With Cruel Intentions being made into a TV show, we see where Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, Reese Witherspoon and the movie's other stars are now

Cruel Intentions is being made into a TV series and we’re SO excited!

The film – based on 1782 book Les Liaisons Dangereuses, a tale of sex, power and privilege – starred Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillipe and Reese Witherspoon, as well as a host of other famous faces.

The TV show is set to follow the story of Bash Casey, the son of Ryan and Reese’s, characters Sebastian and Annette, in the film.

After discovering THAT journal detailing his sexual conquests his father kept, Bash wins a scholarship at a swanky school in San Francisco, where he finds himself drawn into a world of sex, money, power and corruption. Sounds just like his parents!

But where are the stars of the now-cult movie today? Find out what they got up to in life after Cruel Intentions below – and see what they look like now in the gallery above!

Sarah Michelle Gellar

Sarah Michelle was already a worldwide star when she starred in Cruel Intentions, thanks to playing the title role in TV show Buffy The Vampire Slayer and her breakout movie, I Know What You Did Last Summer, but she shed her good girl reputation to play manipulative Queen Bitch Kathryn Merteuil.

She started dating fellow 90s brat packer Freddie Prinze Jnr shortly after Cruel Intentions came out, having met him on the set of IKWYDLS, and the couple married in 2002 – the same year they appeared alongside each other in the film Scooby Doo.

She went on the star in The Grudge and The Grudge 2, in addition to various TV roles, whilst having two kids – Charlotte, now six, and Rocky James, three – with Freddie.

The pair remain happily married thirteen years after getting hitched, making them one of Hollywood’s strongest couples.

Ryan Phillippe

Teen heartthrob Ryan was the perfect choice to play seductive scoundrel Sebastian, who bets Kathryn that he can take the V-plates from innocent virgin Annette (Reese Witherspoon).

Ryan had already appeared in a handful of movies before Cruel Intentions (including I Know What You Did Last Summer alongside Sarah Michelle Gellar), and went on to appear in films including Gosford Park, Crash and 2010’s The Bang-Bang Club.

In a case of life imitating art, Ryan was in a relationship with Cruel Intentions co-star Reese when the pair shot the movie, having met at her 21st birthday party in 1997. The cute couplemarried shortly after Cruel Intentions was released, and went on to have two children together, Ava, now 16, and Deacon, 12.

But sadly their love wasn’t to last, and they split in 2006. Ryan went on to have another child, Kailani, in 2011 after a brief relationship with model Alexis Knapp, and is currently dating law student Paulina Slagter.

Reese Witherspoon

After impressing him with her cute devil faces, Sebastian eventually properly falls for Reese’s character Annette, as she does for him – but they only admit it to one another as Sebastian lies dying after being hit by a cab. Typical!

Reese went on to enjoy global superstardom thanks to her role as Elle Woods in the Legally Blonde films (remember the Bend & Snap!?), and won the Best Actress Oscar in 2005 for her portrayal of Jonny Cash’s wife June Carter in Walk The Line.

Most recently she starred in biographical drama Wild, and she also launched her own lifestyle collection, Draper James.

After splitting from first husband Ryan, Reese dated Jake Gyllehaal for two years before tying the knot once more with talent agent Jim Toth in 2001. The couple welcomed a son, Tennessee, in 2012.

Selma Blair

Selma made headlines for her role in Cruel Intentions thanks to the steamy kiss her character, naive Cecile, shared with Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Kathryn – with the pair even winning Best Kiss at the MTV Movie Awards.

She’s been super busy since then, with roles in movies including Legally Blonde (where she played Reese Witherspoon’s nemesis!), The Sweetest Thing (alongside Cameron Diaz) and Hellboy, as well as TV shows Zoe, Duncan, Jack and Jane, and Anger Management.

We’ll next see her playing famous matriarch Kris Jenner on American Crime Story, in an episode that recreates the infamous OJ Simpson case.

Having experienced heartache at a young age after her childhood sweetheart died at just 18 years old, Selma married Ahmet Zappa – son of famous musician Frank Zappa – in 2004 following a whirlwind six-month romance. The couple divorced just two years later.

In 2011 she gave birth to son Arthur, whom she had with her fashion designer boyfriend, Jason Bleick. They too split after two years together.

Joshua Jackson

Pacey from Dawson’s Creek – sorry, Joshua – played Sebastian’s best mate Blaine, sporting a shock of bleached blonde hair for the role.

Having been part of the cast of the Mighty Ducks films in the 90s, post-Cruel Intentions Joshua went on to appear in other films including Ocean’s Eleven, Bobby and Shutter – but never matched the fame he found with TV show Dawson’s Creek, which ran from 1998 to 2003.

Having dated DC co-star Katie Holmes during the show’s first two series, Josh has been dating actress Diane Kruger since 2006, with the couple regularly killing it on the red carpet with their his ‘n’ hers style.

