This is painful in so many ways. Look, you know that I LOOOOOVE Joseph Gordon Levitt. He’s adorable, he’s incredibly talented, and he was robbed of an Oscar nomination this year for his beautiful performance in 50/50. In the past, I’ve had mixed feelings about his “music” but since I love him so much, I’ve accepted the “music,” especially when it involves JGL flashing his dimples at Zooey Deschanel while they sing “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?”

….But now I have to call a timeout. Because Joseph Gordon Levitt went to Sundance, and he got up on stage at an event and he covered The Beatles classic “Hey Jude”. And he killed it. Not “killed it” as in “Damn, that was good.” “Killed it” as in “JGL just completely trashed a classic song that you should only cover if you’re drunk or stupid.” Here’s the video:

This performance makes me uncomfortable. His eyes are closed, he’s concentrating, he’s really trying to sell this, and… he’s trying way too hard. Maybe if he had done it with a wink and a nudge? Maybe if he wasn’t on stage, acting like he was auditioning for American Idol? For God’s sake, JGL. STOP IT.

Thanks to Gawker for the tip!

Photos courtesy of WENN.

If this was Ryan Gosling and [Random Disneyland Companion], I would be yelling and pulling out my hair right now. But my affection for Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon Levitt has NEVER been higher at this moment in time. I absolutely love Zooey on The New Girl, and a few weeks ago, I saw 50/50 and fell in love with JGL hard. Like, I want him. And if I can’t have him, I want to watch Joe and Zooey make out a little. Anyway, they starred together in 500 Days of Summer (which is totally worth watching if you haven’t seen it), and they’ve known each other for years. So, of course, JGL stopped by Zooey’s place and recorded a song with her. Try not to squeal when he flashes his dimples at her. Try not to coo when they give each other these absolutely magical looks. Aw…..

Try not to watch it a million times. I already have. I love them. Both. They need to make babies together, like, right now. Anyway, Zooey posted the video the site that she‘s somehow associated with (?), Hello Giggles. Here’s what she wrote:

I have known Joe Gordon-Levitt for going on 12 years. We first met in the summer of 2000 while doing a tiny movie called Manic, where we bonded over a mutual appreciation for Harry Nilsson and Nina Simone and I have been lucky enough to call him one of my dearest friends ever since.

When we did 500 Days of Summer 8 years later, we spent every lunch hour dancing to Marvin Gaye in the hair and make up trailer; we had loads of fun. I hope to do a thousand more movies with him because he’s simply the best. But in the meantime, we made a little New Year’s duet for all of you! The original by Nancy Wilson. ENJOY! Don’t forget to check out Joe’s website http://hitrecord.org/

New Girl is back January 17 (my birthday) !

[From Hello Giggles]

So… they’ve known each other for more than a decade. Why not make babies together? Cute little hipster babies who are perfect and adorable. Sigh… I know I’m crushing hard on both of them, but Jesus, this is lovely.

Photos courtesy of WENN, archive images.

Over the summer, an attractive Marine put up a YouTube video asking Mila Kunis to be his date for the Marine Corps ball. She flip-flopped on whether she would accept his invitation, but one ballsy Marine changed the way celebrities and their fans interacted. Justin Timberlake got a Marine Corps Ball invitation too – and he just went this past weekend. Betty White got one, and a few others probably got some too. But would this YouTube date-proposal work for non-military personnel? Would it work with just an average person who just wants to have a coffee date with Joseph Gordon Levitt? I think it might. Above is the YouTube video by Lindsay Miller, a 26-year-old girl with cancer, and she really wants to have coffee with JGL.

Before I saw the video, I was kind of like “meh” on this story, but now that I’ve seen it – this girl is really cute and sweet, and she’s not coming across as creepy whatsoever. She’s just a girl with cancer who liked JGL’s performance in 50/50, and she’d like to hang out with him. She told Us Weekly, “After seeing Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s performance and seeing/reading some of his subsequent interviews about the film I thought, ‘This guy gets it. And he’s cute. I wonder if I could ever run into him somewhere.’ But even though I live in LA, it seems impossible to find him. It’s ridiculous…And it feels like I’m making a big leap from being an anonymous cancer ‘liver’ a few months ago to now starring in my own video. But, life is short. So, why not?” Aw. Sweetheart. She’s got me tearing up.

