Here's the Scoop...

The entertainment world is all abuzz today, so let's get right to the nooz!

Be Well,
Steve

Comments? Questions? Nooz? Email Steve



************************
Mel Gibson slams 'Batman v Superman' for high budget: 'Spandex must cost a lot'
Mel Gibson attacked Warner Bros'. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice for its high budget and focus on spandex-wearing fictional heroes.

"It's a piece of [expletive]," the actor/filmmaker said Tuesday in an interview with Deadline during the Venice Film Festival where his latest film, Hacksaw Ridge is being showcased.

"I'm not interested in the stuff. Do you know what the difference between real superheroes and comic-book superheroes is? Real superheroes didn't wear spandex. So I don't know. Spandex must cost a lot," he continued.

Gibson then detailed how he was able to maintain a modest budget for Hacksaw Ridge, a WWII epic, when compared to the cost of Dawn of Justice.

"The exchange rate for the U.S. dollar was good at the time, and I think we locked in at about 72 cents on the dollar and took a $27 million budget and turned it into a $40 million budget," the 60-year-old explained.

"I look at them and scratch my head. I'm really baffled by it. I think there's a lot of waste, but maybe if I did one of those things with the green screens I'd find out different," he added. "It seems to me that you could do it for less. ... You're spending outrageous amounts of money, $180 million or more, I don't know how you make it back after the tax man gets you, and after you give half to the exhibitors."

Panned by critics, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice which opened in March, took in a reported $872 million worldwide off a budget of $250 million.

Hacksaw Ridge starring Andrew Garfield opens in theaters Nov. 4.

Gibson recently made headlines when he confirmed the development of a Passion of the Christ follow-up entitled The Resurrection.


LOOSE LIPS:
"Obviously he's got a lot of haters out there now and for good reason - I used to make fun of Nick relentlessly on Twitter. He's changed my opinion, and I think he'll change a lot of other people's, so it's going to be an exciting and fun season."
--Sean Lowe, on controversial new Bachelor Nick Viall, to PEOPLE


??? Guess Who ???
Which model was told to lose weight 'all the time'?



Anna Dewdney, author of the 'Llama Llama' children's books, dies at 50
New York Times bestselling author and illustrator Anna Dewdney has died after a 15-month battle with brain cancer. She was 50.

Publishers Weekly reported the New York-born scribe died at her home in Vermont on Saturday. Her final wish was that instead of attending a funeral service for her, mourners read to children.

Dewdney worked as a waitress, rural mail carrier, daycare provider and middle-school teacher before finding tremendous success about a decade ago as the creator of popular pre-schooler books, such as Llama Llama Red Pajama, Llama Lama and the Bully Goat, Llama Lama Time to Share, Llama Llama Misses Mama, Llama Llama Holiday Drama and Llama Llama Mad at Mama.

An animated series based on the picture books is to premiere on Netflix next year.

Dewdney's other endeavors include Nobunny's Perfect, Roly Poly Pangolin and Grumpy Gloria.

"The entire Penguin Young Readers family is heartbroken. And as we grieve, we also celebrate Anna's life, in dedicating ourselves to carrying forward her mission of putting books into as many little hands as possible. We will miss her so, but consider ourselves so lucky to be her publishing family and her partner in her legacy," Jen Loja, president of Penguin Young Readers, said in a statement.

The author's biography on the official Llama Llama website described her as "an outspoken advocate of literacy" and "mom to two away-from-home daughters and three stay-at-home dogs."


??? Guess Who ???
Which model was told to lose weight 'all the time'?

Kate Upton shared details about her early days as a model, including being told to lose weight, during an interview with Glamour.

Upton told Glamour's Meredith Bryan she was constantly told to lose weight -- "All. The Time." -- and pressured to conform to certain fashion standards when she began working as a model.

"At first I tried to diet to become their image, but eventually I realized that it wasn't realistic-that this is just the shape of my body. So I had to block them out. I think that the people who are the loudest about wanting to change you are the people with the least amount of vision and creativity."

She said her body type also contributed to her decision to begin modeling, as she was teased by other children growing up.

"I knew nothing about fashion growing up, because in Florida you just wear bikinis and flip-flops. But kids can be cruel, and they used to make fun of me for having long legs and bushy eyebrows," Upton said. "My mom would flip through magazines and say, 'Look, all these models have that, too.' I decided I wanted to be a model."

Upton added that she drew confident from the idea that curvy bodies were considered "a great thing to have" where she grew up as well as her ability to consistently book modeling jobs despite criticism from others.

She also commented on how she was able to utilize the platform provided by gracing the covers of Vogue and the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue to help promote her message of not conforming and presenting "the best you" and "the healthiest you."

"You shouldn't always try to change yourself, because then how are we going to tell anybody apart? It's like L.A.-how do I know who's who? You all look like sisters," she said.

Upton said the modeling industry has since changed "mostly for the positive" and is willing to represent a wider array of body types.

"We're more accepting now. For me, someone like Ashley Graham, who loves her body and is always talking about it, is inspiring," she said.