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Hot Trailer: ‘Anchorman 2′

Ron Burgundy and company return December 20 in Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues. We’ve had two teaser trailers up to now featuring the main cast of Will Ferrell, Paul Rudd, Steve Carell and David Koechner. Here’s a fresh look that fleshes out what the fab four will be up to in the 80s and featuring new cast members Kristen Wiig and James Marsden. Check it out, it’s kind of a big deal: Watch this video on YouTube.

7 Characters From Cannes I Still Can’t Get Out of My Mind

1. THE DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDREL

Found: Glad-handing at the Carlton lobby bar.

Drink: Whatever he orders on your tab (likely some brightly colored French liqueur no one can pronounce).

Transpo: Knowing all the back alleys and secret entrances, he needs no transportation other than his own confidence.

Male, suit and tie, impeccably coiffured hair, bad teeth and worse accent. He is at all the best parties, knows all the VIPs and appears wealthy yet pays only in charm. He has been to Cannes more years than you have been alive, and claims to have had the penultimate affair with the courtesan whose you-know-whats inspired those domes atop the Carlton.

He has a running inside joke with Alec Baldwin - when they see each other they point crooked fingers skyward, make silly faces, and crack up, never exchanging a word.

He is not on IMDB yet has a squadron of horrendous yet passionate movie pitches on hand, perhaps invented on the spot. If you hear: "It's an erotic thriller about the blind and big-calved wife of the rotary phone inventor who had an affair with Mussolini," you are likely in the presence of The Scoundrel.

Maybe he's for real, maybe not. Either way, people don't mind, as often the loftiest goal of this type of grifter is to make the griftee feel so satisfied with the unique experience, they don't mind paying his way at all.

2. THE SHORTS CORNER WHIPPERSNAPPER

Found: The Petit Majestic street party, the go-to for those without a go-to.

Drink: Whatever's free. He eats and drinks purely for survival.

Transpo: Easy Jet or Ryanair, back seat middle, still excited.

One of the more numerous Croisette creatures, this rookie is spotted by his go-getter 'tude and the plumage of a Fedora hat and a moustache, likely coming from his nest in Williamsburg or Silver Lake.

Thousands of them each year plan to molt right into a Polanski or even a Spielberg. "Why shouldn't it be me?" he thinks. Many truly believe non 'Snappers will actually watch their short film, read their script, fund their feature, feed their boundless enthusiasm. Désolé!

Yes, one or two will make it, maybe even become the next Benh Zeitlin, the next Ryan Coogler. Most, however, will never again return to the azure shores, making way for the next wave of 'Snappers.

Some survival tips to the financially strapped 'Snappers: when in France, drink Rose - it's cheaper than water.  Cell phones - the Palais is convenient but Orange is cheaper. And don't EVER refer to the French police as the oui oui patrol.

3. MONSIEUR IS NOT POSSIBLE

Found: Wherever you most want to go, right in the way.

Drink: Get 27 mixed with the tears of those who can't get into The Weinstein Party.

Transpo: Big man, tiny car.

Like American Express, he is everywhere you want to be. However, he doesn't take American Express or any other type of bribe. The makeup of the species looks like a cross between a muscle mag subscriber and an Armenian hitman. His female counterpart compensates for the lack of roided up pecs with a "list" you are not on, a long nose from which to look down upon you, and an even longer index finger evolved over generations of "Is Not Possibles" to give the heartbreaking wag. He will make sure, no matter who invited you and how many levels of invitations you have, it "Is Not Possible" for you to enter.

There are ways around this territorial species, yet I cannot divulge my secrets beyond walking in "with" the band, or managing to photobomb the VIP list and then hoping they haven't already let a Mister Tarantino enter.

However, as much as I loathe to encounter this species, when I have my own party at Cannes one day, I will go immediately to them to make sure riffraff like me are kept out. Until then...

4. THE CHIC SHEIK

Found: Helicoptering from one side of his yacht to the other.

Drink: 101 magnums of your most expensive champagne because a rival Sheik ordered 100.

