Some nifty news and info

A movie expert weighs in on why the teen dramedy was a box-office flop.
By Jocelyn Vena

Miley Cyrus in “LOL”
Photo: Lionsgate

Last Friday, Miley Cyrus’ soapy teen dramedy “LOL” opened to a limited release in nine states. The film, by all accounts, didn’t perform the way a film starring Cyrus, “Twilight” star Ashley Greene and one-time screen siren Demi Moore, might be expected to.

“LOL,” an English-language adaptation of a French Film of the same name, grossed only $46,500 in 105 theaters. While it’s hard to tell why the film underperformed, it seems that a lack of marketing leading up to its debut may have played a role in that. The flick follows the story of a teen, Lola (played by Cyrus), as she faces the strife of first love in a world driven by technology.

“It’s really hard to say because we’ve heard absolutely nothing about it. I think there was some buzz about this was sort of going to be a different type of breakout role for Miley. I’m not a fan of Miley, but I would actually like to see that and I think a lot of people would,” Brooke Tarnoff, a senior editor at Next Movie, told MTV News about the lackluster interest in the flick once it dropped.

With so few eyes on the release leading up to May 4, it’s hard to tell if the performance had anything to do with Cyrus. Tarnoff added, “Maybe the selling power of Miley has diminished. I think her fanbase may be less loyal than it was in the ‘Hannah Montana’ days, but it’s all kind of moot.”

The film had gotten some attention when Cyrus and Greene were spotted filming it back in 2010. But, after shooting wrapped, little else was heard about the film until a trailer dropped in mid-April, three weeks before the limited release.

“There’s obviously an audience for pretty much anything,” she continued. “And this one having a ‘Twilight’ star and Miley Cyrus, who still has some cache, it’s just [a missed opportunity].”

Regardless of the film’s box-office performance, Cyrus seemed proud of it. She took to Twitter over the weekend and brushed off the low numbers. “Thank u so much for everyone who went to see LOL,” she wrote. “It is a film I loved making and I am proud of…. That’s really all that matters to me.”

Thank u so much for everyone who went to see LOL. It is a film I loved making and I am proud of…. That’s really all that matters to me. ?

— Miley Ray Cyrus (@MileyCyrus) May 7, 2012

Lisa Azuelos, who wrote and directed both versions, talked about the box-office response in an interview with the Los Angeles Times.

“I really thought this movie could be universal,” she said. “Usually teen movies are tender or scary or have vampires in them, but they’re never realistic. This story isn’t too dirty and not too stupid.”

Have you seen or do you plan on seeing “LOL”? Leave your comment below!

Check out everything we’ve got on “LOL.”

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

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With the ‘Hunger Games’ sequel more than a year away, here’s where you can catch its stars in the meantime.
By Amy Wilkinson

Jennifer Lawrence in “The Hunger Games”
Photo: Lionsgate

November 23, 2013, is just a year and a half away, but it might as well be a lifetime from now considering how antsy we are to feast on “The Hunger Games” sequel “Catching Fire.” Progress is no doubt beginning on the follow-up (director Francis Lawrence was confirmed last week by Lionsgate), but there’s still much to be done before the film is big-screen ready for next, next Thanksgiving. In the meantime, we’ll pass the torturous days and months by gripping our Peeta pillow extra tight and gorging on the stars’ slew of interim offerings—Jennifer Lawrence and her Panem peeps are in-demand actors, after all! Here’s your guide to the actors’ upcoming projects:

Jennifer Lawrence
If only Lawrence could swipe Katniss’ bow and arrow for use in her horror flick “The House at the End of the Street,” out September 21. Lawrence plays a teen who moves next door to a home where a grisly murder took place. She befriends the surviving son and, well, things don’t go so well for her after that.

Two months later, Lawrence will appear alongside Bradley Cooper and Robert De Niro in the big-screen adaptation of Matthew Quick’s novel “The Silver Linings Playbook.” She reportedly plays a widow trying to seduce Cooper’s character, who has recently been released from a mental institution.

The Cooper coupling will continue with the period drama “Serena” (a role originally intended for Angelina Jolie), after the thriller “Devil You Know” makes its debut.

Josh Hutcherson
After bonding with Liam on the set of “The Hunger Games,” Hutcherson will star alongside the other Hemsworth brother in the November 21 release “Red Dawn,” which finds a group of teenagers trying to protect their town from invading North Korean soldiers.

The baker’s son has a couple of other projects in the pipeline (neither of which have official release dates), but keep an eye out for “7 Days in Havana” and “The Forger.”

Liam Hemsworth
The younger Hemsworth will flex his action muscles throughout the rest of 2012 and into the new year. First up is “AWOL” (scheduled for release sometime this year), which follows a Vietnam soldier who defects to win back the love of his life. The film co-stars Teresa Palmer, Aimee Teegarden and Chris Lowell.