JGL apparently told E! News that he hadn’t seen the video yet, but that he had heard about it. DO IT!!! Please, JGL? Please meet this girl and have coffee with her and just be nice to her and give her a cool story. Plus, she’s a cutie. You might even want to take her out again and again.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

Over the weekend, The Dark Knight Rises was filming exterior scenes in New York City. The only major actors who were spotted were Christian Bale and Joseph Gordon Levitt. We know who Bale is, obviously, and he’s in his Bruce Wayne gear in these photos – oddly enough, he’s looking rather douchey and Patrick Bateman-ish, which is uncomfortable because Bruce Wayne should never remind us of one of Bale’s old characters, especially one that was a chainsaw-wielding serial killer (spoiler?).

The fan-boys and girls are still trying to figure out JGL’s cop character, though. Is he a good cop or a dirty cop? Is he going to help Batman or not? The Hollywood Reporter identified JGL’s character as “young special assignment cop John Blake”. JGL looks cute as a cop, right? But he still has such a baby face. Adorable.

Interestingly enough, there are rumors that director Christopher Nolan wants to use the Occupy Wall Street protests within the film – although in these photos, the scenes seemed to be filming around Trump Tower, which is apparently standing in for Wayne Enterprises. The film is now going to move to New Jersey.

Photos courtesy of Fame & WENN.

According to Us Weekly and LaineyGossip, Scarlett Johansson and Joseph Gordon Levitt are a thing now. Us Weekly hasn’t put the story online yet, so I’m just going with Lainey’s version, which is basically:

[Us Weekly] reports that Scarlett Johansson and Joseph Gordon-Levitt have been dealing with each other. It’s early but it’s hot. A proper New York flirtation …while her ex-husband and his piece Blake Lively are doing the same, ish, over in Boston.

Do you like it? Scarjo and JGL? Is it like Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes for you? Are you into it?

I have no read, which is probably a sign. The only reaction I had was dread. About the singing.

You know. She sings. He sings. Do they sit around the sing and “jam” and “play around” with chords and whatever and will they lay down a few tracks for his label while wearing fedoras?

Just…

Be two mega attractive actors, period, who are dating and enjoy making out. That’s it. We don’t need the hyphens and the commas and the DVD extras. Why does every young celebrity these days come with DVD extras?

[From LaineyGossip]

Now, ScarJo has spent her post-Ryan Reynolds, Post-Sean Penn time basically flirting and dating it up. Scar has been linked to everybody lately – Bradley Cooper, Justin Timberlake, Justin Long, yadda, yadda, yadda. Scarlett and Olivia Wilde have been cutting a wide swath across Hollywood. So… should we take this JGL thing seriously? I doubt it. It’s probably just some hookups, I don’t see them going the distance.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

Manic pixie dream boy Joseph Gordon-Levitt covers the November issue of Blackbook magazine to promote 50/50, which the interviewer describes as “Terms of Endearment for the Apatow set,” which earned an estimated $8,858,000 in domestic box-office receipts this weekend. Not bad for a low-budget, R-rated comedy about cancer, right? While I do plan on watching the movie (I’ll witness anything, even G.I. Joe, with JGL in it), it’s probably one that I’ll wait to hit Netflix merely because of the subject matter, but next January’s Premium Rush (you can watch that trailer here) shall be a theater must-see event. Anyway, Blackbook takes great pains to differentiate between the dual nature of “Joseph Gordon-Levitt,” the doe-eyed movie star and “Average Joe,” which is the persona he adopts on the website of his collaborative production company, HitRECord.org‘s website. If you’re a JGL fan, it’s a fascinating read, but here are a few excerpts:

On What He Finds Attractive: There’s a difference between a girl who’s sexy, like, “I’m a slave,” and an assuredly sexy girl like Beyoncé. But I have to admit, man, I fall for the slave thing, too.”

On 50/50: It’s not like Seth [Rogen] and Evan [Goldberg, Rogen's childhood friend and the film's co-producer] sat down and said, “How can we make something quirky? I know! Let’s do a comedy about cancer. That entire time, I never stopped thinking about what it would be like if I was about to die, and that’s rough. After we finished shooting the movie, I went through this phase where I had to say to myself, I don’t have cancer. I do not have cancer. It was like I needed convincing.

