Johnny Depp In Talks To Play Mexican Bandit & Revolutionary Pancho Villa

Johnny Depp is in talks to play one of Mexico’s heroes – Pancho Villa.

The versatile star is said to be in “advanced negotiations” to play the Mexican revolutionary in a film titled “Seven Friends of Pancho Villa and the Woman With Six Fingers,” according to Variety, which first reported the news.

Additionally, Salma Hayek is also said to be in talks to join the production, which will start filming in 2011, reportedly due to Depp’s other commitments.

According to the paper, the movie will focus on the excesses of the bloodthirsty bandit and revolutionary, based on the novel “The Friends of Pancho Villa,” by James Carlos Blake.

Telly Savalas played Villa in the 1972 film bearing the revolutionary’s name; Yul Brynner also played the man in 1968’s “Villa Rides” and Antonio Banderas played him in 2003’s “And Starring Pancho Villa As Himself.”

Villa was responsible for an attack on the United States in1916 in Columbus, New Mexico, the first on American soil since 1812, after the U.S. chose to support his former ally Venustiano Carranza. U.S. sent troops into Mexico after Villa following the attack, but he was never caught.

Villa, who was born in 1878, was gunned down in July 1923.

Did Tiger Woods’ Wife Call His Alleged Mistress?

Tiger Woods allegedly called Jaimee Grubbs — a woman who claims to have had an affair with the star – on November 24 and left her a voicemail with a warning that his wife might be ringing the number.

In an audio clip posted on Us Weekly’s Web site on Wednesday, a male voice believed to be that of the professional golfer is heard saying; “Hey, it’s Tiger… need you to do me a huge favor. Can you please take your name off your phone? My wife went through my phone and may be calling you. So if you can, please take your name off that. Just have it as a number on the voicemail. You got to do this for me. Huge. Quickly. Bye.”

Hours after the magazine posted the call, TMZ posted their own story claiming that Elin Nordegren, Woods’ wife of five years, allegedly called Grubbs on Friday.

According to TMZ, co-workers of Grubbs at the Stone Rose Lounge in West Hollywood claimed to the Web site that Grubbs, a former VH1 reality star, who also appeared in a holiday-themed music video called “Druncle,” told people at her work she was having an affair with Woods and played them a phone message he left her asking her to take her name off her own voicemail.

The sources at Grubbs’ work, went on to claim that on Friday, the same day Woods was involved in a car crash that knocked over a fire hydrant, she received a call from a blocked number.

The woman on the other end of the line did not identify herself, but Grubbs reportedly told co-workers that the caller said, “You know who this is because you’re f***ing my husband.”

But Grubbs herself told Us Weekly on Wednesday the TMZ report is not true.

“Elin has never called me as far as I know. I did get a call from an unknown number last Tuesday (the same day as Tiger left me a message), but I never picked up,” she told the mag.

Taylor Swift Screams With Joy Over Grammy Nods, Says Being Recognized Is ‘Ultimate Honor’

Taylor Swift has won just about every top music award there is this year, but the possibility of winning not just one, but eight Grammys, had the 19-year-old screaming for joy as the nominations were announced.

“I started freaking out and jumping up and down,” Swift said in a telephone interview Wednesday night after learning of her nominations, which included album of the year for her sophomore CD “Fearless” and mentions for song and record of the year.

“I honestly never would have predicted this, eight nominations — I’m ecstatic, and blown away and so so thankful,” the stunned country sensation said.

Swift’s haul of eight nods was only second to another blonde superstar — Beyonce, who got 10. The multi-hyphenate diva, who had an amazing year even on Beyonce terms, including performing at the inauguration for President Barack Obama and the first lady and a No. 1 movie with “Obsessed,” was rewarded for her fierce year. The Grammy-winner was nominated once again, this time for album of the year for her double CD, “I Am … Sasha Fierce,” song of the year for her ubiquitous anthem, “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)” and song of the year for “Halo,” as well as other awards.

Another diva was also nominated in all three categories: Lady Gaga. The eccentric entertainer, who had five nominations overall, garnered a best album mention for her debut CD, “The Fame,” while her “Poker Face” got nominations for record and song of the year. Other nominees for album of the year were the Black Eyed Peas for “The E.N.D.” and Dave Matthews Band’s “Big Whiskey and the Groogrux King.”

The Black Eyed Peas were also nominated for record of the year for their feel-good song, “I Gotta Feeling,” while the Kings of Leon were nominated for “Use Somebody.” The Kings of Leon hit was also nominated for song of the year, as well as Maxwell’s comeback hit, “Pretty Wings.”

The Black Eyed Peas, Maxwell and Kanye West got six nominations each, while Jay-Z and DJ David Guetta got five.

