Grace, Thirlby are 'Lonely'

Paul Weitz has recruited film thesps Topher Grace and Olivia Thirlby for the upcoming Off Broadway preem of his new play, "Lonely, I'm Not," at Second Stage. Grace, making his legit debut, stars as a post-flameout business prodigy, while Thirlby is a businesswoman he meets as he begins to rebuild his life. Trip Cullman ("Bachelorette") helms. Both thesps have previously worked with Weitz on bigscreen projects. Grace co-starred in the writer-helmer's 2004 pic "In Good Company," while Thirlby ("Juno") -- who appeared in the Off Broadway bow of "Farragut North" in 2008 -- is among the cast in Weitz's "Being Flynn," the Focus Features release hitting theaters Friday. Weitz teamed with Second Stage on preems of his plays "Trust," "Show People" and "Privilege." He's also worked with Cullman, who directed the scribe's 2004 Off Broadway outing, "Roulette." Further casting for "Lonely, I'm Not" remains to be locked in. Show begins previews April 10 ahead of a May 7 opening. Contact Gordon Cox at gordon.cox@variety.com

'Descendants' Co-Authors Jim Rash And Nat Faxon: In Which You Know Them From

by Joel Hanek Inside a meme which will surely rival The Bronx Cobra in lasting relevancy, Angelina Jolies right leg grew to become joke fodder for the net after Best Modified Script award those who win Jim Rash and Nat Faxon resembled Angies lunging pose after accepting their honours. Should you thought individuals men with Alexander Payne that came on stage having to pay tribute/playfully mocking Angelina look familiar, thats because youve most likely seen them within their acting roles. Former Groundlings, Faxon and Rash did lots of comedy roles through the years - and believe me, when I only say a great deal, I am talking about a great deal. No stranger towards the popularity of Community, Jim Rash is really a series regular from the NBC sitcom as Principal Dean Pelton. To become fair, you might haven't recognized him in the beginning while he was putting on a tuxedo instead of his usual entrances in drag. Nat Faxon might not be a marquee reputation for movies, but when you browse the men IMDB page you won't be required to scroll lower far before you decide to recognize youve seen his face a minimum of a six occasions: "Super Military," "Beerfest" and much more (Im a fan of his moments in Oc myself). Additionally to that particular, Faxon has been doing his number of commercial work. For instance, take his role because the alcoholic philistine within this Bud Light ad. That's it: the Faxon/Rash mystery solved! Appreciate joining us for an additional episode of, Hey, look, individuals men! Have you recognize Rash and Faxon last evening? Inform us within the comments or on Twitter!

Pilot Season: Dennis Quaid and Michael Chiklis to Star in CBS' Cowboy Drama

Billy Crystal, The 84th Annual Academy Awards It's almost here! The 84th Academy Awards are taking place Sunday. Let's face it: Hollywood's biggest night can be overwhelming, but don't worry! TVGuide.com and TV Guide Network have you covered so you won't miss a single moment.Starting Sunday at 4 p.m. ET/1 p.m. PT, you can catch our Academy Awards Preview, featuring interviews with nominees and experts' picks for who will take home the gold.Check out last year's Oscars fashion hits and missesOur Academy Awards Red Carpet Countdown will follow at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT with hosts Maria Sansone and Tim Kash, who will give viewers a sneak peek of the early action outside the Hollywood & Highland Center.At 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT, Chris Harrison will host Academy Awards Red Carpet, where he will interview the biggest stars and nominees as they make their way down the red carpet. TVGuide.com will simultaneously stream Fashion Cam coverage of the celebrities' arrivals, and fans will be able to discuss their favorite looks via Facebook and Twitter.During the Oscars telecast (8:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. PT on ABC), you can follow along as we live-tweet the whole show. Among the scheduled presenters: Halle Berry, Bradley Cooper, Tom Cruise, Cameron Diaz, Chris Rock, last year's acting winners Christian Bale, Melissa Leo, Colin Firth and Natalie Portman - and even The Muppets, Kermit and Miss Piggy.Check out all of last year's Oscar arrivalsFinally, we'll bid adieu to awards season on Monday at 8/7c with our Academy Awards Red Carpet Fashion Wrap. Ali Landry and her team of experts, including Tabatha Coffey, Camille Grammer and Nick Verreos, will discuss the night's best and worst fashions and name the best dressed star.

