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'Semi-Pro' Is Slam Dumped
3 March 2008 (StudioBriefing)
Box-office receipts barely dribbled in over the weekend for Will Ferrell's basketball spoof Semi-Pro. Although it beat all other contenders for the top spot, the movie wound up with only $15.3 million in ticket sales, yet another disappointment for its ailing distributor, New Line Cinema, which last week learned that it was being absorbed by Warner Bros. Many box-office analysts had predicted that the movie would earn $25-30 million, somewhat below the $33 million earned by Ferrell's 2007 ice-skating comedy Blades of Glory. Meanwhile, last weekend's winner, Sony's Vantage Point, starring Dennis Quaid, slid to No. 2 with just $13 million, while Paramount's fairy-tale film The Spiderwick Chronicles slipped to third place with $8.8 million. The Other Boleyn Girl, starring Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson, opened in fourth place with $8.3 million. The only other film to open wide, Penelope, starring Christina Ricci, debuted in eighth place with $4 million. Overall, the top 12 films grossed just $81 million, down a whopping 25 percent from the comparable weekend a year ago.

The top ten films for the weekend, according to studio estimates compiled by Media by Numbers: 1. Semi-Pro, $15.3 million; 2. Vantage Point, $13 million; 3. The Spiderwick Chronicles, $8.8 million; 4. The Other Boleyn Girl, $8.3 million; 5. Jumper, $7.6 million; 6. Step Up 2 The Streets, $5.7 million; 7. Fool's Gold, $4.7 million; 8. Penelope, $4 million; 9. No Country For Old Men, $4 million; 10. Juno, $3.4 million.

Movie Reviews: 'Penelope'
29 February 2008 (StudioBriefing)
Competing for the young female audience is Penelope, starring Christina Ricci, about a rich girl whose nose looks like a pig's snout and is therefore shunned by those around her. On the surface, it may sound like a neat fairy-tale of a film, but Gene Seymour in Newsday writes that "there's no real rigor or craft applied to this story; just mood, tone, neo-Gothic imagery and frantic attitude." It's the film, not the character, that seems cursed, several critics suggest. Susan Walker in the Toronto Star notes that it has been two years since it originally debuted at the Toronto Film Festival and has sat on a shelf ever since. She adds: "Maybe there was more to that family curse than the filmmakers reckoned on, because now that it's finally released, Penelope seems destined for early oblivion." And many critics suggest that the main problem with the film is that even with a pig's snout, Christina Ricci doesn't look ugly at all. In fact, most of the critics remark, she looks awfully cute.

Ferrell Film Thought To Be Slam Dunk at Box Office
29 February 2008 (StudioBriefing)
Will Ferrell will be adding basketball to his series of sports spoofs and is expected to give the hapless New Line a rare box office victory with Semi-Pro this weekend. Box-office analysts predict that the film will score a slam-dunk $25-30 million -- and that figure could be conservative. Ferrell's last film, Blades of Glory (2007), in which he played a figure-skating champ, opened with $33 million. Talladega Nights (2006), in which he played a NASCAR driver, opened with $47 million. If Semi-Pro fails to equal those figures, analysts say, it will be because films that open at this time of year rarely do as well as films that open in spring and summer, as the other two films did. Semi-Pro is also opening with an R rating, unlike the other two, which were rated PG-13. Two other films are opening this weekend, with low box-office expectations. Each targets women -- The Other Boleyn Girl, starring Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johannsson and Eric Bana, and Penelope, starring Christina Ricci.

PETA Concerns Over Chimp Attack on Movie Set
4 July 2007 (WENN)
Animal rights campaigners are furious at reports a chimpanzee was beaten on the set of the new Speed Racer movie. The chimp was allegedly attacked after it bit an actor on the set of Speed Racer, which stars Christina Ricci and Emile Hirsch. And animal rights group People For The Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) are taking the claims seriously - officials have fired off a letter to film producer Joel Silver begging him not to use live animals in his movies. The letter, obtained by WENN, reads, "We are in receipt of information that may upset you. We've received several troubling complaints from people who have been on the Speed Racer set and report that the main chimpanzee 'actor' has been beaten and has bitten one of the human actors." But a movie spokesperson believes PETA bosses may have reacted too hastily, confirming a young actor was bitten, but strongly denying reports the chimpanzee was beaten, insisting, "Our company does not tolerate the mistreatment of animals... and there has been no animal abuse on the set of Speed Racer. An American Humane Association safety representative has been on set at all times when animals have been present." But PETA isn't satisfied, adding in a second letter, also obtained by WENN, "No humane representative is closely monitoring those animals while off-set or during pre-production training - the very places where abuse is most likely to occur - so we regret to say that the assurances you offer are meaningless."

