The filmmaker said he has drafted his "Traffic" star Michael Douglas to play the flamboyant pianist. Richard LaGravanese is writing the script, and Jerry Weintraub will produce.

Soderbergh is in discussions with Matt Damon to play Scott Thorson, who sued Liberace in 1982 for $113 million in palimony, claiming he was the entertainer's companion for five years. Even though Liberace never wavered from career-long denials that he was gay, Thorson reportedly settled for $95,000 in 1986.

While we're eager to see how master biopicicist Soderbergh recreates Liberace's pink-fur-lined limo trysts and candelabra shopping sprees, it seems we'll have to wait awhile: He has two projects in the queue before this one, including the real-call-girl-starring, real-sex-featuring The Girlfriend Experience. That should give Douglas plenty of time to practice his best, "When the reviews are bad, I cry my way to the bank!" In the meantime, all this talk of Liberace movies has made us wistful for 1988—the Golden Age of Dueling Liberace MOWs—when Andrew Robinson and Victor Garber both gave their own memorable spins on the life of Mr. Showmanship.

Remember?

• Soderbergh tunes up Liberace film [Variety]

Most pressing to Damon, though, is whether Palin believes that dinosaurs actually walked the earth before man, or if their bones were simply littered as surprise gifts for Adam and Eve by a mischievous Supreme Being. Take notes, Charles Gibson! When will someone finally confront Sarah Palin and ask her why she fired all the dinosaurs in Alaska?

UPDATE: Gawker overlord Nick Denton ran the numbers, and it turns out that Matt Damon's statement that "there is a 1 out of 3 chance, if not more, that McCain doesn't survive his first term" wasn't quite accurate. The chances are more like 15%. How you like them apples?

• HuffPo[HuffPo]

• REVEL WITH A CAUSE [People]
• Previously: Where's Affleck [Defamer]

Rossdale told Us that he and Stefani didn't know the baby's gender.

"It's just gonna be insane when it comes because then we will find what it is," he said. "And then we get to name the baby! It's gonna be such chaos ... amazing chaos!

"I'm just trying to be there for the wife," he told Us. "Look after her and be cool."

SPOILER ALERT: It was a boy they named — we shit you not — Zuma Nesta Rock Rossdale, a moniker reportedly drawn on the fly from the varieties of organic teas once cited in No Doubt's concert rider. Meanwhile, Jason Sehorn knocked up Angie Harmon again, it's their third, etc. Here's hoping September is a more subdued month, or, more accurately, that our heroic celebrities make more actual news than infants. Humor us. Please.

[Photo source: Getty Images]

• Jennifer Garner confirms pregnancy [NYDN]
• Matt Damon's wife Luciana gives birth to girl [AP]
• It's Another Boy for Gwen & Gavin! [US Weekly]

Rather, Damon was transformed through the magic of A/V editing into the comely mouthpiece for a wide variety of American voices, "among them Michelle Obama, Cindy McCain and Mayor Bloomberg." It's an effective gimmick, if a little unfair to John McCain, who now can't help but hide his disappointment every time he rolls over in bed to the sound of his wife's voice, only to find a smiling Cindy instead of that dreamycakes actor from the Bourne movies.

• Ta Da! Debuting Our New TV Ad. [ONE.org]

Yes, even with his hipster tighty stretch jeans and slim calves post-workout, Zac 1.0 was the epitome of our every tween to teen girl's fantasy boyfriend. He could sing! He could fake love for vocally decent but dancing-challenged Vanessa Hudgens! He won the gold medal for "Most Wanted" celebrity in something called The Celebrity Black Book in 2007! This new and improved (or as the Brits like to call it, "wee and weedy") transformation into a muscle-tee sporting poster child for steroids' unpleasant side effects has minimized our crush to shameful Kieran Culkin levels of perviness.

