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The lovely and talented Lake Bell has been a mainstay of film and television for over a decade, stealing scenes in films like "No Strings Attached" and on television series such as "Childrens Hospital" and "How to Make it in America." This week she's an average girl out for a weekend of fun who finds herself in a battle for survival in the indie thriller "Black Rock."

We had an exclusive 1-on-1 with Bell to discuss shooting a film without bathrooms, girl talk during life or death situations, her directorial debut "In a World ... " and her continuing quest to one day play Wonder Woman. 

LD Entertainment

Was the shoot for "Black Rock" as isolated as it looks? Were you guys confined to this island location?
We shot in Milbridge, Maine, which is an incredibly tiny town. Not only is it really tiny but we were sequestered to the girl's cabin and then the boys were in the boy's cabin. We lived in really tight quarters, there were no trailers. There were no bathrooms, for that matter. There were not sets, we were just using the woods as backdrop for everything we did, and the little coastal beaches. It was the antithesis of any project I've ever done. It was very bare-bones, everybody had to be really game. It was just suit up, shut up and have a good time.

Did that confinement effect the psychology of the performances at all?
Naturally, yes. We shot chronologically, which is very rare, you never get to do that. That was a huge benefit for us because we could emotionally psyche ourselves up for these challenging milestones in the movie.

It's such a major tonal shift, hard to imagine doing a scene from the relatively placid first 30-minutes and then later that day shooting something intense from the last act.
Exactly.

There have been a lot of rape-revenge films like this dating back to the '70s with movies like "I Spit on Your Grave" or "Mother's Day." What did director/star Katie Aselton and screenwriter Mark Duplass do to put a new spin on an old tune?
You take Mark and Katie, who do a very specific thing. They're very relevant and they're very current, the thing that they do which is utterly theirs, and a lot of people bite off what they try to do. Taking the energy and tone of their kinds of movies and injecting the thriller genre to them makes it hugely unique from any film of this ilk. It's sort of a trick on the audience, because it starts from a Duplass type of place and energy, then the spirit of the movie takes a big shift, obviously. When the stakes go from emotional stakes between girls figuring out relationship issues to the very literal stakes of who wants to live more. [Laughs]

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You and Katie have this exchange when you're being hunted which I called the "girl talk" moment where you're apologizing for sleeping with her boyfriend and all that. If you, Lake Bell, were in that same situation would you maybe save those conversations for later?
Look, what's eerily realistic about that scene … and we're not used to seeing it in films because usually once the action starts we want to continue with the action. What ruptures that is this hiatus in the movie's action moment to snuff out an emotional beat in the story. It is very Katie and Mark of them to do that. In real life if there's a hostage situation or your house is broken into there are moments where it's still two people who have the relationships they have. There's sometimes levity, there's sometimes comedy. There's sometimes moments of pause. Sometimes people have to pee! They never show just moments of other life happening while the stakes are still f**kin' high. I think it’s a very bold choice to have that scene. It makes some people potentially uncomfortable because you're thinking, "Well the movie should be a train forward now!" What makes it difficult to watch is its building tension from your concern for their well-being.

More than any of the three girls, your character Lou goes from being very impish and whimsical to this determined warrior. You've made this clear in the past, but just want to reiterate that should "Justice League" ever get off its ass at Warner Bros. you'd be a fantastic Wonder Woman.
Thank you, that's awesome! That is a secret dream of mine.

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Not that secret! You made that proclamation a few years ago.
I said it so randomly at Comic-Con then it was definitely a thing for a second. It's so funny because you say those things in passing, stupidly … 'cause I was there for comedy, I wasn't there for anything else, but it was at Comic-Con so people were like, "Oh, wait a second, Lake Bell's making a play for something." But yeah, it's totally a fantasy to be a superhero and to kick some f**kin' ass.

What is it specifically about Diana and her star-spangled underwear that appeals to you?
I mean, I think growing up I thought she was the most remarkable person ever, so it's more nostalgia than anything else. To play a superhero in your core you have to have a little bit of a sense of humor because you have to suspend disbelief and lean into something that's an icon. It was initially a drawing to embody a concept, and you have to have some playful spark in you.

Jon Hamm is obviously an amazing actor, and he'd said he wouldn't do a lead role in a movie unless the right thing came along. You're in "Million Dollar Arm" with him — what makes that "the right thing" for him and for you?
Jon is a friend of mine so I'm so jazzed to be in another situation where I'm making a movie with pals. At the end of the day making a movie should be fun! It is a cool job to have, and we shouldn't take it too seriously, especially if you're making a movie that's supposed to have that levity and camaraderie, and "Million Dollar Arm" is a feel-good movie. It's based on a true story, and I think it's a super-cool move for Jon to take on this role. The character is going through his own emotional journey that happened in real life. He starts off as someone who doesn't value certain things in life and then learns to take hints and cues from people who are unlikely candidates for wisdom.

Roadside Attractions

Your feature directorial debut "In a World ..." got great notices and the Waldo Salt Award at Sundance. The people who've seen it think it could really take off if it's handled right distribution-wise. Do you have a good plan of attack to get that out there?
First of all, thank you. I'm sitting here doing these interviews talking about "In a World ..." and can only be filled with pride and respect for the people that helped me make it. It's a little movie I feel people are really enjoying. That gives me that overwhelming feeling of being happy to be here. Winning an award or selling the movie were massive bonuses, but just being at Sundance alone was the prize.

Now you have to get it out there, get some butts in the seats.
Amen, brother! Let's do this! It's coming out August 9 and we do have a really cool plan of attack, but I hope that it will roll out the way it's supposed to roll out. Certainly all my friends who were in it who were kind enough to lend their talents to be in the movie are excited to promote it.

Would you pull a Zach Braff and utilize Kickstarter to get your next directorial project off the ground?
Kickstarter was actually responsible for post-production on my little short film that I did when I was first starting out. I self-financed the whole thing then just needed help with post-production because I literally tapped out my pocketbook, but it was worth every penny because it has become my loving calling card for me as a director and got me to Sundance in the first place.

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Single young women of New York City, get ready for your mom to worry about what your day-to-day life is like! (And just when we'd explained to her that it's not like "Girls," too.) Everyone else, brace yourselves for your new favorite indie charmer: "Frances Ha."

Greta Gerwig plays the titular Frances, a 27-year-old modern dancer prone to scabby knees, bouts of wild movement in front of fountains and white lies about her employment status — but it's cool, she readily admits, as she's "not a real person yet."

The film, directed by Noah Baumbach and co-written by Baumbach and Gerwig, will finally hit limited release on May 17 after running the festival circuit in New York, Toronto and Telluride last fall. The agonizing six-month gap between festival screenings and the official release date, however, was better than letting the finished film sit on the shelf until spring, Gerwig told NextMovie.

"Once your baby's ready, you've gotta get it out," she said of the film, though she admits to "kind of weeping on the other side of the phone, saying, 'Well, I can't wait another six months for this to come out, why can't we just release it right now!'"

NextMovie caught up with Gerwig in New York ahead of the black-and-white film's release, talking about "Frances Ha," classic films and, perhaps most importantly, how women can pee in the great outdoors without incident.

I liked it even better the second time I saw it.
I feel that way, too! Not just because it's my movie and I want people to see it dozens of times, I actually do think it's a movie that stands a second look. I feel like you can watch it again and that it's worth watching it again.

I've heard a lot about the kind of guerilla way you made this movie — small, digital cameras, a tiny crew, all that.
I mean, in some ways. Guerilla makes it sound cooler than it was. It was not that cool. It was very ... there was chaotic elements in it, like we didn't have control of the street, or we didn't have control of the subway car, but we did tons and tons of takes and it was super-structured with these elements of chaos kind of thrown in. It felt like some combination of Kubrick and something in the middle. It was very labor intensive. It wasn't like, "Man, let's go get this shot right now!" It wasn't like that, but we did have scenes where we couldn't control anything around us.

What would you be doing if you weren't acting?
God, I don't know. I know I would be in film or theater, but I kind of actually prepared for that eventuality when I was in college. I was writing and I was acting, but I also was a stage manager and I was working in technical theater and I was kind of interested in dramaturgy. I really, really knew that I wanted to live in the world of film and theater; I just didn't know where it was gonna land. I could be a ticket-taker at BAM. I just really love being around it.

IFC

A lot of people seem to feel like acting isn't hard work, but it really is a job.
It's a job, but it really is the best. For me, it's the best job. I love movie sets, I love theaters, that's where I want to be. These are just the people I like being around. I feel like it's work and it can be boring and it can be hard, but there's almost literally nowhere else I'd rather be, so that makes up for a lot of it. Even when it's not good! Even when you're like, "This movie might not work."

"It exists."
Even if you're not, like, not totally behind it, I still love it. I mean, I shouldn't talk about this, because it's probably true and I don't know what I'm talking about, but when everybody's like, "Oh, network television is really hard and it's a brutal schedule," which I'm sure, but it's also like, "You get to be on a set every day?" That sounds awesome. They're like yeah, try that for 50 weeks out of the year.

Would you do TV? You co-wrote and starred in this, and you're also working on an animated movie, among other things, but I haven't heard anything about TV, apart from the unfinished "The Corrections" pilot that HBO passed on.
I would totally do TV, I like TV. I think, I don't think really in terms of television, I don't have a ... I sort of think my way into mediums and try and get a sense of what they are and what they want and what they should be, and I don't totally feel like ... as a viewer, I love television, but I don't feel like I have that grasp on it as an actor or a writer. So it would be a totally new beast for me. I don't even know if I'd be any good at it, but I wouldn't be opposed to it in any way.

I could do, like "Twin Peaks" or something. I love "Twin Peaks." And the new Jane Campion thing, "Top of the Lake," is really great. There's lots of great shows, there's no shortage of great shows, there's just the feeling of I don't totally get the form. I don't know how you get ideas for it, is what I mean.

I don't know if I could stick with something for that long.
Yeah, it makes me anxious. I like the frame of a movie. You've got this much time, and you've got to tell this story in this amount of time. It's hard, but it's also comforting.

What's on your DVR?
You know, right now, I'm not DVRing that much because I've been on an almost one-movie-a-day bender recently. You can do it, you can't watch a three-hour movie a day, but if you don't spend time on the Internet, and you don't watch television, you can watch a movie a day. So I've been watching a lot of movies lately.

IFC

Are you working through some kind of list?
I'm working through classics that I missed, actually. There's the Sight and Sound poll every year, and every year there's films on it that I haven't seen, and every year, I'm like, "I should watch those movies," and I don't. So I finally sat down and made my Netflix queue proper. I dominated the Netflix queue. I get the actual physical DVDs. I think you can get complacent and go oh, I'll just figure out what's streaming on Netflix so you don't actually choose the DVDs. So I did that, and that's been really what I've been working my way through. Movies I just missed for whatever reason. Like I'd seen one movie that a director had done, but I hadn't seen some others.

What's a movie that you just saw that you felt guilty about missing?
They're all so embarrassing that I can't ... like I had never seen "Days of Heaven" until like two weeks ago. It's so good. It's so good! How I'm feeling right now is that what's amazing about committing to watching all the movies that you'd never seen, much like reading all the books that you've never read, which I'm always kind of engaged with trying to do, is that the great movies are great for a reason: they're so entertaining and they're so interesting and they're so alive.

I remember when I heard David Bowie for the first time, and I heard David Bowie for the first time late, like I was in high school, late high school. And I remember feeling as I was listening to it, like, "Oh my god, he's made so many albums, and I haven't heard any of them, and I get to listen to them, experience all this music!" I never even knew I was missing it. There was just this treasure trove that I'd been missing. I feel the same way about film, like there's so many great films that I haven't seen. I've always been a pretty avid filmgoer, but I've gotten very methodical about it in the last year or so, because, I don't know, because I've gone crazy. It's the last year of my twenties, and I'm like, I've gotta get serious about something!

In the movie, you lean over a subway track and pee. Do you have any special techniques for outdoor peeing?
I hiked a portion of the Appalachian trail, and I have a lot of outdoor bathroom experience because of that, and I feel like it really is about finding something to hold onto and suspend yourself over, so that you're not actually standing in it while it's happening. So it's like, you're moving your whole behind away from you, and you're putting it over there. You don't want to be like, sitting in it while it's seeping everywhere. It's disgusting.

IFC

"Seep" now feels like such a pee-specific word.
A pee-in-the-grass word.

Your character also receives a kind of booty-call text that just reads "Ahoy, sexy!" It seems like something so weird it had to have happened in real life. Did it?
No, "Ahoy, sexy" was a made-up thing. Ahoy was a real thing, but I added the sexy.

Apart from "Ahoy, sexy," what's the worst pick-up line you've ever heard?
God, I don't even know. Oh, this isn't really a pick-up line, but it's the worst thing a boy has ever said to me, or a man has ever said to me. Someone said "You're not the smartest girl I've ever met, or the prettiest girl I've ever seen, but you have a pretty good proportion of each." I was like "... Thank you? Or am I offended?"

Using the formula of your first pet and the street you grew up on, what would your porn name be?
Toto Camillia.

Will you take a selfie for us?
I don't do this, but sure, I'll do it. I'll try. I don't have an Instagram or anything, I'm not good at this stuff.

Also check out: Director's Cut: Noah Baumbach ("Frances Ha")

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Alice Eve used to just be out of your league, but now she's out of your galaxy, man.

Yes, the striking blonde whose sudden bra-and-underwear appearance in the "Star Trek Into Darkness" trailer may have given you whiplash from running the YouTube scrollbar back so quickly (to find the hidden link to the posters, of course) has noted babe qualities, having starred in 2010's "She's Out of My League" with Jay Baruchel and played movie star Vince's future wife on HBO's "Entourage." However, that glimpse of skin you catch in the trailer is about all you get — Eve's character, Dr. Carol Marcus, is a science officer on board the Enterprise, and, refreshingly, does not serve as anyone's love interest.

We caught up with Eve before this week's release of the film to talk Trekkies, geekery and bromances.

Are you a Trekkie?
I am now.

Did you have to study "Star Trek" lore before filming the movie?
I totally watched the first season of the show, and I watched the movies. I used to watch it on TV with my grandfather. I was aware of it, but now I'm way more of a Trekkie than I was then.

Are you a total nerd for it now?
No, I'm not that good. I get like when they do the tests in the interviews and they come with, like, quizzes, I get like 6 out of 10?

That's better than I could do.
Yeah, and I'm getting better. If you spend more time, then you get quite good.

I found it really refreshing that you didn't play anyone's love interest.
I really like how Carol was a really independent figure, you know. She has her own determination and her own trajectory, and she's going to follow it. I really liked how she was an independent soul working in that universe with everyone else.

There's such a strong marginalization of women in sci-fi usually.
Is that the tradition? Yeah, I agree, it doesn't feel that J.J.'s female characters are

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marginalized. He has a really strong wife, a very intelligent woman, and I think that he understands strong women.

And it really seems like J.J. is firing on all cylinders all the time.
He really does, his mind moves at warp speed, but he can handle it. If he can continue to handle it and make such good movies, then that's great for us, I think.

There's some slap action in this movie. Any tips on taking or giving a slap?
I get a slap, did I? Do you mean taking a slap or receiving one? I slap my dad in the film. I've never been slapped, but I know how to do it on screen. Getting slapped, it's such a serious thing to slap someone. My friend got slapped the other night because he was talking to this beautiful girl and turned to his right and said to this other girl that she was beautiful, and the woman slapped him. It was the girl's mother! You don't often hear about people getting slapped.

I don't know, I guess receiving one on screen, you just move your head very quickly to the right. That's always the thing: I think in life when you receive a blow physically, it's way more painful than they make it seem in the movie.

This movie was really bromantic. Kirk and Spock are really bros here.
It is, yeah.

What's your favorite movie bromance?
"Step Brothers" is just genius, one of the funniest films of all time.

Do you have a favorite line from that?
No, I'm not a boy. But I love it!

In a fight to the death among your cast, who would win?
In real life? Well, Benedict's character would win, I think, sadly, for the people of the universe. I'm gonna go with [Zachary] Quinto though.

Why?
He's a big dude. He's strong. He's got ... he's a soulful man, I bet he could fight. I've never seen him fight though, except epically in the movie.

Does he like to win?
No, no, no, he's not competitive. I think he's just well-built.

Kirk is a real player and throws out some terrible come-ons. What's the worst pick-up line you've ever heard?
"Can you give me a kiss?" When people go straight for dessert. They haven't even done any preamble.

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What do you geek out over?
Books. I went to university to do English, so I guess my kind of area of nerdiness comes out with words.

What genre?
Fiction, literature, poetry. Just English literature, really, I like to know about it.

What's the most outrageous lie you've heard about yourself?
Probably something my brothers say about me. I have two younger brothers who are very bossy.

What's your most-quoted movie line?
Well, obviously at the moment — well, actually, yesterday, all we said yesterday was "May the Force be with you" because it was [May the Fourth], so that's going around in my head. But I guess, "I'm just a girl standing in front of a guy, asking him to love me." Do you know what that's from?

Oh, s**t.
Come on, man.

I'm trying.
You're putting me on the spot, and you don't even know the line!

I know, I know.
I'll give you one hint: It's set in London.

"Notting Hill"?
Yeah! There you go! 10 out of 10!

And, lastly, using your first pet and the street you grew up on, what would your porn name be?
Lily and ...well, I grew up on lots of streets. Let's say Lily Hern.

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English actor Simon Pegg has enough geek credits on his resume to earn a lifetime pass at Comic-Con. He's played an unwitting zombie fighter in "Shaun of the Dead," the best friend to an alien in "Paul" and will fight an army of blue-eyed somethings in this summer's "The World's End." It's Pegg's role as Scotty in J.J. Abrams' "Star Trek" films, however, that really endears him to the Hall H crowd.

Pegg returns this week as the wisecracking intergalactic mechanic in "Star Trek Into Darkness," the follow-up to 2009's immensely popular reboot of "Star Trek." As the crew of the Starship Enterprise faces a mysterious villain (played by Benedict Cumberbatch) hell-bent on destroying Starfleet, Scotty serves as the moral backbone of the team, not to mention its most persistent source of comic relief.

NextMovie caught up with Pegg ahead of the May 17 release of "Star Trek Into Darkness" and chatted about everything from intergalactic drinking pals to whether J.J. Abrams' other "Star" franchise will keep him from trekking once more.

Can you give me a rough estimate of how many times people have said "Beam me up, Scotty" to you?
They have more and more these days, obviously, but it's a nice problem to have.

In the movie, Scotty actually quits and leaves the Enterprise. Have you ever had an elaborate quitting fantasy?
I'm not a quitter myself, and I don't think Scotty is, either. I worked in jobs, before I was acting, doing stuff I didn't really enjoy for people I didn't really like, and you always kinda fantasize about storming out, but the thing is, you need to pay the rent, so you can't.

You've never quit a job?
No, I'm boring like that. I always stick to it. I always stick to my guns.

So in the movie, when you quit and retreat to a bar, you're wearing quite the shirt.
It's a pretty hideous bit of kit that I had there. The jacket's kinda cool, but yeah. Michael Kaplan is our costume designer, he's brilliant in terms of pitching the looks that we have, particularly when it comes to ... it's easy when it comes to the uniform because it isn't really too tied in with fashion, so obviously years to come looking back you can see, in the '60s, you can see that there are slight anachronisms going on there. But we tried to recreate them for this iteration of "Star Trek." But yeah, when it comes to what people wear in their day-to-day life, it's tough to pitch. So he showed me this disgusting shirt and I was like, "Hell yeah, let's do it."

Paramount

Do you keep anything from set?
I kept my badge, my Starfleet badge, which was, I didn't on the first one, because I felt like I'd be arrested. But a little further down the line I thought oh, what are they going to do? Fire me? And let's face it, we all steal things from work, I bet anything they recover is full of phasers and tricorners and stuff like that, so I don't have any of that stuff. They miss my badge, too bad.

Is there going to be another "Star Trek"? I saw that you had initially said J.J. would direct, but then retracted that.
I think, well, I'm pretty sure that we'll do another one. This one's going to do very well, and I'm sure that Paramount will want to do another one, there have been those discussions. I know the guys are already throwing ideas around when they're in the writing room, and most probably you know have a few gems ready to go. But in terms of definite, there's nothing definite right now.

And the two of you just made a video where you geek out over "Star Wars." How did you find out he was directing the new ones?
I got an email and I kind of immediately emailed him to say, "What? Is this true?" and he said, "Yeah, I think it is," and I kind of, I just said well great, just don't forget us, and he said, "As if I would." And that's all I needed to know, really. Immediately you think oh, he's going to go off and forget us and we're going to be the sort of older, less-cute sibling, but that's not in J.J.'s makeup. J.J. is 100 percent committed to everything he does. Even if he's involved as a producer rather than as a director, his stamp will still be very much on it.

Would you be in "Star Wars"?
Yeah. If J.J. asked me, then yeah. I'd work with J.J. on everything because I really respect his choices and his taste, but I would never ask him for a role because if he wanted to give me one, he would. Also, I feel like possibly being in "Star Wars" might spoil it for me in terms of watching it. I really am excited to see "Star Wars" again. I'm excited for "Star Wars" to make me feel like it used to, and not like these last ones did. If I was to be in that, it would spoil some of the magic, so I'm happy to watch it as a fan.

Write an "Episode VII" character for yourself. What would you want to be?
I don't know, I mean, I kinda think that Luke was kinda focused on, it was never the Jedi stuff that I was interested in as a kid. I was more interested in the Han Solos, the cooler kind of pirate. Maybe a stormtrooper.

Paramount

In a fight among the "Star Trek" cast, who would win?
In a fight? I think Spock would probably win, the Vulcans have titan strength and stuff, but I think it would come down to Kirk and Scotty and Spock, and I think probably Kirk and Scotty, Kirk would get the better of Scotty because he's younger, and then Spock would get the better of Kirk.

In reality, I think Anton [Yelchin] would probably beat all of us to a pulp. He's a very physical man, very strong. He pulled me and Chris Pine off a gantry with one hand. He's tiny, and yet he has all that power. It's amazing.

You co-wrote and co-starred in the upcoming "The World's End." There are a few other apocalypse comedies coming up, too. What is it that's so funny about it the end of the world?
I dunno, ours isn't really an apocalypse comedy. It's got that because it's named after a pub, which is "The World's End." It's not really, it's locked in with Seth's movie ["This Is the End"], but it's not really anything like that. It has more in common with "The Big Chill" than it does with an end of the world comedy. So I don't know, it was on everyone's mind with the 21st of December going on, with the supposed Mayan stuff, everyone was thinking about it, people were talking about let's make some end of the world films, and it took too long to get going. They missed the day that it was supposed to happen, so they were all coming out slightly late.

Who would be the better alien drinking buddy, Paul from "Paul" or Keenser from "Star Trek"?
Paul's a smoker, you know, he's all about the weed. And little Keenser, he drinks very heavily. In that scene, he's actually stealing all my drinks. While I'm talking to Kirk, he's nicking my drinks. We thought of that on set, which was making me laugh a lot. So I think that Keenser would be better for the sauce.

Using the formula of your first pet plus the street you grew up on, what would your porn name be?
Bumper Smith.

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Marvel's Phase Two of movies rockets to new heights with "Iron Man Three," a surprisingly funny and explosive sequel with Robert Downey Jr. back as the man in the iron suit facing off against a mysterious new enemy known as the Mandarin. Also back is Don Cheadle for his second stint playing Col. James 'Rhodey' Rhodes, Tony's best friend and the man who suits up in the War Machine armor that has been painted in a red, silver and blue patriotic design re-named the Iron Patriot.

Cheadle, who took over the role of Rhodey from Terrence Howard in "Iron Man 2," is a versatile actor who is just as at home in the porn world of "Boogie Nights" as he is in a superhero's iron suit or in his Oscar-nominated role in "Hotel Rwanda."

We sat down with the Iron Patriot himself as he talked about Rhodey's superhero potential, what he spent his first professional paycheck on and whether or not he thinks he's a film snob.

So in the War Machine vs. Iron Patriot debate, since you're the man in the iron suit, which name do you prefer?
I kind of feel the same way that Rhodey feels about [Iron Patriot] in the movie when he is being clowned about it, and he said, "The focus group liked the name better." I like War Machine — it's kind of ominous and the O.G. brand that he is. But I understand what they are doing with the Iron Patriot.

Marvel

How long does it take you to get in and out of that suit? What can and can't you do in it?
You can't do anything in it. I mean, you can do whatever you want to in it, but you are doing it IN it. [Laughs] It takes about 20-25 minutes to put it on, and the arms don't really articulate and you can't scratch your face if you need to. The longest I was ever in it at one time was a couple hours.

Do you like that Rhodes is getting in on the action more and what are the chances of seeing him in another "Iron Man" or maybe "Marvel's The Avengers 2"?
Who knows? It's Marvel call. I'd be amiable to it — I think it would be a lot of fun. I love being in on the action and having the opportunity in this third film — the second one for me — to actually get out of the suit and do what you know Rhodes would be able to do in his own element. When we were doing our thing and running around, Robert [Downey Jr.] said, "I think I have to follow your character now. When we're outside the suit and there are military dudes around, I want to follow your lead." So it's great to have that complementary relationship with him.

There are some great comic moments in "Iron Man Three," like when you bust in on a bunch of Muslim women in a sweatshop and tell them that they are "Free ... if you were ever not free." Did that get a laugh from you the first time you read the script?
That was an improv line. That was something I just said.

It got one of the biggest laughs at the screening.
Oh, that's funny!

Who'd win a fight to the death with the characters of "Iron Man Three"?
Let's just say Gwyneth [Paltrow]. A death match? What are we using … lipstick? If we're using lipstick, Gwyneth is going to win. If we're using heels, she's going to win.

Marvel

What was the most challenging scene to film in "Iron Man Three"?
The most challenging sequence would be the third act. It was fun, but challenging in a good way — getting to do all the stunt work and the cable work. That stuff is really exciting to me. It was physically demanding, but I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

What's the movie that made you want to act?
Oh wow. There are a lot of them that I saw that sang to me. "Sounder" is one that had an impact on me when I was a kid. But I've been told that I wanted to act since I was four or five. I don't have a recollection of that. I didn't start acting or being in school plays until I was in sixth grade, but apparently it was something that was happening for a while.

What's a movie you hate that everybody loves?
I can't think of one. Can you?

"Showgirls."
[Laughs] Oh God, I'm trying to think of one that everyone hates that I love. I tend to be pretty snobby about movies.

What was the single greatest moment of your career so far?
Maybe I haven't had it yet. I've been fortunate to be in movies that have been really accepted and that people enjoyed. "Hotel Rwanda" is up there, of course, and movies like "Crash." I loved my experience on a movie like "The Guard" — I have a real fondness for that and it's really special to me as well. Hopefully when I look back on them after a much longer career, I'll say, "Oh, that was a great time." I can't put one above the other.

Focus Features

What is the most underrated movie that you've done?
Probably "Talk to Me." I don't know that it's underrated because almost everyone who has seen it really loves it, but it didn't get the attention that I think it could have gotten.

Do you remember what you spent your first acting paycheck on?
Paying off school loans. No, that wouldn't have been my first professional check because I was still a junior in school. What did I spend it on … an eight ball? [Laughs] No, I don't remember — probably Top Ramen and potatoes and trying to eat and get through school and pay off books. It wasn't anything sexy like a new car. My first check wasn't enough for that!

What's the best advice you've ever gotten?
I tend not to listen to people when they try to give me advice. I've been lucky, though. I got a lot of good advice from people that I've worked with: "Just trust yourself and listen to your instincts. Don't be afraid to think that you have enough judgment of your own character to decide what you need to do and don't need to do in this business."

How often do you Google yourself or look yourself up on IMDb?
I haven't done that in a long, long time. Because if you're going to do that, you have to do it all and have a steady diet of all of it — the people that hate you and think you're the worst and the people that love you and think you're the best. Really, what does any of it really matter at the end of the day?

Football, baseball, basketball or hockey?
My favorite to watch is probably basketball. I used to play a lot but not since I had leg issues. I golf a lot, though.

Since you were in "Boogie Nights," we have to ask what your real porn star name would be, which would be the name of your first pet and the name of the street you grew up on.
"Frisky Hardesty!" Yeah.

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Before stepping into the spotlight as the new young hero in the fourth installment of the "Transformers" franchise, Jack Reynor would like to spend a little time talking about "What Richard Did." Nope, "Richard" is not one of Jack's friends — it's the new indie import from Ireland he stars in that screened at the Tribeca Film Festival this week.

The 21-year-old Reynor plays Richard, a high schooler whose life seems to be skimming along a golden road until a fate-changing accident the summer before his senior year.

Of course, we couldn't let Reynor go without asking him a few questions about "Transformers." Read on for Reynor's prediction for the number of explosions in the action movie, his favorite things about New York and an in-depth discussion of Mark Wahlberg's third nipple.

Congratulations on the movie! It premiered in nearly a year ago, so you must have seen it a few times by now.
[I've seen it] about 25 times. The world premiere was last September in Toronto, so we've been up and traveling with it kinda since then.

Are you tired of watching it yet?
Yeah. [laughs]

Do you have a different opinion of it than when you started?
No, we're all very proud of it. I'm really happy with it, and it turned out exactly the way we wanted it to. And it's put me in an incredible position, career-wise, and I'm just so happy and honored to have been a part of that movie. If I never make another film again, I'll be happy that I had that one.

Oh, but you are.
But I am!

And so, we thought it would be a fun question, since the film is called "What Richard Did," obviously: What did Richard do?
Oh, what did he do!

Element

Or, what are some other things that Richard did?
OK. Richard's like this golden boy from real kinda like middle class society in Ireland, and he goes to one of these rugby schools where he has quite a strong sense of himself, or so he thinks. And during the course of the film, he kinda gets into a bit of a row, and without giving too much away, does something that causes everything that he thinks about himself and his life to be stripped away, and he's forced to look at himself critically and to re-examine and to just analyze everything about himself, and it's about how he does that, and the process that he goes through.

You're based in Dublin, correct? Where are you living nowadays?
I’m kind of nomadic really, but I’m based in L.A. at the moment.

How long have you been there?
Um, maybe a month and a half? And I'll be there until I go and shoot "Transformers."

Had you been to L.A. before recently, the past few years? Are you well-traveled?
Yeah, I hadn't been there before my career started. I went up for the first time when I was 18. It's a great place, I love L.A. I mean, in Ireland it just rains all the time, it's crap weather, so it's nice to go to L.A. where it's just sunshine every day, and then it's kinda easier to live a kinda healthy lifestyle. As opposed to New York, where you just drink all day.

You said that you're a little bit nomadic right now. What are the things that you have to have with you?
I bring a copy of "Dracula" with me wherever I go, the book. It's my favorite book in the world, it's absolutely incredible. My great-great grandfather was the guy who printed the first edition, so he's the first person to ever put "Dracula" on the written page.

That's really cool.
Yeah, and as far as I'm concerned, the film has never been made, because no one has been able to adapt the book truthfully. So my dream is to make a proper film about it someday.

Nice. Do you want to be behind the camera? In front?
I'd like to produce it.

Do you have any interest in writing or adapting screenplays?
Yeah, absolutely. I think that it's an important thing that, in your career, you should kinda do everything if you can. You should write and produce and direct and experience it all, and I think that's how you'll have longevity in your career as well. Look at Ben Affleck right now.

Dude's on fire.
On fire.

Obviously there's a big vampire thing going on right now, and you're into "Dracula." So: "Twilight"? Thoughts?
Thoughts. [Sighs]

You look so pumped!
Yeah, just totally pumped. [Laughs] Yeah, it is interesting. It's definitely a removal from classic vampire culture, but teenage girls seem to love it.

You among them?
[Laughs] Me among them!

You're going to be in "Transformers 4," which is really cool, congratulations.
Awesome. Yeah, thanks.

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So when's all that starting?
Um … you know, it's all kinda a little bit … I don't really know, I'm kinda kept in the dark, and I'm happy that I'm kept in the dark, because it's too big for me to really want to have to think about too hard. So I'm not really sure about … we're gonna start shooting soon? I guess it's gonna go up until maybe the end of the year, and we've got a lot of places that we're gonna go to, and Mark Wahlberg's in it, which is incredibly exciting for me. I think Mark is amazing. We've got Nicola Peltz in there as well, Stanley Tucci's just come on board. There's great actors, and I'm just really excited to be part of that project.

