127 Hours' Best Actress Annette Bening, 'The Kids Are All Right' Nicole Kidman, 'Rabbit Hole' Jennifer Lawrence, 'Winter's Bone' Natalie Portman, 'Black Swan' Michelle Williams, 'Blue Valentine' Best Supporting Actor Christian Bale, 'The Fighter' John Hawkes, 'Winter's Bone' Jeremy Renner, 'The Town' Mark Ruffalo, 'The Kids Are All Right' Geoffrey Rush, 'The King's Speech' Best Supporting Actress Amy Adams, 'The Fighter' Helena Bonham Carter, 'The King's Speech' Melissa Leo, 'The Fighter' Hailee Steinfeld, 'True Grit' Jacki Weaver, 'Animal Kingdom' Best Animated Feature Film 'How to Train Your Dragon' 'Illusionist' 'Toy Story 3' Best Foreign Film Mexico - 'Biutiful' Greece - 'Dogtooth' Denmark - 'In a Better World' Canada - 'Incendies' Algeria - 'Outside the law' Best Original Screenplay 'Another Year' 'The Fighter' 'Inception' 'The Kids Are All Right' 'The King's Speech' Best Adapted Screenplay '127 Hours' 'The Social Network' 'Toy Story 3' 'True Grit' 'Winter's Bone' The 2011 Academy Awards will be hosted by Anne Hathaway and James Franco and will broadcast live on ABC on Sunday February 27th. [gallery=748]

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Michael Jackson Wrongful Death Suit Vs. AEG Can Proceed, Judge Rules

Katherine Jackson and family are pursuing a claim against concert promoter.
By Gil Kaufman


Michael Jackson

When he was alive, Michael Jackson was forever embroiled in a series of complex and expensive-sounding lawsuits. But even in death, the late King of Pop is the subject of major legal action. None could potentially be bigger than the wrongful death lawsuit filed by the pop icon's mother, Katherine Jackson, against concert promotion giant AEG Live.

Reuters reported that a Los Angeles judge ruled on Wednesday that the civil lawsuit can go forward. It will proceed in parallel with the criminal case against Jackson's physician, Dr. Conrad Murray, who has been charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection with Jackson's June 2009 death from an overdose of the powerful surgical anesthetic propofol. Murray is the only person charged in Jackson's death and he is currently awaiting trial in that matter.

Katherine Jackson's lawsuit — filed in September on behalf of her and Jackson's three young children — accuses AEG of being responsible for the medical decisions made by Murray, whose salary was paid by the touring company behind Jackson's attempted "This Is It" comeback shows in London. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Yvette Palazuelos denied a motion on Wednesday by AEG to dismiss Katherine Jackson's suit, but warned Jackson's attorneys that they would need to show evidence of "fraud, negligent infliction of emotional distress and civil conspiracy" in order to win the case.

The judge has already said she doubts they can prove the latter charge, because the suit does not detail any agreement between Murray and AEG to break the law in providing medical care to Jackson.

"If the object was to get him to rehearsals, I don't see that as a wrongful or illegal act," the judge said. A lawyer for AEG told the judge that the company could not have predicted beforehand that Murray's medical decisions would result in Jackson's death. Court papers also show that AEG "did not choose to hire Murray" and had only participated in negotiations to bring him on as an independent contractor. Michael, who had previously been treated by Murray in Las Vegas, was reportedly the one who suggested the cardiologist serve as his personal, on-call physician during the "This Is It" rehearsals and shows.

Katherine Jackson's attorney recently dropped choreographer Kenny Ortega from the lawsuit based on new information they received about his actions. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for March 22, just six days before Murray is due back in court for his trial. Jackson's father, Joseph, has twice attempted to file a wrongful death suit in the matter, though his is focused on Murray and the Las Vegas pharmacy that supplied the propofol, not AEG Live.

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New Led Zeppelin On The Way? Jason Bonham Hints At 'Jam' Sessions With Jimmy Page -- But Not Robert Plant

Drummer admits he doesn't know what will come of 'new material.'
By Chris Harris


Jason Bonham
Photo: Larry Marano/ Getty Images

On Friday morning, mere hours before he was due to take the stage with classic rockers Foreigner at Detroit's GM Renaissance Center, drummer Jason Bonham — the son of late Led Zeppelin kitman John Bonham — told Jim Johnson and Lynne Woodison of local rock station 94.7 WCSX that he'd be an ex-member of Foreigner as of September 1. But that's not the only thing he said.

