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Will Smith and his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, donated $122,000 to Scientology groups in 2008, despite the fact that they deny being members of the religion, reports Perez Hilton.

The Smiths own private school in Southern California, The New Village Leadership Academy, which recently underwent criticism for using Scientology teaching methods. Eyebrows were raised when the “non-Scientologists” replaced the school’s headmaster with another who had completed Scientology classes.

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Will Smith is perfect, according to a new Forbes survey.

The actor tops the financial magazine’s inaugural “Star Currency” list with the highest possible score of 10, meaning no one does it better than the rapper-turned-actor when it comes to bringing in the big bucks for film projects.

Hollywood stars were scored on criteria including their ability to attract financing to their projects, their role in ensuring worldwide box office success, and their movies’ performance in such post-theatrical avenues as DVD releases and TV broadcasts.

“Will Smith is unique in that he is one of a very few people who is a draw purely on name alone,” producer Rick Alvarez told Forbes.

“It almost doesn’t matter what genre. The name alone creates a confidence with the audience that they’re going to get something that’s entertaining whether it’s action, comedy, drama.”

Smith’s recent credits include the action movies “I Am Legend” and “Hancock” and the drama “Seven Pounds.” He is a two-time Oscar nominee for best actor for his roles in “Ali” and “The Pursuit of Happyness.”

Four actors tied for second place on the survey with a score of 9.89: Johnny Depp, Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. Jolie was the exception in an otherwise all-male top 10.

More than 150 producers, directors and other entertainment industry professionals around the world were asked to rank more than 1,400 actors for the survey.

Will Smith was the top money-making movie star of 2008, according to an annual survey of movie exhibitors.

The actor, who headlined “Hancock” and “Seven Pounds” last year, was voted in the Quigley poll as the star who generated the most box office revenue in theatres.

“Hancock” grossed $228 million, while “Seven Pounds,” currently in theatres, has taken in $39 million in two weeks.

Smith is the second African-American actor to top the poll, which began in 1932. Sidney Poitier was the first to do so, in 1968.

Following Smith in the No. 2 spot was Robert Downey Jr. (”Iron Man,” “Tropic Thunder”), while Christian Bale (”The Dark Knight”) came in third.

The top 10, in order, were rounded out by Shia LaBeouf, his “Indiana Jones” co-star Harrison Ford, Adam Sandler, Reese Witherspoon, George Clooney, Angelina Jolie and Daniel Craig.

Meanwhile, Anne Hathaway and Chris Pine were voted the top stars of tomorrow. Hathaway was recently nominated for a SAG award and Golden Globe for “Rachel Getting Married,” while Pine — Hathaway’s co-star in “The Princess Diaries 2″ — will play Captain Kirk in the upcoming Star Trek movie.

It is not what a story is about, but how is it about it. I could summarize the plot of Seven Pounds for you in a paragraph and you’d be rolling your eyes or laughing. Or scolding me for suggesting that you’d roll your eyes or laugh. If you lapped up The Pursuit of Happyness (which I didn’t), this movie’s for you.

And yet I liked Seven Pounds, because it doesn’t reveal its plot as you would in a summary. It begins with its protagonist, Ben Thomas (Will Smith) phoning an ambulance and announcing his suicide. Then it pulls back and we see bits and pieces of Thomas’s former life: he had a high-powered job, a gorgeous house, a beautiful wife and, for reasons that won’t be clear until the end, apparently ditched his former profession to become an IRS agent. As you probably know from seeing the trailers or reading the summaries, he takes it upon himself to change the lives of seven people, most notably a heart disease patient named Emily Posa (Rosario Dawson). The why is easy to guess. The how is a little more tricky.

In its way, the film is ingenious as it presents a protagonist who knows exactly what he is doing and why he is doing it, even though his actions appear random and sometimes cruel. That we do not understand until the end makes a certain sense; as another critic said, Thomas (and his best friend, a lawyer played by Barry Pepper) already knows what he’s doing, and has no reason to explain why. READ MORE »

HOLY HANCOCK, BATMAN!

Should we believe the hype? If we go by the immortal words of Chuck D and Flava Flav (oh wise ones they were) no, no we shouldn’t. But we aren’t talking about media-driven political propaganda or even anything remotely similar to what the boys of Public Enemy were poetically protesting. We’re talking movie hype people and this summer has been chalk full of it.

