Sunday, December 26, 2010
Enfianced Prince William & Kate Middleton Spend Xmas Apart
Matt Damon Gets Tongue-Tied By 'True Grit,' Bieber Fever
The Oscar-winning actor gamely shows off his character's interesting manner of speech for MTV News.
By Kara Warner, with reporting by Josh Horowitz
Matt Damon
Photo: MTV News
Matt Damon. Actor, writer, Oscar winner. Generally perceived in and around Hollywood to be a really nice guy. As such, when MTV News caught up with Damon as he promoted "True Grit," we hoped he would respond positively to our request for him to conduct the interview either talking in the voice of his "Grit" character, Texas Ranger LaBoeuf, or using his dead-on Matthew McConaughey impression.
"I would do [LaBoeuf's accent] if anyone had a ponytail [holder]," he said, and then asked the behind-the-scenes ladies in the room if he could borrow one. Amazingly enough, someone did have one at the time and quickly handed it to Damon, who tied it around his tongue.
Not to spoil the film, but in "True Grit," Damon's character suffers a particular misfortune along the way that leads to him losing part of his tongue, adding a lisp to his Texas twang.
"Ask me anything you like," he said with a distinct lisp, after affixing the band to his tongue.
Then it was our turn to try to maintain a straight face long enough to ask Damon why he wanted to be in this particular film.
"Well, I'd been looking to work with [directors] Joel and Ethan [Cohen] for a long time," he said, trying not to laugh himself. Film-related questions aside for a moment, we had to ask him, does that hurt?
"Yeah," Damon admitted, at which point we told him he should take off the band. "No, no, I'm going to do the whole interview like this," he insisted.
We then brought up "Grit" star Hailee Steinfeld, who's been getting rave reviews and plenty of awards consideration for her breakthrough performance, and asked what it felt like to be out-witted by a young girl.
"I have four girls in my house, I get out-witted by them every day," Damon quipped — still talking with the band.
Has his home been affected by Bieber fever yet?
"No," Damon said. "We've mercifully avoided Bieber fever."
There's still time: His daughters are ages 11, 4, 2 and 3 months.
Check out everything we've got on "True Grit."
For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.
Related VideosGap Contest Winners
Okay, wow, did this take a long time to figure out. After counting how many people entered to win each item, I assigned each person a number based on the order they signed up, then used Random.org to pick a winner.
So, let's start with the jeans...
C - Sexy Boot 26/2L (I have two pairs)
13 people entered. And the winners are... #6 - Amanda K. and #4 - Amanda R. (the sixth and fourth person to sign up to win C)
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D - Sexy Boot 28/6L
13 people entered. And the winner is... #7 - Madeline
E - Sexy Boot 29/8L
12 people entered. And the winner is... #12 - Rachel E.
F - Sexy Boot 31/12L
25 people entered. And the winner is... #16 - Laura R.
G - Real Straight 27/4
19 people entered. And the winner is... #2 - Kristi D.
H - Always Skinny 27/4
16 people entered. And the winner is... #16 - Kathleen S.
I - Always Skinny 30/10
11 people entered. And the winner is... #9 - Sara F.
J - Always Skinny 31/12
14 people entered. And the winner is... #2 - Kara P.
Next, the gift card...
A - $50 Gap Gift Card
121 people entered. And the winner is... #83 - Elena
And finally, the certificates for a free pair of jeans...
B - Gift Certificate for a Pair of Gap 1969 Jeans (I have six)
112 people entered. And the winners are... #54 - Lesli L., #8 - Brenda R., #32 - Ellene, #37 - Heather V., #111 - Megahn K., and #60 - Jennifer R.
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Congratulations, everyone!
For the people who didn't win, you will all be getting a boobie prize. Once I get all the jeans sent out, I'll contact you to get your address. Please note, boobie prizes will not be a photo of my boobies. They will, however, be something in my apartment that I don't want anymore... maybe a book or a CD or a vase with a cheetah design on it that my mom gave me a long time ago that I simply do not use.* Your boobie prize is to stay wrapped and under the tree until Christmas morning, at which point you may open it. I'm decluttering my apartment, so it's either you or goodwill, and to be honest, this seemed more fun.
God, I totally feel like Oprah right now.
(And honestly, would you rather win a trip to Australia or an Ally McBeal CD?** Because I have one of those and someone's going to get it.)
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Beyoncé - Ego (Remix)
- Artist: Beyoncé
- Label: Columbia, Music World Music
- Director: Beyonce, Frank Gatson
Ke$ha Proclaims 'We R Who We R' At AMAs
Ke$ha destroys hate with her American Music Awards performance.
