Justin Timberlake celebrated his powerful status with wife Jessica Biel last night at Time's 100 gala in NYC. He was joined by pals Jimmy Fallon and even Vice President Joe Biden — and we have all the details on the fun night! In this headlines roundup, we're also looking at Gwyneth Paltrow's new honor and the latest on Fifty Shades of Grey movie rumors. On Allie: Club Monaco top and jacket.
Matt Damon linked up with his Promised Land costar John Krasinski and director Gus Van Sant for the Berlin Film Festival premiere of their movie. The snow didn't stop the trio, who were together earlier today for a press conference and photocall, from signing autographs for fans and posing for pictures — Matt even captured a few snaps on his own phone! It's been a fun few days overseas for Matt after he met up with pal George Clooney on Wednesday. Matt and George grabbed dinner with friends as they gear up to get started on their new project. The duo are working together on Monuments Men, which is expected to start filming next month.
Matt Damon and John Krasinski promoted their film, Promised Land, at the Berlin Film Festival earlier today. They were joined by director Gus Van Sant as they attended a photocall and a press conference to discuss the film. Promised Land opened in theaters back in December, and now the movie is up for several prestigious prizes at the festival.
John and Gus aren't the only famous faces that Matt is hanging out with in Berlin. Earlier this week, Matt grabbed dinner with George Clooney and several other friends in the German capital. The two actors will reunite this Spring for Monuments Men, which George will direct, write, and also star in. Joining forces with George again isn't the only excitement coming up for Matt; he also has the highly anticipated release of his new HBO movie, Behind the Candelabra, coming up later this year.
Matt Damon and his wife, Luciana, hit the red carpet last night in NYC for the premiere of his new movie Promised Land. He wrote, produced, and stars in the movie alongside collaborator John Krasinski, who posed for photos without his own spouse, Emily Blunt, who's been in England making All You Need Is Kill with Tom Cruise. Emily's sister Felicity Blunt was able to attend, though, with her husband, Stanley Tucci. Matt and John also celebrated the upcoming movie with costars Rosemarie DeWitt and her husband, Ron Livingston. On the carpet, John spoke about his strong friendship with Matt. He said, "I would love to have a bromance with him, but I don't even know if I could even use the word 'bromance' because he and Ben [Affleck] are so tight and like a married couple that I'll never get in there."
Matt and John said a few words before the screening, along with director Gus Van Sant. Gus said the premiere screening was "momentous" while Matt declared that there's "a little piece of our soul in this." Afterward, the gang retired to an afterparty at Loi. Matt and Luciana holed up in a banquette for a bit, along with their oldest daughter, Alexia. John, likewise, was surrounded by family to celebrate his big project.
I'm excited for Gus Van Sant's upcoming film Restless, out Sept. 16, which follows a terminally ill teenage girl who falls for a boy who likes to attend funerals — hello Harold & Maude! — and their encounters with his ghost friend, a WWII Japanese kamikaze pilot. As to be expected, it's no design-centric film, but as with many Van Sant projects, the sets are still romantic and well-conceived. If, like me, you can't wait another month and a half, I have a sneak peek of the set design for you today!
Taylor Lautner had the treat of dining with Milk director Gus Van Sant and screenwriter Dustin Lance Black last night at LA's Bottega Louie. The trio may be working on a future movie project, but first up for Taylor will be September's Abduction. Dustin has been busy, too, as his latest project, J. Edgar, was recently in production. Taylor's upcoming action movie sees him share the screen with Lily Collins, while John Singleton worked behind the cameras. John recently spoke about Taylor Lautner in Abduction, saying the role is quite different than what Twilight fans are used to. John said of Taylor, "[He's] strong and charismatic. I've done some stuff that I'm sure all the young ladies will really love . . . and it's beyond taking his shirt off. It's about him having a different kind of swag than he does as Jacob. In this movie, he's Nathan Harper and he's a kicka*s dude in this movie."
Mia Wasikowska and up-and-comer Henry Hopper star as lovestruck teenagers in Restless, which debuted at Cannes on Thursday and was followed up by a photo call on Friday. The Gus Van Sant film marks Bryce Dallas Howard's debut as a producer and was written by one of her best friends. Bryce had her father, Ron Howard, helping out as executive producer, though Gus said that she was the one who was hands on from start to finish. Bryce went with a billowy gown for the premiere, but she admitted during today's press interviews that the dress was actually a last-minute switch since she had a bit of trouble with the zipper of her intended one and actually cut herself out of it to switch into this strapless number minutes before hitting the red carpet. Mia looked gorgeous in red for Thursday's event and an intricate nude frock yesterday as she posed with her costars. Her chemistry with Henry is at the center of the movie, which is a sweet story about a death-obsessed teen named Enoch and Annabel, who has terminal brain cancer.
Henry is following in his father Dennis Hopper's footsteps with his big-screen debut, and the 20-year-old actor shares the same speech pattern and affectations as his iconic dad. Restless is dedicated to Dennis's memory, after dying suddenly in May 2010. Gus said that Dennis did have a chance to see a cut of the film before his passing and saw a lot of himself in Henry's performance. As for the best advice Dennis ever gave Henry: "Be cool." Lots more to come from our Cannes press day interviews with Mia, Gus, Henry, and Bryce!
Forget Match.com. If you're looking for love, you may want to scout funerals — at least that's how the two paramours meet in Gus Van Sant's latest. In this trailer for Restless, The Kids Are All Right actress Mia Wasikowska stars as an ill hospital patient who runs into a young lad (Henry Hopper) while laying a friend to rest. The boy has an odd fascination with death, it seems; not only does he frequent funerals, but he also speaks to the ghost of a Japanese kamikaze pilot from WWII. You know, normal teenage boy stuff.
Strange? Yes, but the film has definite cred with Van Sant behind the camera, and at first glance, the two leads have a sweet chemistry. My only complaint is the trailer seems to reveal a lot about the story. Hopefully the director is holding on to a few surprises for when it comes to theaters in January. Until then, watch the trailer when you read more
A couple years ago, the art world was rocked by a pair of deaths when Jeremy Blake and his girlfriend Theresa Duncan committed suicide within days of each other amid allegations of paranoia and harassment by Scientologists. Dubbed "The Golden Suicides" by Vanity Fair, the tragedy attracted attention because of the beauty and glamour of the couple, their friendship with musician Beck, and the mystery surrounding their passing.
Their compelling story is now getting the movie treatment: Gus Van Sant and Bret Easton Ellis are working on a screenplay together for a film based on the Vanity Fair article.
I was personally fascinated by the article and the lives of Duncan and Blake when news of their suicides broke (I'd actually seen one of Blake's exhibits at the SF MoMA years before). I think Van Sant and Ellis will give considerable weight to this dismal subject matter — Van Sant is coming off of Milk, and Ellis is the author of heavy, zeitgeisty tomes like American Psycho and Less Than Zero.
