Fairytale goes on for 'Shrek'
HOLLYWOOD -- Thing is, fairytales are defined by their endings.
Cinderella stuffs her dainty hoof into the glass you-know-what. The cross-dressing, child-devouring wolf is eviscerated by the woodsman. The third little pig's house proves remarkably fortified.
So what to make of a fairytale -- even one with a satirical bent -- for which a happily ever after may be years, even decades, away?
As the brain-trust behind the Shrek franchise will tell you, the lime-skinned ogre and his posse of fantastical parodies have become the stars of their own never-ending story.
With Shrek the Third out on Friday, plans are already being drawn for a fourth and fifth Shrek feature, bridged by a spin-off centered on Antonio Banderas' swashbuckling feline, Puss In Boots.
On TV, there's Shrek the Halls, a Christmas special set to air in December. And if that didn't suffice, a lavish Shrek musical is bound for Broadway.
Yes, sometimes dreams do come true -- even for studio executives.
Not that it ever occurred to Mike Myers that his patented Scottish brogue would one day signal the dulcet sounds of one of the industry's most formidable franchises.
In fact, the Canadian superstar recalls, when he was first approached about the CG-animated project, based on the children's book by William Steig, nearly a decade ago, his initial reaction was "that's the worst title in history."
Myers, 43, remembers the day well.
"I was at the reception of (Saving) Private Ryan," he says.
"(I heard about Shrek) before the movie, thankfully."
Title aside, Myers was consequently won over by a visit to the DreamWorks animation campus as well as the enthusiasm of studio co-founder Jeffrey Katzenberg, the executive responsible for the resurgence of Disney cartoons in the 1980s and '90s.
Still, Myers recalls, "People would say, 'Mike, I hear Shriek is coming out.' Nobody could figure out the title."
Given this, does he find it remarkable that he's now discussing Shrek the Third after the first two movies grossed more than $1 billion US combined?
"I wanted to be an actor since I was four. Everything is remarkable to me," he responds.
"I didn't come from a show business family. My dad sold encyclopedias and my mom worked in the office of a factory. So for me this is all great."
Rejoining Myers for Shrek the Third are Cameron Diaz as Shrek's true love Fiona and Eddie Murphy as wise-cracking Donkey.
Six years after the original, Diaz now admits she had little clue what she was doing while performing Fiona for the first time.
"I didn't know how she would fit in. It's different with animation -- you come in and you don't have time with the script, you just go in, they have a storyboard for what you're doing ... It's a whole different process.
"With the first film, I was completely thrown off by it. I was learning how to do it.
"Now three films later, I've gotten to know who she is. I have a relationship with her ... I want to protect her and look out for her. It's easier for me to come in and know who she is ... She means a lot to me ... I'm going to do these movies for as long as they'll have me."
Picking up where Shrek 2 left off, Shrek the Third finds the titular ogre still living in -- and temporarily ruling -- Far Far Away, the kingdom overseen by his frog king father-in-law, voiced by John Cleese.
When the frog croaks, Shrek is faced with either having to permanently occupy the throne and never see his beloved swamp again -- or convince teenage cousin Artie ((Diaz's former beau Justin Timberlake) that he should wear the crown.
Meanwhile, while Shrek, Donkey and Puss In Boots are searching for the future king, a vengeful Prince Charming (Rupert Everett) launches a coup against Fiona and her mother, the Queen (Julie Andrews).
Mom and daughter are aided in fending off the assault by the so-called Princesses -- Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and Rapunzel -- voiced by Shrek newcomers Amy Sedaris, Amy Poehler, Cheri Oteri and Maya Rudolph.
"The joy of being part of the Shrek world," notes director Chris Miller, "is that people want to be a part of it."
In concocting this latest story, producer Aron Warner explains, "What we started at was what's the next logical place for Shrek to go -- what's the next step in his life and how do we make it funny? ... The first Shrek set the tone for parody, which was then taken by lots and lots of people in lots of movies and we didn't want to repeat that we'd already created."
In other words, Shrek the Third had to look more than just Hoodwinked 2.
Says Banderas, a Shrek fan before he leapt aboard the franchise in 2004's sequel, "The feeling you have of being in this family is being around people who want to leave a legacy ... I think that was very clear from the first film."