Apparently Damon held out hope that he might join George Clooney and Brad Pitt among the only actors to nab the cover two years in a row, despite the fact that the two former tiara winners all but bent over in a public campaign to name him last year's winner. Initially joking to the mag on a recent red carpet about his fears of losing the crown, Damon launched into an explanation regarding his current aesthetic: "It wasn't necessarily that I needed to be fat...it was that I needed to be 'doughy.'" And Matt even apologetically curses his age for the ability to gain weight so quickly, adding that he used to be able to maintain his girlish figure while inhaling burgers and beer but, now that he's in his 30s, those habits only helped his transformation. We personally think Damon should stop being so defensive about the new look — any time he can aid off-the-radar buddy Ben Affleck in making the pages of a glossy these days is worth more than a hundred heavily airbrushed sash-wearing covers.

[Photo credits: People, Splash]

• MATT DAMON: MY 'SEXIEST MAN' TITLE IS IN JEAPORDY [People]

[Photo Credit: Splash]

• Matt Damon no longer the Sexiest Man Alive? [telegraph.co.uk]

boomp3.com



I remember when I was the only one who wanted to fuck Matt Damon. I'd listen to him telling the same story over and over again about working on Mystic Pizza and how he thought Lili Taylor was going to be American's newest sweetheart after the film opened. You know, I got him that part in Glory Daze to help him get off my couch for a couple of months. And now, everybody wants a piece of him and he's more than willing to return their calls. But me? Good ole Big Ben, the Larry Bird to his Kevin McHale? That guy, that friend can't even get a simple hello, but he gives Mark Wahlberg floor seats for the Celtics game. Wahlberg gets to work with Scorsese and gets the Oscar nomination. And here I am, just hanging out, fucking Jimmy Kimmel. Hmmm, I wonder what Jennifer Lopez is up to tonight?

[Photo Credit: Flynet]

boomp3.com

The Departed's Matt Damon comforted his co-star Mark Wahlberg during the fifth game of the Los Angeles Lakers-Boston Celtics NBA finals about the poor reviews Wahlberg has been receiving for his work in The Happening. Wahlberg felt especially hurt about the negative comments about his acting. Wahlberg said, "I really tried with my performance. I did my research. I remembered my lines. But, I gotta admit, I was totally caught off-guard by the fact that we were supposed to be making a B-movie. Nobody told me that."

Damon told Wahlberg that it happens, but it shouldn't bring him down. Damon said, "You can't win them all. But you just can't please everybody with every movie you do. I've got lucky the past couple of years with the Bourne movies, but don't worry about it. You'll win 'em back next time." Wahlberg hope that he would be able to win back the audience's trust with his next film. Wahlberg said, "If the next script I read even has one single scene involving a tree, I'm passing — even if Scorsese is directing it." Damon asked Wahlberg if he would feel better if he got to sing about how he's fucking Matt Damon. Wahlberg nodded and said, "It'd make me feel a lot better if I was fucking Matt Damon."

[Photo Credit: Getty Images]

Show: On The Lot, 2007
Network: Fox
Wizards: Steven Spielberg and Mark Burnett, producers. Carrie Fisher, Garry Marshall, and Brett Ratner, judges.
Fate: Lasting only one season, the extremely low-rated show pitted unknown directors against one another based on three-minute film submissions. Despite winner Will Bigham's "directing" aspirations, Will is currently and unsurprisingly pounding the pavement as a (still-unknown) actor.

Project Greenlight, 2001-05:
Network: HBO (two seasons), Bravo (one season)
Wizards: Alex Keledjian and Eli Holzman, creators. Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, and Chris Moore, producers, backed by Miramax Films and LivePlanet.
Fate: HBO dumped the series to Bravo after two seasons in which the winning screenwriters' films each grossed under $300k in national releases. Bravo's winning duo turned out the little-remembered horror movie (oops) Feast that, despite the best efforts of GULAGER, went quickly to limited release, and even more quickly to DVD.

Grease: You're The One That I Want, 2007
Network: NBC
Wizards: BBC fashioned the US show after Andrew Lloyd Webber's successful format for casting Broadway unknowns in How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria? in the UK. Billy Bush hosted.
Fate: As with so many series borrowed by the Brits, NBC's gamble followed in the footsteps of The Office and American Idol, turning out big ratings and even bigger interest (at first) on Broadway once the winning leads took the stage.

