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BAFTA chief David Parfitt has admitted that he is pleased British productions Slumdog Millionaire and Mamma Mia! have secured nominations at this year's film awards.

Danny Boyle's Slumdog tied with US film The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button as the BAFTA frontrunner with 11 nominations, while musical Mamma Mia! scored nods in the outstanding British film, best music and Carl Foreman award categories.

Discussing the nominations with DS, Parfitt said: "I have to be unbiased and I never say what I'm voting for. I was over in the States in November when [Slumdog] was just opening and the buzz about the film was really, really good.

"It is an underdog story, it's a film that must have been quite difficult to get made. I don't think it had a huge budget but it's got a fantastic team behind it - Simon Beaufoy's script, Danny Boyle directing, that's the 'A' team."

Parfitt admitted that Mamma Mia!'s huge commercial success could have dissuaded voters from nominating it.

"You could see it as not a film professional's film because it was such a popular success and you might think that the voters are going look for the most artistically satisfying film of the year," he commented.

The 2009 Orange British Academy Film Awards ceremony takes place at London's Royal Opera on February 8.

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Kieran Culkin has joined the cast of Edgar Wright's Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World.

The 26-year-old, whose brother is Home Alone's Macauley Culkin, will play Wallace Wells in Universal's comic book adaptation, Hitflix reports.

In Bryan Lee O'Malley's original graphic novels, Wells is the gay roommate of aspiring rock star Scott Pilgrim. The story centres on Pilgrim attempting to win the heart of his dream girl Ramona Flowers by defeating her seven ex-boyfriends.

Michael Cera and Mary Elizabeth Winstead have already been cast as Pilgrim and Flowers respectively. Wright is directing from a script he co-wrote with Michael Bacall.

Culkin's last major big screen role was in 2002's Igby Goes Down.

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The celebrity presenters for this year's Oscars will not be unveiled before the event, according to the show's organisers.

First time producers Bill Condon and Laurence Mark confirmed that the identities of A-list attendees will be kept top secret in a bid to generate more interest in the ceremony.

"There will be fantastic movie stars that appeal to a whole range of movie lovers and fans of our show. We're just not going to tell you who they all are," said Leslie Unger, a spokesperson for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

The names of celebrity presenters are normally revealed in the weeks leading up to the broadcast in an attempt to lure in viewers.

However, the new producers hope that by keeping their stars secret, they can reverse the recent trend towards declining ratings which saw last year's ceremony recording the lowest ever viewing figures (31.7 million).

The 81st annual Academy Awards will air live from the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles on February 22.

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Russell Crowe allegedly forced Sienna Miller out of new Robin Hood movie Nottingham because he wants a curvier co-star.

According to the New York Post, Crowe is still carrying weight from his previous film role and was worried how his scenes with the svelte Miller, who was to play Maid Marian, would come across.

An insider said: "It is a mess. Russell never lost the weight he put on for Body Of Lies - and so the love scenes between him and Sienna would have been laughable. He's so old and fat and she's so young and gorgeous. It's just... gross."

The source added that producers are now "looking for an older, plumper actress to play the role so [Crowe] doesn't look like a paunchy grandpa. Someone in her late 30s or early 40s".

Nottingham, which casts Crowe as both Robin Hood and his Sheriff nemesis, has been plagued by pre-production problems - including rumours of friction between Crowe and director Ridley Scott and filming delays.

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Slumdog Millionaire star Freida Pinto has praised director Danny Boyle for helping the young cast throughout the shoot.

The Indian actress, who plays the adult version of Latika in the award-winning film, told Digital Spy: "[Danny Boyle] gives you a lot of independence and freedom to do what you want - as long as you understand the character properly. He will not let you go astray. His style is kind of 'feel it'."

She continued: "He'd do a great job of narrating the story because it plays an important part, especially when you're not shooting in continuity, jumping all over the place.

"He will tell you what happened before, why you are like this and why you can't do this. Once he's told you all of that you are automatically hypnotized and in the zone. There is no escape and you have to deliver."

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Keanu Reeves is reportedly attached to star in Twentieth Century Fox's forthcoming Cowboy Bebop.

Based on a Japanese anime TV series, the film will follow the adventures of a group of bounty hunters travelling through space in 2071.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Reeves would star as bounty hunter Spike Spiegel, a former member of a crime syndicate. Alongside Jet Black, Spiegel pilots the spaceship Bebop through the universe.

The script will be penned by Peter Craig, but no director has been announced yet.

Bebop first aired on TV Tokyo in 1998 and is considered to be one of the best anime series ever made.

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The makers of a perfume inspired by hit movie Twilight are reportedly facing legal action.

Executives at Nina Ricci have accused the creators of Forbidden Fruit of using a design that is almost identical to their own fragrance Nina.

Both perfume bottles share a red apple shape and similar silver leaf decorations.

Forbidden Fruit was released earlier this month to promote the movie, and the packaging features the film's stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart.

