Scarlett Johansson

For those of you who are wondering why there were three questions on karaoke in the last article, it’s because karaoke is very big in Japan. Well, so much for that trivia, here’s the next part of Scarlett Johansson’s interview in the Sofia Coppola film:

On how Director Coppola made her agree to wear only underwear for a part in the film:
I’d been eating so much Udon, I just thought, “Oh my God, I’m so not going to look decent in these underwear.” I really didn’t want to wear those underwear because I was so bloated from eating all of this Udon all of the time. She was like, “Well you know, it’d be nice if you could wear these underwear,” because that was what was written in the script. And she was like, “But I understand if you’re uncomfortable.” She said, “Why don’t I try these on for you? You could see how they look. Just see how they look and if you don’t want to do it, then of course, you don’t have to.” I was like, “Alright, that’s a pretty good deal.” And of course, Sofia is lanky and skinny, [with a] very sort of elegant body and so she looked fantastic in the underwear. That’s how she got me to wear them.

On playing a woman five years older than her age: I don’t know. I guess I didn’t really think about it that much. The only time that I was really aware of it was when I was putting on my wedding band. Other than that, you think about it and it’s like, “Five years here, five years there. No big deal.” The only prep that I really did was with Giovanni. We did two days of rehearsal just so that you can get a feel of some kind of marriage between us, so that wew weren’t just meeting for the first time and going, “Lets get into bed now,” and that kind of thing. [To also capture] that sort of dynamic that comes with marriage where you love the person and at that time, you’re in different places.

I just watched Lost In Translation last night, and so I got inspired to research on the movie. Actually, it has received rave reviews on the festival circuit and its young star, Scarlett Johansson, is one of the central reasons the film’s being so well-received.

Okay, in essence, in Sofia Coppola’s movie, Scarlett stars as Charlotte, a photographer’s wife who tags along with her husband, played by Giovanni Ribisi on assignment in Japan. Being uncomfortable and lonely (her husband tends to leave her alone for long periods of times) in a new country, Charlotte strikes up a friendship with fellow insomniac Bob Harris, played by Bill Murray, who is a big American movie star in Japan filming a commercial.

Here’s an interview that Scarlett did:

On filming in Japan: It was very fun. We were working so much that I didn’t have much time to do much other than on my day off. I slept and went shopping and ate Japanese food, but I really wished that I had more time to really experience it because I hear that if you know a lot of people that are there, you can really uncover a lot of great things that are hidden in the hustle and bustle.

On going for karaoke: We did karaoke. [Besides] the karaoke that we shot, we did karaoke the day before we started shooting.

On what she sings during karaoke moments: Once I start getting rolling, I’m all over [the place].

On whether there are Britney Spears songs in her karaoke repertoire: Britney Spears I just like to make fun of. Not actually her, but her body of work. Actually, I sound great singing Britney Spears, but I do a great Cher impression.

Ryan Reynolds does not like being called a “sex god” or anything remotely related to being a “hunk” image in Hollywood. So, in his desire to get rid of the image, he has decided to bury himself. Yep, I mean, literally “buried.”

Ryan is taking the lead in “Buried,” an independent thriller directed by Rodrigo Cortes according to a report in Variety.

The actor will play a civilian contractor who is living and working in Iraq. After being kidnapped by some unknown forces, he awakens in a coffin buried in the desert, left with only a cell phone, a candle and a knife. Now I know that it’s not exaclty original since it’s not the first “buried alive” story and it won’t be the last, but I do feel that there’s just something about the being “buried alive” concept that triggers up the claustrophobic in all of us.

The running plot of the story is precisely why Ryan decided to take the part. An underground struggle for survival will allow the actor to really strecth out his acting skills beyond his witty persona in The Proposal or his scandalous wiseass character in Van Wilder and X-Men:Wolverine. He’ll also be the only man onscreen for most of the film, which brings its own set of challenges. What better way to earn some indie and acting credibility than to carry a movie all by your self?

The script was written by relative newcomer Chris Sparling, and will begin filming next month in Cortes’ native Barcelona.

Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock’s romantic comedy, The Proposal opened strong. Moviegoers weren’t able to resist the pull of the movie as they helped make it a hit with $12.4 million gross, which marked the best opening ever for Sandra. The figure is nearly double the result of her previous 2007 movie, Premonition, which earned only $6.3 on its first day.