It Factor, 2002
Network: Bravo
Wizards: Nicole Torre, Alice Peck, producers.
Fate: Though the show lasted just two seasons, the documentary following actors trying to get their big break did turn out two working stars. Sure, one got a gig as a 7Up spokesman, but Michaela Conlin went on to become a regular on Bones.

Show:Fight For Fame, 2005
Network: E!
Wizards: Adam Lieblein and Greg Meyer, producers and Acme agents.
Fate: Another documentary-style program, featuring five wannabe actors competing for a deal with Acme, the show suffered due to a boring format (monologues began each episode) and predictably low interested in real-agents-as-stars. Had Ari Emanuel been in charge, it would have been another story. The SF Gate summarized the one-season snoozer by including it in a piece entitled "Some Shows So Bad You Can't Be Paid To Watch."

• VH1 GREENLIGHTS 'SCREAM QUEENS' [THR]

Playing a prisoner of war in last year's critically acclaimed Rescue Dawn meant Steve Zahn, until then just another token funny buddy actor, was forced to lose 40 pounds on a diet of vegetables and nuts. As he put it, "I never cheated but it was tough - I'm a meat and potatoes kind of guy." As for Renee Zellweger, earning Oscar noms for both Chicago and Cold Mountain meant losing twice that much: "I lost 80 pounds for those two roles...my tits disappeared so I had to stuff socks into my bra cup!.” And Matt Damon lost 30 to play the nerdy swindler star of 1999's bold-faced name-packed but Oscarless update of The Talented Mr. Ripley.

As a crack addict with a heart of gold in Half Nelson, Ryan Gosling went from Rachel McAdams' cute boyfriend to Oscar nominee by transforming into a gaunt tweaker. But of course, the most frightening metamorphosis of all time has got to be Christian Bale's unrecognizable appearance in The Machinist, a role which earned him just as many rave reviews as it did health problems. As Bale put it, going from 180 pounds to 120 caused "a massive shock to my body because of what I was trying to get it to do...My metabolism had to get back up to speed, because my heart had got used to a whole different way of living for some time."

• FARRELL GOES FROM TRIM TO THIN [The Sun]

It's none other than Hollywood's most likable fella, Matt Damon! Here we see Matt mobbed by fans in Decatur, IL. He's there shooting Steven Soderbergh's The Informant, in which he plays Mark Whitacre, the real-life whistle-blower in the mid-90's lysine price-fixing conspiracy that rocked the agricultural-feed world. It's a look that caused at least one online fan to recoil in horror, a finger outstretched and the other hand covering their mouths as they gasped, "PEDOSTACHE!"

Congratulations to everyone who guessed correctly!

• Matt Damon On Set [ONTD]

boomp3.com

An extremely jet lagged Matt Damon happily posed with a photographer who exclaimed that now he's fucking Matt Damon over and over again. Damon smiled and said thanks, but quickly explained that he had to leave. The photographer said that he wanted to say one more thing before Damon left. Damon sheepishly replied, "What?" The photographer with a mile-wide grin said, "I'm fucking Matt Damon."

[Photo Credit: Splash News]

· Writers strike yields a spec script boom, particularly for untested scribes with Diabo Cody-esque backstories. Really makes those days on the line worth it, huh? [THR]
· TNT loves Raymond, picking up Romano's pilot (penned with Mike Royce) Men of a Certain Age, a comic drama akin to Sideways about three men in their forties in midlife crisis. Is one of the manifestations misrepresenting one's age? Because last we checked, Romano was over 50. [Variety]
· Steven Soderbergh puts Matt Damon's box office draw to the test, casting Scott Bakula, Joel McHale, Mike O'Malley and Melanie Lynsky opposite the Bourne actor in dark, comedic thriller The Informant. [THR]

And what "IFBA" lacks in the element of surprise, it makes up for in sheer sweep, as not since Northern Lights took to the studio for "Tears Are Not Enough" has such a dazzling constellation of entertainment superstars come together in song for such a worthy cause. We defy you to watch Cameron Diaz deliver that extremely obscene hand gesture, and not feel even a little bit compelled to pick up a phone and pledge your support, that our children will never see a world in which Kimmel isn't steadily giving the big one to Ben Affleck. (Or vice versa. Despite that title, Kimmel seems the bitch in this arrangement.)

