CelebSpice

The National Organization for Women should send Angelina Jolie a nice cheese basket (or vice versa).

The world's most famous Hollywood humanitarian might not have single-handedly erased gender inequality in the movie industry, but she sure has struck a major blow for actresses. How else to explain her $20 million payout for Sony's next big summer release, "Salt," an action project that originally was written to star a man -- no less than Tom Cruise?

"It's definitely unusual that a female has become an action star," "Salt" producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura says. "But it's a funny thing. She's not a female action star; she's an action star. She's really the first female to transcend gender. I don't think it's occurred before."

To di Bonaventura's point, a star must be in some rarefied atmosphere when a lead role in a big studio action movie is rewritten from male to female. It's akin to the groundbreaking result when 25 years ago Jerry Bruckheimer had the white lead in the "Beverly Hills Cop" screenplay refashioned so it could star a 22-year-old black actor named Eddie Murphy.

Then again, given Jolie's track record, it's not so much of a stretch. In the past 10 years, she has starred in five action-dominated films that have averaged $124 million in domestic grosses. Worldwide, those grosses total nearly $1.5 billion. Again, that's just her action roles -- "Wanted" (2008), "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" (2005), "Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life" (2003), "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider" (2001) and "Gone in 60 Seconds" (2000).

The Philip Noyce-directed "Salt," in which Jolie plays a CIA spook accused of foreign espionage who must go on the run, looks prepared to push that total upward when it opens next Friday. Industry tracking a week out has it opening north of $30 million, but its only competition that weekend is the kid-friendly "Ramona and Beezus" and the second week of "Inception," which means interest is likely to spike as it gets closer to opening.

"Wanted" opened at $50.9 million against "WALL-E" two summers ago, and "Smith" opened at $50.3 million in 2005.

Sony also has her next project, "The Tourist," a reworking of the 2005 French thriller "Anthony Zimmer," which will open in February. That film pairs her with one of the most bankable actors in the world, Johnny Depp. As Elise, a femme fatale, Jolie gets to show off her sensual side and her active one when killers start chasing the patsy she has put in harm's way.

No actress in Hollywood history has been able to chisel out the supremacy Jolie has in a male-dominated genre. Actually, her achievement is bigger than that. Her standard deal, which she received for "Salt" and "Tourist," is matched by only one or two other actors in the world, with $20 million up front, a hefty share of the profits plus other sizable ancillary benefits. She already was getting $15 million for "Smith" and "Wanted."

"The fact that she is in the entertainment industry and can approach a male salary is an anomaly," says Lori Watson, director of women's and gender studies at the University of San Diego. "Maybe she can command a salary, but she can't break through the expectations that women are supposed to be beautiful and sexualized and fit a certain mold and behave in a certain way."

Over the years, mostly thanks to the efforts and vision of director James Cameron, audiences have been treated to a rare female lead who can handle herself in a gun or fistfight. Sigourney Weaver as Ellen Ripley in "Aliens" in 1986, Linda Hamilton in "Terminator 2: Judgment Day" in 1991, and Zoe Saldana and Michelle Rodriguez in "Avatar" last year all represented strong, confident women ready to knock some heads.

Kate Beckinsale and Milla Jovovich carved out B-movie franchises as action heroines in the fantasy-horror genre -- Beckinsale with "Underworld" and Jovovich with "Resident Evil." And Cameron Diaz, Lucy Liu and Drew Barrymore threw themselves into action camp with the successful "Charlie's Angels" movies -- but those were highly stylized three-handers, and all three thesps have since quickly retreated to more traditional roles. (Diaz did just jump on a motorcycle with Cruise in "Knight and Day," but that has underperformed in North America.)

Television has been a better training ground for the female action archetype. Jessica Alba launched her career in "Dark Angel" (Cameron again!), Jennifer Garner was fierce as the college student/spy of "Alias," courtesy of J.J. Abrams, and Joss Whedon birthed "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (Sarah Michelle Gellar) and "Dollhouse" (Eliza Dushku).

