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Gemma Atkinson has said that she is planning to spend six weeks auditioning for roles in Hollywood.

The 24-year-old star is heading to LA in April to boost her career opportunities.

"I'm really looking forward to it," the ex-Hollyoaks actress told the Daily Star. "I can't wait to knuckle down and hopefully get some exciting acting jobs.

"Hopefully I can make an impression over there. I love the life and everything. I am filming at the moment too which is really exciting."

Atkinson revealed that she is already shooting a thriller called 13 Hours. "It is a horror and it is hard work but very rewarding," she said.

She will make her big screen debut later this year in the Duncan Ward-directed Boogie Woogie.

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Rupert Grint has said that he enjoys the speed of independent filmmaking compared to big-budget blockbusters.

The Harry Potter actor has been cast in indie thriller romance Cherrybomb alongside Robert Sheehan, Kimberley Nixon and James Nesbitt, Blag reports.

Grint said: "I really enjoy it because it is a totally different world. I think we do get a bit spoilt on Harry Potter.

"I really prefer the pace of these sorts of films. On this one you do maybe seven scenes a day - so it moves really quickly. It's exciting."

Shot on location in Northern Ireland, Cherrybomb was written by Daragh Carville and is the first feature from co-directors Glenn Leyburn and Lisa Barros D'Sa.

Last month, Grint said it was a "surreal experience" filming sex scenes alongside Kimberly Nixon for the film and admitted that the pair were both nervous.

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Jim Carrey and Jake Gyllenhaal will star in an adaptation of 1950s musical Damn Yankees.

The New Line project will be produced by Hairspray duo Craig Zadan and Neil Meron.

Damn Yankees, which opened on Broadway in 1955, follows the story of Joe Boyd, a middle-aged family man who loves a hapless baseball team. His passion for the sport prompts him to make a pact with the Devil, which transforms him into an amazing batter called Joe Hardy in exchange for his soul.

Boyd is able to reverse the deal at any time before a deadline, which is in the middle of the World Series. The devil uses a beautiful lost soul called Lola to seduce Boyd and seal his destiny. Songs in the original production include '(You Gotta Have) Heart' and 'Whatever Lola Wants'

Gyllenhaal will play Boyd, while Carrey is cast as the Devil, according to Variety.

The musical was previously turned into a film by Warner Bros in 1958. It starred Ray Walston, Gwen Verdon and Tab Hunter in the lead roles.

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Drew Barrymore has reportedly been tipped as a possible director for the third instalment in the Twilight franchise.

According to Entertainment Weekly, Summit Entertainment has included the Charlie's Angels actress in a shortlist of potential candidates to helm Eclipse.

Based on the novel by Stephenie Meyer, the story follows Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) and Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) as they investigate a series of murders that Edward believes have been committed by a vampire.

Last week, Summit announced that Eclipse would hit cinemas in summer 2010. Representatives for the company and for Barrymore have declined to comment.

Barrymore recently made her directorial debut in upcoming comedy Whip It! about a misfit (Ellen Page) who enters a roller derby league.

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Kate Winslet has revealed that she is planning to keep her best actress Oscar in the bathroom.

The actress, who scooped the award for her role in The Reader, told the Daily Mail that she has no intention of parading her trophy around.

"The Oscar's going in the loo, next to Sam's [Mendes]," she said, referring to her husband's best director prize for American Beauty. "I'm not taking it on a set.

"I hope it won't change anything in how other directors and actors work with me...I'm just going to work the way I've always worked, which is just to get on with it."

Previously, the actress admitted that she could not stop admiring the trophy, saying: "I keep looking at him and going, 'Ooh wow'. Looking at every little piece - very nice little bottom."

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Emily Blunt has admitted that she found following in the footsteps of Helen Mirren and Judi Dench "tricky".

The Brit actress plays the Queen of England in biographical drama Young Victoria, a role Dench portrayed in 1997's Mrs Brown. Cate Blanchett (Elizabeth) and Helen Mirren (The Queen) have also starred as monarchs to critical acclaim.

"To follow in their footsteps is something tricky because they're all people I admire," Blunt said at Young Victoria's UK press conference.

However, the actress claimed that she didn't take on the role for awards recognition and believes that the Jean-Marc Vallée-helmed romance is more "authentic" than other royal-centric movies.

"I don't know if there should be a cache playing the Queen of England because it can lead to an award," she commented. "I do think that we've made a very different film from others before and I do think that certain royals have been portrayed in a more Hollywoodised light. I feel we've made a more authentic film here."

The Young Victoria is released in cinemas on March 6.

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Filming on The Young Victoria had to be halted when star Rupert Friend fell into a cow pat.

Speaking at the film's UK press conference, Friend explained that his co-star Emily Blunt, who plays the eponymous monarch, was struck by a fit of laughter following his accident.

"There is a scene in the film at the end of the honeymoon where they're somewhat jubilant in the rain," he said. "Albert leads Victoria out to dance in the rain with him and I had my hands in my coat and I slipped on a cow pat, and fell into another cow pat. Emily was unable to continue working because she was laughing so hard."

