Betting against Boyle

Is anybody betting against the affable, immensely talented Danny Boyle at this point?

Seems so.

The Directors Guild of America awards are tomorrow night (check back for some sporadic and semi-coherent Gold Rush posts before, during and/or after the event) and here are the nominees for the top prize:

Boyle, "Slumdog Millionaire"

David Fincher (pictured), "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"

Christopher Nolan, "The Dark Knight"

Ron Howard, "Frost/Nixon"

Gus Van Sant, "Milk"

This is what the Oscar lineup should've looked like, by the way.

As part of TheEnvelope.com's Buzzmeter panel, we picked Boyle to win. And so have a lot of our blogger and journalist colleagues. Not everyone agrees, though, pointing out that the fervent Fincher fan base and Nolan's hipster appeal could actually turn this into a race.

We'll see about that.

And for the latest in "Slumdog" backlash, go here.

We don't think the anti-"Slumdog" jabs are worth much comment, especially since they aren't likely to have any impact on the Oscar outcome. Now that we've officially dumped "Button" -- did we forget to mention that? -- we're saying, "Slumdog" all the way!

Taking Oscar down to the studs

 

And the music swells, and the flustered Oscar winner starts speed-talking and sputtering and generally embarrassing him or herself against a progressively louder orchestra until he or she is played off stage.

Yeah, that's not going to happen this year.

At least that's a goal, say first-time Oscar producers Larry Mark and Bill Condon, who are promising to strip down the bloated but iconic ceremony to its skivvies and re-dress it. Elegantly, of course. (Couldn't come at a better time -- last year's telecast was the lowest-rated in history.)

This time around, no "Gone With the Wind" clips (more current blockbusters!), no awkward clapping during the "in memoriam" montage (at least, not that the home audience will hear) and no traditional opening monologue. While it might seem like a show with a life of its own, steeped in things that must be done, apparently Oscar is flexi.

In fact, the marching order from Sid Ganis and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was fairly bare bones, Mark said:

"The only thing you must do is give all the awards out live onstage. You have to respect that. But there are many ways to do that, mind you."

About those acceptance speeches? They'll still be limited to 45 seconds, in theory, and the actors will be given a stern talking-to about that, says Mark.

"Don't thank your laundress."

For more Oscar night plans -- it'll come in under three hours, they promise! -- go here for USA Today's detailed scoop.

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Is daredevil Frenchman Philippe Petit about to become the go-to talk show guest all over American TV?

We can only hope so, judging from his appearance this week on "The Colbert Report," where he shared some of his "Rain Man" tendencies and talked about being compelled to tightrope walk between the Twin Towers in 1974.

The documentary about his infamous art-stunt, "Man on Wire," looks to be in front of the pack of Oscar nominees. (Read a Gold Rush Q&A here with its director, James Marsh.)

For Petit's visit, Colbert busted out a few phrases en Francais, declared he knew why the diminutive acrobat did what he did (for the chicks!) and pulled off some green-screen tricks of his own. Watch and learn.

'Mad Men' cast goes Rat Pack

 

Cast members of the Emmy-, Golden Globe- and SAG-winning series "Mad Men" were back at their Rat Pack best in Vegas this week with '60s-era songs, fan dances and Sammy, Dean and Frank-esque onstage patter.

Glad to see the NATPE convention still believes in its high-powered entertainment.

For a full account of the event -- can't you almost smell the bourbon? -- go here. 

No bare knuckle Rourke

He's not a wrestler, but he plays one in the movies.

Word from Mickey Rourke's publicist via Defamer is that the Oscar-nominated Comeback Kid won't step into the ring with WWE's Chris Jericho at Wrestlemania after all. Never mind that call-out on the red carpet of the SAG Awards -- Rourke just punked out. There will be no "Ram Jam" signature move outside the bleak Darren Aronofsky drama.

The statement:

"Mickey was very honored to be asked as he has the greatest respect for WWE however he will not be participating in Wrestlemania. He is focusing entirely on his acting career."

