Sundance 2013: Joseph Gordon-Levitt Reveals His Greatest Challenge While Making 'Don Jon's Addiction' (Video)

One may be the loneliest number, but for Joseph Gordon-Levitt, it may also be a lucky number.

The Don Jon's Addiction actor, director and writer confessed to The Hollywood Reporter that his biggest hurdle during the process came not during the shoot -- but while writing a script on his own.

"I see why a lot of people write with partners," Gordon-Levitt said during a visit to THR's video lounge. "I was just writing by myself. When you're alone, you have these voices in your head telling you, 'You can't do this' or "No one's gonna take you seriously.'"

In the film, Gordon-Levitt plays a Jersey Shore-type ladies man with an obsession with pornography. His character romances the likes of Scarlett Johansson and Julianne Moore, while Tony Danza plays his father.

PHOTOS: The Scene at Park City

"What I find often gets in the way of love is how people objectify each other and put expectations on each other that they've learned from different places," said Gordon-Levitt. "So the story centers on a relationship between a guy who watches too much porn and a girl who watches too many Hollywood romantic comedies, and I find that kind of thing hilarious so I wrote a comedy about it."

Amid nagging self doubt, Gordon-Levitt found a boost from Looper director and friend Rian Johnson during the script-writing process.

"The first person that I showed the script to was Rian Johnson," Gordon-Levitt recalled. "When he said, 'I really think you have something here. This is good,' that was probably the turning point where it got a little easier. There was still tons of hard work to do, but the long, lonely journey was the writing part because you do it alone."

Don Jon's Addiction premiered Friday, Jan. 18 at the fest, and while most actors and filmmakers are in and out of Park City within days of their premiere, Gordon-Levitt will stick around 'till the bitter end, when he will serve as host of the festival's awards ceremony.

Email: Sophie.Schillaci@THR.com; Twitter: @SophieSchillaci

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Katie Couric Scores First On-Camera Interview with Manti Te'o

College footballer Manti Te'o will speak on camera for the first time about his online relationship that turned out to be a hoax. Katie Couric has nabbed the interview with the Notre Dame linebacker, which will air Thursday, Jan. 24, on her syndicated daytime talk show Katie on ABC. According to the network, the interview will be pre-recorded, and he will appear on the show beside his parents, Brian and Ottilia Te'o, who are speaking out for the first time and say they were also victims of the hoax.

Couric and her staff beat out a number of other interviewers who tried to score a sit-down with Te’o, including Oprah Winfrey, according to The New York Times. The spokesman hired by Te’o's family in recent days, Matthew Hiltzik, is also the longtime spokesman for Couric.

VIDEO: 'SNL' Mocks Lance Armstrong, Manti Te'o in Cold Open

In an interview with ESPN’s Jeremy Schaap last week, Te’o denied being a willing participant in the hoax, in which he was apparently duped into dating a fictitious young woman whose death of leukemia made headlines last year.

“Never, ever would I be a part of this,” said Te’o, who was a runner-up for the Heisman Trophy this season.

Among the interviews revelations: Ronaian Tuiasosopo, who was identified in the Deadspin story breaking news of the hoax as its potential mastermind, called Te’o Wednesday to admit he orchestrated the hoax. In addition, an unnamed male and female were involved, though Te’o does not know their identities.

Te’o said he first communicated with the woman, “Lennay Kekua,” via Facebook in winter 2009, and later frequently spoke with her by phone beginning in fall of 2011.

He said despite earlier press statements from him, he never met Kekua in person. The two made plans to meet in his native Hawaii, but she never showed. He said he lied to his father about meeting her, because he feared the elder Te’o would have not supported the relationship if he admitted the truth. 

STORY: Manti Te'o: Alleged Hoaxer Auditioned for 'The Voice'

He also admitted to misleading reporters into thinking he had met Kekua in person.

“I knew that it was crazy that I was with somebody I didn’t’ meet. Let alone people find out this girl who died who I was so invested in, I didn’t meet her,” he said. “I kind of notated my stories to have people think ‘yeah, he met her.’”

In April 2012, a man claiming to be Kekua’s brother contacted Te’o to say she had been seriously injured in a car accident and been rendered comatose. When she finally emerged from the coma, Te’o said he slept with her on the phone line, because she said that was the only way she could fall asleep.

After her supposed death in September 2012, Te’o met a girl and a young man he believed to be cousins of Kekua’s in Los Angeles.  That man was Ronaian Tuiasosopo. In the months following her death, he heard from supposed siblings and cousins of Kekua’s often. This growing cast of fictional characters eventually became angry with Te’o for beginning a relationship with another woman.

VIDEO: Late Night Hosts Pile on Jokes About Manti Te'o's Imaginary Girlfriend

Te’o said on Dec. 6, he received a call from Kekua’s phone number, and at the other end of the line was the voice of the woman he had been communicating with.

“I just got mad,” he said, recalling the conversation. “I went on a rampage. ‘How could you do this to me?’ I ended that conversation by saying simply this: ‘My Lennay died on September 12.’”

He said at this point he was confused, unsure if Kekua had actually died or not. Her family members told him she’d faked her death to escape drug dealers. 

ABC will release previews of Couric's interview this week. 

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Condoleezza Rice Joins CBS News as Contributor

Condoleezza Rice will be joining CBS News as a contributor, the network stated.

On Sunday, the former Secretary of State appeared as a panelist on Face the Nation with anchor Bob Schieffer, who announced the news. 

"Everybody knows that Condoleezza Rice was President Bush's Secretary of State, but I'm very pleased to announce that she has a new job as of today," Schieffer said. "She is joining CBS News as a contributor, we're honored to have you making your first appearance on CBS here on Face the Nation." 

Rice currently holds the position of professor of Political Science at Stanford University.

As a CBS contributor "the former Secretary of State will use her insight and vast experience to explore issues facing America at home and abroad," the network said in a statement.

Watch the Face the Nation announcement below:

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Kim Dotcom: New Site Is Legal, 'Fresh Start,' Not Revenge on Hollywood

SYDNEY - Indicted Internet entrepreneur Kim Dotcom formally unveiled his new file sharing and cloud storage service Mega in a press conference from his mansion near Auckland, New Zealand on Sunday, arguing that it was legal and made possible because of the shutdown of Megaupload.

STORY: Kim Dotcom's Letter to Hollywood

"This fresh start for Mega is a good thing,” the German-born, New Zealand resident said during the press conference, which was live streamed online ahead of what was billed as a lavish Sunday night launch party for the new site at his mansion.

He even argued that the downfall of his former website Megaupload made the new site possible. "It wouldn't have even been possible to do this," news organization Fairfax NZ quoted him as saying. "No one else who is currently in business in the file storage arena can just update their site and be like us, you have to start from scratch."

In an interview with Reuters, meanwhile, Dotcom emphasized that the new site launch was not meant to be revenge on Hollywood or U.S. authorities. "This is not some kind of finger to the U.S. government or to Hollywood," he said.

And he added: "Legally, there's just nothing there that could be used to shut us down. This site is just as legitimate and has the right to exist as Dropbox, Boxnet and other competitors," he said in reference to well-known cloud storage services.

STORY: Hollywood to Produce Kim Dotcom Documentary; Book in the Works

At one point during his Sunday press conference, Dotcom even said his goal was to list the new business, which uses the company name The Privacy Company, on the New Zealand Stock Exchange.