If that doesn’t sound harrowing enough, Hemsworth will team up with every action star ever (read: Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, Chuck Norris) for the splashy sequel “The Expendables 2,” out August 17. His list of in-the-works flicks also includes “Paranoia,” “Timeless” and “Arabian Nights.”

Elizabeth Banks
Fans won’t have to wait long to see Elizabeth Banks grace the silver screen once again. The bubbly blond dons a pregnancy belly for next week’s “What to Expect When You’re Expecting,” based on the iconic self-help book. (That woman loves her some adaptations, huh?)

Shortly after (June 29, to be exact), Banks will portray long-lost sister to Chris Pine, who must find his secret sibling to deliver a $150,000 inheritance in the film “People Like Us.”

Woody Harrelson
The word “eclectic” comes to mind when summing up Woody Harrelson’s CV — and it’s not an ill-advised adjective to describe his list of upcoming projects either. “Seven Psychopaths,” out in limited release November 2, follows a struggling screenwriter who gets caught up in the criminal underworld after his weird friend kidnaps a mobster’s dog.

Then there’s 2013′s “Now You See Me,” in which a group of illusionists pull heists as part of their act and give the spoils to their audiences. (Uh, do you guys need extras?) The January release co-stars Mark Ruffalo, Dave Franco and Morgan Freeman.

Which of “The Hunger Games” stars’ other upcoming projects are you excited about? Sound off in the comments below and tweet me @amymwilk with your thoughts and suggestions for future columns!

Earlier ‘Hunger Games’ columns
+ Francis Lawrence’s ‘Catching Fire’ To-Do List
+ ‘Fifty Shades Of Grey’: What’s In It For ‘Hunger Games’ Fans?
+ ‘Catching Fire’: Five Reasons To Be Stoked
+ ‘Catching Fire’ Director: Who Could Carry The Torch?
+ ‘Hunger Games’ Postmortem: Five Lessons For ‘Catching Fire’

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MTV News travels to New Orleans, where four stars of the upcoming YA adaptation talk about the supernatural romance.
By Amy Wilkinson

Alice Englert and Alden Ehrenreich on the set of “Beautiful Creatures”

NEW ORLEANS — This is a story of boy meets girl. Or, more accurately, boy meets caster.

What is a caster, you may be asking? In the southern gothic world imagined by “Beautiful Creatures” authors Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, casters have magical powers much like witches. Some can seduce men with one lick of a lollipop. Others can mutate their arm into a slithering snake. And still others can channel Mother Nature, bending weather to their will.

This is the supernatural realm MTV News stepped into recently during our exclusive visit to the New Orleans set of “Beautiful Creatures.” While there we got the scoop on the adaptation straight from the film’s four young stars.

“Lena is a young girl who also happens to be a caster, and she’s moved around — she’s moved to a lot of small towns and problems follow her,” Alice Englert told us of her character. “She’s just come to Gatlin, which is so insignificant it doesn’t have a Starbucks, etc., and [the theater] gets the titles of movie names wrong, and everyone thinks I’m a Satanist.”

Just the usual adolescent angst, right? Englert conceded that underneath her supernatural surface, Lena struggles with issues any typical teen would: “I think Lena is like most girls when you feel massively insecure.”

Few things can make one feel more insecure than being bullied by classmates, which just so happened to be the theme of the scene being shot during our visit.

“We’re shooting a scene where there sort of begins this class persecution of Lena, and it’s very blatant,” Englert explained.

“The girls in class are sort of this awful clique of girls, who are always being mean to her, and they start tormenting her,” chimed in co-star Alden Ehrenreich, who plays Lena’s love interest, Ethan.

“It’s getting out of control, and she gets of control,” Englert concluded.

This particular scene was just one of many effects-laden moments scheduled during production — one in which the windows of the classroom shatter in magnificent fashion. “I forgot that we were shooting, and I just stood there, like, [drops jaw], my eyes crossed. It’s going to look so ridiculous,” enthused Zoey Deutch, who plays mean girl Emily. “It’s really fun. It was insane. It was so loud. I really thought there was an earthquake.”

Special effects aside, Deutch was also impressed with the film’s source material, counting herself among the many fans of “Beautiful Creatures.”

“I loved the books, I thought they were incredible,” she said. “I thought they were smart and like nothing I’d ever read before. I’m an avid ‘Harry Potter’ fan, and ['Beautiful Creatures'] was kind of my favorite series I’ve read since then.”

But for those wanting to draw parallels between protagonist Ethan Wate and the Boy Who Lived (or even a certain sparkly vampire), Thomas Mann, who plays Link, said not so fast. “I think it’s definitely going to be unique from those stories,” he assured.

“Beautiful Creatures” hits theaters February 15, 2013.