And, speaking of legacies, what should audiences expect from Shrek 4, which is due in 2010?
Warner and Miller are understandably mum on the subject, although, given what happens in this sequel, some plot points are a given.
As Andrews predicts, "I think grandma's going to do a lot of babysitting."
Miranda Lambert scares up an audience
When mainstream country listeners first met Miranda Lambert, she was torching an unfaithful boyfriend's house in "Kerosene," the title track from her multimillion-selling 2005 major-label debut. That collection entered the country charts at No. 1, and last week her follow-up, "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend," arrived in the same position and a similar thematic vein.
Lambert, 23, again plays the jilted-psycho role on the banjo-rattled title track, but the real show-stopper is "Gunpowder & Lead," a blues-rocking blast of double-barreled payback at an abusive boyfriend, ranking alongside the Dixie Chicks' "Goodbye Earl" as a modern country classic of over-the-top female revenge.
"If somebody hurts me, I'm gonna get even. That's the way I was raised," says the Texas-born singer-songwriter, whose parents, Rick and Bev, taught her to stand up for herself. With their private-investigation business, they also inadvertently provided vivid examples of the rotten things people do to each other, especially in relationships. Her dad, a former police officer who's also a musician, inspired her to become a singer-songwriter, and they even co-wrote the "Kerosene" track "Greyhound Bound for Nowhere." Nowadays her career is a full-on family affair: Younger brother Luke, 18, runs her website (MirandaLambert.com), Dad handles the merchandising and Mom heads her fan club. She bought her first house close to home — on her parents' property, in fact — to help keep her grounded even as her star continues to rise.
Indeed, Lambert hardly seems like a hair-trigger harpy in person, despite the tattoo of her logo — two crossed pistols with angel wings — on her left forearm. Interviewed at an L.A. cafe the week after performing at the inaugural Stagecoach country festival in Indio, she's friendly and Southwestern casual-cool in a blue sundress and cowboy boots.
"People sometimes ask me, 'Do you just hate guys?' And I'm like, 'No. I have the best dad in the world, I have a great brother, great boyfriend,' " the last-mentioned being fellow country artist Blake Shelton. "But if they give me [grief], I'm not gonna take it." She laughs.
Still, the nutty plunking of banjos and comedic looniness of the song "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" make it more fun than scary. "Girls are like, 'I would never say that, but I'm a crazy ex-girlfriend; I'm just afraid to admit it,' " Lambert says with a giggle. "But I also have a lot of guy fans. I think it's because their girlfriends go, 'Hey, listen to this,' and they end up liking it." She's raised eyebrows, not only for her Gretchen Wilson-esque grit but also because she wrote or co-wrote most of the songs on both her albums, rare for a young artist and uncommon in mainstream country. Her writing voice is distinctive, though not always as in-your-face as "His fist is big, but my gun's bigger / He'll find out when I pull the trigger," from "Gunpowder." Some lines are quite achingly heartbroken, like "Love letters, on wet paper / Forgivers and no takers" from the willowy ballad "Love Letters." The former contestant on "Nashville Star," country music's "American Idol," is among a growing group of country hit makers mixing the "outlaw" stance of icons such as Merle Haggard with the smooth production of contemporary country. Lambert's broad appeal has landed her opening spots with touring acts as diverse as bad boy Keith Urban, superstar traditionalist George Strait, and fellow maverick-mainstream hybrid Dierks Bentley. Her next jaunt, starting in June, will be with Toby Keith.
She also appeals to pop audiences. "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" debuted last week at No. 6 on Billboard's Top 200 Albums chart, and Lambert's been featured in Entertainment Weekly and People as well as in alt-country bible No Depression, which put her on its cover this month.
She credits Wilson, of "Redneck Woman" fame, with paving the way for her modern brand of twangy feminine rebellion. Yet perhaps paradoxically, Lambert hopes listeners will tune in to her sensitive side on "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend." "I'm not trying to be this badass chick all the time," she says. "I'm about being strong. People ask, 'Why are you so angry?' " The question bewilders her. "I'm like, 'I'm not angry, I'm happy.' I have a lot of sides, and I think this album, more than 'Kerosene,' portrays them." The romantically frustrated "Desperation," the shattered warble of "Love Letters," and the bitter ballad "More Like Her" do reflect different emotional facets with surprising nuances. The album also includes three covers: Gillian Welch and David Rawlings' rollicking lament "Dry Town," Patty Griffin's boyfriend-kiss-off "Getting Ready," and Carlene Carter's "Easy From Now On," long associated with Emmylou Harris. Yet even when she's vulnerable, Lambert's not exactly a wilting flower in love's fiery furnace. She's just too old-school.