Transpo: An orange Maybach, an orange Lamborghini, and an orange G-Class Mercedes, all three of which must be parked up front.

This desert variatal has adapted with a bank account the size of Texas to survive even the harshest fluctuations in air conditioning at Eden Roc Hotel, where he occupies every suite but Harvey's. He has also grown G4 wings to migrate at the drop of a keffiyah to more amenable locales. He has nothing to do with film, just enjoys being a star amongst stars, which is for anyone who can afford it. Which means it is for him only.

Surrounded by flocks of Eastern European ladies with flamenco legs, he has a yacht but prefers his suite. At over 300 feet, his yacht is too large to enter the Cannes area, plus he would never mingle with those "teeny" things, so he keeps it at the deeper port of Antibes with the Russian oligarchs and Microsoft founders.

His bills can easily total six figures at nightclubs like Gotha and Baoli, and if he can't drink all that champagne at least he can spray it. Lucky passers-by might have the best champagne of their lives by simply looking skyward and opening their mouths. Our Chic Sheik gives a whole new meaning to "making it rain."

5. THE DEALMAKER

Found: The Majestic Hotel bar holding court in blue velvet chairs.

Drink: Cafe. Strong Cafe.

Transpo: She doesn't need any. She hasn't moved from her comfy chair since the spec sales heyday of the 90's.

Finally someone who actually has a real career in the movie business! Dressed smartly, she aims to prove William Goldman wrong in his "nobody knows anything" description of the film industry, turning it into, at least, "somebody's gotta know something." She is that somebody.

Whether it is listening to new pitches, closing coproduction deals with cash-rich foreign countries, finding the next "Taken," fielding calls from L.A., waiting for the trades to announce the new film fund she closed, or walking away from deals others would kill for, she is an eagle, with an assistant or three circling at all times, oiling the parts, keeping the coffee and the meetings flowing. All of those movies you see advertised on the side of Croisette hotels, this is where they were born. When she returns to L.A. she'll continue the pace with talent meetings at Chateau Marmont, make a movie or three, hope for the best, then start all over again.

She sits with a cocked head and clasped hands as the chosen few get a handful of minutes to wow her with a pitch. She murmurs throughout, never letting her cards show. She discovered all of those guys, Spike and Mike and the rest, and she can do the same to you! All you have to do is get to that table just a few feet from where you stand at the bar, contemplating which €20 drink has more bang for your buck and counting your blessings. So close, yet so far away. Good luck!

6. THE UMBRELLA MAFIOSO (AKA - THE STREET VENDOR)

Found: In the rain, every 30 feet along the Croisette on your way to the Palais.

Drink: If it's worth anything it's for sale, so he'll only hold a drink in a refreshing manner to demonstrate the refreshingness of it.

Transpo: Though he sports his country's traditional garb, with all of the standing around he needs comfort, which means good ole Nike's.

Cannes 2013 was especially soggy. Everyone grumbled about it (and grumbling from the South of France, of course, falls on deaf ears to those grinding away back home). But, where we see misery, he sees opportunity. Forgot your umbrella? He is there. I don't care how good a negotiator you are, he will best you. When he says the umbrella costs €30, and you say €20, he looks at you standing there, the raindrops dangling from your eyelashes and dripping from your nose, and says simply, "It is raining. €30." Of course, the umbrellas break after a good strong wind but that's beside the point.

And when the sun comes, he's armed with beach hats a plenty, a board full of knockoff sunglasses and a friendly smile. One can only hope that, after raking it in from unprepared movie execs and Whippersnappers, he decides to return the love by investing back in film. But the reality is this creature is just too smart for that.

If you find yourself lacking an entertainment attorney in a pinch, maybe you should bring this opportunist to the table. You'll have your three-picture deal negotiated in no time flat. As a bonus, everyone at the aforementioned table will walk away with sweet new shades, large hats and wacky dancing stuffed animals.

7. THE COUTURE CAT BURGLER

Found: ...

Drink: Armand de Brignac champagne, which he charges to the Underhills.

Transpo: A grappling hook and a hotel maid uniform.