It's notable that Garner dabbled in action on the big screen in "Daredevil" and its spinoff "Elektra," but quickly returned to the world of romantic comedy when those failed. Alba suited up for the "Fantastic Four" movies but had very little to do. And while Scarlett Johansson's turn as Black Widow in "Iron Man 2" looked promising, that was a small part and no one expects her to spend much more time in the blow-'em-up genre.

Other top actresses still command huge audiences in less surprising contexts. Sandra Bullock has reminded everyone that she can draw major bank, in feel-good drama ("The Blind Side") and traditional romantic comedy ("The Proposal"). And Julia Roberts is likely to clean up in "Eat Pray Love."

Like those women, Jolie also has an Oscar on her mantle, and a genuine yen to tackle challenging parts in adult dramas such as "Changeling," "A Mighty Heart" and "Girl, Interrupted," which got her that gold statuette (and an asterisk for oddest acceptance speech). But Jolie has also contributed her voice to three cartoons -- "Kung Fu Panda," "Beowulf" and "Shark Tale" -- that have grossed another $1.2 billion worldwide.

Jolie's not bulletproof. She's had her misfires and middling movies ("Taking Lives" and "Beyond Borders" come to mind), but she's got the dramatic acting chops and the athletic prowess to sell herself in almost anything (though even her prestige movies don't always bring in the big bucks).

So what, precisely, can't she do? Well, just one thing, actually. Romantic comedy. She did try it once, in "Life, or Something Like It" in 2002, and the $14.4 million domestic gross sent a message she clearly noted.

"She's too strong, she's too forceful," says Hollywood historian David Thomson ("Rosebud: The Story of Orson Welles"). "And that's not just her screen character. It's her public character, too. She's not got that sort of availability for romance. She isn't really sentimentally appealing. She needs to be doing strong things -- crazy things, sometimes -- to work on screen."

Put another way, Jolie is tough for female audiences to get behind. She's threatening. Whether accurate or not, many perceive even Jennifer Aniston to have been a victim of Jolie's sharkish charm after husband Brad Pitt became smitten with Jolie during the shoot for "Smith."

"My feeling on the ground is at the beginning of that relationship a lot of women viewed her as a homewrecker," says Watson. "But since then, her charitable work, her adoption, her work with the U.N., and the work that they're doing in New Orleans and her public face as a mother appeals to a lot of women as a kind of person who has A) a completely supportive partner that a lot of women would like and don't have, and b) someone who can manage a family and a career and is committed to those mainstream values even if she lives in a very different, romanticized, Hollywood rich kind of way."

But how long can her appeal last? Her fans are beginning to slide more heavily into the over-30 crowd, away from the male teens who want to see her bend bullets and look at the camera over a naked, tattooed back. Sooner rather than later, they're going to want to see a new face (and naked back).

Perhaps Jolie is aware of this. Because now, at the pinnacle of her success, she is making noises that she might not be much longer for the business. "I'm very, very grateful, it's a fun job. It's a luxury," she recently told Vanity Fair. "But I don't think I'll do it much longer."

Jolie is only 35 years old. By the Indiana Jones standard, then, she's got another 30 years of running, punching and flipping ahead. Although she's trimmed her work commitments down to one film a year, she's got sequels to "Salt," "Wanted" and even, possibly, "Tourist" to consider. Also, there's the "Sleeping Beauty" spinoff "Maleficent," a new take on "Cleopatra," the dark drama "Serena" for director Darren Aronofsky, and another potential franchise spun from the Patricia Cornwell character Dr. Kay Scarpetta, a sleuthing medical examiner.

If she did call it quits, is there anyone to carry the mantle if Jolie suddenly walked away?

"I don't see anybody right now," di Bonaventura says. "Will there be more female action heroes? There will be another one, yeah, I believe that. You look at these things as a progression. First they tried to mimic what a male action star was. And now with Angie, you're just letting her be what she is. We've gotten away from that male classification of what is an action star. And that means that will open possibilities for somebody else. You just needed somebody to break the ground."

