Ugh, I totally missed this last week. So, Mark Wahlberg’s interview with Men’s Journal came out last Wednesday, and Mark managed to offend pretty much everyone. Specifically, though, he offended the families of 9/11 victims, especially the families of those people in the hijacked planes. Mark told Men’s Journal, “If I was on that plane with my kids, it wouldn’t have went down like it did. There would have been a lot of blood in that first-class cabin and then me saying, ‘OK, we’re going to land somewhere safely, don’t worry.’” Within hours, Mark sacked up and issued a poorly worded apology (non-apology, really) to People Mag, saying in part: “To suggest I would have done anything differently than the passengers on that plane was irresponsible. I deeply apologize to the families of the victims that my answer came off as insensitive. It was certainly not my intention.”

I thought it ended there, with everyone still thinking that Mark was a d-bag, but most people not wanting to push the issue because… really, it’s Mark Wahlberg. Anyway, after the controversy faded a bit, Mark did a radio show and he talked about his controversial comments even further. I think he managed to re-offend:

Mark Wahlberg spoke to Kidd Kraddick in the Morning on Friday where he tried to explain his statement, and said he’s just a regular guy who said something wrong.

“I would never disrespect the victims of 9/11 or their families. It was completely misunderstood. My only intention was to explain the fact that I would do anything to protect my family – I would put myself in harms way to protect my family or innocent people. That was it.”

“First and foremost, I am not an actor. I am a real guy from the streets and I’ve been in a lot of situations, so I was probably speaking out of line and I wasn’t thinking about the real heroes and the guys, women, children, fathers, sons, daughters who were on those flights.”

Wahlberg, who is promoting his movie Contraband, which was #1 at the box office last weekend, then said his good deeds are usually overlooked in the media.

“And it’s important to me because you know what, people don’t have a tendency, especially the media, don’t want to talk to me about going to Afghanistan at Christmas or raising $2 million a year for inner city kids and at risk youth.,” Wahlberg continued. “And all of a sudden this thing became this thing — I didn’t know where it came from.”

“I don’t go out doing publicity for movies or a magazine cover talking about what’s important to me. I want to promote the movie and whatever questions they want to ask me I am more than comfortable talking about. But it wasn’t a Q&A where it was the exact question and my exact response. It was somebody’s interpretation of it and you know… that’s not OK because I don’t want people to be offended. I would never do that.”

Wahlberg said he was frustrated with the line of questioning during the Men’s Health interview. “This guy is asking me about sexual questions and I’m married and I have 4 kids, how inappropriate is that?”

[From Radar]

Damn, how many different explanations did he give in one interview? First, he would NEVER disrespect 9/11 families. Then he only disrespected the families because he’s not really an actor, he’s a tough dude from the streets and he just wasn’t thinking. Then he just said that stuff because no one ever wants to talk to him about all of the charity work he does! Then he only said it because he was asked about it and he is forced to go wherever the interviewer wants to go. And finally, he only said that stuff because it’s just the interviewer’s interpretation. For God’s sake, just APOLOGIZE. Just sit down and simply say “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said it. My bad, I was acting like a d-bag.” The cover-up is more offensive than the crime.

Photos courtesy of Fame.

Remember back in the day (1996, to be precise) when everyone was awfully surprised that Mark “Marky Mark” Wahlberg wasn’t just a goofy rap star and could actually act? He convincingly showed off his menacing side in Fear before playing a pr0n star in Boogie Nights and then moved onto starring in studio tentpoles and an array of mostly mindless action movies. Well, Justin Bieber has reportedly decided that Mark is a great role model in the career department (as opposed to, say, the talking about 9/11 department). Biebs wants to be the next Marky Mark!

In retrospect, this news shouldn’t be too terribly surprising. After all, Mark showed us his Calvins, and Bieber has been showing us his boxer shorts for far too long already. Bieber also already has a wee bit of television experience (most famously getting killed on “CSI”) and has appeared in his own faux-biopic, which I like to call The Origin Story of a Dipsh-t. Now Bieber thinks he has what it takes to buy the rights for a Fear remake and star in it himself. Have mercy:

It is no secret that, like many pop stars before him, Justin Bieber has acting aspirations, having already appeared on the TV series “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” and “Cubed.” He also appeared, as himself, in the 2011 concert film Justin Bieber: Never Say Never.

[W]e’ve been told that Bieber has been mulling over a number of feature ideas, and instead of looking to someone like Britney Spears for guidance in this department, he is looking to build off the career model of teeny bopper/rapper-turned-Oscar nominated actor Mark Wahlberg, [and it's] Marky Mark’s dark R rated thriller Fear that has caught the attention of Justin Bieber.