Movie Reviews: 'Black Snake Moan'
2 March 2007 (StudioBriefing)
"Outrageous" is the description that pops up in several reviews of Black Snake Moan, starring Samuel L. Jackson, Justin Timberlake, and Christina Ricci. It's a term that has both negative and positive connotations. "The movie strolls right past absurdity into offensiveness," writes Elizabeth Weitzman in the New York Daily News. Similarly, Claudia Puig comments in USA Today: "Though this film tries to convey a sense of campy fun, it ends up feeling off-putting and disturbing." But A.O. Scott in the New York Times remarks, "Underneath the surface of racial and sexual button pushing, behind the brandished guns and bared breasts, is a heart of pure, buttery cornpone." Joe Morgenstern concludes in the Wall Street Journal: "For all the preposterous clichés of the plot ... Black Snake Moan finds unchained energy in its foolishness." Bob Strauss writes in the Los Angeles Daily News: "What goes on in this certifiably nuts movie is so extreme and original that you can't help gazing at it in awe. When you're not inclined to divert your eyes, anyway." And in the Chicago Sun-Times, Roger Ebert commented on the audience's response to the film: "I had never really heard many half-snorts before. Snorts, yes, and silence. But what do you make of an audience that has no idea how to react?"

Ricci No Longer The Prude After Lingerie Scenes
26 February 2007 (WENN)
Playing a chained-up, half-naked nymphomaniac in her new movie Black Snake Moan helped Christina Ricci overcome her prudish nature, because now she parades around in her underwear all the time. The former child star had to face her fears of baring almost all for the film and decided the best way to get comfortable with revealing scenes was to wear nothing but lingerie at all times - even after cameras stopped rolling. She admits the ruse worked and made cast and crew think nothing of her revealing scenes when director Craig Brewer came to shoot them. And her new naked ambition lasted long after the movie wrapped. Ricci says, "I'm a prude and I do not like walking around naked and I was in my bathroom about two months after the movie finished and I was brushing my teeth and I was in my underwear and I looked down and was like, 'Oh, God, put something on.' Then I just stopped and thought, 'Oh my god, I was half naked for two months and my a*s was on camera.' I called my sister and I was like, 'Is it OK to wear nothing around the house? I'm freaking out.'"

Ricci Begs for Fur Forgiveness
19 December 2006 (WENN)
Actress Christina Ricci has pledged never to wear fur again after being deluged with angry letters from fans. The movie star was named People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals' (PETA) Worst Dressed Celebrity of 2006 after she appeared in fur on the cover of W magazine, and now she's desperate to make amends. In a letter to the animal rights organization, The Addams Family star insists she'll be fur-free in 2007. She writes, "After being named on the PETA worst dressed list for wearing fur on the cover of W magazine, I have been deluged with angry and disappointed fans. I never meant to hurt nor anger anyone with my insensitivity. For what it is worth I have received the message loud and clear and will not be wearing fur in the future. I apologize for my offensive actions." A website devoted to Ricci was recently shut down when the owner spotted the star posing in reindeer fur on the cover of the fashion magazine. A representative for PETA says Ricci's name has been removed from the Worst Dressed list. In addition, the animal rights group is also sending her a Christmas basket full of "cruelty-free goodies to thank her for her compassionate decision."

Ricci: "I'm Too Short To Be a Superstar"
17 August 2006 (WENN)
Sleepy Hollow actress Christina Ricci is convinced she'll never make it onto Hollywood's A-list, because she's too short. The former child star fears her tiny stature rules her out of too many roles. She says, "I don't think that's ever going to happen for me. I'm five-one first thing in the morning, and I tend to look really small on camera. I can probably go as far as Holly Hunter went, then I think that's going to be it. I have a feeling I am way too small."