Are you a big Michael Bay fan?
You know, his only film that I haven't seen is "Pain & Gain," I am so excited to see that. But my favorite movie of Michael's at the moment is probably, I think, "The Rock." "The Rock" is a great movie.

Nice. So you're gonna be kinda the new Shia LaBeouf …
I think, in a sense.

I'm sure everyone loves being compared, right?
[Laughing] In a sense, not quite. I think there's definitely making a step away from what was there in the previous films. It's gonna be a new approach, so I'm happy to be coming in with a kind of fresh outlook on the whole thing.

You, and Mark Wahlberg, and Marky Mark's third nipple.
Uh huh, exactly, exactly.

Have you seen it?
No. Oh, really? He has a third nipple?

Yeah! I think so. Am I wrong? Am I making that up?
I don’t know. I didn't notice in those Calvin Klein shots that he did.

I think that he has, like…
Publicist: It's his belly button, maybe?

Does he have two belly buttons? He has something strange about his torso.
I'll ask him.

I'd like you to examine that, and find out.
I'll talk to him about that.

That should be probably how you just talk to him. Walk up and be like "Hey man, I heard something weird is going on here …"
"So tell me about this nipple, man! What’s going on?!" That's hilarious.

Are you keeping your accent for the movie?
Again, it's something that remains to be seen.

Can you do an American accent?
Yeah.

What’s the hardest word to say in an American accent?
I don't know, I'd have to be doing it to think about it. I think, you know … what would I stumble on? Like I said, I've been brought up watching American TV. I'm a citizen, I was born here, and I think I have quite a good ear for it, so I don't really stumble up. I feel like I should say yes, that I stumble on a word, that I have a word that I stumble on, but I can't say that I do right now.

Brush off your shoulders.
I'm just that f**king good as an actor! [laughs]

What's your prediction for how many explosions are going to be in this movie?
Explosions that I think are going to be in "Transformers 4"? OK, well, what constitutes an explosion? Does it have to be a building? Can it be, like a car blowing up?

Oh yeah, that definitely counts.
There's gonna be, I would say, in excess of 100. I think between like 100 and 150. That's a rough estimation, but if I would hazard a guess, I think that's what it’s gonna be.

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So we have a few Tribeca-specific questions, since we're here in New York. If you had your own film festival, like Robert DeNiro and Tribeca or Robert Redford and Sundance, what would it be called, where would it be, would it have a theme?
What would it be called … [To publicist] Have you got any killer names for a film festival?

Publicist: The Transylvania Film Festival

There you go. That’s what it's called. That's bad ass. If there was a film festival in Transylvania …

Would it be all vampires or would it go totally opposite? Would it be, like, musicals?
No, it would have to be … I'd want to be doing it in a really slick way so it wasn't actually about vampires, but there was like an air of it there, so everyone would very much like be black tie, it would be very dark, and kind of a little bit mysterious, there would be like fun s**t to do. I would make it into kinda like a horror festival, sort of.

Publicist: Like the seats are coffins, or something like that.

Yeah yeah yeah yeah!

It could be like a gothic rom-com fest.
Yeah!

What are your favorite and least favorite things about New York?
My favorite thing about New York is the view, the skyline. We went to, like, the Irish consulate yesterday, they hosted a party, and we went up to the 52nd floor of this building and they had this gorgeous penthouse apartment, and we just looked out and watched the sun go down, and it's right in the middle of the city, it's like being on a chessboard, it was amazing.

My least favorite thing about New York is probably the traffic. I hate it. The people are such aggressive drivers here, they're horrible. God, it's nearly as bad as L.A. L.A. is worse, but it's nearly as bad as L.A. I always feel like I'm in danger of having an accident.

And a signature food of New York is bagels. How do you take your bagels?
Bagels?

Yeah. Bagel fan?
I just have it with butter and ham on it, I guess. Toasted.

Using the formula of your first pet and the street you grew up on, what your porn name would be?
Sandy, and the street I grew up on was St. Helens Road.

Sandy St. Helens!
Holy s**t! [laughs] That is awesome! That's one of the best ones I've heard!

Would you like to take a selfie for us?
That's hilarious.

[pause]

I'm recording video. Oh. Here we go.

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"A Case of You," Justin Long's latest comedy, revolves around a hack writer who wins over a barista (Evan Rachel Wood) by stalking her on Facebook and posing as her "perfect man."

It's not exactly "The Big Wedding," which is why the $3 million indie is premiering at the Tribeca Film Festival this weekend and not fast-tracked for mall multiplexes. It's a helluva lot bolder than your average studio rom-com.

Long, who stars but also produced and co-wrote the script with brother Christian Long and Keir O'Donnell, told us about his feelings on online dating (and stalking) and which one of his movies is sooooo much better when you're stoned.

Tribeca

So "A Case of You"… The first great cyber-stalker rom-com of our time?
Well I don't know if it's great but … It's funny while we were writing we were like, has no one really done this? I was surprised. We did it over the span of a couple of years and I thought surely at some point – 'cause we couldn't get the movie made -- somebody was gonna beat us to it. It's something that's changed drastically in the last couple of years, the reliance on social media. I have friends who exclusively date people that way and meet people that way. And it makes sense …  There’s a part of me that kind of envies the people that could do it. It's a very simple vetting process.

So you're not an online dater?
Not yet. No, I've never done that. I don't have Facebook. I do Instagram but just for my friends. But I noticed that people do use it for that, people even use Instagram for that. Even with texting you can hide behind shorthand. You can take time to come up with the wittiest, quickest response and that’s a version of hiding behind a device. It's much different, it's so much easier. I find myself relying too heavily on texting.

Your character, Sam, is pretty much a cyber-stalker but the movie is almost unapologetic about it. Kind of ballsy, but also kind of realistic.
Yeah, and we hope that he learns stuff and we hope that the audience is with him at the end. Yeah, it's just the reality. We saw it last night. I had never seen it with an audience and I was relieved to hear the laughter. There's a line where Evan says sarcastically, "Oh stalker alert!" I was relieved that people laughed at that because I think it needed to be addressed in some way. Because yeah, there's a fine line between totally creepy dangerous weirdo [and normal], but it's a reality, it's what people do. When you meet somebody you're like oh I wonder what they're about, and rather than spending the time to get to know them, you can go on a page and find out what their makeup is. It's fascinating.

Warner Bros.

Do you think the line is blurring between a festival indie like "A Case Of You" and a studio-processed romantic comedy like "Going the Distance"? They feel very similar.
Yeah well even this to me doesn't feel necessarily like a festival movie. It feels more commercial. I don't mean that in a good or bad way. When I found out it got into Tribeca, I was kind of surprised. It's less polished aesthetically than something like "Going the Distance." I was amazed at what we got for a $3 million movie and I was really amazed at what we got to do ... For example if it was a studio movie, I don't think we would've gotten away with having the lead character turn like [he does]. That character becomes a dick two-thirds into the movie and for that to be done in a studio movie, it would be less harsh or it would be a more comical turn.

You've made a fair share of rom-coms and I'm sure you've read even more scripts. Have you ever borrowed a tactic from one of these projects and used it your own love life?
That's a good idea. I mean that's a good question, not a good idea. No but you know I love Woody Allen so much and I think there's no better rom-coms than the ones he makes. And I have actually … It's in "Annie Hall" where he's like, "So we'll kiss now and get it over with, and then we'll go eat." So it's not awkward.  I did that once on a date and it really backfired. She was like, "Oh, really? Okaaay." I thought it would be so cool and romantic and I always fantasized about doing that because it's the worst when you have to engage with a stranger and try to have a conversation and eat and the whole time you're just thinking about it and after you kiss, there's this weight that's been lifted and it's easier to be yourself, too. So I did it, and I just remember it just backfired and made it weirder that it happened.

You see how it could be misconstrued. Like forget dinner, let's just get right to it.
Exactly. It's always very presumptuous. Like f**k you, you say that I'm gonna want to kiss you? That’s what the dinner's for, to see if I'm going to want to kiss you.

There's a full slate of great movies at Tribeca. What is your pitch for people to see "A Case of You"?
Here's what I shouldn't say: I'm surprised that it's in the festival … If you want a break from the edginess and heaviness of some of these movies, some of which I'm really excited to see, you could do worse than sitting down and taking in a nice funny love story.

What's your favorite thing about New York?
Walking. I love to walk in New York. I love the people, I love people-watching and simple things. There's an energy that this place has that I've never experienced anywhere else.

And what's your least favorite thing about New York?
Going to Times Square. It's funny, one of my least favorite places and most favorite places are within the same 40-block radius of each other. Times Square is pretty brutal.

And the mascots, and the "free comedy show" guys…
Oh everything! And then the tourists are just walking slowly … and you're inundated with corporate America.

Redford has Sundance in Park City, De Niro has Tribeca in New York. Where would your festival be?
Ooh. Well I love Austin, I live in Austin part-time but I guess they have so many festivals there that they don't need anymore.

South by Southwest 2!
… SouthwestER. Where would I go? S**t is there one in New Orleans? I love New Orleans. I would just find a place that I really love and a town that I want to promote. But then I guess not because if I really loved a place I wouldn't want a bunch of people coming there to watch movies, I guess. I do love New Orleans and Austin. Maybe somewhere where they truly don't get to see a lot of movies like Madagascar? Sri Lanka?

What is your porn star name?
Justin Long. It would be Justin Long.

Ha but what if you took your first pet and the street you grew up on?
Oh yeah mine is not good. My first pet is Victor. He was a box turtle named Victor. And my street was Unquowa, which is a Native American name. So Victor Unquowa.

Yeah that's not very good.
No I'm kidding it's Jizz On My Face Street, I grew up on Jizz On My Face Street. Victor Unquowa wouldn’t be good. But there is a porn star named Justin Long.  I think he does mostly gay porn and I almost didn't get to use that as my name when I joined SAG because he was eligible for it [because of the Taft Hartley Act].

So he was around before you were? You didn't have to call your lawyers?
No and he had done one SAG-eligible job. It was probably like a Skinemax movie or something because some of those are SAG.

You could've gone with Justin Longer.
I could've. Or Justin Schlong. That's what kids called me in school. Brings back bad memories.

FunnyorDie

By the way, congrats on beating Ashton Kutcher in the race to release your Steve Jobs biopics.
I know, but we thought it was going to come out a week later. And now that they pushed it, it's not as funny.

Do you know Ashton? Did you call him to brag?
No I don't know him, really. I've met him here and there. To be honest, I only saw one clip of it. They put a clip online actually. I had been watching a lot of Steve Jobs footage to try to get inspired. And so I was pretty familiar with the way he spoke and I thought Ashton Kutcher really nailed it. I don't know if I'm in the minority there but I thought he was great when I saw just that one scene.

The comments about it on Funny or Die are hilarious. Arguments over the accuracies of it and what not.
Are you serious? Oh my God, I mean that's what it is … It's making fun of biopics themselves. It's not making fun of the man. I have deep reverence for him and profound respect for the man which was one of the reasons I was excited to do that. I think imitation is the highest form of flattery and the movie itself, you see it and you'll know what I mean. It's just a spoof of those overwrought, slightly inaccurate biopics. That’s why it's so funny that people would be debating the accuracy of it. It's totally inaccurate!

What would you say is the most underappreciated or underrated movie of yours? The one that people pick on you but you think undeservedly so.
S**t. Oh "Strange Wilderness"! "Strange Wilderness" was the one that got a zero on Rotten Tomatoes. And I saw it, the first few times I saw it, I loved it. And I don't often see movies that I've done multiple times, but I kept going. I was going with my girlfriend at the time and we'd bring friends. And then I saw it once when I wasn't stoned and I was like, woah. This is like a mess! This doesn't make a shred of sense. What? They're looking for Bigfoot?!

I don't know if you've seen the movie but it's about guys that in order to save their nature show, they go looking for Bigfoot. But stoned it's the funniest, and I think I just have so much love for it because it was the most fun I've ever had shooting. And I'm a huge Steve Zahn fan, and getting to work with Steve Zahn was like if I got to work with Gary Oldman or Daniel Day-Lewis. I revere Steve Zahn. He's a f**king great actor.

Last question: Will you take a selfie for us?
Selfies. That’s a real turnoff too with this social media stuff when you see a girl's Instagram.

[Editor's Note: He took two.]

Colin Firth and Emily Blunt are two of the finest British actors to grace the big screen. So what happens when they come together to play two Americans taking on fake identities in "Arthur Newman"? A whole lot of random craziness, including carrying on sexual escapades in many a stranger's home ... not exactly the type of behavior you'd expect from an Academy Award winner or newlywed.

When NextMovie sat down with the pair, things got almost as fun as their antics in the film, which hits theaters this weekend. Firth opened up about where's the wildest place a couple could potentially get their groove on (while recording it, too) and Blunt squashed any rumors on her supposed love affair with Anne Hathaway.

Check out our video interview above with Firth and Blunt as they talk sex, lies and videotape ... and "Arthur Newman," of course.

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There's plenty of Zoe Kazan to go around, petite though the actress may be. There's enough of her, in fact, to play two roles — three, depending on who you ask — in "The Pretty One," which premiered at the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival in New York City. Kazan pulls a Lohan, playing both halves of a set of identical twins, then the role of Sister A pretending to be Sister B after Sister B dies and Sister A is mistaken for her. (It's complicated.)

While buzz for "The Pretty One" is just beginning, Kazan is no stranger to critical praise: Just last year, she turned in a phenomenal lead performance opposite real-life boyfriend Paul Dano in "Ruby Sparks," which she also happened to write.

NextMovie caught up with the 29-year-old actress in New York before the premiere of "The Pretty One" and chatted on siblings, bagels and the mystical Lindsay Lohan.

Are you a big fan of "The Parent Trap"? That's another dual-role twins movie.
I f**king love "The Parent Trap." I love the Hayley Mills "Parent Trap," I grew up with it, and the Lindsay Lohan "Parent Trap" was a little young for me, but my sister is like the same age as her and totally was all about that movie. I have seen that movie so many times. She's brilliant in it, like crazy brilliant in it, I don't know how she did it at 11 years old. Nancy Meyers is a genius to be able to pull that off. But really, honestly, having to play against yourself when you're not there is one of the hardest things I've ever done.

Were you acting against, like, a tennis ball? Was it like Gollum?
No, they had a very capable actress who stood in for me and acted opposite me in both parts. We rehearsed together so I got used to her and got to know her, but it's still really hard because essentially the way the technology works is that you shoot every scene twice and you lay the images over each other for the wide shots and stuff. The way that it works with the transparency, all the objects can't be in both shots if they're gonna move, so you end up having to track things if they're not there and everything. It just ends up being a lot of math, which is hard for me. I've never been excellent at that.

What makes a person qualified to be a Zoe Kazan double?
Well, she had to be my size...

...write her own movies.
Yeah! No, they, I don't know. I actually proposed that my sister do it, but then my sister couldn't do it. I just thought like, she's about my size, she could put a wig on!

Have you ever pretended to be someone else, for fun or seriously?
Oh, you know what, I'm not a huge fan of Halloween. I mean, I pretend to be someone else for a living, so that is my main experience of trying to pretend to be someone else. I lie a lot when people ask me what I do for a living, like if I'm out at a bar and someone hits on me, I tell them that I'm like, a geologist or something that they're not going to ask me about. Just because it's an annoying conversation to have with a drunk person in a bar.

"Oh, what have I seen you in?"
Exactly. You just don't want to, and when you're out and you don't want to be hit on in the first place because you have a long-term boyfriend, yeah, you want to find a conversation-ender. That's probably the closest I've gotten to pretending.

Have you ever gone along with a white lie to bad effect?
I don't know, I'm sure I have. That's a very familiar feeling, that sinking feeling. When you get called out about lying about like, where you were. Probably as a teenager. It's usually something stupid.

"The Pretty One" deals with sibling tensions. What's the best sibling rivalry movie?
"Dead Ringers." That's an amazing movie. Cronenberg.

Since we're here in New York for Tribeca, let's have a few NYC-specific questions. How do you take your bagels?
I like an everything bagel toasted really brown, or sesame if I'm going into company and I don't want to offend anyone with onions or anything. A tiny bit of cream cheese, just a little bit, plain cream cheese, with tomato and capers.

What's your favorite thing about New York?
That I feel at home here.

If you had your own film festival, what would it be called and where would it be?
It would be called the Paul Dano Is a Snob Film Festival, and it would be in my living room, and it happens about every Saturday night. You are welcome to come over. It is foreign language-specific. Last night, Paul's out of town and I'm sick, so my sister came over and brought me soup. We went to the video store — yes, I have a video store in my neighborhood — and I was like literally anything that's not foreign, please, that's what I want. We rented "Friends With Benefits" and "Swingers." Stuff I can never watch at home.

Using the formula of your first pet and the street you grew up on, what would your porn name be?
But I grew up on a numbered street! It would be Rainbow Third. Although if I used my cross-street, it would be Rainbow Marine, which is two colors. Well, rainbow's not a color. It's all the colors.

Will you take a selfie for us?
There it is. It happened. Just ride with it.

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"I can't move. I almost feel like I have the flu because of how much fun I had."

No, this isn't an aging star feeling the effects of the previous night's high-class Oscar shenanigans. It's Nikki Reed, the 24-year-old co-star of the "Twilight" franchise, recovering from a day spent, well, relaxing.

"I’m 24 years old and my idea of fun is going to my father’s house to play Yahtzee on a Friday night," she said.

Reed — who gave us a call while promoting her new film "Pawn," a hostage drama-turned-mob movie — isn't your typical young Hollywood starlet. On top of making movies, she also has an arts and crafts addiction, in addition to writing songs and movies — remember a little traumatic something called "Thirteen," 10 years ago? She co-wrote that just a few years after hitting puberty, based largely on her own wild youth. The now-married Reed claims to be in bed by 9, and gets vocally excited over things like low-maintenance plant life.

We caught up with Reed on her inability to relax, her extreme love for Hanson and, of course, Edward versus Jacob.

Am I interrupting your vacation? I thought I saw some beach pictures on your Twitter.
Oh my god, no actually it’s pretty funny, you did see that. That was yesterday, it was beach volleyball day. And it's actually my first day since I can remember taking a full day to do absolutely nothing but have fun. My older brother’s really good at making fun of me for just being a workaholic and never taking time for myself. Even when we go on vacation, I'm always working. And so my brother was like, "Here’s the deal, I'm planning a day, we're going to Malibu and you’re gonna play beach volleyball." I'm so sunburned and sore that I'm laying in bed all day watching old movies. I can’t move. I almost feel like I have the flu because of how much fun I had.

Fun's hard work, man.
It is such hard work. Oh my god, the backs of my legs, I don’t know if I've ever been this sunburned. Who thinks to put sunblock on the back of their kneecaps? Not me.

What movies are you watching today?
I’m watching "Gentleman’s Agreement" right now. Yesterday’s vacation has totally spilled over into today's. I guess this is what a two-day vacay is like right? But I never, ever do this, so it's a privilege.

It looks like you’re super-busy, you’ve got your hand in a lot of pots. You’re recording, making movies. Are you writing anything?
I am, actually. I'm working right now on a few different writing and developing projects all over the place. I have a lot of interest in developing a television series, so I've been working on that. And then I also have been toying around with the idea of trying to write fiction because with "Thirteen" and then my blog and my music, a lot of what I’m used to writing generally comes from what I see and what I feel. My dad brought this up to me a long time ago and actually my grandfather who was a brilliant writer and recently passed away, he gave me a lot of fabulous books that I haven't even cracked open on writing fiction because he wrote a lot of non-fiction as well, so if there was one area he wanted to explore it would've been this. So I kind of feel like for him also I should work on that skill that definitely doesn't come naturally for me.

So there's that and then we’re writing music and recording music and I have my jewelry line, my next jewelry line, my collaboration with Seven for All Mankind, and then I start another film in three weeks called "Murder of a Cat" and I have a few movies from last year hopefully coming out, so I'm definitely all over the place right now. Sometimes I wonder why I’m feeling tired and I get on the phone with my mom and she goes, "Because you’re always thinking! You’re thinking too much!"

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Are you one of those people who if you’re not super overscheduled, you can’t get out of bed?
No, I'm always doing something, no matter what it is! Even yesterday on the beach I brought my book. I’m reading this really great book right now called “The Righteous Mind.” And my brother’s like, "Don’t bring out your book, don’t do anything! Stop reading, stop thinking, just look at the clouds and just think about nothing!"

It's like that classic job interview question where it’s like oh what’s my one flaw? "Oh I work too hard, I care too much..."
I know, perfect answer to that. You know there’s a real downside to this too, and that is I’m 24 years old and my idea of fun is going to my father’s house to play Yahtzee on a Friday night. I have no social life. That was my new year’s resolution, actually, was get working on my social life. I need to go out and make plans with friends and have dinners and do things like that because you can’t just be 100 percent consumed by work and thinking about work. I’m really diligent, I have a really militant side of my personality that comes out in areas of work. I’m very motivated, you know?

So you’re in this new movie, “Pawn.” What's your best pitch for people see it?
I would say if you want to see a film with some really great actors, some suspense, you’re on the edge of your seat, this could be the movie for you. I mean, I don’t really know how to pitch movies that I’m in, but I’ve had a really wonderful experience working with some of the actors that I worked with. A few of the scenes that I have with Ray Liotta, one in particular, put me in such a disturbing place mentally that it took me days to shake it.

If you had a mobster nickname what would it be?
You have just asked me a question that has never once crossed my mind. I should probably put that out on Twitter and ask my Twitter followers to contribute some ideas to that. What would my best mobster name be? Bugsy Ocean is my mob name. Oh my god, I love that. Now I might have to use that for something.

So obviously you were in "Twilight," I don’t know if you remember...
Oh yeah!

There are some pretty intense fans. Did you ever have some notable Twi-hard interactions?
Yeah, I’ve had a few that were really touching. I know it’s always more fun to say things that are shocking and people go someone did that?! But the truth is I think the boys, Kellan [Lutz] and Taylor [Lautner] and Rob [Pattinson] and Jackson [Rathbone], I’m sure they have better stories like that because the girls, they just really love our boys. But I’ve had a few really wonderful ones.

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Just a few months ago I was in Scotland and Ireland touring with Kellan and this girl came up to the table to say hi and was just crying and I couldn’t think of what to do to make her stop crying, so I took my bracelet off my arm and just shoved it on her arm, kind of like what you do with a kid, like, "Here you go, here’s something! Let me give her something and maybe she’ll stop crying!" And then the crying got worse and totally escalated. I think I just enhanced the whole situation but now we’re Twitter buddies.

I know it seems really silly and that it seems like we probably just recycle these stories just for the sake of having them, but this journey has been so incredible. The fact that these movies have really had that kind of effect on people and their lives and that I had a small part, I played a small part in that, is just beyond me and it’s something I will forever be grateful for and that I’ll carry with me through the rest of my life. This is not something to be taken lightly. We’ve become a family with an entire universe of fans.

You were talking about people geeking out over "Twilight," but is there anything you geek out over?
What do I geek out over? I mean totally, I geek out over Hanson. Duh.

They’re back together now, aren’t they?
Yeah, I was in their new music video with Kat Dennings. We’re hopefully gonna be doing a little singing with them at some point. We talk about it because we’re friends with all of them so it would be so nice, and Kat and I are huge Hanson fans. Kat and I have been best buddies for a long time now so we share this love for Hanson and we stepped in and did their video and it was just the best possible experience. A big love festival.

So was that hardcore teenybopper? We’re about the same age so I can imagine you had about the same period of your life we’re you’re like oh my god, Zac! Taylor!
No, Kat was a young Hanson fan. I discovered my love for Hanson just a few years ago and I wrote them a fan letter. I sent a fan letter to their management. The message behind the letter was something like that I had a real genuine appreciation for the fact that they were making really positive music. We live in a time where controversy, and controversial lyrics and things like that tend to stick out in people’s minds, but these guys have just really done an amazing job at making music that speaks to them and that comes from their heart. I loved how real it felt and I wrote them that in a letter. I wrote a total fan letter.

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Speaking of Hanson, I know that they’re coming back now, but I associate them with the '90s first and foremost. What’s your favorite piece of '90s nostalgia?
God, you know what I loved? Do you remember those plastic woven chokers? You know you had one.

Oh, absolutely.
Yeah me too, we should totally go back and get those woven chokers. I used to get them, you could buy them and they would be rolled up in a little ball and you could get them for like 99 cents. Oh yeah, let’s bring those back.

If you wrote a sequel to "Thirteen" called "Twenty-Three," what would the basic plot outline be? Do you think it would be as interesting as "Thirteen"?
That's so funny. You’re basically asking me right now if my life at 24 years old is as interesting as it was as a 13-year-old. I don’t know what the theme would be. See, "Thirteen," there were a lot of parts in young girls’ lives that were kind of unexposed and not talked about out of fear or it was taboo and I think that we opened up a window of opportunity for people to converse about things, parents and their children to talk about it, and I think that was kind of the beauty of that film. I don’t know if my life would be interesting enough right now to write a sequel to it.

You've got a birthday coming up. What’s your ideal birthday celebration?
I just like going to dinner with my family and I like having arts and crafts day. I know I’m really painting an awesome picture of myself right now, I’m making myself sound like such a loser. But we do cool, crafty things in the house. [Husband] Paul [McDonald] and I decoupage vases and things like that and Paul makes really awesome... I don’t even know what you would call what he makes, they’re really cool. He basically tells stories through pictures and makes a collage that’s like a high gloss collage, it’s really amazing. We do that kind of stuff. For Easter, we gather the whole family at my house and do like egg painting and we paint like 40 eggs and it’s so awesome, so we’re just really into that as a family.

So my ideal birthday is usually something like that, but probably part of the reason I married Paul is so I wouldn’t be such a loser. And he makes really cool things happen, like he plans really awesome road trips. Last year for my birthday he put together a 20-page booklet of every stop along the West Coast that we were gonna make driving up through Big Sur and he made it all happen so he’s really creative and thinks outside the box and it’s so awesome. Because I don’t really like getting material, tangible things. My favorite present actually my mom got me, you know what those little air plants are?

No, what are they?
Oh my god, they’re so awesome. I also got one for my manager for her birthday because I was so obsessed. Did you google it just now?

They don't need a home!
Yeah, they don’t need a home. Air plants.They totally don’t need a home and they live in their own little...so my mom got me an air plant and some shells and that’s the kind of stuff I really geek out over. I love that. You can get me a $5 air plant, I am a happy lady. Paul got me a love cactus for Valentine’s Day and it rocks my world.

So you were on "The O.C.," too.
I was on "The O.C." many years ago. Another cult classic thing. Yeah, that was fun. I didn’t watch much TV at the time. When I was 15, I was on "Oprah" and I remember everyone around me freaking out and I could recognize that it was a really amazing thing but when you’re a fan of something in particular, like obsessive, and then you get to be a part of it, it takes it to a whole new level. But because I didn't watch much TV, I didn't know how cool it was that I was in "The O.C." until I was done and then I was like, oh my god, that’s a really cool thing I was just a part of.

Did you go back and watch it?
No, because I don’t like to watch things that I’m in. It freaks me out.

Do you just get critical of yourself, or self conscious? Why don’t you like it?
You know what it is? There’s something so permanent about film and I think every artist is very self-analytical and likes to critique themselves. The problem is once you put something out there, you can’t go back and change your performance, so it’s kind of pointless to judge yourself. I suppose you can learn from watching your own work and learn how to perfect different things but I haven’t mastered that skill yet. I still get really self-conscious, I think because it’s done you know? I can’t change it.

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Is there anything in "Thirteen" that you would change if you could go back and write it again?
No, I don’t really believe in going back and changing things that are like experiences. And "Thirteen" to me was very much an experience, not only because it was my first film but also because it was something that is so close to my life and my family and my heart and it had a very large impact on everyone that was close surrounding me. And so for that reason I think it was much more complicated than I had anticipated because I was 13 years old and I had no idea of what I was stepping into. And when you’re 13 you’re also kind of unable to process or understand cause and effect and consequences and making that movie.

It definitely was hard on my family and that was something I didn’t foresee as being the result. But that said, I wouldn’t take it back because we all are where we are in life because we made certain choices. I love that movie, I can’t stress that enough, it just was a very emotional experience for me.

And one last quick question, which is it...Team Edward or Team Jacob?
It's a really heavy-hitting one because I go back and forth. For a long time I was Team Jacob because I really wanted Bella to go for somebody that didn’t make her sacrifice anything. But then obviously you want to be Team Edward because Edward’s kind of the best. He really is awesome and when I was reading the books, especially “New Moon” and Edward leaves and you’re heartbroken... I even remember running around on set looking for Rob because we were shooting the first one but I was in the middle of reading all the books and I was like, "I have to find him to know he’s still here!" I remember having the same kind of emotional connection to the books that the fans did, absolutely. Now I just want to be between both because Bella’s gonna do what’s best for Bella and we shouldn’t question people’s decisions. So I can’t be team either of them, I have to be for both of them.

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Emma Roberts is figuring it out. Julia Roberts' niece, the daughter of actor Eric Roberts, the 22-year-old star of "Adult World" is grappling with living in the world as, well, an adult. When NextMovie caught up with Roberts at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City the day after the film's premiere, the actress was picking at a bunless burger and a heap of fries, bemoaning the blisters her heels had given her the night before. "Someone should do a shoe break-in service where they break in your shoes," she said.

Shoe problems aside, Roberts' career is standing tall: She's graduated from her "Nancy Drew" and "Aquamarine" kiddie film days to solidly received indies like "Adult World" and "It's Kind of a Funny Story," and a memorable supporting role as Ke$ha-like Riley in Rashida Jones' "Celeste and Jesse Forever." Her career is maturing as she does.

In "Adult World," Roberts plays Amy, a would-be poet who literally runs away from home when her parents refuse to continue paying contest entry fees for her amateur verse. She makes rent money at a porn shop (guess what it's called) alongside scruffy manager/cute dude Alex (Roberts' real-life boyfriend, "American Horror Story" star Evan Peters), while pestering an enigmatic has-been poet (a hilariously befuddled John Cusack) to mentor her, hoping the two can reverse their career trajectories and meet in the middle.

In addition to Roberts' million-dollar shoe-softening idea, NextMovie chatted with her about "Adult World," being a terrible roommate and her deep obsession with bagels.

Congratulations on the movie. Is that the first time you've seen it with an audience?
Yeah, it was the first time I've seen it with an audience, but I was lucky because we had a great audience. I was surprised at how much people laughed and it made me really happy because I thought the movie was funny, so it made me happy that everyone else did too.

Is it weird for you to watch yourself on screen?
It's always weird, but in this one it was fun, because I felt like I played such a different character than anything I'd ever done, and I just, I kind of just let all of my inhibitions go and totally went for it. So it was fun to watch it in that respect and not have to worry about vanity. I wasn't, like, worried about how I looked, so that kind of made it a little bit easier to do it. When you're supposed to play a model or something like that in a movie, it's, like, horrible to watch yourself. But in this, I kinda felt like I looked like a little mouse the whole time, running around.

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You mentioned that they dyed your hair in a bathtub?
Mmmhmm, I'm not kidding. I went to Syracuse [to film] with blonde hair, and they brought a bottle of dye in the bathtub and poured it on my head the first day of shooting. But it was one of those things where I was like you know what, it's helping me get into character. [pauses] Sorry, I'm like the loudest person in here. My mom is always shushing me.

So you went to Sarah Lawrence for a little bit, then left. Did you have a hard time conjuring post-collegiate angst for this role?
It was so funny. Going to college was such a trip, because I had lived on my own for two years. And then I moved into a dorm with all of these people and went to class. And it was so cool and so fun and such a good experience, but ultimately I wanted to keep working. I don't know how people work and go to school, it's so hard. And so I wanted to work, but doing "Adult World" definitely gave me flashbacks to being in college.

