This is going to sound condescending but I swear I don’t mean it in that way: I’m so proud of Elizabeth Banks. I find her really inspirational. I think she’s funny, talented, smart, cool and unapologetically political. She works constantly as an actress and she’s often the best part of even a bad or mundane film. And now she’s moved into producing AND directing. She produced the sleeper hit Pitch Perfect, and when the sequel’s director dropped out suddenly, Banks stepped into the director’s chair very quickly (and like a BOSS). She’s been promoting Pitch Perfect 2 all week in Europe, and she covers this week’s issue of The Hollywood Reporter. You can read the full piece here – it’s full of quotes from directors, studio executives and producers who love, respect and fear her BOSS-ness. Some highlights:

Getting to be a rare woman directing a studio film: “The list of women who get to make studio-level films is very short. And I’m not quite in that club yet. Until this movie comes out, then we’ll see. This shoot is the test. I like to get A’s.”

Why she goes after what she wants: “Some big actresses told me a few things that inspired me. One said that the biggest challenge for a female actress was to make sure they are not profoundly bored. Another told me to just do whatever you want — do anything. And another told me that her quote hadn’t changed in 15 years. That really lit a fire under my ass.”

Paying attention to the directors she’s worked with: “I don’t stay in my trailer. I like to sit in video village, probably to the annoyance of some producers and directors, because they really love to talk about actors and they can’t in front of me.”

A little shade thrown at Tara Reid: “There was a group of us girls coming up. A lot of us are surviving. Some of us are not. I used to go to auditions with Tara Reid. So, you know, we didn’t all make it. We’re not all still here.” But she quickly adds, “I do love Sharknado.”

She doesn’t want to direct Fifty Shades Darker: She doesn’t want to make indies or female-targeted melodrama — she rolls her eyes at the suggestion of shooting Universal’s Fifty Shades of Grey sequel. “I like entertaining people,” she says. “I want to make big entertainment.”

Her mantra: “I got a lot of balls in the air at all times. But my mantra every day on this set is just one word: Endure.”

[From THR]

It’s crazy to think that at the beginning of Banks’ career (the late ‘90s, pretty much), she and Tara Reid really were up for the same parts. Insane, right? Reid is 39 years old now and Banks just turned 41, so they are contemporaries, which blows my mind. Anyway, I don’t think Banks meant to blast Reid, I think she was just trying to make a larger statement about the women she came up with in the industry.

Banks has been in Europe promoting the film all week – I’m including some assorted photos below. Banks doesn’t get even credit for having really great, interesting style.

Photos courtesy of WENN, cover courtesy of THR.

Taylor Schilling, the lead of Orange is the New Black, covers the new issue of Elle Canada (as if you couldn’t tell this was Canadian by the Canadian tuxedo). What I always find interesting about Taylor and OITNB is that even though she’s the lead and even though her work on the show is solid-to-good, she’s pretty much the least interesting person on the show. Her character is the least interesting and Taylor herself is the least interesting, at least compared to Laverne Cox, Kate Mulgrew, Uzo Aduba, Lorraine Toussaint, etc. It’s not that Taylor/Piper doesn’t register, it’s that everyone else POPS so hard. Anyway, I went into this interview not really knowing anything about Taylor and I came out of it thinking that she’s sort of harmlessly pretentious. You can read the full piece here. Some highlights:

Celebrities in real life: “I’m still relatively new to the business – I started just five years ago – but I can see how the pressure becomes internalized. And knowing how powerful it can be, I can’t even imagine being outside of this industry looking in. I love meeting the people I admire and seeing they’re all human – they have bags under their eyes and are dealing with their own insecurities and struggles. I think it’s so vital to keep that context in the forefront.”

Who we are online: “It takes a lot of bravery to be authentic and honest and to take that social mask off in order to connect with another human being. So much of what makes us who we are is smoothed away online. And what truly connects us is the wrinkles, not the smoothness.”

Aging, turning 30: “I think that’s one of the most exciting payoffs to getting older. I spent so long being hard on myself, but now there’s so much more kindness, compassion and ease. Well, not total ease – but I can see the trend. I can see the upward spiral.”

Actress versus celebrity: “I feel that there is a part of the acting world that has gotten mixed up in the world of celebrity – as if they’re the same thing. If you’re someone who is interested in a creative profession, then you’re also required to cultivate this celebrity. They are not one and the same. I don’t know if you get more jobs if you have more Instagram followers; that hasn’t been my experience. It has almost become a defiant thing at this point because I do not believe this celebrity Kim Kardashian culture is what I signed up for. I’d rather create something honest than try to create something for a social-media account. Besides, my brain is just way too fragile for both. I am susceptible to what people think; I think we all are. So it’s just easier for me to not engage with it too much.”

[From Elle Canada]

You might have gotten the impression that Taylor was some social-media-shunning capital-A Actress who only cares about her craft and nothing else. You would be wrong – she’s on Twitter and Instagram and she posts on both often enough. I don’t think being active on social media makes her a bad person, nor do I think she’s a bad person for correctly differentiating between “celebrities” and “actresses.” There IS a difference. I just think she’s kidding herself if she believes that she’s not on social media to cultivate her celebrity, her name and her fame as well as promoting her work and “creating something honest.” You know who’s not on Twitter or Instagram? Carey Mulligan. Cate Blanchett. Daniel Day Lewis. It’s totally possible to be a “real” artist and create art and not engage at all on social media, I’m just saying.

Photos courtesy of Elle Canada.