Cannes was rocked and (let's be honest) titillated this year after a $1 million-plus Chopard jewelry heist that happened, suspiciously, the same day that Sofia Copola's "Bling Ring" played, followed by a second even larger theft. Were they connected? Who did it? Was it fake Psy? Was it an inside job? Or did our character scale the chiseled walls of five-star hotels, make away with millions, and is now laundering the loot through the casino system in nearby Monaco?

The CCB has the most expensive taste in history. She is a limber and stunning creature, as beautiful if not more so than the starlets she targets. Chopard, upon seeing the necklace on her neck, might even forgive her. But as bright as the plumage is on this slender lass, she is also able to camouflage and blend into any environment.

She has nothing to do with the movie industry, other than identifying a rich target, but the movie industry likely will have something to do with her. It was the greatest film pitch of 2013. Mr. Soderbergh, consider pushing your retirement: "Oceans 14," Ocean's gang versus the great Belgian Inspector Hercule Poirot, at the Cannes Film Festival. The starlets will be wearing the world's most expensive jewelry, and if Pitt and Clooney can't remove the jewelry using their usual persuasions, our svelte swindler will swipe it during the distraction.

I am happy to write up the treatment for you :)

EVERYONE ELSE

Oh yeah, and the rest. Let's not forget the people who are actually doing business, selling our movies, providing the industry with capital, making it happen. The sales agents, the hustling producers, the visionary directors, the usual and the unusual suspects, all of those who truly believe in the importance of film. At the end of the day they are not as stereotypical as the above, probably because they are real people doing real work and the reason this whole circus can go on. A tip of the beret, a rev of the Bugatti V-16 to you, my dear sirs and gentlewomen. Keep it real. Or, as the case may be in the movies, unreal.

 

Ooyala Sets Up R&D Center In Singapore To Chase Mobile Audiences In Asia

Video services provider Ooyala is setting up an R&D operations in Singapore, and is hiring researchers and data scientists for the facility. The company provides video technology to media companies and telcos, enabling them to stream their content online such as the Australian Open, or helping ESPN embed videos in tweets.It claims to have a collective viewership of about 200 million across 130 countries each month. Ooyala has had a small staff of four in Singapore since last year, but the new facility will bump up its presence here to about 20 when it’s operational in 2014, said CEO, Jay Fulcher. The center here will focus on researching localized products for Asia, as the company expands outside of the US. Ooyala will keep its core engineering team in Mountain View, where most of its 300 staff are. It also maintains offices in Sydney, Tokyo, LA, New York and London, with teams of about ten in each of them. Fulcher wouldn’t say how much the company is ploughing into the center here, but said it is making “significant” investments into its growth. Last year, the company raised a massive $35 million round, led by Australian telco, Telstra. It was its fifth round to date. The company isn’t profitable, but Fulcher said Ooyala can make its books positive “at any given point”, but is choosing to spend aggressively on expansion in the meantime. 45 percent of its revenue comes from North America, with Asia, Latin America and Europe after, in descending order. When I pointed out that it’s generally unusual for companies to have Asia as their second-largest revenue contributor, Fulcher said it’s because Ooyala landed a large client in the Times Group of India. “In fact, that was our first client ever,” he said. As Ooyala expands in Asia, it’s also chasing the growing audience watching video on mobile devices here. According to its latest video index report, Singapore viewers had the longest live viewing sessions at 52 minutes on average. 57 percent also watched online videos to completion, indicating that they were engaged with the content. And more viewers in the region are watching videos longer than ten minutes—considered “longform” for videos, said Fulcher. A third of viewers in Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan and Thailand watch these longer videos. Other video networks focusing on mobiles are making an active play for the region, too. California-based Vuclip just reported that its mobile

BuzzFeed Journalist Michael Hastings Dead at 33

BuzzFeed reporter Michael Hastings died Tuesday morning in Los Angeles. He was 33.

BuzzFeed reported in a statement that Hastings was killed in a car accident. Media reports indicate that the accident took place on the 600 block of North Highland Ave. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene of that crash.

