FIRST LOOK: The News in Brief, December 25, 2004

SPRINGTIME FOR UMA? Variety reporting that Uma Thurman is in talks to replace Nicole Kidman as bombshell Swedish secretary Ulla in Mel Brooks' movie version of his hit Broadway musical, The Producers, based on his hit 1968 movie, The Producers.

HIS LOVE COSTS: One of Jennifer Lopez's ex-husbands, former waiter Ojani Noa, sued the actress-singer Tuesday, alleging Lopez "lured" him into taking a manager job at her Pasadena restaurant, then fired him after just six months on the job. Noa is seeking unspecified damages from J.Lo in the breach of contract lawsuit.

HIS PEERS?! Santa Barbara court officials sending out summonses to 4,000 people as potential jurors in the Michael Jackson molestation case. Ultimately, a 12-person panel will decide the Moonwalker's fate beginning Jan. 31.

DOGG POUNDED: Snoop Dogg suing an unnamed woman and her attorneys for extortion, claiming they demanded $5 million from him to keep quiet about an alleged assault against her. The rapper claims he was not involved in the alleged assault which was said to have taken place during a 2003 performance.

BACK TOGETHER: Eric Clapton telling BBC Radio last week that he and his '60s rock band Cream are planning to reunite for four shows at London's Royal Albert Hall next May. The guitar legend's reps have not confirmed the reunion.

HEADED FOR THE BOARDROOM: NBC announcing a new round of 18 contestants, pitting nine "book-smart" college grads against nine "street-smart" entrepreneurs, vying for a job with Donald Trump in the third season of The Apprentice, kicking off Jan. 20.

BLAKE WATCH: Robert Blake's murder trial going on break for the holidays and will resume on Tues., Jan. 4.

SWEET: The recently-released Napoleon Dynamite DVD sold 1.4 million units in its first day out, a Fox Home Entertainment spokesman said Thursday.

BRIT BART? The star of BBC America's cult hit The Office, Ricky Gervais, has been tapped to write an upcoming episode of The Simpsons. "It's the greatest show on earth and I'm sure that all I can do is make it slightly worse," the actor/writer deadpanned in London's Guardian.

LOYAL FROM THE GRAVE: Deceased rapper Tupac Shakur's latest release, Loyal to the Game, topping the charts with 330,000 copies sold in the week ended Sunday, according to Nielsen SoundScan data. Now That's What I Call Music! Vol. 17 was in second place, and Eminem's Encore was in third.

KEEPING IT REAL: MTV announcing that the 16th season of The Real World will take place in Austin, Texas. The series is scheduled to premiere in June. The network is currently airing the 15th season of the show, shot in Philadelphia.

NEWSWORTHY? CNN tapping Crossfire host Tucker Carlson to fill in for Newsnight host Aaron Brown next week in a tryout to determine if he Carlson make the transition to nonpartisan news anchor.

BUSH IS BACK: Sky News is reporting influential U.K. singer Kate Bush is set to make a comeback after more than a decade out of the spotlight. Her new CD is tentatively scheduled to come out in March on EMI.

OVEREXPOSED: The FCC's investigation into whether the opening of the 2004 Olympic Games was obscene was prompted by only nine complaints. One offended individual complained about having to "to sit there with my kids and watch a guy basically rip off a girl's clothes while appearing to have sex." NBC said it never received any complaints during the Olympics.

KUDOS: San Diego Film Critics voting Mike Leigh's Vera Drake the Best Picture of 2004, Clint Eastwood Best Director for Million Dollar Baby and Jim Carrey Best Actor for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

BAD DAD: Fox receiving thousands of complaints from people and adoption organizations offended by its upcoming reality game show, Who's Your Daddy?, in which a young woman given up for adoption as a child competed for $100,000 by trying to pick her real biological father from a lineup. The program debuts Jan. 3.

RETURN OF THE KING: Sean Astin set to serve as the king of Bacchus on a parade float in one of the larger parades during the New Orleans carnival season. Elijah Wood, who served as the king of Bacchus last year, will also ride on the float.

BEAD GIRL: Marisa Tomei tapped to be this year's Grand Marshal of New Orleans' annual Endymion parade on Feb. 5 as part of Mardi Gras festivities. Joining her will be musical acts Hootie and the Blowfish and the Pointer Sisters.

HOLIDAY DISPATCH: Martha Stewart calling for prison sentence reform and denouncing "bad" jailhouse food in a Christmas message posted on her Marthatalks.com Website.

PLAYING MARTHA: Twelve would-be domestic divas set to battle for Martha Stewart status on an upcoming CBS reality show titled Wickedly Perfect. The Martha wannabes will try to prove that they are the ultimate role model for housewives everywhere. The winner will score a development deal for a lifestyle-oriented TV show, six appearances on CBS' The Early Show and a publishing deal with Atria Books.

SLASHING PRICES: Blockbuster reducing its monthly subscription fee for DVD rentals by $2.50 to $14.99 a month starting immediately and lasting through Jan. 2006 in a move meant to undercut smaller rival Netflix.