The country act the Zac Brown Band was nominated for best new artist, along with R&B siren Keri Hilson, rockers MGMT, the punk duo the Ting Tings and the rock group the Silversun Pickups. The year’s most popular new artist, Lady Gaga, wasn’t eligible; her single “Just Dance” had been nominated last year, before she was a platinum-selling act; previous Grammy nominees can’t be nominated in the category.

Recording Academy President Neil Portnow said that scenario won’t likely happen again: “There will be some changes so that particular situation won’t repeat itself.”

Wednesday’s nominations were unveiled at Club Nokia in Los Angeles as part of a prime-time CBS special. It was the second year in a row that the Recording Academy revealed a handful ofits 109 nominees during a televised concert; in the past, they had been announced during a morning news conference.

Swift, who turns 20 later this month, said she was holed up in a Los Angeles hotel room with her mother, editing home videos on her computer, when the nominations were being read. It was then she got a text from her producer, Nathan Chapman, that just read “AAUUGGH!!!!!”

Taylor didn’t know what to make of it.

Then he called and told her about her first nomination, song of the year, for her hit, “You Belong With Me.” And then the screams started, and continued when the nominations kept coming in.

Besides album and song of the year, she was also nominated for record of the year for “You Belong With Me” and country album.

“To be recognized by the Grammys is the ultimate honor, and all I know is that when I write about this in my journal tonight it will be in all capital letters and underlined four times, and there will be lots of exclamation points in this entry because I never imagined I’d get to write this kind of journal entry,” she gushed.

Swift may be in shock, but her nominations are not a big surprise to many: She was the year’s best-selling artist outside of Michael Jackson, and her “Fearless” CD, released late last year, has sold more than 4.5 million copies. She is not just a country superstar, but a pop one as well.

Just last month, Swift won five American Music Awards, including artist of the year. She’s also won top honors at the Academy of Country Music Awards, the Country Music Association Awards and won an MTV Video Music Award (which was infamously snatched away by Kanye West).

But Swift, who has been nominated for a Grammy before, says winning one would be her dream triumph: “The thought of that absolutely is something that you daydream about.”

Swift was in Los Angeles to do a concert andto do some work on her upcoming movie “Valentine’s Day”; she had an early call on the set Thursday morning.

When asked how she planned to celebrate her nominations, she said: “I’m just gonna call a bunch of people and tell them that I love them.”

The Grammys will be presented on Jan. 31 in Los Angeles.

‘American Idol’ Back For New Season January 12

“American Idol” will kick off its ninth year with a two-night season premiere in January.

Fox announced Tuesday that the hit singing contest, which last year produced a battle between winner Kris Allen and runner-up Adam Lambert, will return Tuesday, Jan. 12, and Wednesday, Jan. 13.

This year’s big change: Paula Abdul is out as judge and Ellen DeGeneres is in.

Fox also announced that the drama “24” will return with a pair of two-hour episodes airing Jan. 17 and 18, and that “Glee” will take a break after its Dec. 9 episode, returning April 13 to follow “American Idol.”

Before that, the coveted post-“Idol” spot will go “Our Little Genius,” a new series that tests the knowledge of gifted children and debuts Jan. 13.

Former ‘Tool Academy’ Star Claims She Had An Affair With Tiger Woods

A former reality star that was dumped by her boyfriend on VH1’s “Tool Academy” has come forward claiming she was involved in an affair with married golf star Tiger Woods.

Jaimee Grubbs, 24, claims to Us Weekly that she embarked upon a 31-month affair with the sports superstar beginning in 2007 — a relationship that she alleges included 20 sexual encounters.

Grubbs claimed to Us that she has pictures and over 300 sexy text messages from one of the world’s highest paid athletes.

Last week, Woods was involved in a car crash outside his home in Florida, a crash TMZ claimed happened not long after the golfer and his wife of five years, Elin Nordegren, argued over reports of his alleged affair with Rachel Uchitel, an event planner based out of New York City.

Uchitel has strenuously denied an affair.

As for Grubbs, she’s familiar with the cheating game. The Los Angeles based cocktail waitress was left broken-hearted on the first season of VH1’s “Tool Academy” after her boyfriend, Shawn, dumped her on the show after revealing he had another girlfriend.

Us Weekly said they will post a voicemail of Grubbs’ on Wednesday, allegedly recorded on November 24, which they claim features Woods suggesting that his wife may believe he is having an affair.

On The Download: Download It… Or Ditch It

We can’t remember a time in recent history when so much great new music has come out in such a short period of time. But with the market so saturated with new releases, which albums are worth your time and money?

We break down all of last week’s and this week’s hot new tunes! And surprisingly, most of it is worth getting!

