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Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith have been writing "The Hollywood Exclusive" together since 1990, focusing on real entertainment news and behind...
Read more about Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith.
Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith have been writing "The Hollywood Exclusive" together since 1990, focusing on real entertainment news and behind...
Read more about Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith.
The Hollywood Exclusive: Hunt's Self-Designed Mommy Track Has Room for Labors of Love/Brian Austin Green Too Busy With 'Sarah Connor' For '90210'
Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith
Helen Hunt is deep into writing the script for what she hopes will be
the follow-up film to her "Then She Found Me" directorial debut, but
she's not in a rush to get it -- or herself -- before the cameras.
Nowadays, says the Oscar, Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress, "I'm a stay-at-home mom who every few years takes on a big thing and pieces it together somehow. I've been home with my daughter since she was born, almost entirely," notes Hunt, speaking of 4-year-old Makena. "It's been very lucky. I said to myself, 'I want to be with my family and work on projects I love doing. And if this kind of work means very infrequently being away for intense periods of time, it's not a bad trade."
That said, Hunt is looking forward to directing again. "I loved it, even though, as anyone will tell you, it's an insane job."
With "Then She Found Me" -- which gets its DVD and Blu-ray release today (9/2) -- Helen cast herself in the lead because 1) she didn't want to ask another actress to make the kind of "24/7, 'I'll do anything' kind of commitment I needed for basically nothing." And 2) "I really hadn't played a part like this before."
That part certainly gave Hunt plenty to do. Her "Then She Found Me" character is a woman who finds herself pregnant by the ex-husband who dumped her (Matthew Broderick) -- even though she's fallen in love with another man (Colin Firth) -- all the while getting to know her oh-so-colorful biological mother (Bette Midler), a talk show host.
"I was trying to get this movie made for a long time -- on and off for a decade, in many incarnations. I tried to get it done as a faithful adaptation" of Elinor Lipman's novel, she says. "As an actress, over time I took apart the story and put it back together. Colin Firth's and Matthew Broderick's characters are not in the novel. Over the last set of years, it became clear to me that I wanted to direct it."
She believes she'll probably at least have a hand in writing the films she directs. "I can only imagine doing it if I loved a story so much I felt I could tell it in a way no one else could. I have no desire to direct just to direct. That's great for others, I just don't think it's me."
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THE VIDEOLAND VIEW: Brian Austin Green tells us that he's heard from the producers of the CW's new "90210," who'd like him to make an appearance on the new show as his old "Beverly Hills, 90210" character, David Silver. "I wish them the best on the show, and I think it would be fun to go back for an episode if the timing ever worked out right. My schedule right now is pretty tight," says the "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" actor.
Green couldn't be happier with his current role -- Derek Reese, the uncle of Savior-of-the-World-To-Be John Connor. "I honestly couldn't ask for a better character to play. He's fantastic, and he has all the depth and back story that an actor would want and all the heart he needs." And besides, "Who wouldn't want to fight Terminators?" he asks. In fact, he wanted it enough to audition for it. "I went in on a Thursday morning, got the call and went to work on Friday. For me, it was really exciting."
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HE'S GOT GAME: Christopher Knight is gaining a brand-new appreciation for the talents of Pat Sajak, Alex Trebek, Bob Barker and all the other best game show hosts of TV -- now that the "Brady Bunch" child star turned "My Fair Brady" reality show personality is handling hosting chores on the Sept. 22-premiering, syndicated "Trivial Pursuit: America Plays."
"It's incredibly difficult. It's completely different from anything I've done before. The process one uses in reality television -- well, there is no process. You try not to crack or fall apart," he says. "Hosting a game show, you have to be on top of a lot of things that are going on all at the same time. You have to be prepared for the game. You have to make others comfortable and guide them. You have no idea. As a viewer, the more comfortable you are watching one of these shows, believe me, the more is working behind the scenes that you're not even aware of."
Knight says he's grateful that the "Trivial" producers took him on sans experience. "Fortunately, when my agent recommended me, they saw something in me and were willing to work with me. All of my friends have been telling me, 'I've always thought you'd be perfect to be a game show host. I don't know if I'd have taken that as a compliment 20 years ago," he admits with a laugh. But then, "I wouldn't have been ready, either. I think it takes a certain maturity to be a game show host." Knight has 14 "Trivial Pursuit" segments in the can, and "We're doing well over 150 more. This is a gas. I'm having a ball."
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WORTH ANOTHER LOOK: Great news that TNT is planning to make a telefilm based on Dr. Ben Carson's uplifting memoir -- with Cuba Gooding starring as the poor ghetto child whose heart was broken when his father left the family, who was told again and again that he wasn't smart enough to fulfill his dreams, and who wound up as Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins University Hospital. "Gifted Hands," the book, is one that brings tears to the eyes in the best way, and is must reading for young people in need of some inspiration.
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With reports by Emily Feimster. To find out more about Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith and read their past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.
Copyright 2008 Creators Syndicate Inc.
This news arrived on: 09/02/2008
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