owen wilson (22 posts)

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George Clooney is making a Sideways move. The creator of Sideways, meanwhile, is making a George Clooney move.

The star is teaming up with Sideways' Oscar-winning writer-director, Alexander Payne, for The Descendants, a no doubt Academy-baiting dramedy due out in 2010.

Per Variety, the film (Payne's first since 2004's wine-soaked statue collector) will follow a wealthy landowner who, in attempt to keep his family together, picks up sticks with his two daughters on a quest to find his wife's new lover.

The hard part will be getting the audience to believe anyone would leave Clooney in the first place.

Cameras roll this February in Hawaii (it's a tough job, but someone's gotta do it).

Meanwhile, honing his craft in a much less idyllic locale is Owen Wilson, who's looking to reprise his dog-day success of Marley & Me by voicing the titular canine Marmaduke in Fox's live-action/CGI adaptation of the long-running comic strip.

The film, which also features the pipes of Fergie, Steve Coogan, George Lopez, Damon and Marlon Wayans, is due out next June.

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Check out other big-screen movers and shakers in our Casting Couch gallery.

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•  Somehow, we doubt Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson foresaw downing doggy snacks as part of the gig when they signed on for Marley & Me. Did someone say bacon?

•  Forget celebrity fragrances, Halle Berry—these days, every star thinks they're an author. Lauren Conrad has a tasty-looking first cover and Sharon Stone is trying to get a collection of short stories published.

•  Molly Sims sure is lovely, but we're not quite sure why a Sex and the City movie sequel should give us hope for a Las Vegas movie.

•  Kate Beckinsale uses eats her noodle.

•  Calista Flockhart has never seen Star Wars (minus 10 good girlfriend points).

•  Mercy! Duffy jumps on the no-pants bandwagon.

•  Dear Big John from Rock of Love Bus With Bret Michaels: Thank you for giving the most fruitless yet hilarious directions ever to grace reality TV. "I specifically asked you not to be slutty and whorey," he tells the trashed and trashtastic Farrah and Kelsey. Classic. Love, Rise 'n' Shine

Memo to the stars of Big Pic: When someone puts a camera in your face, try not to look so happy about it.

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images

• Looks like Ashton Kutcher is taking time out from Twittering about noisy neighbors to actually tackle a new project.

According to Variety, Kutcher is in final negotiations to star in Traded as an NFL quarterback who ends up swapping bodies with a 12-year-old geek and learns the value of humility and courage.

Meanwhile, in other Hollywood casting action...

• Owen Wilson and Paul Rudd are ready to do battle over Reese Witherspoon in an untitled romantic comedy from As Good As It Gets helmer James L. Brooks. The plot reportedly centers on a love triangle between a baseball pitcher (Wilson) and a businessman (Rudd) trying to win the love of Witherspoon's character. Cameras roll this summer.

• He's too legit to quit, so A&E has signed up M.C. Hammer to star in Hammertime, a half-hour reality series set to debut later this year chronicling the former rap star's home life and his latest attempt at a comeback.

Disney; ZumaPress.com

At first glance, today's dueling birthday boys Mickey Mouse and Owen Wilson, 80 and 40 years young respectively, may not seem to have too much in common.

Then again, each does boast a distinguishing physical characteristic—one a tail, the other a nose. Both seem to have a well-documented aversion to wearing shirts. And each does seem to favor collaborating with the same creative teams over and over again—one running with a posse of Minnie, Goofy and Donald, the other with a crew of  Luke, Wes and Ben.

Still, there are plenty of differences.

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Barry Wetcher/ Fox

Curmudgeonly cinema legend W.C. Fields always advised: Never work with children or animals. But it seems to be turning out fine for Jennifer Aniston, at least based on these exclusive picks from Marley & Me, where Jen shares the screen with manchild Owen Wilson and attention-hogging pooch Marley.

The flick's not due until Christmas (learn more in our 2008 Holiday Movie Guide gallery, previewed below). But to tide you over, we've got three more exclusive pics on the jump, more than one of which includes extremely cute puppies. So be forwarned before you click to the next page, side effects may include oohing and aahing and that's-so-cute cooing.

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We hear things didn't end well between Kate Hudson and Owen Wilson.

"Yeah, it was pretty hostile," says a source close to Owen. "Lots of shouting. Lots of tears."

Sources close to the couple confirm to E! News that the duo are no longer on speaking terms, following a blowout over allegations that Owen was flirting with other women while on location for the film Marley & Me in Miami.

"Look, they haven't been getting along really for most of the time they've been back together," said the friend of Owen, referring to when the couple reunited in February. "Owen can be a moody guy, very up and very down. And Kate is so upbeat, it was hard for her to take."

After all the bitter bickering, the couple basically stopped speaking for awhile.

Get the rest of the story after the jump...

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Jennifer Aniston got a new diamond and...it's the kind you play baseball on.

She and Owen Wilson spent part of the weekend at a Florida Marlins baseball game chasing their canine costar from Marley & Me up and down the bleachers.

So if you're in the stands trying to watch a ballgame and some Hollywood stars and their dog keep running up and down the stairs, does that make you more or less likely to go see their movie? Just asking.

Paul Fenton/ZUMA KPA

Forget those inevitable co-star coupling rumors of Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston currently filming Marley & Me in Miami. People online has some fresh romantic kindling to fire up whispers of a Jen and John Mayer get together in scenic south Florida.

The darling duo reportedly had a cozy private lunch at Michael's Genuine Food & Drink, which opened early for the stars. They lunched for 90 minutes on salad and sandwich respectively, trading bites and sharing desert.

Jen and John shared even more later when they had a cozy dinner at Casa Tua in South Beach, leaving together around 1 a.m. and were reportedly seen holding hands when they returned to their hotel. (Aniston's reps have so far declined comment.)

Sharing an intimate lunch and dinner is intriguing, but when it comes to intimacy, we really want to know about breakfast!
-via People

Owen Wilson is heading back to the big screen.

The laid-back funnyman is set to begin production on Marley & Me next month, his first professional project since his hospitalization last August.

The 39-year-old star will appear alongside Jennifer Aniston in the canine comedy, based on the bestselling memoir by John Grogan. The actors were initially slated to begin shooting the film last fall, but production was pushed back until at least the spring in order to allow Wilson time to recover from his purported suicide attempt.

The incident also resulted in Wilson pulling out of a cameo role in pal Ben Stiller's Tropic Thunder. Matthew McConaughey stepped in to replace Wilson in that flick.

Marley & Me will now begin production Mar. 10. The shoot, which will take place in Miami, is expected to last through mid-May.

The film, like the book, revolves around John and Jenny Grogan, a couple who adopt a neurotic, naughty dog named Marley. Among other misdeeds, the pesky pooch steals women's undergarments, decimates jewelry and furniture and gets expelled from obedience school. He also, as it happens, teaches the duo about the true meaning of unconditional love.

"I'm thrilled they're starting production on this," Grogan told People. "It's been a long time coming and I really couldn't be happier...I read the script and I like it. I think it's really true to the book."

The author is equally as taken with the idea of being portrayed by the Hollywood heavyweight.

"I'm actually thrilled to have Owen Wilson portray me. We don't look anything alike, but I think his personality will be a great fit to my own. And my wife, Jenny, is thrilled with being played by Jennifer Aniston, and so am I. What's not to like, right?"

Movie audiences will likely decide that for themselves when the film, also starring Alan Arkin, hits theaters this Christmas.