Ahead of the launch of Mega, the Motion Picture Association of America, which claims copyright infringement by Megaupload, remained skeptical.

"We are still reviewing how this new project will operate, but we do know that Kim Dotcom has built his career and his fortune on stealing creative works," the MPAA said in a statement cited by Fairfax NZ. "We'll reserve final judgment until we have a chance to take a closer look, but given Kim Dotcom's history of damaging the consumer experience by pushing stolen, illegitimate content into the marketplace, count us as skeptical."

The Mega site launched Sunday morning New Zealand time, and within several hours over 250,000 users had registered for the site, according to Dotcom. As the site went live, he tweeted: "As of this minute one year ago #Megaupload was destroyed by the US Government. Welcome to Mega.co.nz”.

Dotcom and several associates were arrested during a raid on his mansion in outer Auckland a year ago on charges of racketeering, copyright infringement and money laundering. The charges said that Doctom’s then-website, Megaupload, enabled Internet piracy and illegal downloading through its file sharing service.

Hearings about a possible extradition to the U.S. are due to be heard in New Zealand in March. Dotcom said Sunday he was hoping to stay in New Zealand if the extradition proceedings fail.

"My biggest fear is if we succeed, will there be an end - will that be enough to say, 'OK, we made a mistake, leave this guy alone' or will the people in government and the senior people in law enforcement take this defeat and be bitter about it and try and find something else,” he told the press conference.

The new Mega site has been designed by Dotcom and Mathias Ortmann, Bram van der Kolk, and Finn Batato, Dotcom’s co-accused in the Megaupload case, while industry veteran Tony Lentinos serves as the CEO.

THR COVER: Megaupload's Kim Dotcom: Inside the Wild Life and Dramatic Fall of the Nerd Who Burned Hollywood

Mega.co.nz, like Megaupload, allows users to store and share large files, providing registered users with 50 gigabytes of free storage. The key difference is an encryption and decryption feature for data transfers. The decryption keys for uploaded files are held by the users, not Mega, which means the company can't see what is in the files being shared. Dotcom can therefore argue that Mega can't be held liable for content it can not see, according to Fairfax NZ.

"Even if we wanted to, we can't go into your file and snoop and see what you have in there," the company says in an online introduction. “We are a dedicated group of technologists who were given the time, opportunity and Internet access to build an awesome cloud storage service that will help protect your privacy. We have programmed this Internet service from scratch in Auckland, New Zealand. Unlike most of our competitors, we use a state of the art browser based encryption technology where you, not us, control the keys.”

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Sundance 2013: Jim McGreevey Describes Public Resignation as a 'Trainwreck' (Video)

Asked to sum up his controversial resignation from public office, former New Jersey Governor Jim McGreevey has one word: "Trainwreck."

McGreevey is the subject of a new Sundance doc from filmmaker (and Rep. Nancy Pelosi's daughter) Alexandra Pelosi, Fall to Grace, which highlights his charitable efforts since stepping down as Governor in New Jersey in 2004, when he publicly came out as a homosexual and admitted to engaging in an extramarital affair with another man.

PHOTOS: Sundance 2013: 10 Hot Films Hitting Park City

"He's a recovering politician, I'm a recovering journalist," Pelosi said during a visit to The Hollywood Reporter's video lounge. "News is all about the planes that crash and we're all obsessed with the worst moment in people's lives, but what's more interesting is what he did after the fall, and how he managed to take the worst moment in his life and turn it around and use it for such good to help so many people."

Pelosi is referring to McGreevey's current work with female prison inmates, many of which are included in the film.

"All of us, myself included, would drive by prisons and jail and not look at the concrete or the barbed wire," said McGreevey. "When Alexandra said she not only wanted to look at my life and what I've done or not done, but most importantly, look at the women with whom I work -- this was a way of showing America through the largess of HBO and Alexandra's talents that people can reclaim their lives."

Fall to Grace premiered at the fest on Jan. 18 and will air on HBO on March 28.

Reporting by Stacey Wilson.

Email: Sophie.Schillaci@thr.com; Twitter: @SophieSchillaci

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Hollywood Watches as Kings Raise First Stanley Cup Championship Banner (Video)

The Kings beat the New Jersey Devils, four games to two, in June to win the franchise's first Stanley Cup.

It's been seven long, lockout-padded months since the Los Angeles Kings won the first Stanley Cup in their 45-year history, but the team and its rabid fans finally got to witness history Saturday. As the delayed and abbreviated 2013 NHL season got under way, the Kings' first championship banner was raised to the Staples Center rafters.

Hollywood hockey faithful including Jerry Bruckheimer, Alyssa Milano and Matthew Perry were part of the sold-out crowd that arrived early to bask in the Kings' first game as NHL champions.

STORY: Hollywood's Hockey Jockeys: How Industry Execs Are Lending Their Support to the L.A. Kings

How long has Los Angeles waited to raise a Stanley Cup banner? When the Kings first took the ice at the Fabulous Forum in 1967, Lyndon Johnson was president, gas was 33 cents a gallon and James Bond was on just his fifth movie mission. And sitcom star Perry -- who sat in a suite with injured Kings center Anze Kopitar and Hall of Famer Luc Robitaille, a longtime Kings great who's now the team’s president of business operations -- hadn't been born.

It was perfect SoCal hockey weather outside (75 and sunny) and jet-landing loud inside as the festivities began with a video recapping the Kings' dominant 16-4 run to the Cup in the spring. A number of celebrities offered testimonials in the clip including Will Ferrell, Steven Tyler, Hugh Hefner and L.A. icons Tommy Lasorda and Ice Cube. Following a tribute to longtime Kings public-address announcer David Courtney, who died in November, the ceremony kicked off with Emerson, Lake and Palmer's rousing "Karn Evil 9" (Welcome back, my friends, to the show that never ends...").

After the Kings players were introduced and received their ultra-bling championship rings, the rolled-up banner was presented to Kings captain Dustin Brown by Marcel Dionne and Rogie Vachon, longtime King greats from the purple-and-gold era, and 8-year-old Isaiah Marquez-Greene, whose sister Ana died in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting last month. It was a touching moment. A national NBC audience then watched as Kings fans -- both long-suffering and newly minted -- roared while the 15-foot-by-17-foot banner was unfurled and raised.

PHOTOS: The Best (and Worst) Hockey Movies: 'Miracle,' 'Slap Shot' and 'Mighty Ducks'

The visiting Chicago Black Hawks killed the buzz later, thumping the Kings, 5-2, but that didn't tarnish the fans' glee about the banner ceremony and the puck finally being dropped on the shortened 48-game season.

"Staples Center is incredibly excited to have hockey back," said Lee Zeidman, the venue's senior vp and general manager. "Last June was an amazing run by the L.A. Kings, and we look forward to them making another run to the Stanley Cup Finals to defend their title."

The Staples Center crew was hardly done for the day, though. As they set up for a Clippers game that night, the banner was moved from up near the overhead scoreboard to its permanent home on the wall near the retired jerseys of Kings legends Wayne Gretzky, Dave Taylor, Robitaille, Dionne and Vachon.

Here's a look at the banner being raised, as well as an NHL clip showing some of the celebrities at Staples on Saturday.

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The Lifeguard: Sundance Review

PARK CITY – For her feature directing debut, screenwriter Liz W. Garcia pegs her semi-comedic storyline to a wafer-thin premise about a woman returning to her hometown and attempting to re-experience her adolescence in all the wrong ways. Although a slight, overly contrived film, The Lifeguard will nevertheless strike chords with young women approaching and contending with their 30s. Theatrical distributors will certainly come calling on the basis of Garcia’s credits and the film’s casting, but converting those elements into box office returns could prove challenging.  

