After 14 years of being together and raising two kids, no-one would have expected the Depp-Paradis fall-out. But as several sources report things are not looking good for Mr. Sparrow and his long-time girlfriend. Their relation is on the rocks, and it has been for some time now. They’re living separate lives, shuffling their kids Lily-Rose(12) and Jack(9) between them. People magazine notes that the growing separation, geographic and professional, between the two contributed to the breakup.

One of the quirkiest and acclaimed – for that matter – actors in Hollywood, Johnny Depp (42) and less successful French singer-actress, Vanessa Paradis (38), have been leading high-profile lives split between the US and France. And up until last year, this seemed to work perfectly for the couple. In December 2010, Depp explained in an interview for Extra why he and Paradis had no wedding plans:

“I never found myself needing that piece of paper. Marriage is really from soul to soul, heart to heart. You don’t need somebody to say, okay you’re married… If Vanessa wanted to get hitched, why not… But the thing is, I’d be so scared of ruining her last name. She’s got such a good last name”.

Fair enough – we respect and totally get the view. Unfortunately, for more than a year, the two haven’t been together anymore, not privately, nor publically.

Depp appeared to Cannes last year to promote the latest instalment of his movie of reference “Pirates of the Carribean”, without Paradis. He was seen flirting with girls in Hawaii and in Puerto Rico and he attended the premieres of his movies The Rum Diary and The Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides alone. He also went to the 2012 Golden Globes solo, avoiding interviews.

We’re keen to see whether the plans they’ve announced for their first film together will go through. The film, “My American Lover” was presented as a biopic about French feminist philosopher Simone De Beauvoir.

For the time being, it’s sad to see that not even the couple who seemed to have a really healthy and happy relationship – a rare thing in Hollywood – is falling apart.

Here’s Depp at the 2012 Golden Globes, presenting Hugo.

Remember those photos of Tony Stark’s (aka Iron Man played by Robert Downey Jr.) Acura, spotted on the set of the new Avengers movie in Central Park, New York? That was supposed to be a one-off model. But, as it turns out, the famous super car could be the basis for the new Honda / Acura NSX and we could be seeing it in concept at next year’s Detroit Show.

According to Honda’s Creative director, Toshinubu Minami, this halo model will “wear the same Honda face as the concepts presented at [the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show], because of course there must be consistency, but they won’t be the same.”

Moreover, most probably the NSX will have a hard top, unlike Tony Stark’s Acura that has a fabric soft top. The super hot car will arrive in Europe also, but under the Honda badge, and is likely to go on sale by 2013.

If the rumors turn out to be valid, than not only will we have the chance to admire the cool new Honda concept in the Avengers movie set for release in May 2012, but maybe see it “strutting” down the streets, in reality, as well.

ll, even though Kim and Kris insist their split wasn’t a promotional scheme, we’re also inclined to think it was just that. More over since E! very conveniently made use of their drama to promote the second season of the “Kourtney and Kim Take New York” reality show.

The show, premiering in about three weeks, on November 27, is advertised to reveal many scenes with Humphries, which may give an insight into Kim’s reasons for filing for divorce – talk about publicity timing! As Kris Jenner – Kim’s mom – told Jay Leno, Kris Humphries will not be cut out of the show, but will be a very important part of it. And this decision is due to her family’s commitment to staying real: “We decided a long time ago, when we first started doing these shows that we were going to be really just raw and not edit ourselves […] And we don’t take stuff out, as you see all the time, so I think everybody will get a really fascinating glimpse into the kids journey in New York City.”

Surely, the show’s producers wouldn’t have let such a gold mine – which includes a scene with Kim telling Kris Humphries that she wants to take a break – slip away. Here’s a very insightful promo of the show-to-come:

Kim Kardashian, 31, one of the highest-paid reality stars on the U.S. television – with earnings estimated at $6 million (in 2010) from her TV show, clothing line, perfume, jewelry and tanning cream and other product endorsements and appearances – filed for divorce from Kris Humphries, 26, on October 31st, citing “irreconcialable differences”. Since then, rumor has it, the family has split into two camps since the divorce – Kim and her mom, both considered fame-addicted, versus the rest of the family, who are really angry at her. However, whether the whole thing was staged or not, it doesn’t really matter, since they’ll all find a way to make the most of it, with the help of the eager audience at home tuning in to see the up-and-coming “revealing” episodes.