VIDEO: Smash Star Megan Hilty States Ivy Can Do Everything to Win the Role of Lana Turner

Megan Hilty and Debra Playing What measures will Smash's Ivy Lynn visit win negligence Lana Turner? "She's dying to produce that next factor and she's ready to do nearly anything to make it happen,In . Megan Hilty notifies TVGuide.com. "Lots of people [also called Ivy] go somewhat farther than these.In . Decoding Mount McPhee: Can it be a Smash spoiler? Hilty stars inside the NBC series opposite Katharine McPhee, who plays Karen Cartwright, an ingénue also competing for your coveted role. "You'll uncover who'll have it first soon,Inch Hilty states, emphasizing the word "first" and implying that that casting is probably not permanent. "The main one factor about producing a musical is that you could and you'll be exchangeable really quickly." Watch below: Smash airs Mondays at 10/9c on NBC.

Adele's '21' wins album of the year at Grammys

AdeleThe Foo FightersChris BrownRihannaThe Beach Boys and Maroon 5's Adam LevineTaylor SwiftTony Bennett and Carrie UnderwoodJennifer HudsonAlicia Keys and Bonnie RaittThe Vegas oddsmakers were right: Adele was a sure thing at this year's Grammy Awards.Further cementing her nascent superstardom, the English singer swept all six of the categories she was nominated in at Sunday's Grammy Awards ceremonies, collecting album of the year honors for "21" and record and song of the year trophies for "Rolling in the Deep."With wins in three of the four top categories, Adele matches a feat registered in 2003 by Norah Jones, who also took best new artist that year. Adele was named best new artist in 2009 behind her debut album "19."The singer, nee Adele Adkins, broke into tears as she accepted the album of the year award."This is ridiculous," she said, and made a point of thanking "every radio programmer and broadcaster" who helped put "Rolling in the Deep" and other tunes from "21" over the top. This year's surprising best new artist winner was Bon Iver. The folk-skewed Wisconsin-bred singer-songwriter, ne Justin Vernon, triumphed in a field that included the ultra-hot rap talent Nicki Minaj. Vernon had publicly declined to perform at the Grammy ceremony.Adele's "21" also won as best pop vocal album, "Someone Like You" captured best pop solo performance and the clip for "Rolling in the Deep" took best short-form video.Adele's six trophies equaled Beyonce's record one-night tally for a female performer, set in 2010.Paul Epworth, who co-wrote "Rolling in the Deep" and produced that hit, was named non-classical producer of the year, and shared song and album of the year honors.Few Grammy triumphs have felt quite as inevitable as Adele's.The 22-year-old singer served as the music industry's savior last year with her sophomore album "21." The top-selling collection has sold 6.38 million copies domestically to date, and remains No. 1 on the U.S. album chart after nearly a year in release. With one more week atop the chart, "21" will tie Whitney Houston's 20-week SoundScan-era record for longevity at the pinnacle, set in 1992-93 with the soundtrack for "The Bodyguard."With stylistic nods to Brit singers past, most notably Dusty Springfield and Amy Winehouse, "21" was lofted by three smash singles, "Rolling in the Deep," "Someone Like You" and "Set Fire to the Rain." The rich-voiced singer's seemingly universal appeal tagged her as an awards season shoo-in.The vocalist was the headline attraction for this year's Grammycast, emerging from months off the stage after throat surgery for a hemorrhaged vocal cord forced cancellation of a sold-out U.S. tour.Asked backstage how she handled the jolt of having to undergo surgery, Adele was sanguine about the experience. ""It's actually been really peaceful. Being silent in such a noisy world, it was sort of a blessing in disguise," she said. "I've actually never been happier."By an accident of fate, Adele's ascension on Sunday seemed a passing of the torch after the death Saturday of Houston, who rose to fame in the '80s with a similar brand of soulful, highly accessible pop.Houston's memory loomed both on and off the Grammy stage on Sunday. Jennifer Hudson paid tribute with a televised performance of "I Will Always Love You," Houston's No. 1 hit from the 1992 soundtrack of "The Bodyguard." Hudson ended the performance by ad libbing, "Whitney, we loved you."Stevie Wonder said from the stage, "I just want to say to Whitney up in Heaven, we all love you, Whitney Houston."Winners and performers offered their thoughts about the singer backstage. Vocalist-songwriter Melanie Fiona, who shared two R&B awards with Cee Lo Green for "Fool For You," said, "Whitney is the first voice and memory I have of music I would not be up here as an artist, a nominee and a winner without her influence on my life I feel so proud to be able say that she was such a huge influence on me."Bonnie Raitt told reporters, "I'm sure you're still in shock, tooIt's stunning, her vocal range and power."Houston's impact extended beyond the pop discipline: Joyce DiDonato, winner for best classical vocal solo, said, "She was larger than life, and the summation of good singing for me. I have a lot of opera friends, and we were all heartbroken to hear the news."The night's other big winners, perennial Recording Academy favorites Foo Fighters (six previous wins), dominated the