"Country music is about real things, like drinkin' and cheatin'," she says, citing such heroes as Hank Williams, Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette. "I just think it got stopped, especially for women, just singing about how happy everything is all the time. That's not reality. I say things a lot of other women wouldn't say.... It just became part of my music, because it's part of me. And I'm really glad, because that's what sets me apart."
D'oh!: Fox slams parody "O.J. Simpsons"
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - An Internet parody of "The Simpsons" has drawn the ire of 20th Century Fox.
The studio is pressuring online video hub Broadcaster.com to remove "The O.J. Simpsons," three animated clips that reimagine the Fox series starring the former football star. After receiving notices from Fox lawyers, Broadcaster Inc. is reviewing their demand but noted Friday that fair-use doctrine protects parodies.
"We respect the rights of content owners," Broadcaster CEO Martin Wade III said. "We are examining all the issues raised by the Fox request. Our goal is to be a respecter of content rights and at the same time find legal ways to bring our community members the content they enjoy."
Fox, which declined comment, has been aggressive about protecting perceived copyright infringements. In January, Fox had Google subpoenaed over uploaded episodes of "24" and "Simpsons." Google complied, disclosing the names of individuals who did the uploading.
The three "O.J. Simpsons" clips are titled "Black and White Christmas," "Warzone" and "If I Did It," which directly references Fox and its decision to withdraw publication of O.J. Simpson's proposed book about the murder of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and Ron Goldman.
"Battlestar" going on, Sci Fi says
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Sci Fi Channel has not decided to end "Battlestar Galactica" after its upcoming fourth season, despite comments made to the contrary by some of its cast members at the Saturn Awards last week.
"Battlestar" star Edward James Olmos was quoted saying the next batch of episodes were definitely the last ones, but Sci Fi countered Friday with a statement.
"For those of you have been paying attention over the years, this is not the first time Eddie has made an announcement about the possibility of the show's end," executive producer David Eick said. "I promise you that when (executive producer) Ron (Moore) and I make a decision about 'Galactica's' future, we'll let you know."
Music piracy crackdown nets college kids
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — At first, Sarah Barg thought the e-mail was a scam.
Some group called the Recording Industry Association of America was accusing the University of Nebraska-Lincoln sophomore of illegally downloading 381 songs using the school's computer network and a program called Ares.
The letter said she might be sued but offered her the chance to settle out of court.
Barg couldn't imagine anyone expected her to pay $3,000 — $7.87 per song — for some 1980s ballads and Spice Girls tunes she downloaded for laughs in her dorm room. Besides, the 20-year-old had friends who had downloaded thousands of songs without repercussion.
"Obviously I knew it was illegal, but no one got in trouble for it," Barg said.
But Barg's perspective changed quickly that Thursday in March, when she called student legal services and found out the e-mail was no joke and that she had a pricey decision to make.
Barg is one of 61 students at UNL and hundreds at more than 60 college campuses across the country who have received letters from the recording industry group, threatening a lawsuit if they don't settle out of court.
"Any student on any campus in the country who is illegally downloading music may receive one of these letters in the coming months," said Jenni Engebretsen, an RIAA spokeswoman.
Barg's parents paid the $3,000 settlement. Without their help, "I don't know what I would have done. I'm only 20 years old," she said.
At least 500 university students nationwide have paid settlements to avoid being sued, Engebretsen said. Students who don't take the offer face lawsuits — and minimum damages of $750 for each copyrighted recording shared if they lose.
UNL officials have been told 32 more letters are on the way. At least 17 UNL students who did not take the settlement offer have been sued, according to the RIAA, although the university has been asked to forward only five subpoenas.
But the students coughing up the cash question why they're the ones getting in trouble.
