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The Hunger Games, starring Donald Sutherland, Jennifer Lawrence, Stanley Tucci and Woody Harrelson, is coming to theatres on March 23, but a second theatrical trailer was released this week for eager Hungarians itching for some new details. Pretty soon there’s going to be a lot of dead young adults on your movie screen.
In case you missed it, click to check out the first trailer »
The official trailer for the much-anticipated film adaption of young-adult series The Hunger Games has been revealed today. The film cast includes the beloved Donald Sutherland, Woody Harrelson and Stanley Tucci, in addition to a cast of young stars who try to kill each other, including Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson. Check out the trailer above to see a ragtag group of boys and girls from 12 colonies preparing for the fight of their lives. We think it is a much more civilized version of Battle Royale.
Our hat tips to Fashion for revealing the trailer to us.
Woody Harrelson has now been officially spotted in Toronto for TIFF—but we wonder if he ever really left. Before attending yesterday’s screening of Fernando Meirelles’s new drama, 360, Harrelson was in town this summer to direct Bullet for Adolf, a play based on his time in Texas as a construction worker. Considering his serious crush on the city, we have a hunch he’s been camped out here ever since.
Find this story on our Star Spotting Map, where we plot the locations of celebrities spotted around Toronto.
Woody Harrelson likes us. He really, really likes us. The American actor and enviro poster boy has been in Toronto since February, rehearsing his loosely autobiographical comedy, Bullet for Adolf. The play is set in the summer of 1983—during which Harrelson worked construction in Houston alongside his pal (and co-writer) Frankie Hyman—and covers everything from race relations to dissolving friendships. This new show is the latest chapter in the Woody-hearts-Hogtown saga that began more than 20 years ago when the actor, newly famous for playing a lovably dim bartender on Cheers, hung out with Ted Danson on the Toronto set of Three Men and a Baby. Since then, he has returned regularly for film and theatre projects, awards ceremonies and the mother of all yoga sessions. We met with him over milk thistle smoothies at his top nosh spot, Live, to reminisce about his best Toronto moments.
Breaking a killer fast, August 2003 Read the rest of this entry »
“I had started a juice fast before I got to town. The cast and producers of This Is Our Youth—a play I was directing here—threw me a welcome party at Fresh. I thought I was just going to sit there, but I hadn’t eaten in 30-odd days. The smell was too much; I was onto those sweet potato fries before I knew it. God, those things are good. I’m kind of an extremist, so I’ll do the fast and then I’ll gorge. Same old bullshit.”
Woody Harrelson, Measha Brueggergosman as Vitellia in La Clemenza di Tito and Adam Jacobs as Simba in The Lion King
1. THE LION KING
You wouldn’t think a theatrical adaptation of a Disney movie would run for so long (nearly 14 years), earn so many accolades (more than 70 awards, including a Tony for Julie Taymor’s direction) or turn out to be so good, but somehow The Lion King does all of that. Oh, and did we mention it’s gorgeous? The puppets, costumes and stage design have been consistently blowing young minds since the show opened. This limited engagement is only in town for eight weeks—don’t miss it. To June 12. $35–135. Princess of Wales Theatre, 300 King St. W., 416-872-1212, mirvish.com.
2. CHOCOLATE AND CHEESE PAIRING (FREE!) Read the rest of this entry »
We usually pair cheese with wine and chocolate with, well, more chocolate. But this free foodie event, hosted by chef Chris McDonald (of Cava and Xococava fame) and Jane Rodmell (founder of All the Best Fine Foods), pairs two of our favourite foods with each other. Expertly spiced chocolate tiles are partnered with their ideal matches from All The Best’s stock of specialty cheeses. To be honest, we’re just a tad skeptical, but if anyone can make this pairing work, it’s McDonald. April 23. All the Best Fine Foods, 1101 Yonge St., allthebestfinefoods.com.
Toronto’s Broken Social Scene (Image: Vincent van der Pas)
Canada is getting lots of celebrity love these days: Paul Giamatti saluted our home and native land at the Golden Globes, while Arcade Fire thanked Montreal in their acceptance speech at the Grammys. Justin Bieber thinks Canada is the best country in the whole world, and Woody Harrelson named Toronto as his favourite city in North America. Now, a recent Richard Florida blog post on The Atlantic’s website argues that Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver have become music industry centres rivalling New York, Los Angeles and Nashville.
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Come April 19, actor Woody Harrelson will mount his play Bullet for Adolf at the Hart House Theatre in Toronto. Harrelson is set to direct the production, which he co-wrote with long-time friend Frankie Hyman and is based their days working construction together in Houston during the summer of 1983. According to the Canadian Press, Harrelson touts the play as a “raucous frolic into murky waters.”
In the pre-TIFF weeks, everyone (ourselves included) wondered whether the new Bell Lightbox Theatre and a few shiny King Street hot spots would result in a mass uptown exodus. But now that the fest is in full swing, it’s obvious we underestimated the familiarity factor. Apparently there really is no place like Yorkville, or at least that’s what we’re left to conclude after spotting an arsenal of A-listers at the dustiest of de rigueur dwellings, the Four Seasons. Here, a rundown of the evening’s encounters.
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The young, the old and the fugly
Woot! Woot! The exhaustive official guest list for TIFF has been released (James Franco! Jon Hamm! Uma Thurman!), meaning we can finally provide a definitive stargazing guide to the fest. Here’s a quick primer. See the full list after the jump.
