Anderson recruited George Clooney, Meryl Streep, and Bill Murray to voice the characters from Roald Dahl's cherished kids' story. Though it looks a little jerky, there are some lush visuals. Take a look!

Ok, time for some real talk! With Aquatic Life and Darjeeling Anderson's once precious characters became irritating because they lost their spontaneity — whimsy is not a substitute for insight, you guys. But maybe Fantastic Mr. Fox will force Anderson away from the smug hipster trope and we'll be able to fall in love with him again. Unless of course, there is a romantic subplot involving a pan-ethnic possum who shows Mr. Fox the true beauty in an mundane life. Booo!

The person I most want to meet before I die, Meryl Streep, will be honored yet again, this time by the Rome Film Festival. Italians will grin and puff cigarettes and clap a lot for the grand dame as they give her their funnily named Marcus Aurelius lifetime achievement prize. You'd think that getting the same kind of prize at the Coolidge Corner Theatre would be satisfaction enough in life (it should be! place is awesome!) but I guess it's not. [Variety]

Oh, that's nice. People are still giving 90's driftwood Stephen Dorff movie work. He'll play a "legendary" (read: old) porn star in that Adam Sandler-produced movie about a guy (Nick Swardson, he of the rollerskates on Reno: 911!) who finds out that his parents were in the adult (read: sweaty teen boy) film business. [Variety]

Remember when Robert Rodriguez was maybe going to be this bigtime director, this whiz-bang creative mastermind in the vein of his buddy Quentin Tarantino? Well, that never really panned out, and so he made Spy Kids and then that horrible Grindhouse installment (the thing about funny homages? They need to be funny), and now he's making a movie based on a fake trailer that aired during that schlockathon. Machete is about an ex-Federale who has a beef with the gubmint. Danny Trejo will probably not star in this one. Oh, and he's also doing a Predator reboot. So. [Variety]

Oh she must be hitting it big! The actually quite funny on SNL Michaela Watkins will be playing that coveted by comediennes best friend role in a romantic comedy. She'll buddy up to Jennifer Lopez (who's still making movies! good for her! A for effort!) in The Back-Up Plan, about a lady and a baby and sperm donoring or something. [THR]

Swoon. The ridiculously attractive (if charmingly pretentious) Joseph Gordon-Levitt has replaced the ludicrously attractive James Franco in Christopher Nolan's next film, Inception. Pic stars Leo DiCaprio, Marion Cotillard, and lesbian Hollywood's vice-president, Ellen Page. The funny thing is, I want him to get more famous? Because he's great? But also? I don't want him to? Because then my embarrassing crush will be shared by millions? I'm a sad person? [THR]

As Winfrey revealed to a shocked Meryl Streep, she lobbied aggressively for the Doubt role that eventually went to Viola Davis (and is a sure lock to secure Davis an Oscar nomination). According to Winfrey, Shanley listened to her pitch, then turned her down with a flat "no." Unsure what his word usage meant, Winfrey consulted confidante Gayle King, who instructed an intern to inform Oprah that this meant she would not be receiving the part. As a stoned, Keanu Reeves-channeling Streep says from her Skype-enabled college dorm room, "Whoa." Indeed. [Oprah]

Speaking to fellow Oscar-winner Whoopi Goldberg about the icky mechanics of awards-season campaigns, Streep makes an impassioned plea for the good old days — that halcyon era of a generation ago, when Academy Awards were something that tottering old ladies arbitrarily bestowed on crap like Ordinary People, Dance With Wolves, Driving Miss Daisy and Streep's own Kramer vs. Kramer for no reason besides their own middling taste. Goldberg clearly agrees, proving her immunity to those tacky campaigns by overlooking "first-timer" Adams's 2005 nomination for Junebug. But we don't hold it against Whoopi; in fact, if there's room for us under her rock, we wouldn't mind moving in with her for a couple months. [The View]

"Grand Mamma Mia! I like it! I'm up for doing a sequel, as long as you can get those fabulous boys - Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgard and Dominic Cooper - back!"

"It's so gratifying that it has been this phenomenon around the world. It says there's an audience for something that appeals to a lot of women - something that might make them some money too!"

As happy as we are that Streep is back on top, the idea of a Mamma Mia sequel — let alone one that's limited to the roughly four ABBA songs left untouched by the original film — feels like it could be her Waterloo. Let's not subject poor Pierce Brosnan (or America) to a poorly warbled, shirtless rendition of "When I Kissed The Teacher."

• Meryl Streep enjoys the ride back up [LAT]

• Meryl Streep Wants Mama Mia Sequel Role [Female First]

A more formal strike authorization will be sought from SAG's 120,000 members in the weeks ahead, but as Sharon Waxman hinted late Monday, when Hollywood royalty gathers secretly to help drop-kick the industry into another winter of chaos, what's really left to vote on?

They met in the private room of an Italian restaurant, like in a scene from one of the Godfather movies: Warren Beatty, Jack Nicholson, Meryl Streep, Nick Nolte, Annette Bening — about 20 of Hollywood’s great stars from the past 30 years. ... These top stars were called together last month by Screen Actors Guild president Alan Rosenberg to give the thumbs up – or thumbs down – on a strike, according to one person who was present, speaking on condition of anonymity.