There are currently no plans to remake Fear, released by Universal Pictures in 1996. But Justin Bieber is rumored to be obsessed with the movie, which finds Mark Wahlberg playing the psychotic boyfriend of Reese Witherspoon, who torments both her and her family. Throughout the course of its runtime, his David McCall rapes a young woman played by Alyssa Milano, beheads a beloved family pet, carves tattoos into his chest, breaks the neck of a family friend, beats himself up, and threatens to shoot Justin Bieber’s CSI: Crime Scene Investigation co-star William Petersen (see the connection there?) point blank in the top of the head. Not to mention the most iconic scene, where he fingers Reese on a roller coaster to the tune of The Sunday’s Wild Horses.

Bieber is said to be eyeing the role in a proposed remake, hoping that it will give his image and career the same edge it gave Mark Wahlberg back in 1996, a time when most thought of the actor as a one hit wonder who would quietly disappear. Mark Wahlberg was 25 at the time he made Fear. Justin Bieber will turn 18 this March.

It is believed that Bieber will pursue the rights to remaking Fear, using the film as his launching board into feature film acting. Though, its being speculated that this new Fear will most likely be tamed down for a PG-13 rating, and that it will closely resemble the thrillers and remakes currently being produced by Sony’s Screen Gems division.

[From Movieweb]

Here’s the trailer for the original Fear starring Marky Mark and Reese Witherspoon. I’ll be honest here and admit that this movie scared the living crap out of me:

If Justin thinks he can pull off a remake and truly be the next Mark Wahlberg, well, good luck to the kid for at least recognizing that his pop star career won’t last forever. Can Bieber actually pull a Wahlberg in terms of acting talent though? I doubt it, but if Biebs wants any shot at all, maybe he ought to bulk up a bit beforehand. Here are more photos of Bieber hitting the beach in Cabo earlier this month.

In further tales of grand delusion, here some photos from this weekend of Justin arriving in Miami while his girlfriend, Selena Gomez, touched down in Puerto Rico. Both of them kid their faces like little divas. On a related note, Selena has commenced complaining about the trappings of fame and has started talking about how maybe she’d like to retire at the ripe old age of 19. Well, at least she’s not making silly claims of wanting to be a laundress like Michelle Williams did. Yet.

Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet and WENN

Yesterday, Men’s Journal released some quotes from their cover interview with Mark Wahlberg, who is on the February issue. In the course of the interview, Mark was discussing 9/11 (I don’t know the exact context), and he said, “If I was on that plane with my kids, it wouldn’t have went down like it did. There would have been a lot of blood in that first-class cabin and then me saying, ‘OK, we’re going to land somewhere safely, don’t worry.’” My reaction was: Mark Wahlberg is a douchebag. How crass. How tasteless. Thankfully, most of you agreed.

As it turns out, the 9/11 widows agreed as well, and Mark received a crapload of criticism from many sources. So, within hours of the quotes going public, Mark issued an apology:

Mark Wahlberg is used to playing a tough guy in films like The Fighter, but he wound up on the defensive after saying he could have overpowered the 9/11 terrorists.

“If I was on that plane with my kids, it wouldn’t have went down like it did,” the actor, 40, told Men’s Journal. “There would have been a lot of blood in that first-class cabin and then me saying, ‘OK, we’re going to land somewhere safely, don’t worry.’”

After criticism from 9/11 widows and others, Wahlberg issued a statement Wednesday saying it was a “ridiculous” choice to even speculate about how he might have handled the situation.

“To suggest I would have done anything differently than the passengers on that plane was irresponsible,” the Contraband star told PEOPLE. “I deeply apologize to the families of the victims that my answer came off as insensitive. It was certainly not my intention.”

Deena Burnett-Bailey, whose husband, Thomas Burnett, was a passenger on United Airlines Flight 93, had blasted Wahlberg’s original comments as “grandstanding.”

Flight 93, which was thought to have been aiming for the White House, crashed in Pennsylvania after passengers on board rushed the cockpit and were able to overtake the hijackers.

“The plan for Flight 93 was foiled by heroes,” Burnett-Bailey told TMZ.com. “For [Wahlberg] to speculate that his presence on board could have stopped everything is silly and disrespectful.”