Neither party has chosen to comment.

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The copyright dispute between Warner Bros and Fox that was threatening the release of Watchmen has been resolved.

The two studios have been at loggerheads over copyright issues for the superhero epic, with Fox claiming that it owned the right to distribute the first film based on Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons's celebrated graphic novel.

Both parties will present their settlement to Judge Gary Feess this morning and ask for the case to be dismissed, The Hollywood Reporter claims. Under the agreement, Fox will receive a cash payment and a percentage of the movie's box office takings, but will not co-distribute or own any rights going forward.

A statement from both studios said: "Warner Bros acknowledges that Fox acted in good faith in bringing its claims, which were asserted prior to the start of principal photography. Fox acknowledges that Warner Bros acted in good faith in defending against those claims.

"Warner Bros and Fox, like all Watchmen fans, look forward with great anticipation to this film's March 6 release in theatres."

Warner Bros is allegedly asking Lawrence Gordon, who did not secure the full Watchmen rights when he brought the project to the studio, for reimbursement due to the cost of the settlement.

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Casey Affleck has reportedly agreed to direct a documentary tracking the musical career of Joaquin Phoenix.

Walk The Line star Phoenix announced that he was retiring from acting last year in order to pursue his dream of releasing an album.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Affleck will document the actor as he records his first LP and attempts to launch his new career.

Filming is scheduled to begin today in Las Vegas, where Phoenix is making his debut performance as a rap artist.

Sean Combs will reportedly produce the documentary.

Affleck, who is married to Phoenix's sister Summer, previously directed a series of short films for the Sundance Channel in the 1990s.

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Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan has blasted Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire for its portrayal of India.

Writing on his blog, Bachchan said that the Golden Globe-winning movie depicted India as a "Third World dirty underbelly" and suggested that it wouldn't have been critically praised had it been directed by an Indian filmmaker.

"If Slumdog Millionaire projects India as Third World dirty underbelly developing nation and causes pain and disgust among nationalists and patriots, let it be known that a murky underbelly exists and thrives even in the most developed nations," he said.

Bachchan is a significant figure in the film, with protagonist Jamal at one point fighting through a crowd in an effort to get his autograph.

He added: "It's just that the Slumdog Millionaire idea authored by an Indian and conceived and cinematically put together by a Westerner, gets creative Globe recognition. The other would perhaps not."

Slumdog's screenwriter Simon Beaufoy objected to Bachchan's comments, telling The Daily Telegraph: "I'm puzzled that he would say that. Of course there is brutal stuff in there, but he can't say any of that doesn't happen. None of it is made up, it's all there on the streets for people to see.

"I depicted the place as I found it, really. I wandered around the slums for weeks, talking to people. It was very important to me to spend time there because you can't just parachute in as the middle-class white guy and say, 'Line up the slum kids.'"

Slumdog Millionaire yesterday swept the BAFTA nominations with nods in 11 categories.

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Kate Beckinsale has revealed that Pearl Harbour producers told her she was too fat to star in the World War II epic.

The actress, who was cast in the Michael Bay movie shortly after the birth of her daughter Lily, explained to Self magazine that she was faxed diet plans following a costume fitting.

"I remember going to the fitting and trying on a few swimsuits for a scene... I felt fairly triumphant," she recalled. "[The costume designer] literally went grey in the face and said, 'Do you want me to tell you how long you've got before this scene is shot?'

"By the time I arrived back at my hotel, I'd been faxed an incredibly rigorous gym schedule and a diet."

Beckinsale added that co-star Ben Affleck informed her that he experienced similar problems.

"Thank God for Ben Affleck!" she said. "He was so candid about the producers doing the exact same thing to him. Once I realised it was happening to the boys, too... I was able to put it in perspective."

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Directors Juan Antonio Bayona and James Mangold have been linked to Eclipse, the third movie in the Twilight saga.

Second film New Moon, to be directed by Chris Weitz, is yet to begin production but has a 2010 release date.

Bayona recently directed Spanish-language horror The Orphanage, while Mangold helmed 3:10 To Yuma and Walk The Line.

Based on Stephenie Mayer's novel, Eclipse sees vampire Edward Cullen and werewolf Jacob Black vying for the affections of Bella Swan.

Screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg, meanwhile, has denied that actresses are being auditioned for the role of Leah Clearwater in New Moon as the character is not in the script.

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Philip Seymour Hoffman will make his directorial debut in Overture Films's Jack Goes Boating, reports Variety.

The Oscar winner will also star in the romantic comedy alongside Gone Baby Gone's Amy Ryan.

Adapted from Bob Glaudini's off-Broadway production, the story focuses on New Yorkers Jack (Hoffman) and Connie (Ryan), who bond over cooking classes, swimming lessons and illegal drugs.

John Ortiz and Daphne Rubin-Vega will reprise their roles from the stage production.

Filming is scheduled to begin in New York City on February 9.

