Is this what a future Oscar winner looks like?
Eddie Murphy's on the verge of an awards season trifecta — his charismatic portrayal of a tragic R&B singer in "Dreamgirls" has already nabbed him a Screen Actors Guild award and a Golden Globe, and he's considered a front-runner for a best supporting Oscar.
But the most high-profile image of Murphy these days — while Oscar ballots are still out — is on billboards and in movie trailers wearing a fat suit, garish eye shadow and little else.
The tagline for his new comedy, "Norbit," poses the question: "Have you ever made a really big mistake?"
Some Oscar observers are questioning the timing of the movie's Friday arrival, and whether it may unintentionally put off potential academy voters, while some black activists are taking Murphy to task for engaging in what they say are demeaning racial stereotypes.
"Every time I pass that billboard, it makes me sick," said one veteran Oscar consultant, who declined to be identified and is not involved in a rival campaign. "I think his performance in 'Dreamgirls' is so fabulous" and deserves to win the Academy Award. But, he added, Murphy's latest comedy offering "doesn't help."
Award season aside, Murphy and "Norbit" are under fire from some black activists who say the film is just the latest to build a movie around a black man dressing up as an unsophisticated, overweight black woman. Adding fuel to their anger is the movie's release during Black History Month.
"For Eddie to follow what he did with 'Dreamgirls' with this just doesn't make sense," said Robert M. Entman, author of "The Black Image in the White Mind: Media and Race in America." "There's no excuse for him to lend his prestige to something like this…. There has to be a point where African American stars of his stature have to take some responsibility for their actions and just say no."
Murphy's stunning turn as James "Thunder" Early in "Dreamgirls" has earned him rave reviews and renewed respect for a performer who has had one of Hollywood's most up-and-down careers. He's had his share of hits ("48 Hrs.," "Beverly Hills Cop," "Trading Places" and the "Shrek" movies) and flops ("The Adventures of Pluto Nash," "The Haunted Mansion.")
Now, Murphy is in contention for the industry's top honors, which will be handed out Feb. 25. Ballots are due back Feb. 20.
"Norbit" could end up working in Murphy's favor, the creative forces behind it say, because the comedy demonstrates Murphy's range and ability to morph into multiple characters. It's an approach the actor has used to great success in "Coming to America" and the two "The Nutty Professor" films. "Norbit," about a wimpy man trapped in a horrible relationship with a woman (also played by Murphy), was co-written by Murphy and his brother Charles Murphy, and produced by the actor's production company.
Murphy, who has shunned print interviews for years, declined to comment.
The comedy has done well with focus groups, said Stacey Snider, co-chairwoman of DreamWorks: "Audiences have always loved it."
She added that she was "confident" that "Norbit" would have no influence on academy members' evaluation of Murphy's work in "Dreamgirls." "People can separate the performance in 'Dreamgirls' for the career-defining role that it was…. They accept this movie for the comedy that it is…. I think people are wise enough and savvy enough to understand the spirit that was intended. They know not to read too much into it."
One academy voter, John DiSimeo, who is a member of the public relations branch, agreed. "As a voter, it doesn't impact me. We're able to focus on the work itself…. The focus has been on his work in 'Dreamgirls' and whatever comes out after it is for the most part irrelevant." (He has already sent in his ballot, but declined to specify his pick.)
The film's release date, planned months in advance, was tied to research that showed February to be a good month for comedies, according to Paramount.
Gerry Rich, president of worldwide marketing at Paramount Pictures, said that time of year was a "robust moviegoing period for mainstream comedies. 'Hitch' did really well during this time of year."
Murdoch says Sacha Baron Cohen signs for "Borat 2"
NEW YORK (Reuters) - British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen has signed a deal to make "Borat 2," a sequel to the hit film about a boorish Kazakh journalist on a road trip across America, News Corp. Chief Executive Rupert Murdoch said on Thursday.
Murdoch, whose company owns the Hollywood studio behind the original film, 20th Century Fox, offered no details about the planned follow-up as he spoke to reporters at a media conference, other than to say the film's star and creator was on board.
"He's signed up to do a sequel for us," Murdoch told attendees of the gathering sponsored by McGraw-Hill.
A spokesman for Cohen declined further comment.
Cohen's faux documentary, "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan," was a surprise box-office sensation, grossing $248 million worldwide and earning an Oscar nomination for best adapted screenplay.
