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Eddie Redmayne is on a roll. He won the Oscar last winter for playing Stephen Hawking in “The Theory of Everything.”
Now comes the trailer for “The Danish Girl,” directed by Tom Hooper, director of “The King’s Speech” and “Les Miserables.” Eddie will be nominated again for playing transgender. He could win again. On top of that, as a woman he bares a great resemblance to Jessica Chastain.
Hollywood is impressionable. The year of Caitlyn Jenner is upon us. You can already hear the words “brave” and “courageous” in the ad quotes. The trailer looks amazing. Alicia Vikander is a shoo in for something, lots of something. She’s luminous.
“The Danish Girl” will top off Universal Pictures’ record setting year at the box office.
One Direction, thank your marketing team. “Drag Me Down” has had 533,000 digital sales in its first four weeks according to Nielsen. That’s more than their biggest hits “What Makes You Beautiful” (337,000 in first four weeks) and “Story of My Life” (429,000 in first four weeks).
Even though the single is down to number 17 on iTunes, “Drag Me Down” had its biggest sales just in the last week. This coincides with the rampant rumor and news that they would break up or take a break, and the release of a video that’s now had 38 million views.
Prior to all that publicity “Drag Me Down” was kind of a non starter. Maybe now the group will be more energized about their fifth album.
Natalie Cole didn’t want to be left out of all that rock star talk this weekend in the Hamptons. I got to hear the magnificent pop-jazz-R&B legend sing like an angel at the Parrish Art Museum in Southampton on Saturday night. The occasion was a glitzy dinner to raise money for Mike Milken’s Prostate Cancer Foundation held in conjunction with the 11th Annual Charles Evans PCF Pro-Am Tennis Tournament.
They raised over $4 million with the help of a lightning round five minute auction in which Milken, ever persuasive, got a bunch of good Samaritans to pony up $75,000 apiece to support young scientists. Bonnie Pfeifer Evans, who runs the Charles Evans Foundation in memory of her husband, was among the hosts. Her late husband Charles, brother of famed movie producer Robert Evans, owned the fashion line Evan Picone. Bonnie is a top top top real estate broker at Corcoran.
“American Idol” grad and former winner Ruben Studdard — one of the sweetest guys in the world with a big heart and a big voice– also performed. He told me he’s thinking of moving from Alabama to Harlem. Why? He wants to be where Langston Hughes once lived. Just for that poetic response, Bonnie Evans should find him a free abode! Ruben came courtesy of record producer David Foster, who also performed and introduced some of his regular singers to the crowd.
Natalie has just returned from a big tour of Asian resorts with Foster and Ruben et al. She told me the elevations were so high she could barely breathe, but her voice sounded better than ever. She is “Unforgettable.” She’s on her way home to L.A. now to get some much needed R n R. Natalie is one of our national treasures, folks.
By the way, that’s Natalie’s original 1976 hit “This Will Be” which we hear on the ubiquitous e-Harmony commercials on TV. She wrote it, sang it, and it holds up like a motha 40 years later. (She was very young when it hit.) For every date on e-Harmony who hums that song, Natalie should get a gift from Neil Clark Warren. They’re a $300 million company, and the amazing Natalie is their standard bearer!
SIGHTINGS: What are people doing with their summer?
HBO’s Boardwalk Empire star Anatol Yusef pulled up to the bar at the Bobby Van’s in Times Square, enjoying an afternoon martini…
New York Jets’ Geno Smith tackled a friend and brought them to lunch in the wine cellar at Philippe on East 60th St. Scrimmaging at a separate table: St. John’s University Coach Chris Mullins and his staff.
Thank goodness Sotto Sopra opened in Amagansett, the quaint village east of East Hampton and the last stop before the hunt for Montauk on Route 27. In the last week, I’m told, Alec & Hilaria Baldwin were seen dining on with 4 guests while producer Scott Rudin was eating with a guest. You might call this place the Nick and Toni’s of the East, as Sir Paul McCartney accompanied by his wife, Nancy and a group of 3 adults and 6 children were spotted there last week.
And Gwyneth Paltrow? She knows where to shop:Christopher Fischer’s Southampton Boutique and salon of high end cashmere. She was browsing his new Fall collection recently even in 90 degree heat. Paltrow plans ahead…
Bruce Willis– kids, I saw him off Broadway in “Fool for Love” back in the 80s. He was a super theater actor, and will acquit himself nicely in “Misery” coming to Broadway this fall with Laurie Metcalfe.
But Bruce’s Broadway debut will be eclipsed by that of his daughter Rumer Willis. She starts September 14th in “Chicago” as Roxie Hart.
“I’m so proud of her,” Bruce told me Friday night at the premiere of “Rock the Kasbah.” He plays a kind of jaunty vigilante who helps Bill Murray from starting World War III in Afghanistan over a TV singing competition.
“Here’s a scoop no one knows,” Bruce told me. “Rumer just finished a role in ‘The Bombing.’ I had nothing to do with it. They cast her as a nurse. She said to me, I’m going to be in a Chinese movie. I said, So am I? Then I said, How many Chinese movies are there? Wait a minute.”
“The Bombing” is being produced by our old ‘friend’ Mel Gibson, who’s also acting as art director. The actual director is Xiao Feng.
“Now you can ask, how many fathers and daughters have been in movies together and didn’t even know it?”
Bruce, by the way, had only nice things to say about Woody Allen. Willis just dropped out of Woody’s new movie a day into shooting. “He’s a great guy, a great guy,” Bruce said. “Maybe next time.” It was just too hard to prepare for “Misery” and shoot a movie at the same time–particularly when your daughter is beating you to a Broadway debut. Steve Carell stepped in and replaced him.