LAPD could not confirm to TheWrap that this was Hastings, but the Los Angeles Times reported that the Highland Avenue accident was the only vehicle fatality in Los Angeles that morning.

Hastings covered politics and war for BuzzFeed and Rolling Stone.

Early this year, Hastings wrote an ebook about his experience covering the 2012 presidential election for BuzzFeed. In 2010, he wrote The Operators: The Wild and Terrifying Inside Story of America's War in Afghanistan, based on his time embedded with General Stanley McChrystal for a George Polk Award-winning Rolling Stone article.

Also read: 'Rolling Stone' Wins Polk Award for Gen. McChrystal Coverage

Hastings' first book, I Lost My Love in Baghdad: A Modern War Story recounted his work for Newsweek covering the Iraq war and the death of his fiancee in a terror attack there.

Also read: Hollywood's Notable Deaths of 2013

Rolling Stone managing editor Will Dana said of his late contributing editor: "I'm sad that I'll never get to publish all the great stories that he was going to write, and sad that he won't be stopping by my office for any more short visits which would stretch for two or three completely engrossing hours. He will be missed."

BuzzFeed editor-in-chief Ben Smith said the site was "shocked and devastated" by Hastings' death, remembering him as "great, fearless journalist with an incredible instinct for the story."

Hastings also wrote for Newsweek and GQ. He leaves behind his wife, writer Elise Jordan.

Teambox Adds High-Definition Video Conferencing, Market Looks for Deeper Collaboration

Teambox has added high-definition video conferencing, adding to a list of providers that are adding video to their collaboration platforms. The Teambox offering is of particular note, as it fully integrates video conferencing and screen sharing directly into the collaboration platform through Zoom, a video-conferencing service. The service allows for video conferencing of up to 25 people across desktops, tablets and mobile devices. It supports iCal, Outlook and Google Calendar. Teambox has earned recognition for its capability to integrate third-party apps for an inline experience. It’s in some sense a framework for aggregating apps such as Box and Evernote. But is it that much better than using third-party services in conjunction with a collaboration platform? Tibco’s Tibbr activity stream product now integrates third-party web-conferencing tools. A customer can start a live meeting by choosing their own platform. The intent is to allow enterprises to leverage the platforms they have invested in. So there are benefits to both ways of integrating video conferencing with a collaboration platform. Most of the services, such as Microsoft Office 365,  have integrated video conferencing, mostly as an add-on. But the tide is shifting. Services such as Unison now offer video chat through WebRTC, the real-time communications technology that is native to the browser through a JavaScript API. Google Chrome, Firefox and Opera now support the open-source project. Then there are the services like Pexip, which I looked at last week, which is making video conferencing available as a software. In all of this, there is one theme. Video conferencing is now moving to software, making integration into collaboration services easier than ever before.

VIDEO: Mila Kunis Celeb Style Story Pt 2

Mila Kunis grows into her own on the red carpet in well fit, designer gowns. Thanks for ...

VIDEO: Mila Kunis Celeb Style Story Pt 2

Mila Kunis grows into her own on the red carpet in well fit, designer gowns. Thanks for ...

TV’s Talent Show Meltdown: Will Singing Competitions Hit High Note Again?

This story appears in TheWrap's EmmyWrap Reality Issue.

With "The Voice" finale hours away, tell us if this scenario sounds familiar:

A give-it-your-all reality competition becomes a national fascination, and people agonize over whether their favorite competitors will be voted off. Other shows mimic its formula -- and eventually another show becomes the nation's reality spectacle of choice. It outpaces its predecessor and makes many of us forget just how original the original once seemed.

We aren't just talking about "American Idol," but also Mark Burnett's "Survivor," the show that may be most responsible for launching the reality genre in the U.S. Just as "The Voice" has surpassed "Idol," "Idol" once overcame "Survivor."

Also read: 'The Voice' Finale: Christina Aguilera, Pitbull, Bruno Mars, Nelly Join Performance Roster

"Survivor" debuted in 2000, drawing big ratings and changing the television landscape. Two years later came "Idol," which took its inspiration from a British singing series but went on to rule U.S. television for eight years, dwarfing its predecessor and everything else in the ratings to such an extent that executives dubbed it "The Death Star."