Do you have any roommate horror stories?
No, she probably has stories about me, because she was like this neat, vegan, sweet girl who went to bed at 7 p.m., and I was like the girl crying because she wanted to go home and was in bed at like midnight and was so loud. I didn't know how to be quiet. So it was so funny, because everyone's like, "Oh my god, did you have a nightmare roommate?" But she probably thought that she had a nightmare roommate, it was me. So loud! She was probably bummed, because she had a single probably before I showed up.

The movie is called "Adult World." What do you think qualifies a person as being an adult, as kind of entering that world?
Well, I remember when I moved out of my parents' house and I got my apartment, I was like, "This is awesome! I'm an adult! I can live by myself!" And then I was like, "Oh my god, I have to buy paper towels and toilet paper and do laundry. This is not what I thought." I think it's so funny, because I think once you become an adult, there's so many rude awakenings that are just so not fun, but at the same time funny. That's why I really loved "Adult World," because I feel like it really showed those moments of like, "this is not what I thought was going to happen" really well. I feel like a lot of coming of age movies really kind of gloss over that, and "Adult World" kind of shows what happens when things don't go according to plan, and that it shows [my character] Amy having to come up with Plan B on the spot and have to figure that stuff out in the moment, because that's what real life is.

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It's a real millennial struggle sort of movie.
I agree, and I think it really captures our generation, which is this generation of like, everyone thinks they're the best, everyone wants to be famous, everyone thinks that they are the next whatever, big thing. And I think it's funny, because Amy is no exception to that, and when those people go out into the real world, myself included, you think things are gonna be a certain way. Things happen in a certain way where you're like, "this is not how it was supposed to happen, like I wrote in my journal when I was 14!"

In the movie, you use the SPARFS — Sexual Preference, Age, Race, Fetish — to classify the movies. Where would you fall in that system?
Granny porn. Granny porn. Nah, I'm kidding. I don't know I wouldn't have a subcategory. I still don't understand how the category system works, even after hearing it.

Your character in this is a poet. Have you ever written poetry, good or bad?
Yeah, I think I went through a phase when I wanted to be like Sarah McLachlan when I was younger and wrote a lot of poetry.

Be like Jewel and live in your car.
Jewel! I wanted to be like Jewel! I got a guitar, and I know how to play every Jewel song on a guitar still. And I had so much, like, you see these videos of me singing it, and you would think that I went through what she went through at 9. It was, like, really convincing.

Since we're here at Tribeca, let's talk about that. If you have your own film festival, where would it be and what would it be called?
I'd probably have it in New York in the springtime, like Tribeca. It's so nice! The past few times I've been to New York it's been below zero, so I'm just loving New York right now. So I'd have it here in New York, I'd have lots of pizza and lots of candy. Pizza, candy, movies, New York in the springtime. Maybe have an outdoor screening in Gramercy Park! Let's do that.

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What's your favorite thing about New York?
I love just walking around and the New York vibe. I feel like so many of my favorite movies have taken place in New York, and so many songs about New York. There's just a vibe to New York like something's going to happen, which is really cool.

And what's your least favorite thing about New York?
Probably that there's never any taxis when I need them. Is it just me, or is there like a taxi shortage? Every time I try to get a taxi, it's never — it always seems to be rush hour in New York.

What's your preferred bagel topping?
I love bagels. I had two bialys today already.

I don't trust people who don't like bagels.
Right? I just like plain cream cheese on my bagels. But I like it extra-toasted. Almost burnt. I don't like it when they run it through once and then put the cream cheese on, that's sucky.

I've quit bagels shops for that.
It's so annoying! I hate how Murray's doesn't toast. It's BS.

And iced coffee, that's important.
Oh my god, I had an iced coffee today. I love iced coffee.

My place, they put the sugar in, pour hot coffee on it to melt it, then pour in the milk and iced coffee. It's the greatest.
That's the best.

What would your porn name be, using the formula of your first pet and the street you grew up on?
Oh my god, mine's so good. It sounds like a foreign porn star. Mine's Snutta Astral.

What was Snutta?
My cat! Snutta! I was really weird. ["Adult World" star Evan Peters, who also dates Roberts, walks up to the table.] Hi! What's your porn name?

EP: Petey Carmen Grove.

Lastly, do you want to take a selfie for us?
I mean, sure. How could I say no?

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Well, there's no other way to put it: Rob Dyrdek is a busy guy.

The skateboarding icon became a reality TV star with his hit MTV shows "Rob & Big" and "Rob Dyrdek's Fantasy Factory"; since then he's done everything from being featured in video games to having his own body spray scent, and most recently he's gotten into clip hosting with his current show "Ridiculousness" (also on MTV).

But as you'll see in the Tribeca Film Festival entry "The Motivation," he hasn't forgotten where he's come from as the film highlights his passion project: Street League Skateboarding.

In the film, which premieres at the fest on April 25, we follow a handful of the greatest skateboarders in the world as they prepare to compete in Dyrdek's SLS, which is devised of competitions on a one-of-a-kind skate course that tests these skilled pros to the breaking point.

We had the chance to chat with Dyrdek as he was scrambling around L.A. before jumping on a plane to Brazil for the next installment of SLS, learning everything from his craziest fan proposition to what kind of film festival he'd create … if he had the time.

It seems from the movie that Street League Skateboarding is all about if your skills are top-notch that day, not what you’ve done in past heats or competitions. Was that your intention?
Without a doubt. I think there's a lot of X factors, but not only is it built to always be dramatic —w e refined the format to ensure that it comes down to those last couple of tricks — it really boils down to who can land these moves when it matters. That’s what makes it different from most sports events.

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I can see "The Motivation" being an inspiration for a lot of aspiring professional skateboarders. Was there a skateboarding movie you and the guys you grew up with watched a lot?
I don't think so. When we were young the inspiration came from the skate video. It wasn't anything that made it to a major feature film; those that tried were super corny in the '80s and '90s.

Do you ever get to skate any more?
I mean, if you would have asked me a month ago I would have told you hardly at all, but I've been on this skate bender lately where I've been literally skating every single day. It comes and goes in waves. I've been skating so much I want to skate the course in Brazil and just mess around and have some fun, but it takes me really skating a ton to even feel comfortable out on a course.

And the Brazil course layout will be different than the one we see in the movie?
Yeah. Every layout is completely different. Because when you get down to the intricacies, I make sure we get a different type of skating each contest.

You famously spent an episode of "Rob & Big" breaking world records. Is there one that's closest to your heart?
I mean they're all kind of fake. They were so easy to do. When I was shooting "Rob & Big" I was like, "Man, there's no world record I can do." And I looked at the book and I was like, "What? These are so easy." I did 27 of them in one day. I don't think I can go out and say any of those are near and dear to my heart. I see it more as a hustle, like given an opportunity I was able to get 27 world record plaques that no one can take away from me even through any skate kid could go break any of those records. But if there was one, it would be the world's biggest skateboard. You have to have a lot of money to surpass that one.

I thought I read someone made a larger one.
No, the same guy who made mine did another one that is just a bit smaller.

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What's your favorite thing about New York?
It depends of course on what particular ebb and flow of my life I'm in. If I was to go there right now it would be the dining. It's the best restaurants in the world. And one time there I was even caught in a restaurant where they fly in chicks with bottles like they're Superman.

What?!
Man, that crazy ass club; it's not a club, it's a restaurant, but you order a bottle of Champagne, they turn on the "Superman" theme music, a guy walks out with dry ice, sprays clouds across the restaurant and then they carry a chick with the bottle as if she's Superman to your table. The place is called Bagatelle. That's it.

And they brought the bottle out for me and accidentally flew it to the wrong table, and they were like, "Oh, we messed up, here's your bottle." And I was like, "No way, go back to the kitchen and fly to my table." You can't do a fly-by and just think you're going to drop the bottle off. Interesting night, to say the least.

Is there a least favorite thing about NYC?
I guess it would be that I can get lost easily. People always say, "Oh, it's so easy." But my sense of direction in New York is terrible.

If you were like Robert De Niro and started a film festival of your own, what would yours be like?
Man, that's putting me on the spot. When I think about it I think about a festival of the most random stuff. It could only be like a documentary about someone who lives with an elephant, you know what I mean? Stuff that's super bizarre, and it would take place in the desert somewhere in giant tents. If I were to go that route. But I wouldn't be on some skate s**t, it would be some weird stuff, like dressing dogs in pantyhose. That would be the opening movie.

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In "The Motivation" a fan shows you that she has a tattoo of your face on her stomach. Have you ever had a fan experience crazier than that?
I don't know if I can necessarily top a face tat. That's pretty far out there. And the funny thing is I signed the autograph, "No more tattoos." [Laughs] I was like, what? But you know what I get every day is business proposals from different people from all over the world and some of them are so absolutely amazing. They are the most random, crazy ideas and the craziest requests. I got a FedEx of a bottle with a note in it from a 15-year-old kid asking for a million dollars and if I gave him the million dollars I would have a lifelong friend and someone who was committed to being there for me and listening to any of my problems. I thought that was pretty amazing. I just like the audacity. It's the layers. You could have just sent a letter, but you FedEx a bottle with a letter inside the bottle? You got me! I have to read this.

What is your porn name (first pet/street you grew up on)?
I've been through this exercise so many times. It is Sweet Pea Fremont. It always makes me so happy that my porn name is Sweet Pea and I'm so glad that this game worked out because if it was my second pet it would be Friday and it would be less fun.

I thought you were just about to put me on the spot and get creative and in my brain I went straight to Duke Chapter for some reason. That's the first name that came to my head.

Well, now I'm imaging Sweat Pea Fremont and Duke Chapter are a team and they have a series of porn adventures.
See, now you've just taken it too far.

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Julia Stiles has proven she can handle pretty much any genre. She ruled the teen rom-com scene with "10 Things I Hate About You" and "Save the Last Dance." She took action as Matt Damon's co-star in the fast-paced "Bourne" series. She was perfect as  the horrified mother of one creepy kid named Damien in "The Omen." But now Stiles is taking on one genre she wasn't even aware existed: apocalypse comedies.

In her latest film, "It's a Disaster" directed by Todd Berger, available now in VOD and in theaters April 12, four couples meeting for Sunday brunch find themselves stranded together when they receive news that the world is ending. Stiles plays Tracy, a doctor who's introducing her new boyfriend Glen (David Cross) to her three best friends and their significant others. While her biggest initial fear is whether her friends will approve of her new beau, she soon realizes passing the friend test is the least of her worries at this couple's brunch. (Check out the film at its official site.)

NextMovie sat down with Stiles in her hometown of New York City to chat about the film, awkward brunches, and how a ukelele could help in an apocalypse scenario.

"It’s a Disaster" is described as a doomsday comedy, which seems to be sort of a trend right now. We’ve got "This is the End," "The World’s End"…what do you think is so funny about the apocalypse?
I had no idea there were these other apocalypse movies coming out. I think what's funny about it, what I liked about "It's a Disaster" when I read it, is it's so much more about how all these people are in denial about the reality of their situation. They focus on seemingly mundane things and also are totally incapable of doing anything to survive without technology. Once the power goes out and the internet's out and they can't see anything on the TV or on the radio, they're completely useless.

Are you personally worried about the world ending?
There's no point in worrying about it. There's nothing I can do about it.

So if you were in an apocalypse situation, how would you prepare?
I'm really bad with that. I am like the character in the movie where I would be so in denial. I'm good in a crisis situation when it’s right in front of my face but if it's someone guessing that something's going to happen…Like what would I have in my survival kit? I mean the essentials, food, water, it depends on where I am. Am I in New York City?

Yeah, sure!
What would be really valuable? I mean food and water and a weapon of some sort. And a musical instrument just to offset the weapon.

Do you play any musical instruments?
No...I have a ukulele. I can play one song and I could always hand it off to someone else to play it.

What song can you play?
It's so corny. "If I Had a Hammer." That would help me in a crisis situation.

So in your movie, your character talks about all the things she wished she had done. If the world was ending today, what are some things you wished you had done?
Oh, go to Brazil. Hmm... wish that I did? I've had a pretty awesome life. There are probably some drugs that I would've tried. That’s about it: Brazil and certain drugs.

Okay, good combo. In your career, which of your roles has been most similar to yourself?
Oh, see, it depends on what age you caught me at. If you had caught me 12 years ago I would've said I’m like my character from "10 Things I Hate About You," although less uptight. I’m not really similar to a lot of the characters that I play.

You share billing with some very big-name comedians, including The Vacationeers and David Cross.
When I first found out that David Cross was going to be in it, I saw him in the East Village because we live in the same neighborhood. And I actually did the thing where I ducked my head and darted across the street. I don’t know why, I just sort of panicked! I was a big fan of his before I met him and then eventually we had a beer and we were fine.

Oscilloscope

In the movie, you say every guy you date turns out crazy. Is there anything a guy can do to make you send him immediately packing?
I really hate snarkiness so if he's nasty or if he's rude to a waiter, that would be a huge turnoff for me.

In "Silver Linings Playbook", you have a pretty awkward dinner scene as Jennifer Lawrence’s sister. And then in "It’s a Disaster" you’re at an awkward brunch. You’ve mastered the awkward meal.
I just gravitate towards awkwardness, that's what I read!

Have you ever had an awkward lunch or dinner in real life?
When have I not had an awkward lunch in real life? I feel like I'm constantly trying to avoid awkwardness. I always try to pretend that the awkwardness doesn't exist and then it just becomes more awkward.

Are you the one in an awkward silence, you have to say something because you can’t take it anymore?
Yes, I usually have to. Even in interviews, I stick my foot in my mouth so much because if there's a silence before…you don't even have to ask me a question and I feel like I need to talk.

You’ve been in a few modern day Shakespeare adaptations — "10 Things I Hate About You", "Hamlet", "O." Do you have a Shakespeare addiction?
Not an addiction. Certainly I'm not the only person who enjoys his plays and his writing otherwise they wouldn't keep doing Shakespeare plays over and over again all over the country and all over the world. I studied Shakespeare in college, but not theatrically, more in terms of literature, and then I kind of took a break from it. Now there’s resurgence in my appreciation for him. It's amazing, there are so many book titles and song titles that come just from lines that he wrote. His body of work is extraordinary and I’m certainly not the only person that thinks that. But I was lucky that there was a certain time when people were adapting a lot of those plays and I got to be a part of it. But I want a do-over on a lot of them. I want a do-over on "Hamlet" for sure.

If you're home watching TV and "10 Things I Hate About You" or "Save the Last Dance" is on, do you watch it?
No.

Not even tempted?
No, not at all. It’s like, why would you watch a home video? I mean, for me it's kind of crazy because it's like looking through a high school yearbook or something. It's a moment in time or a moment in my life that was captured on film. But no, usually I've got better things to do than stare at myself.

You had a fan ask you once if you could teach them the dance from "Save the Last Dance," right?
Once? All the time!

Has anyone ever asked you if you still remember the poem from "10 Things?"
No! Nobody’s ever asked me that, that's interesting.

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Do you think you could do it if someone asked you? Do you still remember?
I remember parts of it. I remember the end of it. "And most of all...I hate the way I don't hate you not even a little bit, not even at all." I remember the last line.

When you were up there did you have a piece of paper or you just did it?
No, I memorized it.

Do people ever quote your own lines back at you?
No, it's usually they just have a specific thing that they've seen that they liked.

No one liners?
No, but I don’t think I've ever had any memorable one-liners. Oh, that's not true… in an airport somebody quoted the Bourne movies to me. They were like "This is Treadstone 3.0" or what was it they said? "They don’t do mistakes." I don't remember what it was, but  I was like woah.

In the spirit of "It’s a Disaster," Mimosa or Bloody Mary?
Depends on how hungover I am. I would say Bloody Mary.

New York or LA?
New York, for sure.

How often do you check your IMDB page?
Never.

What’s your porn star name?
Millie Green. That’s horrible!

You sound like a pioneer.
Or Tommy Green.

I kind of like Millie.
I wouldn't buy that porn.

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Since she was pulled off the streets of New York at age 14 to star in the controversial "Kids," Rosario Dawson continues to make an impression on screen with her provocative choices. Whether she goes for laughs in "Clerks II," takes a wild ride in Quentin Tarantino's "Death Proof" or becomes a lethal warrior prostitute in Robert Rodriguez's "Sin City," Dawson rarely plays it safe.

Dawson continues her cinematic fearless streak in Danny Boyle's mind-bending "Trance," which opens in U.S. theaters on April 5. The film tells the story of a fine art auctioneer named Simon (James McAvoy) mixed up with a criminal gang headed by Franck (Vincent Cassel), who seeks out the help of mysterious hypnotherapist Elizabeth Lamb (Dawson) to recover a lost Goya painting. The stakes quickly rise in this modern noir as the boundaries between reality, hypnotic suggestion and suppressed emotions blur.

We sat down for a face-to-face session with the always hypnotic Dawson and chatted about her susceptibility to suggestion, why she's okay with being nude in "Trance" and what freaks her out more than anything.

Your "Trance" character, hypnotherapist Elizabeth Lamb, has a more personal connection to the stolen painting, Goya's "Witches in the Air," than Simon and Franck. Why?
Art is an interesting character in this film. When you have a piece of art that is revered and established and all the right professionals say it's a true piece of art, there's something to it because you know it's as unique as a human being. If it's protected and curated well, it will outlive you. So you really only have the benefit of looking at it a little while before it disappears out of your life. That's something that's very interesting: the impermanence of things, the control and dominance, the question of ownership. That is very particular for Elizabeth. It's not just something that is worth a lot of money. She has a relationship to it and it makes sense why she would step into this situation with these people and try to find this painting.

Fox Searchlight

Elizabeth has a knack for planting all kinds of devilish suggestions into men's minds in "Trance." In real life, how receptive are you to hypnotherapy?
I don't think I am part of that five percent that's very susceptible and can be told to do really outrageous things, but I was willing to go explore. I'm very fascinated by the brain, but I think it's really hard for me to let go. I'd have to find the right person to do that long-term because it's very revealing. I hold things close to the vest when it comes to that kind of stuff. But it was interesting to me in my session that, despite my best efforts to be very particular and just observe, I'd lay back, she'd put this blanket over me, and she said things to me that seemed really innocuous but were telling. Later on, she'd say, "At this point your foot twitched," and I didn't remember in correlation to what she was saying. It just felt separate, but it's all connected. That's the stuff that can get revealed through hypnosis.

You met with a few hypnotherapists to prepare for this role in "Trance." What did you learn about the practice?
What struck me about every hypnotherapist that I met was how they were like, "It doesn't really matter what your phobia is or what you are dealing with. I can help you." That's just the detail of one thing you want to change about a function. That's what gives Elizabeth the confidence to step forward into this den of wolves and handle her own because she knows she can outwit all of them: "I'm going to play this ten pieces ahead because I'm a chess player."

Fox Searchlight

There is a lot of nudity in "Trance." Did you have any reservations about baring it all for this role?
I would be even more confident with more Vincent and James, per se [Laughs]. I can't imagine myself doing porn or something that is exploitative and just about being titillating. Like, "At this point for no reason whatsoever, I'm just going to walk across the room naked. Can we make sure we shoot that from a really good angle? Then we'll just go on with the scene as if nothing happened." That's not what is going on in "Trance" and what enticed me about it. If you took out the nudity, something would really be lost. It's an intimate secret that is sort of played with at that moment. She's trying to unlock a memory and instigate a change. She's walking a very fine line and risking a lot in doing so. That is the most revealing. It's not so much her physicality that is being revealed, but all her reasons for exposing it. I was struck by her bravery and it compelled me to have the same.

Does anything freak you out?
Yes. I'm not into jellyfish or centipedes — things with like multiple, tentacle-ly legs and suction cups and things just don't seem necessary, especially when they're electrified.

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What geeks you out?
What doesn’t geek me out? Recently, one of my favorite geek-outs was when Patrick Stewart stepped up and did an anti-domestic violence and abuse towards women campaign. He said, "I'm a man, I'm not an abusive man, this is what a real man is like and I want other men to stand up and acknowledge this problem." I'm a huge Trekkie. I didn't think I could love him more, and then he started talking about being that kind of man. I recently posted it on Twitter: "Trekkie for life. I will adore him forever." He's speaking out about this in his 70s. He's the man.

Also Check Out: Director's Cut Q&A With Danny Boyle (Film.com)

What's a movie that everyone hates that you love?
"Howard the Duck." Love, love, love me some "Howard the Duck." I don't understand why people don’t appreciate that masterpiece.

New York or L.A.?
I can't choose if you said "New York or California." I think New York, always, because I love me some New York and I love being here. I also live in Venice Beach by the water, but that doesn't really feel like L.A. to me in that sense. I'm a New Yorker from Brooklyn. Come on … what kind of question is that? [Laughs]

How often do you Google yourself or look at your IMDb profile?
Sometimes I check IMDb to try to figure out my own personal trivia, because I'll have projects that are pending and I'm not really sure if people are reading it or not. I didn't write any of that stuff about myself — I find it incredibly embarrassing. I'm an advocate and an activist, so sometimes I check to see how much that is showing up … or if it's all just fart jokes or whatever weird comment I said or faux pas I made. I'm usually looking up other people!

You are reprising your role of Gail in "Sin City: A Dame to Kill For." Can you tell us anything or are you still sworn to secrecy?
I don't really have much to say about that. I can't really talk about it. I know some things will be revealed at Comic-Con knowing Robert [Rodriguez], but, sadly, I'm not allowed to say anything. But [lifts up the hair on the side of her head] my hair is growing out!

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Kristin Chenoweth is the very definition of a multi-hyphenate: She sings, she acts, she dances, she writes, she makes people guess what's in the "mystery Oscar box." She's a big talent in small (4'11"!) package. Today, her newest film, "Family Weekend," is out in theaters and VOD. She plays an overworked mom who is taken hostage by her jump roping prodigy daughter (Olesya Rulin) after missing one too many competitions.

NextMovie sat down with Chenoweth (and her dog Maddie, "named after the actress Madeline Kahn") in New York City prior to the release of "Family Weekend." We learnedher opinions on breastfeeding, getting mistaken for Cameron Diaz, her favorite small spaces to fold herself into and so much more.

You can do everything. What can you not do?
I'm not good at math, I don't balance my checkbook. Um...I don't go outside of my comfort zone a lot with food. Very plain. No ethnic foods, I stay pretty safe.

There's a heated debate in the movie about breast milk, including a line that I'll have nightmares about, that breast milk is "nature's protein shake."
I know, I know. I have to tell you, I've played many mothers now. In "Four Christmases," I had a baby, and that child was constantly reaching for my breast. But I think, you know, to each his own. Who wants to breastfeed should. I think if I had a baby I probably would not, because I would want to work and get back to it, but who's to say until you go through it. I was adopted, so I was not breastfed, and I turned out fine.

There's a part in the movie where you're tied up and screaming, when your daughter sprays you in the face with something to shut you up. What was that?
Water, thank goodness.

What is the best way to stop someone screaming?
It's actually something that I've used before for my dog. It's a can that when you push it it's air, and it sounds like tss, like that. That would definitely get them. The spray worked well too.

What's an unusual talent that you have?
I can pop most bones in my body. I can do all my pops. I can do these, I can do my neck, but I can do my elbows, my hip, my ankle, I can do my knee, I can do my hip.

I like cracking other peoples' knuckles.
Me too! People yell at me, "Don't, that hurts!" And I'm like, "just relax." There's something wrong with us. It's just, I don't know, I love it.

ARC

The parents in this movie are held hostage. What's the most insane thing you did to your own parents growing up?
I was a pretty good kid. The most insane, it's more what I put them through. I had many car incidences. Let's just say I went through many cars, several wrecks, speeding tickets.

Was it your fault?
Yes.

Do you drive now?
I love to speed.

Do you have a car now?
I do have one, but it's in LA. A BMW X3. The first time I moved [to New York] I was taking cabs because I didn't understand the subway. ow it's a little harder to take the subway, but it's the best way to get around the city.

Do you get recognized a lot?
I find I do when I speak. I can go undercover pretty good because I'm little, with a hat. But when I speak...

Do you ever get mistaken for other people?
Oh yeah, it's very weird. I've had a wide array of people. There was a time in my life, not now so much, that I got Cameron Diaz a lot, and I was like, "She's really, really tall, people." I've heard that, and I've heard Kate Bosworth. But now I get a lot of "You know who you remind me of? That one actress. Are you that Kristin girl?" Sometimes I just say no.

You hosted ABC's red carpet coverage for the Oscars this year. Were there any surprises that night?
First of all, I didn't realize it was going to be so cold. I've never worked with an earpiece, someone going 5, 4, 3... because I'm not a host, that was really hard for me. But what I wasn't prepared for is that things aren't done in time. You can say "I'm here live, right now!" and you're not, it was done an hour before. That was weird for me, and also getting thrown people that — I had already done all my research on getting to know the people I was going to interview, and that was really cool, but I was thrown a couple people that I didn't know I was going to interview. But that was cool too, I just talk to people like I'm talking to you.

Did you have any go-to panic questions for people you didn't recognize?
I recognized everybody, but I did ask a lot of people who they were most excited to see tonight, because I thought, that's kind of a question that people want to know.

What did you think of Seth MacFarlane's boobs song?
I thought it was hilarious. I don't know why people got so upset. I thought it was hilarious. I was like well, he's talking about women who have shown their boobs in Hollywood, and most of them have and it was funny, so. If you don't want it to be done, don't do it.

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Being 4'11", you wear a lot of very high heels. What are some things you can't do in heels?
Yes. Sometimes walk. Let's just leave it at that. Sometimes walking is the hardest part.

A lot of small people like to put themselves into small spaces. Is that a hobby of yours?
Oh, well, yeah, of course. I've done that my whole life. I can fit in, we used to have a sailboat, and it had an ice chest that was built inside the boat, where you open the door and put in the ice. My brother would go all the time, "See if you can fit!" And I could! I went in all kinds of places. I can fit all over. It comes in handy. They call me the pocket diva.

What's your favorite song to sing in the shower?
Oh my god, so embarrassing. You know that song that Trisha Yearwood sings? Leanne Rimes covered it, but it's Trisha's song — "How Do I Live Without You"? I sing that. I just love it. And I do like to do something operatic just to see where I'm at, I warm up a lot in the shower.

What current movie do you think should be made into a musical?
Oh my. That would be hilarious. Let's go with "Spring Breakers." And it would certainly appeal to our younger audience. But it would need a rock score. We need, like, Aerosmith.

What's the weirdest thing anyone's said to you on Twitter?
Naughty stuff. There's a lot of pervs out there. Like what they want to do. I'm like, that's a private thought, don't share it.

I also heard that you're a fan of "Dance Moms."
Yeah! I haven't met Abby Lee Miller yet. She wrote me a letter and I got a sweatshirt. It's my favorite show. I love it. I like love it. I think people get so weird, they're like oh, you like an abuser. And I'm like oh, shut up. I grew up in ballet, I grew up in dance, I grew up with hard teachers, strict. She yells a lot, but I love it. I love the talent. I love the kids.

You also used to compete in pageants. Which wins, "Dance Moms" or "Toddlers and Tiaras"?
"Dance Moms" right now. A year ago, I would have said "Toddlers," but now I have to go with "Dance Moms."

If you could write a part for yourself in the new "Star Wars" movies, what would you be?
I would like to play something from space that no one's ever seen.

Would you be in human form, or not recognizable?
Oh, no, I'd like to be an object, like a floating head, or a star that talks, or a shooting star. Or a crater.

Good or evil?
Evil, they're always more fun. Dream role, let's put it out there.

Have you ever seen a ghost?
Yeah. I have. I had a really high fever, so I can only just tell you the circumstances. I was very very ill, and a woman appeared in the corner of my bedroom and smiled at me. it was my grandmother, who I had never met, but it was the picture I always saw of her in this black dress. She just smiled at me.

Were you scared?
No, I was so sick, I was like yeah, thanks. And scene. But it was cool.

What would your porn name be?
Lady Edgewater. It's like Lady Chatterly!

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Max Irons may be the star of the upcoming young adult sci-fi romance "The Host," in which humans are inhabited by a peaceful race of aliens, but rest assured, no alien is controlling him. Before the March 29 release of "The Host," Irons sat down with NextMovie in New York City to discuss pronunciation of co-star Saoirse Ronan's name, knowing everyone in England, and whose brain he would choose to inhabit (hint: one option begins with a "Kim" and ends with a "Jong Un").

So the movie is a lot of fun, have you gotten a chance to see it yet?
Yeah, seen it twice now. It’s a lot of fun. It's interesting seeing it with an audience. And it's interesting meeting the fans, which we had an opportunity to do on this. And you find out that they’re not just teen girls, but there’s a lot of guys in that and a lot of older guys and older women, yeah. That’s interesting.

That surprise you? Lots of non-tweens?
It did sort of surprise me, but then again, at the same time, it didn’t. When I first read the script, when I first saw the name of the author, I thought “Oh, ok.”

You’re like "Oh, s**t."
Well, not "oh, s**t," but a lot of studios were trying to replicate with Stephenie did with "Twilight." They’re trying to come up with that same formula, and they haven't really been able to do it. I worried that maybe Stephenie and the people at Open Road had tried to recreate it. But in fact, it was nice to discover that it was a science fiction film with interesting science fiction ideas. There’s sort of a story of human endurance and human survival.

Have you had any crazy fan interactions? Did anyone surprise you with their reaction to meeting you?
Um, we’ve had a bit of crying, which is always weird, but we did meet a woman who was obviously a Twihard, I think is the expression, who had filed her own teeth down into fangs!

No.
Yeah, she did it herself. Now that’s torture, if you wanted information from me, file your teeth down and I’ll give you any information to you wanted.

That’s insane, did you take a picture with her? Did you touch them?
Um, did we touch them? What?

I don't know, I’d wanna touch them.
We actually got sick because you shake a lot of hands, and we don’t really do the hand sanitizer thing in England, especially if you shake someone’s hand and kinda go (rubs hands together). It doesn’t send a good message.

Yeah.
But yeah, a lot of hugging, a lot of handshakes.

And have you seen "Twilight" also?
No, haven’t read or seen.

Oh, so based on just what you've heard, Team Jacob or Team Edward?
Team Edward. He’s English, he’s doing well for himself.

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Hometown pride. Town, it’s all one town now, England.
We all live in one small hamlet.

Yeah. Do you know Harry Potter?
It’s like that. It’s a bit like “Lord Of The Rings,” but also, we’ve got wizards flying around as well.

Oh, England’s awesome.
It’s really good. We only eat roast dinner, and we all know the queen.

And everyone has bangers and mash?
Yep, fish and chips.

All meals?
Yeah.

You look really healthy for…
For all the cholesterol we’re having… (laughs)

Exactly. So, back to “The Host” a little bit. If this was the real world, do you think you would be good at hiding out, resisting the aliens?
Yes, I do actually. We were talking about zombies the other day, and I don’t get it in zombie films why everyone stays in the cities. It’s so dumb. You open every door and there’s a million zombies in there. Of course they’re gonna be in there. Go to the countryside, big open space…

Build a Hobbit hole.
Build a Hobbit hole! Live down it, put a few leaves on top. Bow and arrow squirrels, eat them.

Are you good with a bow and arrow?
I could be, if need be, I could be.

Have you ever used one?
I have, actually.

They’re surprisingly hard.
They’re surprisingly fun. A lot of fun. Do that. Don’t get a shotgun. Don’t hide out in the city with a samurai sword, it’s nuts, it’s insane.

So you’d be a lone wolf.
I would, yeah. Because people would turn on you. People do unspeakable things under terrible circumstances.

Don’t bring a girl. She’ll get attached, then she’ll bring an alien back…
A girl might be nice.

Yeah? Human touch?
Human touch. You’d go wacky, otherwise, wouldn’t you?

(laughing) You might go wacky anyway.
Yeah.

If you invaded someone else’s head, whose head would you want to live in?
Well, we’ve been asked this question quite a lot, and you can go down different routes. If, you know, you just want a bit of hedonism, maybe Jay-Z, that’d be nice.

That would be cool.
And if you want to do something good, you could be Kim Jong Un, you know, the North Korean dictator? You can change things up, you can say no to the nukes, let’s get food to the people, let’s open up to the UN. You can do a bit of good. Or you can be a cheetah, you can run really quickly. You can be a talking cheetah, you’d be an overnight sensation. You know, Max the Talking Cheetah.