Production Company Crosses Border, Then Returns
30 March 2006 (StudioBriefing)
One day after a movie production company filming in Spokane and faced with a strike decided to pull up stakes and head for Vancouver, it began returning to Spokane. Television station KXLY reported Wednesday that the production company, North by Northwest, had reached an agreement with the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) that would allow production of the movie Home of the Brave to resume. The film stars Samuel L. Jackson, 50 Cent, Christina Ricci and Jessica Biel. Under the agreement, North by Northwest will remain a non-union entity, while creating a separate company, Home of the Brave Productions, Inc., which will sign a contract with IATSE.

Ricci Excited by Timberlake
1 August 2005 (WENN)
Hollywood actress Christina Ricci is desperate to begin filming her new movie Black Snake Moan, because sexy pop star Justin Timberlake is playing her sex-addict love interest. The singer-turned-thespian has signed to play the Monster star's boyfriend in the gritty new drama which also stars Samuel L. Jackson as a God-fearing blues musician. Ricci gushes, "Justin's going to be great. He seems perfect for the part. He's a really sweet guy. It's basically about how two people can save each other and free themselves from the places they've been reduced to in society. There's a very intimate communication between my and Sam's character. It's really moving. Me and my sister are like, 'Do you think Justin will teach us how to pop and lock?' I really want him to." Filming for the comedy begins in the next few weeks and will hit cinemas next year.

'Hitch' Likely To Post Third Straight Win
25 February 2005 (StudioBriefing)
The movie industry, which will be competing with itself this weekend when the Oscar presentations are staged, is dumping three new films in theaters -- one of them utterly trashed by critics, the other two, withheld from them altogether. Most analysts predict that the lack of strong competition will enable Sony's Hitch to score a third box-office victory. But others figure that Wes Craven's werewolf movie Cursed, starring Christina Ricci and Jesse Eisenberg, could pull an upset win. (Horror films dominated the box office in January and the first part of February.) Not much hope is held for the other two films, Man of the House, starring Tommy Lee Jones and Cedric the Entertainer, and Diary of a Mad Black Woman, starring Tyler Perry, who also wrote the script.

Get Set For a Flood of Miramax Films
23 February 2005 (StudioBriefing)
Bob Weinstein and Harvey Weinstein will be leaving Miramax Films with a flourish, releasing as many as 22 movies during the next seven months, including some troubled films that had been shelved or postponed, the New York Times reported today (Wednesday), citing unnamed executives at the studio. The strategy was described by one Miramax executive as an effort to "clean the pipeline" before new managers take over. The Times suggested that some of the films may not be released theatrically but instead will go straight to cable and/or DVD. One such film is Prozac Nation, starring Christina Ricci, which has been shelved for more than four years. During the past six months, Miramax has released only six films, several timed to position them for Oscar considerations. Two of the five films nominated for best-picture Oscars, The Aviator and Finding Neverland, are Miramax productions. Some longtime Miramax fixtures plan to follow the Weinsteins out of Disney. Director Kevin Smith (Clerks, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jersey Girl) said he plans to hold up production of his Clerks sequel, The Passion of the Clerks."My allegiance is to Harvey and Bob," he told the Times.

Ellen Plans Lie-Detector Test for Bragging Murphy
27 July 2004 (WENN)
Comic-turned-chat show host Ellen DeGeneres is considering dragging Brittany Murphy and her mother onto her hit program to give them a lie detector test about the actress' early speech skills. Guests like Sharon Stone and Christina Ricci have poured scorn on Murphy's claims that she could talk at four-months-old, and now DeGeneres is keen to help the actress prove she's not lying. Former Mensa student Stone, who is one of the cleverest actresses in Hollywood, insists Murphy is either talking about "baby talk" or she has a good imagination. The Basic Instinct beauty recently suggested on DeGeneres' show, "That's why she's an actress - because she has an imagination." But Ellen wants to give Murphy the chance to back her claims up: "We're gonna have her and her mother on and hook them up to lie detector tests."