Battling for second place were two raunchy comedies: Harold Ramis‘ prehistoric and poorly-reviewed Jack Black-starrer, Year One and the summer’s unexpected hit, The Hangover, which dropped a mere 18% from last Friday. Both movies tallied approximately $8.5 million on Friday, but early estimates give a slight lead to Year One.

Disney/Pixar’s Up continued its remarkably gradual descent, falling only 31% in its fourth week for a gross of $6.1 million. Friday’s figures are below:

1. The Proposal — $12.4 mil
2. Year One — $8.5 mil
3. The Hangover — $8.47 mil
4. Up — $6.1 mil
5. The Taking of Pelham 123 — $3.2 mil

Over the weekend, The Proposal already pulled in $24 million. So while this seems to be the biggest film of the weekend and the buzz is good, a $24 mil gross would have to be considered a sizable success.

Anyways, for this movie, Sandra Bullock and EW’s new cover hunk Ryan Reynolds, play two coworkers who decide to marry to avoid her deportation to Canada. Ryan plays the harangued assistant to Sandra’s demanding boss character.

To put things in a little perspective, box office-wise, despite his multiple attempts, Ryan has yet to break out as a box office king with him in the lead (Wolverine starred popular actor, Hugh Jackman as the lead, and not Ryan). On the other hand, Sandra, though still an undeniably popular star, has never had a movie open north of Premonition’s $17.6 mil two years ago, which, come to think of it, is her last before The Proposal.

Ryan Reynolds’s wit and humor shone through in his interview with Entertainment Weekly, in which they discuss a little on the media circus involving Jon and Kate Gosselin.

Ryan says that he want to “see Jon & Kate Plus Eight: The Musical. Jon versus Kate. I wanna see four kids on one side and four kids on the other, snapping menacingly to music as they walk toward one another.”

I guess that his humor is one of the things that got Scarlett Johansson to say “Yes” to him, in spite of his text message proposal.

Ryan is busy with his movie career this year, having recently starred in the action movie, Wolverine with Hugh Jackman and romantic comedy, The Proposal, with Sandra Bullock.

“I’ve always just liked working. I like being a working actor”, he says. “There’s an old saying that you don’t ever finish a movie, you abandon it, and I really believe that.”

“I never walk away from a take and pat myself on the back. You always walk away going, ‘Dammit, I should have tried this!” he continues. I really think that this is a good thing for actors. Because in thinking this way, he shows that he does love his craft and he’s always striving to make it better.

“It’s that possibility that keeps me coming back for more,” he finishes.

Among the Canadian actor’s “musts,” Ryan admits he’s a fan of A&E’s “Intervention.”

“The first season or two is all about alcoholics and heroin addicts, but then as the seasons progress, they feel the need to sensationalize it a bit,” Ryan says of the show.

“So by Season 5, you get to people who are chemically unable to experience joy unless they’re smoking a cat, or something equally disturbing. I love it,” he said.

Ryan Reynolds has really gotten popular, ever since the release of Wolverine, and now, his new romantic comedy with Sandra Bullock, The Proposal.

For those of you who do not know, Ryan is in four (read that, four) Entertainment Weekly covers, and two of them show him sans his shirt. Hmmmm, I think that Ryan’s trying to make a few body temperatures heat up more this summer.

Anyways, regarding his shirtless cover shoot, he joked with David Letterman that he had just one cocktail, and then somehow he found himself missing his shirt. Typical Ryan Reynolds wit and humor.

Recently, he’s being looked at as a “sex symbol” to which Ryan says is “embarrassing.”

In an interview for EW when asked about what he feels being labeled as a “sex symbol”, he says that, “I think I fear more than anything just sounding like a complete a-hole when I have to answer that question. If you take any of that seriously, you need to be euthanized, ASAP.”

The Canadian actor, tops EW’s must-list as a leading man who is, “simply too smart and self-aware to be so good-looking.”

I think that one more factor on why Ryan is being seen as a sex god of some kind is because of the fact that he is married to the very sexy and beautiful actress, Scarlett Johansson, a relationship he is tightlipped about in the press other than to call it “fantastic.”

Anyway, his movie with Sandra Bullock, The Proposal premiered at #1 at the box office Friday, knocking The Hangover off its perch and handily besting the poorly-reviewed Jack Black and Michael Cera comedy Year One. Which in itself is pretty impressive for a “chick flick” up against two “dude flicks”.