"They're targeting the worst people," UNL freshman Andrew Johnson, who also settled for $3,000. "Legally, it probably makes sense, because we don't have the money to fight."
Johnson got his e-mail in February, with the recording industry group's first wave of letters targeting college students. He had downloaded 100 songs on a program called LimeWire using the university network.
The money to settle came from the 18-year-old's college fund. He'll work three jobs this summer to pay back the money.
Johnson compares what he did to people driving 5 miles per hour over the speed limit.
"It's not like I downloaded millions of songs and sold them to people," Johnson said.
But just one song can bring a lawsuit, Engebretsen said.
"It is important to send the message that this is illegal, you can be caught, and there are consequences," she said.
The industry realizes attitudes need changing, and money from the settlements is reinvested in educational programs schools and other groups can use to spread the word that song sharing can have severe consequences.
Some of the programs are tailored to start with third-graders.
"We do recognize that by the time students reach college, many of their music habits are already formed," Engebretsen said.
Earlier this month, members of Congress sent a letter to officials from 19 universities, including UNL, asking for information about schools' anti-piracy policies.
According to the letter, more than half of college students download copyrighted music and movies. The information requested is intended to help assess whether Congress needs to advance legislation to ensure illegal downloading "is no longer commonly associated with student life on some U.S. campuses," the letter says.
Barg is still angry about her letter from the recording industry group, which she calls bullying. But she agrees sharing music is common, and that other students don't understand the consequences.
"Technically, I'm guilty. I just think it's ridiculous, the way they're going about it," Barg said. "We have to find a way to adjust our legal policy to take into account this new technology, and so far, they're not doing a very good job."
Barg thinks the university should send an e-mail to all students, warning them that the recording industry won't look the other way.
As campus clears out for the summer, UNL officials are considering launching a new educational campaign in the fall.
"If we can do anything to help educate students about what illegal file-sharing is, we're willing and interested in doing that," said Kelly Bartling, a university spokeswoman.
Bartling said no one wants students to have to worry about how to pay tuition because of an expensive settlement. "It is a hugely expensive lesson," Bartling said.
Johnson, the UNL freshman, doesn't think the threats from the recording industry group are going to solve the problem. Friends who know he got in trouble still share music online.
"People are still going to do it until they get caught, and they can't catch everyone," Johnson said.
NBC OKs deal to save 'Law & Order' shows
NEW YORK - NBC Universal and producer Dick Wolf struck a last-minute deal Sunday to keep "Law & Order" and its two spinoffs on the air, although "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" episodes will first be seen on the USA cable network.
The deal ensures an 18th season of "Law & Order" on NBC. That's second only to "Gunsmoke," which aired from 1955 to 1975 and was the longest-running network drama series on TV.
NBC announces its fall television schedule on Monday, opening a week where all the broadcasters outline next season's plans to advertisers in New York.
NBC had essentially concluded it had room for only two of Wolf's series on next year's schedule. "Law & Order: SVU" has the highest ratings of the three, so that was safe. After some brief conversations about shifting "Law & Order" to Time Warner Inc.'s TNT, the decision was made to keep "Criminal Intent" for USA, said Jeff Zucker, chairman of NBC Universal.
NBC and USA are corporate cousins within NBC Universal, and "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" reruns make up some of its most popular programming. Now USA will be able to premiere a full season's worth of 22 episodes of what had been an established network series, a first for the business. The series is entering its seventh season.
"This was a strategic decision by us," Zucker said. "We are really taking USA to a new stratosphere."
It's not clear when "Criminal Intent" episodes will air on NBC; they will likely be used to fill a hole when a new fall drama fails.
"Law & Order" sank sharply in the ratings this year, although that was partly expected with a move to Fridays, one of the least-watched nights on television. While it will be back for an 18th season, NBC executives declined Sunday to say whether it will start in the fall or midseason.
The deal also forces Wolf to cut production costs for the series and hit new financial targets, although they weren't publicly outlined. Wolf said this wouldn't result in any significant cast changes or be visible to viewers.
"Nobody was casting aspersions on the creative process," he said. "It was just costing too much for the realities of how the business has evolved."
NBC has suffered in the ratings this season, particularly this spring, with only "Heroes" emerging as a new hit. At the same time, USA is a very profitable operation.
