Dominic Chan/WENN.com

From Essence

“I had a great time in this movie being outside of the suit and getting to really be a part of the action as a regular guy,” says Don Cheadle on starring in the colossal blockbuster, Iron Man 3. Cheadle spoke with ESSENCE.com about playing an action hero, his experience filming the movie and who his real-life superheroes are.

How he prepared for his role as War Machine:

I bought a cape and tried to fight a human size tuna can. [Laughs] No, I really just read the comic, got involved with the script and really tried to make him what he was in the second movie but even more beefed up.

His real life superheroes:

The people around me and my parents. Especially my dad, knowing what it takes as a father myself to raise a family.

What other projects he’s working on this year:

I’m going to take the rest of 2013 off. I’m doing a lot of things with my production company, developing shows, movies and plays. I won’t be going back to work until August when House of Lies starts up again.

Now who told Don he could take the rest of the year off? Did he get permission from his fans? Just kidding…good for him! You can check the rest of the interview out (and he’s a really funny guy) over on Essence.com.

Have you checked out Iron Man 3 yet?

Source: WENN

When Terrence Howard landed the coveted role as Col. James Rhodes in 2008 blockbuster, Iron Man, he believed that his career would only continue to flourish from there. But, when producers put out a sequel to the film and made the decision to replace the Hustle & Flow actor with Don Cheadle, well, it kind of put a damper on things.

According to the Huffington Post, Hollywood whispers suggest that Howard was replaced by Cheadle as a result of Howard’s failure to see eye-to-eye with Iron Man director Jon Farvreau and Marvel executives. Although he initially conveyed his departure from the Marvel saga as mutually amicable, he recently revealed to Hollywood.com that the snub “killed” his career. When asked by the site’s reporter about one of the worst things he’s witnessed in his life, he referenced Iron Man.

“Well, the worst thing I’ve witnessed was Iron Man killing my career,” he semi-humorously expressed.

“They tried to, they tried to,” he seriously continued.

The actor went a bit more in depth about the Iron Man controversy, exactly how it has impacted his career and what he’s learned from the experience, during an interview with Spanish entertainment site, Desde Hollywood. An English translation of his explanation reads:

“It’s similar to what happens with my character in this movie [Dead Man Down]: He had lost a lot. Thought he was maintaining and holding his ground. All the things he was building his future on was not going to sustain him. Unfortunately he went after and tried to seek his own revenge.”

“I had a decision to make. I could have sought revenge against Marvel and all. But I learned something in life. You know? That everything is controlled by this wave particle theory. Often times when we are moving up in this wave field we are looking up. But the moment that we are reaching the descent we are still looking up. Guess what: we are falling. But if you turn and orient yourself in the direction that you are going in, you will gain momentum and a great deal of inertia so you reflect off the valley and you miss the next two or three downward falls.”

“I love the fact that Iron Man put me on a world stage and tested my strength of character. Because I chose not to fight back, not to deal with the allegations, but to continue forward and do what I had to do. I had to start all over: went from making $6 million a movie, back to $60 thousand a movie. But as long as you don’t give up you are able… I’ll make $20 million soon. Because I have learned the lessons of yesterday.”

What do you think of Terrence blaming Iron Man for the demise of his career?

Source: WENN

Nia Long recently sat down with the hosts of Access Hollywood Live to discuss her new role in Showtime drama House of Lies. She also chatted it up about what life is like being a mom for the second time and whether or not a wedding is in the near future for her and boyfriend, Ime Udoka. Check out some of what she had to say.

On being a mom for the second time:

“I have a 12 year old and a 15 month old, he is so juicy. That’s my juicy baby… They have the cutest relationship. I was kind of worried because of the age gap, but they have the most delicious relationship. The little guy looks at the oldest like ‘Oh my God you’re my hero,’ and my big boy is like ‘Oh, I can actually rough house you because you’re so juicy.’ They’re awesome. It’s very different [having a baby right now] because I get very little sleep. There’s been longer than a 10-year age gap, but it’s all just so wonderful because it really enriches your life. I just have such a clear perspective of what my needs are and where I’m going and what kind of job works for me and what doesn’t work for me. Babies are like light in your life.”

On the possibility of marriage:

“I don’t know [if we'll be getting married anytime soon]. You know, he’s assistant coaching for the Spurs, so we spend a lot of time going back and forth to San Antonio. It’s tough. It’s hard. It’s a challenge. But we are committed to one another and our babies. You know, you just do what you gotta do. It was a great opportunity for him, coming from being a player. It was like the perfect way to parlay into his coaching career and so I have to support that.”

On predicting Don Cheadle’s Golden Globes win:

“We actually shot [for House of Lies] a couple of days before the Golden Globes and I said ‘I just have a feeling you’re going to win. Congratulations this is great,’ and he goes ‘I’m never winning.’ So I was watching the show and just before he went on I had this vision of him winning. So the next day we all had a table read and they scheduled the call for 6:00 am and he was so tired. He gets to work and he’s wearing his Golden Globe like a Biggie Smalls album cover. I’m like ‘You look like Biggie Smalls with a big medallion.’ It was so funny. He was so cute”

Check out footage of Nia’s full interview on the next page. Do you have any thoughts regarding her nonchalance about exchanging vows?