For young Hollywood news, fashion and “Twilight” updates around the clock, visit HollywoodCrush.MTV.com.

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Who said weekends are only for going out? MTV sure doesn’t think so, as the network is introducing a new special, MTV Sleepover, centered around watching movies with your friends. Hosted by Lenay Dunn, MTV Sleepover will air on Friday and Saturday nights from 10pm to 12:30am, with Lenay and her pals offering commentary, fashion tips and general girl talk!

According to Lenay, who is the host of MTV’s hit show 10 on Top, “MTV Sleepover is like a big party in your pajamas. Its me and my girlfriends watching movies, skyping in friends and celeb guests in PJs, and a few surprises also.”

The adorable blonde (she’s the face of Macy’s American Rag line) says the show will also explore a previously uncharted area of style, “We are showing a lot of ‘PJ fashion’ which isn’t done often in a show of this format. Our stylist has brought in some of the cutest looks.”

Those looking to snuggle up and join Lenay can catch a debut of MTV Sleepover on April 27th.

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By Kara Warner

ODB and Michael K. Williams
Photo: Getty Images

Crafting the perfect Hollywood biopic is often very tricky business. More often than not, you are dealing with the legacy of a star who passed away too soon, the emotional impact a big-screen adaptation might have on the subject’s family, as well as casting the perfect actor to bring an iconic individual to life.

The filmmakers behind the Ol’ Dirty Bastard biopic “Dirty White Boy” are off to a very positive start with their film in that they have enlisted celebrated and very capable actor Michael K. Williams to tackle the title role. MTV News recently caught up with Williams, most well-known for his roles as Chalky White on “Boardwalk Empire” and the haunting, shotgun-toting Omar Little on “The Wire,” and Williams had a lot to say about the research and groundwork he’s putting into his preparation for the role of the Wu Tang Clan lyricist (born Russell Tyrone Jones).

“I am doing a lot of research on Russell,” Williams said recently on the set of the upcoming short film “They Die by Dawn.” “I had the pleasure of meeting his beautiful mother, Ms. Cherry. We sat down for, like, three hours, and she told me the most amazing stuff about her son and a lot of things that the public didn’t know. I’ve been talking to people who know him well … people who knew him when the cameras weren’t rolling,” Williams said. “I’ve got a lot of insight into who he was as a human being and as a man and, dare I say it, scholar. The dude was quite smart. You have to be able to recite mathematics and be 5 percent of god body — you can’t play with that. You have to know what you’re talking about. It’s a lot of studying, a lot of knowledge.”

Williams went on to say that the film will be mostly a straight drama, but will also include plenty of ODB’s more colorful personality quirks.

“It’s drama, but if you know ODB, there’s going to be some comedy, but we’re not playing to that. It’s going to be shot as a straight piece, no buffoonery, for lack of a better word,” Williams said. “It’s only going to cover the last two years of his life when he was released from prison to the day he died. It’s just an insight into what he struggled with in the public eye.”

“Dirty White Boy” is being produced by Lars Knudsen and Jay Van Hoy (“Beginners”) and the screenplay is by Brent Hoff, who worked at VH1, where he first met ODB and later became his manager.

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

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Who said weekends are only for going out? MTV sure doesn’t think so, as the network is introducing a new special, MTV Sleepover, centered around watching movies with your friends. Hosted by Lenay Dunn, MTV Sleepover will air on Friday and Saturday nights from 10pm to 12:30am, with Lenay and her pals offering commentary, fashion tips and general girl talk!

According to Lenay, who is the host of MTV’s hit show 10 on Top, “MTV Sleepover is like a big party in your pajamas. Its me and my girlfriends watching movies, skyping in friends and celeb guests in PJs, and a few surprises also.”

The adorable blonde (she’s the face of Macy’s American Rag line) says the show will also explore a previously uncharted area of style, “We are showing a lot of ‘PJ fashion’ which isn’t done often in a show of this format. Our stylist has brought in some of the cutest looks.”

Those looking to snuggle up and join Lenay can catch a debut of MTV Sleepover on April 27th.

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Their relationship hasn?t exactly been the stuff that fairy tales are made of. But when Kourtney Kardashian finally ? and shockingly ? decided to tie the knot with her bad-boy baby daddy, Scott Disick, she chose a locale nearly romantic enough to erase the heartache he?s caused her over the years. ?Kourtney has always loved Mexico,? explains a friend of the soon-to-be mother of two. While her rep denies the story, In Touch has learned she has selected Casa Aramara ? the stunning estate on the outskirts of Puerta Vallarta, owned by Kardashian pal Joe Francis ? as the venue for her wedding to Scott. ?Her family has been friends with Joe or so long,? the friend adds. ?Kourtney has always considered Joe?s home a place where she can really relax.?

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