Yes. You’d be like, "Hello, my name is Max…"
And he’s intelligent. You can write. "Give me a pencil." "Draw a boat" or something. "Draw a house." How many cheetahs do you know that can draw boats?

Open Road

You can’t really call your romantic situation in the movie a love triangle, what shape would you call it?
I’d call it a love box, because it has sexy connotations.

It has something connotations.
It does (laughs). We’ve had love box, love square, love rectangle, love quartet. We've had a conjugal visit for conjoined twins. We’ve had a whole bunch of wacky stuff.

You guys sit around and talk about this? Jake Abel also said love box.
No, we’ve just had people come in and say “What do you guys think about conjugal visits with conjoined twins?”

I just imagine you guys sitting there going "What am I gonna call this, you guys?"
Love box came up early.

Nice. And so, Saoirse’s name is difficult to say if you just look at the spelling. You’re like…
"Swoah-See?”

Yeah.
Well, I’m half-Irish, so I knew actually. My mother’s Irish.

Oh, you got a one-up on us. I was gonna say, what was your first guess at the pronunciation?
"Swoo-see"

"Swoo-see"?
Yeah. "Swa-soo," "Sweh-sulu," no, Saoirse, I knew it was Saoirse, I actually met her when she was 14. We got a part in a film together that fell through in the end, thank God, because it was terrible.

What was the movie?
I can’t tell you, but it was terrible. But yeah, I knew her from before.

What's the best mnemonic tip that you would give to a fan that was trying to say her name?
Rhymes with “inertia.”

So, your dad is Jeremy Irons.
He is.

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Did that make you want to act, did that deter you from acting?
It didn’t really do either. He tried to deter me from becoming an actor, but fortunately, he’s sort of a normal guy. He doesn’t live in L.A., he lives in London. He’s got his weird little hobbies. I wasn’t dragged to film sets when I was a kid, I wasn’t dragged to parties, I had a normal childhood. But when he heard I wanted to be an actor around when I was 16, he sort of reminded me, he said "You've been around two successful actors all your life. You’ve seen the life that it can afford you, holidays it can afford you, that kind of thing. But you need to know that it’s not just about talent, and the odds are against you. Don’t look at us and think it’ll necessarily be the same." So he warned me about the cost on your life that it has, how difficult it is to form long standing relationships, jealousy, paranoia, financial instability. Friends will be hot one minute, cold the next, and what that does to you mind, you know? But once he saw I was serious, and I think I went about it the right way, I trained in it, I did a bit of theater and I want to do more theater. He sort of just let me do it. All actors make mistakes in terms of choices and casting and these type of things. He lets me do it, he doesn’t bother me with that kind of thing.

Does he ever give you advice?
On the business side of things.

Did you talk to him about this script?
No, no. I talked to my agents.

What's the hardest thing to say in an American accent?
It’s always the R’s. And "all." When you have to put "all" into a sentence, I had the scene with Saoirse, I had to run around the corner and say “There's no medicine left, you souls have destroyed it all!” and it sounded like a f**king G.I. Joe moment. You know, it was so sort of horrible, and every time I did it she burst into laughter. Every. Time.

And you’re like "And another take. Awesome."
She's like, “Why can't you just be better?" (laughing) And I was like "It's not my fault!"

Do you ever Google yourself?
Every now and then, but it’s not a good thing to do.

What do you find?
Well, boys hate you, girls might like you, and that goes the other way for girls, I think. Some weird stuff too.

What weird stuff?
Jake told me what slash fiction was the other day. Yeah, I learned about that.

Did you read it?
No!

You got to the summary and were like back, back, back, back…
OK, back, yeah.

What's the most outrageous lie you've read about yourself on the internet?
Oh, I do think there’s one. Skip it, because it’s gonna take too long for me to think about it.

What would your porn name be?
I’d be Ratty Hill!

Oh, that’s awesome, that’s really gross.
That’s a dank porn star. He’s not making the big official films, he’s doing the real backstreet stuff.

He’s like "I’ve been in 900 films this year, and they are filthy!"
My heart is black!

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Jurnee Smollett-Bell would like to clarify one thing: She'd be nervous to set you up on a date with one of her friends. It's too much pressure, she says. Thankfully, real life doesn't intrude on art: Smollett-Bell plays Judith, a matchmaker/wannabe marriage counselor lured into some infidelity of her own in "Tyler Perry's Temptation."

The 26-year-old actress isn't a stranger to the small screen, either: She was a series regular on "Friday Night Lights," was just cast in "True Blood," and even took a turn as Denise Frazer on "Full House" from 1992 to 1994.

NextMovie caught up with Smollett-Bell in New York City ahead of the March 29 release of "Temptation" to discuss Netflix binge-watching, marriage counselors and, of course, her favorite Journey song.

You play the titular marriage counselor in this movie.
I play Judith, who wants to be a marriage counselor. And that's what she's frustrated about, is that she's not. She graduated college, and, like most college graduates, she has to take the first job that's paying her. It's at a dating service and she's pretty much just helping old guys get a date, which is so boring and disgusting to her when she really just wants to help people work out their problems. Ironically, through this job, she ends up meeting some guy who ends up causing her to see that she's not so happy in her own marriage.

Would you be a good marriage counselor?
Yes, I am oftentimes the ear for some people that I know and love. Which I like being. I don't know if I'd like being a marriage counselor though, because that's too deep for me. I interviewed therapists and marriage counselors as research for this, and I was like, I respect what you do, but I never want to do it. Could never do it. I don't want to do it. It's just overwhelming. I have respect for therapists in general, because they hear so many stories. It's a lot to hold and take in. I've been married for two and a half years, so I'm somewhat of a newlywed. I couldn't say I'm an expert or anything, but I have learned some things in these past two and a half years about being married.

What's your best advice for a happy marriage?
My best advice would be that you have to be vulnerable with each other. Like everyone says you have to be honest, you have to communicate, like yes, of course, but you gotta be willing to be vulnerable. We all try to pretend we're the person we want to be when we're really not, and you've just gotta be willing to say here are all my flaws, here's who I am, take it or leave it, if you love me still, then let's do this.

Lionsgate

Okay, and the other side of that: Are you a good matchmaker?
You know what, I have an idea. I want to throw a party and have all my couple friends bring a single friend to — not put any pressure on — but kind of do a speed dating thing with all the single people. "You should be with this person, you should be with that person." I like the idea of matchmaking, I'm just not very good at it. It's too much pressure! These are peoples' lives we're talking about here. What if it doesn't work? If you're friends with both of them, then it's awkward if it doesn't work.

Kim Kardashian is also in this movie. Do you watch "Keeping Up with the Kardashians"?
I don't. I'm a grandma at heart. Really, I'm just now catching up on "Downton Abbey" and "24" and "30 Rock," all these shows that my friends have been talking about, I'm just now catching on.

Are you a Netflix marathoner?
Yes! Yes! Me and [husband] Josiah [Bell] literally Netflix everything. We started "Downton Abbey" in January. Season 3, episode 5 we're currently at, I don't want it to end because it's fantastic. How good is it?! I love Lady Mary, she's so great, and I love Cousin Matthew and their relationship.

And Bates.
Bates is so amazing. He's in jail right now, that's what I know. Don't tell me anything.

I'm not caught up!
Oh, well he's not in jail. You didn't hear that from me.

What other series have you been binge-watching?
"30 Rock," definitely.

It's appropriate for any occasion.
Any occasion! Especially eating. You never feel guilty for eating while you're watching "30 Rock." I would feel bad watching "The Biggest Loser" and eating a bunch of donuts.

Speaking of TV, you were in "Friday Night Lights." Did you watch it when it was on?
No! I caught up before I started shooting. Actually, I had started watching it before I was cast. It's weird, I keep getting cast in shows that I'm just catching up on, like I was cast in "True Blood." I just joined the cast and I'd never watched the show before. Now I need to catch up. It's bananas, crazy.

Andrew Macpherson

Which do you like better, TV or film?
They're both so different. Film, the beauty in that is that you're in it for a few months and then you're able to walk away. With film there's a consistency to it, but what I like about the TV shows that I've been fortunate to do, like "Friday Night Lights" and "True Blood," is that it feels like you're doing a film. You're not on a stage, it's not stuffy. Like "True Blood" we had animals and stunts last week, and someone got bit —

By what?
I can't tell you, but it was an animal. It was something. Someone got bit.

Have you heard anything about a "FNL" movie?
I have heard things rumbling in the jungle about the movie, but I don't know too much about it.

Would you be in it if they asked you?
Totally, if they asked me, if it made sense. In the end, you know, Jason Katims did such a good job wrapping up the show that I don't really know where he'd re-enter it from a film perspective, so I don't really know where Jess would fit in, or if she does fit in. if she does fit in, I would totally be a part of it. I love "FNL."

Did you cry watching the show? Or does being in it kind of take you out of it?
There was a scene I teared up on a little bit that I was crying in it, and it was weird because I was crying watching myself cry.

Is it like laughing at your own jokes?
Yeah! It was a scene with Coach. I think i had broken up with Vince or something.

Do people every recognize you?
For different things. It always trips me out when someone recognizes me from something that I did when I was like four years old.

Like "Full House"?
Yes!

Does that happen a lot?
Weirdly, yes. I'm like 26 now. I'm an adult. I'm a married woman. Please tell me I look different from when I was four. They'll go through the whole list, from "Great Debaters" on down, and I'm like, but HOW? "Great Debaters" I understand, but "Full House"?

Do they quote at you?
Yeah! They quote a lot that scene from "The Great Debaters," the monologue in the debate. They're like "the time for freedom is now," and I'm like, "I appreciate that."

Your name is Jurnee, but what's your favorite song by Journey?
Oh! Man, I actually really like the group and my mom's a big musichead. She didn't raise me listening to them, and I didn't start listening to them until I was older and I was like oh, I love this group! "Don't Stop Believing."

Are you just a small town girl living in a lonely world?
Yeah, actually. Actually, it's funny. They mention South Detroit or something, and that's my husband and me. He grew up in Detroit and I grew up in New York, LA, slash everywhere.

Did you ever have any embarrassing screen names?
I had a really complicated screen name that no one could remember, so I never had any friends. It was really terrible. It was like lovely, but not spelled like that, like LV, something dumb. See, why so complicated?

What would your porn name be?
Oh my gosh, I don't watch porn, but you know. OK, so whenever I bowl, you know you have to come up with a username, my username is always Lady Diana. My middle name's Diana, and I'm a lady.

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Before you write "The Host" star Jake Abel off as a pretty-boy lead in yet another supernatural romance aimed at teens, you should know: a Twihard he's not. He hasn't even read the "Twilight" series. That didn't stop him from being intrigued by the script for "The Host," based on "Twilight" author Stephenie Meyer's sophomore effort, a sort of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" meets, well, "Twilight" story. Abel's character, Ian, is one of the last humans on Earth who hasn't become host to a benevolent alien race intent on taking over the planet. Ian's group of vigilantes takes in Melanie (Saoirse Ronan), who has been taken over by an alien named Wanderer or, as she is eventually known, Wanda. Ian eventually comes to have feelings for Wanda, but there's a hitch: His BFF Jared (Max Irons) used to date Melanie, pre-alien. Uh-oh.

NextMovie sat down for a chat with Abel prior to the film's March 29 opening to discuss Twihards, love triangles — or, perhaps more accurately, love quartets — and how in the world to pronounce "Saoirse." Read on to impress your friends with an effortless pronunciation.

Did you read the book before you were cast?
I read before we filmed. I didn't have time to read it during the audition process because they went relatively quickly, and also it's a giant book. I wanted to make sure I had the part before I delved into it.

What did you think of it?
I was pleasantly surprised. I think it was very brave for Stephenie as an artist to branch out. As she said, it's her antidote to "Twilight." She wanted to depart from it and do something completely different, and it's her favorite genre, science fiction. I really enjoyed it.

Open Road

And she clearly has a strong fanbase, from a little something called "Twilight." Have you had any notable interactions with the Twihards?
They're very enthusiastic, but they've been very kind, too, which is all we can really, really hope for. They're very bonded to Stephenie and they're very loyal to her and they're very loyal to her previous work. We weren't really sure how they'd accept this one, but they've been really great, which is a relief.

Any reactions from them that surprised you?
Um, plenty. A girl cried, one girl cried, which was very strange, and Max [Irons] and I were concerned that something bad had just happened to her.

How do you even react to that?
"Are you okay? Did something happen? Are you fine?" She was like, "No, I'm just happy to be here!" We're like, "Okay, thank you!" I just wanted to give her a tissue.

So how familiar with "Twilight" are you?
I think you'd have to literally live in a cave to not know anything about "Twilight." I've seen a few of the movies, but I haven't read the books.

The eternal question: Team Edward or Team Jacob?
Team Edward, all the way.

Do you have good survival skills, like your character?
Probably not, no. I would probably hurry up, run to a bookstore and get a survival guide, and then run into the wilderness. Apparently Max thinks it's really easy to go into the wilderness, fashion a bow and arrow with a twig and some squirrel guts and hunt.

"Hunger Games" style.
Exactly. He's like, "Ah, it's simple, that's just what you do." So I'd probably go find him and have him take care of me.

"Take care of me, please!"
No, yeah, actually, you know what I'd do is I'd go find William Hurt. He's Jeb in real life. Literally. He could, he absolutely could light fires. That man has a wealth of knowledge.

And if you had the ability, whose head would you like to live in? Who would be your Host?
It's such a tricky question, I don't know. Probably someone much smarter than me. And stronger than me. A really strong scientist!

You could lift things and do math.
And solve diseases. I want to be the world's strongest scientist.

Open Road

So your co-star, Saoirse Ronan, has a difficult to pronounce name.
Yes, it's "inertia," with an s.

Before you met her, what was your first guess at how to pronounce it?
I first met and worked with Saoirse when she was 14 and I was 18. I'm pretty sure before I met her, at that point, I was going, "Syeee-orrrrshhh? Sourcey?" Really trying to overcomplicate it and emphasize it. Just horrific. But I rarely call her by her real name anyway.

What do you call her?
Sersh. Skeesh. Skeesha. Skersh. Pretty much anything that comes to mind. Anything with a "shh" and a "ck" in there, and she's like "I hear it, what do you need?"

You can't really accurately call the romantic situation in the film a love triangle, since it's three people but four personalities, but what geometrical shape do you think best describes it?
We have quite a few names for that as well: The love square, the love box. It has connotations. And depth! As someone more eloquently put it, the love quartet. I like that one.

Do you believe in aliens?
Sure, yeah, maybe they might not look the way they do in our movies -- I mean, they might be those little silvery glowing things — but there's quite a lot of universes and galaxies out there for us to be the only ones. There's a lot of space out there.

What movie line do you quote most often?
"In my pocket I have two 'amburgers." From zee Pink Panser.

What did you buy with your first Hollywood paycheck?
Oh, a guitar, I think.

A nice one?
No, a bottom-line Fender Squire. It came with the amp. I wanted to make sure I really wanted to do it. I've gotta stop talking about guitars!

Are you good?
No! See, that's the thing, I keep talking about them, and everyone's like, "oh, we've heard it, we know you play." It's not anything special, but it soothes me.

Do you make up songs — or, sorry. Do you write songs?
I do! I do make-'em-ups! Yeah, yeah, I do. I released a song this week, which is really scary.

Do you ever Google yourself?
No! God, no.

Afraid of what you'd find?
Mmhmm. Because the good things never stay in your head. Only the bad things live on.

If you can't read about yourself, do you have a hard time watching your own movies?
I don't rush to see it. Usually I see it, when you go on a tour like this, it's important to see it because you kind of have to know what you're talking about, but I'm not on the phone asking to see it. I only do it when they go, "Okay, you have to."

Would you like to spread a rumor about yourself?
No!

It can be a good one.
(Laughing) Okay, that I'm a really strong scientist.

Between the leading male duo from this movie, you and Max Irons, versus Edward and Jacob, who would win in a fight?
I think the vampire and the werewolf, obviously. [Our characters] live in a cave.

You have survival skills!
I have a knife that's as big as my hand, that's about it!

What a movie you wish you hadn't seen with your parents?
I remember seeing "Titanic" with my mom and the "draw me like one of your French girls" scene. It was a little weird! I was pretty young! I was impressed with my mom though, she didn't do the whole cover your eyes thing. She was like, "This is tasteful. He needs to see this."

Jake Abel

What's your favorite karaoke song?
There's two. Montell Jordan's "It's Friday Night" song ["This Is How We Do It"] and "Jukebox Hero" by Foreigner.

Do you karaoke often?
I've retired my microphone.

What the first movie you made out to?
Oh, I should know this, but obviously I wasn't watching the film because I was making out. So I don't even know.

What's a part you'd like to play that you haven't had a chance to yet?
I'd probably like to play some sort of American icon at some point. Something very Americana.

Like a superhero, or do you mean like a president?
I think a politician would be very, very cool to play. Or an American musician of some sort, or like an American pioneer like the Dohenys or the Rockefellers or something. The men who built America. That stuff really really fascinates me. Or a businessman, the sort of "There Will Be Blood" sort of thing, the industrial revolution of America.

If you could write a part for yourself in the new "Star Wars" movies, what would it be?
Oh, that's hard, because do you want to be a Jedi...I think nothing's more iconic than a Jedi. I'd have to be a Jedi.

A good one, or bad?
A good Jedi turned bad, who then sacrifices himself for good. The whole spectrum.

What's your favorite guilty pleasure movie?
"Waterworld"!

What would your porn name be?
Mischa Bosworth. Or Thumper Bosworth. Thumper was our rabbit and Mischa was our dog.

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You may not have seen actress Leslie Mann's most flattering side yet: Her two most memorable roles are the drunken French toast craver who hits on Steve Carell in "The 40 Year Old Virgin" and Debbie, the "crazy chick in a pink dress snatching up babies" in "Knocked Up." In "This Is 40," however, out on DVD and Blu-ray Friday, Mann had the chance to reprise the latter role, showing the (somewhat) softer side of Debbie.

"This Is 40," directed by Mann's husband, Judd Apatow, focuses in on Debbie, Pete (Paul Rudd) and their daughters (Mann's real-life kids, Iris and Maude Apatow), who were relegated to side character status in "Knocked Up." The "sort-of sequel" to the 2007 hit, "This Is 40" catches up with Pete and Debbie as they grapple with the trials and tribulations of middle age.

NextMovie caught up with Mann for a brief telephone chat recently, and found out what it's like to have your husband tell another man to kiss you, whether "This Is 40" is Debbie's revenge, and who she'd cast as her love interest, given the choice.

Now that people have had time to digest the movie and talk to you about it, was there anything that surprised you that they liked or reacted to?
I think that people seemed to really relate to it, and that is what surprised me. It seems very dysfunctional, they are a dysfunctional couple I guess in a lot of ways, and we kind of take that to the extreme just for comedy’s sake. So when people come up and say that they felt like we put a hidden camera in their house, I think that’s a little surprising because it’s pretty bad and pretty extreme for this couple so that’s a little surprising and depressing I guess. If people are living like that, it’s kind of a drag.

Do people ever quote your own lines back at you?
They do, but it's mainly, "Let’s get some f**king french toast." I always get that, from "The 40 Year Old Virgin," that’s the thing that gets quoted back most often. And I also have a lot of people coming up and saying that they’ve done that so many times before and that’s so them, the character from "The 40 Year Old Virgin," so that's a little concerning...but I love it.

People say that your character in "Knocked Up" was treated unfairly or portrayed as kind of shrill. Do you feel validation now that "This is 40" is out?
Yeah, it feels much more balanced. We were just kind of serving — Pete and Debbie were kind of serving a bigger story and then this one, it’s the Pete and Debbie story, we have more time to balance it out and understand where both of them are coming from. But not everybody thinks that, but I felt that, I felt like Debbie was vindicated. But not everybody thinks that. I don’t know, everybody has a different opinion about it, which I like. A lot of people are mad at it, and other people love it. I think that means you've made a good movie, if people want to have heated discussions about it.

Was that part of the motivation for a sequel at all? Did you want Debbie's revenge?
No! Oh god no. It's not a Debbie's Revenge movie, but I think that it’s nice to have it balanced and to see where she’s coming from just as much as he's coming from and that was nice. I’m pleased with that.

I’m sure people ask you all the time about working with your husband. What kind of dynamic is there? Is it weird to have your husband going "Okay, it’s time to make out with another dude!"
It’s surprisingly comfortable. He has no issue with it, especially with Paul [Rudd] because he is not threatened by him at all, nor should he be. He’s a little bossy, but I’m a little bossy also. We have a lot of heated discussions and we’re both very opinionated and passionate so it’s kind of fun. I can't imagine working with someone who just let me do whatever I want or sat back and...I don’t know. We have fun working together. Having the makeout stuff, there really hasn't been that many...well, one with Adam Sandler. It's surprisingly comfortable, I don’t know why! We don't have an issue with it though.

Do you get a say in who acts with you in Judd’s movies? Are you gonna team up with someone from "Twilight" as a love interest?
Yeah, I have this great idea for me and R. Patz! We're making out and... (laughing). No, everything is discussed with everyone who’s involved, but no, I’m not going to be having any love scenes with Robert Pattinson. Even though I think he’s really cute. That would be disgusting.

Hypothetically, who would you cast opposite yourself?
You know who I love is the guy from "Sherlock." I think he’s in a big movie coming out. Benedict Cumberbatch. I love him, love him.

Yeah, he's in the new "Star Trek."
And he’s the villain, yeah? Yeah, I would cast him.

I heard that the whole "Lost" plotline with your daughter, Maude, was based on reality. Did you watch with her?
No, I didn’t watch it with her, but yeah that all happened. I don’t know if that was the best idea to let her do that, but I don’t know. She's an interesting kid.

That show's intense! I can't watch that alone. And I'm an adult!
Yeah, and at 13, I know, but that was a mistake. It was because we hadn’t seen it, we didn’t know what we were letting her do.

It’s on network, it must be fine!
It must be fine. We just did that with "Homeland." We watched two full seasons and that was awesome.

You were famously quoted saying that "Megan Fox has better boobs than I've ever seen in my life!” Is there a runner up?
Is there a runner up to her boobs? No! There’s not even a close runner up. They’re in a league all their own. I’ve got to stop talking about her boobs because I can’t have more quotes saying that, that would be creepy.

What your porn name would be?
My porn name? Isn’t it like your middle name?

Yeah, it can be your middle name or your first pet, and the street you grew up on.
Okay so it would be...Hold on, okay it would be... wait, wait, wait hold on. Oh no! Wait, oh god, that sounds dirty. It would be...Digger...Digger Andover. Oh my god, Digger Andover! Oh my god that's a good one.

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Coming off her starring role as smitten zombie lover Julie Grigio in the well-received rom-zom-com "Warm Bodies," stunning Australian actress Teresa Palmer is quickly cementing a reputation for being a versatile team-player who can effortlessly hop from sci-fi action films ("I Am Number Four") to lighthearted comedy roles ("Take Me Home Tonight") without a moment’s hesitation. "Love and Honor," a romantic drama that opens today in theaters, showcases her dramatic chops as activist Candace, a supporter of the 1960s counterculture movement amidst the turmoil of the Vietnam War. She co-stars alongside "Hunger Games" actor Liam Hemsworth, who plays an American soldier who secretly ventures home from the war to reunite with the girlfriend he previously left behind (Aimee Teegarden).

"I just hope people really connect with the movie and that they understand that it’s a beautiful love story," Palmer tells NextMovie about her latest film. "We had a lot of fun doing it. I just hope that it ends up finding an audience."

NextMovie had a chance to chat with Palmer, who was in a car halfway around the world that happened to hit a bit of turbulence right as the conversation began. After overcoming her sudden bout of car trouble, she clued us in on the fun she had working alongside Hemsworth, growing up with kangaroos on her dad's private animal refuge, and what goes through her mind when she's mistaken for another young actress whose name starts with a "K" and ends with "risten Stewart."

Hi, how you doing?
I’m good, thank you. I'm in Adelaide, and I'm driving with an American driver who just veered off into the curb!

Oh man, right now? Be careful out there…
Oh my gosh, I know, hilarious…

Everything safe for the interview? You guys need to get back on the road?
No, it’s fine. I’m just gonna keep my eyes open and make sure he doesn't crash off.

First off, let me say congratulations on the new movie.
Oh, thank you.

So, your movie is called "Love and Honor," but if you had to choose one, would you choose love or honor?
Oh, love. (laughing) Love, for sure, for sure. Yeah, I’m a huge romantic, I definitely am, so love.

OK, fair enough. So, in this new movie you’re acting alongside "Hunger Games" star Liam Hemsworth. Are you a fan of the books or the movies?
I saw the movie, and it was fantastic, I haven't read any of the books. I've only seen the movie but I thought he was so fantastic in it, and I think he's definitely a movie star and I think that he’s great. I'm actually going to be working with him again on "Cut Bank."

Oh, cool. So I take it you get along.
Yeah, definitely. He's a hilarious guy. I think he's super talented, and he's also a good person, and in this industry that really goes far.

This movie takes place during the whole counterculture of the '60s, so there's a lot of sticking to the man throughout the whole thing. What rebellious moment in your life are you the most proud of?
Oh, golly. Probably going to America and pursuing my dreams of becoming an actor, because my family certainly wasn’t that keen in my leaving Adelaide and pursuing my dreams. I think it was my rebellious spirit that led me out to L.A., and I'm so glad that I did that and followed my instincts.

Oh yeah, definitely. Clearly, you’re a natural born Aussie. That in mind, how many cans of Foster’s can you polish off in one sitting?
(laughing) Oh my God, you’re hilarious… I don’t even drink beer, even at all!

Not at all? So what’s your drink of choice?
Well, to be honest I don’t actually drink very much, ever, but if I had to, red wine. But even then, I don't really drink very much. I have a health awareness blog called Your Zen Life, and it's all about wellness and balance, and there's not too much room in there for alcohol. But every now and then I'll cut loose and have a glass of red (laughing).

I read online that you grew up on your father’s farm and at one point you were planning to work for an animal rescue agency.
Yeah, I'd still love to do that.

So you clearly have a special fondness for animals.
Oh yeah, I’m a huge animal lover. I'm really kind of obsessed with that, and it's something that's very dear to my heart. I grew up with Australian endangered species on my dad's private wildlife sanctuary, which was the quintessential Australian upbringing.

So, most Australians grow up around a bunch of endangered species?
Well, no, it's quite funny because I had pet kangaroos. Most people don’t actually, but it’s the idea of what an Australian upbringing would be like. "Oh, they jump to school on their kangaroos!" Well, the funny joke with that was that I actually did have pet kangaroos. It was very typically Australian, my upbringing. It was really fantastic.

If you had a spirit animal, what would it be?
The owl is actually my spirit animal because I do medicine cards, and animal cards, and that intuition and instincts and, it’s sort of the magic card, which is cool, so yeah, that is my spirit animal.

Have you ever been mistaken for another celebrity in public?
Kristen Stewart, all the time.

So what happens? Have you ever thought about just rolling with it and being like "Yeah, I’m Kristen, what’s up?"
I have been recognized for her on the street, and I've just gone ahead and signed her name. I've been like "You know what, whatever, I'm just gonna sign her name," because the person was so crazy excited and so I decided to just go along with it.

How often does that happen? A lot?
No, I've only done it once. Usually I'll be like "Oh, I'm sorry to disappoint you! You actually wouldn't know who I am, but whatever, I can totally pretend to be her!”"

What would be your porn star name?
It would be Bark Davenport.

We all know "Admission" star Paul Rudd is both handsome and talented, but is that enough for him to pass muster on NextMovie's toughest admissions quiz?

To find out, we sat down with Rudd and grilled him about his personal life, extracurricular activities, where he sees himself in five years and what, exactly, makes him so darn special.

Watch the video interview above to find out all that and more, and check out "Admission," co-starring Tina Fey and Nat Wolff, opening in theaters nationwide Friday.

Also check out: Tina Fey's Admissions Interview

They say that anything too stupid to be said should be sung, and we here at NextMovie take maxims like that very seriously. So when it came time to interview Chris O'Dowd and Jessica Mauboy about their upcoming flick "The Sapphires," in which they, respectively, play a band manager and a member of an Aboriginal girl group desperate to make it big in any way possible, we knew that a simple spoken interview was out of the question.

Enter the NextMovie Soundtrack Challenge. Mauboy, a winner of Australian Idol, and O'Dowd, who is willing to bust out in song at any moment despite not winning any singing contests, were more than game to share with us — and sing a few lines from — important songs from their lives.

Be sure to check out the video above to discover the unique, self-composed gem that O'Dowd likes to sing in the shower, as well as more great jams from the duo.

What makes you special?

It seems like an absurd question to ask, but thousands of high school seniors are forced to answer it during their college admissions interviews come each winter.

Even more absurd than asking a teenager is asking multi-hyphenate Tina Fey what makes her special. She's a comic genius, actress, writer...she hosted the Golden Globes this year! She's clearly a gem.

That didn't stop us from asking her, though.

Check out our video interview with "Admission" star Fey above, in which we grill her about life-changing books, her passions and, of course, what makes her so special.

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You may think of Joey King as a little girl, but make no mistake, the 13-year-old actress is a big name. Most recently, you'd know her from Disney's blockbuster prequel, "Oz the Great and Powerful," in which she plays a tiny porcelain figurine whose village was ransacked by the Wicked Witch. This isn't even the first time King has acted with James Franco, one of the biggest names in the biz; she starred alongside him and Selena Gomez in "Ramona and Beezus" in 2010. She also appeared in "Crazy, Stupid, Love." alongside Steve Carell and Ryan Gosling, and "The Dark Knight Rises" with Christian Bale, among other film credits.

Expect to keep seeing King's name in lights as film's newest princess: She's in the upcoming "Family Weekend" alongside Kristin Chenoweth, as well as June's summer explode-a-thon "White House Down" with Channing Tatum.

Ahead, check out NextMovie's chat with King about "Oz," Batman couture and making her sisters jealous.

For the most part, your character in "Oz" was CGI. Were you on set the whole time though?
Zach Braff and I were in this booth, and they were filming our faces. And they attached our facial expressions onto our characters. So, when you see our characters make a facial expression or something, that’s all us. Also, we could go on set too and like, hide behind little things on the set and they would film our faces. They have separate cameras for our face. So, we were on set and in the booth for a lot of it, so we got to be on set too, which was cool.

What was it like working with James Franco? What had you heard about him before you started working with him?
I saw him in "127 Hours," which I thought was amazing, and he did a fantastic job. So, I was a big fan of his, and I was really excited to get to work with him. He’s just so nice, he was so funny. Him and Zach kinda took me under their wing the whole time, and they were just great. It was just such a fun experience to film with them and be with Michelle [Williams] and Mila [Kunis] and Rachel [Weisz]. Everyone was so great, we became like a little family.

Sounds awesome. I was just checking out your IMDB and I can’t believe how much you worked, you’re in everything…
(Laughing) Thanks!

"Crazy, Stupid, Love." was one of my favorite movies of the year it came out, so what was that like?
Yeah, that was really fun. It was a fun movie to film. You know, I didn’t have the biggest part, but I got to work with some great people like Steve Carrell, Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Julianne Moore. They’re all so nice! Steve is such a gentleman, Julianne is so sweet and funny, and Emma was like a real sister to me, she was hilarious, and we got along really great. And Ryan is so fun and nice, everyone was great. The kid who played my brother, he was cool. Everyone in the crew was great too, so that was a really fun movie to film.

You’ve worked with some really big names by now. Is there anyone who really intimidated you, or is there anyone that you were really star-struck being around?
I usually don’t get star-struck, and when I do it’s very rare, but it’s exciting to work with all of these people. I’m usually always a big fan of the people that I’m working with, because I get to work with big people. I recently worked with Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx, and that was cool, and that was so crazy. So yeah, I mean, I get star-struck in, like, a different way where I’m just so honored to get to work with them.

Yeah, especially the guys that you’ve gotten to work with must be like every 13-year-old girl’s dream.
(Laughing) Mostly like my sister’s age, is like 19 and 20.

You have an older sister?
I have two older sisters, and they’re both very jealous.

That’s great, and you’re like “Got that on you…”
I know, but they came to the set to visit, so that was fun for them.