On Acting: What turns me on about acting is being somebody else. My favorite actors are those who really disappear into their characters. [Gary Oldman is] one of my idols.

On The Business Of Celebrity: When I go to the grocery store, I’ll look at the covers of tabloid magazines-they fascinate me-but I don’t bring that sh-t into my house because I think it’s evil and poisonous. It’s easy to dismiss it as harmless entertainment, but I don’t think it is. We’re very influenced by the stories we choose to fill our days with.

On Watching His Own Movies: When I was younger, I couldn’t watch anything I was in. Then I started making and editing my own little videos for fun, and that’s when I started watching myself, although seeing myself act in a Hollywood-scale production is different from watching something I shot on my video camera.

Why He Launched HitRECord.org & Started Making Short Films: I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to be an actor anymore because the only jobs anybody wanted to give me were more TV parts. It’s not that I was averse to TV; it’s just that the work didn’t inspire me. Saying “hit record” was, for me, an imperative sentence. I no longer wanted anyone to tell me how I was allowed to express myself. I think that what I’m doing with hitRECord is influenced enormously by the fact that my parents were social peace activists in the ’60s and ’70s. It’s not so much about ownership but about what we can accomplish as a community. HitRECord isn’t a democracy; it’s a benevolent dictatorship. Anyone can work on it with me, but the idea isn’t to create pure chaos. Even though it’s totally collaborative, I’m directing it. Ultimately, it’s a movie actor’s job to help a director make their movie. This is really the first time that I’ve made something that really feels like my own.

[From Blackbook]

HitRECord.org really is a sight (and sound) to behold, and if you haven’t checked it out yet, I recommend setting aside a good hour or two (or more) to get lost in the folds. It’s refreshing to see a former child star refuse to yield to rejection by getting lost in drugs and whatnot; instead, JGL continued to create in his own way, and his Hollywood career responded in kind. This “Average Joe” will be around for quite some time, and thank goodness for that.

Now for the accompanying photoshoot for this interview, which is adorable as a matter of course, but Blackbook certainly could’ve done better than that cover shot.

Photos courtesy of Blackbook

Bike messengers are an interesting breed of bravado and insanity all wrapped up in one wiry package. Of course, I’ll date myself by admitting that I first became aware of their existence while watching the adventures of Puck Rainey on the third season of MTV’s “The Real World.” Still, it’s a real profession that serves a real function in large cities where hiring a messenger is faster than battling traffic on one’s own to get a package delivered in a timely fashion. Now, we can watch Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s portrayal of Riley, the messenger on a dangerous mission in Premium Rush, where he must deliver an envelope while attempting to evade reliably dastardly Michael Shannon, who plays a crooked cop that’ll do anything to stop the message from arriving on time. Talk about a double shot of understated sexiness.

Here are a few photos from the set of Premium Rush. I know that Joe is something of an acquired taste, but he’s just so appealing. Of course, I can’t even fully describe what makes him attractive except to say that he’s got the ideal combination of boyish charm and manly voice going on.

Gordon-Levitt also appears in the October issue of Elle to promote the upcoming 50/50, in which he plays a cancer patient alongside Seth Rogen, Anna Kendrick, and Bryce Dallas Howard. Here are a few excerpts from the interview:

On The Press: Interviews in general — I’m looking forward to a different experience with you — in general the truth is they’re all really pretty much fiction. I don’t mind. It’s sort of the thing; it’s what it is. And occasionally there are exceptions. I think it’s good for readers of magazines to know that. I think actors especially … a lot of liberties are taken with artists, because it’s a little less consequential than, like, politicians. Although I imagine if you ask government officials they’d say the same thing. Press is basically a created story. It’s all just stories.”

On Playing A Cancer Patient: I spent a lot of my time — most of my days — thinking about what it would be like to be facing death while I was shooting. But, to be honest, I think about it all the time anyway.

On Why He Created hitRECord.org During College: “Nobody wanted to hire me — I can see where they wouldn’t want the kid from 3rd Rock From the Sun. I came to the conclusion, I’m not going to wait for somebody to tell me that I’m allowed to be creative. The metaphor of pushing that red button sort of became my symbol for that kind of self-started creativity.”

