He’s worked with Diane Keaton, Dianne Wiest, Judy Davis and of course Mia Farrow, so Woody Allen must know talent when he sees it. However, in a recent press event promoting his new film, “Vicky Christina Barcelona,” the iconic writer/director gushes about current obsession Scarlett Johansson, calling her “one of the great American actresses.” Hmm. Did I miss something?

For years, Scarlett Johansson has been dubbed Woody Allen’s, muse and while the veteran director greatly admires his “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” starlet, he made it quite clear that Johansson is not his central source of inspiration.

“It is silly — she’s in no way my muse, but she is one of the great American actresses,” Allen said at the film’s recent Los Angeles premiere.

[From Fox News]

I have to disagree with Woody on this one. It’s not that I dislike Johansson - she’s a fantastic looking woman and seems like a nice person. However, in every movie, she has that same, blank-stare expression and monotone speaking voice. Sometimes, it works for her character, as it did in “Lost in Translation” and “Ghost World,” where she played disaffected young women. But in “Girl with Pearl Earring” and “The Other Boleyn Girl,” she seemed way out of her league acting-wise, with her mouth hanging open and a robotic line delivery that was just too distracting. Maybe Woody is seeing something I don’t. If anyone can clear this up for me, please do- I just don’t get all the praise for her acting.

Penelope Cruz, Scarlett Johansson, Woody Allen and Rebecca Hall are shown at the LA premiere of “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” on 8/4/08. Credit: Albert L. Ortega / PR Photos

I always saw Scarlett Johansson as very glamorous – yet very down to earth – sort of starlet. To hear her in interviews, she seems intelligent and appears to have depth rarely seen by celebrities her age. But apparently those qualities don’t preclude her from being a diva. She made such exorbitant demands of her accommodations at Cannes that the studio promoting her film “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” was unable to foot the bill. Scarlett chose to stay home rather than compromise.

Scarlett Johansson was left at home in New York after a film studio refused to pay for the star’s bloated demands to attend the Cannes Film Festival to launch Woody Allen’s latest movie. The French branch of Warner Brothers Films, distributers of Vicky Cristina Barcelona in France, had spent weeks negotiating with Johansson’s representatives about flying her to Cannes.

They were willing, and happy, to pay for flights, hotel, provide a limousine, arrange for designers to show her gowns and for her to share hair and make-up designers with costars [Penelope] Cruz and [Rebecca] Hall. However, Johansson demanded her own exclusive make-up consultant at a cost of 5,000 Euros a day, which was felt a tad too much for a four day trip where looking after the star’s tresses and powdering her nose would cost a total of 20,000 Euros.

Then there was the problem over an hotel. The film’s director and his leading ladies were delighted to be staying in the centre of Cannes to make it easier for them to attend screenings, public events and to do interviews for TV and press. Johansson wanted to be at an hotel way out in the sticks, some 25 to 30 miles away.

“It was crazy. Penelope and Rebecca were going to be working very hard and it wasn’t acceptable that Scarlett would be having to come in from that distance every day, most likely turning up late and it would have thrown schedules into a lot of confusion. Also, I think, while Woody’s terribly fond of Scarlett, he was a little upset that she wasn’t being a team player”, an executive connected to the film told the Daily Mail.

[From the Daily Mail]

Keep in mind the source is the Daily Mail, and they enjoy putting a particularly pessimistic and critical spin on any story they can. Yet Scarlett wasn’t at Cannes, even though she’s widely been reported to be Woody Allen’s newest muse. That’s quite the slap in the face to him. The film did get rave reviews, and many said it was a return to form for Allen. However she has agreed to do the traditional press and promotion for the film in the U.S.

Hopefully Scarlett won’t be demanding makeup artists that cost $10,000 a day for the press junket. Woody Allen famously said Scarlett wore too much makeup. Maybe he could send her some Maybelline and tell her to suck it up.

Here’s the rest of the cast of - ‘Vicky Cristina Barcelona’ at the film’s Cannes premiere yesterday. Header of Scarlett at Elle’s ‘Women in Hollywood’ 14th annual event on 10.15.08. Images thanks to WENN.

Hipster anti-sweatshop clothing firm American Apparel is being sued by Woody Allen for billboards advertising their company that feature a photo of Allen dressed as a rabbi in a scene from the 1977 comedy Annie Hall. There was also Hebrew writing on the billboard, and commentor TedSez on Gawker notes that it “means something like ‘The Holy Rabbi,’” and could indicate that American Apparel owner Dov Charney is “praising Allen as the king of the Jews.”

The Jewish Daily Forward confirms that the writing means “der heyliker rebe” or “the holy rebbe,” and contacted American Apparel for comment when the billboards first came out. American Apparel spokesperson Alex Spunt said it meant that “Woody Allen is our spiritual leader.”

You can’t heap praise on Woody Allen and expect him to give you a free pass to use his image for advertising, and he’s predictably taking the firm to court over it:

Woody Allen on Monday sued American Apparel Inc, claiming the U.S. clothing company used his image in advertising on billboards and the Internet without his consent.

The billboard ads, which depict Allen dressed as a rabbi, appeared in New York and California, according to the suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan.

Allen, an Oscar-winning U.S. director known for his work in films such as “Annie Hall” and “Crimes and Misdemeanors,” said in the suit he was neither contacted by the company, nor compensated for the use of his image.

“Allen does not engage in the commercial endorsement of products or services in the United States,” according to the lawsuit.

He is seeking damages in excess of $10 million, according to the suit.

[From Reuters]

38 year-old American Apparel founder and CEO Don Charney is a controversial figure and has been taken to court unsuccessfully four times for sexual harassment. He masturbated in front of a reporter for Jane Magazine multiple times, and former employees say that he created a hostile work environment in which he slept with employees and propositioned others. Charney admits having relationships with female employees and defends it by saying it was all consensual. He takes many of the sexy photos for the ads himself and The NY Times reports that he hires women he meets at parties.

Charney sold the company in December, 2006 for $360 million and remains on as CEO. As for how he built such a clothing empire in under ten years, Charney claims that “Everything we do is based on intuition.” And not common sense apparently. Why did they veer so far away from the sexy ads that are their trademark? If they wanted to use an image of a Jewish celebrity, they could have picked Natalie Portman instead. She seems to be a more natural progression.

Thanks to The Jewish Daily Forward for the header image taken in New York’s Lower East Side at Houston and Allen and to Curbed LA for the middle image, taken on Alvarado and Sunset.

American Apparel owner Dov Charney is shown below. Ad below via CherryFlava