Focus Features

Penny (Keira Knightley) and Dodge (Steve Carell) in Lorene Scafaria's "Seeking a Friend for the End of the World."

Most apocalypse movies begin after the nuclear bomb has gone off or the zombies have taken over. But the upcoming film “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World” takes place in the weeks prior to civilization’s asteroid-caused destruction, delivering its characters a big question: How best to live out those final days?

Upon hearing the news, single insurance salesman Dodge (Steve Carell) chooses to ignore his impending doom, dutifully returning to work the next morning.

When his friends invite him to partake in drunken, drug-fueled orgies for the remainder of their time on Earth, Dodge jokes with his neighbor, the emotionally fragile Penny (Keira Knightley), that he’ll instead be using his final days to “(catch) up on some me time, find God, maybe move around some chairs.”

Rather than repositioning chairs, he befriends Penny, and together they take a cross-country road trip to reconnect with family and old sweethearts. As the end draws ever near, they find out along the way that all they’ve ever really needed in life is a confidant, a friend, a lover.

Although the premise sounds a little too rom-com twee, the film, which premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival earlier this month, looks to have escaped the corny by questioning what humans actually long for in end times.

If the apocalypse were truly nigh, Carell wryly admitted, “I would probably eat a lot of junk food. I’d start with Chinese food, segue into pizza, cupcakes, brownies. I’d do, kind of, a sweet-savory roller coaster and that might take me through a couple of weeks until my doom.”

Knightley took a more happy-go-lucky approach, saying, “I’d go (on a road trip) with my closest friends and family. I’d take Supertramp, and I‘d take Talking Heads. I’d want really upbeat, like, you know, dance-along music.”

The question isn’t all that far-fetched though. On Sunday, the New Zealand Herald reported that a man named Frank (who declined to give his surname) was diagnosed with cancer and given a few months to live in May 2010. After amassing a debt of about $64,000 U.S. dollars from lavish spending sprees with his wife Wilma, including trips to Australia and Fiji, the couple found out that Frank had been misdiagnosed and wasn't terminally ill.

Perhaps Knightley’s proposed dance-music road trip was a bit more prudent.

"Seeking a Friend" hits theaters June 22. Check out the trailer above.

What would you do if the end were only weeks away? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page.

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This is a message for Emma Stone: Maybe Jim Carrey, in all his creepy, close-up goodness, was onto something when he called her "all-the-way beautiful" in his YouTube love letter.

John Macdougall / AFP - Getty Images

Emma Stone at a photocall for the Berlin premiere of "The Amazing Spider-Man" on Wednesday.

The actress has been casting her web of attraction around the world as she helps roll out the much-anticipated "The Amazing Spider-Man." Alongside her onscreen superhero and real life boyfriend Andrew Garfield, we've seen Stone walk the red carpet for premieres in Tokyo, Seoul, Moscow, London, Paris and Berlin so far.

Stone, a natural blonde who sometimes goes red, is the cover subject of the latest New York magazine. Her "Spidey sense is tingling," says a promo for the article, "she knows you're watching her." Great, now we really feel creepy. But the 23-year-old actress says of that Carrey video, "I was so flattered I can’t even tell you. Honest!"

That doesn't mean she's buying all the attention she gets for her looks. "The pretty thing ... It was never a value to me growing up," Stone told New York mag. "I always thought I was like the goofy, wonky one.

"I don’t actually recognize the person that’s out there," she says of her red-carpet persona. "It's like there’s this outside person, and there’s me."

Reuters, Getty (2), AP

EPA, Getty (2), Reuters

In a business full of stars and wannabe stars who can't wait for the next flashbulb to go off in their face, Stone's take is a refreshing one. And now, our bottom lip is quivering, just like Jim Carrey's at the end of his video.

Are you an Emma Stone fan? What films have you liked her in? Tell us over on Facebook.

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Oh Axl Rose. You're clearly not the spry, energetic young rock star you once were at the height of Guns N' Roses' fame. When the latest version of the band performed at Hellfest in France on Saturday, Axl fell face first onto a platform on stage during "Sweet Child o' Mine."

Keep your eyes on the right side of the stage:

Sure, the veteran performer recovered quickly, but perhaps he wasn't feeling so hot on this tour. A full video of the Saturday gig on YouTube revealed a totally uninspired performance of "Sweet Child" by the GNR frontman. (The clip was later yanked, but here's a performance of a similar energy level from Axl on April 6 in the Netherlands.) That fall would've been totally excusable had he been channeling a smidgen of the energy he once had on stage. But instead of running, jumping and dancing around vigorously as he once did, the frontman strolled slowly back and forth during the performance of one of the band's biggest hits. No wonder the crowd seemed to lack energy as well. (No dancing at a rock show? No moshing? What is this world coming to?!?)

And no, Axl's certainly not the first (nor will he be the last) performer to fall. Check out these others:

Jennifer Lopez quickly recovered at the 2009 American Music Awards:

Steven Tyler in South Dakota in 2009, where he unfortunately sustained some injuries:

Kanye West in Norway in 2011:

Lady Gaga in Houston in 2011:

Have you ever witnessed a performer stumble during a concert you attended? Tell us about it on Facebook.

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• Vampires vs. zombies: Who would win?
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Kmazur / WireImage

98 Degrees in 2001.

98 Degrees is back … for una noche. During a spot on "On Air with Ryan Seacrest" on Wednesday, Nick Lachey and his brother Drew announced that 98 Degrees, which also includes Justin Jeffre and Jeff Timmons, will be reuniting for the Summer Mixtape Festival in Hershey, Pa. on Aug. 18.