On His Snail-Shell Necklace: “They aren’t just shells. There are different hames for it: the Fibonacci spiral, the golden ratio … The spiral in a snail’s shell is the same mathematically as the spiral in the Milky Way galaxy, and it’s also the same mathematically as the spiral in our DNA. It’s the same ratio that you’ll find in very basic music that transcends cultures all over the world. You know that Leonardo da Vinci drawing of the human body, Universal Man? That ratio is all over there. There are certain patterns and repetitions and connections in my world, and througout all of creation, that lead me to believe that there is a connection and there’s a unity and we all — everything are all one thing all at once.”

That’s some pretty deep thinking from a Hollywood actor, right? Joe’s last statement there almost makes me feel bad for ogling him in a sexual way. Almost.

Meanwhile, JGL’s Premium Rush co-star, Michael Shannon is the subject of some booty shots from the set of Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel reboot. While Shannon previously likened his casting to being on acid, it seems that the costuming process has brought him down to Earth. Apparently, Zack promised Michael that he wouldn’t have to wear a silly motion-capture suit because Michael insisted, “It’s going to be really hard for me to be intimidating if I have to wear one of those silly suits.” Then, Michael showed up on set and learned that he does have to wear a grey motion-capture suit (pictured here) during much of the filming for Man of Steel. I can see why he’d be discouraged by having to wear that thing because getting into a real costume certainly helps one get into the state of mind of playing an otherworldly supervillian. Also, CGI costumes are really getting a deservedly bad rap after the Green Lantern fiasco earlier this summer. Luckily, Michael does get to wear an actual Zod costume during part of the filming. Check out the Zod booty!

Photos courtesy of Fame and Elle. Zod photos courtesy of Facebook.

For some reason, we’ve been covering every fart and burp that comes out of the casting rumor mill for Batman: The Dark Knight Rises. We already know that Christian Bale, Morgan Freeman, and Michael Caine will be reprising their roles, and we know that Anne Hathaway was cast as Selina Kyle/Catwoman. The latest additions to the cast – Joseph Gordon Levitt and Marion Cotillard – were announced in February and March, although their characters haven’t been confirmed until now. Oh, and we know that Tom Hardy was likely cast as Bane, and SPOILER if you read the comics, you know what casting Bane means for the series. So, many already had a strong feeling that this was going to be the last Batman from the Christopher Nolan/Christian Bale pairing. But at this point, the cast has grown so large and there are so many storylines, I don’t see how this is not going to be a really weak, schizophrenic plot. So… would you like to know what roles JGL and Marion have taken? I guarantee that you never considered this junk:

Warner Bros. Pictures announced today that Oscar® winner Marion Cotillard (La Vie en Rose) and Joseph Gordon-Levitt have joined the cast of The Dark Knight Rises, the epic conclusion to the Dark Knight legend.

Cotillard will appear as Miranda Tate, a Wayne Enterprises board member eager to help a still-grieving Bruce Wayne resume his father’s philanthropic endeavors for Gotham. Gordon-Levitt will play John Blake, a Gotham City beat cop assigned to special duty under the command of Commissioner Gordon.

The film reunites the actors with Christopher Nolan, who recently directed them in the award-winning blockbuster Inception.

The director stated, “When you collaborate with people as talented as Marion and Joe, it comes as no surprise that you would want to repeat the experience. I immediately thought of them for the roles of Miranda and Blake, and I am looking forward to working with both of them again.”

Heading the cast of The Dark Knight Rises, Christian Bale stars as Bruce Wayne/Batman. The main cast also includes Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle and Tom Hardy as Bane. Josh Pence, who played the body of one of the Winkelvo.

Nolan will direct the film from a screenplay he wrote with Jonathan Nolan, from a story by Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer. Christopher Nolan will also produce the film with his longtime producing partner, Emma Thomas, and Charles Roven.

The Dark Knight Rises is slated for release on July 20, 2012. The film will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

[From Coming Soon]

So, Marion is going to play a corporate bureaucrat with a philanthropic bent, and JGL is going to play a beat cop. Er…? The idea of Marion, who is in reality a space cadet, an eccentric, crazy, beautiful hot mess of a woman, playing it “straight” as a corporate type is totally bizarre. It’s like… I don’t know, hiring Angelina Jolie to play an insurance saleswoman. Or hiring Sofia Vergara to play a neurosurgeon. It’s an odd casting choice. As for JGL… well, I want to think that this part will be meaty, but I doubt it. It’s probably a pity part.