rock categories with five victories: best rock album (for "Wasting Light") best hard rock/metal performance (for "White Limo"), best rock performance and best rock song (for "Walk") and best long form video (for "Foo Fighters: Back and Forth," directed and co-produced by James Moll). The band performed twice on the Grammycast."We made this record in my garage with some microphones and a tape machine," said Foo Fighters leader Dave Grohl. "It shows that the human element of making music is most important." As he left the stage Grohl shouted "Long live rock 'n' roll!"Kanye West -- this year's top nominee with seven nods -- once again had to satisfy himself with rap wins. West captured four awards to add to his 14 previous wins, for best rap/sung collaboration and best rap song (for "All of the Lights"), best rap performance (for "Otis," shared with Jay-Z) and best rap album ("My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy").The diminutive, angularly coiffed electronic/dance artist Skrillex broke through with three wins, taking best dance/electronica album (for "Scary Monsters and Nice Sprights"), best dance recording (for the album's title track) and best remixed recording (for Benny Benassi's "Cinema").Taylor Swift added two Grammy awards to her career total of four, winning best country solo performance and best country song for "Mean."Americana duo the Civil Wars' "Barton Hollow" won as both best folk album, while its title track won best country duo/group performance.As ever, some sentimental favorites prevailed.Paul McCartney, who was honored as MusiCares' person of the year on Friday and performed during the telecast, collected his 15th Grammy a best historical album honor, for last year's reissue of his 1973 album "Band On the Run." A mere 49 years after receiving his first Grammy -- record of the year, for "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" -- Tony Bennett won Nos. 15 and 16, for best traditional pop album (for "Duets II," his all-star No. 1 album) and. best pop performance by a duo or group, for "Body and Soul," his track with Amy Winehouse. The late singer's parents joined him onstage at the afternoon ceremony. "We shouldn't be here -- our darling daughter should be here," said Mitch Winehouse. "These are the cards we're dealt."Alison Krauss, the most rewarded female performer in Grammy history, received her 27th trophy: "Paper Airplane," her latest release with her group Union Station, was named best bluegrass album.In the music for visual media categories, "Boardwalk Empire Volume 1," the soundtrack for the HBO series collected best compilation soundtrack for Stewart Lerman, Randall Poster and Kevin Weaver. Alexander Desplat won best score soundtrack for Oscar winner "The King's Speech." Alan Menken and Glenn Slater received the prize for best song written for visual media, for "I See the Light" from Disney's "Tangled."Tony winner "The Book of Mormon," written by Robert Lopez, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, was named best musical theater album.Apart from Adele's return to perform "Rolling in the Deep" -- which drew one of the longest ovations in recent Grammy history --the kudocast's chief draws were distinctly old-school.McCartney performed "My Valentine," a track from his new standards collection, with Diana Krall and Joe Walsh, and a show-closing "Abbey Road" medley; the reunited Beach Boys played their 1966 hit "Good Vibrations" with Foster the People and Maroon 5; and Glen Campbell, who is retiring from performing after the onset of Alzheimer's disease, sang "Rhinestone Cowboy" to climax a tribute segment.Alicia Keys and Raitt paid tribute to the R&B diva Etta James, who died in January at 73, with a duet on "A Sunday Kind of Love."Complete list of winners:1. Record of the YearRolling in the Deep, Adele 2. Album of the Year21, Adele 3. Song of the YearRolling in the Deep, Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth (Adele)4. Best New ArtistBon Iver 5. Best Pop Solo PerformanceSomeone Like You, Adele6. Best Pop Duo/Group PerformanceBody And Soul, Tony Bennett & Amy Winehouse7. Best Pop Instrumental AlbumThe Road From Memphis, Booker T. Jones8. Best Pop Vocal Album21, Adele 9. Best Dance RecordingScary Monsters And Nice Sprites, Skrillex 10. Best Dance/Electronica AlbumScary Monsters And Nice Sprites, Skrillex11. Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album Duets II, Tony Bennett & Various Artists12. Best Rock PerformanceWalk, Foo Fighters13. Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance White Limo, Foo Fighters 14. Best Rock SongWalk, Foo Fighters, songwriters (Foo Fighters)*** 15. Best Rock AlbumWasting Light, Foo Fighters16. Best Alternative Music Album Bon Iver, Bon Iver 17. Best Traditional R&B PerformanceFool For You, Cee Lo Green & Melanie Fiona18. Best R&B PerformanceIs This Love, Corinne Bailey Rae19. Best R&B SongFool For You, Cee Lo Green, Melanie Hallim, Jack Splash, songwriters (Cee Lo Green & Melanie Fiona)20. Best R&B AlbumF.A.M.E., Chris Brown21. Best Rap PerformanceOtis, Jay-Z and Kanye West22. Best Rap/Sung CollaborationAll Of The Lights, Kanye West, Rihanna, Kid Cudi & Fergie23. Best Rap SongAll Of The Lights, Jeff Bhasker, Stacy Ferguson, Malik Jones, Warren Trotter & Kanye West, songwriters (Kanye West, Rihanna, Kid Cudi & Fergie)24. Best Rap AlbumMy Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, Kanye West25. Best Country Solo PerformanceMean, Taylor Swift26. Best Country Duo/Group PerformanceBarton Hollow, The Civil Wars27. Best Country SongMean, Taylor Swift, songwriter (Taylor Swift)28. Best Country AlbumOwn the Night, Lady Antebellum29. Best New Age AlbumWhat's It All About, Pat Metheny30. Best Improvised Jazz Solo500 Miles High, Chick Corea, soloist31. Best Jazz Vocal AlbumThe Mosaic Project, Terri Lyne Carrington & Various Artists32. Best Jazz Instrumental AlbumForever, Corea, Clarke & White33. Best Large Jazz Ensemble AlbumThe Good Feeling, Christian McBride Big Band34. Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music PerformanceJesus, Le'Andria Johnson35. Best Gospel SongHello Fear, Kirk Franklin, songwriter (Kirk Franklin)36. Best Contemporary Christian Music SongBlessings, Laura Story, songwriter (Laura Story)37. Best Gospel AlbumHello Fear, Kirk Franklin38. Best Contemporary Christian Music AlbumAnd If Our God Is For Us..., Chris Tomlin39. Best Latin Pop, Rock, Or Urban AlbumDrama Y Luz, Man40. Best Regional Mexican Or Tejano AlbumBicentenario, Pepe Aguilar41. Best Banda Or Norteo AlbumLos Tigres Del Norte And Friends, Los Tigres Del Norte42. Best Tropical Latin AlbumThe Last Mambo, Cachao43. Best Americana AlbumRamble At The Ryman, Levon Helm44. Best Bluegrass AlbumPaper Airplane, Alison Krauss & Union Station45. Best Blues AlbumRevelator, Tedeschi Trucks Band46. Best Folk AlbumBarton Hollow, The Civil Wars47. Best Regional Roots Music AlbumRebirth Of New Orleans, Rebirth Brass Band48. Best Reggae AlbumRevelation Pt 1: The Root Of Life, Stephen Marley49. Best World Music AlbumTassili, Tinariwen50. Best Children's AlbumAll About Bullies... Big And Small(Various Artists), Jim Cravero, Gloria Domina, Kevin Mackie, Steve Pullara & Patrick Robinson, producers51. Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Story Telling)If You Ask Me (And Of Course You Won't), Betty White52. Best Comedy AlbumHilarious, Louis C.K.53. Best Musical Theater AlbumThe Book Of Mormon54. Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual MediaBoardwalk Empire: Volume 1, (Various Artists) Stewart Lerman, Randall Poster & Kevin Weaver, producers55. Best Score Soundtrack For Visual MediaThe King's Speech, Alexandre Desplat56. Best Song Written For Visual MediaI See The Light (From Tangled), Alan Menken & Glenn Slater, songwriters (Mandy Moore & Zachary Levi)57. Best Instrumental CompositionLife In Eleven, Bla Fleck & Howard Levy, composers (Bla Fleck & The Flecktones)58. Best Instrumental ArrangementRhapsody In Blue, Gordon Goodwin, arranger (Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band)59. Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s)Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me), Jorge Calandrelli, arranger (Tony Bennett & Queen Latifah)60. Best Recording PackageScenes From The Suburbs, Caroline Robert, art director (Arcade Fire)61. Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition PackageThe Promise: The Darkness On The Edge Of Town Story62. Best Album NotesHear Me Howling!: Blues, Ballads & Beyond As Recorded By The San Francisco Bay By Chris Strachwitz In The 1960s63. Best Historical AlbumBand On The Run (Paul McCartney Archive Collection - Deluxe Edition)64. Best Engineered Album, Non-ClassicalPaper Airplane, Neal Cappellino & Mike Shipley, engineers; Brad Blackwood, mastering engineer (Alison Krauss & Union Station)65. Producer Of The Year, Non-ClassicalPaul Epworth66. Best Remixed Recording, Non-ClassicalCinema (Skrillex Remix), Sonny Moore, remixer (Benny Benassi)67. Best Surround Sound AlbumLayla And Other Assorted Love Songs (Super Deluxe Edition)68. Best Engineered Album, ClassicalAldridge: Elmer Gantry69. Producer Of The Year, ClassicalJudith Sherman70. Best Orchestral PerformanceBrahms: Symphony No. 4Gustavo Dudamel, conductor (Los Angeles Philharmonic)71. Best Opera RecordingAdams: Doctor AtomicAlan Gilbert, conductor; Meredith Arwady, Sasha Cooke, Richard Paul Fink, Gerald Finley, Thomas Glenn & Eric Owens; Jay David Saks, producer (Metropolitan Opera Orchestra; Metropolitan Opera Chorus)72. Best Choral PerformanceLight & GoldEric Whitacre, conductor (Christopher Glynn & Hila Plitmann; The King's Singers, Laudibus, Pavo Quartet & The Eric Whitacre Singers)73. Best Small Ensemble PerformanceMackey: Lonely Motel - Music From SlideRinde Eckert & Steven Mackey; Eighth Blackbird74. Best Classical Instrumental SoloSchwantner: Concerto For Percussion & OrchestraGiancarlo Guerrero, conductor; Christopher Lamb (Nashville Symphony)75. Best Classical Vocal SoloDiva DivoJoyce DiDonato (Kazushi Ono; Orchestre De L'Opra National De Lyon; Choeur De L'Opra National De Lyon)76. Best Contemporary Classical CompositionAldridge, Robert: Elmer GantryRobert Aldridge & Herschel Garfein77. Best Short Form Music VideoRolling In The DeepAdeleSam Brown, video director; Hannah Chandler, video producer78. Best Long Form Music VideoFoo Fighters: Back And ForthFoo FightersJames Moll, video director; James Moll & Nigel Sinclair, video producersWinners by number:Adele - 6Foo Fighters - 5Kanye West - 4Paul Epworth - 3Skrillex - 3Tony Bennett - 2The Civil Wars - 2Chick Corea - 2Kirk Franklin - 2Cee Lo Green - 2Taylor Swift - 2Related: Grammy notes Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com