By Jocelyn Vena
Ke$ha performs at the 2010 American Music Awards
Photo: Christopher Polk/ Getty Images
Whirring sirens and post-apocalyptic stage design certainly set the tone for Ke$ha's energetic American Music Awards performance on Sunday (November 21). Surrounded by keyboards, Ke$ha kicked it all off in a glowing robot helmet and began her Animal track, "Take It Off."
Soon she was surrounded by dancers, some of whom broke through mirrors to join the singer on the stage as she transitioned into her Cannibal track "We R Who We R." For the performance, Ke$ha let her hair down and graced the stage in a mirrored bodysuit and leather jacket. She danced and gyrated her way through the track off her latest release, out this week.
When she wasn't dancing, she played a white guitar as confetti fell from the ceiling toward the song's synth filled and Auto-Tuned finale. As the song wrapped, she turned the guitar around and revealed that it said "hate" with a slash through it. She destroyed the guitar as sparks flew from behind her.
"This year has been carnivorous and life-changing. I have my rowdy, gorgeous fans to thank for taking me on the ride of a lifetime," she said in a statement. "My only goal with this record is to keep them dancing," she said of the new album. "The songs on Cannibal were made to inspire people to ignore any hate or judgment and be themselves unapologetically. It's the perfect companion to Animal and I hope you guys like it. And if you don't like it -- bite me."
What did you think of Ke$ha's AMA Performance?
Related Videos Related Photos Related ArtistsSaturday, December 25, 2010
Chris Cornell Filling In For Robert Plant On Led Zeppelin Tour? That's News To Him
'I have not been approached to fill in for Robert Plant on the Zeppelin tour, but that isn't to say I won't be,' singer says.
By Chris Harris
Chris Cornell
Photo: MTV News
Former Soundgarden and Audioslave frontman Chris Cornell has spoken out for the first time about rumors that he's been asked to fill in for Robert Plant on a proposed Led Zeppelin reunion tour. The trek would feature original guitarist Jimmy Page, original bassist John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham taking over on drums for his late father, John Bonham.
Cornell has been mentioned — along with Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl, former Van Halen frontman Sammy Hagar, White Stripes mastermind Jack White and Alter Bridge's Myles Kennedy — as a potential Plant fill-in. Plant has already said that he wouldn't take part in the tour.
"I have not been approached so far to fill in for Robert Plant on the upcoming Zeppelin tour, but that isn't to say I won't be," Cornell told MTV News. "I've heard that from about 200 people now, and it might be one of those situations where it's just an online rumor or it might be true. But if you see anyone from Led Zeppelin around, let me know. I think I should actually fill in for Jimmy Page on the Robert Plant/ Alison Krauss tour."
Cornell's denial comes just a day after Aerosmith guitarist Brad Whitford confirmed reports that frontman Steven Tyler recently met with Zeppelin for an impromptu jam session. "They did it for fun," Whitford said during an appearance on the syndicated show "Todd N Tyler Radio Empire." "I actually think Jimmy wanted Steven to come over and play a little bit because I think he was trying to light a fire under Robert."
Rumors of a Zeppelin reunion tour have abounded since the iconic band played a single reunion set last year at London's O2 Arena. Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider added fuel to the fire last month when he revealed that the group was thinking of touring, with or without Plant.
According to Snider, the rest of the band told Plant, " 'We're all rehearsed, we're ready to go. Here's a gazillion dollars on the table. If you don't do it, we're going out with this kid [Myles Kennedy].' "
"And he can sing the sh-- out of Zeppelin," Snider added. "They're going to hope that Robert, at the last minute, will go, 'OK,' and step in."
In a recent interview, Jones told BBC Radio Devon that a new singer was being sought to take over for Plant. "We are trying out a couple of singers," he said. "We want to do it. It's sounding great, and we want to get on and get out there."
But Jones insists that he, Page and Bonham aren't interested in finding a Plant clone. "It's got to be right," he said. "There's no point in just finding another Robert. You could get that out of a tribute band, but we don't want to be our own tribute band. There would be a record and a tour, but everyone has to be onboard."
Of course, even if Zeppelin were to approach him, Cornell might be too busy to take over vocals for the band. His upcoming Timbaland-produced solo LP, Scream, will be released within the next few months. Cornell told MTV News last month that some of his fans might consider Scream something of a departure, but he doesn't see it that way.
"It makes me happy that there's this perception that I have a group of fans that I'm now sort of throwing a curve at and what their reaction will be," he said. "But I've been in this situation so many times already. When I put out [1999's] Euphoria Morning, my main goal was to create an album that sounded like nothing I'd done in Soundgarden, and I did that. I also had that with Temple of the Dog, where I showed up with songs that weren't necessarily riff-based. And then, of course, the pairing of me and members of Rage Against the Machine had everyone sort of speculating about what that would sound like.
"It feels like I've done this so many times that when it's presented to me as being a departure, I feel that's a misconception," he added. "I feel like that's my theme at this point."
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