Robert Pattinson Little Ashes Gay Cinema Award

Robert Pattinson as Salvador Dali in Little Ashes.

March 2 update: Robert Pattinson, wondering about what lies ahead after The Twilight Saga: Eclipse and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn are over and done with, told Nicole Evatt of the Associated Press that “if it suddenly dies down and suddenly no one is interested … yeah, it is worrying. It’s scary to think that it all might just fundamentally stop after the Twilight thing’s finished.”

That shouldn’t be happening any time soon. Upcoming Robert Pattinson releases includes Eclipse and Breaking Dawn (which may come out in two parts spread a year apart), in addition to the period drama Bel Ami, with Uma Thurman, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Christina Ricci. Announced projects currently in pre-production are Water for Elephants, co-starring Reese Witherspoon and Christoph Waltz, and Unbound Captives, with Rachel Weisz and Hugh Jackman.

In the q&a, Pattinson, 23, goes on to explain that Remember Me, which he also executive produced (with Carol Cuddy), wasn’t exactly made to distance himself from his role as the vampire Edward in the Twilight Saga movies, saying, “I just always liked the script.” Pattinson adds that performing naked can be “quite liberating,” that in fact dancing is scarier than nude scenes, and laments that he can no longer live in his old tiny London apartment.

Directed by Allen Coulter (Hollywoodland) and written by Will Fetters (with some rewriting by Rachel Getting Married‘s Jenny Lumet), Remember Me is set in New York City, where Tyler (Pattinson), a rebellious but introverted young man, has a problematic relationship with his rich father (Pierce Brosnan). Tyler ends up developing a strong bond with a free-spirited classmate, Ally, (Emilie de Ravin), with whom he shares a history of family tragedy: Tyler’s brother killed himself; Ally watched her mother get killed. One problem is that Ally’s father (Chris Cooper) isn’t too crazy about Tyler.

Remember Me opens in the U.S. on March 12. Kristen Stewart, Pattinson’s Twilight Saga co-star and off-screen girlfriend if widespread rumors are to believed, was reportedly present at the film’s New York premiere.

Photo: The Twilight Saga: New Moon (Kimberley French / Summit Entertainment)

Robert Pattinson in wax. Not figuratively speaking. Not on-screen. But at Madame Tussauds London. Which is sort of like the London version of the Hollywood Walk of Fame and of all those shoe- and handprints in front of the Chinese Theatre.

“We expect to spark fan frenzy today as we’ve just confirmed the next actor to be admitted into our attraction is the hottest celebrity of the moment, Brit born A-lister and star of the phenomenally successful Twilight saga, Robert Pattinson,” reads the wax museum’s announcement. Pattinson’s wax figure will be revealed in March, shortly before the UK release of his latest film, Remember Me, in early April.

The Madame Tussauds website adds that artists are busy recreating Pattinson’s “sultry expression and messy hair, whilst the figure’s outfit will reflect his rugged style with an open collared shirt and skinny trousers.”

The Pattinson waxwork will take four months “of intense work” to complete at a cost of £150,000.

It may all be worth it, as the Museum has “been inundated by requests to make him.” Pattinson’s wax statue will be found at Madame Tussauds’ VIP area, which includes Johnny Depp, Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, and Kate Moss.

Considering the current 3D craze, a House of Wax remake would be appropriate. Robert Pattinson could star in the old Vincent Price role in the 1953 3D hit.

Photos: The Twilight Saga: New Moon (Kimberley French / Summit Entertainment); Robert Pattinson wax figure (Madame Tussauds)

Robert Pattinson and Emilie de Ravin in ‘Remember Me’

Robert Pattinson and Emilie de Ravin star in the romantic drama Remember Me, which has received a very positive review in The Hollywood Reporter and a less enthusiastic one in Variety. Both reviewers mention that the film’s climax may leave some viewers wondering where all that came from – while others will be moved.

Directed by Allen Coulter and written by Will Fetters (with some rewriting by an uncredited Jenny Lumet — of the well-received Anne Hathaway drama Rachel Getting Married), Remember Me tells the story of Tyler (Pattinson), a rebellious young man who has a problematic relationship with his wealthy father (Pierce Brosnan). Life is difficult for Tyler, but he finds a ray of hope after meeting Ally (de Ravin), a free spirit whose father (Chris Cooper) doesn’t like Tyler.

The young couple fall in love, but must face all sorts of obstacles along the way. Secrets are revealed, class issues arise, and fate just seems to be working against them. The question is: Can their love be survive against some pretty tough odds?

Remember Me opens Friday, March 12. It is Robert Pattinson’s first vehicle following his success opposite Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner in the blockbuster The Twilight Saga: New Moon. Emilie de Ravin is best known for her role in the television series Lost.