Friend said that his embarrassment was magnified when shooting stopped to allow the crew to replay his fall.

"The crew stopped filming so we could watch the scene on the monitor 20 times in a row," he said. "And it's in the film."

The Young Victoria, which centres on the monarch's marriage to Prince Albert, is released in cinemas on March 6.

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Seth Green has signed to star in Disney's forthcoming motion-capture comedy Mars Needs Mums!, claims The Hollywood Reporter.

Based on the children's book by Berkley Breathed, the story follows a young boy who sneaks on to a spaceship in order to rescue his kidnapped mother from aliens.

Green will star as the protagonist Milo, while his Austin Powers screen mum Mindy Sterling will play the alien leader. Joan Cusack has been cast as Milo's mother, while Fanboys star Dan Folger will play his best friend.

Explaining how a motion-capture film is made, Green said: "[It's performed] in a black box theatre with no costumes, no sets, just actors looking into each other's eyes trying to make it real."

The Time Machine director Simon Wells will helm the project for Disney and Robert Zemeckis's ImageMovers.

Previous motion-capture movies include Zemeckis's The Polar Express, while Andy Serkis's portrayal of Gollum in The Lord Of The Rings trilogy also used the method.

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Eddie Murphy has reportedly been cast as his hero Richard Pryor in a new biopic of the stand-up comedian's life.

Reports suggest that Murphy will take the lead role in the film, tentatively titled Richard Pryor: Is It Something I Said?, which is currently being shopped around by writer-director Bill Condon.

A source told Entertainment Weekly that Fox Searchlight is interested in producing the project, although the studio has not commented on the rumours.

Pryor died of a heart attack in 2005, aged 65.

He became famous for his controversial stand-up work in the 1970s and '80s before going on to star in a number of Hollywood films, including Stir Crazy and Silver Streak.

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Sigur Ros keyboardist Kjartan Sveinsson will write the score for a new movie starring Colin Farrell.

The Icelandic musician will record the soundtrack for Ondine, which tells the story of an Irish fisherman who discovers a mermaid in his fishing net.

According to the Sigur Ros's website, a number of songs featuring the entire band will also be included on the soundtrack.

Ondine, which is directed by Neil Jordan, is scheduled for release later this year.

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Helen Mirren is learning Hebrew and Jewish history ahead of her role in upcoming Nazi-hunting movie The Debt, it has been claimed.

The Caligula actress reportedly hopes to absorb the culture of Israel to prepare herself for the part of Mossad spy Rachel Singer.

WENN quotes a source as telling the Daily Express: "Helen has spent the past six weeks reading the history of Israel, Mossad and the life and times of Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal and she's learning Hebrew, too.

"She's really taking this seriously and she's totally immersed into the way of life over there."

Earlier this month, it was revealed that Tom Wilkinson, Jessica Chastain and Ciaran Hinds had joined Mirren and Sam Worthington in the cast of The Debt, which will be directed by John Madden.

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Kylie Minogue has arrived in Mumbai to shoot her Bollywood movie cameo.

The singer will don traditional Indian dress and a red bindi dot for her appearance in the movie Blue.

Joining established actor Akshay Kumar, Mingoue will become the first international star to appear in an "item number", the traditional Bollywood dance.

"I've heard Kylie moves as sweet as she sings, so it's back to the rehearsal room for me," Kumar told Hello.

The song was penned by A.R. Rahman, who wrote the Oscar-winning soundtrack to Slumdog Millionaire.

Blue is expected to become the most expensive Bollywood movie of all time with a budget of £20 million, according to The Sun.

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Jennifer Lynch has revealed that her father called her "sick" after reading the script for her upcoming movie Surveillance.

The film, Jennifer's second feature after 1993's Boxing Helena, gives an executive production credit to her father, renowned Eraserhead and Inland Empire filmmaker David Lynch.

Jennifer told The Guardian: "My father called me after he read the script a couple of years ago and he said, 'You're the sickest bitch I know!'

"He called ages later and said, 'What's happening with your movie?' and I said 'Zilch'. I told him I don't know if it's the material, if it's the 15 years raising a kid, if it's Boxing Helena, but nobody's interested.

"And he said, 'What if I put my name on it?' I'm like, 'C'mon Dad, you know how I feel about it'. Because, believe me, it's a big issue for me."

However, she revealed that after adding her father's name to the script as executive producer, she received "more offers than I knew what to do with".

Last year, reports emerged that Jennifer would direct Bollywood thriller Nagin - The Snake Woman.

Surveillance, which stars Julia Ormond and Bill Pullman, opens in UK cinemas on March 6.

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Acclaimed filmmaker Ang Lee will head the jury at this year's Venice Film Festival.

Lee has twice won the top Golden Lion prize at the ceremony, for Brokeback Mountain in 2005 and Lust, Caution two years later.

Organisers said: "Ang Lee is one of the most successful directors in creating a dialogue between the filmmaking culture of the East and West, and is one of the most highly-awarded directors of recent years."

They added that Lee is "one of the most highly appreciated international filmmakers".

