December 5th, 2012 | 4:40 pm by Sabrina Rojas Weiss (@shalapitcher)

Renesmee, Sookie, Magnus And More: 25 Supernatural Characters Who Dazzled Us In 2012

Anna Paquin, Joseph Morgan, Mackenzie Foy and Godfrey Gao

Around this time last year, we made this list a roundup of our favorite vampires of 2011 — though we named Bella Cullen as our fave, it was Damon Salvatore who ruled your hearts. This year, we took a look around at our favorite movies, TV shows and books and discovered that, while the bloodsuckers of True Blood, Twilight and The Vampire Diaries were still among our faves, they had some competition from other supes, too. There were the characters wielding magic for good or evil — Snow White and the Huntsman’s Queen Ravenna, Beautiful Creatures‘ Lena, The Mortal Instruments‘ Magnus, TVD’s Bonnie. We had a nice crop of werewolves — Teen Wolf’s Scott and Derek, Nightshade’s Calla, True Blood’s Alcide. And then, of course, there were gods, genetic mutations, time travelers and Shadowhunters. Whether they were on the page, the screen or both, these beautiful, dangerous, ever-seductive heroes and villains made us feel a little bit inadequate for being mere humans. But there’s one power we have that they don’t: the ability to vote on which of these 25 characters was our favorite of the year. Take a look at the gallery and then vote!

“The Big & Best of 2012: A Year End Celebration Presented by T-Mobile” goes LIVE at 12 p.m. ET on 12/12/12. Watch at BigAndBestOf2012.com for eight hours of live performances from stars like Bruno Mars and Miguel, surprise guest appearances, prize giveaways, special editions of “RapFix Live,” “Big Morning Buzz Live,” “MTV After Hours,” “You Oughta Know” and much more!

Stick with MTV as we count down the Best of 2012, including the Best Songs of 2012, Live Performances, Movies and EDM Videos of the year.

[Photos: HBO, The CW, Summit Entertainment, Twitter]

November 27th, 2012 | 12:07 pm by Sabrina Rojas Weiss (@shalapitcher)

Neil Patrick Harris’ Puppet Dreams Saves Us From Another Kevin Clash Lawsuit Story

Just when we were struggling to think of a new way of reporting on the latest lawsuit facing former Elmo puppeteer Kevin Clash, Neil Patrick Harris came bursting out of the darkness to rescue us — much the way he once saved Harold and Kumar from having to forgo their White Castle meal. NPH, partner David Burtka and none other than the Jim Henson Company teamed up to create Neil’s Puppet Dreams, a seven-part series on Nerdist.com about the actor’s tendency to “dream in puppet.”

Neil Patrick Harris and his dream puppets
Read more…

August 27th, 2012 | 1:43 pm by Sabrina Rojas Weiss (@shalapitcher)

From McKayla Maroney To Channing Tatum: The Top 10 Breakout Stars Of Summer 2012

McKayla Maroney, Miley Cyrus and Channing Tatum

Summer’s nearly over, and what do we have to show for it? Some tan lines? A big dent in our reading list? A new fitness routine? Hardly. We do, however, have a whole new roster of celebrities we’ve been obsessing over for the past three months. We’ll count that as an accomplishment! Some, like Olympians McKayla Maroney and Ryan Lochte, were brand-new to our radar when they came on the scene in London. Others, like Miley Cyrus and Channing Tatum, have been around for a while, but this summer just seemed to be when they reinvented themselves into bigger stars that would not be ignored. Breaking Bad’s Anna Gunn and TLC’s favorite beauty queen Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompson made our TV screens come to life, while Tom Hardy and Joe Manganiello made us have some pretty good dreams. Model Claudia Romani made her mark on this very site via the VH1 Celebrity Bikini Awards, and singer Carly Rae Jepson etched her song into our ear canals forever. Who made their way permanently into your hearts this summer? Peep our gallery, vote in our poll and give us your write-in candidates in the comments!

[Photos: CBS, Twitter, Warner Bros.]

August 27th, 2012 | 11:38 am by Sabrina Rojas Weiss (@shalapitcher)

True Blood Season Finale Leaves Us With 10 Mostly Rhetorical Questions

Eric kills Russell in the True Blood season finale

I’m not the only one who had nightmares and delicious dreams about True Blood all night, right? Season five’s finale was intense. And it totally put to rest our doubts that Alan Ball and company could wrap up all of those crazy plots in one hour. Still, it also left my brain churning with all sorts of questions about what will happen in season six. Departing exec producer Ball answered a bunch of those questions over at TVLine.com last night, and HBO Go has a whole bonus scene that hints at a bit more, but it wouldn’t be True Blood if we could predict everything that’s coming up for Sookie, Eric, Jason and the rest. Here are 10 (mostly rhetorical) queries that kept me up for most of the night.