They were given slips of paper to write down their views as to how or why a strike should or should not occur. Their verdict, according to my source: the guild should move toward a strike.

A spokeswoman for SAG said that the guild has had frequent meetings with high-profile actors to discuss a possible strike. "We have met with high profile actors on sets and elsewhere to discuss various issues throughout our negotiations," said Pam Greenwalt. "We do not publicize the meetings nor do we release details."

We've seen them choose sides before and imagine their allegiances/practices haven't shifted much since then. Still, secret meetings? Italian restaurants? Slips of paper? This easily calls for a whole new set of SAG Strike Apocalypse MadLibs™.

UPDATE, 11/26: Nikki Finke soundly triumphed in her industry-gossip rematch with Waxman, following up with a report exposing the meeting as a fabrication. Waxman has retracted her story. Anyone up for a Watchmen tussle for these two after the holidays?

• FAMOUS STARS GIVE THUMBS UP TO STRIKE IN SECRET MEETING [WaxWord]

After the jump: Which new dad is going to wish they never even heard the name David O. Russell in a matter of months?

· ABC won the night with the Three Hours of Country Music Industry Auto-Fellation You'll Never Get Back Again Awards. [Variety]
· Matthew McConaughey's life is about to be made a living hell by director David O. Russell in The Grackle, about a "barroom fighter in New Orleans who hires himself out for $250 to settle disputes." He then dispatches a couple of walleyed Malibu surfers to beat the shit out of the warring parties. [Variety]

The sing-a-long edition makes it easier — and in fact encourages audience members — to sing along with the characters, and their fellow audience members, in effect contrasting those pre-show public service announcements scolding that silence is golden. The lyrics to the songs are displayed in bright, colorful letters at the bottom of the screen.

At a preview screening of the sing-a-long edition earlier this week — probably apropos to nothing, the same night Hillary Clinton gave her speech at the Democratic National Convention — a crowd of mostly women, many around age 50, seemed tentative at first to give it their all, but relaxed and seemed a little more comfortable with the concept toward the end of the screening. If they had sold shots of ouzo at the concession stand, that might have helped, quite frankly.

Hence the rumored, BYOB Mamma Mia! The Drink-Along Version planned for re-re-release some time this fall, with viewers receiving limited-edition shot glasses and instructions for concocting the deliciously fruity (if slightly bitter) new cocktail "The Brosnan." Or maybe that one's just better suited for DVD.

• With this 'Mamma Mia,' you can sing, if you dare [NC Times]

Even at our pre-teen peak point of flexibility, we couldn't pull this off a move like this on our trampoline. And somehow, we imagine that even after hitting the gym hard for the next few months, we can't see ourselves be able to do this move today, let alone at age 58. Meryl, you have always been, and will always remain, our hero.

[Photo credit: Peter Mountain via Daily Mail]

• MAMMA MIA! MERYL STREEP DOES MID-AIR SPLITS AT NEARLY 60 IN SCENES FOR NEW MOVIE [Daily Mail]

De Niro joked that by the time the Film Society of Lincoln Center invited him to speak at its annual gala tribute, the program was already filled out and he should just contribute some anecdotes. "But I don't have any!" he complained to his Deer Hunter co-star, seated with Mike Nichols, Robert Redford, Amy Adams, Uma Thurman, Christopher Walken and other luminaries in a box above the stage. "I don't have any details of fun things you used to do. We didn't go to the high school prom together, though that would have been fun. I don't think we ever sneaked into [Deer Hunter director] Michael Cimino's trailer to play a practical joke. That could have been fun, too. I don't remember sleeping together, but..." De Niro shrugged.

Oh, snap! He was unstoppable. "It was nice to see that clip from The Deer Hunter, though I was kind of hoping they'd show Marvin's Room or Falling in Love because I'm pretty sure most of you haven't seen them." Pow! Zing! "That's OK, though — Meryl and I will be selling DVD's in the lobby after the show.

"I was very fortunate to be in these three films with Meryl, which means I'm in every 60 or show movies that she does.

"I was honored that the organizers of this event asked me to say a few words, though I did notice they waited until I had already bought a ticket."

De Niro later recalled first seeing Streep on-stage in The Cherry Orchard, which led to him and Cimino recruiting her for The Deer Hunter. Then he got on another roll; we figured we should probably film this one.

"Meryl was wonderful," he said. "She's just wonderful. And I would do anything to be in another movie with her. That brings me to another [thing]: There's a great part for a Meryl Streep-type in a new movie I might be doing. Meryl, your agent isn't returning my calls. They warned me there would be consequences for leaving CAA. So I thought maybe if we talked after the show? I don't know if the ticket I bought gets me into the after party, so if I don't see you later, let me tell you how proud I am to be here tonight." But no prouder than your new family at Endeavor is today, Bobby! Way to knock 'em dead!