"Idol" owed its success partly to the brutal honesty of Simon Cowell, who was every bit as shrewd as "Survivor's" first-season winner, Richard Hatch.

Viewers also tuned in for the watch-through-your fingers performances of aspiring stars like civil-engineering student William Hung -- who, as a singer, was a really great civil-engineering student.

In the 2011-12 TV season, "Idol" finally fell to NBC's "Sunday Night Football" -- which got an assist from a new Burnett show, "The Voice," which unlike "Idol" didn't succeed by playing rough. The NBC singing competition, which closes out its third season Tuesday night, took a more encouraging approach (subbing in "coaches" for "judges") and nearly tied "Idol" for second place behind football.

In the process, it replaced "Idol" on the list of Emmy contenders for Outstanding Reality-Competition Program last year, leaving the original singing show out of the category where it had been a staple for nine consecutive years.

This past season, "Idol's" 12th, "The Voice" has finally bumped Fox's phenomenon as the top singing show -- though neither sing-off now scores the outsized ratings "Idol" once did. In fact, ratings for "The Voice," "Idol" and Fox's "X Factor" are all down.

Also read: Blake Shelton Slams Music Critic Over 'Voice' Contestant Comments

As its season comes to an end, "The Voice" averages a 4.9 rating over its two nights in the key 18-49 demo. "Idol" has averaged a 4.5, and "X Factor" a 3.6.

But "Idol" still wins in total viewers, averaging 15 million over its two nights. "The Voice" averages 13.9 million, and "X Factor" 9.8 million.

The final numbers for "The Voice" will change slightly with tonight's finale, but it will end the season as television's top reality show in the key demo.

To hear Burnett tell it, "The Voice" owes its success to being "a kinder show." After a decade of reality shows in general getting more down and dirty, the devout Christian producer believes "The Voice" won out with decency. "There's no humiliation on it," he told TheWrap. "I feel that that's important with audiences."

He added: "Also, our coaches are very, very current in their careers. I feel like it's become young America's favorite show."

No matter how much of a role they truly play, the judges behind the table -- or coaches in the spinning chairs -- always get the credit or blame for a show's success or slide. They're too mean. They're too nice. Or, as critics said of outgoing "Idol" judge Randy Jackson, they don't come down hard enough either way.

It's true that "Idol" began to lose its bulletproof status when Cowell departed after Season 9 for "X Factor". And though his new show earns respectable ratings, they lag those of Idol and "The Voice" -- to say nothing of the "Idol" of old. It's also true that "Idol" became nicer in Seasons 10 and 11, when Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler took over as judges -- and the show still slipped in the ratings.

On the other hand, Cowell may have miscalculated when he decided to turn his "X Factor," which debuted in fall 2011, into a higher-stakes, tougher "Idol." In the first episode, the show introduced a newly sober addict, a single mother with dreams of sending her son to a good school and a 13-year-old who said her family has "no money" and dreamed of having her own bathroom. "Get ready for a new bathroom," Cowell told her. Eleven weeks later, she was sent home in tears.

Burnett's "The Voice," meanwhile, beat "X Factor" to the airwaves by five months and had already embraced its nicer approach, becoming NBC's biggest show besides "Sunday Night Football" in the process.

So, do musical competition shows need to get nicer? Or nastier? It's one of the big questions facing the replacement for Fox's president of alternative entertainment, Mike Darnell, who announced in late May that he was moving on. (Darnell told TheWrap that the declining singing show ratings had "nothing at all to do" with his decision to leave, saying "Idol" was "a phenomenon.")

The much-hyped "Idol" rivalry this year between Nicki Minaj and Mariah Carey didn't produce as much ratings heat as Fox may have hoped. And the lower "X Factor" ratings despite the much-hyped addition of Britney Spears in Season 2 suggests that big names can't guarantee better numbers.