Robert Pattinson, Emilie de Ravin, Remember Me

Robert Pattinson was greeted by hysterical screams on Jon Stewart’s The Daily Show, forcing the host to announce, “Ladies, there’s plenty of J. Stew to go around!”

Whether you love Robert Pattinson or have a tough time with him and the Twilight saga movies, his interview with Stewart is very funny. Pattinson, who comes across as quite unassuming, explains that he was lucky no one found out where he was staying while in New York promoting the upcoming Remember Me, and explains that the out-of-control adulation of some of his most ardent fans and the besieging paparazzi don’t bother him because “you can just ignore it. After a while it becomes part of your day.”

Stewart then goes on about not being too familiar with the Twilight Saga movies, which co-star Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner, only to complain, “Why can’t Bella Swan make up her mind? She uses Jacob as an emotional crutch and totally leads him on and we all know she fucking belongs with Edward! SHE BELONGS TO HIM!” Adding in sheer exasperation: “I guess my point is this. WHY IS SHE SO SELFISH?!”

Pattinson’s response: “I wish I could answer any questions about Twilight. I have no idea…”

On the more serious side, Pattinson, soon to be added to Madame Tussauds’ waxwork collection, talks about his fear of “oversaturation” and “not being able to do anything else.”

Stewart then makes a very funny – but also very pointed – analogy to Pattinson’s future and what happened to the two Star Wars leading men, Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford.

Feb. 25

Considering how ardent The Twilight Saga and other Robert Pattinson fans are, it’s no wonder that all sorts of publications – including this blog – has been posting various news reports about Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner, and their Twilight and non-Twilight film roles, be they Remember Me (above), Bel Ami, The Yellow Handkerchief, The Runaways, Welcome to the Rileys, or Stretch Armstrong. It’s a give-and-take-and-give-back arrangement: we provide information, fans come to the news sources, our sites and/or printed news sources get more hits/sales, we then can provide more information, and so on.

The problem is when reports surface whether online or in print that have little or no basis in reality. Either the truth gets stretched quite a bit, or the stories are made up from scratch. For example, rumors abounded about Robert Pattinson becoming a possible replacement for Tobey Maguire in the Spider-Man series, until Sony Pictures finally said that no actor was being considered until they found their director. By now, their director has been found – (500) Days of Summer‘s Marc Webb – but little more has been said about Pattinson as a human arachnid of sorts.

Even worse is when Pattinson or Stewart (and other celebrities, really) are quoted as having said something during an interview that never took place. That happens much more often than most people realize. According to tabloids, Pattinson has said he’s dating Kristen Stewart. Since then, other publications have picked up the story and it’s now become “fact.” Perhaps they’re really dating; perhaps they aren’t. Perhaps Pattinson only cares about his dog. But it’s unwise to rely on information provided by supermarket rags.

Anyhow, MTV News felt the need to post the following introduction to an article originally published on Feb. 8:

After this article published, a dispute emerged over the authenticity of the [Scottish] Daily Record‘s interview with Robert Pattinson. Mr. Pattinson’s representative informed MTV News that there was no interview with the publication. However, the Daily Record has since provided MTV News with an audio recording that apparently contains a portion of the interview in question. At press time, Pattinson’s representative had not responded to further questions to clarify the source of the interview. MTV News regrets any error.

In the Scottish Daily Record interview, Pattinson purportedly discussed “his paranoia about relationships, the eventual end of the Twilight series and some very intimate on-camera time he’ll soon share with [Uma] Thurman” in Bel Ami.

Below are a few passages from the Daily Record interview, as posted by MTV News:

“The sex scenes with Uma are kind of disturbing,” he said. “Her character kind of uses sex as a sort of weapon and my character thinks like an animal. There’s a lot of sex scenes in this film, so I’m asking quite a lot of myself, and with lots of different people as well.”

“If you meet a crowd of people, a lot of times you think someone is going to say something, someone could be going to sell a story about you,” he admitted. “The majority of times, nothing bad ever happens, but having that paranoia there is very annoying.”

One story — or rather, one outlandish casting rumor — should now be put to rest. Any wish on the part of some fans that the rebooted Spider-Man franchise will star Pattinson as Peter Parker is just that: a wish, with no basis in reality.

“I don’t think I’m going to be playing Spider-Man, even though I would quite like to do it,” he said.

And this is from E! News:

Robert Pattinson on The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, which apparently is still a will-it-be-a-one-movie-or-two-movie deal:

“I don’t mind either way.”