Oooohhhh…Looks like Scarlett Johansson may have another movie project lined up.

Rumors are flying around that ScarJo is being considered for the female lead in a remake of “The Bride of Frankenstein,” a popular 1935 horror film. This new updated version is set to be directed by Neil Burger.

According to another unnamed source, “The Bride of Frankenstein will be young this time. They’re looking for a person with great power and sex appeal. Someone along the lines of Scarlett Johansson or Anne Hathaway.”

But we shouldn’t hold our breaths for too long, because according to Scarlett’s publicist, Marcel Pariseau, the rumors are just that, rumors. At least, they are still that now. He told the Dish Rag, “She has not been approached for this project. If anything changes, I’ll let you know.” Oh, please do.

As early as now, there are already some very positive and excited comments on Scarlett Johansson playing the hot female monster.

The Envelope writer, Elizabeth Snead of the Los Angeles Times blog says, “We hope it comes to pass. We could totally see Scarlett doing the wild-haired bride originally played by English actress Elsa Lanchester, right. She could certainly carry off that enormous up-do with aplomb.”

For all of you who were too young to remember, much more see the movie, Dr. Frankenstein makes a hot mate for his Frankenstein monster, but when she’s up and animated, she rejects the ugly fella.

Just one thing though. If Scarlett plays the bride of Frankenstein, it would really put her real-life hubby, Ryan Reynolds, who is certainly no ugly Frankenstein. In fact, they’re polar opposites.

On the previous post we’ve learned about the friendship that Scarlett Johansson’s husband, Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock prior to their movie, The Proposal.

Today let’s find out more about the long time pals as they dish out their experience doing the movie together. Here is the second installment of the two’s interview with People.

On the film’s ‘naked’ scene:

Bullock: I’d never done one before. [To Reynolds] You?
Reynolds: I’ve done a couple where I’ve … yeah, a little bit.
Bullock: Were they like sex scenes?
Reynolds: I don’t think I’ve ever done one that wasn’t supposed to be funny.

On being comfortable with each other:

Reynolds: I wasn’t grazing at the snack bar without pants.
Bullock: Next to [costar] Betty White.
Reynolds: Yeah, I didn’t go have lunch with Betty.

Now that they seem to get to know each other pretty well, People also asked some pop questions for these two to answer for each other.

On each other’s choice of drinks:

Bullock: Whiskey – an old-school man drink.
Reynolds: Sandy will drink a glass of red wine. And not like the crazy expensive kind.

On what each other take with their coffee:

Bullock: He takes his with cream or milk.
Reynolds: She’s a green tea girl.

On the experience working together:

Reynolds: This kind of chemistry and fireworks … there’s nothing you can do to manufacture it, or edit it together. It’s just there or it’s not. And to have that every day was literally like driving a Ferrari around on set.

This sure is one interesting team up for a romantic comedy flick, right? Something I would really go catch in theaters.

Source

Now before you jump into conclusions there, let me make it clear that Ryan Reynolds is still very much married and in-love to his wife, Scarlett Johansson. So what does he and Sandra Bullock have laid in public now? – Their friendship.

Yup, for those of you who didn’t know, ScarJo’s husband and Sandra Bullock are long time pals that they even went on a vacation together with their respective partners, Scarlett Johansson and Jesse James.

And from friendship these two are pairing up for a romantic comedy flick entitled, The Proposal. So talking to People about their friendship and their latest film, Ryan and Sandra dish out some interesting facts. Here are some highlights of the interview:

On Ryan’s changes due to fame:

Bullock: The person I met years ago [through a friend] is the same person sitting next to me now. No change in the humility, talent, kindness. He could’ve become an ass—-. But not a damn thing has changed, other than that his bikes get more expensive.
Reynolds: I think you have to start that way. Fame only amplifies a certain disposition.
Bullock: I agree. Unless you’re a child in the industry and that’s all you know. That’s a sad, sad thing.
Reynolds: There’s nothing worse than hearing a 6-year-old demand Voss water. I’ve seen it.