So whatever else it does, Fox seems to be abandoning its superstar approach.  Kelly Rowland and Paulina Rubio have been named the new judges of "X Factor," and while both are pop stars, neither is a Britney Spears or Mariah Carey. And TheWrap reported last month that all four "Idol" judges will be out next season. (As of now, only Keith Urban remains on the "Idol" panel.)

Is it possible that the shows really are, as the judges and producers always insist, really about the contestants? If so, no one's going to to blame those contestants for singing shows' slide. More likely, some viewers think they've seen it all.

Burnett hopes fortunes may be changing yet again. On May 8, the 13-year-old "Survivor" caught up to the 11-year-old "Idol" to tie it in their common hour for the first time ever. Both shows had a 2.5 rating in the demo.

"That was the highlight of my year," Burnett said. "People kept asking me, 'Do you think "Idol" should be afraid of "The Voice?"' And I always said they should be more afraid of 'Survivor.'"

On the night "Survivor" and "Idol" tied, both were behind "The Voice," which had a 2.7.

Burnett knows what it's like to have another show borrow from his format. Does he feel for "Idol?"

"I've often thought in the very beginning that had "Survivor" patented elimination, it might be a very different landscape," he said. "In the end, if you're given the gift of primetime television in America, it's a massive responsibility…You have to treat every hour of primetime as if you're making a $100 million movie.

"I think the moral here is this: You cannot stand still. You're either going backward or forward."

Fab Grabs $150M At $1B Valuation (And Is Raising Another $100M+ More)

Design-focused commerce company Fab has raised that round of funding we scooped a few months ago. Fab is announcing today that it has raised $150 million in the first tranche of the company's Series D round of financing. We're told that $150 million is the first part of a larger Series D round that Fab expects to complete over the next few months. New to this round is Chinese internet giant Tencent, who will also have a board seat at Fab; and Japanese conglomerate Itochu. Previous investors Atomico, Andreessen Horowitz, Menlo Ventures, RTP Capital, Pinnacle Ventures, Lars Hinrichs, and Docomo Capital also participated in this latest round of financing.

Global Showbiz Briefs: UK Scramble For FA Cup Rights; Shanghai’s Box Office Surges; Karlovy Vary Honors John Travolta; More

At Least Four UK Nets Lining Up To Bid For FA Cup Rights A bidding war reportedly is gearing up in the UK for TV rights to soccer tournament the FA Cup for the three seasons to 2017-18. Financial Times reports that BT, ITV, BSkyB and the BBC are entering bids. BT and ITV currently share rights to the FA Cup until the end of the 2013-14 season. FT says analysts predict that having all four in the ring could significantly push up the cost of the rights. In January 2012, ITV acquired free-to-air broadcast rights for 16 FA Cup games per season, along with some of England’s home qualifying games, for an annual cost of £43M. But the BBC is understood to be concerned about its lack of live soccer during the regular season. BT and BSkyB are still expected to be the most aggressive bidders. Shanghai Now Second-Biggest Box Office Among Chinese Cities Shanghai box office has become the second biggest of all mainland Chinese cities and is expected to continue to grow rapidly in the next few years, spurred on by investment from U.S. studios Disney and DreamWorks, according to a study by Artisan Gateway. In 2012, Shanghai’s box office was $214.2 million, a 22.2% year-on-year growth. The city, regarded as the birthplace of Chinese cinema, has 122 movie theaters, ... Read More »

Startup-PR Matchmaker AirPR Opens To The Public, As Data Begins To Reveal How To Fix A Broken Model

For pretty much as long as anyone can remember, a relationship triangle, or a "love triangle" if you will, has taken shape between companies and the PR firms that represent them and the press that covers them -- existing in some sort of recursive loop. Yet, while that triangle should have come to represent a symbiosis and a valuable communication network, somewhere along the way the triangle broke down. (Defying the laws of Geometry, even.) In reality, today this relationship is more like the Bermuda Triangle.