Indiana Jones: SO MUCH hype, The Hulk: ridiculous hype, Iron Man: belated, but hyped nonetheless and then, there’s Hancock. Without Will, the hype would have been far less substantial but when you decide to mix Big Willy and the celebration of America’s independence, the premature excitement is inevitable.

Never mind the critics. Will’s got no love for the haters, the haters. They’re just mad cause he’s got floor seats at the Lakers (g’head, take a break and get jiggy with it). The reason why the onslaught of bad- REALLY bad- reviews that preceded Hancock’s release didn’t matter was because his name is Will Smith and he’s the hype machine. The hypest of all hype- if you will. I may be the only person who thinks Hancock lived up to its promotion cinematically, but no one can deny it lived up to monetary expectations. And that, my friends, is all that matters in the movie business. Get excited for Hancock 2! Yeah boooyyyyyy (second Flava Flav reference of the post. Score!) On that note, let’s move on to the movie that will surely live up to and surpass all box office expectations.

The Dark Knight.

Dun Dun Dun.

Christian Bale is no Will Smith (speaking strictly in terms of opening weekend stats of course) however this weekend; he will see Big Willy size numbers. But, going back to the looming question, should we believe the hype? On the eve of what has already been hailed by many movie geeks as the greatest superhero film ever, I’m hesitant to buy into the frenzy. The. Greatest. Superhero. Movie. Ever. Like ever ever? Big words. While I loved LOVED (yes loved) Batman Begins, it still falls a little behind some other great superhero flicks in moviedom. Namely, the original Batman and Superman. It’s probably considered on the same level as X-men and X 2 (note: I can’t even discuss Brett Ratner’s X-Men 3 without going into a Kanye-inspired caps filled rage). How would Christian Bale’s first stab at the caped crusader stack up again this summer’s superhero overload? Probably pretty well. It’d kick the shit of Indiana Jones and the Hulk, (though both deserve kudos for entertainment value) it would have been right on par with the amazingness of Iron Man. But, and I ask this a super serious, existentialist tone, what if Batman Begins had had the same media craze behind it as The Dark Knight does? Would we be looking back on it as one of the greats of all time OR would we be remembering failed expectations?

I have no doubt that The Dark Knight will be a good movie- great even but the hype is just too much to handle. Let the movie speak for itself. I’m sure a lot more people would have liked Hancock if they hadn’t entered the theatre already waiting for the worst.

So my solution is this: NO promotion. Yes movie execs, I’m talking to you. Especially (or specifically) with superhero flicks as I’m sure there are many more to come. You don’t need to PUSH PUSH PUSH movies on us when these franchises already have a following. We all knew we wanted to see The Dark Knight in the first 5 seconds of the original trailer. Forget extended trailers; forget releasing the first 5 minutes. The people will come. And we’ll be shocked, surprised and excited in all the parts where we’re supposed to be shocked, surprised and excited. Don’t get me wrong, I do love me some trailers but not when the trailer takes away from the actual movie.

ANYWAY, I could be eating my words in mere hours. The ball is in your court Batman. Move me. Excite me. Thrill me. I dare you.

Will Smith has confirmed one of the worst-kept secrets in Hollywood: he and wife, Jada, have an open relationship.

“Our perspective is, you don’t avoid what’s natural and you’re going to be attracted to people,” he told Reveal magazine. “And if it came down to it, then one would say to the other: ‘Look, I need to have sex with somebody. Now, I’m not going to if you don’t approve of it.’”

The couple went so far as to include their pact in their wedding vows. “In our marriage vows, we didn’t say ‘forsaking all others’. We said ‘you will never hear I did something afterwards’. Because if that happens the relationship is destroyed,” Smith said.

Smith said that having lots of sex with each other also helps their marriage.

Once again, Will Smith proves he rules the box office.

Smith’s “Hancock” debuted No 1 this weekend with $66 million according to Exhibitor Relations estimates, reports E! News. “Hancock” is Smith’s seventh straight movie to open No.1.

Overall, “Hancock” has grossed $107.3 million since “previewing” Thursday night and “opening” on Wednesday. By looking only at the movie’s first five days, Wednesday to Sunday, “Hancock” took in $100.4 million, per Box Office Mojo stats, far behind the pace of this summer’s two leading movies, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull ($152 million) and Iron Man ($112.1 million).