[From People]

Do you buy Mark’s apology? I’m glad he issued it, and I’m glad that he made a statement so quickly. Here’s what’s still bugging me, though – his apology should have been worded like this: “I deeply and sincerely apologize for my offensive, insensitive, irresponsible comments. I have no excuse, I should not have even engaged in that kind of speculation or conversation.” How is that different than “To suggest I would have done anything differently than the passengers on that plane was irresponsible. I deeply apologize to the families of the victims that my answer came off as insensitive. It was certainly not my intention”? The difference is that he’s really only apologizing for “coming off as insensitive.” Like it’s on them for being too sensitive? I know, I know, it’s just semantics. But he’s still bugging me.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

I try to like Mark Wahlberg, but it’s sometimes difficult. Like, I think he’s a much better actor than he’s often given credit for. He’s one of the rare “butch” male action stars capable of showing real emotion, depth and vulnerability on screen. I think of him like Bruce Willis – they get stuck in the “action” genre, but both are underrated dramatic actors. However, there’s an issue with Mark’s personality. He’s a successful producer, and his production company has a stable of successful television shows, which means that he’s always at awards shows, representing his shows. And Awards Show Mark is kind of douche. He makes it all about himself, and his attitude borders on disrespectful.

So, I already had mixed feelings… and now this. Mark covers the new issue of Men’s Journal, and this is a humdinger of douchebaggery, in convenient interview form. Brace yourself.

What he would have done if he had been on one of the airplanes that was hijacked on 9/11: “If I was on that plane with my kids, it wouldn’t have went down like it did,” Wahlberg says. “There would have been a lot of blood in that first-class cabin and then me saying, ‘OK, we’re going to land somewhere safely, don’t worry.’”

He lets his wife pick date night movies: “As long as it isn’t a Sarah Jessica Parker movie… The last time I really cried a lot? During ‘The Help.’ I cried about six or seven times. It was the wife’s choice, but it was a great movie.”

On jerking off: “I don’t get down with jerking off, dude. Look. I don’t believe in everything that the church says. I try to do the right thing. I lead a clean and pure life. I’m a married guy. I have a beautiful wife. Sex is not the most important thing to me, being horny all the time, spanking the — I mean, it’s not against the law. You can do whatever you want. And it’s not like, ‘I shouldn’t do it because of my faith.’ I’m just not really that into it that much anyway.”

[Via MSNBC and HuffPo]

Obviously, it’s the 9/11 quote that bugs. That’s what I’m talking about with his disrespectful attitude, like he’s a big action star and he obviously knows best. We don’t know what it was like for those poor people on the airplanes on 9/11, but to publicly play a game of “If I was there…” is crass and tasteless.

As for the jerking off stuff – do you even believe him about that? I don’t. But then again, I think he’s screwing around on his wife. A lot.

UPDATE: CB just reminded me that Mark was originally scheduled to be on one of the hijacked flights on 9/11, but he changed his tickets last minute. That really doesn’t change my opinion that his statement in this interview is douchey, though. He’s basically saying that all of the people on those flights (even the ones on the United flight that went down in Pennsylvania) were pussies, and that he’s the only badass left in the world.

Photos courtesy of Men’s Journal, WENN.

Mark Wahlberg has spent several days just before the holidays in Afghaniston, doing a USO tour of the United States Marine Corps base located in Helmand Province, Camp Leatherneck. These are some of the great photos, and you can see more here at the USO’s site. According to the USO site, Mark screened The Fighter for the servicemen and women, he toured the 443 acre camp, and he spent days meeting Marines, taking photos, eating with the troops, and even meeting wounded soldiers. It’s all pretty awesome, and some of the photos brought a tear to my eye. Gah! All I need is some schmaltzy patriotism to get me going. Show me a photo of a little girl holding an American flag, waving to someone in uniform, and I’m bawling.

But of course there is another side to it – Mark is promoting The Fighter, which he not only stars in, but produces. He wants the film to make money, and he wants, at the very least, to get Christian Bale an Oscar. Mark would probably also like an Oscar nomination for himself, and maybe Amy Adams too. So there is a dose of “Look, Academy voters, I spent the holidays on a USO tour!” BUT – the awesomeness of Mark spending all of this time in Afghanistan rather than on some beach far outweighs any personal or professional benefit he gets. Plus, I’m sure the troops loved meeting him. I know many of you seem to think he’s a tool, but – just my opinion – he’s maturing into one of the nicest and most professional dudes out there.

Go here to find out more about the USO, and go here to donate.

I don’t mean to be a bitch, but I don’t buy that Christian Bale and Mark Wahlberg posed for this Sports Illustrated cover. I’ll buy that Mark Wahlberg – star and producer of The Fighter – will do anything to promote his movie, and that he’s not afraid of doing some old-school shirtless photos (Marky Mark!!!). But I think the two bodies on this cover are models, and SI just ‘Shopped Mark and Christian’s heads in. Because if they actually posed for it, it would be tragic on many different levels.