Tara Reid

We meet Tara’s character, Marci Greenbaum, early on in Cruel Intentions, when she calls her mum to cry over naked pictures Sebastian has posted of her on the internet, in what must be one of the earliest incidents of revenge porn on record.

Following Cruel Intentions, Tara hit the big time with American Pie, but followed it up with a string of flops including Josie and the Pussycats, Van Wilder and Alone In The Dark. She did enjoy some TV success though, with a run on hit comedy Scrubs.

But it’s her private life that’s won Tara most headlines, from her short-lived engagement to MTV VJ Carson Daly to her botched plastic surgery and hard-partying ways.

She appeared on Celebrity Big Brother in 2011, and also (somewhat randomly) popped up in Jedward‘s music video for Wow Oh Wow the same year.

Christine Baranski

Christine was already an Emmy winner (for her role in TV series Cybill) when she starred as Bunny Caldwell, the uptight mum of Selma Blair’s character, Cecile, in Cruel Intentions.

She went on to enjoy more television success, with roles in The Good Wife and The Big Bang Theory – but it’s as glamorous Tanya in the 2008 film Mamma Mia! that we best love her!

Sean Patrick Thomas

Sean Patrick’s character, Ronald, played a pivotal role in Cruel Intentions. He was Cecile’s music teacher, and their love for one another leads Cecile to hop into bed with Sebastian so she can learn how to make Ronald happy, and ultimately leads to Seb’s death.

He went on to star opposite Julia Stiles in Save The Last Dance, and was reunited with Sarah Michelle Gellar in 2012 film Ringer.

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With news that a third film could be on the cards, Now takes a look at how Carrie Bradshaw’s men look over a decade later...

Rumours that a third Sex and the City film is on the cards have been swirling for a while and it now looks more certain to happen than ever before. Hooray!

Sarah Jessica Parker, who played Carrie Bradshaw in the popular show which ran from 1998 to 2004, set the rumour mill into overdrive again after posting a cryptic message on Instagram.

The 50-year-old posted a picture of herself carrying a paper bag from department store Bloomingdales – famed for being one of fashionista Carrie’s favourite shops – alongside the caption: ‘Well. I guess the cat’s out of the (little brown) bag.’ What cat would that be, eh SJ?
She continued: ‘As usual, we will keep you posted on every detail as we are able. I’m under strict gag order until then. Xx, Sj.’ Sounds like it’s a go-er to us!

The telling post comes after her former co-stars Kristin Davis, 50, Kim Cattrall, 58, and Cynthia Nixon, 49, sparked rumour on Twitter last October they were set to reunite for a third spin-off film. Kristin wrote to Sarah: ‘Miss YOU XOXOXO!!’ Sarah then replied: ‘Me too you? Heard the news? X.’

So what better way to celebrate this exciting development than to see how Carrie’s men, including the love of her life Big (Chris Noth), her ex fiance Aidan (John Corbett) and Russian artist Alexandr (mikhail Baryshnikov), have aged? We think some have stood the test of time better than others…

SEE PICTURES Sarah Jessica Parker‘s Sex And The City character Carrie Bradshaw‘s Style File

SEE PICTURES Sarah Jessica Parker at the Sex And The City 2 after party

Lisa Blake 

The post Sarah Jessica Parker has hinted at ANOTHER Sex And The City film! See what Carrie Bradshaw’s men look like now appeared first on Now magazine.

See what the stars of Gossip Girl are up to these days

Gossip Girl fans are going pretty crazy over the news that one of the cast is having a baby with another teen show star.

Leighton Meester is expecting her first child with hubby Adam Brody, aka Seth Cohen from The O.C. The actress pretty much gave the game away when she was snapped with a growing baby bump recently during a lunch date in Los Angeles – awww!

The happy news comes after Leighton‘s GG co-star Blake Lively welcomed her daughter James with actor husband Ryan Reynolds late last year.

All this baby excitement got us wondering – what have the rest of the Gossip Girl cast been up to since the show ended in 2012? Well, we went and found out…

Leighton Meester – Blair Waldorf

29-year-old Leighton got her big break as the bitchy but amazingly stylish Blair Waldorf, queen bee of Manhattan’s Upper East Side. Since Gossip Girl‘s finale was aired Leighton has starred in several films and has also appeared on stage. The multitalented star is a singer too and recently released her debut album Heartstrings.

After relationships with actors Sebastian Stan and Aaron Himelstein, Leighton met former The O.C. star Adam Brody on the set of 2011 film The Oranges. They secretly married in 2014 and now their first baby is on the way.

Blake Lively – Serena van der Woodsen

Gorgeous Blake, 27, was perfect for the role of glamourpuss Serena van der Woodsen, the privileged teenager who returned to New York in the opening season after a mysterious absence. Blake‘s career went from strength to strength after the show ended; she’s appeared in movies such as The Town and The Age Of Adaline as well as landing a deal with L’Oreal Paris.