If you’re a guy, there’s a good chance you’ve seen a good deal of fighting over the course of your life. While it may seem like a barbaric and outdated tradition to some of the more politically correct members of our society , there will always be the primal urge to punch someone in the face. The new movie Real Steel hopes to harness some of that violent aggression and take it out on inanimate robots.
Boxing, Kung-Fu, wrestling, and even arm wrestling have all been portrayed by Hollywood in thousands of different movies. The video game industry has also gotten its fair share of movies with the likes of Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter receiving less than stellar big screen adaptations. Real Steel hopes to blend a thousand different things together from the Hollywood and video game landscape. It is a robot fighting movie that looks like Transformers but has a cool wrestling ring straight from the set of Battlebots.
Hugh Jackman is no stranger to fighting in some of his most famous movie roles. Most people think of his name as synonymous with the Wolverine character from the X-Men franchise. In the movie he plays a role that is quite the opposite of the surly mutant. Jackman portrays a down and out ex-boxer who is trying to impress his son, but gets beat up. When his son figures out how to let robots do the fighting for him, he takes to the ring against several underground challengers to impress his son.
This new movie will be so easy to adapt to video game systems that I’m surprised it isn’t available already. Just like the robot fighting anime game Gundam was popular for early generation systems, I can picture Real Steel being the new standard for next generation ones. Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 have their live network systems which would allow people to create their own robots to battle against each other in real time. Jump games has already released a mobile version of the video game in the Android Market which runs seamlessly with the new Samsung galaxy s2 cell phone.
Ultimately, this movie looks like something that would be really cool to see at a theater in 3D, but then never again. It is a good movie to take the kids to see and will probably sell a fair share of DVD’s and Blu Ray’s when the parents of sixth grade boys get the kids together with a bunch of sugary drinks and junk food.

Maybach fans are not advised to watch the video below!

We’re used to seeing videos of rappers showing off their latest beauties – women or cars – as a proof of their wealth and hard-gained status, but Jay-Z and Kanye West’ s Otis video takes this rapper statement to a new level.

With the release of their joint golden & glittery album – literally! – Watch the Throne (August 8), the two rappers made it clear that their product is quite luxurious, and they also made sure everybody understood that by flashing a Maybach in their Otis video. But the Maybach wasn’t used just for showing off. Oh, no! Cutting the doors off and chopping the body down until the motorized beauty looked like something ripped out of a death race was definitely shocking. Destroying a $300k-$400k luxury car is quite a powerful statement.

The video begins with Kanye and Jay approaching the Maybach brandishing power tools. After a bunch of guys in white suits get the luxury car stripped-off, Jay and Kanye hop in and take it for a spin, circling an abandoned lot with four models packed in the back. Oh, and judging from Jay-Z’s smile – very unusual for him to show his teeth in a grin, by the way – it really looks like they had fun doing it!

Importantly enough, this much-praised video is part of a tribute paid to American soul singer-songwriter Otis Redding – hence the name of the song – and the unique Maybach destroyed in it will be auctioned for charity and all proceeds will be donated to victims of drought in East Africa.

See the video:

The Bavarian automaker, BMW, and the Mission Impossible crew have teamed up to deliver a hi-tech and eco-friendly installment of the famous franchise – Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol – set to hit theaters in December.

Along with the already-established-Mission Impossible-star Tom Cruise, who plays the role of the franchise’s hero Ethan Hunt, the cast of the latest Mission movie includes other Hollywood heavy names such as Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, Paula Patton and Tom Wilkinson; however, the one name that has the major impact on the audience and car fanatics world-wide is the BMW 6-Series Convertible and Vision Efficient Dynamics concept vehicle.

As the Kremlin gets bombed, Ethan Hunt will have at his disposal the great electrical hottie with a futuristic design to move around and capture the terrorists – the BMW VED full-hybrid plug-in, which in concept form gets roughly 63 miles to the gallon, with a 3-cylinder 1.5-liter turbodiesel engine and an electric motor situated on each axle, generating 351HP and 590 lb.-ft (800 Nm) of torque. It can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 4.8 seconds, and can hit a top speed of 155 mph, while averaging 63 mpg (3.7 liters / 100 km). On electric mode, the car can be driven for up to 31 miles. It has regenerative braking capacity to recharge the 98 lithium-polymer batteries, and a thermoelectric generator for the on-board power supply. Importantly enough, this concept previews the i8 model which will be launched in 2014.