Inglourious Basterds’ Christoph Waltz  will apparently be taking the place tentatively allotted to Sean Penn as the co-star of Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson in Francis Lawrence’s upcoming film adaptation of Sara Gruen’s bestselling novel Water for Elephants, according to Deadline.com. If all goes well, Waltz, who has proven himself more than capable of bringing to life evil characters, will play Witherspoon’s meanie husband in this drama set in a Depression-era traveling circus.

Witherspoon will play the rider Marlena, the wife of a psycho animal trainer (that’s Waltz), while Pattinson will be the young runaway and former veterinary student she befriends. Production on Water for Elephants is expected to begin in June (by then the film should have two Oscar winners in its cast), though Pattinson is currently working on Bel Ami and Waltz is scheduled to star for David Cronenberg in The Talking Cure, in which he’ll play Sigmund Freud. Keira Knightley and Michael Fassbender will be his co-stars in this one. Additionally, Waltz will be seen as the baddie in The Green Hornet later this year.

I didn’t know about this, but Robert Pattinson played Reese Witherspoon’s son in a sequence – later deleted – from Vanity Fair. I’m not sure if that bit has resurfaced on the film’s DVD.

Photo: Inglourious Basterds (François Duhamel / The Weinstein Co.)

Photo: Remember Me (Myles Aronowitz / Summit Entertainment)

March 26 update.

Robert Pattinson’s wax figures were unveiled in New York and London on Thursday. Twihards and assorted Pattinson fans were able to hug, kiss, fondle – but not scratch, break, or mutilate – the life-sized statue, which includes beard stubble, scruffy hair and all.

The waxwork reportedly cost $223,000. How much of that was spent on Pattinson’s carefully misarranged hairdo is unclear.

Now, does Pattinson in wax look like Pattinson in (the) flesh? Or at least like Edward in the flesh under all that white face-powder? Well, not really, I don’t think. You can tell it’s him, but for one thing I don’t recall the real Pattinson’s eyes being that slanted.

Madame Tussauds spokesperson Liz Edwards explained that “R-Pattz is one of the hottest celebs on the planet. We are delighted to be able to give them the chance to cosy up with their idol here at Madame Tussauds and judging by the reactions of the first to meet him here this morning he is set to top our ‘most kissed list of celebrities very quickly!'”

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“Crowds of screaming fans will flood Times Square to help unveil a wax figure of Hollywood heartthrob Robert Pattinson” reads the announcement for the Madame Tussauds New York event on Thursday, March 25 at 10:30 a.m. at 234 West 42nd St. (b/w 7th & 8th Aves.).

But will they scream in ecstasy or in horror?

Either way, following the unveiling fans will be able to pose next to the statue and even give it a hug if they don’t find it too creepy. Once Pattinson’s fans are all waxed out, the Twilight Saga and Remember Me actor will join Johnny Depp, George Clooney, Sean “Diddy” Combs and Leonardo DiCaprio at Madame Tussauds New York.

The text below is from the Robert Pattinson wax figure’s Facebook page:

Pattinson’s figure is dressed in black trousers and fitted shirt. A jacket in a contrasting color finishes off his young, hip look. R-Pattz’s wax likeness also sports the actor’s signature tousled locks, which fans are invited to run their fingers through. Each strand of hair was inserted one-by-one by the Tussauds studio artists, who created the figure. They spent hundreds of hours studying photos and watching video footage of Pattinson to create the incredibly lifelike figure, which is posed standing up with hands on hips and will be housed in the “Opening Night Party” section of Madame Tussauds New York.

The first 100 fans who arrive to see R-Pattz’s figure on the day it is unveiled will receive free Pattinson and Twi-hard gear, as well as free admission to the attraction. Fans both young and old, often referred to as “Twi-hards,” can’t seem to get enough of R-Pattz. The young British actor became an overnight sensation following his portrayal of Edward Cullen, the beloved vampire in the film adaptation of Twilight. With a loyal following stretching across multiple continents, Pattinson is one of today’s hottest stars. In fact, Madame Tussauds London will also unveil a figure of R.Pattz on the same day as Madame Tussauds New York.

R-Pattz’s fans and representatives from Madame Tussauds NY will be available for interviews on site.

March 4

Robert Pattinson, who plays the rebellious Tyler in the upcoming Remember Me, is interviewed at length at teenhollywood.com. Pattinson’s most interesting remark was his answer to a question about how his work is perceived following the Twilight Saga movies.

“I think people do judge things differently after the Twilight films,” he explains. “They view it differently but I mean there’s nothing you can really do about that. I do take that into account more now than I used to. Doing the [Salvador] Dali thing (Little Ashes), when I was doing it, I didn’t think anyone was ever going to see it. It’s a very different place to be at when you think you’re making a movie which nobody is going to see; you’re not afraid to experiment with things.” Indeed, Pattinson looks completely different as Salvador Dali in Little Ashes.

