In Contention

Tag: Kristen Stewart

  • BAFTA names Rising Star nominees

    As you know, BAFTA likes to trickle out a few awards announcements ahead of their nominations, which will be revealed next Tuesday. Last week, we had the Best Foreign Language Film nominees and general category longlists — today, we have the five finalists for their Rising Star Award.

    Perhaps the most unique category in a ceremony that otherwise follows the Oscar template with increasing devotion, this self-explanatory honor  is the only award BAFTA hands over to the voting public, though the shortlist is compiled by a panel of journos and industry insiders. (Before you cry foul at some relatively established names on the list, the award is not necessarily for newcomers, but for actors whose profile grew significantly in the past year.)

    The public vote inevitably favors the star with the greatest youth appeal — last year saw Kristen Stewart beating Best Actress winner Carey Mulligan, while the year before, non-British viewers were left scratching their heads when Noel Clarke saw off Michaels Cera and Fassbender.

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  • ‘Welcome to the Rileys’ poster

    I haven’t seen “Welcome to the Rileys,” which opened at Sundance earlier this year and was a part of the downward spiraling Apparition stable before being shifted over to Samuel Goldwyn Films.  Starring James Gandolfini and Kristen Stewart, as well as Melissa Leo (quite busy this year), the film may or may not have an impact this season.  How’s that for insight?  It hits theaters October 29.  Have a look at the new poster, courtesy of Movieline, after the jump.

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  • Apparition adopts Sundance pic ‘Rileys’

    Kristen Stewart in Welcome to the RileysFresh off their first Oscar win (Best Costume Design for “The Young Victoria”), fledgling distributor Apparition has picked up a well-regarded Sundance indie that could end up buttressing their 2010 awards campaign for Terrence Malick’s “The Tree of Life.”

    “Welcome to the Rileys,” a domestic drama starring James Gandolfini and Melissa Leo as bereaved parents and Kristen Stewart as the teenage prostitute who comes between them, marks the sophomore directorial outing for Jake Scott, son of Sir Ridley. (His sister Jordan, by the way, made a respectable debut last year with “Cracks.” Busy family.)

    Variety reports that Apparition and Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group have finalized a seven-figure deal on the film, with a view to an autumn release.

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  • Sweet smell of desperation

    Kristen Stewart at the 2009 BAFTA AwardsIt’s almost as if the ratings-hungry Oscarcast producers watched last night’s BAFTA sweep for “The Hurt Locker,” finally accepted they’re going to receive no assistance from the awards, and duly sprung into action.

    Right on cue comes today’s announcement that Miley Cyrus, Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner and Zac Efron will all be presenting on March 7. Perhaps if they add Robert Pattinson, they can present the Best Supporting Actress category together, heartfelt individual tributes and all.

    Here’s hoping Stewart practises her smile over the next two weeks. Not even a BAFTA Rising Star award could cheer her up last night.

  • Cornish, Mulligan on cover of Vanity Fair’s Hollywood issue

    Abbie Cornish may have received less than her due this awards season, but she at least has the consolation of gracing the cover of this year’s Vanity Fair Hollywood issue — that annual measure of the screen’s hottest up-and-comers. She’s joined by surefire nominee Carey Mulligan and teen princess Kristen Stewart, so the magazine’s canny editors clearly believe Cornish is going places.

    Vanity Fair 2010 Hollywood issue cover

    Joining those three ladies (far left) on the slightly less prominent foldout pages: (left to right) Amanda Seyfried, Rebecca Hall, Mia Wasikowska, Emma Stone, Evan Rachel Wood and Anna Kendrick. More at Vanity Fair.

  • WEEKLY WRAP: BFCA awards, Guilds triple, Rohmer passes

    A still from Claire's Knee by Eric Rohmer• As you’ve just heard, “The Hurt Locker” emerged triumphant at the BFCA Critics’ Choice Awards.

    • Earlier this week, Éric Rohmer, sly giant of New Wave intellectualism, passed away at the age of 89.

    • That same day, “Avatar,” “The Hangover” and “Star Trek” were among the films nominated by the WGA.

    • The ASC slate continued the love for “Avatar,” but a semi-surprise nod for “The White Ribbon” got pundits’ attention.

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  • BAFTA Rising Star nominees

    Tahar Rahim in A ProphetBAFTA has just revealed the five young actors in contention for this year’s Rising Star Award, the winner of which will be determined by a public vote. Previous winners include James McAvoy, Eva Green, Shia LaBeouf and Noel Clarke.

    The 12-member jury charged with deciding this year’s nominees was chaired by Oscar-winning producer David Parfitt (“Shakespeare in Love”), and I must say that — blinding snub for Katie Jarvis aside — they’ve chosen quite well.

    I’m surprised, though not unpleasantly so, that “Avatar” fever didn’t secure Sam Worthington a mention. Instead, Kristen Stewart gets the populist nod.

    Given that it’s a publicly voted award, Stewart is the one to beat, too — I highly doubt the fanbases of the other four can compete with the texting “Twilight” hordes, unless “A Single Man” star Nicholas Hoult’s popularity from TV’s “Skins” carries him over.

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  • ‘New Moon’ press conference at the Con

    The Twilight Saga: New MoonI skipped out on this morning’s “New Moon” press conference, despite the inevitable traffic spike attending would have given us.  Those bird’s-eye view photos of the masses, however, have been passed around over and over and over again just a few hours later.  Kinda crazy.

    Anyway, Jeff Wells, attending his first Comic-Con (which is its own delightful sit-com waiting to happen), was on hand and took the video below, but his matter-of-fact dismantling of the film’s stars and their attitude at the presser that is worth passing along:

    This morning’s New Moon/Comic-Con press conference began at 9:54 am — almost a half-hour late — inside a super-sized meeting hall within San Diego’s Bayfront Hilton. The film’s three stars — Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner — posed for photos and took questions from a throng of about 75 or 80 journalists…Lautner is clearly the most ambitiously press-friendly among the three. While Stewart and Pattinson did their usual usual — i.e., giving answers that suggested they’re a lot more complex and aloof and thoughtful than their participation in movies based on the Twilight series might suggest. It’s the age-old “I’ll do this but only if I can answer questions like Marlon Brando” routine. But Lautner, who has a bee-stung Beagle Boy nose , exhibited the personality of a publicist or a glad-hander. He clearly enjoys smiling and wants everyone to like him. He could be the next Regis Philbin if he wanted to go there.

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  • The only ‘New Moon’-related post you’ll see here…ever

    Traffic will take a quantum leap because of this very post alone.  I’ll let you decide what that means for society.

    The press release concerning the debut of the “New Moon” trailer, in part:

    MySpace Movies is excited to announce the trailer debut for The Twilight Saga: New Moon on Sunday, May 31 at 7:45 pm PT/10:45 pm ET. Fans of the highly anticipated film will be able to view the trailer in its entirety at www.myspace.com/trailerpark. They can also share the video with their friends by utilizing the embed code available on the page.

    In The Twilight Saga: New Moon, Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) is devastated by the abrupt departure of her vampire love, Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) but her spirit is rekindled by her growing friendship with the irresistible Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner). Suddenly she finds herself drawn into the world of the werewolves, ancestral enemies of the vampires, and finds her loyalties tested. Based on the best-selling book series, The Twilight Saga: New Moon opens in theatres everywhere November 20. It is the highly anticipated next installment to the movie Twilight, which has grossed $380MM globally at the box office, and has become a worldwide sensation and cultural phenomenon.