Leigh (Kristen Bell), 29 and mostly single, is an AP reporter who’s finding coverage of New York City metro news increasingly stressful, but it’s the revelation that her lover/editor/boss is getting married that prompts her to drop out of her job, return to her Connecticut hometown and move in with her parents, telling them “I just need some time out from my life,” much to their bemusement.

With a playbook that essentially consists of rewinding to her high-school years, Leigh gets a job as a lifeguard at the pool where she used to work back in the day, reunites with her BFFs – married Mel (Mamie Gummer) and closeted Todd (Martin Starr) -- and begins acting like a teenager again.

After meeting skater kid Jason (David Lambert), the sixteen-year-old son of the on-premises groundskeeper at the pool, Leigh and Todd convince him and his friends to buy them some pot and before you can say “kegger” the teens and adults are hanging out and partying together, propelled by Leigh’s youthful regression. Even straightlaced Mel, now the vice principal of their old high school, joins in.

Jason begins making his interest in Leigh fairly clear and they’re soon engaged in a torrid affair that essentially rewrites her personal history, replacing her virginal high-school years with a sexed-up reboot. Jason’s intent to drop out of classes and move to Vermont before the fall term starts forces Leigh to begin reconsidering her future as well, until an unexpected tragedy overturns everybody’s plans.

Surprisingly for a writer turned director, the most evident shortcomings with Garcia’s feature originate with the script. With barely any backstory to support them, the characters consistently appear to lack the motivations necessary for their actions. It seems highly implausible for adults with too much at stake and so little impetus other than getting high or getting laid to repeatedly engage in so much risky behavior with underage teens. Opportunities that could be better devoted to developing character or advancing the plot are squandered on repetitive montage sequences supported by forgettably lighthearted pop tunes.

As director, Garcia shows more decisiveness -- cinematography, coverage and editorial are all competently accomplished, but cast direction often wavers, unable to rise above the limitations of the script.

While Kristen Bell’s talent and charisma are clearly evident, she seems adrift with her character, since Leigh has no clear justification for abandoning her city life and career to return home, much less for initiating an affair with the teenage son of her coworker, clearly putting her newfound job at risk.  Lambert manages a believable chemistry with Bell, but can’t summon the appropriate teen swagger for the remainder of the part -- the rest of the cast mostly serves to drive inconsequential subplots.

With this perhaps semi-autobiographical film in the can, Connecticut native Garcia may find more consequential alternatives for exercising her considerable talents.

Venue: Sundance Film Festival, US Dramatic Competition

Production companies: C Plus Pictures, La Pistola

Cast: Kristen Bell, Mamie Gummer, Martin Starr, Alex Shaffer, Joshua Harto, Adam LeFevre

Director-writer: Liz W. Garcia

Producers: Joshua Harto, Liz W. Garcia, Mike Landry, Carlos Velazquez

Director of photography: John B. Peters

Production designer: Chris Trujillo

Music: Fred Avril

Editor: Elizabeth Kling

Sales: CAA

No rating, 94 minutes

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Foreign Box Office: 'Django Unchained' Unleashed Overseas, No. 1 With $48 Million

Making its overseas debut in 54 markets, Django Unchained grossed an impressive $48.1 million -- enough to earn the Oscar Best Picture contender film the weekend’s No. 1 spot on the foreign theatrical circuit.

STORY: Why Quentin Tarantino Isn't Concerned With Violence in 'Django Unchained'

Sony, which is handling Quentin Tarantino's movie overseas, calculates that Django opened 30% ahead of Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds, which generated slightly more than $200 million in total overseas box office, about 60% of its worldwide take.

Django opened No. 1 in at least 23 markets including the U.K., Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Belgium and Poland “even with much of Europe buried under snow this weekend,” said Sony.

Starring Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz and Leonardo Di Caprio, Django registered a mighty $9.6 million at 620 sites in Germany, a full two-and-a-half times the market opening for Basterds (Waltz, who also starred in Inglourious is Austrian).

In France, the take was $7.3 million at 612 spots and $5.4 million from 936 Russia situations, $4.8 million at 580 sites in the U.K., $4.3 million at 517 locales in Italy and $3.3 million at 470 situations in Spain.

Unchained takes over the No. 1 spot from Ang Lee’s Life of Pi, which had topped the foreign charts for the prior two rounds. This time, the Twentieth Century Fox release registered $20.7 million on the weekend playing at 7,944 venues in 66 markets and lifting its foreign gross total to nearly $400 million ($393.9 million).

Introducing itself to limited foreign audiences inauguration weekend was Lincoln, Stephen Spielberg’s historical epic that drew a dozen Oscar nominations.  A Spain debut generated $2.3 million at 344 sites, enough for a No. 2 market ranking.  In Mexico, the ranking was No. 3 with $729,391 elicited from 259 situations. In all, the film played three markets, drawing $3.3 million from 605 screens.

This is just the start of Lincoln’s international campaign. Distributor Twentieth Century Fox said the film opens in 19 foreign markets this week including Brazil, Germany, Italy, Russia and the U.K.

Universal’s Mama, director Andres Muschietti’s horror outing -- which opened No. 1 in the U.S. and Canada -- premiered in just a half dozen smaller markets, deriving $1 million from 181 playdates.  A Korea opening for the Jessica Chastain vehicle is due this week.  

Also kicking off its foreign campaign – a week before opening in the U.S. and Canada -- was Hansel and Gretel: The Witch Hunters, Paramount/MGM’s 3D co-production distributed overseas by the former.

With Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton portraying the title pair as bounty hunters, the film opened No. 1 in action-friendly Russia, grossing $7.3 million at 650 venues. Paramount said 98% of the action came from 3D locations. Hansel and Gretel, expands its overseas run by 19 territories this week including Brazil, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.

UniversalLes Miserables grossed $19.4 million on the weekend at 2,900 situations in 29 markets, pushing its foreign gross total to $150.5 million.  The musical opened No. 1 in Estonia, India, Indonesia, Norway and the Philippines.

Director Katherine Bigelow’s controversial Zero Dark Thirty, about the hunt for Osama Bin Laden has grossed $3.9 million over 17 days in Spain with the weekend providing $650,000 of the total at 242 playdates. Universal is handling the film in many overseas markets, and will open the Oscar nominee in the U.K., Finland, France and French-speaking Switzerland.

Paramount’s Tom Cruise action vehicle, Jack Reacher, is approaching the $100-million foreign gross mark ($98.8 million) after its fifth weekend of offshore play drew $11.8 million at 5,744 situations in 58 countries.  A South Korea opening generated $3.3 million at 415 locations, ranking No. 2 in the market.

Chugging along in its 12th round on the foreign circuit is Disney’s animation title,Wreck-It Ralph, which grossed another $8.2 million on the weekend from playdates in 60 territories. Foreign cume stands at $173.4 million.

Summit Ent.-Mediaset Espana’s production of The Impossible, distributed overseas by Lionsgate, has crossed the $100-million foreign gross mark ($106 million). Director Juan Antonio Bayona’s tsunami disaster epic costarring Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor drew $7.9 million on the weekend at some 2,700 venues in in 47 territories highlighted by a $1.9 million opening round in South Korea.