Last week’s champ “Wall-e” came in second place by grossing another $33.4 million while “Wanted” came in third with $20.6 million

There are heroes … there are superheroes … and then there’s Hancock – a depressed, foul-mouthed, seemingly immortal superhero who causes more trouble than he’s worth when rescuing civilians.

In the opening scenes of the movie, I was already entertained by Will Smith’s portrayal of the atypical superhero. He’s homeless, dirty (literally), and constantly intoxicated. He’s deemed to be more of an A-hole than a hero and, in many cases, understandably so. Yet it’s these superhero “flaws” that make Hancock interesting. With the protagonist’s cheeky and funny one-liners, the audience is easily captivated and entertained — all within the first minutes of the film.

However, Hancock is not so loved by his people. The public has shunned their local hero due his constant disruptive behaviour. When Hancock means well, he does damage. When repatriating a beached whale, he angers Greenpeace. When trying to intervene and stop a police chase, he causes the city of Los Angeles millions in damages. For Hancock, no good deed goes unpunished.

But all changes when Hancock saves PR executive Ray (Jason Bateman) from getting killed. Ray is determined to change Hancock into the superhero everyone wants. When Ray brings Hancock home to taste his wife’s weekly meatball madness dinner, Mary (Charlize Theron) thinks Hancock is a lost cause. Besides Ray, the only other individual who seems to appreciate Hancock’s rescuing tactics is Ray’s son Aaron (Jae Head), who views Hancock as a true superhero.

Ray convinces Hancock that he needs to improve his image with the public – which is dealt with in the second part of the film. This superhero movie is not entirely unconventional and a villain does exist, although his purpose is not quite convincing.

Director Peter Berg and screenwriters Vy Vincent Ngo and Vince Gilligan do their best to provide a movie that captivates both drama and comedy and they succeed. Although Hancock appears he couldn’t care less about the people he saves, the audience learns that Hancock just wants to be accepted — like any average normal human.

One of the movie’s major flaws is a not very surprising plot twist that reveals the details of Hancock’s past. As Hancock transforms into a regular superhero, the writers have failed to keep Hancock interesting and he somewhat loses his edge.

Besides the movie’s setbacks, this feature will undoubtedly win over audience members due to its quirkiness, simplicity and relatively cool special effects. Will Smith has proven he is one of the most bankable actors in Hollywood. All of the actor’s previous Fourth of July movies (”Independence Day,” “Men in Black II”) have made big bucks, even though they were not great films. Although Hancock is a refreshing change from the typical superhero flicks we have been bombarded with lately, this film may indeed disappoint viewers who are expecting a genuine superhero film.

Connor Cruise, Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman’s son, will make his acting debut in the Will Smith drama “Seven Pounds.”

The minor role sees Connor, 13, playing a younger version of Smith’s character.

Despite his parents’ fame and Cruise and Smith’s friendship, the teen had to audition to land the role.

“Tom is so proud of Connor,” People magazine quoted a source as saying. “He’s proud of him for really doing this on his own.”

Cruise and former wife Kidman adopted Connor during their 11-year marriage, which ended in 2001. The two also have a 15-year-old adopted daughter named Isabella.

In “Seven Pounds,” Smith plays a suicidal man who falls in love.

The film also stars Rosario Dawson, Woody Harrelson and Barry Pepper, and is directed by Gabriele Muccino, who previously directed Smith in 2006’s “The Pursuit of Happyness.”

The movie is scheduled for a late 2008 release.

Reports that Will Smith is involved with the church of Scientology have surfaced over the past few weeks, timing nicely with the release of his holiday blockbuster “I Am Legend”. However, if the reports are false, Smith has done very little to refute them.

The rumour began when the former fresh prince, who was raised in the Baptist church, told Vogue magazine that “98 percent of the principles [in Scientology] are identical to the principles of the Bible.”

US Weekly reported that not only has Smith been drawn to the religion, but his wife, Jada, has also taken to the ideals. As a matter of fact, earlier reports from US Weekly suggested that Jada was the one who initially showed interest in the unique beliefs of Scientology.

For anyone who had not had the privilege of hearing an amped up Tom Cruise gush about his faith, Scientologists believe in a being called “thetan”, who has experienced several incarnations – but who is not likened to other keystone religious figures like Jesus, Allah or Hashem, the Hebrew name for God.

Although the topic has been a hot one for many tabloid mags, Smith’s blatant and near intentional disinterest in clearing the rumours up have lead many to believe that the allegations are, in fact, true.