C. Smith/WENN.com

From ESSENCE

Showtime’s hit series House of Lies has earned much attention since it debuted in 2012. Now in its second season, the clever comedy about an over-the-top consultant, played by Best Comedy Actor Golden Globe winner Don Cheadle, continues to up the ante with guest stars. Nia Long is among the selected actors to appear on the series this season and we hear her upcoming episode may raise some eyebrows.

Nia talks about her character, Tamara:

“The very first time you meet her, she talks about how she’s been out of the game raising children. She’s a wife. And coming back into the game she wants to have some sort of integrity for herself. When you look at the characters on House of Lies, they are all very twisted. They are not what they seem. They’re back stabbing. They’re just ugly people, not nice people. They go for theirs.  I think Tamara’s approach to things isn’t that way. She has a different way of getting what she wants.”

On what it’s like working with Don Cheadle:

AH-MAZ-ING! He is probably my new favorite person right now. At first I was so intimidated and nervous and I never get that way. I don’t know what it was about him. I don’t know what it was that made me feel that way. I think it was me coming on to a show that’s already established. I’ve seen almost everything he’s done. I’ve always wanted to work with him. I really like him because he stays under the radar and does great work. He doesn’t care about the fanfare or the fame.

Don’t you just love her? It’ll be great to see her back to work.  You can read the full interview on Essence.

Do you watch House of Lies?

Black actors have come a long way in the last few decades. These stars may be one of the only black actors on their shows but not only do they hold it down, they steal almost every scene they are in. If you haven’t tuned in to any of these shows, click through for a reason to.

Image Source: WENN.com

RZA

Last year, RZA gave us a reason to watch Californication, a show starring David Duchovny as a boozing writer who slores around town. In it, RZA plays a rapper named Samurai Apocalypse (of course). Since RZA is basically playing himself — a ride or die preacher/prophet with a sharp tongue — he is a lot of fun to watch.

Adriana M. Barraza/WENN.com

It’s that time of year again! What time you ask? Why, awards season of course. While most of the awards ceremonies for all of the big movies and critically acclaimed television shows of the year won’t take place until early 2013, nominations are already moving out and about for everything from the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards, to as of this week, the Golden Globes. And while there were a lot of great performances by sistas and brothas of color this year, only three black people picked up nominations for their work. But then again, three is better than none.

Our main man Denzel Washington was nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role for his performance in Flight, where he played an airline captain struggling with alcohol addiction. I actually saw this film in theaters and man…everybody did an outstanding job on the acting tip (big ups to John Goodman), but Denzel was amazing as usual. Another nominated face we love is Alfre Woodard, who picked up a nomination for her role as Ouiser in the Steel Magnolias remake for Lifetime. I was pretty surprised to hear about her receiving Golden Globe love, especially since people really didn’t talk about this TV movie like that after it aired, but nonetheless, we’re proud of her! *Also, the uber-talented Don Cheadle was nominated for his role on the show, House of Lies. I haven’t actually had the chance to check the series out on Showtime, but Cheadle never ceases to amaze me with his awesomeness. On a side note, both Woodard and Washington picked up SAG nominations for their roles in these movies as well.

But that’s about it folks. A big missing piece from the pack that we thought would have grabbed a nomination include Kerry Washington for her work in Scandal. I know the show isn’t a mainstream dream like that, but it has a strong following and Kerry is amazing on the series. Plus, for a Shonda Rhimes show, I’m a bit surprised it’s not getting the kind of love it deserves from the Golden Globes like shows like Grey’s received. It’s hard out here for these shows with black female leads…

Are you excited about these nominations? Have you seen Flight and the Steel Magnolias TV movie?

Denzel at the Los Angeles premiere of “Flight.” Image: Todd Williamson/Invision/AP Images

Flying can be scary. So when people are 7,000 feet in the air, the last thing they want to see is a film about a frightening flight.

This could be a problem for Denzel Washington‘s new film, Flight, in which he plays an alcoholic pilot who is faced with an in-flight emergency. The movie, which cost $35 million to make, hits theaters on November 2. The studio, Paramount Pictures, has received lukewarm reception from the various airline companies about showing the film onboard during flights.

While the aviation disaster flick wouldn’t have made a ton of money from being shown in-flight, the fees airlines pay to show films does usually add up to a few million dollars. And during a time when ticket sales are down, any extra profits are good news. “According to The Wrap, summer ticket sales dropped nearly 20 million from 545 last year to 526 million summer 2012,” reports Business Insider. In fact, ticket sales have dropped $100 million over the last ten years.

“Don’t think it’s going to happen,” the film’s director, Robert Zemeckis, said of the chances that Flight would be shown in-flight, reports The L.A. Times.

Even Delta Air Lines, which helped train Washington in a cockpit simulator, might not show the film on its planes.