You were also in "The Dark Knight Rises," as the little kid in the cave. Did you get to see the movie when it came out? Did you go to the premiere?
No, I didn’t get to go to the premiere, I was working during the premiere, but it was such a fun movie to film. I shaved my head for that movie! And, I got to work with Christian Bale and Tom Hardy and Christopher Nolan, and they’re just so nice, you know? It was really surreal because Batman is my favorite superhero. I am such a big fan of Batman. I have a Batman cape that I occasionally wear in public, yeah, and I have a Batman dress, I have Batman jewelry, I’m a big fan of Batman, so getting to work on that was ridiculous.

Had you seen the first two before you got to be in the third one?
YES! I love those movies, they’re amazing, that’s why it’s so exciting to be a part of it, I’m such a huge fan.

So you’ve been acting from a very young age, what was your first acting job?
My first acting job, I was in a Life cereal commercial, and that was really cool, and it was different because it was my first thing, so I was really excited and nervous, and I cried on set because I spilled the cereal and I didn’t know I wasn’t supposed to! But they loved it, and I didn’t know that, so I started crying, I’m like “I’m so sorry, I did something wrong!” (laughs)

How old were you?
I was four.

What made you want to act?
Both my sisters and I were in Stage Door plays, and we did that together, just in, like, little small plays together. And we did that, and it was really fun, and we kinda did commercials, and it kinda took off from there. It was great, it’s what I love.

What did you get with your first paycheck?
I don’t remember, it was a long time ago.

You know, you’re out shopping when you’re four, just all the time.
Oh yeah, you know, going big or go home.

So, James Franco and Zach Braff, with whom you worked on "Oz," have both directed their own films. Would you ever want to direct or be on the other side of the camera?
I think it would be really cool and something I can do when I get older is direct and do acting as well, so I definitely would love to try that.

Is there anyone out there who has your dream career?
I love Jessica Chastain. I love her, she’s amazing and she’s such a good actress and she’s been nominated for Oscars and she’s just a big role model to me. I love her.

If you could cast yourself in any movie that already exists, what would your dream part be?
I don’t know, because I love tons of different kinds of movies. I love dramas, I love comedy, I love action, I like all of those kinds of movies, so there would be a lot. One comedy that I would want to be in is "21 Jump Street," that was hilarious! "The Impossible" was such a good movie, the one about the tsunami, that was amazing.

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Who is the real Nick Offerman? You know him as mustachioed TV icon Ron Swanson from NBC's "Parks and Recreation," but how do you separate the man from the legend — or, more importantly, the man from the mustache?

Easy: You don't.

Meeting Offerman to talk about his new movie, "Somebody Up There Likes Me," a dark comedy about a self-centered narcissist (Keith Poulson) and his only friend (Offerman), he was everything we hoped he'd be, with facial hair in full bloom and the deadpan delivery that's made "Parks and Rec" devotees of us all.

We discussed the many mysteries of "Somebody Up There" and the secret to working (and not working) with his wife, Megan Mullally. We waxed rhapsodic about childhood pets. But when we touched on his deep-seated fear of tofu, we were really getting somewhere.

The movie is delightful and peculiar.
Thank you.

Tribeca Film

There's a lot of symbolism going on: The main character, Max, doesn't age, though the story spans decades. He possesses a suitcase that gives off light and possibly magic. You had the benefit of the writer on hand, since he also directed this. Did he actually tell you what the movie's about?
No. [Bob Byington] is very mysterious. He's very closeted when it comes to revealing any of his intentions. It's my third film with him recently, and the two earlier films were more lighthearted and ...  lightweight, I guess. They were more slice-of-life comedies. When the script first came to my wife and I, it just had much more of an epic feeling to it, like, "Oh, this is big, this is about all of life. This is about the human condition in a more profound way."

It is funny, though.
It is, certainly. I love Bob's humor the most. He's very smart, but he's also very funny. It became sort of a running joke that continues to this day. "What's in the suitcase?" I begged him, after the credits, to insert a flashback that would say "40 years earlier" and it would be my character, Sal, jerking off into the suitcase.

I assume he only declined because he wanted to retain a sense of ambiguity, as clearly that's a brilliant idea.
Because he's a fool.

It's so obvious.
It's magic and sparkly...

You and Megan have worked together a great deal. Do people approach you as a package deal at this point?
They often do, which is wonderful. We love working together, which is rare, I think, among performing couples. Our personalities are such that, whatever it is that makes people not like to work with their spouses, we don't have that problem. We're such big fans of one another that we love nothing more than that we get to play together as a team. 'Cause we have the same filthy, irreverent sensibilities.

One of the bummers about working on location is having to be away from your wife for two, three, four weeks. We have a rule that we'll never be apart for more than two weeks. So part of agreeing to any job out of town is making sure that we don't break our rule.

NBC

A majority of your roles are gruff and socially awkward, but you seem like an affable guy. Do facets of your personality draw you to those parts or are people giving you those parts because you're just so convincing in them?
That's a nice compliment. I have a peculiar point of view and the thing that draws me to roles is good writing. So I definitely have a take on how I think things should go ... Eventually, I learned from people repeatedly saying, "I love your crazy take on my writing." I was like, "You obviously wrote it wrong if you disagree with my interpretation." I don't put too much thought into it, it's just my natural funk or the mold that has accumulated on my psyche, and I think Megan's the same way.

We've talked a lot about the reason it took both of us a long time to get a big break like "Will and Grace" or "Parks and Recreation." It's because we never try to give the people, especially TV producers, what they want. And so people who are making safe choices quite often get the jobs, because a corporation wants a brand they can trust. "Oh, I know that guy, he loves beer and t*ts. Put him on TV." But I come in, and they're like, "I don't know about this guy who loves dead animal skulls and the Illuminati."

You're not giving them what they want. You're giving them what they need.
Exactly.

The head shot on your IMDB page has no mustache. It's jarring. Does the facial hair, or lack thereof, influence your identity?
Somewhat. When I put this mustache on, my face immediately shifts downward into a bit of a constipative rictus.

No, I suppose it does. There was a ["Parks and Rec"] episode with Patricia Clarkson and Megan where Patricia, as my first ex-wife, Tammy #1, has me shave my mustache. And playing the couple of scenes that I had to play as Ron without my mustache was incredibly difficult. Like, I didn't know how to talk as Ron without my mustache. I hadn't realized... I suppose it's like if I went in to catch for a major league baseball game without my pads. I was like, "This is not a good idea. I don't have my equipment. I don't have the accessory that I need." Because the way I use my face and the way I speak as Ron is built around my mustache. It worked great for the story because Ron was as naked as Sampson without his tawny locks.

What did you buy with your first Hollywood paycheck?
A Dewalt twelve-inch portable planer.

What freaks you out?
Feta cheese and tofu. Both innocuous, bland substances that are not pleasing whatsoever in any way.

Rock or rap?
Rock.

Justin Bieber or Justin Timberlake?
No.

New York or L.A.? Or Pawnee?
Pawnee.

What's your porn name? It's the name of your first pet and the street you grew up on.
Baron Bell.

He was a German Shepherd. He was a goddamn good dog.  We lived in the middle of a cornfield in the '70s. They hadn't invented fences yet. And Baron just had the run of the county. And my dad, who whistled so loud, he'd go on the back porch and whistle, and we'd just wait. After about five minutes, from the horizon, we'd see Baron come hauling ass.

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The London-born Dominic Cooper has very quickly established himself as an indispensable character actor in both independent and big-budget films, with roles in "Captain America" and "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" contrasted with those in "My Week with Marilyn" and "An Education."

He recently co-starred in "Dead Man Down" with Colin Farrell, Noomi Rapace and Terrence Howard, as a cold-blooded gangster who nonetheless carries a sense of optimism about his life.

Cooper recently spoke to NextMovie about the fun in playing crazy guys, the mood of the set of a darker film, and goats in Uganda.

You kind of play a bad guy with a heart of gold in "Dead Man Down." How many times have you played a bad guy? Do you enjoy it?
I never want (my character) to be simply a "bad guy." I was very attracted to Darcy (my character) because he's so desperately trying to be something he's not. He's so involved in the wrong world, and everything stems from this love for this girl in his life. So it's fun playing bad guys, and I'm really pleased that I often get cast as slightly dodgy, nasty blokes, as long as there's depth to them, and an edge, and as long as they are someone striving to be something other than what they're perceived as, then that makes my job interesting, because there's a lot to think about.

FilmDistrict

So would you say it's more fun as an actor to play a crazy guy than a normal guy?
Um... yeah! (laughs) Sometimes it is. Crazy people are more fun because you're wondering where they're accessing their emotions from, and what makes them tick, and how they respond to other people. I don't mean (specifically) nasty people, but people where there's something more than mundane going on. It's not necessarily more fun, just a different tone. We've all come into contact with people like that, with a nature like that, and I think they terrify us, don't they? And I think they're unpredictable. But it's all part of... other people who seem very nice are just probably disguising other stuff that they have going on in their heads that you'll never know about. But someone who's outwardly dangerous or volatile can be fun to explore. There are no limits to what they can do. And that's good.

Pretty much every other character in the movie has sort of an innate sadness about them. How much was it in the script that your character was the guy that infuses energy into the movie? Or was that something that you did yourself?
I think the use of him was important. It is heavy, because the subject matter is heavy. They've all had such devastating things happen to them in their lives. And he thinks the loss of his girl is huge and devastating, and as the story unravels, you find out much more about the other characters, whose lives are completely messed up, and have this desperation for revenge, which we all know solves nothing ever, does it, really? And I think it was essential that he was youthful, and energetic, and excited about the prospect of changing his life, even if it was for the wrong reasons. But I think there should have been an optimism about him, even though there's quite a sadness at the beginning. I think that it was essential to make him buoyant like that, because I was playing against those other characters - those sort of terrifying, and scary, and big (characters), and you don't want to mess with them. And I liked the idea of him being a bit more...nasty, but a little more energetic, too, as you say. I think those things kind of just come about - they don't represent themselves in the script so much. As you're working and developing and realizing who they are, that stuff comes alive in the moment.

Is it possible to still have a certain amount of fun on a movie set if the movie you're doing is this dark?
Yeah, it always is. I mean that one was particularly hard, in terms of the time that we had to make what was quite a big film. There's always time to have fun. And actually, what you realize, is that it's always the people that you're hanging out with and working with. Meeting Noomi (Rapace) was wonderful, and you develop these great, spontaneous, quick relationships, and you hope that you get on very well. Noomi and Colin were such wonderful people to hang out with, and there's always time, of course. After you've been doing that dark, heavy stuff, all you can really do is laugh it out, because you don't really want to be in that state the whole time. So, you do have fun. All the situations are different, and of course the subject matter does change. Today I was doing a really emotional scene, for example, and yeah, for that hour surrounding that scene and that concentration, I was quite heavy-hearted, and you are a different person for that particular moment, and you have to be quite selfish in getting to those emotional places, because people will want to come up to you and joke around with you as you normally would be, and if it's something heavy, you need to be very focused, and very still, and in quite a sad, dark place. So yes, you're right, it is more difficult when the subject matter is like that, but there's always room, because of the nature of filming.

Who would you rather travel on a cross-country trip with: Colin Farrell or Terrence Howard?
Of course I'm not going to answer that, are you joking? (laughs) I'd love them both in the car: Colin for his wonderful Irish humor, Terrence for his incredibly encyclopedic brain. He knows everything about everything. You can always learn something you would never expect to know from Terrence. Every day you'll learn something fascinating and new. So they're both in the car for my road trip.

What did you buy with your first Hollywood paycheck?
Interesting question ... A goat in Uganda.

What's your porn star name?
My porn star name is Kitty Heron.

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Zach Braff's name may be among top billed in "Oz the Great and Powerful" — just below James Franco, who plays the titular Oz in the "The Wizard of Oz" prequel, and Michelle Williams, Rachel Weisz and Mila Kunis, who play a trio of warring witches fighting for control of the Emerald City — but don't expect him to have too much face time in the movie. Braff spends the majority of "Oz," which hits theaters in eye-blistering 3D technicolor Friday, voicing the character of Finley, Franco's talking and flying monkey sidekick. In fact, moviegoers will only see Braff's visage, familiar from a decade on air as a goofy doctor on the sitcom "Scrubs," for only a few minutes in the film's first act.

Braff chatted briefly with NextMovie ahead of the wide release of "Oz," revealing his spirit animal, his unusual passion for "Baby Got Back," and getting the most bang for your buck.

Congratulations on "Oz," it's really an exciting movie.
Thank you for caring. Great, that's what we like to hear.

Have you seen it with an audience yet?
Yeah, I saw it at the premiere for the first time at the El Capitan. it was really cool, just a special experience.

Did you have it in 3D with all the bells and whistles?
I've been working on the movie for so long, and haven't seen it completed with all the effects done, so it was so thrilling to see it not only in 3D but with all the visual effects completed.

You're only physically in the movie toward the beginning, and in the rest you're voicing a CGI character. Were you on set during the Oz parts?

Yeah, [director] Sam [Raimi] really wanted me to be there and interacting with them. He didn't just want to capture my voice, he wanted to capture all my facial expressions and my interactions. He wanted us to improvise, and particularly most of my scenes with James he wanted us to be riffing and really create this friendship for real. He was right in saying that that wasn't going to happen if I showed up in a sound booth at the end, so he really had me there and interacting and often scrunching down my body to be 36 inches tall so I could be in the right place for the monkey.

So did you get to ride around on James Franco's shoulder?
I never got to. I tried it!

Are you a big "Wizard of Oz" fan?
Of course! It's the most watched movie of all time, they say, so I was one of those kids that grew up watching it when it came on TV every year with my family.

Do you have any favorite songs from that?

Um, probably "If I Only Had a Brain." I also, I know it was based on the book, but I love "Wicked" too. The whole world, I think, along with a lot of people, obviously, was so fun for me. The universe of it was so cool.

Would you ever be in a musical?
I'd love to be in a musical, you know, when the right things line up. I grew up going to musicals as a kid, my dad, I grew up in Jersey, so I'd go into New York City and I loved all the Broadway shows, but I have yet to do a musical. When the right one comes along, I'd love to do it.

Speaking of singing, what's your favorite karaoke song?
Um, "Baby Got Back"? Oh no, "Funky Cold Medina."

Do you need the prompts on the screen, or do you know it by heart?
Um, no, I need the prompts.

You play a monkey in this movie. What animal would you be in life?
Probably a koala, because I just got back from Australia, and I learned from the Sydney Zoo that koalas just sloth all day, eat eucalyptus leaves, and then go back to sleep and then have sex and then go back to sleep and then eat more eucalyptus leaves. It sounds like a nice life.

Sounds like it. Your first directorial and screenwriting effort, "Garden State," was nearly 10 years ago. Do you have any plans to write or direct again?
Yes, I'm working on a new project that I've written with my brother, and I'm hoping to direct this year. It's in development, so I can't talk about it quite yet.

You can't share any plot or anything?
No, I can't go into details. Coming soon to a press release near you!

"Garden State" is still the perfect kind of mixtape soundtrack. If there was a movie about your life, what song would be featured?
"Baby Got Back." Yeah, and "Don't Go Chasing Waterfalls."

What's on your iPod right now?
"Baby Got Back."

I'm sensing a theme.
Oh, what am I listening to? I've been listening to Kurt Vile. My girlfriend is addicted.

There's a current trend of rebooting classic stories with a twist, including "Oz." What story would you put a new spin on and what would the change be?

I'd like to retell "Annie," the musical "Annie." No, they're not remaking "Annie." [Ed. note.] I don't know, I don't have a good answer to that. Pass.

You're pretty prolific on Twitter. What's the strangest thing anyone's said to you online?
Oh my God, I couldn't even tell you something that you could print. Or put anywhere. Some of the things that get sent to me on Twitter, someone sent me a photo today — and I'm quite savvy on the internet — it's the most disgusting photo I've ever seen in my life. It makes "Two Girls, One Cup" look like a children's musical. So people are insane on Twitter and I couldn't even tell you. It's the Wild West.

It is. Do you ever Google yourself?
No, that's a bad idea. You stumble across people who are mean.

How about your IMDb page?
No, no, IMDb comments are the meanest spot in the Wild West.

I was pretty surprised by some of the twists in the movie. Do you think audiences will be surprised by what they see?
Um, yeah, I hope so. The movie has lots of surprises and I think that I always think that ticket prices are so expensive these days for everybody, that you really get your money's worth with this movie. There's so much going on, there's so much to see, it's 3D, it really is the most bang for your buck.

In a tweet length or less, convince our readers to come see the movie.
I'd say, "James Franco, three stunning, beautiful witches and a funny monkey named Finley. Come check it out."

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Miles Teller made his big-screen debut just a few years ago, starring in the 2010 indie flick "Rabbit Hole" opposite Nicole Kidman. With a steady career on the rise ever since - from his role in the teen comedy "Project X," to appearing in the "Footloose" remake - Teller is stepping it up in his latest film.

"21 and Over" centers on three buddies (Teller, Skylar Astin, Justin Chon) who head out for an evening of epic festivities as one of them celebrates his 21st birthday. What ensues after that is a night filled with crazy experiences they'd rather soon forget.

NextMovie caught up with Teller to chat about all the debauchery in "21 and Over" (including going almost fully nude), which superhero he'd like to play, and why he won't wear a trench coat in any of his films.

Tube socks. That's all you and Skylar Astin wear in certain scenes of "21 and Over." So, you were totally cool with that when you read the script?

Yeah, um, it's one of those things where you read it and the character just walks across in a tube sock. So it's like, "Okay, yeah I could do that." But then on the day [of shooting], it's like, you're wearing a robe and you're wearing a tube sock and there's 30 crew standing around, and there's 200 students just watching you and stuff. Then they say, "Action!," and you take the robe off and you walk across. The first [take] was a bit, like, you're pretty nervous. Then after that, you're more comfortable with yourself.

Did the sock ever accidentally fall off?

No, close. There were a couple of times where I was, like, "Cut!," because it was gonna fall off.

Relativity Media

There are quite a few, uh, interesting moments in the film. Anything you weren't sure you wanted to do?

When I kissed Skylar - that wasn't really enjoyable. From the moment I knew that scene was going on, I asked them what they were going to change it to. And I was like, "Skylar, help me out." And he was like, "Oh, you pick your battles, I'll pick mine." I'm like, "This is the only battle."

So that was worse than being almost totally naked?

Way worse. Way, way worse.

Describe Skylar's kissing style in two words.

Inappropriate mouth-breather.

You bust some moves in "Project X" and "Footloose," and Skylar comes from a musical theater background. Who would win in a dance-off?

Oh, Skylar can't dance. Skylar can sing; he's an incredible singer, but he cannot dance.

Okay, then who would win in a fight to the death among your cast?

[Laughs] I would. Unless Justin [Chon] has some secret...I don't know, with Justin you never know cause sometimes he can be the wildcard.

His full-frontal scene was pretty bold. I heard it was a prosthetic.

No, that's not what I heard.

When I spoke to Skylar, he said it was! That was really all of Justin?

[Nods] Yeah, that's his real junk. I thought it was funny. I'm pulling him from behind so I didn't really get the brunt of it.

How did you spend your 21st birthday?

Six of my best friends from Florida flew up to New York. I was going to NYU at the time. My mom had customized all these t-shirts, and they were bright green and had a picture of my face on it with a crown, and we just walked around New York all wearing the same shirt. People were like, "You guys in a band, or what's going on?" And we just kind of bar hopped.

Let's go back to talking about kissing.

Let's not.

Haha, not in this film. What was the first movie you ever made out to?

"Titanic." Yeah, baby. It was a three-hour movie and first of all, there's boobs in the movie. I was in fifth grade, so it was my first kind of girlfriend and it was three hours without your parents sitting there so it was perfect.

What geeks you out? 

Nothing really. I just got an iPhone, which is cool, but I don't download movies, I don't watch Hulu, I don't have Netflix. I don't do any of that. But I do geek out to music...I listen to a lot of [Grateful] Dead stuff.

What did you buy with your first Hollywood paycheck?

I have a shitty car I still drive. I bought a BMW with 120,000 miles on it. And I bought a 42-inch LG TV. I still have a lot of student loans so I'm not spending my money on too many things.

I'm still waiting for my first big Hollywood paycheck...maybe I'll play a superhero.

Which superhero would you want to play?

Batman [but] that won't be anytime soon. Spiderman would've been cool.

Who's your favorite Batman?

Michael Keaton. My dad looks like him, that's why. When we moved into my neighborhood in New Jersey, all my buddies thought Batman moved in.

And you've drawn a lot of comparisons to John Cusack. 

They tried to get me to wear a trench coat in one of my movies. I was like, "I know what you're doing."

What was your first gig?

I did a guest spot on this show, "The Unusuals," with Jeremy Renner and Amber Tamblyn.

What is your favorite website? After NextMovie, of course.

I goto Cagepotato. BroBible is another good one.

What's your mock porn star name?

Lady Keller.

That's cool, sounds like Lady Killer.

Yeah, mad cool.

NY or LA?

Live in LA, vacation in NY.

Beer or wine?

Beer.

Rap or rock?

Rock.

Pacino or De Niro?

De Niro. "Raging Bull," man.

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Hot off the heels of his role in "Pitch Perfect," Skylar Astin is moving on from singing in a college a cappella group to getting spanked by a college sorority. In the new comedy "21 and Over," Astin plays Casey, one of two buddies (the other played by Miles Teller) who surprise their friend, Jeff Chang (Justin Chon), at his campus dorm in celebration of his 21st birthday. One crazy night goes all sorts of wrong when Jeff gets piss drunk and the guys need to get him home before the break of dawn, a task made all the more challenging due to the fact that they don't have his address.

We chatted with Astin about some of the shenanigans in "21 and Over," including getting butt naked and what it was like to kiss both a girl and a guy (yes, that happens, too) in one film.

You pretty much bare it all in "21 and Over," except for the intervention of a tube sock. How comfortable were you with that initially after reading it in the script?
Squats and crunches [laughs]. Yeah, listen, I like to do things that are shocking or challenging for the sake of comedy. I always thought that, where it stood in the movie, and the context of what was going on, it made me laugh on the page. And sure, to be exposed like that on camera is a crazy thing.

Well, you weren't as exposed as Justin Chon, who goes full frontal.
Oh no, that teddy bear had some real estate. By the way, that was a prosthetic.

Really?!
[Laughs] No, let's give Justin that credit. Listen, it was all daring. It was a topic that was supposed to be broached sensitively, but you just kind of have to laugh it all off ... [Miles] and I were yelling at the crew, "You guys should all be in socks too today!," and just teasing everybody.

Relativity Media

What was the toughest scene for you to shoot amongst all the crazy things you guys did in the film?
I didn't have a tough day on set. I was completely pinching myself this entire experience. I was a leading man in a comedy, in a kind of a genre [from] people that wrote "The Hangover," and I love these kinds of movies. I'd say if there had to be a hardest scene, it obviously would have to be the kissing scene with Miles, because it's not even so much kissing another guy as much as it is being in just a sock, being surrounded by 100 girls that are being directed to be teasing us and pointing fingers and laughing. So it was all of my greatest fears realized. You know that dream where you're completely naked in front of your whole class? Just picture that plus cameras.

Who's the better kisser — Miles or Sarah Wright, who plays your lady love?
Oh, c'mon. You know the answer to that.

Speaking of, what was the first movie you ever made out to?
"Summer Catch" starring Freddie Prinze, Jr. I'll never forget that one. I took Ashley Globerman out on a date, we held hands for the whole movie — which makes for really sweaty palms — and I got a kiss right afterwards.

How old were you?
I was in sixth grade. I started young.

Do you remember how you spent your 21st birthday? 
I remember parts of it. I had all of my friends on the rooftop of my New York City apartment, which is extremely dangerous. We took a field trip from the party, as most New Yorkers do, and we didn't really go into any bars because I think I turned 21 before [my friends] so I don't even think they could get in. So we were going to just ordinary places but we were hammered. I remember I was running through a Gristedes with my dog, trying to hide my dog from the employees, trying to get food to bring it back, which was a big house party for a New York City apartment. Things got a little out of hand.

Relativity Media

What is the worst pick-up line you've ever used or heard?
I've heard, "Do you have a quarter? Because I need to call my mom and tell her I just found the woman of my dreams." I don't believe in pick-up lines because I've always been very comfortable in my own skin. The thing about a pick-up line is, even if it works, then what? I just figure you unapologetically be yourself, and if it works, cool. I've never really been afraid of being turned down and I think that makes for a high success rate when you're trying to pick up a girl. Generally, I don't meet girls in a place where a pick-up line would be used. I never really take girls home from bars; I meet them through friends or at a party.

Is there a movie that made you want to get into acting?
I don't think so. My introduction to acting was through theatre, so I actually saw a couple of Broadway shows that made me want to be an actor.

Okay, which Broadway show did it for you?
This is a silly one because it's such a ridiculous musical, but "Jekyll & Hyde." The reason I say it's ridiculous is because it's such a heightened drama, but there's this actor Robert Cuccioli, who played [the lead], and I was watching him do this scene at the end where he's transitioning from Jekyll and Hyde and I was so mind-blown at nine years old watching this on a Broadway stage. It was years and years later before I decided to audition for my first community play, but I always held that regard for it.

Universal

Do you have a go-to karaoke song?
I thought after "Pitch Perfect," I wasn't going to get this question! [laughs] I think it's weird when someone who has a background in singing actually has to dig into a power ballad. I generally do something rap heavy, or silly, like Chumbawamba or "Forgot About Dre" or "Sabotage."

What's your mock porn star name?
Angel Roberts, which is awesome.

New York or L.A.?
New York.

Beer or Wine?
Both.

Rap or Rock?
Rock.

Pacino or De Niro?
Oh my God, impossible. Um, "Goodfellas" is my favorite movie of all time so maybe I have to go with De Niro.

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The last time you saw Jon Bernthal, he was probably hunting a zombie. In the new movie "Snitch," however, the "The Walking Dead" star is hunting for justice alongside Dwayne Johnson (known to most as The Rock). Johnson portrays a man who won't stop at any means to free his son, unjustly imprisoned on drug charges, and Bernthal is one of the many he meets along the way. 

NextMovie caught up with Bernthal ahead of "Snitch"'s release to ask a few questions about breaking promises, being intimidated by The Rock and which action movie heroes would win in a fight.

In a tweet-length or less, how would you get people to go see "Snitch"?
I'm such a monkey. I don't tweet. And Dwayne [Johnson]'s always ripping me apart because I don't do it, and I promised him by the time this movie comes out that I would. So I've never tweeted, but I would say, oh man... "It's about a father going to, by all means necessary, doing whatever he can to get his son out of prison."

So you're a promise-breaker. You broke your Twitter promise. What's that like?
I know, I know.

Did The Rock intimidate you?
He's a sweet and gracious guy, and as humble a guy as it gets. I've got nothing but respect for him . You know, he's somebody who, I think people are used to him being in these big action movies and beating everyone up and shooting everybody, and that's not what he's doing in this. He's playing a real father, it's based on a real guy who's really going through something emotionally. I think people are going to see that and they'll really respect that he's trying to do this.

We're asking everyone to snitch on their co-stars, since..."Snitch." What's one thing about The Rock that you think people would be surprised to hear?
He eats his food with a giant spoon, like a giant spoon. I do the same thing too. I wish I had something more interesting, but that's what I've got.

You've worked with The Rock, Rocky and Raging Bull. Who do you think would win in a fight?
I think Dwayne would win in a fight. I think Dwayne could beat both of them together in a fight, yeah.

You're also on "The Walking Dead." Do you have a strategy for a zombie apocalypse?
I think I would just get my family and get the heck out of there. Everybody asks me that, and I don't know what to say!

Do you think that you would fare well?
I think that since I know a few things about being quiet and things like that, you know, instead of always blasting people with your shotgun, which is a stupid move, you know, in retrospect. Smashing people with a blunt object seems to be a way better move. And I'd incorporate dogs, I don't know why people don't use dogs.

What would your porn star name be?
Sophie Carlin. Good god. Good lord.

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Brendan Fraser is not quite what you would expect. Just trust us: Whatever it is you're expecting from the star of "Dudley Do-Right" and "Blast From the Past," he's decidedly not it. For a guy who has starred in so many family friendly films, Fraser is pleasantly quirky and candid. He's also made a few unexpected moves in his career: Alongside a starring voice role in another one of those mainstream family movies ("Escape From Planet Earth"), Fraser has another decidedly darker, quirkier film coming out this month, "Stand Off."

As Fraser described it to us, "It's a family story about what happens when people put the guns down and actually talk to each other. There's a way forward, peacefully. Open a dialogue, try that. Logical discourse, how bout that. See what happens." Alternately: It's about an Irish fish market robbery gone horribly wrong, with a few familial mishaps along the way (a mobster tries to kidnap a baby, Fraser's character may or may not be the father of the perfect stranger holding up the fish market, etc.).

NextMovie chatted on the phone with Fraser ahead of the release of "Stand Off" and convinced him to tell us his favorite movie title pun, who he wouldn't want in a bomb shelter with him and for which skill you have to "squeeze your buttcheeks together and give it everything you've got."

Hello!
Let's talk about the movies!

Let's! I saw "Stand Off" last night and "Escape From Planet Earth" earlier this week. They were both a lot of fun.
Thank you!

I was on your IMDb page earlier and it seems like you have about a thousand projects coming up.
Thousands? Thousands! Gosh. Oh, that's right. I cloned myself. It's working out pretty well. A few of the Brendans are pretty unstable, one of them, their eyeball pops out, but... One just combusted.

Anyway, IMDb. Gosh, yeah, you know, everyone -- do you think it's interesting how everyone automatically stampedes to that website?

Well, it's pretty definitive, which is nice.
Nah. Nah, it's not. It could be better. This is not a critique of IMDb, don't get me wrong, but I think that it's relied upon as a go-to when there are so many websites out there, including your own! There needs to be a restriction that provides for users to have more accurate information.

Are there huge inaccuracies on yours?
I haven't looked it up in such a long while, but I do know that very often heresay becomes chipped in stone. That's why you maybe should wait for the proof to be in the pudding.

Do you ever Google yourself?
Why would I do a thing like that?

I don't know, I Google myself.
How does that work out for you?

Little weird!
Little weird, huh? You think? That whole Pandora's box! You don't open it! You get in there and run around with a butterfly net and hope for the best.

Or even worse is image searches, like, "Oh, no, I really made that face, didn't I?"
Yeah, you did. Privacy is finished. that's it. Sorry, kids!

So you don't Google yourself.
Why would I do a thing like that!

It's like eating cake when you know you shouldn't. You do it anyway.
Why would you not eat cake?! Come on. It's a harmless little piece of cake, an easily digested, mass consumable tasty thing, much like "Escape From Planet Earth." Something everyone wants to see! You've gotta take the kids to see something! Perfect! I've got kids, they're gonna laugh at it, they're gonna think it's the best thing ever. Would I take them to see "Stand Off"? Nah, I don't think so. Not for them. I don't think they'd understand the dialect, they might not understand that that is actually English that they're speaking, though it's in Irish.

So I read somewhere that "Stand Off" was originally called "Fish Market," or that that was a working title.
You read that on the webbernet? It was called "A Whole Lotta Sole."

That's right. That's a good pun.
It is. The sole wasn't just a piece of fish. It was a whole lotta heart and soul. That's what [director] Terry George presented.

In that spirit, is there an alternate pun title that you'd present for any other movie?
Alternate pun title? I feel like I'm on an English game show now.

That's my side job.
That's not a fair question! Come now! What, like a naughty one like (chuckling) "Saving Private's Ryans"? [Ed.: We're pretty sure he meant "Saving Ryan's Privates."]

In "Escape From Planet Earth," you play a superhero, and you were a hero-type in "Dudley Do-Right" too. Any tips for a convincing superhero voice?
Well, I've learned a few things: Take everything out of your pockets. Lose the belt. Unbutton your top button. If you have boots or shoes on, lose them too. Arch your back and stand your ground, squeeze your buttcheeks together, and give it everything you've got.

They'll never see your face, they'll never see your mug unless there's some faux b-roll. However, when you're working in animation there are hundreds and hundreds of people using that recording to inform what they're going to do, which is an interesting collaboration.