Additionally, Pattinson discusses what it’s like to work with older actors, how he enjoyed the fight scenes with Chris Cooper (“I was continually beaten up by him”), and the difficulties of playing someone being strangled (“I was experimenting with myself just before we shot it. I don’t really know what the face is to represent being strangled”).

Pattinson also says that “all of the projects I’m doing seem like little baby steps toward other things,” even though Bel Ami, which he’s currently filming with Uma Thurman, Christina Ricci, and Kristin Scott Thomas, is somewhat different than the rest. And adds that Pierce Brosnan’s approach to his character – that of Tyler’s father – “completely changed what Tyler’s relationship is with him.”

Remember Me opens on March 12.

Photo: Robert Pattinson on the set of Remember Me (WENN)

March 15

Robert Pattinson’s Tyler Hawkins in Allen Coulter’s romantic drama Remember Me (above, with Emilie de Ravin, Pierce Brosnan) has been compared to James Dean’s characters in the 1955 classics East of Eden and Rebel Without a Cause.

Created by Will Fetters, the early 21st-century Tyler feels he’s misunderstood by his wealthy father (Brosnan), has a troubled relationship with a young woman (de Ravin), and is undecided about his future. Dean’s thoroughly misunderstood mid-20th-century characters have serious issues with both parents, have budding love affairs with young women (Julie Harris, Natalie Wood), and would probably have difficulty spelling the word “adulthood.” Rebelliousness against accepted social values and tragedy of some sort or other are to be found in all three films.

In an interview with Parade magazine, the Twilight and The Twilight Saga: New Moon star admits that Dean has been an inspiration for his work. “I think he was like the most influential person for young guys,” he remarked, “especially actors, in the last 50 years. … I’m not ashamed to say I am very much influenced by him.”

Some reviewers, however, have liked Pattinson best whenever he dropped the Dean persona in Remember Me. His scenes with Ruby Jerins, who plays his young sister, have been particularly singled out for praise.

In that regard, Pattinson’s character has several elements in common with another rebel – one that predates both James Dean and Marlon Brando: The Catcher in the Rye Holden Caulfield; J.D. Salinger’s aimlessly rebellious antihero has some serious issues with his parents, his teachers and other authority figures, his fellow students, and just about everything and everyone else except for his little sister and his dead brother. Unlike Tyler in Remember Me, Caulfield doesn’t end up dead in The Catcher in the Rye – but he almost takes that route as well.

You can also find similarities between Tyler and the character played by Timothy Hutton in Robert Redford’s Academy Award-winning drama Ordinary People: both of them have lost their brothers; neither one can relate to (at least) one parent.

Also worthy of note: according to E! Online, 84 percent of Remember Me‘s opening-weekend audience consisted of female moviegoers. On average, those fans gave Pattinson’s first non-vampire starring vehicle a “B.” Not a bad grade, which makes one wonder why the movie’s box office take fell a whopping 20 percent on Saturday after a relatively solid Friday opening.

Photo: Remember Me (Myles Aronowitz / Summt Entertainment)

March 17

Javier Beltrán, Robert Pattinson in Little Ashes

Paul Morrison’s Little Ashes, starring Robert Pattinson as Salvador Dali (!), won the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Film — Limited release dealing with gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgendered people. The other nominees in that category were Casi Divas, The Country Teacher, Phoebe in Wonderland, and The Secrets.

Written by Philippa Goslett, Little Ashes depicts a purported romance between Dali and left-wing poet Federico García Lorca (played by Javier Beltrán), with Lorca feeling comfortable about his sexual orientation and Dali all conflicted about it. The former was later murdered during the Spanish Civil War, while the later became a successful artist and radical right-winger. Matthew McNulty plays Luis Buñuel in the film.

“Director Paul Morrison (Wondrous Oblivion) nicely re-creates the period,” wrote Walter Addiego in the San Francisco Chronicle, “but puts too much weight on the sexual relationship as determining the men’s artistic courses. And the movie gives short shrift to a third student who would go on to fame, Luis Buñuel … who is written off as a homophobe.”

According to boxofficemojo.com, Little Ashes grossed a paltry $481K domestically. DVD figures weren’t readily available.

Other GLAAD winners include Joy Behar, who received the Excellence in Media Award; the television series Brothers and Sisters, voted Outstanding Drama Series; and Sex and the City‘s Cynthia Nixon, who was given the Vito Russo Award.

The GLAAD Media Awards presentation was held in New York City on March 13. A second batch of winners, including Outstanding Film – Wide Release, will be announced on April 17 in Los Angeles.

Photo: Regent Releasing.