CelebSpice

No, Michael Sheen is not extending his thespian repertoire to include the Son of God. He and Toni Collette have signed on to star in Jesus Henry Christ, which Julia Roberts is producing with her Red Om company.

According to Variety, Christ follows a young genius born out of artificial insemination and raised by his loving, left wing feminist mother (Colette). His life is largely contented, but then he discovers he has a half-sister, and meeting her leads him on a quest to find his biological dad.

And just who might that be? Take a look at the headline again. Yes, Sheen plays a professor who has sunk into feelings of depression and guilt, but finds a ray of hope upon learning about his prodigious spawn.

Dennis Lee has written and will direct this one, which is based on the short film, which nabbed a student Oscar back in 2003. He’s making the movie right now in Toronto.
 

It’s been 16 years since Toni Collette and PJ Hogan worked together on Muriel’s Wedding, but they’re getting back together for a new comedy, Mental.

The film will see Collette as a crazy, charismatic woman who changes a family’s life when she becomes the nanny to five girls. It might sound like a typical cinematic setup, but it’s based partly on Hogan’s own experience.

"Like Muriel's Wedding, Mental is a comedy, but a comedy based on reality, laced with pain and brimming with flawed but lovable characters," Hogan tells Variety. Shaz (the central character) was hilarious, outrageous, dangerous, courageous, inspiring, heartbreaking and totally, totally mad. And she changed my life," Hogan said.

Jerry Zucker, who has worked with the director before, is behind the movie, which Hogan plans to shoot next January in Australia.
 

Toni Collette, Ioan Gruffudd and Richard E Grant have all signed on to the cast of writer/director Jonathan Newman’s indie drama Foster.

It’s not, as the title might suggest, a biopic of Jodie Foster, but instead deals with a married couple – Collette and Gruffudd – who are struggling to deal with the death of their son years before. They decide to start applying to adopt, and then a young lad named Eli shows up at their house.

Anne Reid and Hayley Mills are already aboard and Newman starts shooting the film in London this week. 

Toni Collette was "absolutely s***ting" herself when she won a Primetime Emmy Award.

The actress - who scooped the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series prize for her role in the TV show 'United States of Tara' last September - was petrified when she had to give her acceptance speech, because she has a phobia of public speaking.

She said: "I still have ridiculous fears.

"Things like having to stand up and talk in front of people. Like at the Emmys recently - I was absolutely s***ting myself. To death."

As well as being uncomfortable speaking in front of others, Toni - who has a two-year-old daughter Sage with her husband Dave Galafassi - is also terrified about what will happen to her and her loved-ones when they die.

She said:"I think about it a lot - you know, what's going to happen. I guess it's the fact that I won't exist and I won't be around people that I love. I suppose my worst fear is that I don't know what happens afterwards - it's the ultimate unknown."

Toni's concerns are so severe, she doesn't think she will be able to live her own life fully until she comes to terms with the fact her life will end some day.

Nicole Kidman will present Mentalist star Simon Baker (pictured) with an award at the Ozwood event of the year, G'Day USA, in Los Angeles on January 16. The black-tie gala, held annually in the heart of Hollywood, will also honor Toni Collette and golfing great Greg Norman.

The event is famously the setting of Kidman's meeting with Keith Urban in 2005. The pair went on to marry.

Baker and Collette were announced weeks ago as honorees but Norman's addition was a surprise. "Greg Norman is a great Australian with a huge profile in the US and has not just been successful on the golf course. In business he has also been an Australian champion," said Chris De Cure, Australia's consul-general in Los Angeles and a member of the G'Day steering committee.
Past G'Day ball honorees include Kidman, Urban, Mel Gibson, Rod Laver, Russell Crowe, Hugh Jackman, Naomi Watts, Steve Irwin, Cate Blanchett and Kylie Minogue.
The ball also attracts Hollywood A-listers, with past attendees including John Travolta, Harrison Ford, Sacha Baron Cohen, Sally Field and John McEnroe.
As part of a new advertising campaign in the US, Qantas, a founding sponsor of G'Day, will slash business fares by 50 percent, while economy return tickets will start at $798.
(Image: Splash News)