Meanwhile, both Christian and Mark (and the film, and Amy Adams, and the director) got Golden Globe nominations this morning. Good for them – except for David O. Russell, who is supposed to be one of the biggest bastards in the industry. Seriously, Russell allegedly makes Michael Bay look like a fluffy bunny. Anyway, Mark spoke to USA Today this morning right after the nominations came out:

“I’m just so excited. We just wanted to make this movie, we didn’t think anyone would see it, never mind have all this stuff happen. For everyone to be recognized for their hard work and commitment to portraying these people, who I’ve become close to, it’s thrilling.”

That’s Mark Wahlberg talking to USA TODAY’s Maria Puente.

He said one of his first calls was to Micky Ward, whom he plays in The Fighter, a true story about a pair of brothers and their effort to win a welterweight championship. “He’s thrilled. I told him to make sure his mother and family know about it.”

Wahlberg was at home in L.A. with his family when his agent called at 5 a.m. with the news, which woke up his 11-month-old baby. “It was the best possible wake-up call.”

[From USA Today]

LMAO, he actually said “Tell your motha.” Andy Samberg is probably having a good day. Good for Mark – I know many of you think he’s a douche, but I like the man he’s becoming, and I think he’s making some really smart decisions for his career. I have a lot of respect for him in a professional sense.

Cover courtesy of HuffPo.

There was a big screening of The Fighter over the weekend in NYC, and all of the leads came out to support the film. Mark Wahlberg (lead and producer) wore an extremely shiny suit, Christian Bale actually showed up (shocking) and everybody’s favorite princess Amy Adams worked this black batwing Roland Mouret dress. I find it particularly hideous, honestly, but it does crack me up a little how Amy is trying to be all “high fashion, street” with this look. It’s like she doesn’t even realize that to so many people, she’s just a redheaded Disney princessy sweetheart. People like my mother. Have I ever told you how much my mother LOVES Amy Adams? Like, my mother is loony for her, obsessed with her. I had to promise to take my mom to see The Fighter, and all she really knows about it is that Amy is in it. This is some sample dialogue from my mother: “She’s the prettiest princess, ever!” Me: “Mom, the film isn’t even about her – she’s playing second fiddle to Mark and Christian.” Mom: “I don’t care. She’s always going to be my pretty princess.” Hand to God.

Here’s Mark and Christian…

Can I just say something? I’m really, really shocked at how “up for it” Christian Bale seems – like he’s making the effort to not be a surly, grumpy “artist” for the promotion of this film. Is it because of a potential Oscar campaign…? Well, The Fighter has a pretty good chance at some Oscars this year, and everyone involved is doing a pretty good job at selling this movie, I have to say. It helps that Mark Wahlberg is not only the lead, but a producer, and Hollywood movers and shakers seem to really like Mark – remember, he was the only actor in the cast of The Departed to get an Oscar nomination. And he’s a solid producer too – did you know that in addition to his success with Entourage, he’s also executive producing In Treatment and episodes of Boardwalk Empire, both highly acclaimed shows? So is Mark ordering Christian to just suck it up and campaign for an Oscar? I would love to know their dynamic, I really would.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

Pictures from the set of The Fighter show Christian Bale looking emaciated and sickly for his role, but that’s not surprising. Bale is known for going all out for his roles, like he did for The Machinist.

Mark Wahlberg, on the other hand, is and always will be famous for his abs and underwear when he was known as Marky Mark. But for his role in The Fighter, he had to do more than just be in good shape — he had to train to move like a real boxer.

Wahlberg began his training for this film four years ago, but the film was stuck in limbo due to casting and financial problems. Not deterred, Wahlberg kept training.

Early on, Wahlberg and his boxing trainer, Bo Cleary, made a decision about their strategy to prep the star. “Bo always said, ‘If we stay in shape, we don’t have to get in shape,’” recalls Wahlberg, 39. “And I wanted to look like a world-class boxer, not just like some actor who can box pretty good.”

So Wahlberg built a boxing ring at his Beverly Hills home. When he went away to shoot other projects, he took his trainers along. From Philadelphia (The Happening) to Toronto (Max Payne), Wahlberg immersed himself in the sweet science. “We’d get up at four in the morning and work the speed bag for an hour before he went to set,” says Cleary, 44, a fitness coach who’s known Wahlberg for 15 years. “In the afternoon, I’d bring the gloves on the set, and he’d give me six rounds and go back to work sweaty. The director would be like, ‘Don’t get too sweaty.’”