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"We're very excited about the opportunity, and we've been toying around with the idea for a couple years of: 'if we got back together, when would be the right scenario, and this music festival right here just kind of seemed like the right time to get back together and do a show and kick the tires and see how it feels," Drew, 35, explained during their call-in.

Nick, 38, who is expecting his first child with wife Vanessa Minnillo this year, went into detail about dispelling a 98 Degrees reunion tour rumor that had popped up back in April.

PHOTOS: Nick and Vanessa Lachey's hot bodies

"I didn't say we weren't going to do it, but there was some speculation about a full tour happening this summer and our fans have been kind of eager to see us get back together," he explained. "I just wanted to make sure that they understood that a full tour wasn't happening this summer, but obviously very excited to announce that we're doing this big festival in Hershey in August. So, that will be our one and only appearance."

PHOTOS: Stars in concert

This will be the first reunion show for the "Give Me Just One Night (Una Noche)" quartet, who split in 2002 to pursue individual projects.

Grab your clear cola and slap bracelets! What's your favorite 1990s band? Tell us on Facebook.

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After suffering a brain hemorrhage, 7-year-old Charlotte Neve slipped into a coma. The British girl was unconscious for several days and doctors feared she wouldn’t recover. Her mother, Leila Neve, was at her bedside when Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep” started playing on the radio. Leila and Charlotte often sang the song together and Leila began singing along.

Then something remarkable happened: Charlotte smiled. Within two days, she could speak and get out of bed. Why does music seem to help "awaken" some people from their comas?

“It was a salient stimulus, something that she is familiar with, like [her] name,” says Dr. Emery Neal Brown, professor of anesthesia at Mass General Hospital and Harvard Medical School and professor of computational neuroscience at MIT.

Brown suspects Charlotte recovered some brain functioning prior to hearing the Adele song, but it was imperceptible. When she heard the song, she smiled and eventually woke because it held meaning for her (that's the salient stimulus part).  

“Maybe people have function recovered and we don’t know how to communicate with them,” he says, explaining a salient stimulus varies by person.

“Whenever memories have an emotional context to them, they tend to hold much more power in the brain and tend to be processed differently,” says Dr. Javier Provencio, director of the Neurological Critical Care Unit at Cleveland Clinic.

Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees woke from his coma when his family played music for him — music for a professional musician who sang with his brothers would have deep meaningful connections in the brain, sparking a reaction. But for someone who plays tennis or rides horses, a song might not encourage a response. 

But sometimes, music causes a reaction because the brain processes songs differently than spoken language. In these cases, the region of the brain responsible for song might be working better while the language lags behind.

“We clearly process music and tonal things differently than language. There are patients [who had strokes] who cannot talk but can still sing,” says Provencio.

The left cerebral hemisphere controls language, while the right processes song and music. Patients who have damage in the left might respond better to song.

“They lose the ability to talk and understand. Music therapy is really useful because it is used in the non-dominate hemisphere,” says Dr. James Bernat, professor of neurology and medicine at Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth and a member of the American Academy of Neurology.

Music therapists such as Lee Anna Rasar at the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire often use music to try to evoke responses from comatose patients. She notes that songs are most effective “if the music is something they knew before that already had meaning.”

All the physicians agree that doctors still have limited understanding of whether someone will recover from a coma, but if Charlotte wasn’t already healing, she wouldn’t have smiled at the song.

“Even in a coma, it’s quite common that these people improve spontaneously,” says Bernat. “They wake up and start responding. It isn’t outside the range of what is expected that there would be improvement over time.”

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Greg Williams / Disney

Angelina Jolie stars in "Maleficent."

Evil never looked so good.

Disney has released the first photo of Angelina Jolie as Maleficent, the infamous sorceress from "Sleeping Beauty."

The image shows Jolie looking upwards, wearing the sorceress' signature horns, red lips and creepy glowing eyes.

PHOTOS: Angelina Jolie's Top 10 Red Carpet Looks

The image was released with the announcement from Disney that filming has started on June 13 in the U.K.

Disney’s new film reveals the origins of one of their most famous villains, sharing the events that hardened Maleficent’s heart and drove her to curse the baby Aurora in the 1959 classic "Sleeping Beauty."

Jolie announced that Maleficent would be her next role back in February while at the Berlin International Film Festival.

"I haven't acted in two years, and I haven't done anything else since this ['Land of Blood and Honey']. The next thing I am looking at is a Disney movie," said the actress.

EXCLUSIVE: Juno Temple Joins Angelina Jolie's 'Maleficent'

The film marks the directorial debut for Robert Stromberg, an Academy Award winning production designer ("Avatar," "Alice in Wonderland").

Elle Fanning stars as Aurora and Sharlto Copley is Stefan, the half-human and half-fairy bastard son of the human king. Juno Temple, Imelda Staunton and Lesley Manville play the three pixie fairies.

Fans will have quite a wait for "Maleficent," which is set for release on March 14, 2014 in 3-D.

Slideshow: Angelina Jolie

Mario Anzuoni / Reuters

Launch slideshow

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Alex Brandon / AP file

Remember buying records? An NPR intern's blog post has sparked a huge debate about paying for music.

Those who've seen music change from record players to 8-tracks to cassettes to CDs and MP3s know well that the format of one's music collection is far from permanent.