Cohen also won a Golden Globe for best performance by an actor in a comedy or musical for his playing Borat Sagdiyev, a cluelessly offensive Central Asian journalist with a thick mustache, rumpled gray suit, wild-eyed grin and boisterous catch phrases like "sexy time!"
The character is one of several oddball personas Cohen introduced to U.S. audiences on his HBO cable TV series "Da Ali G Show."
Left unclear by Murdoch is whether a "Borat" sequel would -- or even could -- follow the same "mockumentary" premise as the first movie.
Chronicling Borat's exploits on a cross-country U.S. road trip, the original film was driven by Cohen's improvised, unrehearsed encounters with ordinary people who become his unsuspecting comic foils.
Cohen has said his film has drawn such worldwide notoriety that it might be difficult to pull off a similar feat in the near future.
Besides its commercial success, "Borat" sparked a fair amount of controversy. The film drew protests from Kazakh authorities outraged by Cohen's portrait of their country as a backward nation of imbeciles. It also sparked lawsuits by some unwitting subjects, including two fraternity brothers shown guzzling alcohol and making racist remarks in the film.
Nonetheless, a 20th Century Fox rival -- Universal Pictures which is controlled by General Electric Co . -- reached a deal with Cohen in November for film rights to another of his alter egos, a gay Austrian fashionista named Bruno, for a reported $42.5 million. The Hollywood Reporter said at the time that Universal plans to start shooting the Bruno film this summer for a 2008 release.
Plans by Fox for a "Borat" sequel remain murky.
Asked whether he had seen "Borat," Murdoch said, "Sure, about three times. ... We laughed like hell. We went out to dinner and laughed all over again."
Anna Nicole Smith dies in Florida at 39
HOLLYWOOD, Fla. - Anna Nicole Smith, the pneumatic blonde whose life played out as an extraordinary tabloid tale — Playboy centerfold, jeans model, bride of an octogenarian oil tycoon, reality-show subject, tragic mother — died Thursday after collapsing at a hotel. She was 39.
She was stricken while staying at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino and was rushed to a hospital. Edwina Johnson, chief investigator for the Broward County Medical Examiner's Office, said the cause of death was under investigation and an autopsy would be done on Friday.
Just five months ago, Smith's 20-year-old son, Daniel, died suddenly in the Bahamas in what was believed to be a drug-related death.
Seminole Police Chief Charlie Tiger said a private nurse called 911 after finding Smith unresponsive in her sixth-floor room at the hotel, which is on an Indian reservation. He said Smith's bodyguard administered CPR, but she was declared dead at a hospital.
Dr. Joshua Perper, the chief Broward County medical examiner who will perform the autopsy, said if her death was from natural causes, the findings would likely be announced quickly. He cautioned, however, that definitive results could take weeks.
"I am not a prophet, and I cannot tell you before the autopsy what I am going to find," he said.
Through the '90s and into the new century, Smith was famous for being famous, a pop-culture punchline because of her up-and-down weight, her Marilyn Monroe looks, her exaggerated curves, her little-girl voice, her ditzy-blonde persona, and her over-the-top revealing outfits.
Recently, she lost a reported 69 pounds and became a spokeswoman for TrimSpa, a weight-loss supplement. On her reality show and other recent TV appearances, her speech was often slurred and she seemed out of it. Some critics said she seemed drugged-out.
"Undoubtedly it will be found at the end of the day that drugs featured in her death as they did in the death of poor Daniel," said a former attorney for Smith in the Bahamas, Michael Scott.
Another former Smith attorney, Lenard Leeds, told the celebrity gossip Web site TMZ that Smith "always had problems with her weight going up and down, and there's no question she used alcohol." Leeds said it was no secret that "she had a very troubled life" and had "so many, many problems."
"She wanted to be like Marilyn her whole life and ironically died in a similar manner," Leeds said. Monroe died of a drug overdose at age 36 in 1962.
Smith attorney Ron Rale told The Associated Press that he had talked to her on Tuesday or Wednesday, and she had flu symptoms and a fever and was still grieving over her son.
"Poor Anna Nicole," he said. "She's been the underdog. She's been besieged ... and she's been trying her best and nobody should have to endure what she's endured."
