Top Conservative Flicks of the '00s

Actor indulges in wee-hours phone calls, prima donna behavior on set

(NEWSER) - With Russell Crowe's latest film on the horizon, a new book about DreamWorks is perfectly timed to take advantage of curiosity about the famously short-tempered actor. Some juicy details from Nicole LaPorte's The Men Who Would Be King: An Almost Epic Tale of Moguls, Movies, and a Company called DreamWorks, courtesy of Gawker :

• Crow began a 3am phone call with a Gladiator producer by barking: "You motherfucker. I will kill you with my bare hands."

Ridley Scott flick is highest grossing R-rated crime film ever

(NEWSER) - American Gangster put competitors on ice this weekend and became the top-grossing R-rated crime flick ever. Starring Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe, Gangster scored the top debut of the fall, beating Seinfeld's Bee Movie by $46.3 million to $39.1 million. Seinfeld's first foray since Seinfeld buzzed a little less than DreamWorks Animation-Paramount had hoped, Variety reports. More»

'Lord of the Rings' mastermind takes over project from del Toro

(NEWSER) - Lord of the Rings fans, rejoice: The Hobbit will be directed by Peter Jackson himself, Deadline reports. Jackson is negotiating a deal with Warner Bros, New Line, and MGM, and the studios are reportedly willing to spend big on a two-part Hobbit picture from J.R.R. Tolkien's most accomplished interpreter. More»

Roger Corman, Gordon Willis, John Calley share the spotlight

(NEWSER) - A mere 65 years after her unforgettable screen debut, Lauren Bacall has won an Academy Award. The honorary Oscar was a high point of a ceremony last night in Los Angeles that also celebrated the careers of filmmaker Roger Corman, cinematographer Gordon Willis, and producer John Calley. "I can't believe it, a man at last!" the 85-year-old Bacall joked as she hoisted her new hardware. More»

Gibson aims for rehabilitation, but Mad Max is 'gone'

(NEWSER) - Mel Gibson appears to be making an effort to revive a career stalled after his 2006 arrest and accompanying anti-Semitic tirade, but “it seems unlikely he can ever really come back,” writes Roger Friedman for Fox News. “Like Tom Cruise, Gibson has sent himself into a weird purgatory from which his reputation can never fully recover,” Friedman notes after watching the actor/director chat with Jimmy Kimmel. More»