AMANDA Seyfried gets a special birthday treat from “Les Miserables” costar Hugh Jackman. ruben nepales
NEW YORK–Amanda Seyfried, getting a playful lap dance treat from Hugh Jackman as he sang the birthday song to her during a “Les Miserables” bash in New York, is among the memorable party scenes we witnessed in recent weeks.
The “Les Mis” cast—Hugh, Amanda, Anne Hathaway, Russell Crowe, Sacha Baron Cohen, Eddie Redmayne, Samantha Barks—director Tom Hooper and producer Cameron Mackintosh fielded congratulations for the film, for us the best musical since “Chicago.”
We told Eddie Redmayne (Marius) that it was interesting to hear him say earlier in our interview that he was impressed with Samantha’s (Eponine) instinctive decision to look down and then gradually stare at the camera as she movingly sang the final lyrics, “But only on my own,” in the song, “On My Own.”
Hearing this compliment, Samantha had smiled. In a film teeming with fine performances, we hope Eddie and Samantha don’t get overlooked. Eddie, incidentally, was Prince William’s classmate at Eton.
Cameron said that he heard the recent “Miss Saigon” auditions in Manila had gone well. Sacha asked us to give his best regards to Fil-Am actor Clifford Bañagale, who played Diesel, his boy toy in “Bruno.” Clifford more recently starred in Auraeus Solito’s award-winning “Busong (Palawan Fate).”
In John Wayne’s arms
LEA MICHELE and HFPA president Aida Takla O’Reilly
In a penthouse suite of The London Hotel, Sally Field laughingly reminisced about how, back in her “The Flying Nun” days in the late ’60s, she made a dramatic entrance at a Golden Globe Awards night. The actress, who plays Mary Todd Lincoln in Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln,” which the multiawarded Tony Kushner wrote, recounted that she had landed in the arms of no less than John Wayne. Tony graciously accepted kudos from guests for his screenplay.
After-party
In the premiere after-party of “Promised Land” (which they cowrote and now star in), those nice Boston boys Matt Damon and John Krasinski openly mingled and talked to the guests. Matt shared a table with wife Luciana and their daughter Alexia. John said his wife, Emily Blunt, couldn’t share the special night with him because she was out of town on a film shoot.
ANNE Hathaway
With a laugh, John said he and Emily had previously agreed to not be away from each other for a certain number of weeks, but that they had broken the agreement several times because of the demands of their respective film work.
Earlier, in LA, Quvenzhane Wallis, a best actress contender for “Beasts of the Southern Wild,” stood out at the announcement of Francesca Eastwood (one of Clint Eastwood’s daughters) as the new Miss Golden Globe. What caught the eye of Quvenzhane, young girl that she is (she is 9, but was only 5 when she auditioned for the role), amid the presence of hot young actors and actresses at Cecconi’s restaurant in West Hollywood, was our “Wreck-It Ralph” T-shirt. She tugged at her mother and, smiling, pointed at our tee.
“Glee’s” Lea Michele also stood out in a floor-length gown, since her peers had come in short dresses.
HATHAWAY and Jackman in “Les Misérables”
Year-ender
Just a few miles away, the talents behind “Wreck-It Ralph” and animators from other Disney and Pixar films gathered in a year-ending celebration at the Beverly Hills Hotel. “Frankenweenie” director Tim Burton endeared herself to several young animation enthusiasts by taking time to listen to them and offering advice.
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Photos by Ruben Nepales