1. Could Eric get any hotter?
My heart stopped when he swooped in to save Sookie and the fairies from Russell — even though, in typical Eric fashion, he labeled it revenge for his family’s murder more than a heroic deed. He and Nora could have skipped town after that, but his better self drove him to venture back into the Authority to save the day. Swoon.

Jason and Eric on True Blood
2. Also, are we done with serious Eric and back to more of his playful side?
His interactions with Jason reminded us of why we fell for the dangerous vamp back when he was mostly a villain. Leave the dreary stuff for other vamps!
Read more…

July 15th, 2012 | 4:29 am by Sabrina Rojas Weiss (@shalapitcher)

True Blood On Body Rolls, Vampire Diaries On Undead Quickies, And The Best Of Comic-Con Day 3

“When do you ever get to see Alan Ball and Chris Meloni doing body rolls?” Joe Manganiello asked me shortly after the True Blood panel. When but at Comic-Con? After the trailer shown at the panel seemed to indicate that Pam is making Tara into a stripper, Joe, of course, took the opportunity to demonstrate his Magic Mike skills. And mayhem ensued (as in show creator Ball stood on his chair to show his moves, and Meloni did his version later, too).

The crowd was already worked up about sexy supes after the Vampire Diaries panel, where the stars themselves brought up all sorts of naughty ideas. Zack Roerig suggested that Elena could use Matt’s blood, or his body, for comfort now that she’s a vampire, and then went on to say he thinks Matt should get it on with Caroline’s mom, Sheriff Forbes. Not to be outdone, Paul Wesley said Elijah and Stefan should hook up. Later on, he floated the theory that vampire sex lasts only half a second, so it could even be done in line at Starbucks. That lead Ian Somerhalder to quip that vampire sex had happened right there in front of the audience and we didn’t even know it. Oh, we’d know it, Ian. We were watching you veeerry closely.
Read more…

July 9th, 2012 | 2:21 pm by Sabrina Rojas Weiss (@shalapitcher)

True Blood Remembers Its Horror Roots: The 8 Scariest Moments From “Let’s Boot And Rally”

Jesus' severed head on True Blood

Don’t get us wrong, we love the sex and twisted humor of True Blood. But every once in a while, the show gets so wrapped up in the task of squeezing 15 quirky plots and 50 blindingly beautiful actors into an hour of TV, it forgets another essential element of a show about vampires and other supernatural beings living in a swampy, remote town: the scary bits. To make up for it, apparently, Alan Ball and Co. made last night’s episode, with the deceptively innocuous title “Let’s Boot and Rally,” a full-on horror extravaganza. Here I’ll list the scariest bits, and at the end you can vote for the scene that kept you up all night.

1. Jesus’ head has a message. Poor Lafayette can’t catch a break. In answer to his prayers for help from the boyfriend he murdered, both Lafayette and his crazy mom are visited by the Dia de los Muertos version of Jesus (pictured above).

Rat bodies

2. Rats eat Russell Edgington’s leftovers in the spooky abandoned mental hospital. Love how Sookie fully acknowledges that they’re about to enact the oldest horror-movie scene in the book, but still, we were wimpering right along with Alcide’s employee Doug. Everyone else was just too jaded by life in Bon Temps to flinch.
Read more…

July 5th, 2012 | 9:00 am by Sabrina Rojas Weiss (@shalapitcher)

VH1 Celebrity Bikini Awards: One Direction, Joe Manganiello, Jersey Shore Represent For The Guys

Harry Styles, Joe Manganiello, Ronnie, Shemar Moore

We here at VH1 Celebrity pride ourselves on the fact that we are equal opportunity oglers. Of course, the paparazzi aren’t as egalitarian, so when we went about putting together today’s Bikini Awards contest, the Mankinis (sorry, but we promise no Speedos), we had a much more limited selection. Photographers were on hand to capture the likes of Joe Manganiello, Channing Tatum, Justin Bieber, Harry Styles and Shemar Moore, but they really didn’t present the sheer quantity of angles and attention to detail as they did for, say, Adriana Lima. But through our hard work and perseverance, we made sure to bring you the best of the man flesh on display, including three meaty servings from the Jersey Shore, the always shapely form of Mark Wahlberg, the unwaxed masterpiece that is Hugh Jackman, One Direction’s delicious Liam and Louis, and the deceptively sweet-faced James Marsden and Patrick Schwarzenegger. Ogle away, and then vote for your favorite. Polls close July 15 at 11 p.m. ET!