People always complain when the pregnancy rumors start up as soon as a couple gets engaged. I tend to think the shotgun wedding gossip is something that every couple, celebrity or non-celebrity, has to deal with, especially if the engagement comes very quickly and/or out of nowhere. Sometimes the shotgun wedding rumors are completely justified – think of Benedict Cumberbatch and Sophie Hunter, you know? And so it is with Robert Pattinson and FKA Twigs. Reportedly, they got engaged about a month ago after only having dated since (at the earliest) late summer/early fall 2014. No one doubts their obvious affection and love for each other. I actually think this is the happiest Sparkles has been since becoming a household name. But the pregnancy rumors are gonna happen, so let’s just have some fun.

Robert Pattinson’s fiancée FKA Twigs may soon be adding a few lullibies to her repertoire. The pair sparked talk of a pregnancy by getting engaged in record time – and Twigs’ recnt behavior has fueled speculation even more.

Pattinson was on hand when his bride-to-be performed a set at Coachella.

“Many in the audience noticed what seemed like a baby bum,” says a witness, who adds that Twigs was one of the very few at the festival who didn’t drink or party. “When she wasn’t performing, Rob was always around her, acting super-protective.”

Later, baby talk picked up speed when the couple were observed leaving Century City Medical Plaza in LA.

[From Star Magazine, print edition]

Further evidence: all of the rumors about a quickie wedding. Like, even People Magazine’s sources said that Twigs and Sparkles want to get married this summer, and she wants it to be very, very casual, like a “pub wedding.” People’s sources also claimed that Twigs couldn’t wait to be a mom. So… shotgun wedding? It’s totally possible. I hope they name the baby Twigsparkle Pattinson.

PS… This week, Twigs’ stylist posted a sexy Instagram of Twigs in the bathtub, wearing only her engagement ring. You can see the NSFW photo here. You can’t really see her mid-section, so we can’t Bump Watch her.

Photos courtesy of PCN, WENN.

Proud papa Nick Cannon shared some family photos via Instagram Thursday.

“Grateful and forever in debt to @MariahCarey for blessing me and the rest of the world with these 2 Angels, Morrocan Scott Cannon and Monroe Cannon on this day 4 years ago. Happy Birthday!!! I Love yall!,” he captioned the image with the couple’s twins – Moroccan and Monroe – on their 4th birthday.

On what would’ve been his seventh wedding anniversary with Mariah Carey, the America’s Got Talent star, 34, went on to share more shots.

“Today is the day that God Blessed me with the greatest gifts,” he captioned an image enjoying breakfast with the twins.

He also posted a special family drawing of his estranged wife and “Dem Babies.”

“Such a dope picture!!! Happy Birthday Roc & Roe,” he wrote.

On Monday, Mariah opened up about co-parenting with her soon-to-be ex-husband.

“They’re always with me. They’re with me or they’re with their father,” she said of the twins.

The soulful singer, 45, went on to talk about keeping a united front for their kids.

“It is what it is and I would never just be like, ‘I’m going, you’re not going to be with me.’ They wouldn’t understand that,” Carey shared. “So they’re the most important thing to me. Their family is going to be here. They’re going to be great. They do their own thing.”

Grateful and forever in debt to @MariahCarey for blessing me and the rest of the world with these 2 Angels, Morrocan Scott Cannon and Monroe Cannon on this day 4 years ago. Happy Birthday!!! I Love yall!

A photo posted by Nick Cannon (@nickcannon) on Apr 30, 2015 at 11:10am PDT

View Slideshow »»

View All Photos »»

Earlier I posted photos of Tina Turner and Tom Cruise in Milan for the Armani anniversary. Even Janet Jackson was photographed. And she’s practically a recluse these days.

So… tell me…

Who do you think it is under this blanket? The person who can’t just walk out of a hotel like all the ot…      

Congratulations are in order for Alfonso Ribeiro and Angela Ribeiro.

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air alum, 43, and his wife, 34, welcomed their second child – son Anders Reyn Ribeiro – on Thursday, April 30, Us reports.

Born in Los Angeles, Calif. at 6:16 a.m., the newborn weighed in at 7 lbs., 7 oz., and measured 19 inches long.

Anders is joined by the couple’s 18-month-old son Alfonso Lincoln. The Dancing with the Stars champ is also dad to daughter Sienna, 12, from a previous relationship.

In February, Angela opened up to Celebrity Baby Scoop about her second pregnancy.

“I’m feeling great. This pregnancy has been a breeze compared to my last,” she shared. “We just got home last week from being on a tour bus for almost two months for the DWTS Live! Tour. It was a wonderful family adventure and we had such a lovely time bonding with the other DTWS dancers, but it’s obviously great to be home.”

You and me… we used to be together… everyday together… always…

Off to #jazzfest @nodoubt #nola can’t wait to see u gx

A photo posted by Gwen Stefani (@gwenstefani) on

Apr 30, 2015 at 8:26am PDT

Leah Remini’s not-so-inside jok…      

Fifty Shades Of Grey was a smash hit at the box office. There should have been only good news coming out of its theatrical release. Except instead of positive headlines, all the focus was on the fact that they couldn’t get their sh-t together for the sequel(s) because EL James is difficult to wor…      

Amal Clooney was in Washington, DC today. She called a press conference to advocate on behalf of Mohamed Nasheed, the former president of the Maldives. She was there with Nasheed’s wife Laila Ali. Just a regular day at work for a human rights lawyer who, apparently, needs help picking out her clo…      

As mentioned yesterday (click here for a refresher), Gwyneth Paltrow is in Chicago for GOOP. There was a book signing. And I wanted to see the outfit. And there was a professional photographer there!

It’s a wrap dress. Wrap dresses are not my favourite for me. Because of my tits. It’s hard to…