As we'd pointed out yesterday, it wasn't necessarily the April appearance that was causing such an awards season dustup -- that's long after the Oscars -- but it was the aggressive marketing certain to take place around that event that had the potential to short-circuit Rourke's hard campaigning work.

Seems Rourke was having second thoughts as soon as that promotion kicked in, on "Larry King Live" this week where he demured to a smack-talking Jericho and mumbled something about boxing or bare knuckle fighting instead of WWE-style grappling.

Jericho, of course, was ready to take that bait. (Watch the video here).

But it's not to be. 

We keep flashing back to "The Wrestler's" premiere in L.A. that was packed with pro wrasslers like Rowdy Roddy Piper, Rick "The Nature Boy" Flair, Diamond Dallas Page, Brutus Beefcake and others, who described how touched they were by the movie and Rourke's performance. It was real and true, they said, free of Hollywood artifice, and they've been vocal proponents to their significant and loyal fan bases.

Wonder what they're thinking now?

Rourke vs. Jericho vs. Oscar

Is this any way to win an Oscar? 

Not only does best actor nominee Mickey Rourke seem tentative and out of sorts on "Larry King Live" last night, but he's completely over his head in the smack-talk arena next to WWE star Chris Jericho. 

This makes us sad for a couple reasons. 1) Because Rourke has been on such a roll, winning the Golden Globe and emerging as the guy who can go toe-to-toe with Sean Penn on Feb. 22. And 2) It's not the upcoming "fight" with Jericho at Wrestlemania in April that's hurting him right now -- it's all the promotion around it. Think for one minute that master marketer Vince McMahon won't try to capitalize on Rourke's and "The Wrestler's" heat and you will mistake him.

Oh, the dilemma Rourke faces here. If he turns his back on pro wrestling, he looks like an ingrate and a snob. If he embraces it, he dings his credibility as a Serious Actor. 

Kind of a no-win. 

He's shown that he's not letting any grass grow under his feet, talking to Marvel about playing a villain in "Iron Man 2" and joining the cast of Sylvester Stallone's latest testosterone-packed project, "The Expendables." 

The planned WWE appearance isn't likely to derail his well-orchestrated comeback, but it's probably not going to win him any Academy friends.

To market with Oscar

After that Gold Rush grilling at Christmastime, it's no wonder Oscar producer Bill Condon hasn't made a public peep about what we can all expect from the 81st Annual Academy Awards. (And he's probably sworn off holiday cookies forever).

He and fellow producer Larry Mark won't spill any details, but that has not stopped the first-ever joint ad campaign from the Academy and ABC, which is using "The Biggest Movie Event of the Year" as its headline. 

The exec heading up that effort is Michael Benson, co-executive vice president of marketing, ABC Entertainment, who said the ads are using the mystery as a selling point and that there are plenty of strong themes in this year's nominated crop of movies and performances to hang a marketing hat on. He gave Gold Rush some lowdown on how the network and the Academy will try to lure people to the three-hour live telecast.

GR: How is this year's push for the Oscars different from the past?

MB: We wanted to reinvent what we do to promote the Oscars, so we engaged an outside ad agency (Omelet, L.A.). We've always had a collaborative relationship with the Academy, but this is the first time we've hired an agency. We all came up with ideas and decided to use the theme, The Biggest Movie Event of the Year.

GR: When did all the work begin?

MB: A month after last year's show, we started working on this year's show.

GR: Was that because of the ratings (which sank to a record low of 32 million viewers)?

MB: Well, everything is about the ratings. But it was a combination of that and taking into account the audience and its changing habits.

GR: Ratings tend to be low when most people haven't seen the nominated movies or aren't that familiar with the actors. How will you deal with the challenges that come from having "The Reader" and Freida Pinto in the mix?

MB: We'll be talking a lot about personal achievement, overcoming the odds, overcoming obstacles. There are a lot of underdogs in this race, and we think people can really relate to that.