It would be far too easy to make jokes here about Milla Jovovich having the Bad Luck to work with the director of Snakes on a Plane, so we probably shouldn't have. But yes, the supreme being and Resident Evil star is set to appear in David R. Ellis' story about superstition.

She'll play one of a group of college friends (we think that means "friends since college" not "friends in college") who find their lives changed when superstitions begin to come true. Cue people first scoffing and then panicking when a black cat runs in front of them / they inadvertantly subnavigate a ladder / they spill sugar. We're guessing that this could have a Final Destination sort of a vibe.

Ellis is working on a couple of other films first, however: Shark Night, in 3D, which shoots this summer in Louisiana; a film called War Monkeys which apparently literally involves monkeys with guns, and The Genesis Code with Hayden Christensen.  In other words, don't hold your breath for this one just yet.

Milla Jovovich has vowed not to make her daughter a child star.

The 'Resident Evil' star - who started modelling when she was just 12 years old - thinks it would be "creepy" if she forced two-year-old Ever Gabo into work, insisting she only embarked on her career so young to help her family out of poverty.

Milla - who is married to director Paul W. S. Anderson - said: "She's not going to be a working child. For me it's kind of creepy, the whole working kid kind of thing.

"We were struggling financially, we were immigrants from Russia and we really needed to succeed. My mom saw talent in me and she wanted to make the best and most out of it.

"There is no real use for Ever to work. I definitely want my daughter to just be a child. Work hard in school and find your passion, slowly."

Milla Jovovich, last seen being stalked by a Hawaiian killer in The Perfect Getaway and currently being stalked by zombies in Resident Evil: Afterlife, is all set to be stalked by another killer in Faces In The Crowd, a serial killer drama with a rather nifty twist.

The catch this time is that Jovovich's character is attacked by a killer who's interrupted before he can finish the whole death-dealing bit, and left with a brain injury that leaves her unable to properly recognise and remember faces. That's based on a real condition called prosopagnosia (although we still don't recommend going into the film looking for accurate medical detail), and proves a real handicap for her character given that the killer still wants to eliminate her as a witness. Can she tell friend from foe in time? Will the killer's evil plan succeed? Would it help if all her friends wore false moustaches? Only time will tell.

Julien Magnat, the French director of Bloody Mallory, is making his English-language debut with the film, which he also wrote. Sylvain White, a fellow Francophone director, is producing alongside Where The Wild Things Are's Scott Mednick (among others). Shooting's due to start in March, so look out for this sometime next year.

Megan Fox thinks getting hit on screen is "sexy".

The 'Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen' actress loves to be involved in gruelling action scenes because the excitement raises her performance to another level.

She said: "Whenever I can be physical it helps me a lot with the actual acting aspect. I prefer it. If I could just be either beating someone up or getting my a*s beaten in every scene I would love it. Sexy!"

Megan is not the only actress who adores getting physical on screen.

'Resident Evil' star Milla Jovovich recently revealed she gets a "thrill" out of shooting risky sequences.

She said: "I get a thrill out of doing dangerous stunts. In 'A Perfect Getaway' I have to steer a kayak close to sharp rocks, miles off the coast of Puerto Rico. It's dangerous - there's a very high tide and if my boat tips over I'll go face-first on to the rocks.

Milla Jovovich has got married.

The model-and-actress tied the knot with director Paul Anderson - who she has been engaged to since 2003 and with who she has 21-month-old daughter Ever Gabo - during a 20-minute ceremony held at their Beverly Hills home yesterday (22.08.09).

A source said: "After they said 'I do', all the guests cheered three separate times while the couple kissed."

Milla, 33, wore a dress she designed herself during the nuptials, which took place outside the house in the garden decorated with red and white flowers. Paul, 44, opted for a beige suit.

Ever Gabo was in attendance, wearing a ballerina tutu.

The pair gave each other 18 carat gold wedding bands which were designed by Neil Lane.

Neil said: "They're a super duper couple. They clearly adore each other."