EMMYS Q&A: Mitch Hurwitz

Paul Brownfield is an AwardsLine contributor. On May 26 at 12:01 a.m., 15 new episodes of Arrested Development went live on Netflix; by 5 a.m., the series’ legions of fans probably had exhausted the new supply. The comedy’s cancellation of Arrested by Fox in 2006, after two seasons, prompted an afterlife of rumors and almost-announcements, as series creator Mitch Hurwitz worked on a feature script of his cult series. Like the fans, Hurwitz didn’t want to let go of his extended band of crazies, the Bluths, either. And then Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s chief content officer, suggested resurrecting the show to Imagine Entertainment’s Ron Howard. “And Ron said, ‘That’s a very nice thought, I don’t think it’s ever going to happen,’” Hurwitz says. Except it did happen. Related: EMMYS: Comedy Series Overview AwardsLine: How different was the process in working with Netflix? Mitch Hurwitz: I wasn’t turning scripts in, because of the nature of the thing. We weren’t shooting one a week. We’d shoot pieces of eight different episodes in any given week. We were shooting 12, 14 pages a day, shooting like crazy. We screened it at the premiere — it was the first time an audience had seen it, but it was also the first time I’d seen two (episodes) in a row. I’d just been making them and putting ... Read More »

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What In Marie Antwatnette Hell?

So this is what it would look like if the Fairy Godmother got drunk on fermented apples, got high on pixie dust and accidentally turned a rotten, worm-filled pumpkin into a royal skank instead of turning it into a carriage. A knocked up Katie Price got sprayed down with bright orange car paint, put on [...]

Selma Blair Exits ‘Anger Management’ Amid Charlie Sheen Feud Reports

Selma Blair won't be returning to Charlie Sheen's FX comedy "Anger Management," following reports that she had crossed Sheen, Lionsgate said Tuesday.

In a statement, Lionsgate, which produces "Anger Management," said that it wishes Blair "the very best."

Also read: Lindsay Lohan Guesting on 'Anger Management' as Charlie Sheen's Patient

"We are confirming that Selma Blair will not be returning to 'Anger Management' and we wish her the very best."   

Though Lionsgate didn't elaborate on Blair's departure, the announcement comes following reports that Sheen had demanded that Blair be fired, after she found herself on Sheen's bad side. According to TMZ, Sheen offered an ultimatum to "Anger Management" producers, saying that he would quit if Blair wasn't fired. Sheen reportedly believed that Blair had been complaining about his work habits behind his back.

Also read: 'Anger Management' $50M Lawsuit: Producer Joe Roth Countersues

Blair played Dr. Kate Wales, a therapist and the frequent bedmate of Sheen's Charlie Goodson character on the series, which is currently in its second season.

Blair's publicist has not yet responded to TheWrap's request for comment.

TMZ also reported earlier this week that Sheen is trying to book "Black Swan" star Mila Kunis for a 10-episode guest arc on the series -- an interesting development, if true, given that Kunis has been romantically linked to her former "That '70s Show" co-star Ashton Kutcher, who replaced Sheen on "Two and a Half Men."

After gaining satisfactory ratings with its first 10-episode season, "Anger Management" was renewed for another 90 episodes.

Talent Managers Association Elects Annet McCroskey President

EXCLUSIVE: Annet McCroskey of Artistic Endeavors has been elected President of the Talent Managers Association, the non-profit organization created in 1954 to promote the talent management biz. Three months ago Phil Brock of Studio Talent Group stepped down from the post after serving for two years. Then-Board of Directors VP McCroskey filled in back in March when Brock suddenly vacated the position. She’ll now become the organization’s first female president in 20 years. Longtime Harrison Ford manager Pat McQueeney was elected to the post in 1980 and Christina Applegate’s manager Tami Lynn served in 1993. “Many of us were moved by Laura Linney’s acceptance speech this week at the WIF Crystal + Lucy Awards about women in entertainment and how much more progress we have to make as an industry,” said McCroskey. “As an organization we strive to be equally inclusive of all of our members and mentor other managers to adhere to our strict code of ethics.” McCroskey’s priorities include the annual industry Heller Awards planned for September 19, 2013. Related: Laura Linney On Gender Inequality In Film Business: ‘It’s Unhealthy”   Joining McCroskey is the newly elected 2013-2015 TMA Board of Directors: President: Annet McCroskey – Artistic Endeavors 1st VP: Karla Huff – Dream Talent Management 2nd VP: Daryn Simons- Acting Out ... Read More »

Marriage Struggles to Stand a Short Test of Time in ‘I Give It a Year’ Trailer (Video)

A new comedy from "Borat" and "Bruno" writer Dan Mazer is named after a common expression uttered when young couples rush into marriage too soon.