In addition to ads on TV, radio, in magazines, newspapers, online, in theaters and elsewhere (and no, Benson won't talk about the bank behind it all) there's a revamped Oscar site -- now with interactivity! -- to try to pull people into the season's Big Show. Will it work on you? Let us know.

GLAAD for 'Milk,' 'True Blood'

Now, it would've been news if "Milk," "The L Word," and "Brothers & Sisters" didn't make the list of GLAAD nominees for sensitive, real-world portrayals of members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities.

But that's not the way it went down.

Have to wonder about that nod for "Vicky Cristina Barcelona," though. Was that for the soft-core threesome parts, or the one much-overhyped kiss between Scarlett Johansson and Penelope Cruz? Just curious.

Thrilled to see the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation give props to one of the most daring new TV shows, HBO's "True Blood," and one of its most compelling characters, diner-hash-slinger-and-vampire-blood-dealer-extraordinaire Lafayette (played by Nelsan Ellis, pictured). 

The nods also recognize that the gritty and very male Guy Ritchie caper "RockNRolla" successfully and hilariously showed its homoerotic side, and that Kathy Griffin's "My Life on the D-list" always, always belongs in this company.

More details and a full list of nominees here.

Four producers on 'The Reader'

 

Oscar rules aren't meant to be broken, but they can bend. 

Final decision: There are four credited producers on "The Reader," wiping away that "TBD" that had appeared under the Holocaust film title last week when it was nominated for best picture.

Here's the Academy statement:

"Because four producers were listed on the credits form submitted for Oscar consideration and Academy rules allow for only three producers -- except in "a rare and extraordinary circumstance" -- to be nominated and potentially receive Oscar statuettes, a meeting of the executive committee was necessary. In the end, the committee determined that the circumstances of "The Reader" -- in which the two original producers (Anthony Minghella and Sydney Pollack) both died partway through the process -- met its definition of "rare and extraordinary" and that all four submitted individuals should be named as nominees."

Oscar nominee stories redux

 

Pity the Oscar nominees who are still hot on the trail of their whistle stop tours of daytime chat shows, "Entertainment Tonight," Comedy Central, "The View" and late night TV.

Or should we? Because, when you think of it, we're the ones who have to listen to them tell the same tired stories over and over again.

While best actress nominee (and recent SAG winner) Meryl Streep has already informed the klatch at "The View" how distasteful she finds awards campaigning, her fellow actors continue to engage in the new-ish practice. (So does she, truth be told).

Evidence from last night: The sometimes coherent Josh Brolin told an anecdote on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" about being a little husky, weight-wise, when he arrived on the set of "American Gangster." Decked out in his '70s leisure suit costume, the Oscar-nominated "Milk" actor met with co-star Russell Crowe, sat to rehearse and promptly and audibly ripped out the seat of his pants.

He figured all that was left was to get fired by director Ridley Scott which, of course, didn't happen.

Great story (better than those platitudes about "Milk"), but it's a repeat. Just like the charming Viola Davis who keeps saying that acting in an intense scene in "Doubt" with Streep was like "going 15 rounds with Mike Tyson." Well, it probably was.

If the questions don't get any better -- don't hold your breath on that score -- chances are the stories won't either. And we still have nearly a month to go.

Contrast this phenom with a John C. Reilly appearance last night on "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" (yep, a little insomnia going on here). Conan's winding down his 12:30 a.m. slot, getting ready to step in for Leno at 11:30 p.m., and he's inviting his friends onto the show, whether they have a project to promote or not.

Reilly, a previous Golden Globe and Oscar nominee, did not. But he told great stories of kissing the chimp on the set of "Walk Hard," his childhood garage bands and singing show tunes. He also brought a clip, but it wasn't of any of his movies past, present or future. It was "Taxi Driver." Just because.

Awesome.

We'd like to see Philip Seymour Hoffman pull that off.