Much to the delight of Led Zeppelin fans everywhere, Bonham revealed that he's been meeting up with Led Zep guitarist Jimmy Page and bassist John Paul Jones in recent months and that they've been "trying to do some new material and writing."

It was the first time since Led Zeppelin announced they would re-form for a single performance (which happened late last year at London's O2 Arena, in honor of the late Ahmet Ertegün, who signed the band to Atlantic Records in 1969) that anyone connected to the band has confirmed publicly that new music could be on the horizon for the iconic rockers. While the bandmembers have stopped short of definitively ruling out such a reunion, singer Robert Plant insisted in the wake of last year's show that he intended to focus on promoting and touring behind his critically lauded album with bluegrass artist Alison Krauss, Raising Sand.

Not that Bonham knows what — if anything — will happen with the new material he's been working on with Page (who collaborated with pop singer Leona Lewis on an uneven version of Zep's "Whole Lotta Love" at the Olympic closing ceremonies in Beijing on Sunday night) and Jones. He said he just shows up and takes his seat behind the kit.

"I've been over [to England] a couple of times," Bonham said. "I've been working with Jimmy and John Paul and trying to do ... some new material and some writing. I don't know what it will be, but it will be something. At the moment, all I know is I have the great pleasure to go and jam with the two guys and start work on some material. When I get there, I never ask any questions. If I get a phone call to go and play, I enjoy every moment of it. Whatever it ends up as, to ever get a chance to jam with two people like that, it is a phenomenal thing for me. It's my life. It's what I've dreamed about doing."

He said it's still too early to tell what will become of these "jam" sessions, but admitted that the "possibility of doing something is in the cards. I really felt it was in the cards from the moment we walked offstage at the O2." Bonham also explained that, before there could be a Led Zep LP, "lots of politics [would need to] get ironed out," but added that recording with Zep is "something I've always wanted to do."

Bonham noticeably didn't mention frontman Plant's name during the discussion. A spokesperson for Page's management had no comment on the matter, and a spokesperson for Jones' management could not be reached by press time.

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Steven Tyler Talks 'Long Road' To 'American Idol' Top 24

'Idol' judge tells MTV News 'it's heartbreaking' to let go of hopefuls with loads of 'character' but OK voices.
By Kara Warner, with reporting by Rahman Dukes


Steven Tyler
Photo: MTV News

Those who've been following the revamped 10th season of ratings juggernaut "American Idol" know that the addition of new judges Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler have spiced things up a bit. Particularly in the case of Tyler, who has peppered each episode with his colorful musings, mugging for the cameras, and interactions with contestants and fellow judges.

When MTV News spoke to the Aerosmith frontman during NBA All-Star weekend, we asked how he's doing, now that they've narrowed the thousands of "Idol" hopefuls down to a competitive 50.

"It was a long road whittling it down from 700 [contestants] to 400, then Hollywood Week and then, aw man ... letting them go," Tyler said, adding that it's particularly difficult to let go of the ones who are OK singers, but potentially great performers.

"You know what? Not everybody that's great sings good. They've got character, that certain something you can't put your finger on," he explained. "And man, when they sing, look out. A lot of these kids have got it, but we have to let them go and it's heartbreaking."

Tyler went on to say that his road to success in the music industry was paved with a few more hard knocks than the "Idol" contestants have to endure.

"I didn't watch 'Idol' because I grew up from, you had to play clubs. If you don't play in front of the people and get your hard knocks from that and get booed, [you don't learn] how to stand up when you fall back down," he said before likening himself and judges Lopez and Randy Jackson as the "American Idol" school of hard knocks.

"[When] they're in front of us," he said of the contestants. "We're the club."

Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions.

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15 Things A Guy Could Say That Would Make Us Fall Truly, Madly, Deeply In Love

15 Things A Guy Could Say That Would Make Us Fall Truly, Madly, Deeply In Love

Sometimes I think it's a shame that men don't know how easy it could be to make us to fall truly, madly, deeply in love ... just by saying the right thing every now and then. Of course, they'd have to mean it. But that's just a minor detail. After the jump, some real zingers that would send us to La La Land if we ever heard them. Add yours in the comments.  A girl can dream, can't she?

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Lifetime?s ?Amanda Knox: Murder On Trial In Italy? Starring Hayden Panettiere (VIDEO)

Here’s your first look at Lifetime?s Original Movie ‘Amanda Knox: Murder on Trial in Italy‘, starring Hayden Panettiere and Marcia Gay Harden. The movie premiers Monday, February 21 at 9/8c. The documentary will unravel the legal evidence and allegations to … Continue reading

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