"I Give It a Year" follows a couple, played by Rose Byrne and Rafe Spall, who get married after just seven months of knowing one another, and every one around them thinks they're a little bit crazy for doing so.

See video: Stephen Merchant Uses Abortion Joke to Pick Up Women in 'Hello Ladies' Teaser

Simon Baker ("The Mentalist") and Anna Faris ("Scary Movie") appear in the British comedy as adulterous temptations, while Minnie Driver co-stars as Byrne's sister and Stephen Merchant turns terrible jokes into zingers as the groom's brother.

"Fornication," Merchant says to start off a wedding toast. "I'll read that again. For an occasion..like this."

Mazer's directorial debut exploring the trials and tribulations of marriage hits U.S. theaters Aug. 9. Watch the trailer, below:

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New Yorkers Get Free Power In The Parks

Months after Hurricane Sandy left New York scrambling for power, the city is unveiling 25 solar powered charging stations in parks and public spaces throughout the five boroughs, starting today. The pilot project between AT&T and the city of New York is officially called AT&T Street Charge. (DUMBO firm pensa handled design, and Goal Zero provided the solar technology, AT&T handled the cash.) The stations will move to new locations at the beginning of July, rotating throughout the city until September. After that, we'll see what becomes of them.

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HBO Passes on ‘Hobgoblin’ Pilot, FX Eyes Project (Exclusive)

After months of development at HBO, the premium cable network has passed on period drama pilot, "Hobgoblin," TheWrap has learned exclusively.

Additionally, "Black Swan" director Darren Aronofsky left the project earlier this year.

According to an individual with knowledge of the negotiations, FX is eyeing a pickup of the project.

HBO and FX declined to comment for this article.

Also read: Mary Elizabeth Winstead Joins Logan Marshall Green on Cinemax Pilot 'Quarry' (Exclusive)

Formerly, Aronofsky was attached to direct, which would've been his first foray into television.

Co-written by Michael Chabon ("Wonder Boys") and his wife Ayelet Waldman, the pilot follows a group of conmen and magicians who use their skills of deception to help take down Adolf Hitler and the Germans during World War II.

Some in the media have compared the project to "Inglourious Basterds" with magic.

In addition to co-writing the pilot project, Chabon and Waldman will executive produce along with Le Grisbi Productions' John Lesher and Adam Kassan.

2ND UPDATE: Charlie Sheen Fired Selma Blair From ‘Anger Management’ Via Text, Show To Continue Production As Scheduled

2ND UPDATE 6:10 PM: I’ve learned more details about Selma Blair‘s shocking dismissal from Anger Management. I hear Charlie Sheen “fired” her via text, in which he called the actress a “c–t”. And it was not the only abusive, expletives-filled text she had received from Sheen, who also serves as an executive producer on Anger Management. I also hear that Blair was not the only member of the show’s cast and crew that was frustrated by Sheen’s work habits as I hear they would often sit and wait for hours for him to show up for work. Although it was Blair voicing her concerns that got Sheen to flip out and get her sacked. I hear Blair’s role as Charlie’s therapist will not be recast. Probably not coincidentally, I hear the series just sent out a notice about a new female regular who is expected to fill the void left by Blair. The producers likely will use Blair’s exit for another creative makeover following the recent tweaking following Anger Management‘s sagging ratings. But, while the show took an unplanned hiatus for the recent creative retool, it is now expected to stay in production as scheduled, with the writers making changes prompted by Blair’s departure on the fly. Anger Management is roughly halfway ... Read More »

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