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James McAvoy and Emily Blunt could soon be playing “star-cross’d lovers” on the big screen — but not in the way you may think.

The two actors are in talks to voice the title characters in “Gnomeo and Juliet,” a CGI-animated film loosely based on Shakespeare’s play.

As the title suggests, McAvoy and Blunt would play lovers from rival gardens.

Should Blunt sign on to the role, she would be taking over from Kate Winslet, who was originally attached to voice Juliet but dropped out due to scheduling conflicts.

The film, from Miramax and Elton John’s Rocket Pictures, will feature several of John’s well-known tunes and possibly some new material.

Kelly Asbury, whose credits include “Shrek 2″ and “Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron,” will direct.

The movie is currently in the storyboard stage and is expected to be completed in 2010.

McAvoy, who picked up a Golden Globe nomination for 2007’s “Atonement,” appeared in this summer’s “Wanted,” while Blunt is perhaps best known for her supporting turn in 2006’s “The Devil Wears Prada,” for which she was also nominated for a Golden Globe.

Angelina Jolie has finally lived up to her pay check and delivered a hit.

Her new action flick “Wanted” opened this past weekend to record numbers. In fact, Deadline Hollywood reports that it was the biggest opening weekend ever for an R-rated movie in June. It took in $51.1 million, surprising Universal Studios, who were only expecting $35 million.

“Wanted” was also the sixth biggest opening for an R-rated film of all time, and the third biggest R-rated action film.

This all looks very good on Jolie, who was on of the main reasons that audiences wanted to see the film, according to the studio’s polls. It was Jolie’s biggest opening ever for a live-action film.

Jolie’s last couple of films, like “Beowulf” and “A Might Heart,” have only had lukewarm receptions.

Ryan Gosling and Ellen Page have both been honoured at the Santa Barbara Film Festival.

Gosling was given the Independent Award Tribute for “significant and unique contribution to independent film.” While his role in “Lars and the Real Girl” makes the award timely, his performances in indie flicks like “Half Nelson” and “The Slaughter Rule” collectively earned him the award.

Meanwhile, Page was one of five actors who received the Virtuosos Award. The award is a new addition to the festival because there were so many “young actors who have distinguished themselves through performances in film this past year,” states the Festival’s official web site.

Page shares the award with Casey Affleck, James McAvoy, Marion Cotillard and Amy Ryan, which was handed out last night.

It’s official: Ellen Page and her pregnant alter-ego “Juno” are Oscar worthy.

The film received nods in several category where it will be the only comedy competing against some huge, heavy-hitter dramas. 20-year-old Page is up against the likes of Cate Blanchett (Elizabeth: The Golden Age), Julie Christie (Away From Her), Marion Cotillard (La Vie en Rose) and Laura Linney (The Savages) for Best Actress.

“Juno” is nominated for Best Picture against the critical favourites “Atonement,” “Michael Clayton,” “No Country for Old Men” and “There Will Be Blood.”

Screenwriter Diablo Cody and Canadian director Jason Reitman also scored a nomination for “Juno.”

Sarah Polley will also be representing Canada at the awards. She was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay for her film, “Away From Her.”

With so many fantastic performances, it will be especially hard to guess the winners this year. The Best Actor category is an exciting list: George Clooney (Michael Clayton), Daniel Day-Lewis (There Will Be Blood), Johnny Depp (Sweeney Todd), Viggo Mortensen (Eastern Promises) and Tommy Lee Jones (In The Valley of Elah).

Other notable nominations are 13-year-old Saoirse Ronan (Atonement), Javier Bardem (No Country For Old Men) and Casey Affleck (The Assassination of Jesse James?).

James McAvoy and Keira Knightley were noticably snubbed for their lead performances in “Atonement.”

Here is a complete list of the nominations:

BEST PICTURE
“Atonement”
“Juno”
“Michael Clayton”
“No Country for Old Men”
“There Will Be Blood”

BEST ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett, “Elizabeth: The Golden Age”
Julie Christie, “Away From Her”
Marion Cotillard, “La Vie en Rose”
Laura Linney, “The Savages”
Ellen Page, “Juno”

BEST ACTOR
George Clooney, “Michael Clayton”
Daniel Day-Lewis, “There Will Be Blood”
Johnny Depp, “Sweeney Todd”
Viggo Mortensen, “Eastern Promises”
Tommy Lee Jones, “In the Valley of Elah”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett, “I’m Not There”
Ruby Dee, “American Gangster”
Saoirse Ronan, “Atonement”
Amy Ryan, “Gone Baby Gone”
Tilda Swinton, “Michael Clayton”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Casey Affleck, “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford”
Javier Bardem, “No Country for Old Men”
Hal Holbrook, “Into The Wild”
Tommy Lee Jones, “No Country For Old Men”
Philip Seymour Hoffman, “Charlie Wilson’s War”
Tom Wilkinson, “Michael Clayton”