NBC said the status of Fred Thompson, who plays District Attorney Arthur Branch on "Law & Order" and is considered a potential GOP presidential candidate, had nothing to do with the discussions. Thompson is under option for another season of ripped-from-the-headlines crime drama, but Wolf said Sunday he knew nothing of the actor-politician's plans.
"I haven't talked to him for the last two weeks," he said. "So your guess is as good as mine."
Keeping "Law & Order" on the air long enough to eclipse the "Gunsmoke" record is his "ultimate dream," Wolf said.
"Creatively, the show is still firing on all cylinders and I have no doubt the show's quality can and will continue for years to come," he said.
Spidey takes a fall but still nets $60M
LOS ANGELES - Even when he takes a huge fall, Spider-Man comes out on top.
Sony's "Spider-Man 3" took in $60 million in its second weekend, a hefty 60 percent drop from its record debut a week earlier but good enough to easily outdistance the competition and remain the No. 1 movie, according to studio estimates Sunday.
"After a record-breaking opening weekend, to me this is an appropriate second-weekend drop," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers. "Any studio would be happy to have a movie opening with $60 million, let alone a second weekend with $60 million."
With $242.1 million domestically in just 10 days, "Spider-Man 3" continued to beat the box-office pace of its predecessors. After 10 days, 2002's "Spider-Man" had grossed $223 million, while 2004's "Spider-Man 2" had taken in $225 million.
"Spider-Man 3" quickly became the year's top-grossing film, hurtling past "300," the Warner Bros. battle epic that has taken in $208 million.
Second-weekend drops for successful studio films typically are well below 50 percent. But "Spider-Man 3" shattered records with $151.1 million in its first weekend, making a big decline virtually inevitable since so many people already had seen the film.
"When you're in that stratosphere, we had to assume we would be in the range of a 60 percent drop," said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony.
The weekend's other new movies had fair to poor openings.
Debuting in second place with $10 million was Fox Atomic's horror sequel "28 Weeks Later," a follow up to "28 Days Later" that continues the story of a virus in Britain that turns people into raging, cannibalistic zombies.
Universal's "Georgia Rule," starring Lindsay Lohan, Jane Fonda and Felicity Huffman, opened at No. 3 with $5.9 million. Lohan plays a rebellious teen who's put under the charge of her no-nonsense grandma (Fonda).
Lionsgate's "Delta Farce" premiered at No. 5 with $3.5 million. Larry the Cable Guy stars in the comedy about three weekend warriors mistakenly dumped in Mexico, where they take on a gang of bandits.
The Weinstein Co. and MGM's workplace comedy "The Ex" tanked with $1.4 million, coming in at No. 12. The movie stars Zach Braff as a husband dueling with a co-worker who also is his wife's ex-boyfriend.
"Spider-Man 3" made up for an otherwise soft crop of movies. The top-12 films took in $96.9 million, up 14 percent from the same weekend last year, when "Mission: Impossible 3" was No. 1 with $25 million and "Poseidon" debuted in second place with $22.2 million.
Overseas, "Spider-Man 3" pulled in an additional $85.5 million for the weekend, raising its international total to $380 million and worldwide total to $622 million. The previous "Spider-Man" movies each took in about $800 million worldwide, a number "Spider-Man 3" should easily beat.
"Spider-Man 3" has a shot at topping $1 billion worldwide, Bruer said. Only three other movies, "Titanic," "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," have hit that mark.
After two weekends of light competition, "Spider-Man 3" faces the summer's next heavy-hitter Friday with the debut of DreamWorks Animation's "Shrek the Third," the latest adventure of the cartoon ogre.
A week later, Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" sails into theaters, the Johnny Depp action comedy joining "Spider-Man 3" and "Shrek the Third" to set up what could be Hollywood's biggest Memorial Day weekend ever.
Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.
1. "Spider-Man 3," $60 million.
2. "28 Weeks Later," $10 million.
3. "Georgia Rule," $5.9 million.
4. "Disturbia," $4.8 million.
5. "Delta Farce," $3.5 million.
6. "Fracture," $2.9 million.
7. "The Invisible," $2.2 million.
8. "Hot Fuzz," $1.7 million.
9. "Next," $1.604 million.
10. "Meet the Robinsons," $1.6 million.