Blake dated her GG co-star Penn Badgley but they split in 2010 (though they awkwardly remained an on-off couple on screen). The actress was linked to Leonardo DiCaprio in 2011 before hooking up with Ryan Reynolds later in that year. They married in 2012 and welcomed their unusually named daughter James in December. Doting mum Blake also runs her own lifestyle blog called Preserve.

Ed Westwick – Chuck Bass

Ah, Ed Westwick. The 27-year-old Brit had us all swooning with that sexy American accent as Gossip Girl bad boy Chuck Bass. Sigh…

Chuck is clearly still close to Ed‘s heart as the actor has recently been promoting a clothing range featuring witty sayings such as ‘Plenty of fish in the sea. Only one Bass’ via his Twitter page. It’s all for a good cause though as proceeds go to the Ocean Foundation. Ed‘s also used his social media prowess to help GG co-star Kelly Rutherford fight for custody of her children – awww.

As well as being an all-round good guy, Ed continues to act and has several films due for release this year. He’s been linked to actress Jessica Szohr in the past but it sounds like he’s single at the moment. Er, call us?

Chace Crawford – Nate Archibald

Texan cutie Chace, 29, had a pretty good gig as Nate Archibald, what with being fought over all over time by Blair and Serena. Gossip Girl was Chace‘s big break and, despite appearing in the odd movie such as What To Expect When You’re Expecting, it seems that he’s decided to stick mainly to television. He popped up in the 100th episode of Glee last year and stars alongside Don Johnson in upcoming series Oil.

Chace split from model girlfriend Rachelle Goulding last year and has since been linked to The Vampire Diaries star Nina Dobrev.

Penn Badgley – Dan Humphrey

28-year-old Penn wasn’t just Dan Humphrey – he also (SPOILER ALERT!) turned out to be Gossip Girl! As well as starring in the hit show, Penn has landed roles in hit films including Easy A alongside Emma Stone. Like Leighton he has a musical side too and is part of a band called MOTHXR who he’s been touring with in the past few weeks. Penn recently caused a stir by admitting that he thought the ending of Gossip Girl – where Dan was revealed to be the anonymous blogger – ‘didn’t make sense’.

It’s thought that Penn dated co-star Blake for around three years until their split in 2010. He went on to have a two-year relationship with model Zoe Kravitz.

Taylor Momsen – Jenny Humphrey

Taylor, 21, played Dan‘s innocent little sister Jenny in the first four series of Gossip Girl. Her appearances in the show became increasingly sporadic but she did return for the finale in 2012.

The actress found success with her hard rock band The Pretty Reckless in 2010, whose charmingly titled track Make Me Wanna Die (remember it?) fared well in the charts. Taylor has remained focused on her music and admits she doesn’t know if she’ll ever return to acting.

SEE PICTURES Actress Blake Lively‘s life story in photos

NEW PICTURES Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds in Celebrity weddings 2012 

Anna Francis

The post After Leighton Meester and Adam Brody’s baby news, check out the Gossip Girl cast: Where are they now? appeared first on Now magazine.

As we await the new Jurassic Park film, check out how Joseph Mazzello and Ariana Richards - aka Tim and Lex - have changed

Can you believe its been 22 years since Jurassic Park was released and we all went a bit dinosaur crazy?

Based on the novel by Michael Crichton, the epic film featured huge Hollywood stars such as Sam Neill, Samuel L Jackson and Jeff Goldblum. But we’ve been wondering – what happened to the two kids?

Joseph Mazzello and Ariana Richards played young siblings Tim and Lex Murphy in the movie and we’ve tracked them down to find out what they’re up to these days. It turns out that their careers have gone in pretty different directions…

Let’s start with Joseph. The youngster was only nine years old when he appeared in the film but had actually made his debut as an actor back in 1990 in a TV movie called Unspeakable Acts.

After starring with the late Richard Attenborough in Jurassic Park (who played his granddad and owner of the actual park), Joe reunited with him later in the year in the Oscar-nominated movie Shadowlands directed by Richard.

He reprised his role as Tim Murphy in the 1997 Jurassic Park sequel The Lost World and has continued to act over the years before taking a break from it at the age of 14.

Now he’s all grown up, having turned 31 last year, and we can’t help but notice that he’s become a bit of a hottie too!

Joe returned to acting a few years ago and had his biggest success since his dinosaur days in 2010 when he starred in The Social Network as one of the co-founders of Facebook. He’s since branched out into directing and writing.

Meanwhile Joe’s on-screen sister has carved out quite a different career for herself. Ariana had already fared well as a child actress before Jurassic Park, having appeared in various TV series and movies such as Tremors.

She was 14 when she starred in the dino-tastic flick and went on to do further acting in the 1990s. Like Joe she briefly appeared again in The Lost World too but neither of them returned for Jurassic Park III in 2001.