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Emma Stone is in talks to join the cast of Columbia's horror-comedy Zombieland.

The Superbad actress will star alongside Woody Harrelson and Jesse Eisenberg as one of a group of survivors who battle zombies in the American Southwest, Variety reports.

Newcomer Ruben Fleischer will direct the post-apocalyptic project from a script by Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese.

Stone has also appeared in comedies The Rocker and The House Bunny.

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Terminator Salvation director McG has admitted that Christian Bale initially turned down an offer to star in his sci-fi sequel.

Speaking at a preview for the film at the DGA building in Hollywood, the filmmaker said that his first approach to Bale was met with a terse refusal.

"He told me to f**k off," McG said. "Christian wasn't interested in pyrotechnics."

A script overhaul from The Dark Knight's Jonathan Nolan convinced Bale to take on the role of John Connor, a freedom fighter leading a resistance against the malevolent Skynet.

The director also confirmed that he is trying to persuade Arnold Schwarzenegger to lend his voice to the summer blockbuster and asked those in attendance if they would like to hear Linda Hamilton provide voiceover narration through tape recordings left behind by her Terminator character Sarah Connor.

Terminator Salvation opens in the UK on June 5.

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Film fans can "expect surprises" at this year's Sundance Festival, according to its founder Robert Redford.

PA reports the actor as saying: "There will be discovery of new things, and there will be surprises in terms of what people think is gonna work, and what people don't think is gonna work."

The actor conceded that he is unsure how well the Brits will be represented this year, explaining that he takes no part in the initial selection.

"I stay out of it in the beginning because I don't want to affect the selection process," he said.

"So many people send me notes and call me and say: 'Can you get this in? Can you get my cousin's film in, my brother's film in?' So I make it a point to stay out of that until the actual festival."

British films being shown at this year's Sundance include An Education, based on a Nick Hornby novel, and In The Loop, directed by Armando Iannucci, producer and director of I'm Alan Partridge.

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Terry Gilliam has resumed work on his abandoned film The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, starring Johnny Depp.

The director began filming Don Quixote in November 2000, but was forced to abandon the shoot after a week when star Jean Rochefort suffered a serious injury.

However, Gilliam told Empire that production on the project has now resumed.

"Tony [Grisoni] and I have started rewriting Don Quixote just this last week. [We] finally got the script back," he said.

"I re-read the greatest script ever written and realise we gotta get rewriting! I really wanna knock that one out in the next month or so."

When asked if the film would differ from his ill-fated 2000 attempt, he revealed that he had "some very different ideas" for the movie, adding: "[I’m] starting to think I was lucky, because maybe the film will be better seven years later. It will have matured a bit longer."

Depp is still attached to star, but the role of Don Quixote, originally played by Rochefort, will be recast.

Filming is expected to begin later this year, with a slated 2011 release date.

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Cate Blanchett has joked that she will never work with Brad Pitt again because he is so loved up that it is "disgusting".

The actress told The Telegraph that it is now in her contract not to appear with Pitt because of his devotion to partner Angelina Jolie.

Blanchett and Pitt are currently promoting The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button, scheduled for UK release on February 6.

"Honestly, to see how in love with Angelina he is, it was really quite disgusting. Awful in fact. It's in my contract now: I won't ever work with him again," Blanchett said.

The BAFTA-nominated film tells the story of a man who starts ageing backwards, with bizarre consequences.

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Mickey Rourke has admitted that the physical demands of his role in The Wrestler took a major toll on him.

The resurgent actor, who recently scooped a Golden Globe for his role in Darren Aronofsky's acclaimed movie, told Digital Spy: "After working 16 or 17 hours on the set I'd have my trainer walking behind me pushing me up the f**king stairs. I had three MRIs in the first two months.

"I had no realisation that because wrestling is entertainment that these guys get as hurt as they do. I had a new respect for a profession that I had no knowledge or respect for."

He continued: "You do a flip off the top rope or you get slammed, 60% or 40% of the time it's gonna go right or wrong and you're gonna be hurting at the end of the day. I dreaded wrestling practice. I dreaded it."

However, Rourke, who quit a successful acting career to box for several years in the early 1990s, added that comparing wrestling to boxing is akin to comparing "ping pong and rugby".

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James McAvoy has claimed that his movie career would suffer if he embraced the celebrity lifestyle.

The Scottish actor admitted that he often snubs event invitations and does not like to reveal too much about his personal life.

Speaking to The Times, McAvoy explained: "There comes a point where, you just can't watch an actor without... I just know so much about them. So how can I accept them in a role? There are just some people, they're not actors to me. They're chip paper. Just glossy paper."

Discussing the consequences of excessive press coverage, he added: "If I'm in a film, or a telly, or a play, then why should people come and see it? Because you know, they can just pick up some f***in' rubbish magazine, and see me in that."

McAvoy is currently working on Gnomeo and Juliet, an animated adaptation of Shakespeare's classic Romeo and Juliet play.