I can tell you that Bruce, a musician who’s had bands and videos and even a minor hit record years ago, was pretty impressed Friday night by that murderer’s row of rock stars at East Hampton’s Blue Parrot: McCartney, Bon Jovi, Springsteen, Mellencamp, Roger Waters, and Jenny Lewis. He stayed til the end, chatting them all up and vice versa.
Miley Cyrus has put a new raunchy album on SoundCloud for free. The album is a collaboration with the Flaming Lips, but it’s a Miley Cyrus album. Make no mistake. It’s unclear how it will appear beyond free streaming.
The song titles include “Bang Me Box” and “Fuckin Fucked Up.” Another is called “I’m so Drunk.”
This album is full of X rated dialogue and some incredible melodies.
The lead track is called “Dooo It.” The refrain is “I don’t give a fuck.” There are a lot of lyrics about smoking pot.
Hannah Montana is dead.
The music is pretty cool, I’ll say that. And so is the idea of a free release announced at the last minute. There’s a potentially great track called “BB Talk.” Beautiful melody. Lyric: “Feeling like I’m going to vomit.”
Legendary film director Wes Craven has died at age 76 of brain cancer. His last movie was Scream 4, in 2011. Hugely influential in the horror genre, Craven created Freddy Krueger and “Nightmare on Elm Street.” He also created the “Scream” series that sent up his own career. Tributes are going to pour in shortly. I met Wes when “Scream” first started up, and he was the nicest guy. And brilliant. Condolences to his family. Keep refreshing…
UPDATE Imagine my surprise when Vulture (NY Magazine) writes that there’s a “rumor” Murray won’t be playing Peter Venkman. No credit to this column, which broke the story below. Very lame, I think. Here’s the original story:
August 30th– 7:17PM– The new all female “Ghostbusters” is pretty much finished filming, with Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon in charge of ridding the world of poltergeists.
We know that Chris Hemsworth is playing the role of the office secretary originally created by Annie Potts.
But what about Bill Murray? What’s his role? Is he still Dr. Peter Venkman, one of the chief ghostbusters (along with Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson and the late Harold Ramis)?
The answer is no. SPOILER ALERT According to our sources, Murray plays an all new character, an actual debunker of Ghostbusters. His new character is not a believer in the power of ghostbusting and needs some convincing. The question is, Will he meet his doom by not backing the ladies in their endeavor?
The new “Ghostbusters” is directed by Paul Feig and due next year.
We’re starting to see where hype and tabloid news mean nothing at the box office. Zac Efron is a sort of male pin up, Frankie Avalon with abs. This weekend his starring vehicle “We Are Your Friends” left theaters empty at $1.8 million. That’s for the entire weekend. Efron can make paparazzi insane, and draw crowds of women in person that amount to Beatlemania. (I’ve seen it up to close.) But open a film? Nope.
Kristen Stewart is having the same problem. She starred in the “Twilight” series and became the Annette Funicello of vampire movies. The tabloids and fotogs turned her into a superstar of publicity. But “American Ultra,” her new movie with Jessie Eisenberg, is a huge dud. It’s made just $10 million over two weekends. Her “Twilight” fans did not follow her to a regular project.
“Straight Outta Compton” won the weekend, and deservedly so. A faith based movie called “War Room,” which is not the famous documentary called “The War Room,” was second. “Mission Impossible” rose to $170 million, defying all expectations. “Southpaw” has quietly risen to $50 million. “The Man from UNCLE” — just lies there like a lox.
The Star Trek frienship of Kirk and Spock continues into the after life. I can tell you exclusively that William Shatner, portrayer of James T. Kirk, is preparing the official biography of Leonary Nimoy, aka Mr. Spock.
The book, tentatively called “Leonard: A 50 Year Friendship,” is due from St. Martin’s Press in 2016.
Shatner took a lot of flack when he didn’t attend Nimoy’s funeral this past year. But I’m told his daughters attended on his behalf, and Shatner has been in close touch with the Nimoy family. He even helped fund a documentary about Nimoy that’s being made by the late actor’s son. “For the Love of Spock” was a Kickstarter project from Adam Nimoy until Shatner stepped in.
Shatner and a co-writer have interviewed everyone who’s available from Nimoy’s past, I’m told. But many of the original “Star Trek” gang is gone, and some– like Nichelle Nichols, who played Uhura in the series– aren’t able to do it.
But you can tell from the accounts that Shatner’s project is full of love. “Star Trek” fans should be lining up around the block when this book hits stores.
Bill Clinton was not on the official guest list last night for Barry Levinson’s “Rock the Kasbah” and didn’t make the actual screening. But he was already at East Hampton’s famed Mexican style pub the Blue Parrot when the other guests– including Paul and Nancy McCartney and Jon and Dorothea Bon Jovi (he’s a part owner in the eatery)– arrived.
Everyone wanted to talk to Clinton, and he was nice enough to chat with me for a few minutes about his love of music, in particular R&B legend Sam Moore. (He lit up when I mentioned that I knew Sam.)
I did ask the former president what he thought about Donald Trump. In particular, I wondered how will Trump’s campaign — a carnival at this point– ever end?
Clinton purred– his voice is like a narcotic– “I think we should let him burn himself out,” he said.
And what does he think of Joe Biden: “I think we have to give him time to make the right decision for himself.”
Clinton hung out for quite a while– after all, it’s a short trip to the rental home he and Hillary took in Amagansett.
By the way, here’s the thing about Bill Clinton that you should know: he radiates charisma. You might criticize him at cocktail parties among your friends. But when you meet him, he becomes your best friend. Even Bruce Willis, a Republican, looked mesmerized by him.