Before the ceremony, the 50 guests - who included 'Grey's Anatomy' star Patrick Dempsey and his wife Jillian Fink - were invited to sip cocktails around the swimming pool, where a guitarist and singer played traditional Spanish music.

After the 5.30pm service, the group enjoyed traditional Cuban music and feasted on a round, four-tier wedding cake.

Milla and Paul met in 2002 while worked on movie 'Resident Evil'.

Milla recently explained her main priority is now her family, adding she is keen to add to her brood in the near future.

She said: "I definitely want more kids! I grew up as an only child, so I've always wanted to have a big family. I don't know what the future will hold, but I hope it'll bring me a big family."

Making for quite the beautiful moment, Milla Jovovich tied the knot with Paul W.S. Anderson during a lovely outdoor ceremony in Beverly Hills on Saturday (August 22).

Wearing a white sleeveless mini dress of her own design, Milla gracefully walked down the aisle in the backyard of the couple's Spanish-style villa in front of a 50-person guest list comprised of friends and family.

Beginning at 5:30 p.m, the 20-minute ceremony was full of laughs, with the couple exchanging matching 18k Neil Lane classic gold wedding bands with their 20-month-old daughter, Ever Gabo, by their side.

Following the exchange of vows, a fun-filled reception including Cuban musicians and a four-tiered white cake kept everyone in celebratory mode.

Meanwhile, it sounds as if more kids are on the way for Jovovich and Anderson, as Milla told press, "I definitely want more kids! I grew up as an only child, so I've always wanted to have a big family. I don't know what the future will hold, but knock on wood, I hope it'll bring me a big family."

Ukrainian-born actress Milla Jovovich and her "Resident Evil" director fiance, Paul Anderson, are planning a weekend wedding, People.com reported.

The parents of a toddler daughter named Ever Gabo are expected to marry Saturday in an intimate ceremony at their Los Angeles-area home, the report said.

"It's going to be small," Jovovich recently told People magazine. "It's just going to be family and close friends. And it's at our home and it's going to be kind of Havana/Cuban, like very California-Spanish feeling. It's going to be nice."

Jovovich can be seen in the current release "A Perfect Getaway."

Anderson's film credits include "Alien vs. Predator" and "Death Race."

Milla Jovovich can't pronounce her name when she is drunk.

The model-and-actress accepts even she finds her moniker tricky to enunciate, particularly after she has consumed too much alcohol.

She said: "There are many times where even I, at certain points in the evening, after a few drinks, can't pronounce my own surname, so it's understandable."

Milla - who has a 21-month-old son Ever Gabo with her fiance, director Paul Anderson - also refused to become obsessed about losing her post-baby weight when she filmed new thriller 'A Perfect Getaway' because she wanted to look like a "normal girl".

The 33-year-old beauty explained: "Part of the reason I returned to work was because it wasn't an action film and I didn't have to train. It was nice to play a normal girl on her honeymoon.

Milla Jovovich says modeling is just a side-line to her acting career.

The 'A Perfect Getaway' actress insists making films is the thing she enjoys most in her career, but is happy to model or make music when she is shooting a movie.

She told puppet Red, the new face of UK TV channel Virgin1: "Acting is defiantly my main career and that's what I've always done but it's one of those things that you can't really depend on. You may do a film but then you don't know when your next job is going to come along so I like to keep myself busy because I don't want to get bored of myself. 

"I want to keep inspiring myself and be creative so that's where the music and modelling comes in. I just wanted to keep doing creative things in between films."

The 33-year-old star - who has 21-month-old daughter Ever Gabo with fiance Paul Anderson, who she is due to marry on August 22 - refuses to align herself with only one kind of movie, because she enjoys the challenge of different genres.

She revealed: "I'm starting to film 'Resident Evil: Afterlife' in September. I've also just finished making a movie called 'Stone' with Edward Norton and Robert De Niro, which is a really heavy psychological thriller.  It's really nice to be able to mix it up because it's really difficult to always have that emotional drama in your head.  It's hard to leave it all behind and not take it home with you so it's nice to have that balance."