Stump: 'I'm not in Fall Out Boy'
The future of Fall Out Boy looks increasingly uncertain - frontman Patrick Stump has declared he's no longer in the band.
Bassist Pete Wentz confirmed the group is on a break in a series of posts on his Twitter.com blog earlier this month, hinting the hiatus could be permanent.
He wrote, "I don't know the future of Fall Out Boy... A hiatus is forever until you get lonely or old. I don't plan on either."
Stump has now echoed his bandmate's sentiments, insisting he's too busy working on a solo project to be concerned about the Dance, Dance hitmakers.
He tells Spin.com, "I'm not in Fall Out Boy right now... I'm really not worried about Fall Out Boy. I'm so psyched about where I'm at right now, recording this solo album."
But the singer isn't convinced the band will fade away: "One way or another, the band will always be around. Steven Tyler isn't in Aerosmith anymore, but his gravestone will probably say something about Aerosmith.
"Whether we play again or not, I don't know. If we do, it will be for the right reasons. If we don't, it will also be for the right reasons."
'MacGyver' creator aims to stop spoof
The man behind MacGyver is consulting lawyers in a bid to block the release of an upcoming spoof movie based on the 1980s TV series.
A new film, titled MacGruber and starring Val Kilmer, is set to hit cinemas in April, but Lee Zlotoff, creator of the original show, alleges the parody breaches copyright laws as he retained the movie rights to his TV creation.
A lawyer for Zlotoff has fired off a series of cease-and-desist letters to executives at Relativity Media, the company behind the new comedy, according to Thresq.com.
Zlotoff's attorney, Paul Mayersohn, tells the website his client is currently considering filing a lawsuit in a bid to block the film's release.
He says, "We feel they're infringing our rights."
A threat to 'Avatar's' reign
"Avatar" will have to fight off "The Hurt Locker" at next month's Academy Awards, but James Cameron's sci-fi blockbuster faces a more imminent threat this weekend: losing the top spot at the box office.
For seven consecutive weeks, "Avatar" has ruled the domestic charts. The film surpassed the writer-director's "Titanic" on Tuesday for the biggest domestic gross in Hollywood history, as "Avatar's" North American receipts of more than $601.1 million improved upon "Titanic's" haul of $598.5 million. "Avatar" previously beat "Titanic's" global record gross of $1.8 billion, with worldwide ticket sales of more than $2 billion and counting.
For all the records that the Pandoran fantasy has amassed, it will not outdo one of "Titanic's" most remarkable achievements: holding the No. 1 box-office position for 15 straight weekends.
In fact, while "Avatar" might lose its perch this weekend to the military romance “Dear John,” the film will definitely fall the following week to the fast-rising romantic comedy “Valentine’s Day” -- which could gross more than $50 million in its four-day debut -- according to audience tracking surveys. Two events make "Avatar's" exact fall from first place difficult to predict: the Oscar nominations and the Super Bowl.
When "Titanic" collected a record-tying 14 Oscar nominations 12 years ago, the sinking superliner movie (then playing in its ninth weekend) improved more than 22% from the previous weekend. "Avatar" drew nine Academy Award selections on Tuesday, tying it with director Kathryn Bigelow's bomb defuser drama "The Hurt Locker" for the most Oscar selections overall.
But "Titanic's" post-nomination surge in 1998 didn't coincide with the Super Bowl, which typically deflates grosses for all movies but can be slightly more punishing for films aimed at men.
Ticket sales for movies in wide release typically drop about 45% from Saturday to Sunday. But when that Sunday happens to be the same day as pro football's championship, the decline can be more precipitous -- 70% or more. A year ago, "Taken" premiered the same weekend as the Super Bowl. The thriller grossed $9.4 million on Friday, $11.7 million on Saturday, but just $3.6 million on Sunday, when the Pittsburgh Steelers were beating the Arizona Cardinals.
"Avatar" has been remarkably consistent from week to week, and slipped just 10.5% last weekend from the previous weekend, grossing $31.3 million. If the movie drops an additional 10% to 15%, it would finish with a three-day take of about $27 million. That's close to the predicted opening of "Dear John."
The latter film, adapted from a novel by Nicholas Sparks ("The Notebook"), stars Channing Tatum ("G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra") as a soldier on leave who falls in love with an idealistic college student played by Amanda Seyfried ("Mamma Mia!"). Audience tracking surveys show that while most men would rather iron napkins than sit through the film, women -- particularly those younger than age 20 -- are eager to see it. Audience interest in the other new wide release, the John Travolta thriller “From Paris With Love” (from "Taken" director Pierre Morel) does not look especially strong. Neither film is attracting favorable early reviews.
Marty Bowen, one of the producers of "Dear John," says its appeal might be broader.
"Men are reluctant to say that they care about [romantic movies], just like they are to say they care about beauty products," Bowen says. " 'Dear John' is particularly unique to the male perspective, given that it's about the soldier. But the relationship he has with his father is compelling to any man."
