Tim Burton

Now that those ridiculous internet rumors about Batman 3 have been completely debunked (says Batman screenwriter David Goyer: "It's all B.S."), what are enterprising fanboys going to spend their days speculating about? How about the latest Pirates of the Caribbean movie! Cinemablend has learned through one of their "most reliable tipsters" (is there another kind?) that Tim Burton may direct the fourth Pirates movie, taking the reigns from Gore Verbinski.

But wait, there's more! After giving us Keith Richards as Johnny Depp's father in the third installment, the makers of Pirates of the Caribbean want Depp's Captain Jack Sparrow to have a brother this time around. Accordingly, it's reported that hopefully either Sasha Baron Cohen or Russell Brand would don the Sparrow family eyeliner.  read more »

Okay, we don't want to get our hopes up....but this Tim Burton-directed Alice in Wonderland which will combine live action with performance-capture "technology" (meep!) is beginning to sound kinda awesome. In addition to Mia Wasikowska (from HBO's In Treatment) being cast as Alice, and Johnny Depp signing on as the Mad Hatter, The Hollywood Reporter reports today that Anne Hathaway, fresh off all her good reviews for Rachel Getting Married, has signed on to play the White Queen while Helena Bonham Carter will play the Red Queen. Good for Anne Hathaway! Not only has she handled a difficult time in her personal life with grace and aplomb in interviews, but she's doing the smartest thing possible: making good movies for people to talk about instead (it worked for Nicole Kidman, too). As for Mr. Burton's new production, we eagerly await casting news on who will play the Cheshire Cat. Is Jack Nicholson available?

Paul Starr, a makeup artist to celebrities such as Angelina Jolie and Jennifer Garner, was found dead in his Los Angeles apartment yesterday, according to Metro UK.

While the cause of Mr. Starr's death is still undetermined, his friends said that they hadn't seen or heard from Mr. Starr in several days. After knocking on his door repeatedly, police broke down the door and found him dead. Mr. Starr's age was reported to be anywhere from 48 to 51.

According to Mr. Starr's Web site, his clients have ranged "from ladies who lunch to movie stars, rock stars, and supermodels.  read more »

Australian teenager Mia Wasikowska will follow the white rabbit into director Tim Burton’s adaptation of Alice in Wonderland. Even wife/muse Helena Bonham Carter probably had to admit she was a little long in the tooth for this one.

Ms. Wasikowska is best known for her performance as a troubled young gymnast on HBO’s In Treatment, though her past experience is mostly limited to Australian projects. The film, which will begin shooting in November, will be a combination of live action and motion-capture animation, and will be released in digital 3-D, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

This weekend, across the country, discerning film-going audiences were able to choose between two types of history: the real kind and the fake. Guess which one won?! National Treasure: Book of Secrets (no. 3), which follows the Indiana Jones-like Ben Gates as he tries to clear his family’s name in connection to the Lincoln assassination, raked in over $45 million and easily earned the top spot in the country. But here in the city, it lost out to Mike Nichols’ Charlie Wilson’s War (no. 2), about an obscure congressman and his even more obscure fight to help the Afghans defeat the Soviets during the Cold War, which outearned the Nicholas Cage actioner by $5,000, while playing on one less screen. Cue Cindy Adams: Only in New York, kids!  read more »

Days after Helena Bonham Carter and Tim Burton were delivered the news of their joint Golden Globe nominations for the new film Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, they returned the favor—with a wee baby. Late Saturday night, People reports, the weird and wacky duo added a new member to their family, which already includes four-year-old Billy. “They are absolutely delighted they have a daughter. It’s a lovely Christmas present for the family,” said Karen Maskill, a rep. for Ms. Bonham Carter, 41. According to the actress, the lovers were discussing inducing the birthing process in a doctor’s office when Mr. Burton, 49, got a call telling him about the nominations. “I do look like a globe, so it's kind of funny. I am very round,” she said, adding with a laugh: “Maybe the baby's going to come out with his hands on his ears, [saying,] 'Shut up!'” As long as the infants hands were made of pink flesh—instead of, say, scissors—they’re sure to be a happy pair.

Broadway World's online TV show Broadway Beat is making a three-part series of interviews and historical retrospectives, counting down to the opening of Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street on Dec. 21. If you can get past BWW.com's Richard Ridge performing a nerdy introduction (and dressed so appropriately in fake-blood-red and black!), the first episode is almost entertaining.  read more »

On Monday, Dec. 3, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street premiered at the Ziegfeld Theater. The film, which opens on Dec. 21, is a gloriously dark marriage of Tim Burton imagery and Stephen Sondheim music that those in the know are declaring to be the film of the year. Star Johnny Depp was there, distinguished-looking in glasses, a smart suit and bright red tie, as well as Mr. Burton and Mr. Sondheim, co-stars Alan Rickman and Sacha Baron Cohen, and even—hey now!—Keith Richards.  read more »

It’s been almost six years since Johnny Depp’s last London slasher flick, From Hell, so it’s understandable that his latest project, Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, left the bohemian-chic thespian a little harried by the whole experience. In Mr. Depp’s first reunion with longtime collaborator Tim Burton since 2005’s Corpse Bride, the 44-year-old actor will co-star alongside Alan Rickman, Helena Bonham Carter and Sacha Baron Cohen. Very nice!

“Having worked with sharp objects before [in Edward Scissorhands], everything was fine until I had to shave someone,” Mr. Depp told Scotland's Daily Record. “The shaving cream made me really nervous. It was the most uncomfortable moment of my life [shaving Mr. Rickman]. Poor Alan. I've never really experienced that full on thing. This is a full beard for me - this is a lumberjack thing for me. But I can definitely appreciate it because when you get into the chair with a stranger and they lather your face up with sharp instruments around your throat...it's frightening."

And while Mr. Depp is no stranger to a little music making—he has worked with Oasis and Tom Petty in the past—he said he was spooked to the max by the prospect of crooning for the camera. “I think I was probably more frightened than anyone. I've never tried karaoke. It scares the hell out of me. I've never been that drunk—and I've been drunk,” he told the paper at a recent press junket. "Tim said he didn't know if I could sing and, likewise, I didn't know if I could sing. I did these demos in my friend's garage studio because I didn't know if I'd be able to hit a note, to be honest, I really didn't. I did that and sent it to Tim and he said we're going to be okay. And then I became a bit more confident," added the seemingly unflappable star.

All funny on-set anecdotes aside, Mr. Depp still knows the importance of actually publicizing his projects at press junkets. Whetting the appetites of critics and fans starving for a little more Johnny, he settled in and got right down to business, saying, “Someone is probably weeping after watching my performance."

To see pictures of the actor from the Sweeny Todd press junket, click here.  read more »

The health care unions opposing Eliot Spitzer's health care spending cuts have come up with four new Let It Be On Your Head ads featuring frail health care patients talking right to the camera and dropping the governor's name.

A frail, grandmotherly woman named Anna Rose says in one ad, "Governor Spitzer, I want you to look at me. And when you cut health care, I want my face to be in front of you. Remember me."

UPDATE: A senior Spitzer source familiar with the governor's health care campaign had this to say about the new 1199 ad: "It's as if Tim Burton and Jimmy Siegel collaborated on a spot."