On why they get along including their other halves:

Reynolds: [To Bullock] I love that your marriage – and forgive the ineloquence here – is not for sale.
Bullock: We’re very similar in that way. There’s an honor and a level of integrity that exists in their home that I really admire … [To Reynolds] I’m just happy you found a good human being. They both take excellent care of each other and they’re honorable, beautiful people.

Now I know that’s a bit too short of an interview. I’m actually cutting it into two parts to keep your interest. So stay tuned for the next post.

Source

A few months back, I wrote an article about Scarlett Johansson and a non-profit organization called Soles4Souls. Soles4Souls is a nonprofit organization which donates shoes to the less fortunate. CEO and founder, Wayne Elsey established the association because of the 2004 Asian tsunami disaster. From Old Hickory, he and the Wilson brothers, Nelson and Paul, came up with 250,000 pairs of shoes for the survivors. When Hurricane Katrina struck, they also put up a similar effort, which established Soles4Souls as a nonprofit organization.

Anyway, Scarlet Johansson is one of the celebrities who is barefoot and proud as part of their second annual Barefoot Week, which is a charity initiative of Soles4Souls. When she first joined the organization, Scarlett donated 2000 pairs of shoes from her Reebok line.

Now, the 24-year old actress is encouraging everyone to join in the cause.

“If you can’t dig deep in your pockets, then dig in your closet!” said the He’s Just Not That Into You star.

“Americans can make a huge difference with Soles4Souls by donating shoes. Souls4Soles gives away a pair of shoes every 13 seconds in over 125 countries, with over 55 percent donated to fellow Americans,” she continued encouragingly.

Okay, so to help encourage you to donate, especially for those of you living in the States, here’s how you can help donate gently worn or new shoes:. Raid your closets and bind each pair with rubber bands. You can then drop them at the nearest participating location or to a Soles4Souls warehouse facility.

The people from the organization then sorts the shoes based on size, type, and gender.

Ryan Reynolds may be handsome and hunky, but that did not stop the actor from getting nervous when he proposed to his wife, Scarlett Johansson. Apparently, ScarJo’s tongue-tying effect also affected him, so much so that he proposed via a text message.

It looks like he struggled with the words so much that he didn’t think that his speech would work for him if he did a personal face-to-face proposal, so he took the safer way out. Personally, I don’t think that this is a romantic proposal, but hey, it worked! They got hitched, didn’t they?

In one rare moment of divulgence, Ryan spoke about his proposal with ET’s Mary Hart, which he says is kind of a “blur.” Wow, the guy proposed to one of the hottest young actresses in Hollywood, and it somehow seemed to be a blurry experience.

Anyway, Ryan had one very good advice when making a proposal, “Never ask a question unless you’re absolutely sure of the answer,” which he says is the concept behind his proposal to Scarlett. And apparently, he got this from trial lawyers. Go figure!

“It is the best evasive tactic I could come up with on short notice.” he joked, clarifying his statement.

But what was the thing that he struggled most in his proposal? “The hardest part was to compress all of that love, all of that joy into just one text message. And then it was just hitting send.” And after he hit that button, I’m willing to stake money that he spent a few nervous moments before she answered.

Well, lucky for him, Scarlett loved him so much and was willing to be his wife, even if the proposal is one of the most unromantic ones I’ve ever heard of. Not that I heard about a lot. But still, the proposal is not what matters: it’s their married life that should be one romantic, happy, and memorable experience. Go ScarJo and Ryan!

First-timers in the cosmetics scene, D&G borrowed Scarlett for their first ads, hoping that she can help make a good sale on their make-up line. Spanish brand Mango, on the other hand, decides for the American beauty in their US expansion, replacing Spanish beauty, Penelope Cruz for their endorsements:

Dolce and Gabbana – D&G makers and designers decided to expand their franchise in 2009 to make-up, and tapped the actress to be their cosmetics line’s endorser. Now, L’Oreal is also a make-up line that ScarJo endorses, but theirs is a mass-tier brand, so her endorsement with the luxury brand’s cosmetics don’t really conflict with each other. Scarlett has been their endorser for too short a time for us to judge whether her flawless face helped the brand or not.