Nowadays Ariana, 35, leads a much quieter life. The former child actress has become an accomplished artist and has even won awards for her paintings.

She also recently revealed that she and her husband are expecting their first child together. Awww!

In a recent TV interview about her art, Ariana admitted that she’s excited to see the upcoming Jurassic World movie, which is due for release this summer.

The film returns to the scene of the first movie but features an almost entirely new cast, including Chris Pratt and New Girl star Jake Johnson.

We look forward to seeing it too but for now we’re still reeling from the fact that Tim and Lex are all grown up!

The post Remember the Jurassic Park kids? See what they look like now! appeared first on Now magazine.

Bend It Like Beckham is a noughties classic - but where are the cast members now?

Bend it Like Beckham was a film like no other back in the noughties. A girl from a traditional Indian family playing football – say what?! It broke boundaries, had a killer soundtrack, and was home to some stars who went on to do some pretty amazing stuff. Find out what they look like now and what they’ve been up to since the 2002 flick…

Parminder Nagra as Jesminder Kaur ‘Jess’ Bhamra…
Jess was told that ‘girls can’t play football.’ Pah – she showed them! She defied the odds of her traditional Indian family, weddings, and even an incident with a can of baked beans and a stove.
After that, Parminder went over stateside to only star in bloomiin’ ER for six whole years. She also made an appearance in Batman: Gotham Knight back in 2008, and also was involved in a couple of family friendly films: Ella Enchanted and Horrid Henry.
Those kiddy films will be perfect for her to watch with her seven-year-old son, Kai, who had with photographer James Stenson. They got married in 2009 after dating for seven years, but after just three years of marriage, the couple got divorced.

Keira Knightley as Juliette ‘Jules’ Paxton…
Jules was the one who influenced Jess to try out for professional womens football – get in girls! But long gone were the slicked back hair and footy kit, and Kiera went on to wear some pretty extravagant gowns as Elizabeth Swann in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series, and the infamous Elizabeth Bennet in the film adaptation of Pride and Prejudice in 2005, alongside Colin Firth (complete with see-through wet shirt).
She’s carried on being in tons of films, from rom-coms like Love Actually, to more recently The Imitation Game with Benedict Cumberbatch. She even starred on Broadway in Thérèse Raquin – fancy!
Throughout all this busy film work, she even dated Mr.Grey himself, Jamie Dornan back in 2003, before starting a romance with Klaxons band-member, James Righton in 2011. The couple got married in 2013 and just last month had their first child, a beautiful baby girl. Congrats!

Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Joe…
He was the coach who was cool as a cucumber, and had an Irish accent and smouldering look to die for. Obviously we weren’t the only ones to think so as he because Jess’ love interest in the movie. Wit-woo!
Jonathan went on to star in the multi-award winning tv series, The Tudors, from 2007-2011, as well as Hollywood blockbuster, Mission: Impossible III along with Tom Cruise.
It’s hasn’t all been plain-sailing though, as the actor has had a long and well-publicised battle with an alcohol addiction over the past ten years, and has been in and out of rehab. He was seen as recently as earlier on this year, looking dishevelled as he drank straight vodka in the streets on London.

Shaznay Lewis as Marlena “Mel” Goines…
Mel was the coach who lead the Hounslow Harriers to victory, and although hasn’t been on our screens all that much ever since, with only featuring in the 2002 film, Hideous Man, she’s been busy being ¼ of girl group, All Saints.

The group of four are probably most known for their songs, Pure Shore and Never Ever, and although they originally split up over a jacket – yes, you read that right- back in 2001, they reunited in 2006. They realeased Rock Steady, but second single, Chick Fit, didn’t even enter the charts, and the girls parted from their label. But fear not! Just this week they’ve released a trailer teasing at a comeback – hurray!

Shaznay is also a mum to nine-year-old son Tyler-Xaine, and five-year-old daughter Tigerlily, who she had with her husband, dance Christian Horsfall.

And it’s not just the stars who went on to do well after the Beckham-mania, the film itself did too as it’s now been turned into a musical for the West End!

Amy Lo

The post Remember Bend It Like Beckham? SEE what the stars look like now, 13 years on! appeared first on Now magazine.

Yep, remember them from that show you watched as a kid, Full house? Find out what Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen have been up to since

We remember them…
Twins Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen, now 29, made their acting debut 
at just nine months old when they shared the role of Michelle Tanner on US sitcom Full House. The Olsen girls appeared in various other TV shows, quickly climbing up the fame ladder.

They started young!
They sure did. At just six, the girls founded company Dualstar, which produced their first TV films including Double, Double, Toil And Trouble and The Adventures Of Mary-Kate And Ashley. 
MK recently revealed: ‘I always looked at myself, even as a kid, as 
a businesswoman.’ Dualstar also produced Olsen dolls, books, keyrings – you name it, they had it.