• Jimmy Kimmel Live!

We'll leave you to share in Kimmel's musical shame without further preamble; by the end of Silverman's impressively catchy confessional (note to striking WGA members: she says she wrote it in October!), you'll be more than ready to cast aside your guitar and get to the important work of fucking Matt Damon.

• Jimmy Kimmel Live [ABC.com]

George Clooney and Brad Pitt have shamelessly campaigned for him since 2001, but this year's winner was Bourne to the title. "You've given an aging suburban dad the ego-boost of a lifetime," Damon, 37, told PEOPLE, explaining why he couldn't possibly accept the crown - which perfectly demonstrates many of the reasons we chose him in the first place: irresistible sense of humor, rock solid family man, heart-melting humility.

While Damon will doubtlessly enjoy the temporary ego-gains of receiving hourly shipments of oversized lacy underthings from the most easily excitable segment of People's readership, he'll probably soon wake up to the same kind of sobering prank Clooney suffered last year. Upon flipping through tomorrow's copy of Variety, he shouldn't be surprised to see a a full-page photo his Sexiest-predecessor co-stars promised would never become public, in which the normally image-conscious Damon, after having allowed himself an open-bar bender at the Ocean's 13 wrap party, is shown passed out in the back of Pitt's limousine, caked in the hardening chocolate of the dessert fountain he'd repeatedly thrust his head into for the drunken amusement of his crew.

• Sexiest Man Alive 2007[People.com]

In your GQ interview, you suggest that if your public knew much about your background and personal life, they might have a difficult time accepting you as a tough guy — indeed, a killer — in your "Bourne" movies. Should you be that defensive about your privileged background? Humphrey Bogart and Lee Marvin both played tough guys yet came from prep school backgrounds, and I don't remember them apologizing about it.

Living in denial seems mildly pathological, Matt. In a recent interview, Christian Bale, another charter member of the give-me-privacy club, acknowledged that he routinely lies to reporters on those rare occasions when he is cornered. Asked by The Los Angeles Times why he does so, he replied, "I have no desire for people to get their facts right about me." Does Bale have such a riveting story to hide? I doubt it.

I'll give you this, Matt: Amid the media onslaught, it has become much more difficult for stars (or public figures in general) to maintain their dignity — or their integrity. Would much of the media be downright thrilled if you had a few too many and launched into a public rant against some minority group? Damn right they would. A forced trip to rehab under a police escort would make a good piece on "Extra."

Still, there's got to be a middle ground between the Life of Lohan and "boring and elusive." I'd like to think you can stake out a piece of that ground, Matt, and look like you're enjoying yourself a little more.

Look at Clooney: The Limbaughs of the hard right have made him a whipping boy, but he still seems to be out there, having a great time and making some meaningful movies.

Think Clooney, Matt. Brando is so not today's role model, either in terms of behavior or heft.

While all of this seems like a backdoor invitation to join Bart and TV partner Peter Guber for a penetrating discussion about the privacy-for-fame tradeoff made by A-list actors on Sunday Morning Shootout, we nevertheless hope Damon heeds some of the above advice: We'd much rather see the Most Likable Movie Star On Earth evolve into a Clooney-style personality who intelligently plays the Hollywood game than into a Brandoesque recluse who, ten years hence, shows up to the set of Ocean's Eighteen pantsless and three-hundred pounds overweight, and demanding that the script notes his favorite Polynesian houseboy offered as they ran lines in his trailer be immediately integrated into that day's shoot.