But that said, a 20-year-old NPR intern managed to strike up quite the controversy last week with her blog post, "I Never Owned Any Music To Begin With."  American University senior Emily White confesses that she has more than 11,000 songs in her iTunes library, is "an avid music listener, concertgoer and college radio DJ," yet only paid for 15 CDs in her lifetime.

"I wish I could say I miss album packaging and liner notes and rue the decline in album sales the digital world has caused," White writes. "But the truth is, I've never supported physical music as a consumer."

She goes on to say that she herself didn't "illegally" download most of the songs, receiving some from family, friends, and in one case, a senior prom date who loaded her iPod up with 15 gigs of music. She also confesses to spending hours ripping music from the college radio station where she worked -- apparently viewing all that music acquisition as legal.

"As I've grown up, I've come to realize the gravity of what file-sharing means to the musicians I love," White writes, but she then goes on to say "I honestly don't think my peers and I will ever pay for albums."

NPR readers posted more than 500 comments on her post. Some of them bragged about their own large music collections, while others called White a thief, or worse. Others commented on White's dream of a universal digital catalog of all music.

One of the longest and most publicized responses came from David Lowery, singer/songwriter for Camper Van Beethoven and Cracker, who also teaches in the music business program at the University of Georgia.

"It doesn’t really matter that you didn’t take these tracks from a file-sharing site," Lowery writes to White. "That may seem like a neat dodge, but I’d suggest to you that from the artist’s point of view, it’s kind of irrelevant."

Lowery also wrote of two musician friends who killed themselves in part because of declining financial situations, writing "there is no other explanation (for their incomes falling) except for the fact that 'fans' made the unethical choice to take their music without compensating these artists."

And in a much-quoted line, Lowery wrote, "Congratulations! Your generation is the first in history to rebel by unsticking it to the man and instead sticking it to weirdo freak musicians!"

Other readers also had their say.

"How do you suppose the creators of those 11,000 songs in 'your' iTunes library should be renumerated for providing you and others with listening pleasure?" wrote James Blum. "Were you thinking that their purpose in life was to amuse you for free?"

And some felt that those who criticized White were out of touch. "I honestly don't know what to say to all these commentors who refuse to look at a new situation," wrote Gail Madoff. "Hello? Technology happens? Deal with it."

The debate didn't end with the publication of White's post. NPR ran a follow-up post, the New York Times picked up the story, and musicians and music fans from all over chimed in on blogs and forums.

What do you think? Did Emily White steal tens of thousands of songs? Tell us on Facebook.

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Anthony Mackie is ready to rewrite a little history, playing sidekick to President Abraham Lincoln, who spends his evenings chasing down bloodsuckers in "Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter."

Mackie said his character, onetime slave Will Johnson, is based on a real individual who was freed and employed by the president. "That's a fact!" he told TODAY on the Plaza Wednesday. The film opens June 22.

Later, Mackie returned with co-star Benjamin Walker, and the pair shared glasses of wine -- from Mackie's own Brooklyn bar, NoBar -- with Kathie Lee Gifford and guest Regis Philbin on the TODAY set.

"I've got the market cornered on weird interpretations of presidents," said Walker, who plays Lincoln in the film, and starred in the Tony-winning "Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson" as President Andrew Jackson.

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Matt Sayles / AP

Uggie.

Uggie, the limelight-courting Jack Russell terrier who became a fixture on the Hollywood scene during last year’s awards-season campaign on behalf of best picture Oscar winner "The Artist," has added another date to his farewell tour as he approaches his impending retirement.

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Although his trainer Omar Von Muller had said that the perky pooch’s appearance on February's Oscar show would be his last hurrah, Uggie will make one more curtain call at 10 a.m. June 25 at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre to plant his paws in its fabled cement.

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, which is releasing "The Artist" on Blu-ray and DVD on June 26, is hosting the event billed as a retirement party, at which the canine celebrity is scheduled to arrive by fire engine. Duff Goldman, the pastry chef featured on Food Network’s "Ace of Cakes," also will be on hand, bringing with him a cake in the shape of a fire hydrant.

Of course, showbiz performers are notorious for announcing their retirements only to then stage inevitable comeback appearances, so it’s a safe bet Uggie's career is only playing dead.

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Also in Entertainment:

• Neighbor sues Kevin Costner for blocking ocean view with trees
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Arnaldo Magnani / Getty Images

Kevin Costner.

Kevin Costner is embroiled in another legal battle. Earlier this month, he won a lawsuit against Stephen Baldwin over the right to British Petroleum's money versus breached bonds. 

This time, its Pacific vistas versus peeping paparazzi.

Charles "Rick" Grimm, the actor's neighbor at his beachfront Santa Barbara home, filed a suit for up to $500,000 Monday, alleging Costner breached a 55-year-old contract by planting hedges and trees taller than six feet, blocking the plaintiff's view of the Pacific Ocean, according to court documents obtained by The Wrap.

Costner allegedly broke a contract put into place when the property was initially subdivided back in 1957. That contract stipulated a six-foot limit to hedges. 

According to the documents, Costner planted 10-foot conifers to block the view of star-struck vacationers renting Grimm's house. 

Grimm, who claimed the obstruction devalues his house by half its original worth, wants the court to order Costner to prune the hedges back to the level of the six-foot, ivy-covered fence that divides their properties and to compensate him with $150,000. 

If not, he wants to be paid $500,000 in damages. 

Grimm, who owns an investment firm, claimed he spoke repeatedly to Costner's wife, Christine, who said they planted the evergreens to do "what we have to in order to feel comfortable in our own home." 

