'Descendants' director talks career, next filmAlexander Payne's "The Descendants" was one of the most-talked about films of the past awards season, and it indeed led to accolades for the director. Adapted from the book of the same name, "The Descendants," now available on DVD and Blu-ray, was nominated for a total of five Academy Awards and won for best adapted screenplay, which Payne co-wrote with Nat Faxon and Jim Rash. Starring George Clooney as Matt King, "The Descendants" follows the self-described "backup parent" after his wife's boating accident near their Hawaiian home leaves her in a coma. Praise pours in for Viola Davis' natural 'doIt's no surprise that Viola Davis made an impressive stroll down the red carpet at Sunday's Oscars, as we've come to expect nothing less from the acclaimed actress - but she did manage to upend a few expectations with her hairstyle. Rather than rock a wig, Davis showed off her natural, close-cropped hair, dyed a fierce flavor of red to add a little more spark to the chic cut she displayed on the cover of the Los Angeles Times magazine. The curly Afro was a notable difference, and the praise quickly poured in: CNN goes inside the OscarsWe're accustomed to covering the events, but attending them as spectators is a wholly different thing. And then, a couple of weeks ago, a funny thing happened: Through an odd set of circumstances, we just happened to receive two unassigned tickets to the Academy Awards (not to mention the Governor's Ball!). This turn of events didn't exempt us from pre-awards show work, but it did give us insight into the way the show runs from a different point of view: In a post 'Oprah' show world, why not a fight club?Times have changed for Oprah Winfrey: Her long-running talk show is off daytime TV, she's heading up her own network - and she's trying to avoid tweeting to viewers with Nielsen boxes in the process. To aid in her transition, Jimmy Kimmel offered a few new show ideas for her OWN network on his post-Oscars show last night - and some of those ideas really held some promise. Exhibit A: Oprah's Book Club Fight Club! Stars come out for Vanity Fair post-Oscars partyThe festivities don't stop with the Oscars ceremony - once the awards are handed out, the stars let loose with the Governor's Ball and Vanity Fair's post-Oscars bash. We spoke with a number of celebs at the latter gathering, and Sean "P. Diddy" Combs for one was planning on having a good time. "['Undefeated' filmmaker] TJ [Martin] happens to be the first African American to win an Oscar [for best documentary], and I'm happy to be a part of it," Combs told us as he arrived. Pointing towards the party, he added, "I plan on having more memories, so if you catch me in a few more hours I'll have some more stories for you!” ![]() (From left): 'Undefeated' producers Rich Middlemas, Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs, and directors T.J. Martin and Daniel Lindsay. 'Undefeated' director apologizes for F bombThe team behind last night's best documentary feature Oscar winner, "Undefeated," have admitted that they got a little caught up in the moment. Reminiscent of Melissa Leo's accidental swear word slip when she nabbed the best supporting actress Oscar last year, one of "Undefeated's" directors, T.J. Martin, was so overcome with joy from the win that he dropped an "F bomb" during his acceptance speech. (He thought it would be "f*****g awesome" if the other nominees in the best documentary feature category could share the moment on stage.) A no-no at an awards show, but it was "from the heart," Martin later said backstage in an apology. |
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