Does Weinstein Fear 'Prozac Nation'?
19 July 2004 (StudioBriefing)
A film version of Elizabeth Wurtzel's best-selling Prozac Nation starring Christina Ricci that was acquired by Miramax three years ago is still sitting on the studio's shelves after numerous postponements, with little chance that it will ever be released, according to the London Sunday Observer. Larry Gross, the original screenwriter on the film, told the newspaper that its controversial nature -- it was praised and damned when it was shown at the Toronto Film Festival in 2001 -- may be responsible for its landing in limbo. "[Miramax Co-chairman] Harvey [Weinstein] might buy an obscure Japanese film and release it, knowing there's a chance it won't work, because no one will pay it the kind of attention that will rebound against him," said Gross. "Prozac Nation is in the backyard of the people who look at what he does for a living. So any failure to put it over will be looked at very carefully. And that's a reason not to distribute it."

Ricci Slams Breast Reduction Rumors
2 June 2004 (WENN)
Hollywood beauty Christina Ricci has slammed rumors that she had her breasts reduced to help her film career. The Monster star is furious about reports that she has had her hefty bust cut down to please Hollywood producers. The 23-year-old insists, "That's ridiculous. Why would having smaller boobs get you bigger roles? I'm more comfortable with my body than I've ever been. I like to be photographed and photographers like to shoot me because I'm willing to go there and do different things."

Theron and Ricci Laughed When Kissing
5 March 2004 (WENN)
Oscar-winning beauty Charlize Theron found it difficult to stop laughing when filming a lesbian kissing scene in Monster - because her teeth kept falling out. Theron - who last Sunday won the Best Actress Academy Award for her performance - underwent a huge physical transformation to play serial killer Aileen Wuornos, including having a dental plate fitted. But the false dentures made kissing Christina Ricci tricky, and the pair spent the day in hysterics. Theron says, "She was really great at kissing, but it was quite difficult with fake teeth. Nothing could help us keep a straight face. At one point I looked at Christina and said, 'This is a slumber party gone so wrong.' That was one of the funniest days we had on the set of that movie."

Movie Reviews: 'Anything Else'
19 September 2003 (StudioBriefing)
Woody Allen continues to provoke controversy with his latest film, Anything Else, in which he stars with Jason Biggs, Christina Ricci, Stockard Channing and Danny DeVito. He certainly has his admirers."Anything Else is Woody Allen's best movie in years. Given most of his recent movies, that may not be saying much, but this film has the tang -- if not the overall brilliance -- of his great work from the '70s, '80s and early '90s." cheers Eleanor Ringel Gillespie in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "What a delight to listen to smart people whose conversation is like a kind of comic music," writes Roger Ebert in the Chicago Sun-Times. On the other hand, Allen has more than his fair share of detractors. Lou Lumenick's New York Post review is headed "La-di-dull," and he goes on to call the film "relentlessly mediocre ... a pretty arthritic third-generation Xerox of Annie Hall." Joe Morgenstern in the Wall Street Journal puts it more succinctly: "Anything Else is awful," he remarks. Like Gillespie, several critics express the opinion that Anything Else may be no match for Allen's early films but is a distinct improvement over his more recent ones. A. O. Scott of the New York Times is one of these. He writes that the movie "feels oddly long for a Woody Allen picture, but its relaxed, casual air gives the humor room to breath, and a gratifyingly high proportion of the piled-up one-liners actually raise a laugh." And Manohla Dargis concludes in her review in the Los Angeles Times that with Anything Else, "the filmmaker has taken a small yet crucial step toward rethinking what a Woody Allen movie can be in a post-Woody world." Several critics point out that DreamWorks, the studio that is marketing and distributing it, appears to be going out of its way to avoid mentioning Allen at all in ads and promos. Roger Ebert tags this final note to his review: "It's as if they have the treasure of a Woody Allen movie and they're trying to package it for the American Pie crowd."