Sony taps Penn to rewrite 'Karate Kid' sequel

PennColumbia Pictures has tapped "The Incredible Hulk" scribe Zak Penn to rewrite its untitled sequel to 2010's surprise hit "The Karate Kid."Ethan Reiff and Cyrus Voris were hired to write a sequel just weeks after director Harald Zwart's "Karate Kid" reboot took in $55.6 million domestically over its opening weekend. China-set pic went on to gross $359 million worldwide.While plot details remain under wraps, original stars Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan are expected to reprise their roles, though no deals are currently in place.Overbrook Entertainment principals Will Smith, James Lassiter, Ken Stovitz and Jada Pinkett Smith will produce with Jerry Weintraub, while Sony exec DeVon Franklin will oversee the project for the studio.Penn knows his way around fight scenes, having written the superhero pics "Elektra," "X-Men: The Last Stand" and "The Incredible Hulk." He also co-created the Syfy series "Alphas" and wrote, directed and produced the improvisational poker comedy "The Grand." Scribe most recently worked on a "Dirty Dozen" remake, as well as an original take on the classic "Argonauts" tale for 20th Century Fox.Penn is repped by CAA. Contact Rachel Abrams at Rachel.Abrams@variety.com

Paladin sets 'Otter' docu for U.S.

'Otter 501'Paladin has signed on as U.S. distributor for wildlife docu "Otter 501," with plans to release the film in theaters this spring."Otter," from the filmmaking team at Sea Studios Foundation, tells the story of an orphaned otter pup, called 501, who is rescued by a team of biologists at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, then introduced to an adoptive sea otter mother.Paralleling the film's narrative, one of the aquarium's young volunteers, Katie, has developed a series of Facebook video posts that chronicle her own experience with the rescue."501 is one of the more adorable creatures we will see onscreen this year," said Paladin prexy Mark Urman.Paladin plans to first release "Otter" in West Coast markets, including Seattle, Portland and the Bay Area. Pic preems Thursday at the Santa Barbara Film Festival. Contact Andrew Stewart at andrew.stewart@variety.com