Is it strange to be alone for voice work?
Yeah, but this group speaks for itself. As long as you know who the other players are, then you get an idea of how their characters are. If you're worth your weight in salt as an actor, then it's like being a session player as a musician. You do your thing, everyone does their parts, then they mix it all together and we have something great.

That was a very Serious Actor thing to say. Like your body is your instrument.
There's one way of looking at it, and then there's another way, which is just drink a bunch of Red Bull and go for it, dude.

You've been in several standoff/heist movies. Have they trained you for a real life heist situation?
You mean hostage situation in terms of the film "Airheads," stuff like that, or like "Stand Off," which is like "Dog Day Afternoon" in a fish market except there's a pound of fish, a tommy gun and a baby and a young man claiming to be my son.

What would I do? For one thing I'd comply, honestly. And I would do what I needed in order to remain as safe as possible so that I could wake up safe the next morning and be safe and sound. I hope you're not asking this because you want to plan something... Are you planning on knocking off a bank anytime soon? You're just going to tell them puns and then steal from them? Woody Allen did that. "I have a gud." "It's an n!" "No, it's a d!"

They wouldn't even know until it's too late. In "Escape From Planet Earth," you are an alien. And, obviously, there are new "Star Wars" movies being made. If you had the chance to write yourself into "Star Wars," what character would you be?
Man, that's a hard question. I think if I indulge my inner 7-year-old, or uh, be like an adult, I'd have to go with maybe a baddie. I'd like to try my hand at being a baddie.

Would you wear a mask, or go CGI?
That would be up to George, wouldn't it?

But if you wrote it yourself.
It would definitely have to involve the use of serious pyrotechnics. And a really cool vehicle.

"Blast From the Past" style, what would you keep in your bomb shelter?
Not Christopher Walken. What would I keep? Uh, this is one of those lost island things. What would I keep in a bomb shelter...a sense of humor.

What would your porn name be?
Mirst pet would be Bear, and the street I grew up on... (laughing) Oh. It's Haalbeck. Yo, yo, my name is Bear Haalbeck!

You're German now.
More Dutch, actually.

Oh, sorry.
As a kid I lived in Holland and Europe a little bit. I picked a street that was more interesting to make me sound like a gay superhero.

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Barry Pepper stars as a DEA agent alongside Duane Johnson (better known to most as The Rock) in this weekend's action drama "Snitch." It's a role that gives Pepper the chance to show yet another level — of facial hair. In addition to versatility onscreen  (Pepper has starred in "The 25th Hour," "True Grit," "Saving Private Ryan" and many others) Pepper has a pretty chameleonic beard.

NextMovie caught up with Pepper to talk "Snitch," what The Rock is really like and, of course, Pepper's facial hair.

In a tweet or shorter, how would you get people to see "Snitch"?
I've never tweeted, and I don't Facebook or tweet or any of that, but can I say "How far would you be willing to go down the rabbit hole to save your child?"

You've played a lot of authority figures and cop types. Do you think that walking down the street you could convince someone that you were arresting them?
I think that if you had a Glock and handcuffs, then yeah.

And without?
I think that people are pretty sophisticated, they might turn around and arrest me. They might be an undercover agent.

What's one thing that people don't know about The Rock?
I don't know. I'd say if they haven't ever met him, they may not realize that he's one of the most positive guys that you could meet. He's just a really down-to-earth, happy-go-lucky kind of guy. And it just radiates from him. He plays a lot of really hardcore, tough characters and you know, when he's The Rock, he's sorta king of the heap and you don't see a lot of smiles. he's got this sort of threatening persona, but that's not what he's like in real life. That's why it was such a pleasure working with him. And it's such intense subject matter, this film, that if you had that levity was a nice safety valve.

Since the movie is called "Snitch," do you want to snitch on one of your co-stars, or make up a rumor?
I don't know if this was a rumor or not, this may be serious, but I heard that Dwayne punched Susan Sarandon in the face during filming. You're welcome to spread that. I'm pretty sure it's true!

In character, or he just felt like it?
I don't know! I just heard this rumor today, and I'm not sure what veracity there is to it.

You've sported a lot of different facial hair looks in your movies. Can you just grow it at will? Do you have a magic goatee?
I have pretty fine hair, so it takes a while to coax it to come in. So Billy Cooper's look in "Snitch" took a really long time to grow. And then they had to add a little extension to it so they could tie it up with an elastic band. Yeah, he's got pretty impressive facial hair in that one.

What would your porn star name be?
It would be Rebel Barkley.

Warner Bros.

It's nearly go time: The 2013 Oscars will air Sunday evening. You're likely scrambling to fill out your office pool, debating whether you can catch up with the Best Picture nominees (you can't; there are nine, bro) and stocking up on the vino to prep for Hollywood's big night. Just in case our Oscar picks weren't good enough for you, we wrangled a bona fide movie star to share his expert second opinion.

Please welcome Josh Duhamel, star of "Safe Haven," to the arena. The guy straddles the line between normalcy and the Academy: He watches the awards at home, but he's also, you know, married to Fergie and working as an actor. And he's no slouch when it comes to the awards circuit, either: Duhamel will host the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards next month.

When we caught up with the very candid Duhamel prior to the V-Day release of "Safe Haven," we weaseled a few of his Oscar picks out of him, and learned which Best Picture decision still has him red in the face (Hint: Its lead characters are blue in the face.)

So are you up on all the Academy Awards stuff?
Yep, yep, we've seen them all. You know, we saw "The Master" last night. You know, I really loved the performances. It got a little bit long, but you know, Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams were all really good in it. God, so good!

Do you think Joaquin Phoenix has a chance at beating Daniel Day-Lewis for Best Actor?
I think he may. I think he, I mean, Daniel Day-Lewis is pretty amazing. I think that if you're going by level of difficulty, Daniel Day-Lewis will probably win it. But pure originality and creating a character out of the blue like that, I thought Joaquin Phoenix was really good. Really good!

And overall I think "Argo" is probably my favorite movie.

Do you like that for Best Picture?
I do.

Do you think that'll win, or do you just want it to win?
You know, you can never tell. I still can't believe "The Hurt Locker" beat "Avatar." To me, "Avatar" was a movie that shifted -- it was "E.T." That was "Star Wars"! That movie deserved to win. Although "The Hurt Locker" was a good movie, I don't know if it was as good as "Avatar," just in terms of monumental sort of filmmaking. So I can never predict this stuff, you never know what they're going to say, but I'm going with "Argo."

I haven't seen "Amour," is "Amour" good? "Zero Dark Thirty" was good, a good movie. Of the ones I've seen, I think I enjoyed the ride of "Argo" the best. "Silver Linings Playbook" was good too, I'm a big Jennifer Lawrence fan. And Bradley Cooper. I think they're both great.

Do you go to parties or do you watch the Oscars at home?
No, man, I watch at home. I'm a homebody.

Do you have betting pools?
No, no. I just, I don't see it as a, they're all, just to get nominated, they're all good, so I don't really root for one against the other. It's a popularity contest anyway.

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Alex Karpovsky is a busy, busy guy. He's best known for his role as Ray, the coffee-slinging man-child entangled with the naive Shoshanna on HBO's "Girls," but when he's not wearing his characters Cafe Grumpy apron, you might find Karpovsky in an editing bay, behind a camera, holed up writing, or starring in one of his own films. 

Though two of these features, "Rubberneck" and "Red Flag," are both out on VOD and in limited release Friday, their openings and top billing (Karpovsky is writer, director and star of both) are about all they have in common. "Rubberneck" follows meek research scientist Paul (Karpovsky), whose infatuation with a co-worker escalates to dangerous levels, while in "Red Flag," Karpovsky plays himself as a filmmaker struggling with life and love on the road.

Karpovsky sat down in New York to chat with NextMovie ahead of the films' release to talk "GIRLS," keeping busy, and his caffeine intake habits.

So you’re not busy at all, are you?
No.

No. So tell me a little bit about making the movies, were they back to back?
They were sort of checker-boarded. We shot "Rubberneck" first. I didn’t want to immediately edit it, I wanted to have a little break from it. "Rubberneck" was also kind of an exhausting shoot, so then I took a little break and shot "Red Flag."

A break for more work?
Well, yeah, a break from that type of work. And then instead of immediately editing "Red Flag," we started editing "Rubberneck" and then we just started checkerboarding the editing of "Rubberneck" and "Red Flag." I was editing the movie with Garth Donovan in Boston and sometimes he'd be unavailable...he’s also a filmmaker, so sometimes he’d go off and do his own projects. We were also shooting "Girls" season one at that time, so whenever there'd be breaks or downtime I would try to focus on the other movie. It's nice, because the movies are so different that you would just go into a completely different mindset when you switch gears. It helps keep things fun because things can get — you can lose perspective very easily in the editing room, obviously, and this helped nurture that.

Definitely. So what's your end game? I mean you’re on TV, you’re directing, you’re writing...what do you like doing best or do you ever want to narrow it down? Do you want to do studio movies?
I always like to say, and I think I believe this, that I like to try different things. I know as a filmmaker I tried to do a documentary, comedies, I try to do a thriller, so I’d love to maybe try and do a studio movie to see what it's like. I think it’d be an tremendous amount of pressure, but I'm sure it would be rewarding in many ways. One of my close friends is actually making a studio movie now. He’s doing a six, seven, eight million dollar movie, so I'm very interested to see how all that stuff goes. I think he’s having a lot of fun with it, for the most part. But anyway, I would love to continue to act and direct if I can, I would love to continue to direct movies that I have a lot of control over whilst acting in stuff that I have a lot of faith in — "Girls" is definitely in that camp — and also stuff that hopefully gives me a little bit of financial dependence where I could a.) live in New York, which isn't cheap...

You don't say.
...and b.) Allow me to fund my own movies, which is sort of from what I understand as kind of the John Cassavetes model. As an actor, you go in and you do your thing, you make a little bit of money and you bring it to your friends to make your own personal babies, and I kind of like that model. He viewed it very skeptically, like he'd have to bend over for "the man" to get the money. I don’t view it that way. I think I'm more fortunate in that sense because I really am proud of "Girls" and I have a lot of faith in it, and I don't feel like it's compromising any part of my spirit.

Yeah, it's not like it's championing anything terrible.
No. I don't feel like any part of me is like compromising or selling out or anything like that.

So it sounds like you keep yourself very,very busy. Are you one of those people who like, unless you have 90 things to do in a day you can’t brush your teeth?
It’s not that paralyzing, I hope.

I mean, that's an exaggeration obviously.
Yeah, I don't, like, have hobbies...I don’t know how else to fill the day. "Girls" is only half the year, now that we’re not shooting right now, how else am I going to fill the day? Take walks and watch movies? I would get very bored doing that. So I just try to nibble on things, which keeps the rat on its little treadmill.

So how many projects do you have going on right now? Are you writing again?
I'm writing a few things, I’m editing something, we have a few movies coming out, so there's different types of projects in different stages of completion. And then "Girls," we’re going back into production at the end of March and we’re doing 12 episodes, which is more than we normally do, so I’m very excited about that too.

And how do you find out about the show getting renewed? Did someone just call you? Were you excited? Did you expect it?
My manager sends me like an ecstatic e-mail with exclamation points from like Deadline.com. You know once it’s out in the world, then we can kind of —

But do you know before that?
We have — no, we don’t know — but we have sometimes some hints and whispers. But we don’t know until it's official.

It’s just fascinating to me. When you get picked up, it's like warning that you're not going to be suddenly unemployed.
I think there’s a lot of anxiety about not knowing where you’re gonna be in a month or even two months or even two weeks from now. Yeah, it's nerve wracking...you never know. But you know, we had a feeling with "Girls," only not to sound cocky, but you know we just won the Golden Globe...

Yeah what are they gonna do? Like, "See ya!"
Well, we thought we had a good chance of carrying on.

Yeah, definitely. So can you talk a little bit about the choice to write yourself into the movie and be Alex as Alex. Is movie-you the same as real-you?
I like to think it's not that similar, but I think it's sort of a caricatured version of who I really am. I think a lot of his insecurities and delusions are magnified, hopefully for comedic effect. There are people like Larry David, early Woody Allen, Steve Coogan, and Rob Brydon in this movie called "The Trip." They play kind of caricatured versions of themselves that have enough perspective hopefully to humiliate themselves in a way that's funny and that's basically what I tried to do here. I would have loved not to call the character Alex, but because we really were on a "Woodpecker" tour and I really did meet and greets and I'm really being introduced on stage as Alex Karpovsky, we couldn’t really change that without it being kind of confusing.

So those were real shots?
Those are real shots, yeah.

Oh, that's cool.
Yeah, those are real Q&As and real motels that the tour arranged for us and everything else so we really did stick to the — yeah, so it’s basically a documentary of narrative components woven together.

Yeah, so it’s like an alternate reality of what actually happened.
Exactly.

That’s cool. So it must be strange casting your own love interests. How do you go about that?
Well, in “Red Flag," I met [co-star]Jennifer [Prediger] at Sundance literally three weeks before — the movie kind of came together in two or three weeks. I basically was supposed to go on this tour, which I knew about for many months in advance but...you know it’s a wonderful tour, it’s a wonderful idea, you show these obscure kind of movies to a rural Southern audience that normally would not get exposed to these type of movies, so that’s great. But it’s kind of a lonely endeavor, you’re by yourself a lot and you drive long distances by yourself. A month before the tour was supposed to begin I started getting very anxious about being in a car for five or six hours. I hate driving, especially long distances, and I've crisscrossed the country many times, so the allure of the American highway has long since evaporated for me.

You're over that.
Completely done. Any Jack Kerouac spirit in has long since eradicated. So I sort of started thinking about ways we can maybe make a movie about this tour, maybe some sort of meta-comedy, a playful meta-comedy and that’s when I started thinking about a girl I could use and a guy that would be a good foil. I was at Sundance with another movie two or three weeks before I went on the tour and I just started wrapping my mind around who this person would be like, and then I met Jennifer [Prediger]. She was in Joe Swanberg’s movie "Uncle Kent," we went to a few parties together, she just had a great energy. So I cast her — I mean, I asked her if she wanted to do it and she said yes, so that was the casting process. And the same thing with [co-star]Onur [Tukel] — he was also at Sundance, at the same Sundance with "Septien," and I thought he was wonderful in that movie and just a real charismatic party guy that I thought would be wonderful to have on screen. And I said, "Can you give me two weeks next month?" And both of these people, they basically were kind enough to say yes. And that’s how it happened.

Nice, awesome. I see you at a lot of these industry things around New York, like the premieres and stuff. Are those weird? Do you get starstruck by anyone ever?
Sure, sure. All the time.

Anyone in particular?
No, I don’t think I have any stories about being specifically starstruck, but you know it's still — yeah, I can’t really think of anything but I definitely do. Like when I worked with the Coen Brothers I think I was a little bit starstruck just because they’re are kind of my idols as directors, but very quickly you have to — if you’re working with them, you have to adjust.

There’s one part of "Red Flag" where you’re on the phone and you say, "Oh are you still at Yahoo?” And it really made me laugh because I remember that people still use Yahoo. That still exists. So of the free e-mail clients: Yahoo, Hotmail or Gmail?
Oh, Gmail, sure.

All the way.
But Yahoo is a great punchline, so is Hotmail.

This one's also from "Red Flag": Your character starts substituting innocent, everyday words for curse words. Namely, frittata. Do you do that in real life?
Oh, no, I don’t really have any problems swearing. I feel like I swear a lot so I don’t have any substitute curse words. But there is that theory that people — I’ve heard several times now — where people feel like you do form neurological associations between anger, stress, anxiety and swear words neurologically, so if you formed a new semantic, if you formed a new word, there’d be a new connection that would be free of these anxiety-filled associations.

On "Girls," you work in a coffee shop. What is your caffeinated beverage of choice?
I liked green tea, Japanese green tea, with a hint of Agave nectar.

Oho! A hint?
Just a whisper.

Do you carry your own agave?
Well, the really nice coffee shops have it. I don’t know if Grumpy’s has agave. If not, they damn well should.

How do you think you would fare in a zombie apocalypse? Do you have a plan?
I don’t have a plan. When is the zombie apocalypse coming, do we know?

Hopefully not soon.
Okay, I would like to have Netflix streaming in my bunker, I think that would keep me sane, and a lot of quinoa.

With your agave and green tea.
Yeah, exactly.

Do you Google yourself?
I do occasionally. You know I have Google alert. But, not to poo-poo Google, I’m a fan of Google -- but sometimes stuff doesn’t get attached to the Google alerts. Sometimes it doesn't find stuff, which I’ve found because people send me links and I was like, “Wait, that didn’t come in the Google alert!" So because of that I do occasionally Google myself.

What's the craziest thing you’ve read about yourself on the internet? Any outrageous lies or rumors?
No, there’s lots of mistakes, little mistakes that are annoying but they’re not outrageous, they’re just a little bit frustrating. Reporters, I feel like they don’t spend more than eight seconds to research something which is sometimes annoying, but no blatant lies or anything like that.

And how about your Oscar picks?
Oh, I'm so out of the loop I don’t even know who's — what are two or three movies that are nominated? "Zero Dark Thirty"?

There are nine this year.
I haven’t see any of those movies. I don’t know... I liked “The Master” a lot. And I liked "Django" a lot. I liked "Django," I’ll go with "Django."

And we ask everyone this one: What would your porn name be?
Jesus. Isn’t there a formula for this?

Yeah, your first pet’s name and the street you grew up on.
In which order, first pet's name first?

Yeah.
Uhh, Piccolo Drumland.

That’s memorable.
Sounds like a Mediterranean lover.

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Dolph Lundgren has been the consummate action star since the 1980s, when he burst onto the film scene in the Bond flick, "A View to a Kill," before playing Rocky's Russian nemesis Ivan Drago in "Rocky IV" and He-Man in "Masters of the Universe."

He took on a different-than-usual challenge recently, playing the famous psychologist Dr. Sage Mennox in the ensemble comedy-drama, "Small Apartments."

Lundgren talked briefly with NextMovie about black hair dye, being honest with yourself, and which cast member of "The Expendables" would pose a threat to him in a fight.

Congratulations on "Small Apartments." You're obviously known for taking roles that show off your ability, you know, to beat the crap out of people.
(laughs) Exactly.

Deviant

How much fun was it to play a guy who manipulates people mentally?
It was cool. Yeah. One of the first times I've played a guy who's educated, or at least he pretends to be. It was nice. It kind of started this run of trying to have some fun and do different types of roles. Not necessarily playing the lead, but playing somebody who I thought was interesting to work on. There's been a bunch of those the last couple of years, and "Small Apartments" was the first one, right after "The Expendables."

Was this the first movie that you've ever had to dye your hair black?
Not the first, but the second, because I did "The Punisher" back in 1988. And in those days, the hair dye was kind of permanent. So I think it stayed dark for another two movies, or a year after. Now they can just paint in on there, and it goes away after you're done.

"Small Apartments" was the darkest movie I've ever laughed out loud at in my life. What were your emotions reading the script for the first time? Did you think it was mainly funny, or dark...
I thought it was kind of...weird. And I know Jonas (Akerlund, the director) very well. I know him from Sweden. As a matter of fact, he has a child with my ex-wife's cousin. So I knew him socially. And I read the book first, and then the script. I kind of laughed. I focused on my character and I thought, "Well, this is something I haven't done before, so I thought, 'Why not?'" I only worked four days, but it was kind of fun, and like I said, it started that run after "The Expendables" where I said, "I'm just gonna do some things where there's a reason I'm doing it, whether it's to practice this, or to learn something, or to be uncomfortable, or to challenge (myself), whatever. So that's what I did.

Who do you think would honestly win in a fight between you and the rest of cast of "The Expendables"?
(laughs) I think I'd have a fairly good shot. The only real fighters would be Steve Austin - well, he was in the first one - and there's some MMA guys in there too, and from the more famous guys, you've got (Randy) Couture. He'd be a tough one, because I think he fought last year in the Octagon, so he's still fresh. He'd be difficult to beat, I think. But, I guess I'd feel pretty good, because I'm very big, and I did do some real fighting, which was not movie fighting, it was the real thing.

What's the best advice you've ever received?
I try to listen to older, more experienced people because as a man, you try to go through life as an adventurer, and there's some things that you need to do smartly that you've never experienced, and you try to listen to people that have experienced it. Basically, it kind of comes down to just, "Listen to your heart, listen to your instincts, and believe in yourself, if you want to succeed." Something like that. That means not just in business, but in life, too. You need to be honest with yourself. You have to see the world the way it is, and not try to live in the fantasy.

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It's time to get past the haircut. Keri Russell certainly has.

In fact, the former "Felicity" star has moved so far beyond her famous pixie cut that she's now realizing that there's something else out there — namely, aliens. That's right, Russell's latest project is the sci-fi/horror film "Dark Skies." She plays a mother under siege from all angles: financial, familial and supernatural. When strange things start happening, such as her youngest son claiming visits from "the sandman," unexplained items moving inexplicably throughout the house and scary episodes she can't remember, Russell's character takes matters into her own hands, to thrilling result.

NextMovie sat down with Russell in New York City ahead of the movie to discuss her thoughts on aliens, the time she almost drowned while hanging out with Anthony Kiedis and, yes, the haircut.

Your movie scared the bejeezus out of me.
Good, mission accomplished.

Do you like seeing horror movies in theaters?
I don't, usually, because I get kind of too scared. I watched a screening of "Dark Skies" last week. I invited a group of my girlfriends with me because I thought, "I can't see a scary movie alone." And it was so fun. I get it! I was reminded why it's so fun to go see those movies: Because it's thrilling. The feeling of being scared when you know it's just a movie, there's this crazy delight and it's funny that you're getting scared, and so you laugh at it! My girlfriends, we were laughing so hard, that nervous hehehe, and then you scream, and it's fun. You're thrilled in that real, true sense of that word, and I get it.

Is it still scary for you, even if you know what's coming?
Totally. Isn't that sad? It's still scary. I've seen it, and yet I think it really works, I really think [director] Scott [Stewart] did a good job.

Both of your sons in the movie have creepy moments. There's just something about kids in horror movies. Who do you think is the creepiest horror movie kid ever?
Well, there's a million. I didn't see a ton of creepy movies, but the redrum kid is definitely creepy, the age-old creepy kid. But it's not even him, it's the twins. Those weird twin girls who are also in "The Shining." Walking down hotel halls still scares me. I'm just like, "Don't think of the little twin girls in the hallway!"

What's it like filming horror scenes? Are the big scares still scary?
It's all sort of imagination. To me, it's all about a mom protecting her kids. You're not thinking of it as like a "scary movie," it's the reality of a mom protecting her kids, no matter what you're protecting them from. You don't think of it like a scary movie, just like a real movie.

Do you believe in aliens?
I am open to the possibility. I don't shut anything out. I don't know enough about it, you know?

In the movie, you fall into kind of a Google black hole that leads you to decide that your family is being visited by aliens. What's the deepest Google hole you've fallen into yourself?
I have no free time these days, so I don't do a lot of that, but if I would do any kind of searching, it would be, like, travel. Like, what's the best bed and breakfast up in the mountains and then click that place to that place to that place, something like that. And now it's 2 in the morning and I have to go to bed, because guess what, I'm not going on vacation any time soon. Like how did this happen, and this needs to end right now. I don't need this.

Do you Google yourself?
Sometimes. I'm like, is there anything really bad about me out there?

What the weirdest or most wrong thing you've seen about yourself on the internet?
There's always wrong stuff.Oh, once it was reported a while ago that I had a near-drowning incident with Anthony Kiedis. I'm sort of like...yeah, sure.

Have you ever even met him?
There was this crazy weird thing where a group of us went and we were swimming in the ocean, which is true. He's not my friend by any means, but we were part of the same group, we were swimming, and there was a riptide. I stand by the fact that I am a wonderful swimmer and know how to get back to shore, but some of my friends weren't as confident, so the lifeguard took them. He made us come in because of the riptide. Anyway, I guess it has to be reported by the lifeguard, and we had to give our names, and it was reported as a near death or near drowning. People ask me about that sometimes.

You can just say that Anthony Kiedis held you under.
Yeah. He was threatened by me. Intimidated. It happens.

In that same vein, is there a rumor that you'd like to start about yourself?
That I'm cool. That I'm not nerdy and home by 9:00. "Keri's actually cool! You guys, I know it doesn't sound real, but I'm serious! It's from a credible source! She might be cool!"

Years ago, you got a very famous haircut.
It's true.

I don't know if you've heard about this haircut.
I haven't. I'll Google it though.

Are you paranoid when you get your hair cut now?
No. No. But it's so funny that that was such a thing. Maybe it's because curly hair is more recognizable? I have no idea. But so wild. I stand by it. I thought it was such a good storyline that the college girl cuts her hair. Granted, it was a lot of hair to cut off, but I thought it was totally an appropriate storyline for the show and really sweet.

Lena Dunham cut her hair and got some flak as well.
She has short hair now? Oh, that would look so cute on her!

Now you can say that you were the pre-Lena Lena Dunham.
We are hair sisters, haircut sisters.

J.J. Abrams, with whom you have worked several times, is directing the new "Star Wars." Are you lobbying to get cast?
As Chewbacca. I think that's the top pick for me.

CGI or animal suit?
Oh, I'll do the animal suit. I'll do the sounds. Whatever Mr. Abrams wants me to do.

Can you do a Chewbacca sound?
I wish I could. But I can't. But I'm gonna work on it! I'll work very hard, J.J., I swear!

Not going for Leia 2?
Oh, in a heartbeat. In a heartbeat. But I don't even know what his "Star Wars" is going to be about. I'm so ready to be excited about "Star Wars" again, and I think he's the perfect person to do it. "Star Trek" I'm not as much of a fan of, but Star Wars, I'm so excited about. He's great at all that stuff, so good.

Do you have an Oscar pick to share with us?
I don't even know who's nominated. I haven't seen any of the movies. Literally any of the movies. I'm so bad. I'm like, "This name sounds really intriguing!"

What would your porn name be?
So I have two really good ones. It would be Lynn Grandview, if we're using my middle name. Classic.

That sounds very regal.
Or, with the pet, this one's even better: Felina Grandview.

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David Koechner has become a ubiquitous presence in comedy films over the last ten years, from "Anchorman" and "The 40 Year-Old Virgin" to "Waiting ..." and "Get Smart." He recently played a detective in the offbeat ensemble comedy "Small Apartments," with Matt Lucas and Billy Crystal. 

He currently stars in "Full On Koechner," a YouTube-based web series in partnership with Official Comedy and found at Koechner's YouTube channel.

Koechner recently spoke with us about tighty-whities, Malcolm Gladwell and becoming Champ Kind again.

"Small Apartments" is probably the darkest movie I've ever laughed out loud at in my life. What were your emotions while reading the script for the first time?
[laughs] Yeah, there's some oddity to it, which I like. Did you ever see a movie called "Man Bites Dog"?

I've heard of "Man Bites Dog," but have never seen it.
That's the darkest, funniest film I've ever seen. But probably after that, it's this one. And I think you hit it on the head: It is dark, but it's extremely funny. It's just absurd. But I believe at the heart of the film, and not to be too corny, it's just about a man's struggle. That's what we get into, right? I mean, you really root for the guy, don't you?

Sony

You do, certainly over the second half of the film. Most of your screen time was spent with Billy Crystal. Do you think you got to soak up a different Billy than most people get a chance to, considering his character is pretty dark as well?
I certainly felt that way. I was delighted to do that. It was very different, and he's very easygoing on set, and a lot of fun to work with. And yeah, I think audiences will enjoy seeing a different side of him.

Would you have considered Matt Lucas' role, if offered, considering he spends most of the film in his tighty-whities?
[laughs] Sure.

That's it? You would have done it?
Yeah! They're just clothes. It's better than naked! Naked would have given me pause. Tighty-whities, we're set.

Would you consider the movie overall to be dark or uplifting, considering the last ten or fifteen minutes?
Well, that's the thing. Everyone has dark moments in their head, right? So, in a film like this, if you want to break it down, maybe that taps into everyone's feelings that they've had dark moments, or that something bad has happened to them, or they feel trapped, and they don't think there's any way out. But at the end of this movie, we're rooting for the guy to get out, we hope he gets away with it, right? So I think, intrinsically, that's what would happen to most people's feelings ... I like dark films, because they're very challenging, but you're better off when you challenge yourself to see something that isn't mainstream. It's a film that helps you grow. I'm going to turn this film into a self-help film. That's my thing. [laughs]

Along those lines, do you prefer movies that are a little less straightforward, like this, as opposed to more cookie-cutter roles in others?
Oh, absolutely. Absolutely.

You're about to go film "Anchorman 2," correct?
That is correct. We start in March, March through May.

Paramount

Awesome. It's been almost ten years since you've played Champ — is it going to be easy to pick up where you left off, almost like riding a bike?
You don't know how often people ask me to do Champ [laughs]. I've never left Champ. We did a table read back in November, and I'll tell you, that script is funny. Everyone is back for it, and the excitement just keeps building, and so I'm really looking forward to it.

What's the weirdest thing you've ever had to do on a movie set?
The weirdest thing I've ever had to do is when they make a face cast out of a mold of your face, and that can be very harrowing because you're literally buried alive under all this rubber and paper mache. And so you're slowly buried, and then you have to wait ten minutes for it to harden. And then they take it off. So they've got a mold of your face, so they get to put other applications on later.

What movie did you do that for?
I've had to do it about six different times. It can be harrowing. I just try to convince myself it's a spa treatment. The other weirdest thing I've had to do was in a movie called "Tenure" with Luke Wilson. We had to climb a tree about 40 feet in the air and sit on a branch, and it was nightfall. And the branch was angled, which was a bit harrowing. All I could do was look at other trees and say, "Why didn't they pick that one? Or that one? Or that one?"

I'd imagine that's the most in-danger you've ever felt on a movie set.
Yeah. Actually yes.

Miramax

What do you think the most underrated movie of yours is?
Probably the one that's least viewed that I thought was really fantastic was "Extract" with Mike Judge. That was a fun picture that didn't get a broad audience. It wasn't released wide, so no one got to see it.

What is the most outrageous lie that you've ever read about yourself?
That I did "Snakes on a Plane" for free.

Why would anyone write that?
That was something on Wikipedia.

Bizarre. What's your second favorite website after NextMovie?
DavidKoechner.com, or YouTube.com/davidkoechner [laughs]. I like show business, so the one I check often is Deadline, the industry trade website.

What's your porn star name?
Michael Morgan. Because I grew up on Morgan Street. [Also] the woman I married, her last name is Morgan.

If you were a bird and could poop on anyone in the world's head, who would it be?
Oh, this should be easy. Well, does it have to be someone specific? Because I would say anyone who deals in human trafficking would be number one.

What's the best advice you've ever received?
There's two things. I went to college, and [then] I quit going to college, and I thought my dad was going to be mad at me, because I was a poly-sci major and I realized I didn't want to do that. And then my dad said, "Dave, I don't know what you want to do, but I don't think you want to go to school." Because I thought he was going to give me an ass chewing, but he didn't, which kind of gave me the freedom to say, "Oh, well I think I know what I want to do."

And my friend once wrote on a napkin to me after a class that I was taking, "Begin by knowing." And what he meant by that was, know that you're good enough to do this. Don't pressure yourself, don't second-guess yourself, don't try to figure out something else. Just begin by knowing. Which was great.

And the other thing is the book "Outliers," have you ever read that one?

I haven't.
You should, it's a fantastic book. It basically talks about the 10,000 Hours [of Practice] Theory. And if anyone has ever asked me advice, I say, "Read that book." And the thing is, no one can tell you what to do or how to make it in show business. Because if you start asking people's advice actively, like, "How do I do this? Where do I go for this?," I've always figured you've just got to figure it out and do it yourself.

Follow David on Twitter at @DavidKoechner. 

"Small Apartments" comes with two bonus featurettes: "How to Build A Gravity Bong" and "Small Apartments: Behind The Scenes." The film is available Tuesday, Feb. 19 from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment on DVD, VOD and EST. 

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It's been 27 years since Kelly McGillis starred opposite Tom Cruise in "Top Gun" as his instructor and love interest, though the film is arguably as much a part of the zeitgeist now as it ever was — hence its upcoming re-release in IMAX 3D. After "Top Gun," McGillis went on to a prolific film and stage career, including roles in "The Accused," "Winter People" and "The Innkeepers."