Woody Amuses Lido Audience
28 August 2003 (StudioBriefing)
Woody Allen's Anything Else opened the 60th Venice International Film Festival Wednesday night, while Allen himself brought his audience to its feet with his opening remarks. "I'm usually not a festival person, but the Italians, like the French [Allen also made an appearance at Cannes last year with his film, Hollywood Ending], have been very supportive of my movies, so I wanted to give something back as a gesture of gratitude." He noted that "at root, these festivals are filled with cinema lovers, who come to enjoy the films, to discuss and to debate, and are thus the best places for showing my films." Besides, he said, "if you've seen my movies, you know I've stolen shamelessly from so many Italian directors like Fellini, De Sica, and Antonioni." Allen was accompanied by his producer sister, Letty Aronson, and by the film's stars, Christina Ricci and Jason Biggs.

Woody To Make First-Ever Appearance at Venice Film Festival
21 July 2003 (StudioBriefing)
Woody Allen's Anything Else, starring Jason Biggs, Christina Ricci, Jimmy Fallon and Danny DeVito alongside Allen himself, has been selected to open the Venice Film Festival on August 27th, organizers announced today (Monday). Allen later described the film's selection as "a great honor" and said that he plans to be in attendance. (He has never attended the festival.) Festival director Moritz de Hadeln told reporters, "It will be an immense pleasure for us to have him here." The film is currently slated to open in the United States in mid-September.

'Prozac Nation' Delay Depresses Christina Ricci
9 July 2003 (WENN)
The Hollywood version of cult novel Prozac Nation has had its release date put back again - damaging its Oscar chances and infuriating star Christina Ricci. The film - a pet project of the Sleepy Hollow actress - started filming in May 2000, but has had its release date postponed a number of times following the September 11 atrocities. Now the flick's release has been pushed back to April, way after the cut-off point for next year's Academy Awards. Christina is reported to be "very annoyed" about the developments, especially considering the buzz around the female performances in the film. A source says, "It has Christina, Jessica Lange and Michelle Williams giving some of the best performances of their careers." Prozac Nation tells the story of a young woman - played by Christina - and her fight with depression during her first year at Harvard University.

Ricci Gets Naked
6 March 2003 (WENN)
Hollywood stunner Christina Ricci will appear completely naked in her next film role. The former child star, who shot to fame in The Addams Family, will join actress Charlize Theron in the movie Monster. Monster is the story of executed serial killer Aileen Wournous, a prostitute, who murdered seven men on the Florida highways during 1989-90. And the scenes where the two women become lesbian lovers in prison don't faze the 22-year old star. She says, "I'm pretty f****** naked. My agent persuaded me to go for it. She keeps saying, 'You have beautiful breasts'."

Granada Films Is Latest Studio To Bite the Dust in Britain
11 September 2002 (StudioBriefing)
In the latest setback to the British film industry's hope for revival, ITV giant Granada announced today (Wednesday) that it is shutting down Granada Film Productions and cutting back investment in feature films. The decision comes only weeks after Miramax picked up the company's The Gathering, a thriller starring Christina Ricci and directed by Brian Gilbert. Analysts said that the company is still trying to dig itself out of the hole that it found itself in after the costly ITV Digital broadcasting company, which it backed with ITV rival Carlton Communications, collapsed.

Ricci Determined To Get Her Man - Josh Hartnett
3 August 2002 (WENN)
Actress Christina Ricci has her sights set on Black Hawk Down star Josh Hartnett as her next boyfriend - even though he's dating his Minnesota childhood sweetheart. The movie hunk might seem devoted to his girlfriend Emily, but Ricci is committed in her quest to make him her man. She says, "He'd be one hot date. I've met him, so I know what I'm talking about here. Josh is a nice home-loving boy with a great body. I know he's got a girlfriend but I could so corrupt him."

Depp Is Ricci's Number One
17 July 2002 (WENN)
Christina Ricci's ideal man is her three-time co-star Johnny Depp. The stunning 22-year-old acted with Depp in Sleepy Hollow, The Man Who Cried and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. And while she knows he's off-limits as a married man, Ricci reckons the dark-haired star is definitely the coolest guy in Hollywood. She says, "He's the kindest, most loving man ever. There's nobody like him, because nobody can be that fabulous. I've worked with him three times and we have a lot in common. We don't like to talk to other actors while we're working and we just deal with the director. The impact Johnny had on people was amazing to watch. Forget the women - even the guys followed him around. They'd offer to carry his coffee cups, roll his cigarettes or wear a hat from his club The Viper Room. He's the coolest guy ever. That man is 39 and still looks 22. And to those people who might think I'm cool, I'd like to point out that I haven't slept with someone as cool as Kate Moss, like Johnny did. But he's strictly off limits to me. He's married and that rules him out. Also, the first time we met I was nine and he was already 27, so I can't imagine it."