While we respect the near-seismic impact of the film's Broadway source material and its iconic star, we're especially interested in the backloaded allusions to Streep's character's licentious past. By "allusions," we mean her half-hearted denial of "sleeping with hundreds of men," or her friends' cheeky amusement at her charming history of looseness, or her spread legs in the foreground of a shot featuring the panty-melting trifecta of Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgard. Additionally, the accompanying melodic drone isn't even ABBA, but rather something akin to American Idol ABBA, one degree and two volume notches removed from tuneless cruise-ship ignominy. Are we the only ones missing the discriminating taste (or at least the genetic coding) required to think this was a good idea?

• Mamma Mia! [Universal]

At least initially, the actors are opting for a minimalist, all-text design for their ads, but should their message not result in the immediate commencement of informal chats, we hope they go for something a little more ambitious: perhaps a two-page spread depicting a laughing Clooney and Iger enjoying some cigars and glasses of whiskey as they watch a streaming Ocean's 13 on a nearby laptop, with the campaign's catchy JUST TALK tagline illustrating how merely getting in the same room for a loosey-goosey bullshit session is a low-stress, crucial first step to hammering out a deal.

[ad via Digital Variety]

Actor Kiefer Sutherland made $23 million for playing government agent Jack Bauer on his hit show 24, while police officer Kevin Weaver, 40, of Concord, N.C., earned $64,000 last year. Actress Ellen Pompeo, 37, who plays Dr. Meredith Grey on Grey's Anatomy, earned $5 million last year, while medical resident Jennifer Beller, 26, of Palmyra, Va., took in $45,000. Registered nurse, Toby Acosta, 28, from Birmingham, Ala., earned $76,000.

Meryl Streep, who played a merciless magazine editrix in The Devil Wears Prada, brought home a tidy $8 million in 2006. Real life magazine editor Roberta Pacht, 32, of New York, N.Y., made $55,000. Actor Steve Carell, who plays insufferable office manger Michael Scott on The Office, earned $9 million, and real-life office manager Patricia Reichard, 55, from Naples, Fla., brought home a mere $29,000. Similarly, chef and TV host Rachael Ray made $6 million last year, while Tyler Mitchell, 55, a personal chef from Albuquerque, N.M., earned $67,000.

While the dismal salaries of America's working class are discouraging when juxtaposed against obscene celebrities earnings, we'd caution to wait just a few weeks for the release of Parade's annual playing-field-leveling "How People Feel" report, when you'll be comforted to learn that Kurt Sanderson, a professional birthday clown and balloon-animal craftsman from Galesburg, Il., registers overall satisfaction numbers in the high ten digits, compared to an anemic total of 27 in the same category for celebrity counterpart Jim Carrey.

• [Parade.com]

· Meryl Streep was just thrilled not to receive a flaming bag of poo on her doorstep: "I am thrilled in a way that no one can possibly imagine. It's extraordinary that anyone in the actor's branch is even speaking to me, never mind nominating me yet again. I'm very, very grateful." [THR]
· Little Miss Sunshine writer Michael Arndt was in semi-disbelief, saying, "It's crazy. I was just thinking that exactly two years ago in January 2005, I gave up that this film would ever get made." Sunshine's success has earned Arndt a full-time writing gig at Pixar, where he's learning quickly of the pitfalls of succes, having been typecast as the resident VW bus specialist.

Cruise next will star in "Lions for Lambs," a Robert Redford-directed drama that will co-star Redford and Meryl Streep.

Pic will be his first outing for United Artists since he and C/W partner Paula Wagner agreed to revive the shingle for Harry Sloan's MGM.

"Lambs" is a Matthew Carnahan-scripted drama that consists of three interconnected storylines: Cruise as a congressman who interacts with a journalist (Streep); Redford as an idealistic professor who attempts to inspire a privileged student in his class; and a third storyline about a pair of American soldiers wounded in enemy territory, one of whom is Redford's former student.

It's a shrewd, if ultimately safe, choice for Cruise, who's apparently decided that the best course of action for a comeback sure to be mercilessly scrutinized is to surround himself with Oscar-winning human shields. Should the project meet with eventual failure, he can deflect any critical bullets by shrugging and asking, "I don't know why the movie didn't connect with audiences. Why don't you ask the people with all the fancy awards?"

• Cruise's UA tames 'Lions' [Variety]

Meryl Streep is narrating a pair of children's classics, "The Velveteen Rabbit" and "The Night Before Christmas," that will be released later this year as audiobooks at Starbucks coffeehouses. [...]

After an initial four-month run at Starbucks, Random House Inc.'s Listening Library will give the recordings a general release.

With their last Hollywood tie-in, Lionsgate's Akeelah and the Bee, having underperformed at the box office, Starbucks is turning to the much safer terrain of time-tested material. Should the children's audiobooks prove to be best sellers, look for the coffee chain to expand their series of "America's most celebrated actors reading books kids already love" to include such titles as Al Pacino is Thumbelina and Sean Penn's gripping reimagining of The Steadfast Tin Soldier as a thinly veiled anti-Iraq war allegory.

• Streep to narrate Starbucks audiobooks [Yahoo/AP]