The acclaimed Read the rest of this entry »
Clint Eastwood, Robert Redford, Robert De Niro, Helen Mirren, Nicole Kidman, Bill Murray, Edward Norton, Woody Allen, Catherine Deneuve, Harvey Keitel, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Kevin Spacey, Martin Sheen, William H. Macy, Catherine Keener
Swagger: Kat Denning at the Tastemakers' Lounge (Photo courtesy of Rok-It PR)
Where’s a TIFF-goer to head for a semblance of home when they are miles before sleep? To the Tastemakers Lounge, of course. In its tenth year at the InterContinental, the gifting suite to the stars has gotten comfortable, feeling more like a super-yuppie condo than swag showroom.
Upon entrance to the airy, livable room, things soothed and wafted: neutral decor by Croma Design and PC Home, faintly spiced almonds mingling with inoffensive fragrances from D&G (most popular? L’Imperatrice; it translates to “The Star”). Box sets of AMC shows Mad Men and Breaking Bad went over big with the cast of Defendor—Woody Harrelson and Kat Dennings—while bamboo tees by Guats went out on the backs of Colin Firth and Agora’s Oscar Isaac. Ally Sheedy got good hair from a Chiggy’s Touch stylist with Rowenta tools. Amanda Schull (danced most famously in Centre Stage, now more credibly in Mao’s Last Dancer) primped with Joe Fresh Beauty. And Ben Barnes, the wasted anti-hero of Dorian Gray, can now recover with the aid of his new PC Home personal water-filter bottle.
As for us, we just wanted to steal a silky pillow for our hollowed-out heads.
Hmm...we thought Woody Allen was older
When we caught a partial glimpse of a blond guy amid a bunch of flashing cameras on Saturday night, we thought we knew which celebrity was being tapped for autographs on Cumberland, but couldn’t be sure. Turning to the pair of models handing out Hudson Jeans ads nearby, who being six feet tall had a clear sightline of the figure in question, we tried to get confirmation:
TIFF.TO: “Who is that?”
MODELS: “Um, Woody Allen? People were saying Woody.”
TIFF.TO:“Oh, Woody Harrelson!”
MODELS: “Who is that?”
TIFF.TO:“He was in Cheers.”
MODELS: Is that old?
TIFF.TO:“Uh, kind of.”
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Our daily roundup of the most buzz-worthy opening galas, parties and screenings.
• The Harder They Come free public screening, Yonge–Dundas Square, noon
• Precious: Based on the Novel “Push” by Sapphire showcase hosted by director Lee Daniels with a reading by the author, Yonge–Dundas Square, 4 p.m.
• Up in the Air premiere, Ryerson Theatre, 6 p.m.
• Get Low premiere, Roy Thomson Hall, 6:30 p.m.
• Triage premiere, Winter Garden Theatre, 8:30 p.m.
• A Serious Man premiere, Visa Screening Room, 9 p.m.
• Solitary Man premiere, Varsity 8, 9 p.m.
• I Don Giovanni premiere, Roy Thomson Hall, 9:30 p.m.
• Harry Brown premiere party (guests include Michael Caine and Emily Mortimer), Lower Bay Station, 8 p.m.
• Solitary Man post screening party (guests include Michael Douglas, Danny DeVito, Danny Glover, Edward Norton, Susan Sarandon, Mary Louise Parker and Jenna Fischer), Brant House, 10 p.m.
• Down for Life (guests include Danny Glover) post screening party, Maro, 10:30 p.m.
• Hello! Hollywood cocktail reception (guests may include Michael Douglas, Mary Louise Parker and Woody Harrelson), Birks on Bloor Street, 7 p.m.
• One X One concert (guests include Matt Damon and a performance by Mary J. Blige), Koolhaus
• Holt Renfrew party (guests include models Coco Rocha and Behati Prinsloo and a performance by The Stills), Burroughes Building
The Please Mum duds that Jennifer Garner will recieve
Please mum, can I have a sweater? The objective of a gifting lounge is to connect George Clooney with a Sharpie marker, Woody Harrelson with some Teva sandals, Demi Moore with…umm…a Penny Protein Plan muffin? And then we, the media, talk about which talent scooped up what. For PRs, it’s kind of like the bonus back massage you get when you book a pedi.
The IT Lounge publicists know how to push product, and that’s why Jennifer Garner received cutesy Please Mum duds for her little Gaffleck girls delivered right to her door. Will they wear them? Not sure, but Olivia Wilde’s nieces will battle the rain with a sweet Please Mum raincoat. While taking a looksy, Wilde also fell for a J. Rox lariat necklace (designed by Toronto’s Jane Apor), which we assume she’ll wear tonight at the Artists for Peace and Justice event at The Windsor Arms.
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To be Blunt: early rumblings suggest Young Victoria could be Emily Blunt's big break (Photo by chloe004)
With two weeks left until the opening gala of the Toronto International Film Festival, reporters gathered at the Hazelton Hotel to get a rundown on the buzziest films (Precious), parties (One X One), possible Oscar contenders (Mo’Nique, the woman from Soul Plane) and TIFF-inspired cocktails (Skyy vodka for all).
CTV film critic Richard Crouse said the Oprah-backed film Precious could mean a possible Oscar nomination for Mo’Nique, while co-star Mariah Carey can finally shake off the tarnished glitter from, well, Glitter. Closing film Young Victoria also got a thumbs-up and was predicted to be Emily Blunt’s big break. But the most intriguing film tidbit (and a brilliant marketing move to boot) was that everyone who went to the pre-screening of Heath Ledger’s last film, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, had to sign a waiver that forbid them from talking about it.
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