• Where did Matt Damon go? [Variety]
• Previously: Breaking: Thing In Matt Damon's Ear Supposed To Be There [Defamer]

1. Halloween - $31.012 million
Apparently, sitting through 109 air-conditioned minutes of Rob Zombie's utterly unnecessary reimagining of the 1978 John Carpenter masked-slasher classic was preferable to expiring from heat stroke, as audiences flocked to their local multiplexes to watch a resurrected Michael Myers return home to eviscerate his suburban neighbors.

Perhaps now that this new Halloween has broken the Labor Day box office record, original Myers stalkee Jamie Lee Curtis will take to her Huffington Post blog to complain that having her iconic role reprised by "some skinny bitch named Scout," is further evidence of the decline of Western civilization.

2. Superbad - $15.6 million
Emboldened by the newfound heat he's enjoying following a third consecutive impressive weekend for Superbad, star Jonah Hill will seek to emulate writer/co-star Seth Rogen's career plans by having his agents call around town to mention that it's always been his dream to don The Phantom's purple tights and restore dignity to a beloved hero whose legacy was defiled by Billy Zane a decade ago.

3. Balls of Fury - $13.873 million
We knew that Rogue Pictures should have put Christopher Walken on its poster, holding a pair of ping pong balls in front of his testicles. Maybe they'll go with that image for the DVD cover.

4. The Bourne Ultimatum - $13.193 million
Matt Damon's publicists are hard at work cementing his position as the Most Likable Movie Star in the World; soon, Damon will attempt to maintain the nice-momentum he's built through yesterday's animated Arthur cameo by appearing in a commercial in which he helps the Snuggle Teddy Bear recover from a nasty cold by feeding it chicken soup with a medicine dropper.

8. Death Sentence - $5.2 million
We'll admit that we're a little surprised by Death Sentence's poor debut; nothing premiering this weekend sounded more appealing to us than Kevin Bacon revenge-slaughtering a gang that killed his kid.

• WEEKEND BOX OFFICE August 31-September 3, 2007 [Box Office Mojo]

[Photo: Getty Images]

• Extra [extratv.com]

So who's available? Jake Gyllenhaal, Hugh Grant and Joaquin Phoenix are open for offers, as are Gwyneth Paltrow and Halle Berry.

While obviously not a comprehensive list, it should provide a nice starting point for studios desperate to rush into production any project already turned down by Tobey Maguire, a romantic comedy about a lovable stammerer, any project turned down by Matt Damon, a script with premature Oscar buzz that will eventually be released on 10 screens in late December to little fanfare, or any film in which some gratuitous nudity can be at least tenuously ascribed to artistic necessity. Also: Ben Affleck is probably available for a wide array of roles. There's no better time for a big comeback than during the hysteria of strike-insurance stockpiling.

• Agents work overtime to book clients [THR]

1. The Bourne Ultimatum—$70.181 million
It would hardly feel like a Monday morning in this blockbuster-clogged summer without some sort of qualified box office record being broken, and this weekend's debutof Bourne Ultimatum did not disappoint. Ultimatum's $70.181 million is the Biggest August Opening Ever, unless you're one of those numbers-obsessed types who wants to cheapen this accomplishment by noting that Rush Hour 2's would still hold that title if we account for ticket price inflation. But we recommend that we all pretend that inflation doesn't exist and let Bourne enjoy its moment of triumph, which may only last until Brett Ratner unleashes yet another Rush Hour on the world this Friday. And we all know he's not going to be shy about rubbing everyone's faces in another new record.

2. The Simpson Movie—$25.6 million
If we have one complaint about the movie, it's that it could've used a little more nudity. Maybe they're saving a scene revealing the Comic Book Guy's squiggle for the sequel, knowing they had to ease us into the world of animated full-frontal with a less upsetting peak at Bart's minimalist junk the first time around.

3. Underdog—$12 million
Even though Underdog's opening was hardly encouraging, we're holding out hope that Jason Lee's next cartoon series adaptation won't be a total trainwreck. At least the Alvin team was smart enough to avoid Underdog's bizarre choice to use real animals, as watching Lee scream at actual chipmunks for 90 minutes could have been a little disturbing.

