There’s a piece up today at The Daily Beast about Black Widow and the “problem” in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that she—a strong, capable character in her own right—keeps being used in service of the male heroes. I don’t disagree that there is a problem in the MCU, but it isn’t specifically wit…      

In Their Skin star Selma Blair was photographed with son Arthur, 3 1/2, in Studio City, Calif. last week. The Anger Management alum, 42, stopped to plant a smooch on her son after picking him up from preschool.

“It blows my mind to think about how intense the bond is that women have with their children, especially in the first few years of life. And it just blows my mind that everyone who has children feels this way, too,” Selma told The Glow in a recent interview. “If the world is capable of this much love, and patience, and understanding, I just can’t imagine what we’re all capable of together.”

While Selma loves motherhood, it sounds like her pregnancy was quite transformative as well.

“I was so blissed-out when I was pregnant,” she shared. “I had an amazing pregnancy—the hormones felt great, I was really active, I didn’t need a lot of sleep, I never had morning sickness after the first month. I was just a totally different person.”

She even stopped wearing black, her go color, because she’s “just too happy now.”

“When I first had Arthur, I knew it was going to be tough, and I’m not young so I looked pretty rough for a while, until I got the hang of figuring out a sleep pattern,” she dished. “And I just thought, well, that’s the way it goes. I’m a mom now.”

Although she split from Arthur’s dad, Jason Bleick, being a single mom has been a blessing.

“It takes a village, and it’s really hard to be the village on your own,” she said. “But it’s still amazingly rewarding.”

And she has no shame in the beautiful bond she has with her son.

“As a mom, there’s almost a shame in feeling too attached, like there’s something shameful in saying, ‘My kid is my life these days,’” she said. “There’s a time and a place, especially when they’re this young. Let yourself enjoy it. I wish people talked about the love more.”

“When I was pregnant, I had no idea how attached I’d be and that I’d want to be in every part of Arthur’s waking and sleeping life…No one really stays up with a baby the way a mom does,” Selma shared, noting that she fired the night nurse she hired before Arthur was born and went with just a doula on the baby’s first night at home. “Dads will try, but for the most part I say moms are the ones to really do it. But I have so many friends who, god bless them, hired someone and they got sleep, and it worked for them. Whatever works for you, it just wasn’t my path.”

She added: “I never thought I’d be one of those people who cherish every second. I don’t think any other miracle could have grounded me in this way—I appreciate every second I’m in his company.”

The proud mom recently Instagrammed an adorable image of her lil’ fisherman.

First fish. Proud.

A photo posted by Selma Blair (@therealselmablair) on Mar 20, 2015 at 1:06pm PDT

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Important lessons from today: 1) Sheep are impossible to reason with. 2) Sheep are rude.

A video posted by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on Apr 27, 2015 at 2:11pm PDT

Taylor Swift posted this Instagram where she’s trying to “reason” with some sheep. But those sheep just seem sweet and friendly, why not pet them? [Seriously OMG WTF]
“Wanksy” is very clever. [Dlisted]
FHM named Michelle Keegan (who?) the sexiest woman in the world. [Wonderwall]
Bradley Cooper got a Tony Award nomination this morning. [CDAN]
Jake Gyllenhaal wants his mom to set him up. [ICYDK]
Preview of Kristen Stewart’s Bazaar UK cover. [LaineyGossip]
Amy Schumer & Tilda Swinton are friends. Whoa. [Pajiba]
Sarah Hyland looks adorable in this outfit. [Celebslam]
Jon Stewart takes CNN to task for their protest coverage. [Jezebel]
Justin Bieber crashed a prom, of course. [The Blemish]
Spanx comes with a feminist message now. [The Frisky]
Taylor Swift’s full Glamour UK shoot is sort of meh. [IDLY]

I’ll give it to Scarlett Johansson: when she wants to turn it up and look effortlessly movie-star glam, she can do it really well. These are photos of ScarJo outside of the Ed Sullivan Theater in NYC yesterday. She was going into a taping of The Late Show with David Letterman. Scarlett’s white dress is Roland Mouret’s Abersley dress and it’s very, very pretty. I’m still not really sure about her hair – in some photos and videos, it looks very “Miley Cyrus” and in other photos, it just looks really bad. I also think it’s going to look worse when she tries to grow it out, but hey, live and learn. Here’s a clip of ScarJo with Letterman last night:

She apparently spent a lot of time complimenting and praising Letterman. They also talked about her baby a little bit, and I was reminded of how Scarlett and Blake Lively are both promoting projects at the same time and both gave birth within a few months of each other and both got a ring from Ryan Reynolds. Do you think Scarlett is even aware of Blake? Or is she like, “Oh, that TV girl, whatever”? We know Scarlett is still digesting – and throwing shade at – the whole Ryan situation.