The 66th Venice International Film Festival runs from September 2 to 12 and will include a lifetime achievement award for Pixar creative officer John Lasseter.

Darren Aronofsky's Oscar-nominated movie The Wrestler won the Golden Lion at last year's ceremony.

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Terminator Salvation director McG has said that his forthcoming action movie is more realistic than blockbuster rival Transformers.

Speaking to Empire, McG dismissed Michael Bay's robot movies, claiming that they rely on "breakdancing", "backspins" and implausible action scenes.

"I think Transformers is a terrific picture, but that's a picture whose genesis is in a toy. They're sort of more colourful and optimistic and the pictures are sort of breakdancing and flips and backspins," he said.

"But ours is a very different, real world. Ours is a world of, 'This is where we can be ten years from now'. The whole idea for doing this movie was to honour the first three movies... But begin again!"

Bay started a war of words with McG earlier this year when he accused the Charlie's Angels helmer of copying him by introducing giant robots into his Terminator film.

Terminator Salvation and Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen will go head-to-head at the box office this summer, with both movies scheduled to arrive in the UK in June.

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Richard Curtis has helped a group of teenagers make a film about the "real" Notting Hill.

The director was asked by eight local pupils if he would appear in their 'remake' of his 1999 rom-com Notting Hill, which starred Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts.

Grove Roots, which centres on race riots and immigration, premieres at the Electric Cinema in London tonight, reports the Evening Standard.

Curtis apparently admits in an interview in the film that he was "asking for trouble" by naming his middle-class romantic comedy after the multi-ethnic West London district.

He said: "You think you're in the richest part of town, then you go down one street and you are in a completely different area."

Gabrielle Tierney, from project organisers the Octavia Foundation, said: "[The teenage filmmakers] wanted Curtis to be involved so we requested an interview and he very kindly said yes.

"He talked to us at length and gave the group fantastic advice on how to make it in film."

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Michael Sheen has admitted that he gets frustrated being called an impersonator.

The Welsh actor has portrayed several real-life people throughout his career, including Tony Blair, Kenneth Williams and most recently David Frost in Frost/Nixon. He will next star as legendary football manager Brian Clough in The Damned United, released on March 27.

"I do slightly bristle when I hear the word 'impersonation' because that's not what I do," he told Empire. "But there isn't really a word for anyone doing this. It's a character, just with very specific parameters."

Sheen added that the opportunity to work with Oscar-nominated screenwriter Peter Morgan (The Queen) again meant that he is eager to continue taking on roles as real people. "Peter's writing some of the best scripts around at the moment and once you start doing them, it's hard to stop," he said.

Discussing The Damned United, Sheen revealed that he was attracted to Clough due to his forceful personality, saying: "One of the amazing things about him is that he's going to shape the world in his image. Inevitably there's something in us that recognises that that's playing with fire and the gods will have to strike you down.

"There was that Saturday night triumvirate of 1970s television: [Impressionist Mike] Yarwood, Parkinson and Match Of The Day. Clough was the only person who'd be on all three."

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New Line and Platinum Dunes have reportedly begun work on a follow-up to horror remake Friday The 13th.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, a second instalment in the reworked franchise featuring Jason Voorhees could be released as early as next year.

While no green light has yet been given, writers Damian Shannon and Mark Swift have begun penning a possible draft script. However, it is thought that the project will not be approached as a sequel and will not borrow from any pre-existing storylines.

The reimagined Friday, which was released earlier this month, has grossed around $70 million at the worldwide box office to date.

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An American student has staged a vigil outside the studios where Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows is being filmed in a bid to secure a bit-part in the movie.

Brent Klovstad has dipped into his life savings to fly from the US to the UK to establish his camp outside Leavesden Studios in Watford, Herts, in the hope of catching the producer's eye.

Klovstad said that when a number of pleading letters to film bosses for an extra role went unreplied, he hatched the plan to attend the studios in person. Every morning he waits for producers with placards reading phrases such as "Have a Harry Day" and "You are Magical".

The 21-year-old, from San Clemente, California, has vowed to use all his £10,000 savings and said he will carry on for "as long as it takes", reports The Daily Telegraph.

Klovstad said: "I'm prepared to wait as long as my savings last, have an open air fare and have told them I will work for free. I have met the stars and Daniel Radcliffe told me he was really impressed with my commitment and he wished me well."

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Producer Damian Chapa is about to start filming a biopic of Bobby Fischer, considered by many to be the greatest chess player of all time.

Chapa, who recently released Polanski Unauthorized, will direct and star in Bobby Fischer Live, which will begin production in March, according to PRNewswire.

Fischer was an American Grandmaster who beat the Russian defending champion in the final of the 1972 World Chess Championships during the Cold War. The clash has been viewed as historic in easing tensions between the USA and Russia, as well as bringing chess into the mainstream.

However, Chapa and Amadeus Pictures said that Fischer was exiled from the US after playing a rematch in Yugoslavia while sanctions were in place against the country. He is said to have become reclusive and developed a hatred towards his American homeland.

The feature will span Fischer's entire life, with filming scheduled to take place in the USA, Russia and Iceland.