Universal’s smash comedy, Ted, finally reached Japan where it opened to $4.3 million on the weekend at 134 playdates.  It’s the final international stop for the film, which has grossed an international total of $289.4 million. Parental Guidance, Fox’s comedy costarring Billy Crystal and Bette Midler, pushed its foreign cume to $29.5 million thanks to a $3.9 million weekend at 2,690 spots in 34 markets.

Opening No. 2 in France was Pathe’s release of Alceste A Bicyclette (Cycling With Moliere), director Philippe Le Guay’s comedy costarring Fabrice Luchini and Lambert Wilson about two actors mounting a Moliere play.  Debut round generated $2 million from 340 playdates. 

Top foreign markets in 2012:The U.K./ Ireland remained the No. 1 foreign territory for the “big six” Hollywood majors in 2012, throwing off $1.9 billion in all, according to the Rentrak box office tracking service, a record year. The percentage accrued to American titles has not yet been disclosed but it is estimated at $1.4 billion.

China emerged as the second biggest foreign territory for the Hollywood majors, and the world’s biggest movie market last year outside the U.S. What’s more, according to figures disclosed earlier this month by Chinese film authorities, American product took an increasing share of theatrical box office there.

China grossed a total of $2.7 billion in 2012, a 28% increase over 2011, with imported films accounting for $1.4 billion or 54% of the market gross. (Hollywood majors’ share of that pot is estimated at about $1 billion.)

For the first time, domestic films represented less than half the market. (In 2007, local films accounted for 67% of China’s total.) 303 films were released (227 Chinese titles, many Hong Kong productions) and 76 imports (most from Hollywood), attributed to the larger number of imported titles (34 versus 20) as a result of the U.S.-China film agreement in February, which increased the number of imported titles allowed per year.

Chinese comedy, Lost In Thailand, was the market’s biggest-grossing release ($160.5 million).

According to preliminary estimates, Japan generated approximately $1.7 billion in total box office, with a strong component of high grossing, locally-made films. Of the top10 foreign markets in 2012 for the Hollywood majors, Japan is likely to rank eighth. U.K. is first, then China, Russia, Mexico, France, Germany (throwing off an estimated $1.3 billion in total), Australia, Japan, Brazil ($819.5 million) and Korea.

Other international cumes:  Fox’s Break Up Man, $10.3 million in Germany and German-speaking Switzerland; DreamWorks/Paramount’s Rise of the Guardians, $191.7 million (after a $2.5 million weekend at 2,669 sites in 49 territories); Universal’s Anna Karenina, $34.9 million; Sony’s Hotel Transylvania, $173.8 million (after a $2.8 million weekend in 34 markets); Universal’s Pitch Perfect, $42.2 million; Sony/MGM’s Skyfall, $737.6 million (after a $2.1 million weekend at 1,645 venues in 31 markets); Universal’s This Is 40, $3 million; and Universal’s ParaNorman, $49.3 million.

Opening this week:  Paramount’s Flight in seven markets including Italy and Sweden; Sony’MGM’s Skyfall bows in China beginning tomorrow (Mon.);

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'SNL' Mocks Lance Armstrong, Manti Te'o in Cold Open (Video)

Call it unfortunate timing for Lance Armstrong and Manti Te'o. The sports stars made major headlines the same week Saturday Night Live returned with its first episode of 2013, so naturally they became the targets of mockery during the show’s cold open.

First up, Armstrong (Jason Sudeikis) speaks to CNN’s Piers Morgan (Taran Killam). Mocking Armstrong’s real-life sit-down with Oprah Winfrey, Sudeikis’ take on the disgraced cyclist is arrogant, defiant, and only “sorry-ish” about the mistakes he had made.

VIDEO: 'SNL' Recap: Jennifer Lawrence Parodies 'Hunger Games', Slams Oscar Competition

When Morgan says some people were questioning the sincerity of Armstrong’s apology, the cyclist screams “Who said that? Who? They're liars! Those fat bitches!”

He then apologizes—sort of.

“A lot of the reason I just yelled was because of the cancer I had, which is not an excuse, unless you think it is,” Armstorng says. “The most important thing is I never, ever called anyone a fat bitch.”

In real life, one of the oddest moments from Armstrong’s OWN interview came when he insisted he never called his former teammate’s wife Betsy Andreu “fat,” even while admitting to calling her “a bitch.”

Morgan went on to interview Notre Dame star Manti Te'o (Bobby Moynihan), whose relationship with his girlfriend was revealed Wednesday to have been an elaborate hoax.

SNL’s take on Te'o portrays him as a supremely gullible man who still doesn’t get Lennay Kekua was fictitious.

VIDEO: Late Night Hosts Pile On Jokes About Manti Te'o's Imaginary Girlfriend 

“The sad fact is, I was the victim of a cruel and senseless hoax,” he says. “It’s even more devastating for my girlfriend, Lennay.”

When Morgan repeatedly tries to explain the hoax to Te'o, he still doesn’t get it, simply saying “Lennay is gonna be pissed.”

To round out the all-star cold open, Morgan brings on Jodie Foster (Kate McKinnon), whose Golden Globes speech made waves, as the actress came just short of coming out as a lesbian. On SNL, she begins to say words that sound like “gay” and “lesbian,” but turns them into “game” and “Leslie Nielsen.”

Email: aaron.couch@thr.com

Twitter: @AaronCouch

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Foreign Box Office: 'The Hobbit' Holds No. 1 Overseas For Second Straight Weekend

With minimal competition from new holiday releases on limited overseas breaks, New Line/MGM’s The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey cleaned up on the foreign theatrical circuit for the second consecutive weekend, bagging $91 million at more than 18,600 screens in 59 markets.

Director Peter Jackson’s fantasy epic -- of the first installment of the director’s $500 million trilogy based on the J.R.R. Tolkien novel – took a relatively benign dip of 34% from its opening round and has compiled a foreign gross total to date of $284 million.

Meanwhile, Paramount’s latest Tom Cruise action title, Jack Reacher, premiered in seven offshore markets including Turkey, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Lebanon, collecting an estimated $2.5 million from 365 locations – for a per site average of nearly $6,850. The film opens in some 25 markets this week.

Universal opened Les Miserables costarring Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe and Anne Hathaway at 348 playdates in Japan for a weekend total of $4.2 million for a per-location average of more than $12,000. The musical update opens domestically on Christmas Day.

Universal also opened director Judd Apatow’s comedy, This Is 40, at eight screens in Slovenia. Results will be reported by the distributor on Monday. The film’s international rollout begins in earnest early next year.

The Hobbit drew a mighty opening gross in Russia ($16.8 million from 2,129 venues including previews), taking 75% of the weekend market. Distributor Warner Bros. said that in Russia, 65% of the total box office came from 3D venues.

To underscore the growth in recent years of the Russian territory, the distributor noted that the weekend debut paced 313% ahead of the opening Russia gross of Jackson’s Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, released in 2003 and the biggest foreign grosser of the LOTR titles.

Third largest single market was the U.K. where the holdover tally was $9.1 million at 1,546 locations for a No. 1 market ranking. Germany contributed $12.6 million at 1,408 sites, also No. 1. France came up with a No. 1 tally of $6.7 million at 690 spots; while Spain drew $4.2 million from 1,010 situations, a dominant No. 1 in the market. (Separately, IMAX said The Hobbit grossed $3.9 million internationally on the weekend.)

