The Playlist

Scarlett Johansson Was Unsure About 'We Bought A Zoo' At First; Says 'Summer Crossing' Doesn't Have A Part For A Big Star

By Kevin Jagernauth
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November 24, 2011 1:04 PM
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6 Comments

News

It's hard to believe that Scarlett Johansson is only 27 years old. The actress carries herself with the air and beauty of an old-school movie star, but has the wit and wisdom of your favorite drinking buddy. What she's accomplished so far on the big screen is impressive, and what's more exciting is that we're only at the beginning of what is likely be a long, varied and fascinating career. A testament to how diverse she has become can be seen in her next trio of movies -- Cameron Crowe's holiday crowd-pleaser "We Bought A Zoo"; the geek fave "The Avengers" and Jonathan Glazer's sci-fi indie "Under The Skin" -- but as she reveals to Vanity Fair in a recent profile, the material comes first.

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Scarlett Johansson Says She's Waiting For Woody Allen To Write Her 'Citizen Kane'

By Kevin Jagernauth
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November 1, 2011 3:43 AM
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2 Comments

For a brief moment there, it seemed like Scarlett Johansson and Woody Allen were inseparable. Starring in (almost) three straight movies for the director -- "Match Point," "Scoop" and "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" (Allen also delivered "Cassandra's Dream" in that stretch) -- the actress was part of the director's late stage career return to glory after nearly a decade marked by a series of increasingly bad films. But after that trio of pictures, they parted ways at Allen's insistence, fearing that the actress would become defined only by her work with him.

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First Look At Scarlett Johansson As A Sexy Alien In Jonathan Glazer’s ‘Under The Skin’

By Kevin Jagernauth
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October 24, 2011 6:33 AM
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10 Comments

When it was first announced this summer that "Sexy Beast" and "Birth" director Jonathan Glazer was finally getting to work on his long-awaited next film this fall, we had our doubts. "Under The Skin" had been brewing for a while -- it was once lined up for 2010 shoot, and Gemma Arterton was mooted for the lead -- so while we were excited, we tempered our enthusiasm a bit because particularly with indie financing the way it is, a lot of things could happen between then and now to put the project on hold yet again. But lo and behold, not only has the October start stuck, the film is now shooting and the first glimpse of Scarlett Johansson in the starring role has made its way online.

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Watch: Scarlett Johansson Likes Her Lips For Kissing In Dolce & Gabbana Ad By Jean-Baptiste Mondino

By Kevin Jagernauth
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October 24, 2011 3:15 AM
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5 Comments

Even though she might have been too sexy for David Fincher's "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo," Scarlett Johansson is just right for fashion house Dolce & Gabbana and this new ad finds the actress playing a version of herself in the short film/advertisment "The One."

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David Fincher Says Despite A Great Audition, Scarlett Johansson Was Too Hot To Play Lisbeth Salander

By Kevin Jagernauth
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October 17, 2011 7:00 AM
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15 Comments

David Fincher Views The Series As A "Pervy Franchise"While Rooney Mara eventually won the coveted lead role of Lisbeth Salander in David Fincher's "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo," it was an arduous wait and the list of the contenders was fierce. Sarah Snook, Sophie Lowe and Léa Seydoux were said to be the final candidates, and a mix of established and lesser known names like Ellen Page, Natalie Portman, Carey Mulligan, Emma Watson, Mia Wasikowska, Emily Browning and Katie Jarvis were all in the running at various points. However, people might remember that just before Mara snagged the part, Scarlett Johansson was surprisingly being tipped as a "shoo-in." At the time it seemed somewhat unlikely, but talking to Vogue magazine as part of a profile on Rooney Mara, Fincher confirms that Johansson did indeed deliver strongly at the audition but that she was ultimately just too darned attractive to play the squirrely, oddball and rebellious Lisbeth Salander.

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Watch: Matt Damon and Cameron Crowe Get Animal Crackers In Trailer For 'We Bought A Zoo'

By Oliver Lyttelton
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September 14, 2011 6:25 AM
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15 Comments

It's been six long years since we last saw a Cameron Crowe (fictional) film on screen, but seeing that that film was the, frankly, disastrous "Elizabethtown," he's perhaps been missed less than he might have been otherwise. Still, the writer-director has enough great work behind him that we're always going to be interested in what he's putting out, and this Christmas sees the arrival of comeback film "We Bought A Zoo," which sees him team up with Matt Damon for the first time.

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Listen: Scarlett Johansson Covers "Bonnie & Clyde" With Lulu Gainsbourg

By Kevin Jagernauth
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September 2, 2011 4:16 AM
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2 Comments

In the annals of actors-turned-musicians, Scarlett Johansson is actually better (and more underrated) than most. Her album of Tom Waits covers, Anywhere I Lay My Head, produced by TV On The Radio's Dave Sitek, is actually pretty good and in the various compilations or soundtracks she has contributed to Johansson is keenly aware that while she doesn't have a particularly broad range, her strength lies in her woozy, sexy, husky delivery and with that, she does quite well with it.

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Financing Nears On 'Lunatic At Large'; 2 More Unmade Kubrick Projects Continue Toward Production

By Kevin Jagernauth
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August 22, 2011 2:23 AM
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0 Comments

Almost as legendary as the films Stanley Kubrick did complete in his lifetime are the numerous projects that went unmade, but a few of those are getting a new lease on life. As you might recall, last spring, word surfaced that "Lunatic At Large" was headed toward the big screen with Scarlett Johansson and Sam Rockwell attached to star and Chris Palmer to direct. Not long after, "Downslope" and "God Fearing Man" joined 'Lunatic' on the production slate and then...nothing else was heard since.

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New Look At Matt Damon & Scarlett Johansson In Cameron Crowe's 'We Bought A Zoo'

By Kevin Jagernauth
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August 17, 2011 3:32 AM
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2 Comments

So, both Venice and TIFF have unveiled their slates and...Cameron Crowe's "We Bought a Zoo" is nowhere to be seen. Granted, the film was only shot earlier this year and the ever busy Crowe -- who already released the Elton John doc "The Union" and is finalizing "Pearl Jam Twenty" for Venice -- is likely still getting the the film finished, so pics will have to do for now (until we get a trailer).

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Jonathan Glazer's 'Under The Skin' Starring Scarlett Johansson To Begin Shooting This October

By Simon Dang
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July 26, 2011 5:15 AM
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0 Comments

It's been seven whole years since we've had a new feature from British director Jonathan Glazer, but after several hiccups, it looks like his adaptation of Michael Faber's darkly comic sci-fi novel "Under The Skin" is finally gathering some momentum with production set to begin this October.

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