When Grimm confronted Costner a few more times about pruning the pine trees, Costner promised, but failed, to trim them, the documents allege. 

Then, in April, Costner planted at least nine tall Mexican fan palms, which Grimm expected will grow thicker and fuller, further obstructing his ocean view over time. 

"Costner stated he would not 'back down' on maintaining the hedge and palm trees as he prefers and that he will do everything in his power to secure his privacy," the documents state. 

The contract was put in place when subdivider Elsie S. Holloway divvied up what became known as the Holloway Tract. Owners of the newly parceled oceanfront properties signed Holloway's declaration stating "no wall, fence or hedge shall exceed six (6) feet in height." 

A spokesperson for Costner did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Pamela Chelin contributed to this report.

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Alec Baldwin's war with the paparazzi reached new heights Tuesday following an alleged assault on a photographer outside New York City's Marriage License Bureau -- and according to a report by TODAY's Craig Melvin, criminal charges are being considered by prosecutors and investigators.

Daily News photographer Marcus Santos says Baldwin reportedly punched him in the face and threatened to knock his teeth out, then walked away.

But a spokesperson for Baldwin put the blame on the paparazzo, saying the photographer was annoyed when someone blocked his shot of Baldwin and fiancee Hilaria Thomas and the photographer ".... pushed past the bystanders and assaulted Alec with his camera. There were no punches thrown, and any subsequent physical contact was simply Alec protecting himself.”

Santos filed an assault complaint with police on Tuesday afternoon, and according to a Twitter post from Baldwin, may have sought medical attention as well: "The photographer who assaulted me has (belatedly) gone to a hospital claiming injuries," the actor tweeted.

"The obvious charge is assault," said lawyer Karen DeSoto. "A lot of times in New York that will get downgraded to disorderly conduct as long as there is not substantial injury or intent to cause harm."

Later on Tuesday, Baldwin was seen shielding himself from scrutiny as he walked into New York's Regency Hotel wearing a bedsheet, but continued taking to his Twitter account.

"Ppl working in the entertainment industry keep appts w the press on a regular basis," he tweeted. "Paparazzi assaulting you on the street duznt count." Later, he added, "It's sad w the tabloid press. They attempt 2 provoke an incident + when it doesn't pan out, they say u did it anyway... #no1punchedany1"

Who was out of line, Alec Baldwin or the paparazzi? Let us know on Facebook and follow us on Pinterest!

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Danny Martindale / Getty Images Contributor

Why is Kristen Stewart smiling? Perhaps because she earned $34.5 million over the last year.

There’s more to Kristen Stewart than Bella Swan.

There’s no doubt that the "Twilight" actress, who toppled Angelina Jolie and Sarah Jessica Parker on Forbes.com’s annual list of highest paid actresses on Tuesday, is a box office draw. But can she act?

“She couldn't act her way out of a paper bag,” wrote one of our Facebook readers. 

"She's a horrible actress! She lacks any inner fire or warmth," wrote another.

But some critics and actors beg to differ. 

“On the plus side, portraying Bella Swan has brought Kristen Stewart fame, fortune and a (frighteningly) dedicated fan base who thinks she can do no wrong,” wrote Moviefone’s Sandie Angulo-Chen. “On the other hand, there are pockets of film-lovers who can't stand the 'Twilight' films or think Stewart is nothing more than a doe-eyed ingénue.”

What critics may not know is that Stewart, 22, landed her role in the “Twilight” franchise because she so impressed Emile Hirsch in Sean Penn’s Academy-Award nominated “Into the Wild,” wrote Angulo-Chen. “Stewart is a fascinating young actress who deserves to be considered for much more than taking a part in a paranormal romance that just happened to be a global sensation.” 

In her most recent film, “Snow White and the Huntsman,” Stewart earned kudos from fellow actor and one-time Oscar host James Franco in The Huffington Post: “The images of Snow White as a leader of immense strength, charging on horseback across the beach at the head of an army, has less to do with her character and more to do with the actress who plays her."

In 2011, Stewart won a best actress award at the Milan International Film Festival for “Welcome to the Rileys,” an independent film in which she plays a teenage stripper befriended by a middle-aged businessman. In a New York Times review of the film, Monohla Dargis calls Stewart “an exceptionally appealing screen presence, and she makes Mallory’s confusion — the swings between vulgar braggadocio and clutching vulnerability — reverberant and real.” 

Slideshow: Kristen Stewart

Jason Merritt / Getty Images

Launch slideshow

But Stewart is undoubtedly best known for her lead role in the "Twilight" series. While Stewart took the MTV Movie Awards for best female performance in 2008 for “Twilight,” 2009 for “New Moon” and 2011 for “Eclipse,” her portrayal of Bella Swan in the franchise also earned her two worst actress Razzie nominations (for “Eclipse” and “Breaking Dawn – Part 1”). 

Long before Stewart had ever heard the name Edward Cullen, however, she portrayed Jodie Foster's daughter in 2002's "Panic Room," for which she received her first of four nominations for a Young Artist Award. (The other films for which she was nominated were 2003's "Cold Creek Manor," 2004's "Undertow" and 2007's "Into the Wild.") In 2010, at the height of "Twilight's" popularity, Stewart won BAFTA's Rising Star Award. 

Stewart’s movies have grossed an average of $65.9 million, according to the-numbers.com. For the final two movies in the “Twilight” series, imbd.com notes that Stewart was paid $12.5 million plus a share of the profits.