Placing a distant second on he weekend was Twentieth Century Fox’s release of Life of Pi, the film version of Yann Martel’s novel about a young castaway and a Bengal tiger.

Directed by Taiwanese-born Ang Lee, the Fox 2000 co-production drew $23.2 million overall on the weekend (from 6,330 sites in 46 markets), buoyed by openings in 35 new territories. A No. 2 U.K. premier delivered $5.8 million from 1,074 situations. A No. 3 France debut came up with $2.9 million from 637 spots while Mexico registered $2.2 million at 1,074 situations. A fabulously successful China run ended with a market cume of $90.3 million.

Third was DreamWorks' Rise of the Guardians, which collected $13.7 million in its sixth round overseas from 6,251 locations in 60 markets. The Paramount release, a $145 million fantasy title featuring the voices of Alec Baldwin and Hugh Jackman, lifted its foreign gross total well past the $100-million mark ($142.9 million).

Sony/MGM’s Skyfall, the 23rd installment of the James Bond franchise, grossed $9 million from 71 markets handled by Sony and licensees of co-distributor MGM.

The third outing starring Daniel Craig as 007 has collected a total foreign gross of $694.3 million of which Sony-handled territories accounted for $607.1 million. Since its overseas opening on Oct. 26, Skyfall has accumulated more than $260 million more that the $432.2 total foreign gross of the previous franchise box office record holder, 2006’s Casino Royale, also starring Craig.

Wreck-It Ralph, Disney’s 3D family animation title, boosted its foreign take to $7.3 million its eighth round in 34 territories, and nudged its foreign gross total $67.6 million. Thanks to its strong domestic performance, the film has grossed a worldwide total of $239.5 million.

Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 from Summit/Lionsgate International finished the weekend with $6.6 million drawn from some 8,000 screens in 73 overseas markets. A Hong Kong debut at 40 sites generated an estimated $980,000.

The sequel’s foreign cume broke the half-billion mark ($513.2 million), making the fifth and final title based on Stephenie Meyer’s series of novels about a young woman (Kristen Stewart) in love with a vampire (Robert Pattinson) the franchise’s all-time offshore box office champ by a wide margin -- beating last year’s The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1, which collected $430.9 million.

Universal’s rom/com-musical Pitch Perfect grossed $6 million from 1,270 locations thanks largely to eight new market openings, the best of which was in Germany ($2.3 million at 387 spots, No. 2 in the territory). The film’s early international gross total stands at $20.1 million.

Top local language newcomer in France was Mars Distribution’s De L’autre Cote De Periph starring Omar Sy. The police caper about two mismatched cops assigned to a murder case drew $4 million from some 450 screens, sufficient for a No. 2 market ranking. The Weinstein Co. has domestic distribution rights.

Sony Animation’s Hotel Transylvania, a comedy voiced by Adam Sandler and Kevin James about a boy who discovers Dracula is real, grossed $1.6 million from 55 markets. The title’s foreign gross total stands at $164.6 million.

Other international cumes: Universal’s Anna Karenina, $19 million; Universal’s Colpi Di Fulmine, $3.5 million over two rounds in Italy only; and Universal’s Ted, $284.2 million. 

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'Project Runway: All Stars': Laura Kathleen on Her Elimination and Whether She Was Portrayed Accurately

Laura Kathleen was eliminated from Project Runway: All Stars this week, leaving only five designers in the running for the season two crown.

The 28-year-old from St.  Louis was cut after a challenge that tasked the designers with creating a 1920s-inspired garment for a specific event (e.g., afternoon garden party, evening social soiree or after-hours speakeasy), then facing off against one of their fellow competitors. Laura Kathleen went up against Uli Herzner and created a deep-red jumpsuit that her model wore under a black fur vest.

PHOTOS: 'Project Runway: All Stars' Season 2 Cast: Meet the Designers (Again)

While the judges mostly liked the jumpsuit, they weren’t as impressed with the vest and questioned Laura Kathleen’s decision to make yet another jumpsuit in the competition.

But on Friday, she told reporters in a conference call that she had no regrets about her final design.

“I love fur, and they didn’t, and I totally respect their opinion and see where they’re coming from,” she said. “But I would have loved to have a professional pleater in the room because of the size of the pants and if you know about the technique of pleating, it takes chemicals. … That was the only thing that bothered me.”

Laura Kathleen also appeared to be the source of some drama this season, seemingly not getting along with some of her fellow designers. But she said she doesn’t believe she was portrayed accurately.

“There was a lot from one contestant on the show that decided to talk about me a lot,” she said. “And then it would go to clips of me sitting there and making some facial expression that was supposed to pertain or be a testament to what people were saying, but I really enjoyed All Stars. I actually enjoyed the people and became [friends with them]. If I were a catty person, I wouldn’t have made the friends that I did.”

STORY: Mondo Guerra Recaps 'Project Runway All Stars': Flapper or Flopper?

Laura Kathleen also took issue with the fact that she was portrayed as a “rich girl.”

“I am starting my own business. … And if anybody knows how starting businesses is, it’s tough,” she added.

Asked who she’s hoping wins season two of All Stars, Laura Kathleen praised each of the final five designers, a group that includes Uli as well as Anthony Ryan Auld, Ivy Higa, Joshua McKinley and Emilio Sosa.

Next up, Laura Kathleen is expanding her jewelry line, Love Armour, and is aiming to offer an affordable clothing line that will launch in fall 2013.

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TV Ratings: 'Fringe,' Christiane Amanpour Special Lead Quiet Friday

Four nights before Christmas and little was stirring on television. Fox and ABC, the two networks airing the night's few original broadcast, shared an extremely soft Friday with a 1.0 rating among adults 18-49.

ABC, which also led in viewers with 4.8 million, followed comedy encores with ABC News special Back to the Beginning With Christiane Amanpour (1.1 adults).

Also leading with an encore, Fox aired on of the scant remaining episodes of Fringe (1.0 adults). It was down just a tenth of a point from last week. Fox averaged 2.7 million viewers.

Dateline (0.8 adults) followed encores on NBC. The broadcast was down significantly from last week (2.0 adults), which saw viewership swell for the hour devoted to coverage of the Sandy Hook shooting. NBC averaged 4.4 million viewers.

Three back-to-back repeats of The Good Wife averaged a 0.6 adults rating and 4.1 million viewers on CBS.

Christmas specials pulled a 0.6 adults rating and 1.8 million viewers on The CW.

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Holiday Box Office: Tom Cruise's 'Reacher,' Judd Apatow's 'This is 40' No Match For 'Hobbit'

Traffic was sluggish at the multiplex on Friday as a crush of new movies -- including Tom Cruise's Jack Reacher and Judd Apatow's This Is 40 -- competed with one another for the attention of moviegoers already distracted by holiday preparations.

Peter Jackson's The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey beat both new films to stay at No. 1, grossing $10.2 million for an eight-day domestic cume of $123.3 million.

Jack Reacher, based on Lee Child's popular book series, earned $5.1 million to come in second and is anticipating a $15.4 million weekend. Paramount and David Ellison's Skydance Productions co-financed the $60 million film, about a tough ex-military investigator.

Cruise's film drew an older crowd, with 61 percent of the audience over the age of 35. The majority of those turning out on opening day cited Cruise as the reason for going, according to CinemaScore exit-polling data. Christopher McQuarrie, who penned the script for Valkyrie, also starring Cruise, directed.

Apatow's This Is 40, a sort-of sequel to Knocked Up, placed No. 3 Friday with $3.7 million for a projected $13 million weekend. Starring Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann, the R-rated pic received a B- CinemaScore.