[Entertainment Weekly, print edition, November 19, 2010]

After Christian Bale signed on and the film got a green light, Wahlberg’s workouts got even more intense.

“We’d train 8, 10 hours a day,” says Wahlberg….”We would start the day at six in the morning, running eight miles to church and back. We’d have breakfast and then start training….There were times where I was like, ‘Oh my God, what did I get myself into?’” admits Wahlberg, who sparred scores of rounds with seasoned fighters. “They want to pop you, and they want you to lay down. But I’m the same way. I still got the ring in my house.”

[Entertainment Weekly, print edition, November 19, 2010]

Despite his manly image, Wahlberg says he’s just a big softy at heart who loves his wife Rhea and their four children.

“I was watching Behind the Music on Fantasia with my wife, and I must have cried five times. My wife was like, “You’re such a softy, but that’s why I love you.’ I’m just always happy to see people overcome the odds and achieve their goals….

Neither [marriage or fatherhood] should be feared. They should be embraced. They’re the most important parts of life. But you gotta do it at the right time. You have to be ready, and you obviously have to do it for the right reasons and find the right person. Both marriage and fatherhood are the best things that have happened to me.”

[Women's Health, print edition, December 2010]

Mark and Rhea had three kids before they were married in 2009. But Mark’s busy schedule kept them from having a honeymoon.

“We’ve been married for over a year, but I was shooting The Fighter at the time. I flew home on a Saturday morning, we got married [that] afternoon, had a party at our house, and then Sunday morning I was back on a plane. So we’re taking our honeymoon now in the Bahamas.”

[Women's Health, print edition, December 2010]

It’s a long shot, but Mark may get a second Oscar nomination for The Fighter. The film opens December 10.

Before I even watched the trailer for The Fighter, I titled this post “Christian Bale is an intense crackhead in The Fighter”. I honestly thought that Bale was the lead in this film – but he’s not. Mark Wahlberg is. Mark plays “the fighter” from the poor neighborhoods of Boston who falls far and comes back – it’s a true story, by the way. And Bale plays Wahlberg’s brother – the dude who trained Mark’s character coming up, and then Bale’s character goes to jail and becomes a crackhead, etc. Also: Amy Adams is in this! And she’s playing a kind of trashy, fist-fightin’ waitress. My mother is going to want to see this now – she thinks Amy Adams is her daughter.

It looks… good? Interesting. Bale looks like he’s acting his ass off, predictably. Wahlberg looks kind of hit or miss, and I actually think he’s an underrated dramatic actor. He really did transform his body, though. And Amy looks adorable. The whole mess is directed by David O. Russell – he did Three Kings and I Heart Huckabees and Flirting With Disaster. Russell is also rather notorious for being a major dick – like, more of a douchebag than Michael Bay. He’s probably more famous for getting into a fistfight with George Clooney during a violent on-set altercation than for his filmography. Also – there was this incident with Lily Tomlin that made me sick.

Which makes me wonder… why did Christian Bale sign on for this? Does crazy attract crazy?

So, back in the day, there was a thuggy little white boy named Marky Mark. Marky was a rapper whose favorite thing to do was drop his pants during his “rap gig.” This constant pants-dropping (think of him as an early precursor to Taylor Momsen) led to a lucrative gig dropping his pants professionally as the official spokescrotch of Calvin Klein. After that came fame and fortune, and today, Mark Wahlberg is probably one of the best actors of his generation. Somewhere along the way in the beginning, however, Marky wrote his autobiography. And the first line of that book was: “I wanna dedicate this book to my dick.” How does Mark feel about that now? Not so great, actually.

Mark Wahlberg regrets writing his 1992 memoir, “Marky Mark,” and dedicating the book to his penis.

“I thought it would be funny,” he told Time’s Belinda Luscombe during the magazine’s Live 10 Questions panel on Monday. When Luscombe asked if his penis was grateful, the actor fired back, “That is the one question I won’t answer.”

But asked if any musician could convince former rapper Wahlberg to “lay down a rap track with them,” he responded, “If Justin Bieber asks me, I’ll say yes. Only because my daughter loves him.”

[From Page Six]

Marky + The Bieb = MAGIC. OMG, I would totally watch that sh-t!

Anyway, I was going to go on and on about it, but I’ve spent way too much time looking up Mark’s old CK ads. Look at this commercial!! Jesus, he was so f-cking cute.

More ads! Man, he really was lovely when he was a kid, right? He’s still pretty cute now, but DAMN.

Old Calvin Klein ads courtesy of Google.