So they’re business-savvy, then…
Deffo. In 2006 they became the faces of luxury clothing brand Badgley Mischka and have since headed fashion labels including The Row and Elizabeth And James. Oh, and they’re also the creative directors for Superga. To top it off, they released a book in 2008 titled Influence, containing interviews with various designers who inspired their clothing lines.

So how much are they worth?
Just under £200 million. They were millionaires by the age of 10.

Wow! What are they doing now?
The girls announced their retirement from acting in 2012. ‘We still feel welcome in the industry, but it’s not the one we’re in,’ admitted Mary-Kate. Both have faced health demons – in 2004, MK embarked on treatment for anorexia, while last month it was reported that Ashley had been diagnosed with Lyme disease.

Have they settled down?
Ashley’s been dating film director Bennett Miller, 48, for a year. And Mary-Kate’s loved up with banker Olivier Sarkozy (half-brother of former French president Nicolas), 46, who popped the question 
while they were on holiday in Jamaica in February 2014. Aww.
The Olsen girls might look the same but in fact they’re non-identical twins. They have an older brother Trent, 31, 
a younger sister Elizabeth, 26 (herself a movie star), plus a half-sister Courtney and half-brother Jake. Phew!

Lucy Gornall

The post Whatever happened to the Olsen Twins? appeared first on Now magazine.

It’s been 20 years since Cher and co. made us lust after over the knee socks and coined 'As if' as the ultimate put down…so where is the Clueless cast now?

Hands up who knows ALL the words of the Clueless script – yup, us too. But can you believe it’s been 20 years since it revolutionised our lives? Time flies, hey.

As well as the uh-mazing fashion statements: the socks, the tartan skirt-suit, Dionne’s INCREDIBLE hat collection and that LWD Calvin Klein number that we all wanted, who can forget the incredible put downs it taught us?

As well as the ultimate boy-bashing comeback of, ‘Urgh, as IF’ and the, ‘I mean, come on, it looks like they just fell out of bed and put on some baggy pants and take their greasy hair – ew – and cover it up with a backwards cap and like, we’re expected to swoon? I don’t think so,’ Cher and co. also taught us some incredible bitchy-backhanders, which we’re still using today.

Tai [Looking at Amber]: ‘Do you think she’s pretty?’
Cher: ‘No, she’s a full-on Monet.’
Tai: ‘What’s a monet?’
Cher: ‘It’s like a painting, see? From far away, it’s OK, but up close, it’s a big old mess.’

And let’s not forget the ultimate: ‘You’re a virgin, who can’t drive!’ Even from where we were sitting, that was way-harsh, Tai.

So, what is the Clueless crew doing now? We’re hoping Miss Geist and Mr Hall are still playing Suck and Blow.

Following the 1995 film, Alicia Silverstone, who played Cher, went on to play Batgirl. Her side-kick, Dee, played by Stacey Dash, has gone on to star in numerous American TV shows including The Game and Single Ladies.

Dee’s boyfriend, Murray, played by Donald Faison has also had TV success with the brilliant Scrubs. But it’s Paul Rudd, and those dreamy puppy-dog eyes, who has made the big bucks. His estimate wealth is £15million and with comically brilliant films like Knocked Up, I Love You Man and Anchorman under his belt we’d be lying if we said our crush on him hasn’t got bigger over this past 20 years.

Sadly, even though Brittany Murphy, who played Tai, went on to have film success following her debut in Clueless, she’s the one member of the cast who’s no longer with us.

Brittany died in 2009 at the age of 32. Her death, which was concluded to be accidental, was attributed to multiple drug intoxication, pneumonia and ‘iron deficiency anemia’.

RIP Brittany, thanks for bringing us Tai. She changed our lives forever!

See what The Craft stars look like now!

Lydia Southern

The post WOW! Look at the Clueless stars – 20 years on! appeared first on Now magazine.

Hands up who had a MEGA crush on Joey Lawrence? Hasn't he changed!

Joey Lawrence first made a name for himself as Joey Donovan in US sitcom Gimme A Break, which aired for six seasons from 1981- 1987. He starred in the latter three series before taking on the role we know him best for: Joey Russo in hit TV comedy Blossom from 1991-1995.

That’s a lot of Joeys!
It certainly is. Throughout Blossom, Joey became famous for his beautiful head of hair and the catchphrase: ‘Whoah!’ In a recent interview, he admitted: ‘It’s so weird that word has transcended 20 years.’

So what came next?
Joey appeared in a number of TV series including Brotherly Love, American Dreams and CSI: NY. In 2009, he starred in the film My Fake Fiancé alongside Sabrina The Teenage Witch actress Melissa Joan Hart.

Did they get on well?
Yes! Since 2010, Joey has worked alongside her in US sitcom Melissa & Joey. Unfortunately, due to a drop in ratings, the popular show was cancelled earlier this year after four seasons and 100 episodes. Joey gratefully described his loyal followers on Twitter as ‘#bestfansever.’