Whether or not you think she can act, Stewart has proven that she has star power.

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Leon Neal / AFP - Getty Images

Joan Miro's "Peinture (Etolie Bleue), 1927" sold at Sotheby's for $36,946,396.

Sotheby's set a new auction record for Spanish artist Joan Miro on Tuesday when his 1927 painting "Peinture (Etoile Bleue)" fetched $36.9 million, but elsewhere the sale failed to meet expectations.

Overall, the auctioneer raised $117.7 million at its impressionist and modern art evening sale in London, just beating the low estimate of $114.9 million but falling short when buyer's premium is taken into account.

The auction was the first in a busy season of sales of fine art in London which, if the highest expectations are met, could raise up to $1 billion.

But it painted an uncertain picture, with the New York Times describing proceedings on the night as "lackluster" and "bumpy."

Confidence in the art market has been sky high in 2012 despite broader economic concerns, with emerging collectors from Russia, China and the Middle East helping push values to record highs as they seek to snap up the most coveted works.

On offer at Sotheby's was one of Miro's most important paintings, and the previous auction record for the artist of $26.4 million was comfortably eclipsed.

"His works from this period are supremely modern, timeless and of great universal appeal, making this precisely the type of painting that today's international collectors are prepared to lock horns over, as they did this evening," said Helena Newman, head of Sotheby's impressionist and modern art in Europe.

The next highest price went to Pablo Picasso's "Homme Assis" which sold for $9.8 million, again just above the low estimate but falling short after the buyer's premium is subtracted.

A Henry Moore sculpture, "Mother and Child With Apple", was one of the few star performers on a night when 15 of the 48 lots on offer went unsold. It raised $5.8 million, well above pre-sale expectations of $2.8 million - $4.4 million.

The London summer sales continue on Wednesday with the equivalent sale at Sotheby's rival Christie's. There, the 71 lots on offer are expected to raise between $136.1 million and $199.3 million.

What do you think about this record sale? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page.

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Photo: Stephen Vaughan / 20th Century Fox

Benjamin Walker plays Abraham Lincoln who moonlights as a vampire hunter in "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter."

Vampires and zombies will be forever pitted against one another. Between HBO’s “True Blood” and AMC’s “The Walking Dead,” this summer’s “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter” and next year’s Brad Pitt-vehicle “World War Z,” the dichotomy is only becoming clearer.

In the Tim Burton-produced film, Honest Abe is reimagined as a nighttime vampire hunter, taking down blood-sucking evildoers. He’s the country’s finest leader during the day and the nation’s greatest assassin come nightfall.

Yet Lincoln himself may fall into the category of "vampire."

Video: Anthony Mackie as Abe Lincoln's sidekick

Like the blood-sucking creatures, he’s smart and charismatic, debonair and independent. He leads with adroit aplomb and destroys evil beings with sexy smoothness -- his well-worn top hat earns him fashion points while the axe he so gracefully wields creates macabre destruction that’s pleasing to the aesthetically-discriminating eye.

If Lincoln were a zombie, he wouldn’t be able to create the beautiful chaos that Seth Grahame-Smith, author of the book on which the film is based, claims he brought about. He would be a myopic plodder, seeing blurry visions of incoming assailants, unable to retaliate with cunning or with any thought at all. 

This is not to underestimate the zombies of our society. While our presidents and philanthropists are more vampire than zombie, the world's movers and shakers are often groups with a common mission: take Occupy Wall Street, for example, or that group of angry moms who want yet another stop sign in the neighborhood. These "zombies" achieve their missions in large groups, taking down mere individuals who stand in their way.  

In Marc Forster’s upcoming movie “World War Z,” the task of stopping a zombie pandemic falls to Gerry Lane, a United Nations worker played by Brad Pitt. While the movie has been having its fair share of budget-related troubles as of late, a zombie apocalypse could spell out even greater trouble. Zombies, with their undead arms extended, wreak havoc en masse, easily collecting a nearly unstoppable group hell-bent on mindless destruction -- a feat that eludes the self-absorbed, hedonistic vampires.

Lincoln may be a vampire but perhaps the real power lies in the masses -- groups that have a common goal, a common faith or a common enemy.

Director of “Quantum of Solace,” Forster takes on this zombie idea from Max Brooks’ novel of the same name with a sense of seriousness, telling the Los Angeles Times that the film has “the grounded, gun metal realism of, say, Matt Damon’s Jason Bourne series tethered to the unsettling end-times vibe of AMC’s ‘The Walking Dead’.” In fact, “World War Z” achieved such a serious realism that the Hungarian Anti-Terrorism Unit raided a warehouse that housed the film’s prop weapons during shooting in Budapest, thinking they were smuggled weapons.

Clearly, zombies are serious business. So who would come out on top if zombies and vampires faced off?

Initially, zombies would seem to be at a great disadvantage. Their lumbering, soulless bodies are often too slow and their lack of intelligence or rational thought makes them prone to falling for tricks and cleverness. However, while vampires are fast, seductive and smart, their egos can easily be exploited. They are obsessed with their own desires, putting their wants above any sense of morals or principle goodness; they're easily corrupted and unable to control themselves.

Indeed, it’s extremely difficult to pick a winner between the two (but that hasn't stopped some from trying). “World War Z” has an A-list actor and a budget nearly twice that of “Vampire Hunter,” but that doesn’t mean “Vampire Hunter” won’t be able to better market its witty concept to outdo “World War Z” at the box office.