Movie Reviews: Pumpkin
5 July 2002 (StudioBriefing)
Maybe if Christina Ricci's campus comedy Pumpkin had opened on Halloween or Thanksgiving rather than on the Independence Day weekend it would have received a more sympathetic reception from the critics. As it is, the general reaction has been downright scary. Ann Hornaday in the Washington Post lashes into it as "a moralizing movie that itself is morally compromised, not to mention artistically bankrupt and generally indefensible." Ty Burr in the Boston Globe describes it as "the first major speed bump of [Ricci's] career." Kevin Thomas in the Los Angeles Times says that the result of the filmmakers' work is "hit or miss, with a laugh here and there, ultimately creating an aura of hopeless and drawn-out improbability." But Roger Ebert in the Chicago Sun-Times gives the movie a very good grade (three and a half stars) and concludes his review by remarking: "Pumpkin is alive, and takes chances, and uses the wicked blade of satire in order to show up the complacent political correctness of other movies in its campus genre. It refuses to play it safe. And there is courage in the performances."

Primal Screaming For Ricci
24 June 2002 (WENN)
Actress Christina Ricci blames her father's wacky psychotherapy for making her less than a grade A student at school. Ricci struggled to pay attention as a teenager in the classroom because she would be kept awake by her father's clients following Primal Scream session - a once-trendy therapy that sought to release repressed memories through supervised shrieking. Ricci recalls, "It was hysterical. I thought, 'What are they doing down there? They expect me to go to school tomorrow, and they're going to scream until midnight?' It was ridiculous."

Christina Ricci's A Bad Flirt
30 May 2002 (WENN)
Hollywood actress Christina Ricci is attempting to overcome a grave problem - she's a terrible flirt. Successfully grabbing the attention of the opposite sex is a skill she's yet to master and she remains a very clumsy learner. Ricci moans, "When I like a guy, sometimes I'll be sarcastic and that can backfire on me. Boys don't understand that I'm just trying to flirt." And her misjudgment has also led to disastrous dates. She recalls, "There was this hot guy who I really wanted to go out with. I threw in a couple of Sat-vocabulary type words during our conversation, and he said, 'You like to use big words, don't you?' Doing that is just kind of a fun game we play in my family. And when I told this guy that my upcoming movie Prozac Nation was based on Elizabeth Wurtzel's book, he said, 'I don't read books.' That was it for me."

Christina Ricci's Size Issues
23 May 2002 (WENN)
Actress Christina Ricci is certain she's recovered from her eating disorder - yet she's still obsessed with her weight. Ricci appears in the June issue of Vogue magazine, and boasts that she now wears "size 0" clothes. Ricci, 22, insists that her battle with anorexia is behind her, saying, "Once you're in it, you're so involved in whatever the mindshift is that you can't see clearly. The second a therapist finally explained to me what I was doing, I was just like, 'Oh, this is ridiculous!'" But despite no longer suffering from the disorder, Ricci told Vogue that she has special ways of making sure she stays slim. Ricci says she dons only "a sports bra on top" and ankle-length stretch pants for workouts, explaining, "You know why I don't wear anything else? Because I might want to quit after half an hour. So I look in the mirror, and because I can see my stomach, I'm like, 'Got to keep going.'"

Are Bloom And Ricci Dating?
9 May 2002 (WENN)
Lord Of The Rings star Orlando Bloom has been spotted in the arms of cool Hollywood babe Christina Ricci. According to British teen magazine Just 17, the pair were seen leaving a Hollywood party after the Sleepy Hollow actress fell ill. Ricci reportedly vomited in the street while Bloom--he's elf Legolas in Peter Jackson's fantasy epic--held back her hair and whispered sweet nothings in her ear. Neither party has yet confirmed the story.