4. I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry—$15.550 million
We know we're a little fixated on congratulatory ads in the trades, but we're really looking forward to the one of Adam Sandler and Kevin James kissing atop a gay-wedding cake reading "$100,000,000 DOMESTIC!" once the movie passes that milestone in the next couple of weeks.

9. Hot Rod—$5.015 million
SNL's Andy Samberg needs to get a couple more Lazy Sunday-sized hits under his belt before he's ready for a Fallonesque, Taxi-level disaster. Hardly anyone will notice Hot Rod modest failure.

• WEEKEND BOX OFFICE August 3-5, 2007 [Box Office Mojo]

As we all know by know, this special occasion demands the purchase of ads in the trade papers by the studios, agencies, and other interested parties wanting to maintain relationships with the honoree, so today the likes of Universal, Endeavor, and Jimmy Kimmel (actual text: "Dear Matt, Congratulations on the star and sorry we ran out of time. We'll try to squeeze you in soon. Your pal, Jimmy. P.S. This ad cost me $8,512") have lavished their compulsory love upon the pages of Variety and THR. One unexpected tribute, however, is the quarter-pager taken out by Damon's beloved Red Sox; presumably, should less frequently employed creative partner and Fenway Park ubiquity Ben Affleck ever receive his own star, the team will spring for a two-page spread to thank him for so visibly filling the seats near their home dugout during his downtime.

[Ad via Digital Variety]

• Previously: Clooney, Pitt, And Damon Achieve Hollywood Tourist Trap Immortality [Defamer]

"They're really excited about it," says the source. [...]

Now the screen idols have spent two weeks getting their creative juices flowing in a $13,000-a-week house in Kauai, Hawaii.

"Ben and Matt keep taking breaks to go surfing and hang out with their families," adds the source. "But for the most part, they've been writing together on this trip."

Even those who question the team's bonafides and uncharitably suspect that the duo might have had a little help with their award-winning script should recognize the telltale signs of real professionals in the process of creating: the elaborate labor-avoidance tactics that guarantee that no actual work will get done. Still, noticeable progress is being made; in between their shared family time and restorative surfing sessions, Affleck and Damon have periodically stopped in front of a laptop with an open Final Draft document reading, "FADE IN: INT. BEACH HOUSE—DAY. FUCK THIS. HAVE ENDEAVOR CALL WILLIAM GOLDMAN AND GET QUOTE FOR GOOD WILL 2" to obsessively tinker with the exact wording of their inevitable distress call.

• Ben & Matt's Next Movie [UsMagazine.com]
• Previously: But How Is This Strike Situation Affecting Matt Damon? [Defamer]

"We're trying to do in six months what we usually do in 12," said Patrick Whitesell, a partner with the Endeavor agency, which represents Mr. Sandler and others caught up in the chase. [...]

In one go-round, Paul Greengrass, finished with this August's "Bourne Ultimatum," with Matt Damon, a client of Mr. Whitesell's, has been trying to round up that star to shoot "Imperial Life in the Emerald City" for Universal and Working Title Films. But Mr. Damon is also looking at "The Informant," a conspiracy thriller to be directed by Steven Soderbergh for Warner Brothers.

If Mr. Damon commits to both, and everything falls into place with the studios, that would mean a long delay for "The Fighter," a Paramount boxing film that is being lined up as a possible project for him with the director Darren Aronofsky. For that one, however, Mr. Damon would have to contend with weight fluctuations that would be difficult to control on a tight schedule.

If dwelling upon the heartbreaking possibility that the universally beloved actor's metabolism will become a pawn in the chess match between the unions and the studios isn't enough to move you, consider this: Should Damon's ability to earn become impaired by a lengthy work stoppage, he'll likely have to cease the monthly assistance payments he's been generously giving to childhood friend Ben Affleck, who hasn't worked steadily since 2004. Only the blackest of Hollywood souls can remain unaffected by the thought of a lifelong bond broken by the cruel realities of this business.

• Hollywood Scrambles as Strike Looms [NY Times]

[Photo: Getty Images]