Mango – Well, I just couldn’t leave this out, can I? Let’s take a look at their decision to hire Scarlett as their brand endorser. Now, you might think, as did I, that Penelope Cruz would be the perfect brand endorser for them. Why? Because Mango is a well-known Spanish clothing line (and a good and famous one at that), and its foray into US soil has already started with a store in New York and a flourishing e-commerce available for American customers, with Penelope up front. Why change to Scarlett now? Well I guess that they’re hoping that she will bring more American girls to buy the clothes. And besides, they did say that Scarlett embodies the “urban, independent and cosmopolitan woman.” And I have a premonition that this could work out well for them.

Last year showed an increase in endorsements for our dear Scarlett Johansson, spanning from Reebok, to luxury brand, Louis Vuitton, and popular champagne brand, Moet and Chandon. Let’s see if her endorsement helped rise or sink their sales.

Reebok – This is perhaps, her only unsuccessful brand collaboration. The Horsewhisperer actress worked together with the popular shoe brand to design a ser of activewear and to star in advertisements for the brand. A short year later, the athletic company decided to drop their deal with the actress and to try their luck with some other celeb. But while it may not be lucrative for the company, Scarlett apparently liked the experience so much that she wants to start designing more shoewear herself. Hmmmm, let’s see if her designs are any better than those designed by Reebok.

Louis Vuitton – This brand marked her first tentative steps into the luxury market. On the fall of 2007 and spring of 2008, Scarlett Johansson campaigned for the handbag and accessories of the famous luxury brand, Louis Vuitton. Again, she was a hit because by the end of her contract, the brand’s annual sales rose from 5.6 billion euros to 6 billion euros worldwide.

Moet and Chandon – This is the first time that the champagne brand signed on an actress to be their endorser earlier this year. LVMH decided to sign the young actress on after she wrapped up her LV deal. The company’s ads were one of the last showing Scarlett Johansson in her bubbly-colored hair before she dyed it into a much darker shade of reddish brown.

As I’ve mentioned in the previous article, we will take a closer scrutiny on the brands that Scarlett Johansson has endorsed. It seems that she is one of those actresses whose endorsements are pleasantly diverse. Okay, so let’s take a look at some of the brands and companies that Scarlett endorsed in her younger years:

Calvin Klein – Scarlett Johansson, who was then still 19 years old, but fresh out from her popular role in the movie, Girl with a Pearl Earring, was tapped by this famous brand to do a black-and-white (maybe this was her interpretation for her debut directorial flick?) television commercial for the reinterpretation of their Eternity fragrance. Eternity Moment, thanks to the ad, became a success! The sales of the scent contributed to the company’s biggest sales growth for a number of years. It was also one of the best financial years in latest history for its parent company, Philips- Van Heusen.

L’Oreal – Two years later in 2006, another giant company asked Scarlett to endorse their products. This deal has been the longest-running one for ScarJo, and one of the most lucrative; she is paid $3 million a year to lend her gorgeous hair, skin, body, and hair for commercials. The make-up and hair behemoth apparently is happy with the results – L’Oreal showed a sales increase of more than 5% in cosmetics in 2006, Scarlett’s first full year as the spokeswoman for the makeup collection, HIP.

It seems that everyone wants a piece of Scarlett Johansson. From cologne, to make-up, to hair products, to champagne, and cologne, now, a clothing line company is set to join in the ScarJo endorsements bid.

The Spanish fashion giant, Mango has won the approval of our dear Miss Johansson to start endorsing their brand for the Fall/ Winter 2009/2010 catalog. ScarJo will be taking over for Penelope Cruz, her Vicki Christina Barcelona co-star, who has been the brand’s celebrity endorser for the past four seasons.

A spokesperson for the Mango clothing line has revealed that they chose Scarlett because she is an “extraordinary personality, fun, young. She’s Mango’s ideal urban woman, independent and cosmopolitan.”

The 24-year old actress is already busy shooting for the new advertising campaign with famous photographer, Mario Sorrenti. In one session, she is photographed in a leopard-print fur coat with a short blonde bob hairstyle. Hmmm… I wonder if PETA is going to run after her for this picture?

In yet another picture session, the actress is seen lounging on a leather coach in tight black jeans, a black skimpy top, looking uber sexy. She is also snapped slumped against a gritty urban wall wearing a black satin pencil skirt, leopard print top slashed to the waist, with what looks like a black bra.

Oh well, I for one can’t wait to see how the pictures turn out! I’m sure that she’ll portray the “independent and cosmopolitan” woman that Mango is angling for. Go Scarlett and show the clothing fashion world what you’ve got!