BEST DIRECTOR
Paul Thomas Anderson, “There Will Be Blood”
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, “No Country for Old Men”
Julian Schnabel, “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly”
Tony Gilroy, “Michael Clayton”
Jason Reitman, “Juno”

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Diablo Cody, “Juno”
Nancy Oliver, “Lars and the Real Girl”
Tony Gilroy, “Michael Clayton”
Brad Bird, Story by Jan Pinkava, Jim Capobianco, Brad Bird, “Ratatouille”
Tamara Jenkins, “The Savages”

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Paul Thomas Anderson, “There Will Be Blood”
Christopher Hampton, “Atonement”
Ronald Harwood, “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly”
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, “No Country for Old Men”
Sarah Polley, “Away From Her”

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
“Beaufort” (Israel)
“The Counterfeiters” (Austria)
“Katyn” (Poland)
“Mongol” (Kazakhstan)
“12″ (Russia)

BEST ANIMATED FILM
“Persepolis”
“Ratatouille”
“Surf’s Up”

BEST ART DIRECTION
“American Gangster”
“Atonement”
“The Golden Compass”
“Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”
“There Will Be Blood”

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
“The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford” Roger Deakins
“Atonement,” Seamus Mcgarvey
“The Diving Bell and the Butterfly,” Janusz Kaminski
“No Country For Old Men,” Roger Deakins
“There Will Be Blood,” Robert Elswit

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
“Across the Universe,” Albert Wolsky
“Atonement,” Jacqueline Durran
“Elizabeth: The Golden Age,” Alexandra Byrne
“La Vie En Rose,” Marit Allen
“Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street,” Colleen Atwood

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
“No End in Sight”
“Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience”
“Sicko”
“Taxi to the Dark Side”
“War/Dance”

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
“Freeheld”
“La Corona” (”The Crown”)
“Salim Baba”
“Sari’s Mother”

BEST FILM EDITING
“The Bourne Ultimatum,” Christopher Rouse
“The Diving Bell and the Butterfly,” Juliette Welfling
“Into the Wild,” Jay Cassidy
“No Country for Old Men,” Roderick Jaynes
“There Will Be Blood,” Dylan Tichenor

BEST MAKEUP
“La Vie en Rose”
“Norbit”
“Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End”

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
“Atonement”, Dario Marianelli
“The Kite Runner”, Alberto Iglesias
“Michael Clayton”, James Newton Howard
“Ratatouille”, Michael Giacchino
“3:10 to Yuma”, Marco Beltrami

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
“Falling Slowly” from “Once”
“Happy Working Song” from “Enchanted”
“Raise It Up” from “August Rush”
“So Close” from “Enchanted”
“That’s How You Know” from “Enchanted”

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM
“I Met the Walrus”
“Madame Tutli-Putli”
“Même Les Pigeons Vont au Paradis (Even Pigeons Go to Heaven)”
“My Love (Moya Lyubov)”
“Peter & the Wolf”

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
“At Night”
“Il Supplente (The Substitute)”
“Le Mozart des Pickpockets (The Mozart of Pickpockets)”
“Tanghi Argentini”
“The Tonto Woman”

BEST SOUND EDITING
“The Bourne Ultimatum”
“No Country For Old Men”
“Ratatouille”
“There Will Be Blood”
“Transformers”

BEST SOUND MIXING
“The Bourne Ultimatum”
“No Country For Old Men”
“Ratatouille”
“3:10 to Yuma”
“Transformers”

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
“The Golden Compass”
“Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End”
“Transformers”

If you don’t know who James McAvoy is, you probably will soon.

The Scottish actor is the frontrunner for the role of Kurt Cobain in an upcoming biopic.

Cobain’s widow Courtney Love and her attorney Howard Weitzman will produce the film, based on Charles Cross’ 2001 biography Heavier Than Heaven.

Troy screenwriter David Benioff has signed up to pen the script chronicling the life of the troubled musician until his suicide at the age of 27 in 1994.

Scottish actor James McAvoy is reportedly the first choice to play Kurt Cobain in a new biopic that will be produced by Courtney Love.

According to a source, “James is making a big impact in Hollywood at the moment. Hollywood bosses are convinced he is the perfect choice to play Kurt Cobain.”

The film, written by David Benioff (“The Kite Runner”) will be based on both Cobain’s personal unpublished journals and the biography “Heavier Than Heaven.”

McAvoy will next be seen in the Ian McEwan adaptation “Atonement” with Keira Knightley. He broke out as Mr. Tumnus in “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” and garnered critical acclaim in the Oscar nominated “Last King of Scotland.”