Disney board member reelection opposed

Proxy advisory firm Glass Lewis Friday opposed reelection of half of Walt Disney's ten member board claiming excessive exec compensation and one director's ties to a bank that was seized by federal regulators in 2008. Glass Lewis said four nominees, Susan Arnold, John Chen, Fred Langhammer and Alwyn Lewis, served on the committee that awarded CEO Robert Iger north of $30 million in total compensation for fiscal 2011. Glass Lewis wrote that according to its measurements, the Mouse overall "paid more than its peers, but performed moderately worse than its peers" Disney had said in its proxy statement, which is where companies list the salaries of their top five highest paid executives, that much of Iger's pay was tied to Disney performance. Iger wasn't even the highest paid media topper last year. Viacom chief executive Philippe Dauman was awarded $43 million in total compensation. Another Mouse director, Orin Smith was on the board of Washington Mutual from 2005 until its seizure by the FDIC in September 2008, serving on the audit and governance committees, said Glass Lewis, noting, "We believe that all of Washington Mutual's directors bear some responsibility for the company's excessive risk-taking that led to its collapse." Shareholders will vote to elect directors at Disney's annual shareholders meeting next Tuesday in Kansas City, Missouri. Iger will also formally succeed retiring John Pepper as chairman of the board. That's another bone of contention with Glass Lewis, which prefers the chairman and CEO to be split positions although many companies have one person in the role. Iger plans to step down as Walt Disney CEO in 2015. Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com

Universal Playing With Ouija Again

Michael Bay's Platinum Dune team is backLast year, Universal had a big, budget-driven spasm and seemed to jettison just about every film it was developing under its deal with games giant Hasbro that wasn't called Battleship. Among the casualties was a take on spooky spirit conjuring lark Ouija overseen by Michael Bay's Platinum Dunes company with McG attached to direct. But it has risen from the development grave thanks to Paranormal Activity.How so? Well, Paranormal producerJason Blum, who has made a name for himself developing low-budget horrors and thrillers, is now involved with the Ouija film after partnering up with Platinum Dunes' Bay, Brad Fuller and Andrew Form. According to Deadline, the concept has been seriously retooled from its blockbuster budget to a thrifty $5 million. The new price tag appealed to Universal (which had been threatened with a penalty if the movie wasn't made within a certain deadline anyway) and it's back on.It's not yet known whether McG is still involved in any way (we'd guess the various companies will prefer to go the Project X/ Chronicle route and hire a fresh, cheaper person to call the shots) or who has written the new script. We tried asking those questions on the office Ouija board, but all we got was blood running down the walls and a fire demon in the loo. You know: the average, every day occurrence at Empire Towers...

Minnie Driver To Star In Kari Lizers NBC Comedy & The Winding Route To Make It Happen

EXCLUSIVE: Minnie Driver is placed to star opposite Andrea Anders in Kari Lizers NBC comedy pilot Lady Buddies. The Warner Bros. TV-created project is all about two existence-lengthy female buddies who're living completely different lives but couldnt do without one another. Nicole (Anders) has everything opting for her.Her closest friend, Jen (Driver), has parents who've no belief in her own, terrible instincts that brought her to some 17-day marriage to some guy who left her, and she or he acquired 15 pounds around the lentil soup diet.But, in some way, she's Nicoles rock. Lady Buddies arrived Driver inside a nail-biter, following a month-lengthy pursuit. The producers cast another lead, Anders, at the outset of Feb once they also recognized Driver because the option for Jen. The issue was that Driver was within talent deal at ABC, which may not release her. Professionals and agents attempted persuasion, which didn’t work. Then your network, NBC, used gamesmanship by means of some traditional equine buying and selling. ABC wanted Kal Penn, who were built with a talent deal at NBC, to star in the comedy pilot Prairie Dogs. NBC provided to release Penn from his deal if ABC would let Driver go so she could do Lady Buddies. That didn’t work either. (Penn did finish up doing Prairie Dogs.) Ultimately, persistence and perseverance compensated off. ABC finally launched Driver and she or he rapidly closed an offer with Warner Bros. for Lady Buddies. The Oscar-nominated former Riches star is by using CAA and Untitled.