Bloom And Beckinsale Come Out For Gap
26 April 2002 (WENN)
Actors Orlando Bloom and Kate Beckinsale are to feature in new ads for clothing giants Gap. Three new TV ads have been directed by Cameron Crowe, the eccentric Coen Brothers and Roman Coppola. Bloom and Beckinsale feature in Crowe's ad as a couple being chased by a group of admirers while out for a stroll. The ad directed by the Coen Brothers sees Christina Ricci beating Dennis Hopper in a game of chess, while Coppola's effort features Scarlett Johansson and Ashton Kutcher riding bikes.

Stars Get Designing
25 April 2002 (WENN)
Christina Ricci, Sarah Jessica Parker and Christy Turlington are among a host of celebrities who have put their clothes-designing skills to the test. French label Lacoste has employed the skills of an array of stars, also including Chloe Sevigny, Claudia Schiffer, Donatella Versace and Oscar De La Renta, to design limited-edition versions of the classic Lacoste polo shirt to be auctioned off to benefit the United States Fund For Unicef. Simon Doonan, creative director of plush New York store Barney's, is creating window displays with the one-of-a-kind shirts at the Madison Avenue store, where the launch party and silent auction will be held next month.

Christina And Michelle's Past Life Revelation
8 April 2002 (WENN)
Actresses Christina Ricci and Michelle Williams were destined to work together and become great friends - they're slave sisters in a former life. The two pals visited a psychic during a break from filming the movie Prozac Nation in Canada and were stunned when the spiritualist insisted they were sisters. Williams says, "There was a strange, weird, innate kind of understanding between me and Christina. We talked to this psychic who told us that we were sisters in a past life, and that we were slaves of some sort, but we escaped together, and Christina masterminded the escape."

Matthew Perry Moves To Ally McBeal
14 February 2002 (WENN)
Friends star Matthew Perry is taking a sideways step and guest-starring on legal drama Ally McBeal. Perry, who plays Chandler Bing on Friends, will play a "cocky, successful and opinionated attorney" in the Calista Flockhart-led series. Actress Christina Ricci is making a guest appearance in the show, which will be aired in April, at the same time. Executive producer Alice West says, "Matthew Perry displays a strong presence and natural comedic ability on his other TV project, which makes him a natural choice for Ally McBeal."

Christina Ricci Fed Up With Being Asked Stupid Questions
30 April 2001 (WENN)
Actress Christina Ricci is sick and tired of journalists asking her stupid questions. The 21-year-old star says her reputation for being rebellious, moody and prone to make shocking statements is really all down to the fact that journalists ask her ridiculous questions. Ricci who once said about incest - "They share the same genes as you but they're just other people. It's a natural thing to have sex with them" - says she only said that because a journalist asked her if she liked incest. Ricci says, "So I'm like, 'I love incest. I think it's completely natural and everyone should do it!' I was being sarcastic." The former child star admits that she's frequently astonished and outraged by the kind of topics journalists bring up in her presence. She recalls, "I had an interviewer come into my house recently and start talking about porn and asked me if I'd seen some scene in a movie where a woman is [having sex with two men]. I actually felt really offended. I'm thinking, 'I'm in my own home and I'm 21, but I don't feel that I'm enough of an adult for you to sit here and talk to me about stuff like that.'"

Christina Ricci's Anorexic Flash Backs
23 March 2001 (WENN)
Christina Ricci hated slimming down for Prozac Nation because it reminded her of her anorexic past. After appearing as Wednesday Addams in the Addams Family movies, Christina developed into a gorgeously sexy, voluptuous 14-year-old. Studio chiefs told her to lose the pounds because audiences preferred to see "cheeks ultra hollow". Christina remembers, "All I ate was green salad, I looked like ET my head was so big. I thought if I could be skinnier, I could be more successful. But that's silly because I was successful. I hated looking at myself and covered up the mirrors at home." Slimming down to play an antidepressant-addicted college student in Prozac Nation brought back her horrific memories. She admits, "I lost weight to the point where I couldn't buy clothes. The role really affected me because my character was having a nervous breakdown. After a month I was a wreck. I wasn't eating, I couldn't sleep, my moods were up and down."