We spoke with McGillis in advance of the release of "Top Gun: An IMAX 3D Experience" about sex scenes with Cruise, thinking about "Top Gun" at the supermarket and, of course, the volleyball scene. "Top Gun" in 3D is currently in theaters with the Blu-ray release set for Feb. 19.

When you were making "Top Gun," did you have any idea of the cultural impact that the movie would have for years?
No. How could I know? I wouldn't ever guess that that film was going to be as big as it was, and certainly 27 years later that they would be releasing it in 3D? How could I have ever imagined that?

Had you any idea that your co-star, Tom Cruise, would go on to become the biggest star on the planet?
Yeah, no. No. Is he the biggest star on the planet? That would be nice if he is, I don't know if he is ...

You could certainly make the argument that he was in the mid-'90s.
Yeah. I think Tom is such a super guy, he's very nice, he's professional, respectful, and I'm glad he became such a big star. I think that's wonderful for him.

Were you nervous at all to film that sex scene with Cruise, particularly after "Risky Business" had made him a sex symbol?
No, it's acting. [laughs] No. I wasn't nervous at all. It was an acting job, that's what acting is, you just do whatever you're supposed to do. That's all.

Paramount

Do you still keep in touch with him?
No. Well, I saw him out in L.A. about two years ago, but honestly, I don't keep in touch with people that I work with, because if you think about it hard, it is a very unnatural situation: You have a bunch of people coming from their own lives into this life of the movie, and the thing that holds you incumbent is that project at that time. And then once that's done, everybody goes back to their own lives, their own friends, their own routine of what they do. And in my experience, my routine and my life has not very often coincided with other people that I've worked with, because I've always lived not in L.A. So I think for me, it's just a job. I go there, I work, I leave.

Can you hear "You've Lost That Loving Feeling" or "Take My Breath Away" without thinking of the movie?
[laughs] No, I can't. And it seems to me ... I lived in a little town called Mohnton, Pennsylvania, and every time I went to the grocery store, a song from "Top Gun" would be on the overhead speakers, and I thought, "Did they know that I'm coming in?" Because it was like clockwork! I couldn't believe it. And I think it's funny, because I think of how many different versions I've heard of those songs over the years, you know, from elevator versions to ... I just think it's kind of amazing. Who knew? Who knew that that song would have such an impact and last so long? I didn't know.

Do you ever get tired of either of those songs? Like, "Ugh, not this again."
No, no I don't get like that. I just get a little smile. I just think it's funny.

Over the years, the volleyball scene has become pretty infamous. Would you agree that it's the best scene in the movie?
No! [laughs]

There is obviously a famous scene featuring Maverick and Goose singing "Great Balls of Fire." Do you have a go-to karaoke song?
I've never done it. Never done karaoke.

What did you buy with your first Hollywood paycheck?
Oh! I'd have to think about that! What did I buy? ... I got a better apartment.

What's the worst movie you've ever seen?
Oh, I can't even remember the name of it. [laughs] It was that bad!

Columbia Pictures

What's the most underrated movie you were ever in?
That I was ever in? Oh, I don't know. Gosh, I can't even remember the movies that I've done ... uh, I don't know. "Winter People," I would say, maybe. No, maybe not, I don't think so. I don't know, I don't have any clue.

So, "Winter People" then?
Maybe. [laughs]

What's the movie that made you want to act?
"Day of the Locust."

What's your favorite word?
My favorite word is "fantasmagorical."

Excellent choice. How often would you say you look at your IMDb profile?
Zero. I've never looked at it.

Not even once?
Nope.

What's the single greatest moment of your career?
Oh, I don't know. Single greatest moment of my career ... I think doing [the stage play] "Mourning Becomes Electra."

What's the best advice you've ever gotten?
"Don't give up."

What is your second favorite website (after NextMovie)?
[laughs] My favorite website? DrOz.com.

I can empathize. What movie makes you cry?
The one with the little bell and the angel ... it's on every Christmas ..."It's a Wonderful Life"!

I thought you were going to say "A Christmas Story."
No. But I like that movie, too.

Paramount

Do you have any good scars?
Why yes, I do! [laughs]

Care to elaborate?
One time I was angry and I was making dinner, and I had a fight with my husband, and I slammed a casserole dish on the counter, and a big piece of it cut into my hand, and I bled all over the place, and the lesson I learned from that is not to get angry. Because when I get angry, I get hurt.

New York or L.A.?
New York.

Beer or wine?
None of the above.

Rap or rock?
Rock.

Pacino or De Niro?
De Niro.

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You probably best know Creed Bratton as, well, Creed Bratton. The 70-year-old — who played guitar in The Grass Roots — has made an acting career for himself by playing a character bearing his same name on NBC's "The Office" since 2005. Now that the show is in its final season, Bratton is stepping out in more film roles, one of them as Sen. Charles Sumner in "Saving Lincoln." Out in limited release today, the film chronicles the friendship between President Abraham Lincoln (yes, another Lincoln-centric movie) and his faithful bodyguard, Ward Hill Lamon, in the contentious time of abolition.

NextMovie caught up with Bratton ahead of the film's release and talked about Lincoln cage matches, the bow of "The Office," and how he feels about karaoke. (Hint: Not positively!)

Congratulations on the movie. Have you seen a final cut yet?
I haven't seen it yet, I'm waiting for the premiere. He sent me a copy, a Blu-ray copy, but I'll watch it on the big screen with everyone else.

Do you like watching your own work?
I don't. I think I'm not much different than any other actor. It's like live music. You record a bunch of songs, and by the time you record the whole album, you don't want to listen to the album anymore. You just want to be done with it, you know?

This movie is really interesting because it's all filmed in front of green screens, and Civil War photographs were slotted in later. Is that what drew you to it?
Well, my manager sent me the script and there was one scene that really got my attention where I grab Lincoln's hand and I put it on my head and I tell him the story, I say, "You know the story," but I tell him again. I play Charles Sumner, the senator, and he was attacked by anti-abolitionists on the floor of the Senate and almost killed. And so when the film was done I said, "I can't wait to see that scene!" And he [director Salvador Litvak] went quiet, and I said, "Sal?" And he said, "In editing we had to cut that out." I was like, "oh, no!" That was the reason I did it in the first place, that scene. Oh well, you know, it happens. It's part of the biz.

There's been a huge Lincoln movie trend this year, between this, "Lincoln," and "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter."
The story behind this project is that Sal and [co-screenwriter] Nina [ Nina Davidovich], they had had this project, this story they'd written, for like 10 years. They kept hearing that Spielberg was going to do a Lincoln movie, and then years went by and years went by, and they said, well, it's not gonna happen. Then, as soon as they gear it up, of course, it comes out that Spielberg's movie, and the Abraham Lincoln vampire killer movie are happening. It's insane that this would happen. Nice luck, right? Maybe because there's so much Lincoln now, people just can't get enough of that Lincoln.

Of the three Lincolns, which Lincoln would win in a fight?
In fight of the Lincolns, I don't think that we're going to compete with Daniel Day-Lewis and Tommy Lee Jones, you know? Oh, but if the Lincolns fought? Well, I would think that that vampire would probably win, wouldn't he? But then, Daniel Day-Lewis was in "The Last of the Mohicans" too. He can load that flint musket on the run. He could run and shoot. Mr. Daniel Day-Lewis is going to kill everybody.

NBC

"The Office" is ending this season, I don't know if you've heard.
Noooo! No! We're done? Oh my gosh! I thought we were gonna go a couple more years! You're the first person to even mention that to me!

So what's next for you?
I mean, we had eight years as a family and you know, I turned 70 today, by the way, these kids are 40 or 50 years old, so to me they're all kids, they're younger than I am. I feel very protective of them, you know, and I'm going to miss them. As an actor, I mean, I've thoroughly enjoyed playing the Creed character, but I'd like to do other stuff too, so I'm excited to do other things too. I'm lucky to get movies because we work so much that it's really hard to fit in films in between stuff. But I've also done three albums since the show started. I keep busy. That was my nickname in college, "Iron to the Fire." I like to keep several things going at once.

How do you think you'd fare in a zombie apocalypse?
I don't think I'd have any problem with them. If they've seen "The Ghastly Love of Johnny X," they're going to accept me as one of their own. In fact, I might be a zombie ringleader. I'd probably be able to help them. I'd be a big help to them. I have no problem with killing humans.

What did you buy with your first Hollywood paycheck?
In my The Grass Roots days, back with my band, I bought a Porsche in Beverly Hills. I hadn't had a nice car in over 30 years. It's a long time. So I had this car that I ordered from Japan, with all the bells and whistles on it, a G37S Infiniti sports car. I still have it. It's a really great car. 5.3 zero to 60. It's not like a quarter-million dollar car, but I don't know why you'd want to go faster than that car goes, that's for sure. And I bought a Gibson 1957 country western acoustic guitar that I'd been coveting for a few years. That's my baby, that's what I use now when I record.

Do you like to do karaoke? What's your song?
I do not, I hate it. Hate doesn't cover it. I loathe it.

What's your favorite guilty pleasure movie?
I loved and I watch it a lot, "The Fifth Element." I don't think everybody hates that movie, but a lot of people thought it was kind of over the top, kind of silly and stuff, but I just loved it. I thought it was absolutely wonderful.

Do people ever ask you to quote your lines from anything?
I don't quote movie lines. Obviously I have to quote Creed lines, because people require that of me.

What do people ask you to say?
OK, the ones they love, they want to hear: "Cool beans," "Which one's Pam?" "Is someone making soup?" and "During the '60s I made love to many, many women. Often outdoors, in the mud and the rain. It's possible a man slipped in. There'd be no way of knowing." I think that's one of the funnier lines too.

What's your favorite Bill Murray movie?
"Lost in Translation."

Do you ever Google yourself?
No, my assistant does.This girl and her boyfriend are helping me fix up my website so I can Twitter on it. I will be twittering soon, which you can tell the folks that, but at my age, I'm from a different generation from that stuff. I'm not a cybernaut. It's so far removed from my sensibilities, but once I get it all set up, I'm going to start twittering to my fans. Now that the show's not going to be on, I have to self-promote. I have to do it.

What would your porn star name be?
Oh, a porn name? My porn name would be Roland Panache. It sounds pretty good.

Is that from the formula, or did you just make that up?
That's off the top of my head. I just, I would make that name up. I'm not gonna give you a pet and a street, I'm going to give you a cool name. They would ask for Mr. Roland Panache.

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If you saw Craig Robinson on the street, you would probably call him Darryl. That's okay with him — people do it almost every day. After all, he's been playing the sarcastic warehouse worker-turned-manager by that name on "The Office" since 2005. Soon, though, Dunder Mifflin will close its doors for good and Robinson will be Darryl no more. Not that he was in the first place: Robinson has had memorable parts in "Knocked Up," "Hot Tub Time Machine," "Pineapple Express" and others. This week, he's back on the big screen with "Escape From Planet Earth." Or at least, his voice is. In the animated feature, Robinson voices Doc, a Furby-like alien talk radio host who has been taken hostage by scheming humans and forced to implement alien technology on Earth. Twitter? Yeah, that's all Doc.

NextMovie sat down with Robinson in New York ahead of the film's release to talk about aliens, "The Office," his hypothetical love advice talk show and more.

So, first and foremost, do you believe in aliens?
You know, just recently I've seen some interesting human beings, that I was like, you know what? There’s got to be alien life among us. Very "Men in Black" type stuff. Up until like really a week ago I was like wait a minute, there’s something going on there.

This could be happening! Was it here in New York?
No, I was watching something on TV. I think it was some athletes or something. I was like, woah, something freaky's going on.

Like what are you? Nice. Of all the technology that you've seen, which piece of technology do you think would most likely be alien tech?
Google, probably. Any of that stuff. There's those of course flying objects that you don't know, and you know it's like a lot of — of course this is I think from the government... oh here we go. I think they're like birds that are not actually birds — you know what I'm saying? Flying around. But you can’t tell.

Disguised drones?
Bam! Yeah, you know, you just don’t know.

They're out there. So you play Doc, kind of an alien talk therapist, in the movie. What is the best advice you've ever given?
You know I follow a Socratic...

Things are about to get really academic here.
...Therapy kind of thing where someone might pose their problem to me. People do ask me for advice for some reason. And I'll just kind of pose it back to them and let them answer on their own. I never like to give my advice 'cause I don’t want them to come back and "You were wrong! You ruined my life!" so it's more about "Hey, this is what you just told me. What does that sound like to you?"

So people come to you for advice a lot?
It's happened. I don’t know about a lot but, yeah, I guess it is a lot.

What do you think it is about you? They're just like, "You're a friendly dude."
Friendly? Um, maybe part of the success? I don't know but definitely probably more because I listen. I can be quiet and listen sometimes.

You're great at nodding wisely?
Exactly.

Furrowed brow?
Or nodding off.

They're like, "Yeah, he's very present. He's very, very present." I loved the joke that you made up social networking in the movie.
I didn't make it up though!

The aliens invented it.
Exactly.

Is that because you invented Twitter? Did you do that?
Me personally? No, maybe Doc or one of those guys. You know, I’m not even on Twitter that much.

I saw you posting pictures. I looked you up.
I post, I post. I posted today. I'm very convenient. I see something I think is funny or whatever and that’s what happens but it’s like not all the time. Like some people are like, every minute they're on there. I'm like, ugh.

Yeah, it's exhausting.
I have to make an announcement, like, "Today I'm going to be answering and retweeting and whatever."

Otherwise, sorry, you will not see it?
Yeah not even the otherwise, like I tend to read them and catch them but it's so...interesting. Like you don't know who you're responding to, you know what I'm saying? So I try to be careful of that, I just kind of post and go.

Yeah, you don’t want to get yourself into any corners.
Exactly. I could see me in court like, "yeah, but you responded to the twitter! He’s a known murderer! You had to know that!" "I didn’t know your honor, I just was making a joke!" "I'm so sorry!"

"I was retweeting!"
"Her avatar seemed so normal. I don’t know what to do!" If you had your own radio talk show, what would it be called?
The Love Lounge with Craig Robinson.

Oh, nice. Would it be single-topic? Would it be about love?
It would be all about love. It would be all about relationships and the quest: The quest to find love, stay in love, how to deal with love, after love.

And here you are saying you don't give advice.
I'm saying what you said, it was a big if! And then I'll play some soft music and go "Yeah, that was Luther Vandross, back in the Love Lounge."

Who would your first guest be?
Probably Sofia Vergara. We would just talk about love and what it's like to love in Colombia.

I know that a lot of animated movies are kind of like clown cars of awesome people. Did you guys voice things together or were you all alone?
We were all separate.

Aww, bummer.
Well, you know, I don’t know, it sounds like a good idea to at least get one in there but I think with the director with in his vision, it was better to just go in and play, play, play and then cause he can catch what everyone's doing in the end, spin it back.

Was there a premiere or anything? Did you catch up with anyone?
Yeah, not this past weekend but last Saturday before this one there was a premiere. Everybody wasn’t there. I think [Rob] Corddry was there, Jessica Alba, Jane [Lynch] was there. Hugh Jackman was there, apparently. I saw a picture of him.

Normal.
He’s not in the movie.

I was gonna say, he just showed up? He was like, "I assume I was in this."
So, yeah, it was nice to get with the cast a little bit. I think that was my first or second time meeting Jessica [Alba], so that was cool. But you know, I know Corddry so...

I was gonna ask, are you guys getting to work on “Hot Tub Time Machine 2”? Is there anything happening there?
Looks like it’s gonna be this June. There’s a couple of monkey wrenches trying to be thrown into the program so we’ll see.

Is it just scheduling? Is there a script yet?
There’s a script, it’s kind of going through some changes. But you know there’s so much stuff to deal with actually getting the final product so I don’t think it’s a huge thing, it’s just, you know, a couple of things like okay, we gotta pay attention to this before this happens.

"Hot Tub Time Machine 2: Electric Boogaloo. Return of the Dead Squirrel."
Let’s hope so.

Can you say anything about "This Is the End"? You’re playing yourself, right?
Yeah, we're all playing ourselves. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg directing. It was like literally if you were sitting with your friends and like, "Hey, let's make a movie, you know, let's do some crazy stuff!" and just happened to have a movie set and crew and all of that. But yeah, we had so much fun and they had visions of what they wanted as far as us being ourselves.

So are you like an exaggerated version of yourself? What's something you do in the movie that you wouldn't normally do?
Drink my own urine.

You don't usually do that?
I mean, you know. There's the seven or eight times.

So do people call you Darryl often?
Yes. Very often.

Like every day?
If I'm out somewhere in public, I'm probably going to get a Darryl.

People recognize you and they're like "Sup!"
Yeah exactly.

Is that weird? Is it annoying?
No, it's cool, I get it. These are people who love the show or they don't love it but they're familiar with it. Whatever the case, it's very interesting. Sometimes people will talk and they’re not talking to me, they’re talking to someone about me. Now that gets weird.

Like where you can hear? Oh, weird.
Yeah exactly. He's from "The Office," he's from "Pineapple Express." Like do I acknowledge, do I wait for somebody to come over? So it depends on my mood but for the most part I figure you'll address me if you want to.

Do people sneak cell pics?
Oh yeah absolutely. I've looked up more times and saw a camera being flashed. What can you do?

Is there a line that people ask you to quote a lot?
From "Knocked Up" and "From Daddy’s Little Girl." From "Knocked Up" a lot of people are like Come on say, "you can't have no old pregnant bitches" or one of those lines. And meanwhile "Daddy's Little Girl" is the type of period movie I did. People...like the other day, yesterday...what was it Saturday? Saturday I was driving and some people were like... I saw them kind of waiting for me to pull up, I was behind a bus and as I pulled up they start going, "Julia, you know I'll never make a fool of ya," like this ridiculous rap I did in there, so stuff like that happens quite a bit.

Is it weird walking through the world having people know who you are and you're like I don’t know you?
Weirdly, it's not weird. It’s kind of like, you're everybody's friend. I think "The Office" does that and a bunch movies I've done. It's almost not expected but it’s not as weird as you might think. The weird part is wondering if you know a person. 'Cause they're like "Craig how you doing man, what’s going on?" And you’re like "I'm Craig, how are you?" And they’re like "I loved you in such and such." Some people really look at me and I'm like you don't know me it's cool. And then other people are like "Hey, we were in junior high together," or "You helped me paint my apartment."

And you're like oh, hey. Are we gonna see an "Office" reunion down the line?
I keep saying to the crew, "let's do an 'Office' movie." Let's make that happen. Let's get some awkwardness on the big screen. Who knows what happens with that stuff. It would be very interesting to come together with this crew after ten years or whatever it is that you do a reunion show.

It would be like the "Boy Meets World" sequel that they're doing now with Corey and Topanga's daughter. It could be about Jim and Pam’s kids. You guys could all show up.
Interesting, yes. And then Darryl's little daughter comes in.

How do you think you would do in a zombie apocalypse? And do you have a plan?
At this point I'm just trying to figure out where I would hide and where the zombies couldn't smell me. But no, there’s no plan set in motion right now.

No drills?
So I think I would definitely become a zombie before too long.

You wouldn't fare too well in that?
Not at this moment, no.

Alright, that's fair. What was the first movie you ever made out to?
Made out to? Let me see, I think I was in a drive-thru. What movie was that? It was Susan...oh my god that was years ago. I don't know...what movie did we see in the drive-thru. I wish I could tell you, all I remember was the making out part.

That's the important part. Do you ever Google yourself?
Absolutely.

Yeah? What’s the weirdest thing you've found.
Let me see...like an article written on me or something? Weird? I don't know how weird stuff is. Or you might see like comments or whatever and then you immediately un-Google yourself. It's like I don't need to read this.

What do they say?
If I see anything going towards the negative, it's like ahhhh.

See you never!
Yeah or you might see something and then people defend you so that's kind of cool to check out.

What advice would you give your high school senior self?
Stay in shape. Keep working out, cause it just gets harder. And watch your knees.

And what would your porn name be?
Gidget Walcott

Warner Bros.

Nothing says romance like Southern gothic and sorcery -- at least, that's what the team behind the new teen romance flick "Beautiful Creatures" hopes. Hitting theaters today, the film stars 18-year-old Alice Englert as Lena Duchannes, a high school student moonlighting as a witch (or, in the film's parlance, a "caster") and coming to grips with her powers in the sleepy town of Gatlin, South Carolina. Aldren Ehrenreich, 23, is the other half of the doomed romantic duo. He plays Ethan Wate, the mortal boy (un)lucky enough to meet Lena and get pulled into her chaotic life in the months leading up to her 16th birthday, when the true nature of her powers will be revealed.

NextMovie caught up with the two young stars in New York City earlier this week. Read on to learn their opinions on being judged by teenagers, the hardest words to say with a Southern accent, and the quote they don't want making headlines.

Congratulations on the movie! Have you seen it yet?
Alden: Three times.

Alice: Yeah, three times.

Alice: You've seen it in Russian.

So normal.
Alden: Yes, I've seen the first 30 minutes with Russian dubbing.

Is it hard for you to watch yourselves? Do you like watching yourself onscreen?
Alden: No.

Alice: That's such a funny question. Imagine if you're like, "yeah! I love it!"

Alden: I actually have. There's certain times where I enjoy it, but in general, no. It's not excruciating, it's just usually boring for me.

Alice: It's not horrible, but the first time is always just actually confusing for your mind, because it's hard to process just seeing yourself up there, very large and in the situation that you, in a medium you've seen many times before. I've seen so many films with [co-star] Jeremy [Irons] in them and then to see Jeremy like oh, a film with Jeremy and me. It's very weird. I do enjoy watching them because I like the movie.

Alden: Tell the story about the little boy.

Alice: What little — oh yeah. I was really enjoying one of the screenings of "Beautiful Creatures" and there was this little 14-year-old boy sitting next to me in the screening and I was laughing at all the jokes and I just felt really judged. I had to keep it down a bit. It's a bit embarrassing. You can't enjoy your own film too much, especially when these young teenagers —

Alden: Yes, these young whippersnappers. You're a teenager.

Alice: I am a teenager.

Warner Bros.

You both have to put on Southern accents for this movie, and Alden's is pretty thick. What was the hardest word to say with a Southern accent?
Alden: Anybody.

Alice: Anybody.

Alden: Eeeeeeenybawwwdy.

Alice: Anybody. AnyBODY.

Alden: There's two points in the film where I use the Southern accent, you can tell in the take because Rick Lipton, who's our really amazing dialect coach, would say, "ok, so this word you've gotta get right," and then on the next take, I'd say "eeeeeeenybawwwwwdy" and just really ham it up with the word, and it's in the movie. Twice! In the snow scene, I say "godawful." I couldn't get it and so it came out like "gawwwwd awful." It's like, "Here's your word, Rick."

Alice, your character in the movie is a powerful witch. As far as I can tell, neither of you are actually magical. If you did have powers, what would you most like to do?
Alden: I wouldn't want to do anything too big or dramatic, because I feel like — not turn anyone into a tree or flying or immortality or anything, because I feel like —

Alice: I don't understand why you're so against flying. There's not really anything bad about flying.

Alden: Oh yes there is.

Alice: Like what?

Alden: You're never present, because you know you can always just fly away. You don't have to deal with possibly difficult situations that might lead to great outcomes, you'd miss the great outcome because you'd fly away. Planes. Jetlag, when you're just — anyway. Anyway, these are the reasons I don't want to fly. So I guess it would be something like I'd like to be able to take pictures of anything, like, without a camera.

You'd like to have a photographic memory, or to take a physical picture?
Alden: Like, physical. Because I see these things and I never have a camera and I wish I had a photo of them. But a good photo. So my eye would actually be like a really good photographer, because I see things that I know would be a really good photograph, but I'm not technically good enough to take it. And I don't have a camera! So I wish my eye was a phenomenal photographer, so I would have these great photos.

Alice: I just don't agree, I think flying doesn't have such implications. I would fly.

See, I'd apparate, like in "Harry Potter." It takes no time.

Alice: That's so complicated!

Alden: See, that's too — that's not more complicated than flying.

Alice: That is far more complicated. Like, how are you going to be present in your life if you know you can just leave?

Alden: It's the same thing with flying! You could jump out the window!

Alice: No, I'd fly slowly! I'd just be like... [makes gliding gesture with arms]

Alden: Just groovin'.

I'd go visit friends on the West Coast, I'd do all these things...
Alden: But then, trust me, it'll turn into a nightmare. Just watch "Mrs. Doubtfire"! Being able to do things you think are great at first often turn into complex situations at restaurants.

Alice: That's my favorite thing you've ever said.

To think in the terms of another young adult franchise adapted for the screen, who in your cast would win the Hunger Games and how would you yourself fare?
Alice: I would die immediately.

Alden: I guess I would die. It's such a violent thing for these kids.

You're not great with weapons?

Alden: Oh, God, just the whole concept of these children killing each other freaks me out.

Alice: Yeah, we're being asked whether or not we're going to die right now. "If someone was trying to kill you for sport, do you think you would survive?"

Alden: "If you were trying to murder each other, who would murder each other the most efficiently?" That's basically the question!

This could happen! Life or death situation!
Alden: [Director] Richard [LaGravenese] would be dead.

Alice: No, I don't think he would, I think he'd be like [sword swishing motion.] Because he's quite like, big shoulders. Have you been hugged by him recently?

Alden: Yes, he's got a lot of physical power. You know what, maybe he would. On second thought, you really don't know.

Alice: This could so easily end up like, "Richard could kill the cast."

Alden: "Cast members fear director."

Alice: I don't want to say too much, because I don't want to have that quote.

Warner Bros.

"Beautiful Creatures" comes out on Valentine's Day, and you can bet it'll be a big date night movie for a lot of kids. What's your ideal Valentine's Day date movie?
Alden: Ooh, good question. There's a movie with Dennis Quaid and Ellen Barkin called "The Big Easy" that is, it's sort of like not a movie that, not a great, great movie, but it's weirdly, like, sensuous. I don't usually watch movies and get hot and bothered, but it's a very steamy movie.

Alice: Really? With Dennis Quaid?

Alden: They just have a lot of sexual chemistry. It's in New Orleans. I did a scene from it in acting class. Yeah, I'd say that one.

Alice: Probably just like, "Some Like It Hot" or something from Billy Wilder. A fun movie.

What did you buy with your first Hollywood paycheck?
Alden: Oh my God. My SAG membership, I think. Yeah, probably that.

Alice: Probably, like, two-minute noodles.

Alden: I was 15, so does that count as Hollywood? If I was on "Supernatural"? Was that Hollywood?

Did you get to ride around in the Impala?
Alden: No, I think it was before that. It's the second episode of all time.

Alice: Can we say first paycheck ever, instead of Hollywood? I bought a camera with my first ever paycheck.

What was it a paycheck for?
Alice: For a short film that my mom put me in and gave me money for. I was really excited because I thought I would get, like, $50, because I didn't have an idea about what money was. And I got more! So that was really fun.

What's the movie that first made you want to act?
Alden: There wasn't one, really. It was just I knew I wanted to do it. I've seen a lot of movies that are really inspiring and made me want to tact that night, but not one that made me decide that was something I felt. I always felt like I wanted to.

Alice: Yeah, me too.

What would your porn name be?
Alden: Priscilla Sunset.

Alice: Bunny Wentworth.

Getty Images

Josh Duhamel may seem like the consummate leading man, all tan skin and white teeth. After all, he did get his start in the infamous soap "All My Children" and was later the titular Tad in "Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!" His role in "Safe Haven," opening Valentine's Day, is somewhat familiar territory: Based on the Nicholas Sparks novel of the same name, the film tells the story of single dad Alex (Duhamel) and his seemingly doomed love affair with Katie (Julianne Hough), a Woman With A Secret who showed up to his small town under duress and settled down almost immediately.

However, Duhamel was refreshingly candid in a chat with NextMovie, putting on display some decidedly un-rom-com views. Read ahead to find out about the inspiration behind his murder-face, his musical aspirations, the surprising first movie he made out to and more.

This movie is a kind of surprising addition to the Nicholas Sparks film library. There are fights and murders! It's kind of a thriller.
It's not quite as chick-flicky as I think people expect. It definitely has some of those aspects though.

So the whole conceit of "Safe Haven" is that Julianne Hough's character is on the run. Her face is all over posters that say she's wanted for murder. An actor prepares: How did you perfect your "OMG, my love interest is a murderer!" face?
I was just doing an interview with the foreign press, and he was like, "I felt as if you were a little harsh on her when you found the wanted poster." I was like, "Well, I mean, what are you going to do? You let this girl into your house and it turns out that she's not who she said she was and you're letting her around your kids and you're looking at this poster that says she's wanted for murder, you tend to maybe overreact." But yeah, I worked long and hard on that, "Oh my god, my wife -- or my girlfriend -- is a murderer" face.

Did you have some sort of inspiration for that?
You know, no, I wish I had something clever for you, other than I just tried to imagine what would happen if all of a sudden you're in deep with a girl and you find this out about her. And what an idiot I was to think that this little hot blonde fell out of the sky into this little town. What a naive bastard I am.

She will stab a man, no hesitation.
Yeah, she will.

So, like you said before, this is not a typical Nicholas Sparks movie. Is it a good date movie?
I do think it's a good date movie. It's, this movie is, you know, people have sort of pre-set ideas about what a Nicholas Sparks movie is gonna be. It definitely has those elements, but this is also a bit darker and scarier and there's a whole thriller element to it that I think makes an ever-impending sense of doom. You've got this tranquil, beautiful little sweet town where she just sorta finds she's able to breathe in for the first time, and you cut that against this guy that's looking for her that you know is coming, and so you cut back and forth, and you can't help but to get tossed back and forth while you're watching it. For that reason it isn't just for the hopeless romantics. It's a good story about starting over, second chances and having the courage to leave a bad situation.

There's kind of something for everyone here: Romance and the beach, but also explosions and people getting punched in the face.
And gunplay! You can't forget the guns.

No, you can't. Are you a fan of other Nicholas Sparks movies? Do you watch them and cry?
I have to admit, I cried during "The Notebook." James Garner at the end there, he was just so good. But you know, I'm probably like you. I'm not usually a huge fan of the movies that are just about the romance, because I'm just like, ugh. But a good story is a good story, and that one was. And that's what we tried to focus on in this one too, we wanted to tell the most honest story that we could, and not think of it as a Nicholas Sparks movie where we have to hit every romantic beat and have all the movie moments that people expect. We almost tried to play against that stuff and have little moments here and there that people can relate to, and by the end, find yourself rooting for these two. It's fun to try to make that stuff work, rather than being like, "Oh, sh**. This is that moment in the movie where we have to do this or that." It was more about those little unexpected beats that I love about [director] Lasse [Hallstrom]'s moviemaking. He's very much about playing against the cliches and the over-sentimentality and the things that you would expect. It was almost documentary-like, in that a lot of it was improvised and little pieces of human behavior that happen when two people are falling for each other that normally are skipped over in a movie like this. It was a fun way to make a movie of this genre and try to make it in a way that wasn't so force-fed.

You're Grade-A heartthrob material in so many of your films. What are your top three tips for staying leading man-ready?
Find the funny. Have a pocketful of Altoids. Always make sure that the makeup artist has menthol drops so that you can just cry at the drop of the hat. Fake tears are always good.

You're ready to be a leading man now!
Oh, you know what's better, actually. Always have good one-liners at the ready. You never know when you're going to have to drop a one-liner. I call them the panty peelers.

Oh dang. So what's the worst pickup line you've ever used or heard used?
Was your dad a baker? Because you've got some nice buns. Ooh, how's that? You've got some hot buns? I forgot the punchline.

Is that one of yours?
Actually Julianne [Hough] told me that one the other day.

What was the first movie you ever made out to?
The first movie that I made out to was, I think it was "Wayne's World."

Really?
You gotta catch 'em off guard.

I know I go into those movies just waiting to be pounced on.
Yes.

"Dumb and Dumber," come at me.
"Dumb and Dumber" is one of my all-time favorite movies, don't even talk sh** about that one. It's truly one of the greatest love stories ever made. Harry and Lloyd, that's right. "We got no food, we got no jobs, our pets' HEADS ARE FALLING OFF!"