This video has been making the rounds for a week too. Cosmo UK got Mark Ruffalo to answer the questions Scarlett usually gets. Ruffalo was adorably game – I just wish they had followed through with it for the whole interview. I wanted to know about Ruffalo’s diet!

I really enjoy their body language. They’re so comfortable with each other and I love that Scarlett assumed the “boss” position with her arm behind Mark. And you know… they have some kind of love story or romance in Age of Ultron too. That will be interesting.

Photos courtesy of WENN, Fame/Flynet.

You thought they broke up, right? So did I. Because she was giving major sad face on Twitter around New Year’s and when you’re supposed to be in a relationship at New Year’s but you’re posting lonely messages just before New Year’s and right after, the reason is often: love sucks.

And then, I…      

Here are some photos from last night’s NYC premiere of Far From the Madding Crowd. Carey Mulligan, Michael Sheen and Matthias Schoenaerts were in attendance. Matthias is such a hottie, right? I mean… we need to include him on our list of dudes-to-watch. Michael Sheen was there with his girlfriend (still!) Sarah Silverman, which… even though it’s been a few years, I still think they’re such a weird couple.

As for Carey, she wore this lovely, simple Lavin gown in a rich navy. The pearl necklace is Lanvin as well – I get the idea of wearing a long statement necklace with this simple gown, but I think this pearl thing is too much. In any case, this look is SO MUCH better than the baggy Dior mess she wore to the London premiere – remember that? It was so baggy and unflattering that many people theorized that she was knocked up. But Carey told Hello Magazine that “baggy and unflattering” is just her style, that she hates body-con.

Carey Mulligan is too ”self-conscious” to wear figure-hugging clothing. The ‘Far from the Madding Crowd’ star has confessed she prefers to sport loose-fitting dresses on the red carpet as she feels uncomfortable when she shows off too much of her slender physique.

She said: ”I’m so reserved. I like outfits that come to my knee and aren’t too tight or revealing. I’m too self-conscious of my body and my appearance.”

The brunette beauty, 29 – who is married to Mumford and Sons star Marcus Mumford – added she hates having her picture taken at high profile events, although she feels as if she has ”improved a little” when it comes to posing in front of the camera. She told HELLO! magazine: ”I hate the idea of standing in front of a hundreds of people while they take my picture. It’s a nightmare and I feel so uncomfortable. Maybe I’ve improved a little, but any time I’m on the red carpet I lose all sense of myself. I find it so odd. I know it sounds like a contradiction but I never went into acting for all eyes on me.”

[From Contact Music]

I get that… sort of. I mean, not every woman can or should wear tight little minidresses and four-inch heels. How boring would that be? But I think there’s a flattering way to do the anti-body stuff. And that Dior dress wasn’t the way. This Lanvin though? It’s nice.

Oh, and Carey gave a few decent quotes to USA Today last night – she was asked about being on Broadway (in Skylight) and she said: “What is fun? I can’t remember fun. I basically just go to restaurants with friends and go for walks. I don’t have any real hobbies. I like being home.” She also threw a little shade on the celebrities complaining about their lack of privacy, saying that she’s always maintained her privacy because “It’s easy to do if you are intentioned about it. I’ve always been intentioned about it.”

Last thing: Carey was just nominated for a Tony Award for Skylight! Congrats.

Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet and WENN.

My final blog post yesterday was about Zac Efron on the set of his new movie, doing push-ups. No big deal. Just a guy who drops down and gives you 10, spontaneously, whatever.

Check him out today, walking to set, and f-ck, he didn’t have time to close his jacket because he’s so focused on get…      

View image | gettyimages.com

Billy Corgan loves wrestling (here he is with Mexican wrestlers at a 2010 MTV World Stages event). That’s an understatement, as many wrestling fans realize. I don’t know much about the sport, but some of my friends keep me up to date on the industry. Billy dislikes a lot of things, and he’ll let you know it. When he likes something (CATS), he’ll let you know that too. There are few things that Billy loves more than watching two guys thrash about in a ring, and he can philosophize endlessly on the subject. Like a rat in a cage, holding a cat and watching wrestling. Now Billy has accepted a full-time job as a TNA wrestling producer. He’ll write scripts and dream up storylines too:

Corgan will develop characters and create story lines for TNA’s flagship program IMPACT WRESTLING, broadcast Fridays at 9 p.m. EST/8 CST on Destination America, as well as other TNA programming.

“I’ve known Billy for years and have always been blown away by his musical artistry, as well as his knowledge and understanding of professional wrestling,” TNA President Dixie Carter said in a release. “He has always impressed me with his creativity and passion for our business. Billy is truly gifted and understands the emotion tied to the psychology of connecting with an audience. The more we talked, the more I realized his perspective has the potential to make a huge impact on our brand.”