The film also stars Don Cheadle, Melissa Leo, Bruce Greenwood, Kelly Reilly and John Goodman. It is actually based loosely on the 2000 crash of Alaska Airlines Flight 261, in which the pilots attempted to recover from catastrophic loss of control by flying the aircraft upside down. That crash had no survivors.

Although the airlines aren’t jumping at showing Flight, early reviews have been good, according to Rotten Tomatoes.

I’m sure you’ve seen a newscast, a photo gallery, or something online where one celebrity was mistaken for another. People do it all the time! How many times have you looked at a photo of “New Girl” star, Zooey Deschanel and thought you were seeing Katy Perry? Sometimes it’s understandable confusion. But with a lot of black celebrities, the mistakes can be head-scratch worthy. From women being mistaken for men and people of two totally different complexions and sizes being mistaken for the same person, sometimes this ish gets out of hand. For example…

Source: People.com

Early this morning, Kerry Washington took the stage with Jimmy Kimmel (who was wearing pajamas!) to announce the nominees of the 64th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards and a there are some notable brown faces among the nods.

Idris Elba received a Lead Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie nod for playing John Luther in the BBC miniseries “Luther”. That miniseries is up for an award of its own in the Best Miniseries or Movie category. Don Cheadle was nominated for Lead Actor In A Comedy Series for his character Marty Kaan on Showtime’s “House of Lies”. Giancarlo Esposito is nominated for Supporting Actor In A Drama Series for his role in “Breaking Bad”. Maya Rudolph is nominated for Outstanding Guest Actress In A Comedy Series for her hosting gig on “SNL.” Loretta Devine was nominated for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Adele Webber on “Grey’s Anatomy”.

Tracy Morgan plays in “30 Rock” and that show picked up a nomination for Outstanding Comedy Series. Also, Cee-Lo Green is a judge on “The Voice” and that show reportedly took American Idol’s spot as it was nominated for Best Competition Reality Show for the first time. Among other categories, The Daily Show picked up a nomination for Outstanding Writing For A Variety Series and Wyatt Cenac is a writer on that show.

Of course you can’t talk about who was nominated without noting who was not nominated.

Despite mostly rave reviews and predictions otherwise, neither ”Scandal” nor its castmembers received nominations this year. The reasoning is unclear. It would be easy to say “Oh it debuted in April and only had seven episodes”, but Shonda Rhimes’ other show “Grey’s Anatomy” first season debuted in March and only had 9 episodes yet Sandra Oh was nominated and the show itself received three nominations that year. Besides, cable shows get nominated regularly even though they may only about produce six to ten shows (compared to maybe 20 for a broadcast network). In addition, it obviously was eligible because ABC was definitely campaigning for Scandal to get a nomination this year, but it didn’t happen. Maybe next year.

Regina King – who famously declared the Emmys were “White As Ever” in 2010 – was snubbed against this year after many thought she’d be nominated for for her role in  ”Southland”.

“Mad Men,” earned a leading 17 Emmy nominations. The miniseries “American Horror Story,” received a matching 17 award nominations. “Downton Abbey,” earned 16 bids. “Hatfields & McCoys,” also earned 16 and “Hemingway & Gellhorn” was nominated for 15. ”Modern Family,” honored as best comedy series for the past two years, was the sitcom leader with 14 bids.

You can see the whole list here

What do you think of this years nominees? Who do you think will win?

Follow Alissa on Twitter @AlissaInPink

More on Madame Noire!

• Did You Know They Dated? 10 Secret Lovers, Temporary Boos and Flings We Were Surprised By
• Let Me Get You Straight, Girl! Advice To The Real ‘Housewives’ Of Atlanta!
• When It Comes To Failed Marriages, Perhaps Expecting A Fairy Tale Is The Problem
• First Date, First Impression: Is It Really You?
• MN Exclusive: Jenifer Lewis On Her Favorite Role, Longevity & Playing The Momma
• Listen Up Fellas! 7 Signs SHE’s Just Not That Into You
• The Business Of Our Periods: Why Are Feminine Products So Darn Expensive?

Somalia has struggled with turmoil for most of its recent history. The country has existed without a stable government since 1991 and this year, another crisis has impacted the lives of millions: famine. The disastrous combination of drought, war, famine and limited aid, has pushed some 12 million Somalis and others in East Africa into “crisis” and in need of food aid. Over the past few months alone, 29,000 children have perished. It is said that over a billion dollars in aid is necessary to aid the dire situation. With that large of a number, it’s going to take more than just government intervention to meet the need, and that’s where celebrities provide the biggest power: in raising awareness about different campaigns and programs.

In the case of Somalia, a few celebrities have takennotice and have been called to action. Here is our list of “do something” celebs:

Beyonce, Jay-Z, and Lady Gaga support the “I’m gonna be your friend” movement as part of the Save the Children network. The movement is in tune with the Bob Marley & The Wailers’ 1973 track, High Tide or Low Tide. The single has been released as a download together with a powerful film – to raise awareness and much needed funds. They solicit donations through the website http://www.imgonnabeyourfriend.org/ as well as a campaign on twitter.