Who, then, is superior? Heroic individuals like Lincoln? Or the inspired masses? 

That's for you to decide, but both films hold the vampire characteristics of sleek, seductive and funny. They'll just need to channel their inner zombie if they want to attract the necessary hordes of excited theatergoers.

"Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter" opens June 22. "World War Z" was recently postponed until 2013.

Who do you think has the upper hand: vampires or zombies? Will you see "Vampire Hunter" and/or "World War Z"? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page.

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Hmmm ... wonder if Harry Potter's got a spell to cure hangovers?! Erstwhile boy wizard Daniel Radcliffe has gone to great lengths to prove he's all grown up -- 'member his willy-nilly willy peepshow in Broadway's Equus?

Well, the actor ups the ante in the new video for Slow Club's "Beginners," in which he meticulously slashes away at his boyish persona with a laundry list's worth of boozy debauchery.

Turns out, "The Woman in Black" star really knows how to black out ...

More from E! Online: Shia LaBeouf gets naked, goes full-frontal in new music video

In the four-minute video, which was shot in one long take, the bleary-eyed star appears solo in a bar while in the throes of one gobsmackingly boozy bender.

We're not sure what's more awesome: the fact that he's dressed in a groovy Hawaiian shirt that makes him look like a wayward extra from "The Descendants" who ended up on the set of "The Rum Diary"? Or the fact that Radcliffe can convincingly channel one helluva drunk dude?

More from E! Online: Today's hot pics!

Watch as he stumbles around the bar, lip-syncs, jumps up on tables, plays air guitar and passes out -- all while looking more ashen than Voldermort with an epic case of the stomach flu.

Tippletastic, you say? We'll raise our glasses to that, Danny boy -- hiccup!

What do you think of Radcliffe's work outside of "Harry Potter"? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page.

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What a drag! Mary-Kate Olsen was spotted puffing on a cigarette and talking on her cell phone while walking in New York's West Village last week with boyfriend Olivier Sarkozy and his daughter.

INFphoto.com

Mary-Kate Olsen, left, with Olivier Sarkozy and his daughter in New York on June 14.

Us Weekly recently reported that Olsen, 26, and Sarkozy, 42, the half-brother of former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, were dating and the 16-year age difference suits her just fine.

"MK is constantly complaining about boys not being mature enough for her," a source told Us. "She got the kids out of her system. Now being a businesswoman dominates her time, and she is rarely impressed with guys."

The billionaire ex-child star is now a successful fashion designer along with her sister, Ashley. Sarkozy is managing director of the Carlyle Group's Global Financial Services Group.

NEW YORK -- Kristen Stewart, who shot to fame as Bella Swan in "The Twilight Saga" films and has a starring role in "Snow White and the Huntsman," jumped to the top of Forbes.com's annual list of highest-paid actresses on Tuesday.

Slideshow: Kristen Stewart

Jason Merritt / Getty Images

Launch slideshow

The 22-year-old earned an estimated $34.5 million from May 2011 to May 2012 and pushed Angelina Jolie into fourth place.

Cameron Diaz, who had a surprise hit with "Bad Teacher," came in second with $34 million.

"She (Stewart) is an up-and-coming star. She is earning a lot of money from one of the most successful franchises of all time. This is who you would expect to see right now," said Dorothy Pomerantz, Forbes Los Angeles bureau chief.

"This year you are seeing somebody young and at the brink of potentially great stardom sitting on the top of the list."

Forbes.com compiled the list and estimated salaries by talking to agents, managers and lawyers and based earnings on pay, profits, residuals, endorsements and advertising work.

Oscar-winner Sandra Bullock, who largely took a break from filming after 2009's "The Blind Side," came in third with $25 million.

Jolie, who topped last year's list along with Sarah Jessica Parker, dropped to the fourth spot with earnings of $20 million while Charlize Theron, Stewart's co-star in "Snow White and the Huntsman" who also appears in "Prometheus," trailed at $18 million, and rounded out the top five places.

Parker, whose 2011 film "I Don't Know How She Does It" brought in a disappointing $30 million at the worldwide box office, slipped to seventh place with a $15 million salary.

"She is almost earning more from her perfume and endorsement deals right now than from entertainment. That is true of a lot of women. They have these outside deals that are very lucrative. Angelina Jolie earns a lot from residuals, as does Sarah Jessica Parker," Pomerantz said.

Former "Friends" star Jennifer Anniston just made the list, earning an $11 million salary.

The top 10 actresses earned a total of $200 million, according to Forbes.com, a lot less than the $361 million total that the 10 highest-earning men made.

"It is nowhere near what men are making," Pomerantz said. "I think it will be a while until women see salary parity, if it ever happens. Women are paid less in every industry, not just in Hollywood."

The full list can be found at Forbes.com

Who is your favorite actress making movies today? Tell us over on Facebook.

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Martin Bureau / AFP - Getty Images file

Vanessa Paradis and Johnny Depp in 2010.

After months of speculation that Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis' relationship was over, a publicist for Depp confirms the couple has split.

"Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis have amicably separated. Please respect their privacy and, more importantly, the privacy of their children," Depp's publicist said in a statement given first to Entertainment Tonight.

The couple have two children together, Lily-Rose, 13, and Jack, 10.

As recently as May, Depp was denying that he and his partner of 14 years had split. "The rumors are not true. They are absolutely not true," Depp told the U.K.'s Sun on the red carpet for the London premiere of "Dark Shadows."