PHOTOS: Todd McCarthy's 10 Best Movies of 2012

The weekend before Christmas often is slow at the box office; conversely, movies can go on to enjoy unusually strong multiples because of many people being off of work and out of school through New Year's Day. Paramount insiders are hopeful that the A- CinemaScore for Jack Reacher means the film ultimately will earn five to seven times its opening gross.

However, overall revenue for this weekend is expected to be down by as much as 19 percent from last year, when Cruise's Mission: Impossible -- Ghost Protocol and Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows topped the chart.

The 2012 Christmas box office officially got underway last weekend with the debut of New Line and MGM's Hobbit. On Wednesday, the Barbra Streisand-Seth Rogen comedy Guilt Trip and the 3D rerelease of Pixar's Monsters, Inc. both opened.

Guilt Trip, likewise from Paramount, grossed roughly $1.5 million on Friday for a three-day cume of $3.5 million. Costing $40 million to produce and co-financed by Skydance, the movie is expected to gross $5 million for the weekend and $7 million for the five days. Even with a strong multiple, Guilt Trip is a disappointment.

Monsters, Inc. grossed $1.4 million on Friday for a three-day cume of $2.9 million. The rerelease was beaten by fellow family film Rise of the Guardians, which grossed $1.6 million on Friday to place No. 4 for a domestic cume just north of $75 million.

Opening in previews Friday was Andrew Adamson's Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away. The 3D film, distributed by Paramount, grossed roughly $800,000 from two showings in 800 theaters and earned an A CinemaScore. It expands nationwide on Christmas Day.

At the specialty box office, Kathryn Bigelow's Zero Dark Thirty remained strong after opening in five theaters in New York and Los Angeles on Wednesday (Sony expands the film nationwide on Jan. 11). The drama recounts the CIA's decade-long hunt for Osama bin Laden and the Navy SEALs raid that culminated with his death.

Zero Dark Thirty, which is rankling lawmakers and government officials because of its scenes of torture, grossed $115,000 on Friday for a screen average of $23,095 and a three-day total of $344,000.

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Phone Hacking Scandal: Hugh Grant Settles News of the World Claim

LONDON – Hugh Grant has settled his claim against Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. publishing division News International, winning substantial damages.

The actor's solicitor told The Guardian he plans to donate the undisclosed amount of cash won to Hacked Off, the organization fighting for stricter press regulation.

Grant, the public face of the campaign and a director, secured the damages payout after the News Of The World phone hacking scandal fallout.

Murdoch's News Group Newspapers, the News International subsidiary, published the Sunday tabloid until its closure last year.

STORY: Jon Stewart: I'll 'Never' Ask Hugh Grant Back on the 'Daily Show'

Grant's solicitor Mark Thompson told The Guardian his famous client will donate the money to the Hacked Off campaign for press reform, of which he is a prominent backer, along with an additional personal donation.

"Hugh Grant has today settled his claims for damages and other legal remedies arising out of the unlawful activities of News of the World journalists and others over a number of years," said Thomson in the newspaper Friday. "News Group Newspapers have agreed to pay him a substantial sum by way of damages. He has instructed us to donate all of his damages plus an additional payment from him to the Hacked Off campaign for a free and accountable media. This will be done as soon as payment is received."

Thomson said a statement would be made in open court "shortly in the new year."

Grant was one of 178 people suing the publisher in a second wave of civil litigations lodged in the high court this autumn.

He is among more than 20 people who have settled their claims out of court since October.

Grant first mooted the possibility of legal action over phone hacking in May last year after he said he was shown evidence by police that his phone had been hacked.

The actor appeared before the Leveson inquiry into media ethics last year and told the judge that hundreds of celebrities and actors would forgo damages and apologies if newspapers would "just make an undertaking never to mention their names again."

Grant also fronted a Channel 4 documentary about the tabloids on the eve of the publication of the Leveson report in November and has subsequently pledged to campaign for a new press law until the general election in 2015.

He said the Hacked Off campaign was "going nowhere, and will go nowhere and will be there for the forseeable future to ensure there is no cosy stitch-up for the eighth time running."

"They are not going to turn the face against the united views of the public who are very clearly on our side and on the side of the victims," he added.

Murdoch closed down The News of the World in July last year as the phone hacking scandal engulfed it.

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Anti-Donald Trump Billboard Circling Macy's Headquarters (Photo)

An online campaign urging Macy’s to fire Donald Trump is hitting the streets.

On Saturday, a mobile billboard attached to a truck began circling Macy’s corporate headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio, as well as a nearby department store. In New York, another mobile billboard began circling the company’s flagship store in Herald Square. 

The mobile billboards are the latest gambit of Dump Trump, a petition from the liberal group MoveOn.org, which has gained nearly 680,000 signatures since launching last month. The petition charges Trump with making “sexist” and “racially charged” comments, which organizers say go against Macy’s social responsibility policy.

STORY: NBC Sticks With Donald Trump, Resilient Pitchman

“There is a gap between what Macy’s brand is and what Donald Trump’s brand is,” protest organizer Angelo Carusone tells The Hollywood Reporter.

The new billboards feature photos of a classic Santa Claus next to an aggressive-looking Trump, as well as the words “Bring back the old Macy’s. Dump Trump.” The campaign is asking the retailer to stop carrying Trump’s line of clothing and fragrances and stop using him in ads.

“Macy’s says they are a cut above the rest. They appeal to everyone’s nostalgia. They inject themselves into our culture and our holidays,” says Carusone. “We don’t think [Trump] represents the values they espouse.”

Macy’s has stood by Trump, saying through a spokesman last month “Macy’s marketing and merchandise offerings are not representative of any political position.”

NBC has also indicated it will stick with Trump as it prepares to launch another season of his Celebrity Apprentice in March. Carusone says he would consider taking similar action against NBC, but has not made up his mind.

"I am certain there's strong public sentiment for an action like that. But, I am still evaluating its potential," he says.

Carusone hopes the mobile billboards will make Macy's see Trump as a liability rather than an asset, and says he will likely organize protests at future Macy's events.

PHOTOS: The Top Celebrity Political Twitter Commentators

“The thing they have to be thinking about is what happens with Donald Trump’s next inevitable flair up,” Carusone says.

He cites as an example Trump’s much-talked about election night Twitter tirade, in which he called for a march on Washington and said the U.S. was being “laughed at” for reelecting Obama.

“The simple reality is Donald Trump will say something just as awful, negative and attention-grabbing as that” he says.

The billboards will run through Christmas Eve during peak shopping hours.

Macy’s has not responded to THR’s request for comment. We will update if it does.

Email: Aaron.Couch@thr.com

Twitter: @AaronCouch

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Box Office Report: 'The Hobbit' Overshadows New Movies From Tom Cruise, Judd Apatow, Barbra Streisand

While The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey held onto the box office ring this weekend, North American moviegoers didn’t exactly rush to open the new films entering under Hollywood’s pre-Christmas tree. Jack Reacher, the Tom Cruise action movie, opened in the second slot to an estimated $15.6 million, while Judd Apatow’s latest comedy This Is 40 bowed in third place with $12 million. The Guilt Trip, the mother-son comedy starring Barbra Streisand and Seth Rogen, lagged behind in the sixth spot with a tepid $5.39 million.

