Let it be known that ABC officially has “Scruples” — and Natalie Portman is thrown in with the deal.

The network has picked up a one-hour drama based on the 1978 Judith Krantz novel “Scruples.” Portman is attached to executive-produce, along with Tony Krantz and Annette Savitch.

The project, which comes via Flame Ventures LLC and Warner Bros. Television, is billed as a “sexy soap set in the late 1970s” that “follows a socialite who, following the death of her husband, seeks to open a fashion forward boutique in the heart of Beverly Hills.”

Also read: Does It Really Matter if Natalie Portman Did Her Own Dancing in ‘Black Swan’?

The Krantz novel spawned both a sequel, “Scruples Two,” and a 1980 miniseries starring Lindsay Wagner, Barry Bostwick, Kim Cattrall and Connie Stevens.

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Natalie Portman has suffered the ultimate snub – the band named after her is changing its name. Indie rockers Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head have ditched their quirky name and will now perform under Brite Futures. A statement from the Seattle, Washington band reads, “Our love affair with Natalie’s name was like a summer fling that lasted… and lasted… and lasted, but now it is summer once again, and time for a change.”

Source: Contactmusic

After Lily Allen for New Look and the car crash that was Lindsay Lohan’s brief tenure at Emanuel Ungaro, you’d be forgiven for thinking celebrity fashion collaborations were a tasteless marketing technique more in keeping with the days of It-bags and Big Brother than with a more sober, post-Crunch vision of responsible mass consumption. So when 28-year-old Natalie Portman launched a range of vegan shoes (that’s to say no leather or other animal products, rather than that they’re edible) for green label Te Casan, she too came in for a certain amount of scorn and mockery. But the stylish Mary-Janes and court shoes that she created for the eco-tailor were created with the integrity and drive that marks most of her initiatives – and all profits were donated to environmental charities.
The actress has maintained a level of privacy and normality despite her stardom – she completed a psychology degree at Harvard while filming the Star Wars prequels, and even had two undergraduate papers published in respected journals. A vegetarian since childhood, she turned wholly vegan after reading Jonathan Safran Foer’s Eating Animals last year, and is a keen supporter of Peta. In 2007, she travelled to Rwanda to film the documentary Gorillas on the Brink, and has also fought to highlight issues of child malnutrition. Her work with Finca raised money for impoverished women to set up their own businesses, while her endorsement of the OneVoice Movement has brought the potential of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to a wider audience. Having announced her resolution to carbon-neutralise all her journeys, it’s clear she isn’t your average starlet.

Source: Independent.co.uk

Russell Brand has admitted that he plans to change his image in order to attract more film roles. The actor said that he intends to cut off his trademark long hair and adopt a smarter look, after so far starring in movies that have allowed him to retain his distinctive appearance, such as Forgetting Sarah Marshall and St. Trinian’s. However, Brand will receive a makeover for upcoming film Arthur, a remake of the 1981 Dudley Moore comedy. The comedian, who is expected to sport a short haircut for the role, noted that it is a look that may make him a more versatile actor. He told Hello: “Normally I play people where the only thing you need to change is my name. But for this I’m going to change my hair a bit. I saw a mocked-up picture of how it would look and it didn’t look good – like Natalie Portman with a beard. “If I’m going to pursue a career in films I can’t always play Rasputin. I can play him once maybe, play Che Guevara, various homeless people and then it’s going to have to be a haircut.”

Source: Digital Spy