Berlinale Dispatch: Uneasy Taylor Lautner Will get Outfitted for supper in Bel Ami

Poor Taylor Lautner: The load of showing themself, inside a movie that does not possess the words Twilight and Saga within the title, is shaping as much as be heavier than the usual vampires of the underworld curse. In last years Water for Tigers, he'd a captivating naivete, a apparently natural shyness which was wholly inoffensive, otherwise exactly memorable. So that as social schemer Georges Duroy in Bel Ami, playing at the Berlinale from competition around the festivals next-to-last day, he works harder to redeem themself than any actor must have to: He is applicable a scowl from Column A by having an eyebrow furrow from Column B to convey displeasure Smirk No. 4 denotes a minute of extreme hubris. The result is much like watching a sports athlete trying to not break a sweat you might like to root for him, but theres part of you that simply wants him to allow everything out already. What exactly is it concerning the guy? Underneath the direction of first-time filmmakers Declan Donnellan and Nick Ormerod, who've directed mostly for that London stage, Pattinson is not half-bad. He does not overreach, which possibly saves him from embarrassment. But he expends a lot energy in the wish to be subtle that hes the precise complete opposite of subtle - yet he does not go completely and go ahead and take performance outrageous. Duroy is really a fellow of modest means, rattling around Paris bedding the ladies of influential males to improve their own wealth and energy. (The film was modified, by Rachel Bennette, from Guy p Maupaussants second novel, and it is a foamy - if somewhat snoozy - little bit of attractive entertainment.) The issue might be the women around Pattinson run circles around him. Theyre those you remember, from Uma Thurmans politically astute Madeleine Forestier, to Kristin Scott Thomass mouselike, aging skinny-minny Virginie Walters, to Christina Riccis Belle poch sexpot Clotilde p Marelle. Pattinson, even though his character is attempting to dominate these women, looks a bit scared of them: Possibly paradoxically, he's more erotic wattage when hes playing wan Victorian valentine A Vampire Named Edward, his character within the Twilight movies. Here, in the stiff collars and glossy top-hats, he appears like a really lean bird outfitted up for supper, only hes the main one around the plate. Im wondering how an actress like Pattinson, a man whos had a lot teenage longing forecasted onto him hes practically a walking bit of fan fiction, can ever solve the tight knots of their own self-awareness. Or maybe he is able to. Watching him in Bel Ami, I discovered myself wishing hed rally, searching for subtle glimmers of awareness that may suggest they know hes designed to make us believe hes a cad, not only behave like one. Hes trying so difficult - why cant he use individuals lizardlike eyes, that cat-that-ate-the-canary smile, within the service of creating us forget who he's? Maybe its while he cant forget who he's. And thats the stiffest, smallest collar any youthful actor can put on. * * * This really is my last publish from Berlinale 2012, and at the tail finish of my ten days here, Im searching back on all of the pictures I needed to determine and didnt: Bunches of experts were shut from the crowd-funded Nazis-in-space spoof Iron Sky if this tested late a week ago I additionally skipped as well as-famous Marley, directed by Kevin MacDonald, that we hear is definitely an elaborate and including portrait from the late singer and music artists existence. But there is no use lamenting those that got away. Basically can rally for any 10:30 p.m. screening tonight, I would have the ability to catch Tsui Harks Flying Swords of Dragon Gate. Saying good-bye to Berlin with a little of three-D craziness does not seem like an awful idea whatsoever. Read all Movieline's coverage of Berlinale 2012 here. Follow Stephanie Zacharek on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.

