They're two giants of Aussiewood, and they're also great friends. Aussie actor Naomi Watts was among the star-studded crowd that turned out in New York last night for the debut of Hedda Gabler, the Sydney Theatre Company production starring Cate Blanchett and Hugo Weaving. The 850-strong Brooklyn audience gave the performance a standing ovation and afterwards the King Kong star paid her respects, hugging Blanchett at a post-play party. [More]

Moviefone.com collected millions of votes from movie fans everywhere and the results are now official. According to moviegoers, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is the Movie of the Year! Although each Harry Potter film has been nominated for Movie of the Year, Goblet of Fire is the first movie in the series to take the top prize.

In addition, Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon were voted Actor and Actress of the Year, respectively, for their roles in Walk the Line. Click below to see the full list of winners including Sexiest Kiss, Most Hysterical Performance, Biggest Badass and more. [More]

BEIJING (AFP) - Hollywood blockbuster "King Kong" has reportedly become the most successful imported film in China for the past five years. The ape epic had generated 100.3 million yuan (12 million dollars) in Chinese theatres since its release on January 12, Xinhua news agency said. That put it just behind "Pearl Harbor," which earned 105 million yuan (13 million dollars) after its release in 2001, it said. The box office record among foreign movies was still held by "Titanic," which generated ticket sales of 320 million yuan (40 million dollars), it said. [More]

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif., Feb. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Packed with heart-pounding action, breathtaking visual effects and one of 2005's most acclaimed box-office blockbusters, "King Kong," this year's most highly anticipated DVD, arrives in stores March 28, 2006 from Universal Studios Home Entertainment. Three-time Academy Award® winner Peter Jackson, director of the landmark "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, sets a new standard for unforgettable suspense filled with nail-biting danger, high emotion and amazing creatures beyond imagination including the legendary beast as never before seen. [More]

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King Kong (2005) 1-Disc Fullscreen Edition [CA]
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King Kong (2005) 2-Disc Special Edition [CA]
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Transvestite Kong billboard attacks L.A.

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 26 (UPI) -- An underground global movement called the "Guerrilla Girls" has rankled Oscar officials with a billboard of a transvestite King Kong in Los Angeles. The billboard -- near the Kodak Theatre where the Oscars will be handed out next Sunday -- depicts Kong wearing a dress and makeup holding an Oscar statuette, the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday. The sign -- which cost $4,500 a month -- reads: "Unchain the Women Director. Women directed only 7 percent of the top 200 films of 2005," and "No woman director has ever won the Oscar. Only 3 have been nominated." [More]

Andrew Lesnie's work on King Kong has been nominated in the the feature film competition of the 20th Annual American Society of Cinematographers Outstanding Achievements Awards. The winner will be named during the ASC Awards gala tonight (February 26th) at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza. Good luck Andrew! [More]

Garfeimao writes: Cinematheque will be hosting two events the day before the Oscars. One for the film editors, and one for the Art directors nominated for Oscars, which includes Grant Major and Dan Hennah. From americancinematheque.com: Presented by the American Cinematheque in association with the Art Directors Guild and the Set Decorators Society of America. A panel discussion with this year's Academy Award-nominated Production Designers and Set Decorators, moderated by Art Directors Guild President Thomas A. Walsh. With Jim Bissell (art) & Jan Pascale (set) (Good Night, and Good Luck); Stuart Craig (art) & Stephenie McMillan (set) (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire); Grant Major (art) & Dan Hennah & Simon Bright (set) (King Kong); John Myhre (art) & Gretchen Rau (set) (Memoirs of a Geisha); and Sarah Greenwood (art) & Katie Spencer (set) (Pride & Prejudice). Free Admission. Tickets available day of the event only at the box office. No online ticketing for this event. [More]

Old-timers in Hollywood sometimes talk about a golden age of animation, seven or eight decades ago, when cartoons were funny, beautiful, and perfect. But the truth is, toons have always been a bit of a backwater - the province of Disney kiddie flicks, Looney Tunes, maybe a rudimentary special effect. Until recently. These days, animation is everywhere. Pixar masterpieces like Toy Story and The Incredibles prove that a digitally animated movie can have more heart than a live-action film. Depictions of the fantastic - flying superheroes, ferocious velociraptors, battling starships - rely on software to maintain the audience's suspension of disbelief. Even the most realistic movies call on animators to simulate an ungettable shot or to make a moment just a smidge more perfect. [More]

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery (cough*Superman*cough), but this is down right spoofage! Seems the folks making 'Date Movie', a comedy spoofing all the latest romance flicks, is spoofing KongisKing Production Diaries as well! They have 8 production diaries complete with a very own 'Peter Jackson' look alike. Now remember, these are the same folks that brought you 'Scary Movie', so expect some adult themes and outright grossness...if you are easily offended run away! If not...pass around the Kong Snot. [More]

P.S. Alyson Hannigan...call me!

After the critical and commercial success of Peter Jackson's King Kong videogame tie-in, with which the Oscar winning director had unprecedented involvement, the director has spoken of the vast potential offered by the next-generation of consoles. "I definitely see improved graphics and sound as continuously positive attributes for consideration among the Hollywood community," Jackson enthused in an interview with Yahoo. "Actors will look more 'life-like' in HD and the sound continues to get closer to the theatrical movie experience - this makes it easier to provide sound effects, artwork, and talent when you, as a filmmaker, know that the final game will be a strong representation of the film." [More]

King Kong star Naomi Watts has signed on to hand out an Oscar at next month's ceremony. The 37-year-old beauty, whose last screen turn was as the object of the giant ape's affections in Peter Jackson's remake of King Kong, was nominated for a best actress Academy Awards for 2003's death-themed drama 21 Grams. Her other screen credits include the horror flick The Ring, I Heart Huckabees and David Lynch's acclaimed drama movie Mulholland Drive. The British-born Australian actress joins a string of celebrity presenters already signed up for the March 5 Academy Awards show, including her best friend, Australian Oscar-winner Nicole Kidman. [More]

From NZPA: Peter Jackson's blockbuster King Kong is to be showcased in a new exhibit at Universal Studios in Hollywood. Universal Studios today announced that enhancements to its studio tour will include replicas of King Kong's SS Venture tramp steamer and Skull Island, created by the Oscar-winning team at Wellington's Weta Workshops. The studio tour, one of Los Angeles' top tourist attractions, takes visitors on a tram ride behind the scenes of many films, celebrating the memorable moments in Universal's 90-year film history.

Sdav writes: AngryAlien.com, which has become famous making 30-second cartoon adaptations of films starring bunnies, has just introduced their version of King Kong '33. [More]

DVD fans can really go ape on March 28. That's when Peter Jackson's big-budget remake of King Kong arrives on DVD, along with a zoo's worth of other simian and monster movies to capitalize on what Universal Studios Home Entertainment president Craig Kornblau hopes will be "Kong mania." "It's long been a popular practice in the video industry, piggybacking on some high-profile new release," says analyst Tom Adams, president of Adams Media Research. "It dates back to the 1980s, when Disney began releasing their animated classics, and a budget supplier called UAV put out a $4 or $5 clone with the same title but different animation." [More]

Not to give away the ending of a 73 year-old movie, but the giant gorilla dies at the end of King Kong. That said, there might've been a more financial reason to add the alternate "happy" ending in the King Kong video game, co-developed by Peter Jackson and Beyond Good & Evil's Michel Ancel. According to an interview on Yahoo! Games, Jackson and Ancel might possibly be developing a sequel to the monkey's misadventures in the big city. [More]