The Texas-born Smith was a topless dancer at strip club before she entered her photos in a search contest and made the cover of Playboy magazine in 1992. She became Playboy's playmate of the year in 1993. She was also signed to a contract with Guess jeans, appearing in TV commercials, billboards and magazine ads.
In 1994, she married 89-year-old oil tycoon J. Howard Marshall II, owner of Great Northern Oil Co. In 1992, Forbes magazine estimated his wealth at $550 million.
In a 2005 interview with ABC, Smith recalled meeting Marshall at what she called a "gentleman's club' in Houston. "He had no will to live and I went over to see him," she said. "He got a little twinkle in his eyes, and he asked me to dance for him. And I did."
Marshall died in 1995 at age 90, setting off a feud with Smith's former stepson, E. Pierce Marshall, over his estate. A federal court in California awarded Smith $474 million. That was later overturned. But in May, the U.S. Supreme Court revived her case, ruling that she deserved another day in court.
The stepson died June 20 at age 67. But the family said the court fight would continue.
Smith starred in her own reality TV series, "The Anna Nicole Show," in 2002-04. Cameras followed her around as she sparred with her lawyer, hung out with her personal assistant and interior decorator, and cooed at her poodle, Sugar Pie. She also appeared in movies, performing a bit part in "The Hudsucker Proxy" in 1994.
After news came of Smith's death, G. Eric Brunstad Jr., the lawyer who represented Marshall, said in a statement: "We're very shocked by the news and extend the deepest condolences to her family."
In a statement, Playboy founder Hugh Hefner said: "I am very saddened to learn about Anna Nicole's passing. She was a dear friend who meant a great deal to the Playboy family and to me personally."
Smith's son died Sept. 10 in his mother's hospital room in the Bahamas, just days after she gave birth to a daughter.
An American medical examiner hired by the family, Cyril Wecht, said he died accidentally of a combination of methadone and two antidepressants. Last month, a Bahamas magistrate scheduled a formal inquiry into the death for March 27.
Meanwhile, the paternity of Smith's now 5-month-old daughter remained a matter of dispute. The birth certificate lists Dannielynn's father as attorney Howard K. Stern, Smith's most recent companion. Smith's ex-boyfriend Larry Birkhead was waging a legal challenge, saying he was the father.
Debra Opri, the attorney who filed his paternity suit, said Birkhead "is devastated. He is inconsolable, and we are taking steps now to protect the DNA testing of the child. The child is our No. 1 priority."
Smith was born Vickie Lynn Hogan on Nov. 28, 1967, in Houston, one of six children. Her parents split up when she was a toddler, and she was raised by her mother, a deputy sheriff.
She dropped out after 11th grade after she was expelled for fighting, and worked as a waitress and then a cook at Jim's Krispy Fried Chicken restaurant in Mexia.
She married 16-year-old fry cook Bill Smith in 1985, giving birth to Daniel before divorcing two years later.
Sting announces `The Police Rehearsals'
LOS ANGELES - The Police, who are reuniting to perform at the Grammy Awards on Sunday, will celebrate their 30th anniversary at the Whisky A Go Go the following day.
To enter the drawing for a spot at "The Police Rehearsals," fans must be "legacy members" of Sting's official Web site, Sting.com, the 55-year-old singer announced in a posting Wednesday. Twenty lucky winners will be notified Friday.
"After the event, we would like the winners to each submit to us 250 words that describes their experience of the day — we can say with some certainty that none of you will be lost for words!" the announcement said.
Sting fanned speculation of a Police reunion and tour when he told the Television Critics Association last month that he and former bandmates Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers were "talking about" doing something to commemorate their anniversary.
The Police, whose hits include "Roxanne" and "Every Breath You Take," will open the Grammys, which will air live on CBS-TV from the Staples Center on Sunday night.
The band broke up in 1984 amid internal conflict. They last performed together in 2003, when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Lawyer says Anna Nicole Smith has died
HOLLYWOOD, Fla. - Anna Nicole Smith died Thursday after collapsing at a hotel and being being rushed to the hospital, one of her lawyers said.
She had been unresponsive and was rushed to the hospital Thursday while staying at the Seminole Hard Rock Cafe Hotel and Casino, hotel officials said.
"She checked in Monday at 8 p.m. as a guest. She was due to check out tomorrow," said Danielle Giordaano, a spokeswoman for Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.