Altman Film To Receive British Lottery Funding
16 March 2001 (StudioBriefing)
American producer/director/writer Robert Altman is one of the first this year to benefit from the British lottery fund that backs homegrown movies. The British Film Council announced that his upcoming murder-mystery Gosford Park, to be shot in the U.K., will receive more than $6 million from the council's Premier fund. The movie is being co-financed by London-based distributor Capitol Films. It stars Kristin Scott Thomas, Richard E. Grant, Helen Mirren, Derek Jacobi and Stephen Fry. The other films receiving partial funding from the Premier Fund are the soccer spoof Mike Bassett: England Manger> and the drama Miranda, starring Christina Ricci.

Gallo Rips Into Ricci
31 October 2000 (WENN)
All-round celebrity and director Vincent Gallo has lashed out at actress Christina Ricci and branded her and "ungrateful c***". Gallo - who co-starred with Ricci in his directorial debut Buffalo '66 (1998) - is explicit with his criticism of the pretty star. He says of working with the Sleepy Hollow (1999) actress, "It was OK when she wasn't drunk on the set. I think she's an alcoholic - it was either that, or she was on cough syrup the whole time. I don't like her. She's an ungrateful c***. But it was OK. She's basically a puppet. I told her what to do and she did it." Gallo also snipes about Ricci's fluctuating weight during filming, saying, "She lost 17 pounds, and that was because I only let her eat one whole pizza pie every day."

Christina Ricci Loves Working With Depp
27 October 2000 (WENN)
Sexy 20-year-old actress Christina Ricci has a strong relationship with movie star Johnny Depp. The pair first met when a young Ricci starred in Mermaids (1990) with Winona Ryder, Depp's then fiancee. Since then she starred with the hearth throb in Tim Burton film Sleepy Hollow (1999). But she is not sure she could do it again. Theactress says, "We work well together and get along so well it's comfortable..." I don't know if we could work together again. It might get a little crazy. He is so protective of me, like an older brother, that it's a bit weird to be faking having sex with him. But we know each other well enough to laugh about it... He always joked about us rooting round like pigs." Of course there were rumours the pair were a couple, which Ricci loved. "I really liked it, " she says surprisingly. It was awesome - my first tabloid story. If you're going to have a tabloid story written about you, it might as well be with Johnny Depp."

Sewell Says No To Hollywood
26 April 2000 (WENN)
British heart-throb actor Rufus Sewell has refused to further his career in Los Angeles - because he's scared of becoming a "jerk". The 33-year-old Dark City (1998) star says he was turned off the idea of heading to Hollywood by the fear that he'd be seduced by its glitzy lifestyle. He explains, "I think if you live in a place that's completely about the film industry, it's bound to affect you in some way... I've seen people turn into jerks - and I think it's more important than anything else that I remain the kind of person I like." Sewell, who makes his Hollywood-debut alongside Kim Basinger and Christina Ricci in Bless the Child (2000) next month, insists, "London is where I love."

Never Again?
16 December 1999 (StudioBriefing)
Like the stereotypical "Jewish princess" who can't make up her mind, NBC appeared to be in a maybe-it-will-maybe-it-won't mode following protests over a Saturday Night Live parody of pop stars singing Hanukkah songs. Replying to a charge by Abraham Foxman, national director of the B'nai B'rith's Anti-Defamation League, that the sketch, which aired on Dec. 4, was "offensive" and "plugged into some classic anti-Semitic canards, " NBC's chief censor, Rosalyn Weinman, first promised in a letter to Foxman that the sketch would be "excised from all future SNL broadcasts." Later, however, SNL exec producer Lorne Michaels commented that the matter was "still under discussion." Still later, a spokeswoman for the network said, "NBC's intention was to not air the sketch again. However, we currently have it under review." The skit clearly was intended to take a swipe at anti-Semitic shibboleths. A cast member playing Celine Dion says that as a child she was told that Hanukkah is "a holiday celebrated by people who own all the movie studios and the banks." And guest star Christina Ricci, playing Britney Spears, remarks that at this time of year "we as Christians take time out to think about forgiving our Jewish friends for killing our Lord." In an interview with today's (Thursday) Washington Post, Michaels commented that the ADL "trivializes the important work they're supposed to be doing with this kind of nonsense."