"Valentine's Day" looks far more robust, thanks to a cast filled with popular performers -- "Twilight's" Taylor Lautner, singer Taylor Swift, "The Hangover's" Bradley Cooper and even Julia Roberts -- and the seemingly perfect marriage of title and release date. A trailer for the film benefited greatly from being attached to prints of "The Blind Side."
"It's a Garry Marshall romantic comedy," producer Mike Karz says of the film's director, who also made "Pretty Woman." "So you know it's going to appeal very strongly to women. But what we've really been happy about is how well it's been playing to men. And it's such a feel-good movie, the perfect film for the times that we are in. You walk out of the theater in a very good mood."
If it is indeed the movie that pushes "Avatar" out of first place, "Valentine's Day" will be the second straight New Line film to unseat a Cameron-directed smash -- 12 years ago, "Titanic" was finally dethroned by New Line's "Lost in Space."
Avatar flies over Titanic at domestic box office
Titanic's record as the biggest box office winner in U.S. history has sunk, pushed under by James Cameron's next blockbuster Avatar.
Avatar's domestic box office climbed to $601.1 million US on Tuesday, the same day it earned nine Oscar nominations including best picture. That includes Canadian and U.S. ticket sales.
That total pushes it past Cameron's earlier Oscar winner Titanic, which brought in $600.8 million US.
Avatar, a breakthrough in 3-D movie-making, has earned more than $2 billion US worldwide.
It stars Sam Worthington as a paraplegic marine who regains use of his body as an avatar on another planet, Pandora, and helps the blue-tinged residents battle developments that would destroy their environment.
After 47 days in cinemas, it continues to pack houses. Titanic had achieved only $311 million US after 47 days, but it sold at a lower ticket price.
Avatar's sales have been boosted by the fact that audiences pay a premium to watch the film in 3-D and Imax.
Kapuskasing, Ont.-born Cameron has as Academy Award nomination for a best director for the film. Avatar also won the Golden Globe for best drama.
Mark your calendar: 'Lost' finale date set for May
Mark your calendars, "Lost" fans, because your final trip to The Island has been set for a special night in May.
Oh, don't look so sad. You knew it was coming.
ABC formally announced that the "Lost" series finale will air on Sunday, May 23. The two-hour episode has been set from 9-to-11 p.m. and it will, as always seems to happen with "Lost" events, be preceded by an hour-long recap special.
"Lost is an example of what happens when you put creativity above everything else, trust the creative vision, and take the risks required to be truly original," says ABC Entertainment President Stephen McPherson in the network's statement. "It's a testament to staying true to the creative vision of one of the most iconic shows ever on television, and we’re giving the producers an unprecedented opportunity to respect the fans and really satisfy the viewers with a spectacular conclusion."
The finale announcement came the morning after "Lost" premiered its sixth season to a large and receptive audience, improving on the fifth season premiere by 6 percent in total viewers, 10 percent in viewers 18-49 and a whopping 20 percent in adults 18-34.
The sixth season premiere was the most-watched "Lost" telecast in nearly two years among adults 18-49 and 18-34.
Mel Gibson loses his cool again
Mel Gibson has been caught name calling again - and this time it aired on TV.
The movie star had an uncomfortable satellite interview with U.S. TV presenter Dean Richards on Friday and signed off by calling the host an "a**hole".
The WGN-TV personality pressed Gibson, who was promoting new film The Edge of Darkness, on his past indiscretions, asking the Aussie if he thought the public's perception of him had changed following his 2006 drink driving arrest, in which the actor spewed anti-Semitic insults at a police officer and was publicly shamed.
A visibly annoyed Gibson replied, "That's almost four years ago, dude. I've moved on, I guess you haven't... I've done all the necessary mea culpas, so let's move on, dude. Come on."
Richards then concluded the interview, urging film fans to see Gibson's new film.
The actor said, "Bye bye," took a swig of coffee and then called the TV host an "asshole", thinking he was no longer live and the interview was over.
The TV encounter has been picked up and aired on TMZ.com.
Cowell's Haiti charity single gets first airing
LONDON – A star-studded British single to raise money for victims of the earthquake in Haiti has had its first radio airplay.
The cover of R.E.M.'s 1993 ballad "Everybody Hurts" made its debut on breakfast-time broadcasts Tuesday.
Susan Boyle, Rod Stewart, Leona Lewis, Kylie Minogue and Robbie Williams are all featured on the track, coordinated by TV mogul Simon Cowell.
R.E.M. has agreed to waive royalties and the British government says the record will be exempt from sales tax.
It goes on sale by download Sunday and will be in stores starting Monday.
The song is one of several records raising money for victims of the Jan. 12 quake. Another is a re-recording of 1985 anthem "We Are The World" by 80 artists including Pink, Celine Dion and Kanye West.