Paris Hilton wants people to see her killer death scene in “House of Wax.”
The hotel heiress even gave her approval to “See Paris Die” T-shirts that promoted the horror flick’s May 6 release date, people.com reports.
“When they asked me at first, I was a little bit weirded out,” she said. “But, you know, I do have the best death scene in the movie.”
She’s also quite the method actress, apparently. Stuff magazine asked Hilton how she prepared for her role. “I watched a lot of old horror movies,” she said. Well, which ones, Paris? “I don’t know,” she said. “I forgot.”
BABY ON BOARD: The updates just keep getting better for “Saturday Night Live’s” Tina Fey.
The “Weekend Update” co-anchor is pregnant with her first child, a rep for the show confirmed to people.com.
She and husband Jeff Richmond are expecting in September. The “SNL” season finale airs May 21, and Fey is expected to remain on camera throughout.
Fey hopes for more happy news in the coming weeks, when NBC announces its fall lineup. A pilot she produced and co-starred in is up for consideration.
Timing is everything
In “A Lot Like Love,” Amanda Peet and Ashton Kutcher’s characters find an instant connection but not an instant bond–something Peet says she finds happens in real life.
“I personally don’t believe in love at first sight,” she told reporters recently, according to AP Radio. “I definitely believe in a lot of chemistry and lust at first sight. Maybe I’m just getting too old, but I think it’s something that takes work.”
Fortunately for Peet, she didn’t have to film her nude embrace with Kutcher on the first day of shooting, as sometimes happens.
“At least we knew each other,” she said. “We were probably halfway through the shoot when we had to do that.”
TAKING ROOT: The Roots are more than halfway done with their next album and are firming up plans to release it early next year.
The hip-hop collective is shooting for a February 2006 release of “Game Theory,” drummer Ahmir ” estlove” Thompson told billboard.com, adding, “We’re about 60 percent finished with the new album.”
The Roots’ last album, “The Tipping Point,” has sold nearly 400,000.
THE STARS ARE OUT: Chingy, Omarion, Ludacris–it sounds like an All-Star concert, but it’s actually UPN’s lineup of guest stars for the May sweeps period, mtv.com reports.
Chingy appears on “One on One” on Monday night, while Omarion pops in for the May 16 episode of “Cuts.” Ludacris teams up with fellow hip-hop star Eve on her show’s season finale on May 24.
In addition, singer Toni Braxton has been tapped to guest star on two episodes of “Kevin Hill.”
SHOOTING STAR: Erika Jo, an 18-year-old Tennessee high school student, became the first female and youngest winner of USA Network’s “Nashville Star.”
More than 10 million viewers cast votes Tuesday night during the show’s third season finale. By virtue of her win, Jo gets a recording contract with Universal South Records and an appearance on the Grand Ole Opry.
“Can you believe that just last weekend I was at my prom? And now here I am with a record deal and an album to record in the next month,” Jo said. “I’ll barely be done in time for finals and graduation!”
Her debut album will be released June 14.
FIRE STARTER? Actress Maggie Gyllenhaal is standing firm regarding her comments that the U.S. “is responsible in some way” for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center.
Gyllenhaal spoke out on New York’s all-news cable channel NY1 as she promoted her new movie, “The Great New Wonderful,” at the Tribeca Film Festival. The film, which also stars Edie Falco, contains stories about people living in the aftermath of the World Trade Center disaster.
Following predictable criticism, Gyllenhaal, 27, released a follow-up statement on her fan Web site. “Nine-eleven was a terrible tragedy, and of course it goes without saying that I grieve along with every American for everyone who suffered and everyone who died in the catastrophe,” she wrote.
“But for those of us who were spared, it was also an occasion to be brave enough to ask some serious questions about America’s role in the world. Because it is always useful, as individuals or nations, to ask how we may have knowingly or unknowingly contributed to this conflict.”
———-
Compiled from news services and edited by Leo Ebersole (lebersole@tribune.com) and Victoria Rodriguez (vrodriguez@tribune.com)