Here’s an excerpt of the press release issued by the automaker (June 6, 2011):

Back in Hollywood. BMW is pleased to announce their participation in the upcoming Paramount Pictures release Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol as the film’s main automotive partner.

High performance with fewer emissions is the name of the game: One of the BMW vehicles provided for Tom Cruise´s next film is the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics concept car. It has been recognized as having the most sophisticated technology and the most striking design among the current concept electric supercars. In a few years the BMW i8, which was inspired by the BMW Vision Efficient Dynamics concept vehicle, will enter series production.

“We are thrilled to be involved again in another Hollywood Blockbuster,” said Ian Robertson, BMW AG Board Member for Sales and Marketing. “The BMW Group leads the way in developing future mobility with a focus on sustainability. One great example is the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics concept car which will be presented in the film. With its futuristic design and large glass surfaces, the car offers a fascinating perspective on the future of sheer driving pleasure – in combination with maximum efficiency. Also with BMW ConnectedDrive technology, it is the perfect car for Ethan Hunt to outsmart his pursuers through narrow streets and busy city traffic.”

If you’re a huge Transformers fan and Bumblebee is your favorite Autobot than this news will surely please you: General Motors released yesterday (June 27) the 2012 Transformers Special Edition Chevrolet Camaro Coupe, celebrating the car’s return to the Transformers movies – the third installment, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, which opens in the United States today and worldwide on June 29.

“The Transformers franchise has helped introduce Camaro – and Chevrolet – to a whole new generation of fans,” said Rick Scheidt, vice president of Chevrolet marketing. “Its role in the films helped make the Camaro the best-selling sports car in America and one of the best-known cars of any kind around the world.”

The 2012 Transformers Camaro will feature black rally stripes that stretch over the hood, roof, decklid and unique high-wing rear spoiler; 20-inch, black-painted wheels wrapped in high-performance summer tires; and Autobot Shield logos on the center caps and front quarter panels. The interior also incorporates the Transformers’ Bumblebee theme, boasting black leather surfaces contrasted with yellow stitching on the instrument panel, center console, armrests and seats; Autobot Shield logos are embroidered on the front headrests, as well as the center console lid.

According to General Motors, the 2012 Transformers Special Edition will be available as a $3,000 package on 2LT and 2SS Camaro Coupes with Rally Yellow paint and Bumblebee fans in the United States, Canada, China, Japan, Europe, South America, and the Middle East can start ordering as of 1^st of July 2011. Vehicles are expected to arrive at dealers in the U.S. and Canada in September, surely much to the content of the US and Canadian Transformers junkies.

Now, turning our attention towards the much anticipated blockbuster – starring Shia LaBeouf, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, and new addition Rosie Huntington-Whiteley –, we might assume all of you Transformers fans will barge into the theaters to see some amazing 3D action sequences, not only the well-known robots fights, but also guys in wing-suits jumping from a skyscraper and gliding over Chicago – an action bit that has never been done before in films, according to the film’s director Michael Bay. You’ll also see the Bumblebee in action. Too bad that the real thing – the Chevy Camaro 2012 Transformers Special Edition – can’t pull off those stunts!

Here’s the movie trailer, just to have a glimpse at what to expect from both the movie and the Bumblebee Chevy Camaro. Although we’re pretty sure you haven’t missed it…

Lately, things have been going pretty well for America’s sweetheart, Jennifer Aniston, not only in her personal/love life, but in her acting career, as well.

Earlier this week, the Hollywood Walk of Fame Selection Committee announced its 2012 honorees, and Aniston is one of them, along with other heavy names of Hollywood, such as Kate Winslet, Scarlett Johansson, Vin Diesel, and Jennifer Lopez. Interestingly enough, she is being given a star on the famous strip of sidewalk in Los Angeles for her movie career, and not for the TV role that made her famous – Rachel Green in Friends. Nevertheless, with all her fame and constant presence in the tabloids, it’s about time she received the much sought-after distinction!

However, it was the taping of the Inside The Actors Studio interview – her first – with James Lipton, on Thursday, that made her week.

The visit to the Pace University was a real “joy” as she confessed yesterday to Access Hollywood: “It’s so nice to have a conversation about what you do as opposed to clearing up B.S. rumors about the narratives that have sort of been created around you, but just to remind yourself of your body of work and how long we’ve been here […] You’re talking with students and it’s just wonderful. It was so refreshing and to have someone reflecting back to you [about] your work and asking questions about where you came from and what sort of led you to be you who you are today as an actor. I loved it, I was very humbled.”