While he was denying the split, it was noted that Paradis was conspicuously absent from the premiere, and she hadn't walked a red carpet with Depp for at least a year and a half.

People has reported that the couple drifted apart and were living "separate lives" after moving from France to Los Angeles.

The two first got together in 1998, when the two met serendipitously at the Costes Hotel in Paris.

The couple, who never officially wed, lived in France for much of their relationship; Depp recently told French magazine VSD (via People) that living there "has given me everything. A marvelous family and also an equilibrium which I missed enormously."

Were you surprised? Tell us on Facebook.

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EPA, Getty Images

Reese Witherspoon and Tom Hanks.

A bold claim sits in the midst of a lengthy new piece in The New Yorker about Ben Stiller, "Funny is Money: Ben Stiller and the dilemma of modern stardom." The author, Tad Friend, contends that "plenty of people who were big stars 10 years ago now are not." Fair enough on the surface, right? Well, take a look at the list Friend posits: Keanu Reeves, Mel Gibson, Demi Moore, Tom Hanks, Reese Witherspoon, Russell Crowe, Nicolas Cage, John Travolta.

Someone deigns to suggest that Tom Hanks is no longer a star? What? And why are we counting down the days until Witherspoon has her third baby if she's not a star? Friend's proclamation seems to exist where two main tenets -- the definition of a star and the perception of who is a star -- intersect. "A star, to the industry, is someone who can dependably get a film to 'open,'" Friend wrote. "A star to the rest of us, is the person our eyes are always drawn to on screen."

To that end, some of the names on the list do make sense. Demi Moore, sure. Her last big film, "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" was definitely a disappointment, and she hasn't had top billing on anything substantial since "G.I. Jane."

Reeves is almost 10 years removed from "Matrix Revolutions" and "Matrix Reloaded," which both opened in 2003 and made a combined $420 million domestically. But, "Revolutions" made only $48 million its opening weekend, perhaps an indicator that he wasn't carrying films like he once was.

Crowe is a slightly more complicated case: "3:10 to Yuma" in 2007 definitely didn't light the box office on fire (it grossed only $70 million worldwide) but doesn't the film's two Academy Award nominations count for something? (On a side note, Crowe does have nearly half a million Twitter followers. If Crowe and the studios he's working with can harness this following for any of the five films he's got coming up between now and 2014, maybe his star rises somewhat?)

Mel Gibson, with all his ancillary controversies might be in a category all his own, but even if you set his temper aside and look at the numbers, Gibson hasn't had a film open at the No. 1 spot since "Signs" in 2002. It seems certain that Gibson has become more spectacle than star and once the scales tip in that direction, it's tough to get them back.

The names on the list that maybe deserve some special dispensation are Witherspoon, Cage and Hanks. As Witherspoon's pregnancy tracking proves, you can still have star quality without a massive box office hit. Her most recent film, "Water for Elephants"  "This Means War" made $54 million domestically, but if you look at her last 10 years' worth of films, even the biggest hit, "Sweet Home Alabama," was only a $127 million movie. We aren't talking about a leading actress who was opening billion-dollar franchises and suddenly isn't covering the budget. Witherspoon is just a solid, steady star (with an Oscar under her belt) which will likely give her career serious longevity.

As for Cage: his "Saturday Night Live" persona might be the most interesting thing he's got going right now, but that's just here in the United States, where his films don't do nearly as well as they do internationally. Did you see "Season of the Witch"? Me neither, but enough people saw it in foreign markets that it earned $66 million there, while the film only made $24 million at home.

And then there's Tom Hanks. The man who made "Big" big, and led "Toy Story" to hold the title of most successful animation franchise, ever -- he will always be a star, even if "Larry Crowne" was unwatchable for vast, vast swaths of the population. And maybe that's the thing about stardom: once yours shines brightly enough, it never totally fizzles out. If you are able to remain "the person our eyes are always drawn to on screen," what's on the screen isn't always of paramount importance.

What do you think? Have you scratched Hanks off your star list, or is there someone who deserves to be on the list who isn't? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page.

Related content:

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Here's where we are in 2012, moviegoers. We don't just anticipate trailers for movies, we anticipate teaser trailers from movies (shorter versions of the trailers), and we don't just anticipate teaser trailers, but previews of teaser trailers (even shorter clips). Got that?

So today, there's a preview clip available from a teaser trailer for "Breaking Dawn Part 2," which doesn't come out until Nov. 16.

In the clip, you do see baby and young girl versions of Renesmee, though you don't see her face -- which is OK, since she's on the cover of Entertainment Weekly this week.

Viewers also get to see Bella with her blazing vampire eyes, and what certainly seems like a hint of more backbone and strength, thanks to her new status.

And of course the Volturi show up, briefly, all dressed up and ready to kick some Cullen butt for protecting what the Volturi believe to be an immortal child -- a child bitten by a vampire -- which Renesmee is not. "She was born, not bitten, she grows every single day," Bella protests.

A full teaser trailer will be released Wednesday, which is also Edward Cullen's 111th birthday, according to Stephenie Meyer's books. No need to gift-wrap some Geritol -- he may be past the century mark, but he's not exactly elderly.

Are you sick of "Twilight" or ready to see this final film? Tell us on Facebook.

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Danny Moloshok / Reuters file

Adele

Singer Adele's hit song, "Rolling in the Deep," is credited with helping a 7-year-old British girl wake from the coma she suffered after a brain hemorrhage.