Launching with an exclusive release in just five theaters, Zero Dark Thirty, Kathryn Bigelow’s controversial film about the hunt for Osama bin Laden, racked up big numbers, collecting $410,000 for a per-theater average of $82,000.

PHOTOS: The 8 Studio Picks for Best Picture Oscar

While the final weekend before Christmas is traditionally slow as movies compete with holiday preparations, the box office is expected to pick up on Christmas Day, and for the new films that could mean stronger-than-usual holds which could boost their ultimate domestic grosses.

Hobbit, as it entered its second weekend, easily claimed the top position. The Warner’s release, which is playing in a combination of 4,100 2D, 3D and Imax locations, grossed $36.7 million, dropping 57 percent from its opening weekend as it cumulative domestic gross rose to $149.9 million. Internationally, the movie took in $91 million, bringing its collective worldwide purse to $433.9 million.

STORY: Reviews of 'Jack Reacher,' 'This Is 40,' 'Zero Dark Thirty' and More

Reacher, based on Lee Child’s popular book series, appealed to older males as it carved out a position at the box office, earning an A- Cinemascore. The PG-13 rated Paramount release, written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, and produced by the studio and Skydance Productions at a cost of $60 million, opened in 3,352 theaters in line with such other Cruise entries as 2002’s Collateral Damage (which bowed to $15.1 million and went on to gross $40 million domestically) and 2008’s Valkyrie (which opened on a Christmas Day, grossing $21.02 million in first weekend, with an eventual take of $83.1 million.) “I think the movie found a sweet spot,” said Megan Colligan, Paramount president of domestic marketing and distribution. “It’s has the action-hero quality that older men love and has a great opportunity to bring in teenage boys as the audience expands.”

By contrast, 40, which stars Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann, was playing to older females. Universal compared the performance of the R-rated domestic comedy, which earned $12 million in 2,913 locations, to such pre-Christmas December bows as 2000’s Family Man and Miss Congeniality, which both opened to $10 million. “I knew if we could get $10 million, and we did better than that, then the box office for the movie would just get better and better after Christmas Day,” Nikki Rocco, Universal distribution president, said.

PHOTOS: Todd McCarthy's 10 Best Movies of 2012

Trip, a PG-13 comedy directed by Anne Fletcher, has a tougher road ahead of it. The movie did open on Wednesday, which siphoned some business away from its $5.4 million weekend as it played in 2,431 locations, and its cumulative gross now stands at $7.4 million.

Pixar's 2001 hit Monsters, Inc. returned to theaters this weekend in a new 3D version. The Disney rerelease picked up $5 million and ranked seventh. Its five-day total is $6.5 million.

Paramount also used the weekend to introduce Cirque Du Soleil: Worlds Away, a 3D feature directed by Andrew Adamson and exec produced by James Cameron that presents performances from various Cirque stage shows. While the PG film bowed in 840 theaters, at each it played just two shows per day at noon and 7 p.m. for what the studio characterized as a paid preview. On Christmas Day, it will begin full screening schedules at the participating theaters. This weekend, it took in an initial $2.1 million and ranked eleventh.

Rounding out the top ten: DreamWorks Animation's Rise of the Guardians, with the benefit of its holiday-themed storyline, hung on in fourth place, attracting an additional $5.9 million to bring its domestic total to $79.7 million; DreamWorks' Lincoln was fifth with $5.6 million and a new tally of $116.8 million; MGM and Sony's Skyfall ranked eighth with $4.7 million, bringing its domestic gross to $280 million as its worldwide tally climbed to $974.1 million; Fox's Life of Pi was ninth with $3.8 million and a domestic haul of $76.2 million; and Summit's Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 was tenth with $2.6 million and $281.6 million domestically.

Overall, the weekend's collective box office, at about an estimated $107 million, was soft, with a number of the films competing for adult moviegoers who probably won't show up in bigger numbers until Christmas Day and beyond. 

Among exclusive releases, though, there was lots of activity, with Zero selling out many showings at the five theaters where it is playing in New York and Los Angeles. "It's a fantastic result for an extraordinary movie," said Rory Bruer, Sony president of worldwide distribution. Having opened on Wednesday, Dec. 19, the film has now grossed $639,000. It will expand to limited release in 11 markets on Jan. 4, followed by a wide expansion on Jan. 11.

Sony Pictures Classics also found lots of takers for Michael Haneke's French-language drama Amour, which also bowed Dec. 19. Over the weekend, it grossed $70,662 in three theaters for a per-theater average of $23,554 and a total gross-to-date of $100,213.

The Impossible, Juan Antonio Bayona's feature about a family separated by the 2004 tsunami that stars Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor, was launched by Summit in 15 theaters. It took in $138,750 for a per-theater average of $9,250.

Paramount Vantage raised the curtain on David Chase's Not Fade Away, a look back at a '60s garage band, in three theaters, where it collected $19,000 for a per-theater average of $6,333.

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Class Action Suit Brought Against Byron Allen’s Entertainment Studios

A class action suit was filed Friday against Byron Allen’s Entertainment Studios and affiliated entities for breach of contract, unfair business practices and for not paying some employees the wages they say they were due.

The lawsuit in L.A. Superior Court was filed on behalf of the class by Bernadette Pauley and Thomas Clark, who say they were among hundreds of actors and comedians who worked for Comics Unleashed Productions on the syndicated show Comics.TV.

STORY: Byron Allen’s Entertainment Studios Launches Legal Digital Network

Pauley says she hosted four episodes of Comedy.TV and that Clark performed as a stand-up comedian in at least one. They say they signed a contract that provided them with a salary and residual payments. Although their union and agents told them they were entitled to residuals, the defendants allegedly stalled and did not pay.

The suit claims that the show went on to success, not only in syndication, but also on a digital cable channel, Netflix, Verizon Fios and elsewhere. “Standing on the shoulders of the show's achievement, defendant Byron Allen Folks and his affiliate entities have been catapulted to celebrity status and enjoyed great success,” says the suit.

The performers also claim in the suit that they had expenses related to air travel, car rentals, wardrobe and gasoline but were not repaid what they were owed, which is a violation of the labor code of law.

The suit estimates there are 112 actors and comedians who performed on the show.

There was no response to a request for comment from the publicist for Entertainment Studios.

View the full complaint here.

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Gun Advocates Ask Obama Administration to Deport Piers Morgan

Thousands of gun rights supporters are petitioning the Obama administration to consider deporting CNN’s Piers Morgan, arguing the gun control proponent is using his position as a TV news host to wage war on the Second Amendment.

“British Citizen and CNN television host Piers Morgan is engaged in a hostile attack against the U.S. Constitution by targeting the Second Amendment,” reads the petition. “We demand that Mr. Morgan be deported immediately for his effort to undermine the Bill of Rights and for exploiting his position as a national network television host to stage attacks against the rights of American citizens.”

PHOTOS: 20 Biggest Political Players in Hollywood

The petition has attracted more than 11,000 signatures since its creation Friday. It was posted on the White House’s We the People website, which allows users to create a petition which will receive a review by policy makers as well as an official White House response should it gain 30,000 signatures within 30 days.

Writing on Twitter Saturday, Morgan seemed amused by the petition, and responded to a number of people asking him (not so politely) to get out of America. 

It's 'your' > RT @timothy14511: @piersmorgan nothing but a constitution hating commie...go back and stay in YOU'RE country not mine

— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) December 22, 2012

Like Mrs Lanza did? > RT @bwinger go back to England you freedom hating douchebag. Why don't you want to protect your family with firearms ?

— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) December 22, 2012

Morgan also got into a tiff with British business mogul Alan Sugar, who tweeted to Morgan that he has a U.S. Visa but keeps mum about his opinions while in the country. Morgan responded by calling Sugar a “coward," for not expressing his views.

STORY: Piers Morgan, Bill O'Reilly, Joe Scarborough Take on Gun Control After Newtown

Morgan ultimately thanked the U.S. citizens who had not signed the petition, joking it was a sign they supported him.

“6,600 Americans have currently signed the petition to deport me - meaning 311,993,400 clearly want me to stay,” he tweeted, back when the number of signers was lower. “Thank you.”

Morgan became the focus of the petition after clashing with gun rights advocates on Piers Morgan Tonight following last week’s school shooting in Connecticut. On an episode airing hours after the killings, Morgan asked a gun advocate guest “How many kids have to die before you guys say, ‘We want less guns, not more?’”

Watch video of the exchange below.

Email: Aaron.Couch@THR.com

Twitter: @AaronCouch

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Playboy India Bunny Costumes Revealed Ahead of Club Launch

Say "namaste" to the Playboy bunny.

In a first for Hugh Hefner's iconic brand, the Playboy bunny costume has been specially retailored for India ahead of the planned launch of the first Playboy Club in Goa early next year.

The costumes were previewed in Mumbai Wednesday by foreign models at a star-studded event which featured top celebrities including Bollywood stars Akshay Kumar and Imran Khan, among others.

“Playboy engaged New York-based fashion designer Mohini Tadikonda to re-style the iconic Bunny costume while preserving the core elements of the traditional costume. With a two-piece bodice and the addition of the sari and sheer skirt, the accessories for the Bunny costumes – ears, cuffs, collar, bow tie and the signature Bunny tail – stayed the same. This new costume is a celebration of India’s rich culture and the Americana of the classic Playboy Bunny Costume,” said a company statement.

STORY: Sherlyn Chopra Becomes First Indian to Pose for Playboy

“The goal was being respectful of Indian culture,” added Matthew Nordby, Playboy Enterprises Inc. senior executive VP and chief revenue officer.

The original Playboy Bunny costume was co-designed by Hefner in the 1960s.

“Revealing outfits are frowned upon in this country. If you watch Bollywood films, you will see women dressed in far sexier and in more revealing outfits,” Sanjay Gupta, CEO of Playboy's India licensee PB Lifestyle, was quoted stating. While the bunnies are all foreign to start with, Gupta added that “we are open to hiring Indian women too.” 

Earlier this year, Bollywood starlet Sherlyn Chopra became the first Indian to pose nude for Playboy.

In November, Playboy Enterprises announced its licensee pact with Mumbai-based PB Lifestyle, which has plans to open more than 120 Playboy formats covering a mix of retail outlets, clubs, hotels and fashion cafes over the next 10 years.

In addition, Playboy merchandise will also be a strong focus area for India given that products branded with the iconic bunny rabbit logo are sold in more than 25,000 stores in 180 countries. PB Lifestyle has earmarked an investment of $38 million (Rupees 2 billion) over the next five years to launch the Playboy brand across multiple formats. However, there are no plans yet of launching a Playboy magazine here.

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Kurt Sutter, Shawn Ryan Blast AMC Over 'Walking Dead' Showrunner Exit

Former Shield writers/exec producers Kurt Sutter and Shawn Ryan took to Twitter on Friday to voice their support for friend and former colleague Glen Mazzara after the showrunner parted ways with AMC's The Walking Dead.

AMC on Friday announced that its ratings juggernaut The Walking Dead would return for a fourth season -- and without Mazzara, who became the second showrunner to exit the zombie drama in as many years.

STORY: AMC Renews 'The Walking Dead' for Fourth Season; Showrunner Glen Mazzara Departing

"Both parties acknowledge that there is a difference of opinion about where the show should go moving forward and conclude that it is best to part ways," AMC said in a statement. "This decision is amicable, and Glen will remain on for postproduction on season 3B as showrunner and executive producer." (Filming on season three already has concluded, with the second half of episodes set to return to AMC in February.)

Sons of Anarchy creator Sutter took to Twitter late Friday to voice his support for Mazzara and blast AMC -- which has a history of rocky relationships with its showrunners.

"AMC is run by small-minded, bottom-line thinkers who have no appreciation or gratitude for the effort of its creative personnel," Sutter wrote. "Time and time again we see events like what happened today with Glen Mazzara. They continue to disrespect writers, shit on their audience and bury their network. Mazzara took the work-in-progress that was Walking Dead" and turned it into a viable TV show with a future. Without him, that future is dim. Showrunners are not development executives, we're not cookie-cutter douchebags that you plug into a preexisting model. TWD will suffer. Even zombies need consistency. Mad Men and Breaking Bad will be gone soon. So will AMC. I hope their fucking stock takes a dive and the shareholders line up [AMC president and CEO Josh] Sapan, [AMC parent Cablevision founder Charles] Dolan and [AMC president and GM Charlie] Collier and shit in their open hands. Cunts."

PHOTOS: 'The Walking Dead's' Most Shocking Deaths

Sutter's comments come more than a year after the showrunner quit Twitter following his vocal support for former Walking Dead showrunner Frank Darabont, whom Mazzara replaced. Sutter, in August 2011, wrote: "No one else wants to fucking say it, but the greed of Mad Men is killing the other two best shows on TV -- Breaking Bad and Walking Dead," added Sutter, referring to AMC's then-protracted negotiations with Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner and Breaking Bad showrunner Vince Gilligan.

Ryan, meanwhile, broke a holiday-timed Twitter silence to express his concern about whether Mazzara's departure would hurt AMC in the long run.

"Breaking my Twitter silence to comment: AMC, WTF?" Ryan wrote.

"Common knowledge that AMC cut Breaking Bad shorter than it should have been. Now you have creative differences w/ biggest hit's savior?" he added.

"With FX, Showtime, HBO, Starz, Cinemax, A&E, TNT and others to sell to, it's a real question now why good show runners should sell to AMC?" he concluded before returning to Twitter silence.

Banshee and House EP GregYaitanes also voiced support for Mazzara, writing: "Yo. @AMC_TV what are you doing with@WalkingDead_AMC by canning another great voice???"

What do you think about Mazzara's departure? Hit the comments with your thoughts. 

Email: Lesley.Goldberg@thr.com; Twitter: @Snoodit

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Sam Champion, 'Good Morning America' Weather Anchor, Marries Partner

Sam Champion has married his partner, Brazilian fine arts photographer Rubem Robierb.

The two tied the knot Friday afternoon at the Good Morning America weather anchor's apartment in Manhattan, People.com reports.

The ceremony was officiated by New York State Supreme Court Justice George J. Silver before guests including GMA's Robin Roberts, Lara Spencer and Josh Elliott. Roberts, in recovery from a bone marrow transplant this fall, read a poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. (According to the New York Post, she wore a "fitted red dress" and Robierb's mother and sisters Skyped in via Brazil for the occasion.)

STORY: Sam Champion Is Gay, Getting Married

Back in October, ABC announced Champion's engagement after a New York Times article about MSNBC anchor Thomas Roberts' wedding quoted Champion making first public mention of the impending nuptials. It was a low-key coming-out, akin to when The Big Bang Theory Emmy winner Jim Parsons acknowledged that he's gay, the mention of which was buried in a Times story.

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