The interview will air early next month, but if you’re already anxious to see it, here are some spoilers – questions that Lipton generally asks, and Jen’s answers:
What turns you on? – “Generally or currently?… A great pair of shoes.”
What turns you off? – “Flats.”
What sound or noise do you love? – “A baby hysterically laughing.”
What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? – “Attempt is a good word … interior design.”
If heaven existed, what would you like to hear God say to you at the Pearly Gates? – “Never thought I’d see you here.”

Early next month you’ll also have the chance to see her in a new movie, set for release on July 8, Horrible Bosses – also starring Jason Bateman, Colin Farrell, Jamie Foxx, Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day, Kevin Spacey. When the Access Hoolywood reporter asked about the “sex-crazed maneater” character that she had to portray, Aniston said she loved it and was a lot of fun; she also confessed that she had no apprehension about it as “that sort of stuff just never comes across my desk, and I was thrilled… that’s in all of us, the darker side and so, it was really fun to have the opportunity”. Well, it’s great that she put that out there. Maybe we’ll have the chance to see her play some different roles in the future, other than the rom-com good girl. In real life she definitely seems like she’s going for her “darker”, sassier side at the arm of boyfriend Justin Theroux, who might have a hand in her allegedly getting a new/first tattoo.

You can access the video of the interview here, but meanwhile, check out the Horrible Bosses trailer. It’s quite hilarious! Enjoy!

Should that even cross our minds? Well, according to the Lotus CEO, Dany Bahar, the new Lotus Esprit – eet for launch in the spring of 2013 – will offer a “more authentic driving experience than its rivals, the Ferrari 458 Italia and McLaren MP4-12C”.

Presented as a concept car at last year’s Paris motorshow, the Lotus Esprit was again brought to everyone’s attention in a press conference a few days ago, where Dany Bahar revealed some major details about it.
The new supercar will be the first to receive an all-new, Lotus-developed engine instead of the 5.0-litre Toyota engine. The former will be about 176 lbs lighter and 40 per cent smaller than the Toyota V8 and will be able to reach around 570 HP – a much higher figure than the one registered by the last Esprit (2004), 350 HP –, providing the new Esprit with “the character and emotion that the MP4-12C lacks”. The Lotus CEO also mentioned that the supercar would feature F1-derived KERS technology, which “will add and not detract from the driving experience”, and claimed that it would have “the character and emotion the McLaren lacks”.

It seems that the British automaker nurtures great ambitions of improving its position in the supercar segment, and has set the bar pretty high for itself considering its competitors’ success. Development of the new motorized hottie will take place at the Nürburging and Idiada (Spain) circuits, as well as at Lotus’s Hethel headquarters, where work on a new test track is almost complete.

Here are some photos of the Lotus Esprit at last year’s Paris motorshow.

Created by 21-year-old Zhang Yuhan, the Volkswagen Aqua is the winning entry to a Volkswagen-sponsored competition that asked designers to come up with a “Chinese off-road vehicle” with “go-anywhere” capabilities.
Complying with the requirements, the new futuristic concept car is truly amazing, not only capabilities-wise, as it can be driven on roads, sand, ice, and even water, but design-wise, as well – the vehicle boasts a sleek sports car appearance, with four high-powered fans and a large windscreen that stretches above the front seats to give a panoramic view of the surrounding landscape; it also features integrated airbags that inflate to lift it from the ground, and an entrance/exit hatch at its rear.

The Chinese female mechanic design graduate based her creation on technology that is currently available, equipping the Aqua with a hydrogen fuel cell to power two motors (carbon emissions-free) – one motor inflates the skirt around the vehicle to make it hover, while the second drives it forwards and controls its direction; it can reach a top speed of 62 m/h. Thus, the “futuristic hottie” works like a hovercraft and the way it can move seamlessly between different surfaces is absolutely brilliant!

The Xihua University student, who also made the shortlist from the CDN China Car Award, argued, very confidently, that “there is no better form of transport than an air cushion vehicle because it travels equally well over land, ice, and water”. “I hope Aqua will become an affordable supercar, available to the general public one day”, Ms. Yuhan added, and we couldn’t agree more. Why change several means of transport to reach a remote destination when this little beauty seems just perfect for the job?

Here are great some pics to feast your eyes upon:

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