Anything else?
He doesn’t just act ­ he released his self-titled debut album in 1993 and his single Nothin’ My Love Can’t Fix made it all the way to number 13 in the UK music charts. More recently, Joey’s released singles Rolled and Give It To Ya.

So what now?
Well, according to his Twitter account Joey, now 39, is working on a new film titled The Bridge. He regularly updates his fans ­ or ‘Angels’ as he prefers to call them ­ with news of the upcoming movie.

He’s still hot! So, er, is he single?

Sadly not. After divorcing his first wife Michelle Vella in 2004, Joey went on to marry childhood friend Chandie Yawn-Nelson. The pair tied the knot at Disney World in 2005 and have since gone on to have two daughters: Charli, nine, and Liberty, five.

Whatever happened to the Olsen Twins?

Lucy Gornall

The post Blossom’s Joey Lawrence – whatever happened to him? appeared first on Now magazine.

Remember those ginger ringlets? Yes, we miss them too. So we did some investigating to find out what Byker Grove's Spuggie is up to now

OMG, we loved Byker Grove!

Yes! Lyndyann Barrass, now 39, played Spuggie ­ who could forget those ginger ringlets?

Lyndyann, from Sunderland, was just 12 when she began working on the BBC kids show and stayed for six series from 1987-1993.

So what did she do after, we hear you ask.

Well, she was involved in three other TV drama productions ­ King Leek, The Resurrection Man and Harry ­ and did panto at the Sunderland Empire. ‘I played the fairy princess ­that was loads of fun,’ says Lyndyann. She studied performing arts at Sunderland College, but left after 18 months, saying: ‘There was a lot of jealousy and I was victimised a bit by some of my fellow students.’ Boo.

So were ther any other TV roles?

Sadly not, but in 2000 Lyndyann joined a four-piece girl group called Angel. ‘We did a couple of gigs around the northeast, recorded a couple of studio tracks in London and produced a demo CD,’ she says. ‘I remember two of the songs ­ one was called Glamorous Girlfriend and the other Bachelor Girls.’ She then worked in Newcastle as an assistant manager for a clothing brand and in a designer boutique.

What about a family?

In 1999, she married husband Allan in Cancun, Mexico. They had two children Joseph, 13, and Scarlett, eight. Lyndyann and Allan have since divorced and she describes herself on social media as: ‘Actress and single mum of 2 angels.’

What about her co-stars?

Aside from Ant and Dec, obvs, the most famous Byker Grove star is Jill Halfpenny, now 39, who played Nicola Dobson from the age of 14. After high-profile roles in Corrie and EastEnders, she won Strictly in 2004 and has starred in West End plays, including Calendar Girls and Legally Blonde, plus lots of TV dramas. Also still acting is Andrew Hayden-Smith, now 31, who played bad boy Ben Carter in 1995. When his character was killed off he hosted kid’s show UK Top 40. He came out as gay in 2005 and starred in Channel 4’s Cucumber and E4’s Banana last year.

Lyndyann now works in a call centre and recently admitted it would take her two years to earn the equivalent of her former co-stars Ant and Dec, who earn around £23,000 a day. ‘They owe me a drink,’ she joked.

Whatever happened to the Olsen Twins?

Lucy Gornall

The post Whatever happened to Spuggie from Byker Grove? appeared first on Now magazine.

The Parent Trap is a Sunday afternoon favourite – see what Lindsay Lohan and co. are doing now

The Parent Trap made us all wish we had a twin like Hallie and Annie so we had someone to plot extragavant plans with and swap placecs with to travel to the other side of the world. The 1998 family film classic had our fingers crossed that their divorced parents would be together once again, and caused girls all over the world to copy the secret handshake (minus the butler), and have one attempt to many at trying to pierce a friend’s ear with nothing more than an apple, a needle and an ice cube. Ouch.

But fast forward 17 years, what are the cast doing now?

Lindsay Lohan as Hallie and Annie James
Way before the days of Mean Girls in 2004, LiLo was double trouble playing both the twins in the movie, and she’s probably now the best known member of the cast – for reasons both bad and good. 
After appearing as sweet and scheming duo Hallie/Annie in this Disney classic, she went on the typical Disney route with family friendly films and comedies, including Freaky Friday and Herbie: Fully Loaded, before appearing in the film that would create a whole new dictionary worth of fetch catchphrases.
After appearing as Cady in 2004, her life sadly took the turn of many-a childhood celebrity. In 2006, she attended Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and rehab, before being arrested the next year for driving under the influence. Later in July of 2007, just two weeks after she was out of rehab, she was arrested yet again for drink driving, as well as the possession of cocaine, which she even lost a movie role because of. ‘It is clear to me that my life has become completely unmanageable because I am addicted to alcohol and drugs.’
She was put on probation, and after getting her life back on track a bit, she starred in some independent films and some cameors here and there, as well as an eight-part documentary of her life. And after being on probation for seven years, she made her stage debut in 2014 on the London West End in play, Speed-The-Plow.

