JohnnyDepp-Zone.com

Johnny Depp received an unusual double nomination for the 2008 MTV Movie Awards: he is nominated as Best Villian for SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET and as Best Comedic Performance for PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END. Other nominees in the Best Villain category include Denzel Washington in AMERICAN GANGSTER, Angelina Jolie in BEOWULF, Topher Grace in SPIDER-MAN 3, and Javier Bardem in NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN. In Best Comedic Performance, other nominees include Adam Sandler in I NOW PRONOUNCE YOU CHUCK AND LARRY, Jonah Hill in SUPERBAD, Seth Rogen in KNOCKED UP, and Amy Adams in ENCHANTED. Quite a diverse group!

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END received a nomination as Best Movie, and Keira Knightley was nominated for Best Female Performance for her role as Elizabeth Swann. Congratulations to all the nominees!

Fans can vote for their favorite nominees by visiting the MTV site here; votes must be cast before May 23rd. The MTV Movie Awards will air live from the Gibson Amphitheater on Sunday, June 1, 2008, at 8 p.m. Eastern. The Zone thanks DeepinDepp for posting the news; you can read a full list of nominees on the News & Views forum.

Our picture shows Johnny Depp receiving the Golden Popcorn at last year’s MTV Movie Awards; to see a larger version, click here. –Part-Time Poet

Chris Wedge, the director of ICE AGE, has signed on to direct a film of Brian Selznick’s award-winning children’s novel THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET for Graham King’s GK Films, Johnny Depp’s Infinitum Nihil and Warner Bros. Wedge will work from a screenplay by John Logan (SWEENEY TODD, THE AVIATOR). Mr. King and Infinitum Nihil’s president Christi Dembrowski will produce the live-action film, which centers on the mysterious adventures of an orphaned boy who secretly lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station and looks after the clocks.

Here’s the description of Selznick’s book from Amazon: “Orphan, clock keeper, and thief, Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity. But when his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric, bookish girl and a bitter old man who runs a toy booth in the station, Hugo’s undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy. A cryptic drawing, a treasured notebook, a stolen key, a mechanical man, and a hidden message from Hugo’s dead father form the backbone of this intricate, tender, and spellbinding mystery.” According to Variety, “The studio is eyeing a fall start date” for THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET, which sounds great to us–the sooner, the better!

Publishers Weekly calls the book “a true masterpiece [. . . ] a story as tantalizing as it is touching.” THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET won the prestigious Caldecott Medal for its illustrations, as well as numerous other awards for children’s literature. You can order it from Amazon here.

The Zone thanks vermontfudge for breaking the news; you can read the Variety story in its entirety on the News & Views forum. –Part-Time Poet