Corgan said in a release: “Saying I’m humbled and honored by this opportunity to be part of TNA, a world-class wrestling organization, is an understatement and a dream come true. What’s great is the entire TNA organization stands in full support of my music life with the Smashing Pumpkins. In return, I’m fully committed to using my 30 years of entertainment experience, along with my deep-rooted passion for pro wrestling, to take on the thrilling challenge of creatively contributing to IMPACT WRESTLING, finding and developing new talent, and working eye-to-eye with the best-of-the-best. For as cultures currently evolve at great speed, so must pro wrestling meet and supersede such expectations to thrive.”

[From Miami Herald]

The announcement continues to pour the Corgan praise from a heavy ladle, describing him as “a powerhouse” and “an ardent historian of professional wrestling and a true visionary” with “pioneering perspectives.” The sport of pro wrestling is nothing if not enthusiastic.

I think this is a fine outlet for Billy, and he’s very passionate about wrestling. I also like how upfront pro wrestling is when they admit that most of what happens in the ring is staged. Sure, it’s a little odd that these guys dress up and costumes and “beat each other up,” but this is show business, baby. Pro wrestling is no more bizarre than a superhero movie. So what does this do to Billy’s music career?

Photos courtesy of Getty & WENN

Penelope Ann Miller, 51, is now starring on American Crime, on ABC. (You may know her from films like The Artist, Carlito’s Way or Other People’s Money.) American Crime is a compelling, nuanced show about a murder and its aftermath on the families of the accused and the victims. Salon has a thorough, excellent review if you’d like to learn more about the series, which is written by the Oscar-winner screenwriter of 12 Years a Slave, John Ridley. (My only complaint is that the cinematography for AC is too arty. They have a tendency to cut to other scenes when people are talking. I still haven’t gotten used to that.)

Miller plays the mother of an adult daughter who is suffering traumatic brain injury following the violent incident in which her husband was murdered. Miller doesn’t have a lot of screen time, but I’ve been impressed by her performances so far. She plays the protective, loving mom role without coming across as cloying or fake. So many of the actors on that show are good, especially co-stars Felicity Huffman and Timothy Hutton.

Anyway Miller has a new interview with The Huffington Post in which she discusses how difficult it is land roles now that she’s in her 50s. The interviewer brought it up and played a segment from this skit on Inside Amy Schumer in which actresses Amy Poehler, Patricia Arquette and Julia Louis-Dreyfus celebrate Julia’s “last f*ckable day.” (That clip, which is NSFW due to language, is here.) Miller agrees that ageism is an issue and that she’s only being offered certain parts now. However she also acknowledges that she earned parts as a newcomer that probably should have gone to more seasoned actresses.

“It’s a fact. [Ageism] is out there. I’m getting mother roles… the roles that’s there’s interest for me for… it’s not the girlfriend, which is ok. I don’t need to be an ingenue. I mean I get that.”

“For instance, when I was doing Carlito’s Way… Al Pacino was of a certain age. And there were actresses – even [with] Other People’s Money with Danny DeVito, there were actresses that I knew were interested, like… Deborah Winger, and Susan Sarandon, there people that wanted the role. And here I was this newcomer who’s coming up and getting a role. I was that girl and I’m thinking ‘Imagine how they must have felt.’ and now I’m in that position. I’m that woman who’s saying ‘Oh, of course it’s going to be the young up-and-coming actress against the older actor.’ Yeah, it sucks.”

[From Huffington Post video]

Then Miller acknowledged that this is changing, gradually, and that both Meryl Streep and Diane Keaton have play age-matched love interests on screen. She also brought up Helen Mirren and Julianne Moore and said “it’s great for older actresses to play great character roles as well.” She said that “the great thing about television these days is that there are really great roles for actresses of that age.”

We’ve heard from many actresses and actors who acknowledge the dearth of roles for older female actresses, although some refuse to acknowledge that it’s an issue. When it doesn’t affect them directly, of course they wouldn’t think it’s an issue. I like how Miller both said she’s affected by this, and that she’s been the benefit of it too. That was a nice way to acknowledge that she’s been on both sides of this problem.

One thing I learned from Miller’s wiki while doing research for this post is that she used to be married to Will Arnett! I had no idea. They were married 1994 to 1995, when she was 30 and Arnett was 24. They didn’t have children together, and she remarried in 2000 to James Huggins. (They have two daughters, Eloisa May, 14, and Maria Adela, 6. Huggins and Miller are still together, although they briefly separated in 2012.)

Here’s the segment of Miller’s interview where they discuss ageism. [via US Magazine]

Back in 2012, I quite liked Ted, Seth MacFarlane’s talking teddy bear movie starring Mark Wahlberg. It hit the right balance between MacFarlane’s raunchy sense of humor and actually having a heart under the R-rated jokes and the teddy bear gimmick. So I’m holding out hope that the latest trailer …