Viggo Mortensen isn’t backing off his stinging critique of George Bush.
The “Lord of the Rings” hottie took some heat for criticizing the president’s policies lately, and in a recent interview, Mortensen is unrepentant.
“I’m not anti-Bush; I’m anti-Bush behavior,” Mortensen told Progressive magazine. “In other words, I’m against cheating, greed, cruelty, racism, imperialism, religious fundamentalism, treason, and the seemingly limitless capacity for hypocrisy shown by Bush and his administration.”
Mortensen also blasted the administration’s handling of Hurricane Katrina and discussed why he supported anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan, who has protested the war in Iraq since her son was killed there. “Cindy Sheehan and how badly Katrina was bungled are two shots to the heart,” he said. “I hope the beast does fall down soon."
‘Grimm’ disagreementMatt Damon and Heath Ledger were furious about the casting of Lena Headey in “The Brothers Grimm,” but a producer stuck with her because he felt that the actress Damon and Ledger wanted wasn’t sexy enough.
Damon, Ledger, director Terry Gilliam and many other people connected with the film were passionately vying for talented and quirky actress Samantha Morton to get the role, according to a behind-the-scenes account of the flick that’s been published in the U.K., but Harvey Weinstein, co-head of Miramax which was a producer on the film, put the kibosh on her.
“Samantha Morton! You must be kidding me!” Weinstein said, director Gilliam told Bob McCabe, author of the book "Dreams and Nightmares," which has just been published in the U.K. “You think Matt or Heath would want to [bleep] that?”
After Headey was cast, “Matt, Heath, myself, Sam [were at a restaurant] just getting pissed, and Heath sat on the phone to his agent screaming and shouting. And Matt’s going crazy too,” according to Gilliam. “Matt’s on the phone to Bob [Weinstein, Harvey’s partner and brother], pleading, saying, ‘Samantha’s the one.’”
Damon had multiple blow-ups with Weinstein, who helped bring “Good Will Hunting” to the screen — but always ended up forgiving him. Once, according to Damon, Weinstein sent him a “form letter” apologizing. “It’s like a [bleeping] ‘Dear John’ letter and it shows up and it’s like “Dear Blank, I am terribly sorry for my behavior during the blank conversation that we had, it was inexcusable. . . . It was an absolute form letter.”
Notes from all overRussell Crowe worries that scrutiny of his buddy Nicole Kidman’s romance with Keith Urban will put a strain on the relationship. “A relationship under that microscope doesn't get the chance to evolve,” Crowe told the Aussie press. “It happened to me some years back. My summer was ruined as we were never left alone.” Crowe was likely referring to his failed romance with Meg Ryan. . . . Formerly troubled couple, Sienna Miller and Jude Law, were all smiles at a special screening of her film, "Casanova." . . . Fans of Britney Spears have set up a Web site urging her to leave Kevin Federline, her hubby of 15 months. “Welcome to the home of the anti-Kevin movement,” reads a statement on the site. “Are you sick of seeing the train wreck that is Britney and Kevin? Sign the K-Fed Up Petition, grab your Divorce Kevin gear and help Britney remove the boil that is Kevin from herself and her payroll!”
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