VIDEO: Smash Star Megan Hilty Says Ivy Will Do Anything to Win the Role of Marilyn Monroe

Megan Hilty and Debra Messing How far will Smash's Ivy Lynn go to win the part of Marilyn Monroe? "She's dying to make that next step and she's willing to do just about anything to make it happen," Megan Hilty tells TVGuide.com. "Some people [aka Ivy] go a little farther than others." Decoding Mount McPhee: Is it a Smash spoiler? Hilty stars in the NBC series opposite Katharine McPhee, who plays Karen Cartwright, an ingénue also vying for the coveted role. "You'll find out who gets it first very soon," Hilty says, emphasizing the word "first" and implying that that casting may not be permanent. "The thing about making a musical is that you can and will be replaceable really quickly." Watch below: Smash airs Mondays at 10/9c on NBC.

Clint Eastwood's Super Bowl Ad: Five Things His Voice Would Improve

Due to Clint Eastwood's Super Bowl commercial, the economy is saved -- unemployment is finished, production expires, and we'll be fine, bless us. Okay, not always, but his Chrysler ad providing the revival in the American work force was minorly touching, if possibly because his gruff voice adds a great deal weight towards the statement. He may have mentioned something such as, "Bears possess the effect of 90% of forest fires," which we'd have required in. Duh, he's Clint Eastwood! Because spirit, we considered five alternative activities that his trademark growl could improve. Try them out past the jump. 1. College Graduation Role Calls: What they're known as are frequently mispronounced, the pace is stultifyingly slow, as well as the perfunctory applause after every title helps to make the whole factor go on for several hours. Eastwood can make things speed along, and also the bark might be enough to convince overzealous parents to help keep onto their applause until after everyone had received their diploma. He probably wouldn't do that much better while using pronunciation, nevertheless the kids would remember it the ultimate high moment from the lives before entering a blue amount of unemployment. 2. The Completely New Voice Of Siri: "Siri, are you aware me where the nearest Wendy's is?" "No." 3. Default Cell Phone Ring-tone: It may be a small growl then several hacking coughs, assigned offered with a bitter "Obtain the damn phone." You wouldn't always be capable of participate in it constantly, but you'd certainly feel it within your heart. 4. Bank Fraud Recognition: *click* "This can be Chase Bank. Your money bakes an unauthorized purchase of Women Gone Wild Vol. XIII - Vancouver, but we've remedied it and frozen your assets for now. Don't get worried: we will probably search lower this bastard and supply him all he's worth." And therefore, the plot for an additional "Dirty Harry" movie was written. 5. Electronic Rat Traps Catch-and-kill rat traps are very cruel why bother, each time a sternly-launched warning would cause them to become skitter towards the sewers? "Hey! Have the hell came from here, you little punk!" the Eastwood voice would say whenever approached. The rats would flee, your house would stay clean, and everyone would win. Title five things Clint Eastwood's voice would improve inside the comments and also on Twitter!

New Avengers trailer lands

Now our ears have retrieved from Madonna's caterwauling, and also the gamers have experienced time for you to count their damaged bones, it is time to mirror on the most crucial facet of last night's Superbowl... the brand new trailer for that Avengers.Stuffed towards the brim with new footage, the most recent trailer shows the merry gang of superheroes entirely-on combat mode, because they pit their wits against Loki's marauding military.As Mike Jackson's Nick Fury intones, "we're hopelessly eclipsed... [but] I still have confidence in heroes." We do too, Nick. We do too. Browse the new teaser below (goosebumps guaranteed)... As we'd expected, the brand new trailer consists of an entire heap of action, as Iron Guy takes towards the skies, Thor wields his hammer and Hulk smashes exactly what crosses his path.Incidentally, it is the latter character who offers Robert Downey Junior his right one-lining. "I've an military," inhales Loki, menacingly. "There exists a Hulk," quips Tony Stark.Oh hell yes...The Avengers assemble in United kingdom movie theaters on 27 April 2012.