When he was nine years old, Jeff Bridges got his big acting break working on his father's show Sea Hunt. Check out this classic footage of a very young Jeff Bridges.p.
The newly-minted Oscar nominees appeared in some fantastic films in 2010, but no working actor has a perfect résumé. The group of stars in the acting categories have a movie or two in their past that they'd probably want you (and the voting members of the Academy) to forget about, but for fun, I thought we could giggle about them — and see how far each nominee has come on the road to the Oscars!
Ben Affleck joked around with his sunglasses-wearing costar from The Town, Jeremy Renner, yesterday afternoon at a BAFTA Los Angeles Tea Reception held in the the Four Seasons Hotel. The duo were fresh off a night spent at Friday's Critics' Choice Awards, where Ben spent a good chunk of the evening kissing and hugging his lovely wife Jennifer Garner. Michelle Williams was a lucky girl in the middle of a director sandwich, as she chatted with Blue Valentine's Derek Cianfrance and The King's Speech's Tom Hooper. Andrew Garfield got lots of love from his Spider-Man leading lady Emma Stone at the CCAs, but he stayed close to his girlfriend Shannon Woodward, who's also good friends with Robert Pattinson. He was happy to be in the same place as so many of Hollywood's A-list, saying, "It's nice being in a room with such inspiring, wonderful people to talk to." Nicole Kidman, meanwhile, didn't bring her husband Keith Urban, but she was seen animatedly talking with Black Swan mastermind Darren Aronofsky. It was the latest event for the award season regulars, and most will be out again this evening for the Golden Globes — stay tuned later for photos and news from the big show!
The busy award season weekend kicked off with the annual AFI Awards in LA this afternoon. The event honors its top 10 movies and TV shows of 2010, which include The Town, Inception, Black Swan, 30 Rock, Glee, and others. Ben Affleck joined Jeremy Renner to support their project after bouncing around the country from the Palm Springs International Film Festival to the National Board of Review Gala in NYC to celebrate the film this week. Natalie Portman covered her baby bump in a bright blue dress and walked the carpet ahead of director Darren Aronofsky, while her costar Mila Kunis went with white. Jon Hamm made an appearance for Mad Men and got playful with his young castmate Kiernan Shipka. Amy Adams, who represented The Fighter, took a minute to pose with Jeff Bridges and Josh Brolin, and The Kids Are All Right star Mark Ruffalo made a solo entrance. The honors continue at tonight's Critics' Choice Awards, where we'll be broadcasting live from the red carpet — tune in here starting at 4:30 p.m. PST!
Ethan and Joel Coen's latest, True Grit, isn't another edgy, idiosyncratic drama from the film-making brothers, but an adaptation of the 1968 novel and update of the 1969 movie starring John Wayne. In Wayne's Oscar-winning role of Rooster Cogburn is Jeff Bridges, who is approaching his own legendary status. Hailee Steinfeld is equally important to the film, as the movie's heroine, 14-year-old Mattie Ross.
Mattie is on a quest to avenge her father's death at the hands of the cowardly Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin), and she leaves her family to find a marshal worthy of her hunt. She finds what she's looking for in Cogburn, despite the fact that he's a grizzled, whiskey-soaked curmudgeon. Also in the picture is Texas Ranger LaBoeuf, played to ostentatious perfection by Matt Damon. LaBoeuf is an opponent to Mattie at first — he's also pursuing Chaney, but on a different charge. Cogburn and LaBoeuf team up to find Chaney together, conspiring to leave Mattie behind, sure that a "little girl" will only handicap them.
Riding off into the wilderness with Mattie, Cogburn, and LaBoeuf gives us the bulk of the action, and on that ride it becomes clear: the Coen brothers aren't trying to reinvent anything; this is a true Western, faithful to the book and genre. It's a sweeping accomplishment with a satisfying outcome. To find out what else I enjoyed about True Grit, just read more
Olivia Wilde and Jeff Bridges star in Tron: Legacy. Find out if it's watch-worthy in our review!
It's been nearly 30 years since we last saw the likes of Tron on the big screen, and oh my, how things have changed in its sequel, Tron: Legacy. For those of you who are playing catch-up, Jeff Bridges reprises his role as Kevin Flynn, who, in the original film, has been sucked into the virtual world of the Grid and made to compete in gladiator-like games in order to survive. After defeating his foes, thanks in part to his in-game ally, Tron (played by Bruce Boxleitner), he goes on to take over a computer company called ENCOM. Tron: Legacy picks up here, telling us Kevin's story in flashes of news reports. He's gone missing, leaving behind his young son, Sam.
Twenty years later, we find that Sam is rebellious, ignoring his duties as a stakeholder in ENCOM, and still grappling with his feelings of abandonment. This helps drive him along as he tries to rescue Kevin from the virtual world he's created, and battle Kevin's evil (and much younger-looking) virtual twin, Clu, to escape. It's a great setup for a perfect storm of action and drama, but unfortunately for Tron: Legacy, the weight is not always evenly distributed between the two.
Find out more, including why I still think you should see the movie in theaters after the break
Jeff Bridges is making the rounds promoting both Tron: Legacy and True Grit, and this Saturday, he swings by Saturday Night Live. To tout his hosting duties, the actor has teamed up with Fred Armisen for a batch of new promos where the guys goof with special effects, camera photos, and badly drawn hand puppets — but what? No Lebowski references? Regardless, it showcases Bridges's silly side, which is always fun to watch. Check it out after the jump.
Matt Damon had a ravishing in red Luciana by his side at the NYC premiere of True Grit last night, which was the first time she's hit the carpet since giving birth to baby Stella in late October. Matt has been shooting Contagion in chilly Chicago for the past few weeks, but now he has to take care of the promotion for his highly-anticipated new release. When he's home on the East Coast, Matt and Luciana like to take their girls for walks in Central Park, which is just part of what makes this family man one of our favorite guys of the year. The busy actor is always looking toward his next project and despite a Golden Globes snub we're still hoping his name is a big one for award season. His costar Jeff Bridges is also doing the press rounds for Tron: Legacy and he chatted with us about his wife's role in the movie and photography skills. Check out more from the event including Jeff, Gretchen Mol, Bill Hader, the Coens, and more!
The highly-anticipated reboot of the cult classic Tron opens this Friday, and during an LA press junket a few weeks ago I got to see Tron: Legacy in all of its 3D glory (more on that later), and talk to the cast. Jeff Bridges chatted about how things have changed since the 1982 original, his music, and even his love of photography. Plus, he shared a cute anecdote about how his wife weighed in on Clu, the younger version of himself in the movie. Check it out in the video below, and stay tuned for more interviews from the films' stars this week!