Adam Lambert, “For Your Entertainment” – Download It
Of course, all anyone’s talking about is Adam’s performance on the AMAs. Overall, we like what Adam’s doing musically – he’s a fresh breath of air for the music industry. Although not every track is a hit – standouts include his songwriting collaborations with Kara DioGuardi, Pink and Lady Gaga.

Shakira, “She Wolf” – Download It
The Colombian beauty is back with her 3rd English-language effort and we like it even more than her last! Steaming with electronica throughout the album, new track “Give It Up To Me” (feat. Lil Wayne) is sizzling!

Rihanna, “Rated R” – Download It
As disappointed as it makes us to say it, the music on the new album is nothing like the Rihanna of yore. Still, it’s a highly personal album that demonstrates a new & more mature side of the singer, which ultimately, makes it an important album and worth still getting.

John Mayer, “Battle Studies” - Download It
The Romeo of Hollywood reminds us why we love him – he’s one of the best songwriters working today. His latest will debut #1 on Billboard’s 200 this week, despite tough competition!

Robbie Williams, “Reality Killed The Video Star” – Download It
The former Brit boy-bander is returning to his place as a leading man with his latest release. Much improved over his lackluster last “Rudebox” release. Check out first single, “Bodies.” Our full review, HERE.

Kris Allen, “Kris Allen” - Download It
It’s a home run from “Idol’s” latest champ. Completely commercial and should appeal to several quadrants. Check out our full review HERE.

Lady Gaga, “The Fame Monster” – Download It
Not just your average album re-issue with a new track or two. Lady Gaga is redefining the idea of what it means to put out a “new album,” with the re-release of her debut, 2008’s “The Fame.” Instead, if you didn’t buy the original album, you’re getting all of it, plus a whole new second album with eight brand new tracks, each equally as good as her first effort!

Justin Bieber, “My World” – Ditch It
Not much about this teen sensation from Canada is exciting us, but if you’re 13, maybe you feel differently.

Susan Boyle, “I Dreamed A Dream” – Download It
What very well could be the biggest album of the holiday season (it will open #1 on the Billboard 200 next week)… comes from the most unlikely of suspects! And to bat, it’s very good! The producers picked the perfect tracks for SuBo’s coming out party

Janet Jackson, “Number Ones” - Download It
Sure, her past few original albums have failed, but the collection of the greatest from her whole career is too good to pass up.

Britney Spears, “The Singles Collection” - Download It
Just like Janet’s collection, this one is worth getting. There are 50+ tracks, so you’re also getting your money’s worth. Plus, great-unreleased dance mixes, which are awesome for the gym

Norah Jones, “The Fall” – Download It
Norah takes her sound in a slightly different direction, and we like where she’s heading!

Leona Lewis, “Echo” – Ditch It
A lackluster follow-up to her debut, although lead single “Happy” is a stellar song.

Beyonce, “I Am… Yours – An Intimate Performance at Wynn Las Vegas by Beyonce” – Download It
If you missed Sasha Fierce’s latest concert tour, catch up with it on this disc. Beyonce offers a companion DVD that is worth the price of purchase alone!

CBS, GLAAD Respond To ‘Early Show’ Blurring Lambert Kiss – But Not Madonna’s

“The Early Show” viewers on Wednesday didn’t get to see what made Adam Lambert’s performance at the American Music Awards so controversial.

In a move that could be seen as prime evidence that the double standard which the gay, male singer has spoken out against in recent interviews does indeed exist, the network blurred a pair of racy moments from his performance footage, included a simulated sexual act and a kiss with his straight keyboard player.

“The Early Show” also played Madonna and Britney Spears’ famous same-sex smooch from the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards – without the blur. But why?

“We gave this some real thought,” a CBS rep said in a statement to Access Hollywood. “The Madonna image is very familiar and has appeared countless times including many times on morning television. The Adam Lambert image is a subject of great current controversy, has not been nearly as widely disseminated, and for all we know, may still lead to legal consequences.”

In turn, GLAAD, the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, spoke out against the editorial decision in a statement to Access on Wednesday.

“‘The Early Show’s’ decision this morning to blur Adam Lambert’s kiss from the American Music Awards reinforces an unfortunate double standard that is applied to openly gay performers,” Jarrett Barrios, GLAAD’s president, said in the statement. “I would have hoped CBS would provide the same treatment for images of gay and lesbian people and not create an unfair double standard that treats our community differently.”

Barrios went on to cite other networks’ coverage of the event as being fairer.

“CBS regularly shows kisses throughout every daypart. The kiss was not blurred on ABC nor in news coverage on other networks. While we continue to applaud ‘The Early Show’ for featuring Adam Lambert today, we have reached out to the show’s producers to express our concerns about their decision and offer ways they can make their coverage of gay and transgender people more fair.”