Charlotte Neve suffered the hemorrhage April 11 during a normal night of watching DVDs with her family, and mother Leila told the U.K. Telegraph that the situation became so grave that "doctors told me to say goodbye."

But when "Rolling in the Deep," a song mother and daughter often sang, came on the radio, Leila Neve started singing it to her daughter and the little girl started to smile.

"It was the first time she had reacted to anything since the hemorrhage," Leila Neve told the newspaper. "The nurses were astounded and told me to keep singing, and she smiled again. The nurses said it was like I 'unlocked her' and from that day she started getting better and better."

Charlotte Neve is now recovering at home, but still suffers from partial blindness and memory loss, the Telegraph reports. The family has set up a Facebook page for donations.

Also in April, BeeGees founding member Robin Gibb awoke from a coma after his family sang and played music to him. He reportedly awoke while music from his latest composition, the classical "Titanic Requiem," was playing. Gibb died May 20 from liver and kidney failure.

Do you think people in comas can hear music and voices? Tell us on Facebook.

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Alec Baldwin tussled with photographers Tuesday morning outside New York City's Marriage License Bureau, later suggesting in a tweet that paparazzi should be "waterboarded."

The New York Daily News

Alec Baldwin, left, scuffles with New York Daily News photographer Marcus Santos outside the Marriage License Bureau in New York on Tuesday morning.

Hours later, an apparently still-angry Baldwin tweeted "I suppose if the offending paparazzi was wearing a hoodie and I shot him, it would all blow over..."

The dispute erupted early Tuesday when the actor walked out of the marriage office with his fiancee, Hilaria Thomas, and the two were met by photographers. (See images at the Daily News website.)

"He was looking mad," Daily News photographer Marcus Santos said. "He said, 'Step back, step back.' I said, 'We're moving back."

Baldwin then allegedly grabbed a second photographer, Jefferson Siegel, and Santos told the star not to touch him.

Twitter

"I knew he was going to attack me," Santos said. "I stepped back, and he kept coming. He comes after me, starts shoving and punching me -- one time, right in the chin. And then he started shoving me and pushing me. Then he goes the other way."

For his part, Baldwin tweeted Tuesday that "a 'photographer' almost hit me in the face with his camera this morning. #allpaparazzishouldbewaterboarded."

He later tweeted that the editor of the Daily News is an "English Queen" and that since his takeover of the paper, "they lie like the Post."

There's a new show hitting Broadway this summer and it's not the usual song-and-dance routine. Instead, visitors to the Great White Way will have a no-holds-barred look at the life of the former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world, Mike Tyson, in his upcoming one-man show, "Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth."

Tyson first brought his biographical act to Las Vegas and shocked crowds with his willingness to talk openly about a past filled with career and personal highs and all-time lows. During a Tuesday visit to TODAY, Tyson, along with show director Spike Lee, promised Broadway-goers would get that same candid experience.

"I'm pretty naked there -- bare," Tyson told TODAY's Ann Curry.

But lest anyone get the wrong idea, Lee insisted "not literally!"

So, he won't be that kind of naked, but that's not to say viewers won't find the on-stage reveals jaw-dropping all the same. In addition to talking about his heyday as the youngest-ever heavyweight champ, Tyson will also address his rape conviction, drug abuse and how he's turned his life around.

Now a much calmer Tyson describes himself as a "wimp" and a clean-living vegan. So what brought on all the changes?

"I just threw up the white flag," he said. "There was too many prison cells, too many jails, too many lawsuits, too many bankruptcies, too many women, too many venereal diseases, too many everything. I got tired. I really got tired of, you know, like every time a prostitute –- I would head back from a trip -- I had to sleep with her. So I just said, 'I'm going to live a different life.'"

Yes, he really said that -- the part before living a different life.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" he laughed. "I was a prostitute hunter!"

Expect more of that filter-free talk and what Lee called "the same courage (Tyson) shared in the ring" when "Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth" makes its Broadway debut July 31.

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Misha Japaridze / AP

Shia LaBeouf

Yes, that's Shia LaBeouf. And yes, he's completely naked.

The "Transformers" actor stars in an eight-minute video for Icelandic band Sigur Rós’ new music video, “Fjogur Piano,” baring his soul and genitalia for the world.

The video is set to an instrumental piano piece, and begins with a rude awakening for LaBeouf and his female counterpart, played by Denna Thomsen, both of whom are stripped down under the sheets, and covered in strange paint marks and dead butterflies.

After rising from the bed, they throw on a few articles of clothing, and partake in an intimate and suggestive interpretive dance. Later, the duo gets sucked underwater in a car with two men and some glowing lollipops, then engage in a violent fight, in which LaBeouf slams his fist into a mirror.

So pretty much your basic day at the office.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the video, directed by filmmaker Alma Har’el, was prompted by Sigur Rós’ “Mystery Film Experiment” series, a project in which a dozen filmmakers were enlisted to select a song from the band’s new album, “Valtari,” and shoot a video with a $10,000 budget and zero instructions.

“The things you can’t say in words are best said in dance,” Har’el, an Israeli filmmaker, told WSJ, describing the storyline as being “about addiction to drugs, or sex, or anything–and how you get stuck in a cycle.”

 As for her artistic direction behind the nudity, Har’el says it was spontaneous.

“That’s the difference between working within a corporate system and something that artistically takes you places you wouldn’t expect,” she explains. “To me, it’s erotic, but it’s not selling anything.”

 "Valtari” is the band's sixth studio album and was released May 29 on XL Recordings.  

You can watch the video here; obviously, it contains nudity.

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