Dennis Quaid as Nick Parker
Dennis played dashing Dad Nick Parker who had THE best house ever, complete with wine vineyard and horses to gallop on. He was already known for a plethora of films that he appeared in in the 80s, and after he appearance in Parent Trap, he went on to appear in more films than we can count. These included the critically acclaimed Far From Heaven in 2002, Day After Tomorrow with Jake Gyllenhaal in 2004 and a remake of the musical classic Footloose in 2011.
Being a dad in real life too, he has three children from the three times he’s been married. After divorcing actress P.J Soles in 1983, he met future wife Meg Ryan on the set of Innerspace, who he married in 1991 and ultimately got divorced from in 2001. The couple had a son, Jack Henry, together, who is the oldest of the children, which includes twins Thomas and Zoe, who Dennis has in 2007 with wife and real-estate agent Kimberly Buffington. Alas, it wasn’t meant to be as the pair separated in 2012. Sigh – looks like Dennis isn’t as lucky in love as his on-screen self!

Natasha Richardson as Elizabeth James
Who didn’t wish Natasha was their mum while watching the film? She was beautiful, designed wedding dresses, and got ready with a cigerette in her mouth and rollers in her hair and still managed to look fabulous while doing so!
Playing mum Elizabeth, Natasha was already an established stage actress before the film, beginning her career in a regional theatre up north in Leeds.
She made her debut on the big screen in 1986 in Gothic, and after The Parent Trap, she continued to work her way through film, TV and theatre roles, including Maid in Manhattan in 2002 with Jenny from the Block, Jennifer Lopez herself.
After separating from first husband Robert Fox in 1992, she was married to Taken actor Liam Neeson in 1994 and the couple had two sons, Micheal and Daniel together.
Devastatingly though, Natasha suffered a head injury after a fall from a beginner’s skiing lesson in Canada, which led to her death in 2009. The theatre lights in New York’s Broadway and London’s West End were dimmed as a mark of respect for Natasha.

Elaine Hendrix as Meredith Blake
We may have seen her as the baddie while watching the film as a kid, but you’ve got to admit, Dennis’ fiancé in the movie, Meredith was the most stylish women our little 8-year-old eyes ever did lay eyes on. The woman knows how to rock a big floppy hat and some red lips!
Elaine hasn’t appeared in many other films since The Parent Trap, but has made cameos in a lot of TV movies, short films and TV series since, including Friends, CSI, Charmed, ER and 90210.

Maggie Wheeler as Marva Kulp Jr.
Does camp counsellor Marva look familiar? Well, she should do, because – OH. MY. GOD. – she’s only bloomin’ Janice from Friends!
Ever since her days of teaching camp kids how to fence in the film, Maggie’s appeared in ALL the best TV shows. As well as being Chandler’s on-off love interest in Friends, she’s also starred in Will and Grace, CSI (CSI is a popular ol’ boy!) and How I Met Your Mother.

Remember the Jurassic Park kids? See what they look like now…

Amy Lo

The post Remember The Parent Trap? LOOK what the stars are like now, 17 years later! appeared first on Now magazine.

It's 25 years since the film Ghost starring Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore was released. So what's happened to its stars in that time?

If you’re anything like us, all it takes is a bar or two of The Righteous Brothers’ tear-jerking tune Unchained Melody to instantly transport you to a potting wheel with a hunky topless man wrapping his arms around you.

Such is the power of Ghost.

It’s 25 years on Monday (13 July) since the classic (and oh-so weepy) film was released, yet the romantic drama still has the power to hit us right in the feels.

Which is why we’re marking the film’s 25th anniversary with a look back at the stars that made the movie – and what’s become of them since…

Demi Moore

Fresh-faced Demi shot to megastardom on the back of Ghost, in which she played Molly Jenson, a potter (who could forget THAT saucy scene with co-star Patrick Swayze?) who is left in danger when her boyfriend is murdered.

She was also half of one of the 90s most famous celebrity couples, being married to Bruce Willis from 1987 until 2000. The couple had three daughters, Rumer, Scout and Tallulah, who have become stars in their own right.

Demi took a break from acting after 1997’s GI Jane (the film that famously saw her shave her head), but made a killer return in 2003’s Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle thanks to one helluva bikini body. She went on to marry Ashton Kutcher in 2005, but the couple divorced in 2013.

Demi was last seen in 2014 indie film Very Good Girls and will appear in upcoming comedy Wild Oats later this year.

Patrick Swayze

Patrick was a bona fide hunk back in the late 80s and early 90s, thanks to his roles in Ghost and another romantic blockbuster – Dirty Dancing.

In Ghost, he played Sam Wheat, the banker boyfriend of Demi’s character Molly, who is murdered and comes back as the film’s titular ghost to seek revenge – and to hold his love one last time (sob!).