Related: VH1 Celebrity Bikini Awards: Which Disney Stars Are Making Mickey Blush?
The VH1 Celebrity Bikini Awards: Supermodels Strip Down And Face Off!
Bikini Awards: Mob Wives, Basketball Wives, Housewives And More! Reality Stars Strip Down

[Photos: Splash News Online]

June 29th, 2012 | 10:05 am by Sabrina Rojas Weiss (@shalapitcher)

Joe Manganiello Sings “Hungry Like The Wolf,” A Brilliant Career Move

Happy Magic Mike day, everyone! While Joe Manganiello has been doing nonstop press to promote his role as Big Dick Richie and the new season of True Blood, we noticed a little tweet of his yesterday that means even more to us than his body roll demonstration on Today. It was a link to the above video of him onstage at a Laguna Beach club with ’80s cover band Flashback Heart Attack singing Duran Duran’s “Hungry Like the Wolf.” From what we can tell, this happened a few weeks ago, and Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger was also in attendance (hence Joe’s “Go Steelers!” at the end). But we think it’s perfect that the video is just surfacing this week. Here’s why:

  • It’s a sign to the producers of the proposed Magic Mike Broadway musical that he’s a possible candidate for the stage version. Sure, Joe’s off-key and probably drunk as he leans in to sing the chorus, but he’s certainly showing his potential … and willingness.

Read more…

June 28th, 2012 | 4:44 pm by Sabrina Rojas Weiss and Alex Englis (@shalapitcher)

Channing Tatum’s Thong Trust: The Best Magic Mike Star Quotes All In One Package

Magic Mike

This is a bittersweet weekend: On one hand, we finally get to see Magic Mike in theaters. On the other, we will no longer have Magic Mike as an excuse to post shirtless pictures of Channing Tatum and Co. on this blog every other day. But as one last hurrah, we decided to gather the choicest of quotes from the stars of this Steven Soderbergh-directed masterpiece — about the craft of acting, the depth of their characters, artful lighting … er, we mean, thongs, getting naked with a bunch of guys and learning those body rolls!

On Thongs
Matthew McConaughey in Magic Mike

“Sometimes a thong completely betrays you.” — Channing Tatum to The Hollywood Reporter
Read more…

June 20th, 2012 | 12:05 pm by Sabrina Rojas Weiss (@shalapitcher)

Demi Moore: Do Hook Up With Joe Manganiello, Do Not Vacation With Ashton Kutcher

Asthon Kutcher, Demi Moore, Joe Manganiello

Demi, Demi, Demi. We seem to remember having this conversation with you before: Getting back together with your ex when you’re in this still-fragile, post-rehab state, is a terrible idea. Even though you’re looking sooo much healthier, and you’re doing an awesome job as the producer of Amanda De Cadenet’s The Conversation, we still think this rumor we heard from Grazia magazine (via ContactMusic) this morning, points to disaster: According to an unnamed source, estranged spouses Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher are going on a “sex-free” retreat on the advice of Rabbi Yehuda Berg, their Kabbalah teacher. They’ll be staying in separate rooms and monitored by Berg, the source says.

This is all, of course, still in the realm of gossip and we have no idea if it’s true — but they did go on that camping trip to patch things up before, and they haven’t filed for divorce yet, so it’s within the realm of possibility. But we rather prefer this other possibility, courtesy of Heat magazine (via the Daily Mail): Demi, 49, was getting cozy with our favorite werewolf stripper Joe Manganiello, 35, at the afterparty for the premiere of That’s My Boy earlier this month. No one is saying they hooked up just yet, just that they had “amazing chemistry.” They apparently met back when Moore set to appear in Magic Mike, and stayed in touch even though she dropped out of the project. Coincidentally, Joe split with fiancee Audra Marie last September. So, A) he knows what Demi’s going through, kinda; and B) he looks like Joe Manganiello. Sounds like the perfect rebound to us!

[Photos: Getty Images]