With Christopher Nolan's rep allegedly denying any knowledge of his Mumbai visit in December, we look at other Hollywood-related buzz that fizzled out
Christopher Nolan, Kristen Stewart, Natalie Portman and Eva Longoria
There is God and if you’re a Hollywood film buff, there’s Christopher Nolan. Without a doubt, the filmmaker —credited with making films such as Memento, The Prestige, The Dark Knight and Inception — is among Hollywood’s most successful names. No wonder excitement soared to record levels when it was recently announced that the maverick filmmaker would attend and speak at IIT Mumbai’s annual festival in December.
Celebrated Hollywood filmmaker, Christopher Nolan was rumoured to have planned a visit to India this December
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But if a leading news website is to be believed, Nolan’s representatives have denied any knowledge about the filmmaker’s India visit. While we hope that there is no merit in this development — Nolan is certainly welcome in aamchi Mumbai — it must be pointed out that this isn’t the first time that the veracity of a Hollywood-related development has come into question. We look at some past examples...
Mallika, who?
What was said: Mallika Sherawat may have become good friends with Jackie Chan, who she co-starred with in a film, but the mention of Hollywood actor Antonio Banderas is said to make her uncomfortable. The story goes that Mallika danced with Banderas at a Cannes party and soon after, he invited her to Spain. The actress reportedly accepted the offer and rumour mills suggested that she was the reason behind the rift between Banderas and his wife, Melanie Griffith.
Antonio Banderas and Mallika Sherawat
But, later: Mallika rubbished this talk, labelling Banderas ‘an acquaintance’. She had also tweeted that she wanted to be ‘left alone’. When hitlist had contacted Banderas’s team then, the response was a curt “Mallika, who?”. There was no response to questions about the actor’s alleged relationship with Mallika.
Turn off
What was said: Making an ‘erotic film’ on an ancient Indian text wasn’t enough for filmmaker Rupesh Paul. So after going to town about his Sherlyn Chopra-starrer, Kamasutra 3D, he alleged that she had uploaded a video clip of the photo shoot of the film online without his permission. And get this — in February last year, he reportedly said that he was so upset with her that he was going to replace her in the film with Eva Longoria or Mila Kunis.
Sherlyn Chopra and Eva Longoria
But, later: A year later, tension between Paul and Chopra escalated to a point where the former filed a lawsuit against the actress alleging defamation on social media. The actress retaliated only to patch up in a month. However, till date there’s no word on Eva Longoria or Mila Kunis doing the film. Not that we were waiting with bated breath.
Anti-climax
What was said: When Dhoom 3 was announced, it was clear that this film, backed by a banner as prominent as YRF, would have big stars involved in the project. And while Aamir Khan and Katrina Kaif are no doubt big names in Bollywood, at one point, there was word about the makers casting a leading Hollywood actress in this film. In fact, the buzz was that Oscar winner Natalie Portman, Penelope Cruz or Eva Longoria were being considered to play Khan’s love interest.
Aamir Khan and Tabrett Bethell
But, later: Dhoom 3 came, it saw and it conquered the BO. But it had nothing to do with Hollywood clout. None of the names mentioned even had a fleeting appearance in the film. Instead, the film starred Australian actress Tabrett Bethell and no, she wasn’t even cast opposite Aamir.
Sorry, Nat Natalie
What was said: In one of his interviews, Saif Ali Khan, revealed that he had cast Hollywood actress Natalie Portman in his upcoming project. He was quoted saying, “A love story we are working on... It’s a secret... We are doing a film with Natalie Portman.”
Saif Ali Khan and Natalie Portman
But, later: It was reported that Portman’s lawyers sent a ‘cease and desist’ legal notice to the actor and his production banner. Soon after, Khan clarified that he had made the comment as ‘a joke’ and issued an apology.
Watered down
What was said: Shekhar Kapur has been working on his ambitious project, Paani, for quite some time now and not surprisingly, the project has been riddled with rumours. But, perhaps what grabbed maximum eyeballs was word about Twilight actress, Kristen Stewart, being cast in the film opposite Hrithik Roshan.
Shekhar Kapur and Kristen Stewart
But, later: Kristen issued a denial about the news. Kapur too tried to put out the fire by tweeting that they had had 'just one conversation’ and that people were jumping to conclusions.