But yeah, this movie is probably going to have about 30 sub-plots. Ridic.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

The rumors were so steady that I thought this news was already fait accompli: Joseph Gordon Levitt is officially joining the cast of Batman: The Dark Knight Rises, the third Batman film from director Christopher Nolan. JGL joins Christian Bale, Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy (as Bane) and Anne Hathaway (as Selina Kyle/Catwoman). Many figured that JGL would be getting some role after his work in Inception, and now we know what/who he’s playing – a character named Alberto Falcone, so of the gangster character played by Tom Wilkinson in the first Nolan Batman film.

In a film about a billionaire crime-fighting man-bat, the hardest thing to believe may be that Joseph Gordon-Levitt has an evil bone in his body.

After months of rumors, Variety (via /Film) reports that the “Inception” and “500 Days of Summer” star has officially signed on to the cast of Christopher Nolan’s third Batman film, “The Dark Knight Rises.” Gordon-Levitt will play Alberto Falcone, the son of mob boss and major “Batman Begins” villain Carmine Falcone, played in that film by Tom Wilkinson.

The role is one /Film had speculated Gordon-Levitt would get, as it’s part of one of Nolan’s favorite Batman story lines.

It’s turning out to be a star-studded cast for Nolan’s third turn with the caped crusader franchise; freshly minted Oscar winner Christian Bale is back as Batman, while Anne Hathaway will play Selena Kyle/Catwoman and Gordon-Levitt’s “Inception” cast mate Tom Hardy will play Bane, another villain.

In other Batman casting news, Variety also reports (via Indiewire) that indie star Juno Temple is up for a role in the film, as a “street-wise Gotham girl.”

This film may be the last go around as Batman for Bale; he’s said that, from what he knows of Nolan’s plans, he’ll drop the cape at three films, but until he gets that confirmation, he’s open to playing the role in a fourth film.

[From Huffington Post]

Nolan and Bale have both made some comments about this Batman likely being their last, correct? It’s just that the cast and the potential storylines just keep growing and growing, and I’m getting the feeling that Nolan is just throwing everything at the wall, and burning the house down. I don’t know, though. Maybe it will turn out okay. Maybe it will be another enormous hit and the studio will force Nolan to make a fourth film.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

The rumors surrounding Christopher Nolan’s third Batman film have been incessant ever since The Dark Knight came out and blew everybody away. At various times, it seems like the next “villain” would be Catwoman, and the casting for that was extremely messy. But then the rumors swung over to the idea that the new villain would be The Riddler. Nolan’s association with (Heath Ledger-esque) Joseph Gordon-Levitt on Inception seemed to lead people to think that Nolan was considering JGL for a role. This may be true – it’s one of the most recent rumors, and I think it might have the most weight. But, according to The National Enquirer, JGL isn’t a shoo-in by any measure. Apparently, Nolan is looking at both JGL and Johnny Depp, and now Eminem wants a screen test for the role as well:

After seven weeks of topping the charts with his “Recovery” album, almighty-whitey rapper EMINEM – itching to dominate movie screens again and repeat the critical kudos he won with biopic “8 Mile” – rapped to his reps: “When it comes to business, you know I ain’t no fiddler…You tell them Batman biggies, I wanna play ‘The Riddler!’”

Will Eminem nail a big-screen comeback deal – or get a screen test, at least?

Producers are piqued at the prospect of a Rappin’ Riddler, but Slim Shady’s facing stiff competition – execs are also confab-ing with JOHNNY DEPP and red-hot “Inception” star JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT. Stay tuned.

[From The National Enquirer]

Eminem has dressed up in strange superhero costumes in his videos a few times – does that count as a screen test? Probably not. Judging from Nolan’s previous work, The Riddler will not be some cartoony jokester in a bright spandex onesie. He’ll probably some cold, murderous psychotic who likes horrible, terrible riddles involving body parts and chainsaws. Can Eminem go that dark? Sure. And Em is very popular, and I can see why it might be a good story, you know? But I doubt the veracity of it. First of all, Em seems very focused on his sobriety right now, and he seems super-cautious of taking on any project that might instigate a relapse. Considering the last dude who played a villain for Christopher Nolan is now dead, Em might not want the role. Secondly, I think JGL has it in the bag. Truly.