You're pretty active on Twitter. What's the weirdest thing anyone's ever said to you on there?
That's a tough one. You know what, I don't really know. I can't think of anything. Most of them are pretty nice.

No marriage proposals?
That was one that I was going to say, but I didn't think it was clever enough. I get a lot of marriage offers. So unless I'm a hardcore Mormon, I don't think my wife would go for it. Who knows. If she's a good cook, she [Fergie] might just go for that.

Speaking of Fergie, are you guys ever going to do a duet? Are you going to be Duhamelicious?
That would be sweet. Oh man, I would love that. I would love that. I took a picture with all my buddies the other day, we were in Minneapolis, and we looked like a really bad version of a boy band a little past their prime. I sent them all the picture and I was like, "Hey, we should form a boy band and call it Wrong Direction."

What's your go-to karaoke song?
"It Wasn't Me," by Shaggy. I didn't realize how raunchy that song was until I actually did it in karaoke. Oh god! What a dog that guy is. I always liked the tune, but it's not 'til you really break that song down like, holy sh**, that's f***ed up! "Had her down on the counter — it wasn't me!"

In the event of a zombie apocalypse, what would you do?
What would I do in the event of a zombie apocalypse? Jesus. I didn't realize this interview was going to be so hard-hitting. Let's see. It's almost just best to be bitten by one and become one. If you can't beat them, join them. I'd be like, I'm with you. Throw my hands in the air.

What would your porn name be?
Oh, uh, Jeff Longcock!

You've been carrying that around in your pocket.
Yes, clearly.

And what about the one by the formula?
Oh, that would be Sydney Robinwood.

Oh, your first one was way better.
Yeah, I agree.

Getty Images

Life imitates art for actress Eliza Coupe in her upcoming indie "Shanghai Calling." The story focuses on a group of Americans who reboot their lives by starting over in China; Coupe has enjoyed her two consecutive roles playing biting blondes on TV — on "Scrubs" and now "Happy Endings" — but relocating to an exotic locale for the part of a sweet single mom gave the actress a powerful understanding of the expat appeal.

The pull of Shanghai notwithstanding, Coupe did return to the States, where we got the scoop on faking conversational Chinese, the dangers of playing too many a**holes, and more.

You didn't speak Chinese at all before filming "Shanghai Calling," right? But you speak quite a bit of it in the movie — and very convincingly! Did you actually learn any Chinese for the role, or did you memorize it phonetically? It's impressive, either way.
I think if I remember correctly, I had just come back from a French lesson [when I got the role]. I learned the Chinese through Pinyin, which is phonetic. Oh my God, I could not write in Chinese characters by any stretch of the imagination. I kind of just learned my lines ... I didn’t say the tones right, to begin with ... I thought I was speaking Chinese, but ... my assistant over there was always like, "I don’t know what you’re saying." When I was really, really trying to just imitate and not really know what I was saying, I found that everyone knew what I was saying. But when I was really trying to actually speak it, it was like, "No, go back to imitating us."

In college, I went to school for acting, we had to learn phonetics just to be able to do dialects and all that stuff. I’m somebody who does better just hearing it. I’ll just imitate it, and I get it better that way. When I know too much information, I’m not great. I used to play the piano by listening to it — like Chopin pieces, when I was like a little kid — and then the minute my parents got me lessons to read music, I couldn’t do it anymore.

Americatown

Let's rewind for a second. You’re taking French lessons? For funzies or for a part?
For funzies. I have wanted to learn French forever, I’ve been determined to move over there and just be over there for the rest of my life. But I don’t know French, and my family’s French.

And now you now how it feels to be an expat, at least for a few weeks. Are you still on track with your permanent relocation?
No, I’m actually pretty cool with not moving away now. It was one of those things where I really didn’t think it through. It was like, "Oh s**t, but I really love my family!"

Shanghai cured you of wanderlust! Was it scary to be that far from home?
A hundred percent. I got over there and I was like, "Oh, wow, I don’t know anybody." I hadn’t met Daniel Hsia, the director. I had Skyped with him because he was already in China, so I never got to meet him before I went over to film. Daniel Henney, who was my co-star, I think he didn’t even show up until like five days after I got there. I didn’t know anybody.

And it was so hot there and I have this weird thing where I can’t stand wearing pants in the summer, like I will be wearing shorts no matter what. And so I'm five-eight, very much a blonde American, and I’m just be-bopping around in my little shorts. When you’re walking around in Shanghai, I called it the City of Near Misses, because they do not stop for pedestrians. And the pedestrians do not have the right of way. It’s those little things that no one tells you.

Americatown

Your character in "Shanghai Calling" is spirited but much sweeter than Jane from "Happy Endings." Did that appeal to you specifically?
I went from being on "Scrubs," where I played this scary, sardonic ... very bitchy, sly doctor, and then going into "Happy Endings" which was just as bitchy and sardonic but wrapped in a very different package. I was going for all these parts that were very similar to my part on "Scrubs" ... so I’m like, "Wait there's so much more. Those are just two characters, I mean, that's not even who I am. So I was actually really ... relieved to do something sweet and nice because I was like, "I swear, people, I'm not the biggest bitch in the world, I promise you."

My parents, they were like, "You come off so mean and you're not like that!" I do have a nickname with my family, I'm called Snappy, because I do get to be a bit snippy at times. They call me Snappy Bear. That's from New Hampshire. My dad's called Crazy, my mother's Happy, it's a whole thing.

Speaking of your parents, is there a movie you regret watching with them?
Oh God, what is the name of it … I just watched it. It's…oh my God… Matthew McConaughey, Gina Gershon…it just came out. Matthew McConaughey makes Gina Gershon give him a blow job ... "Killer Joe," oh my God, "Killer Joe." Really regret that one. Not a family movie.

Do you have a go-to karaoke song?
I do. It's Carly Simon's "You're So Vain." That or the duet from "Grease" and I grab whatever friend knows the song. Carly Simon, I am such a dork with that one. I think it's because like my mother used to sing that. It's just, like, in my register and I've got a very big deep weird voice, but I also sing, so that’s like my ... I don't know ... I'm a weirdo.

It’s harder right? Karaoke is high pressure if you’re a good singer. You care too much.
Oh my God, I love it, because I have done karaoke and I’m like, "I better knock this out of the park." And meanwhile, everyone’s drunk and nobody gives a s**t and I'm like, "This is my Grammy-winning performance right here!"

Okay, who would play you in a movie?
Oh God ... Kristen Wiig?

Rap or rock?
Rap.

Backstreet Boys or N*Sync?
Neither.

Very good. Beer or wine?
Umm, I’m not a drinker but wine.

And ... your porn star name. It’s the name of your first pet and the street you grew up on.
Bruiser Garland ... Bruiser was a yellow lab.

"Shanghai Calling" opens in limited release on Feb. 15.

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You probably best know Diablo Cody as the hand that held the pen (or, you know, the keyboard) from whence the unavoidable catchphrase "Honest to blog" sprang. However, Cody has more up her sleeve than just "Juno" (which, ahem, won a little something called an Oscar) and her more recent feature, "Young Adult." On top of being an Academy Award winner (and now, voter), she's also a co-chair of the Athena Film Festival. The fest, which will run at New York's Barnard College from February 7th to 10th, celebrates female filmmakers and women in leadership positions in the film industry.

Ahead of the festival's opening, NextMovie caught up with Cody to talk about the state of the Fempire, why more women should strive to make mediocre movies and which script she wishes she had written (hint: It was directed by Michael Bay).

The Athena Film Festival is coming up — why do you think it's important that women have their own festival? Is it important, or is it more fun?
This is my second year in a row with the festival. I'm a co-chair. The festival is, to me, very important and very necessary because it's a celebration of women who are not only creating films, but are in leadership positions in the film industry and I think it's pretty obvious when you look at the data coming out of Hollywood that women are super underrepresented in the mainstream movie business. I mean, all you have to do is look at this year's Oscar nominees. It's pretty frustrating: Not a single woman nominated for best director, and out of all of the screenwriters nominated, only one is female. For me, I know there are some people who might turn their noses up at the idea of a women's film festival, but for me, it's incredibly important. It's something that we need because those opportunities are not necessarily being created in the business at large.

What do you think makes for a good female character?
You know what, I couldn't even answer that question, because to me, it's like, what makes a good character? It shouldn't matter, male or female. Somebody asked me earlier if I thought it was really important to tell stories about women's struggles. And I said yes, but at the same time, it's also important to tell stories about women's triumphs, women being slackers, women being criminals, women being heroes. You know, it shouldn't just be about women as heroic figures overcoming things, it just needs to be about women in general getting the opportunity to play a multitude of roles, telling a multitude of stories — just to express human experience from a woman's perspective. I hope, someday, we can get to that point. I'm all about representation.

I've infamously just said that I wish there were more women out there making crappy movies. Every single week, all these shitty movies come out that are directed by men. Like, women should have the same opportunities to be mediocre and sucky! It shouldn't just be like, oh, a woman is directing a movie, so it better be great because it's representing all of us. That's not fair! Let a woman go out there and make something sh**ty, that's step one.

Is there a movie out there that you wish you'd written?
All of them. I wish I had written "Lost in Translation." Are you talking specifically about the festival? Actually, you know, I wish I had written "Transformers" and gotten points on the back end. That's what I wish, because then I would be retired. What was the highest-grossing movie that I could do? That's what I wish I had written.

But what about scripts that you admire?
I mean, this is not a movie, but I wish I was responsible for the TV series "Girls." I love it. I love Lena Dunham. I'm a movie lover and so I hope that someday I can write something that I consider as good as the stuff my heroes have written, and I don't think I've done that yet. Working on it!

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Oh, is the Fempire going to adopt Lena Dunham?
You know what, she's too fancy for us. She's her own Fempire. She does not need us. But the Fempire is still intact! We are still very close-knit and supporting each other and we are all still making stuff, more than ever, so I'm proud of that. I'm proud of the fact that almost five years after that article we're all still doing it.

Who would you want to play you in a movie of your life?
I want Maggie Gyllenhaal. I don't know why. I don't think she necessarily looks like me or acts like me, I just think she's a cool actress and she could play me, so there you go.

"Juno" is infinitely quotable. Have you ever quoted your own writing, accidentally or on purpose?
Oh god, no! I do not quote my own movies. I think I would be pretty insufferable if I did. Something weird did happen recently though. I hadn't seen "Juno" in a really long time, a really really long time, I hadn't seen it in years, and there was something in it that made me laugh, and I was really embarrassed that I laughed at it. Like, did I really just laugh? I was alone and I put it on, and for a second there was just this disconnect where I forgot that I wrote it and I laughed at a joke and I went, "Oh my god, weird." I think it was when they were in the park, and Juno says something like she was hoping the adoptive mother would be like, an Asian graphic designer who plays bass. Something like that, she had a really specific list of criteria, and for some reason that made me laugh out loud and then I was ashamed of myself.

So do you typically avoid your movies when they come on?
Oh my god, you have no idea. It is a rule in this house that if something I have been involved in comes on, we turn it off immediately. I can't sit for a second, it makes me very uncomfortable. It's like looking at your own barf.

Your movie-barf won you an Oscar though. Where do you keep it?
My Oscar is in the most boring place imaginable. It's on a mantle with family pictures. You know, it doesn't have its own special lighting or anything like that. Sometimes it ends up almost getting kind of shoved to the back. It just looks like a tchotchke from vacation. It's got a very casual placement in the house.

And, lastly, what would your porn star name be?
Oh gosh, I don't think I need a porn star name. I've already been Diablo Cody for the last 10 years. I think I've pretty much got that sewn up.

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You may best know Dave Franco as "James Franco's little brother," but it's time to move beyond that. Though Franco shares his sib's chiseled features and surname, Dave's out to make a name for himself. Between a hilarious turn as a cool kid-turned-con in "21 Jump Street" and his most recent role as a gun-toting tough guy in the post-zombie apocalypse rom-com "Warm Bodies," in theaters this weekend, there's a new Franco on the block, in a big way.

"It's all been going somewhat smoothly, so don't f*ck it up," Franco told NextMovie during a recent interview to promote his new zombie rom-com. Beyond that helpful advice, Franco also spoke to us about his zombie survival strategy, playing drunk and the status of the "21 Jump Street" sequel.

"Warm Bodies," both the movie and the book it's based on, is hailed as a different breed of zombie story than we've seen before. What drew you in to the project?
I hadn't read the book but I think the main draw for me was the director, Jonathan Levine, who is this young, smart, awesome director who's done "The Wackness" and "50/50," which I loved. I just knew that he was going to take this movie, a movie about zombies, and do something special. We've seen zombie movies before, but I knew he was going to take it and make something new and fresh, and that was the main draw.

Are you a big fan of traditional zombie movies?
I can't say I was like die-hard zombie fan, but I've definitely seen a few different zombie movies and tv shows. Specifically, I think my favorite is "28 Days Later," mainly because I'm obsessed with Danny Boyle, and I kind of think he recreated the genre with that movie, where he changed it so that the zombies aren't these slow movie creatures. Now, when they can run almost faster than the humans can, it kind of ramps up the intensity.

You were a human in this movie, against Nicholas Hoult's zombie. Were you bummed you didn't get to be a zombie?
I can't say I was bummed, just cuz, yeah, I guess it would have been kind of fun to just, you know, act like a zombie for a week, but at the same time, I don't envy Nicholas Hoult for having to go through hours of zombie makeup every morning.

Now that you've done this movie, can you do a good zombie impression?
Not as good as [Hoult]. He killed it, right? He's just such a strong and subtle actor that he really grounded that character and made you believe that — believe that he was a zombie that was becoming more like a human. You really empathize with this guy who kills ME almost immediately. You really empathize with him, and you're like, "F*ck Dave Franco."

He ate your brains!
Exactly, and you just sympathize with this guy! I give Nick Hoult total credit, he's just a very likable guy.

A lot of actors say that playing drunk is the hardest thing to do on screen, but it seems like playing zombie wouldn't be the easiest either. Which do you think would be harder: Drunk or zombie?
I've got nothing really to base this on, but I'm gonna go zombie. I'm gonna go zombie, just because I feel like there's a lot of method actors out there who will actually get drunk for their drunk scenes. You can't really be a zombie for zombie scenes, so I'll go with that.

Summit

There have been talks of a "21 Jump Street" sequel. Any thoughts on that?
I'm into it. I don't know how they're gonna spring me from jail or if I'm even gonna be in it, but we had a great time on the first time, and I'd love to reconnect with all those guys.

Parole, maybe.
Exactly!

We're in the middle of awards season. Of course, your brother hosted the Oscars two years ago. Would you ever try your hand at hosting the Academy Awards?
I don't think that's really my personality, to be honest. I think the best hosts are the ones who are huge yeomen, you know? They can do the whole song and dance number, they're very funny and charismatic. I think that whathisname, Seth MacFarlane, hosting this year, he's gonna be perfect because he embodies all of those characteristics that I just said. I like to think that I have some ability to entertain a huge room, but nothing like that. I'm not the package like Seth MacFarlane.

What difference, if any, does it make to have such a well-known family member in the same business as you?
It's a blessing and a curse. He definitely helped me get a manager at first, which I don't take for granted, because it's crucial to not only have a manager, but one that cares about you and is smart. But from there on out, no one is going to hire me just because I'm James Franco's little brother. I have to prove myself. Of course, it was tough kind of finding my way out of his shadow, but I'm doing my best to separate myself in terms of work, where I'm trying to do my own stuff, create my own projects and make a name for myself.

In "Warm Bodies," we see an interspecies romance of sorts. Could you, as a human, date a zombie or former zombie?
You're saying every other aspect of her is perfect, but she used to be a zombie? I mean, I can get past that. If everything else is perfect, then the past is past!

Your movie is post-zombie apocalypse. How do you think you would fare if the undead took over in today's world?
I'm a small shifty kind of guy. I think I would be up in the hills, Legolas style, shooting from up above, while the big guys are going at it from below. But you know, I've played sports my whole life, I think I could be a good asset to the humans.

Would you use an actual bow and arrow?
Yeah, if I've got it. I mean, how fun would that be?

What did you buy with your first Hollywood paycheck?
I think my first big purchase was actually for my mom. She had one of those '90s TVs in her living room that's like a 10x10 brick, so I purchased her a flatscreen for her living room.

And if you went into adult entertainment, what would your porn name be?
I wish it was more exciting. It would be Lincoln Ramona.

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The new comedy "Movie 43" weaves a bunch of different stories together from 12 different directors, including Peter Farrelly ("Dumb and Dumber") and Steve Carr ("Next Friday"). The vague trailer makes it difficult to figure out what the heck the movie is really about, but it all seems to be part of the master plan. And, the NSFW website — whatismovie43.com — includes some raunchy clips that prove the ensemble cast isn't trying to make it the next "Valentine's Day."

Boasting one of the largest round-ups of famous peeps in one film, the cast features everyone from Halle Berry, Seth MacFarlane and Hugh Jackman, to Kate Winslet, Anna Faris and Emma Stone. While none of them were actually at the premiere, we were there to talk to some of the other cast members — and other folks on the red carpet — about what's the most inappropriate thing they've ever seen online.

Jeremy Allen White: "2 Girls 1 Cup."

Tony Hawk: "I don't think I should tell you things like that, but 2 Girls 1 Cup would be one of them. That was one of the more disturbing things, among others, but yeah, definitely things that involve feces and people enjoying it; that's probably the worst."

Jimmy Bennett: "I've seen some pretty crazy stuff that we can't talk about. I mean, 2 Girls 1 Cup, that was pretty interesting. Meatspin.com, that's disturbing; that one is not safe for work."

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Cherina Scott: "I would say stuff dealing with animals. Donkeys ... a girl and a donkey [doing stuff they shouldn't be doing]."

Tommy 'Tiny' Lister: "I don't watch the Internet, just living in Hollywood is, 'What the hell is that?!' I'm from Compton, but Hollywood got Compton beat; [Hollywood] got a bunch of crazy people."

Larry Sanders: "I've seen so many YouTube videos. Dogs singing or babies doing extraordinary things."

Timothy Hutton: "This guy who runs a website in Great Britain — Robert Popper — and he scours things that are on TV, and weird commercials from different countries, public service announcements, and he puts them on his site. Some pretty outrageous things on there. Funny or Die is great. Ebaum's World has some pretty outrageous things you can find on there."

J.B. Smoove: "I saw this guy from Germany — it was a frozen pool, and he had planned on jumping off the side and into the pool but the ice was too thick and hard. So he did a cannonball and his body just crumbled. Oh, it's hilarious, it's so damn funny. Look it up, it's called 'Frozen Cannonball.'"

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The stars have traveled to the sleepy town of Park City, Utah to once again celebrate movies and piss off the locals at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. We caught up with one of our favorite sexy funnygirls Kristen Bell, who is here with the coming-of-age tale "The Lifeguard." (Being a Sundance movie, how depressing it is? She’ll tell ya in a sec.)

The film stars Bell as a nearing 30-year-old who returns home to live with her parents and hopes to find herself through late nights out with friends and her high school job as a lifeguard.

Here Bell, who is six-and-a-half months pregnant, talks about how fiance Dax Shepard supports her in her time of need and why she wasn’t sweating the wedgies from the lifeguard suit.

What are you craving at the moment?
Hmmm. Nothing, believe it or not.

Is that just today?
No, I haven't had any cravings at all.

What is Dax doing to support you at this time? For example, some husbands stop drinking throughout the pregnancy.
Dax doesn't drink so that was just lucky. But he will indulge with me. If I feel like ordering a meal-and-a-half he'll indulge. He never makes me feel bad. He'll eat along side me no problem.

Sundance Film Festival

How depressing is "The Lifeguard" from a scale of 1 - slit-your-wrists?
Oooh. Um. You'll get the razor out. I don't know if you'll actually slit your wrist but the razor will be out. That's how depressing it is. There are depressing moments, there are funny moments. But it's relatable in the sense that we all have to realize when our adolescence ends and our adulthood begins and what does that mean and are we immediately supposed to have it together as adults. So I think it does cause a bit of examination after the movie. So just glance at the razor.

Your character, Leigh, was valedictorian of her high school in the movie, were you voted anything in high school?
I definitely wasn't voted valedictorian. Mine was like a vanity one, like Best Looking. I wish I had a different one.

What was the most annoying thing about wearing the lifeguard one-piece bathing suit?
Not filling it out. I mean they handed me this "Baywatch" bathing suit and they said, "Do your best to fill this out." And I was like, "I'll try." I mean it was so hot in Pittsburgh so I was the luckiest one on set because I had the least clothes on.

Did you have someone on "wedgie watch" for you?
The wedgie was always happening so no one needed to tell me. I was well aware.

Also Check Out: 'The Lifeguard' Review on Film.com

Best Sundance moment?
I liked coming with Dax three years ago with his film "The Freebie" because I wasn't responsible for doing press or promoting anything so I could just hang back.

If you had your own festival like Robert Redford, what would be the name of the festival and where would it be?
Festival name would be Party Time and honestly it would be as close to my house as possible. In fact, maybe just in my backyard, and it would be a 24-hour fest of non-stop movies showing.

Any heroic moments in the snow?
Well, being married to a gear-head we do a lot of snowmobiling and I have been responsible for digging not only my own but also friend's snowmobiles out of the snow.

Singlehandedly?
No. But I'm told they couldn't have done it without me. And I've caught three or four feet of air on my snowmobile so I think that's my heroic moment.

And finally, what is your porn star name? (First pet / Street you grew up on)
Chelsea Huntington, which is a great porn star name. I didn't know it was so sexy.

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Rapper-turned-actor Common has had his share of blockbuster roles lately. From parts in "Just Wright" (opposite Queen Latifah) to "Terminator Salvation" (with Christian Bale) to "Date Night" (with Steve Carrell), Common has proven he can act with the big boys (and girls).

With his new film, the homespun drama "LUV," the Chi-town native charts new territory. There are no multi-million-dollar set pieces (though there is hand-to-hand fighting and requisite gun-slinging) and there are no half-naked sci-fi starlets. There is a lot of heart, though.

Common plays Uncle Vincent, a just-out-of-jail "businessman" set on getting rich … the honest way, which turns out to be a lot harder than he anticipates. With his nephew Woody by his side for the day, Vincent does his best to set a good example, which is easier said than done. We talked with Common about "LUV," basketball and rats (natch).

How'd you get involved in "LUV"?
My agent told me he had a script and thought the lead character would be a great role for me. And then I read it and I thought, "I could really do something with this character." The way it was written, you could really go through a man's journey. It takes place in one day, but it's still his journey. I was really inspired to do it and so I met up with [director/co-writer] Sheldon [Candis] and the rest was history.

Indomina Releasing

Your character does a lot of bad things and could have been so unlikable. Was that something you were concerned about when considering this part? Did anyone, like your agent, tell you to not do it?
Yeah, I mean, I didn't want to make a movie where everyone was going to hate my character! I thought it was important that we fleshed Vincent out and made him a real human being. Just because someone does street business doesn't necessarily make him a bad person. I mean, we all make bad choices, right? [Laughs.] But that doesn't mean we're bad people.

My thing was to show that this human being was there and was a real person who had a dream of doing something with his life. He wants to father and mentor his nephew. He wants to take care of his family. You see that drive and that desire in him — we all know that desire. But then he's making bad choices and resorting back to old habits.

Old habits are hard to break.
They sure are. [Laughs.]

Were you nervous about having to work with a child actor?
Obviously you're like, "Man, is this kid going to be able to do this?" We knew we had to find the right kid, a kid who could embody all of the emotions and make the change that the script demanded. When it's a dramatic time, he needed to deliver.

As an actor, those dramatic times should come naturally, and this kid, Michael [Rainey Jr.], he was special. I knew we had it when we found him. He was like a blessing from the sky. He was able to make it happen. He could act. He had it.

Was there one movie that you saw that made you want to act?
"Pulp Fiction" made me want to act.

You're a big Tarantino fan?
Man, I would love to be in a Quentin Tarantino movie. I'm putting it out there right now, as we speak.

What has been the single greatest moment in your career?
I think going to the White House and reading poetry. It was actually a song of mine, but I read it as a poem. I mean, being there with the President and the First Lady — and he happened to be the first black President. That was pretty amazing.

What movie makes you cry?
"Love and Basketball" makes me cry sometimes. I curl up on the couch with Kleenex.

What freaks you out?
Rats. Rats freak me out.

Indomina Releasing

How often do you look at your IMDB profile?
Never. I do look at other people. I like to check IMDB to see what's going on with, you know, movie stuff. But I don't look at my page. I mean, I released a book and I was talking to someone about it and I mentioned that I hadn't read it and they were like, "Man, you didn't read your own book?" and I was like, "No! I'm not reading my book!" It's like, looking at yourself too much.

What's the best advice you've ever gotten?
Some of the best advice I've ever gotten was really just to stay true to your heart. You've got to stay true to who you are. My mother told me that, of course. I've had friends tell me that before. So, yeah, like, everyone tells me that.

But also, another good piece of advice is that when you're in a relationship, you need to listen to a woman, too. A girl I was dating told me that. That was good advice, really good advice.

Speaking of dating, what's your porn star name?
[Laughs.] King Bennett. My first dog's name was King and Bennett was the street I grew up on.

New York or L.A.?
New York.

Pacino or De Niro?
Oh, man ... uh, De Niro.

Vampires, Zombies or Werewolves?
Werewolves.

Beer or wine?
Wine.

What kind is your favorite?
I was really into Pinot Noir for a while, but now I'm into buttery chardonnay. I also like sangria.

And finally, and most importantly, what would you do in a zombie apocalypse?
I would go find some girl that I really love and be with her.

You're so romantic.
I think I am a romantic at heart. I'm a Pisces.

Are you big into astrology?
Not that closely, but you know, I'm aware of it. I mean, what can I say? I guess I'm kinda romantic. [Laughs.]

Persona PR

There's a long, rich tradition of gooning in Hollywood, one you can trace all the way back to Dennis Hopper's remarkable portrayal of Goon in the 1955 classic "Rebel Without a Cause."

Actor/comedian/goon-for-hire Derek Mears is a student of history, a man who clearly respects the goons who came before him while looking at himself as a role model for a new generation of goons being ushered in. His dedication shines through in the new shoot-em-up "Gangster Squad," in which Mears appears opposite Sean Penn, Josh Brolin and Ryan Gosling in the vital role of "Bridge Goon."

NextMovie was granted exclusive access to Derek for an in-depth discussion about his gooning inspirations, mastering the craft of gooning (and specifically, method gooning), and the scent of Ryan Gosling.

Had you had much experience gooning prior to your stint as Bridge Goon in "Gangster Squad"?
Yes, I've made an acting career out of it.

Had you spent much time hanging out under bridges?
Are you asking me if I sell drugs? I do not.

Who are some of the all-time great screen goons you looked to for inspiration?
Gonna have to say "The Goonies." This isn't a normal interview, is it?

Of course it is. You've played Jason Voorhees, Mosh Tendrils ("Men in Black II"), Large Henchman ("MacGruber") and Little Ed on "Saved by the Bell: The New Class." Where does the role of Bridge Goon rank among your career accomplishments?
Most recent?

Warner Bros.

What does Ryan Gosling smell like?
Success.

You've also co-starred with Johnny Depp in "Pirates of the Caribbean." Same question.
What does Ryan Gosling smell like? Like I said, success. Thought you were going to ask me a question about Johnny?

Never mind. How gangster is Sean Penn, on a scale from Ray Romano to Joe Pesci?
Didn't have a scene with him. So I'm guessing an environmentally conscious Joe Pesci.

You're a pretty imposing figure. Have you ever accidentally given a little old lady a heart attack?
No, not "accidentally."

Next up this year you have "Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters." But I notice you play a character named Edward. Was there no need for a Bridge Goon?
Kinda want to give you throat hug with my hand right now.

And then you're Cyclops in "Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters." Same question.
Same answer.

Follow Derek Mears on Twitter, or he will give you a throat hug.

Follow Kevin Polowy on Twitter, or he will give you a regular hug.

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Marlon Wayans comes from a family that is synonymous with comedy. The actor/writer/director/"model producer" (we'll get to that later) first struck comedic gold when he teamed up with his siblings 13 years ago for "Scary Movie," which laid the groundwork for a lucrative series (#5 drops in April).

"A Haunted House," in theaters Jan. 11, once again gets its kicks from  the horror/comedy combo. In the film, Wayans and Essence Atkins play a couple who discover some paranormal activity in their home, and what happens after they set up cameras around the house is ridonkulous.

We find out if Wayans has ever seen a ghost... and whose head he would like to poop on.

You and your family pretty much pioneered successful horror-comedy spoof films. Why do people love them so much?
I think when it's done right, it's a way to enjoy a horror without being scared to death. You're gonna feel two different kinds of emotions, and sometimes when you get a laugh, it makes you a little less nervous about being scared so it puts you at ease. And with ["A Haunted House"], you didn't know what the hell you were gonna see. You open the door, you don't know what's gonna happen — is it gonna be a Mandingo party or a demon? My son and my daughter, [who are] 10 and 12, they were sitting there [at the premiere] and they would cover their eyes, and I'd say, “It's okay, it's just a Mandingo party."

Open Road

It seems like you and the cast had a blast making this.
We did. We promised ourselves. We didn't have a budget, we didn't know what kind of cast we were gonna put together, but we did promise ourselves that every day we were going to have fun; every moment we were going to have fun. And we did.

After the L.A. screening, so many people were leaving the theater quoting one line: "What happened to yo furniture, cuz?"
They love that line! How crazy is that? Why that one line?

How much of the footage didn't make it into the final cut?
I'd say 65 hours of footage did not make it into the movie.

Any plans to include extras in the DVD release?
That'd be the longest DVD ever. It'd be longer than "The Ten Commandments" and "Gandhi" put together.

Have you ever seen a ghost?
No. I wish I did.

What do you expect it would look like?
If it could look like a person, that'd be cool. I just want to know that it exists, that there's life after death, and then I can be cool with dying. But until then, death scares me. I'm not gonna ask him no questions, I'm just gonna tell him to get the f**k out of my house.

Open Road

What freaks you out?
[Long pause] I'm trying to think what freaks me out, and I'm going to all these dark places like, "What if I see someone get hit by a train?" Probably not. [Pause] Oh, you know what freaks me out? Watching bones get broken, 'cause it always feels like it's happening to me even though it's not. It's like, "Ahhhhhh!"

Do you ever check out your IMDB profile?
Not really.

It says you’re a "model producer." How is that different from a regular producer?
I don't even know what the heck that is. Maybe I’m just that sexy that they refer to me [as a model].

What has been the standout moment in your career so far?
This ["A Haunted House"]. I was just really excited about it. Watching it play, I was just excited to have people see it and know that it came out of my crazy-ass head, and crazy-ass [producers] Rick Alvarez and Mike Tiddes. I grew up on this stuff.

What's the biggest lie you ever heard or read about yourself?
Probably that I'm gay.

Where'd you hear that?
Blog sites. People who have no business saying it. I always say it's probably somebody that slept with you, and you're like, "I don't want to bang her [any more]," [and they say] "He's gay. He's got to be gay." Well, maybe you're just not sexy. I say if I was gay, I'd be the biggest queen ever. I'd be super-queen. I'd be like Elton John-queen.

What’s your porn star name (first pet / street you grew up on)?
Shilow 16. Would you sleep with that guy?

Open Road

That's kind of a sexy name ... or not. Do you have a favorite word?
Ever?

Or what word do you use a lot?
"F**k."

Best piece of advice you ever got?
Success is the best revenge.

That's a good one. Who said that to you?
[My brother] Keenan. I was getting in a fight with this kid. I was so mad, I was gonna go stab the kid, and my brother and my dad wouldn't let me out of the house. Obviously, I lost the fight. I called my brother and I told him the kid beat me up and he said, "That's okay. Success is the best revenge. One day you'll be so successful, you could pay him to beat himself up." I'm looking for him, cause I got a nice check for him to beat himself up.

If you were a bird and could poop on anyone's head, who would you drop it on? You might want to think hard about this; apparently it's good luck.
I'd poop on my own head, hoping for a good opening day on January 11.