What’s even more heartbreaking is that Patrick is no longer with us; the actor sadly passed away from pancreatic cancer in September 2009. He appeared in over 40 TV shows and movies during his 57 years, and worked right up until his death; his final show The Beast (pictured right) aired for just one season in early 2009.

Whoopi Goldberg

Nineties megastar Whoopi (do you also remember the Sister Act films??) took on one of her most memorable roles with Ghost.

She won an Oscar, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Saturn Award for playing the fast-talking, fancy hat-wearing Oda May Brown, a bogus psychic who ironically turns out to be the only person (well, the only live person) that Sam can communicate with.

Twenty-five years later and Whoopi has swapped the silver screen for the small screen, having co-presented American chat show The Voice since 2007. She’s also a keen human rights activist, and has given high-profile support to the LGBT rights and AIDS awareness campaigns.

Tony Goldwyn

Tony was Ghost’s main baddie, playing Sam’s best-friend-turned-back-stabber Carl Bruner, who met a grisly end thanks to a shattered window to the abdomen and those scary shadowy creatures.

He went on to appear in films including The Pelican Brief and The Last Samurai, and also voiced Tarzan in the Disney’s 1999 animated film (who knew?).

Nowadays he’s a pretty dishy 55 year old who was last seen played Shailene Woodley’s father in 2014’s Divergent.

MORE! Whatever happened to Spuggie from Byker Grove?

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This Halloween we look at where the kids in the creepiest films have gone

Growing up is probably just as scary as any horror film, especially if you’re the child star of a classic horror film. These kids have been tormented by a serial killing doll, possessed by the devil and even been a demon girl locked in a video tape – but this Halloween we ask, now that the evil has passed, what are they doing now?

The Ring (2002) – Daveigh Chase, 25

Daveigh Chase had probably the most dramatic transition: changing from well-bound demon girl Samara in The Ring, to voicing the cheeky Lilo in Disney’s Lilo and Stitch (2002). After a brief stint as a singer, which she stopped to focus on acting, she has shot to internet fame thanks to her instagram featuring some effortless style. That well-drenched hair has dried out because now she is one of the hottest girls on the internet.

The Exorcist (1974) – Linda Blair, 56

Linda Blair starred in William Friedkin’s classic devil possession tale. She ended up being nominated for an Oscar and two golden globes, winning one of them, for her role, but her life quickly took a downward spiral. Running into the law and being charged with conspiracy to buy cocaine ended up killing the young star’s promising career. However, she used her fame in the acclaimed film to appear in several cameos, including in Scream (1996), becoming a vegan, and starting her own animal rights charity, the Linda Blair World Heart Foundation. Oh, and she owned her own clothing line, Linda Blair’s Wild West Collection. Now that’s a turn around we like to see.

Poltergeist (1982) – Oliver Robins, 44

This younger brother tormented by a demonic clown ended up reprising his role in the Poltergeist sequel and, at the age of 15, wrote, directed and produced (which is normally a death sentence for films) The Crystal, winning first prize at the ‘Les Mesnil-le-Roi’ Film Festival. Not bad considering Poltergeist was said to be a cursed movie. Two of his cast members were tragically murdered: Lou Perryman by with an axe by an ex-convict, and Dominique Dunne was strangled to death by her boyfriend.  Oliver, however, is currently touring the horror movie festival circuit and is still directing. Good for him!

READ MORE CELEBRITY NEWS 

Child’s Play (1988) – Alex Vincent, 34

Alex has appeared on the silver screen every time his little doll counterpart Chucky is revived for a sequel. Other than that, poor Alex has had very little success as an actor. He currently has two movies in pre-production, and, according to his website, is working on a couple of screenplays. He also publishes his own poetry. We wish him better luck as a bard!

SEE MORE FILM STARS THEN AND NOW

Sixth Sense (1999) – Haley Joel Osment

After his sense for dead people earned him an Oscar nomination, the psychic appeared in AI: Artificial Intelligence (2001) before taking a break from acting to study. In recent years he’s made a return to acting – though slightly bigger and hairier than before – featuring in alternative comedy Tusk (2014) and upcoming Yoga Hosers (2016), where he plays a Nazi. His newer appearances are a far cry from his younger, cuter roles which, little known fact, include being Forrest Gump’s son in the Academy Award winning film.

Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)/The Ring (2002) – David Dorfman, 22

David Dorfman went from playing creepy but helpless kid in The Ring to creepy but helpful hillbilly kid in the Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake, yet this was only the beginning of little Dorfman. He ended up being accepted into University of California, Las Angeles, in 2007, aged THIRTEEN, and graduated when he was seventeen as Valedictorian (basically, in America, that means you were the most ridiculously smart person in the class – 17!) . That’s not it: at age 18 he was accepted into Harvard Law School, about four years before Elle Woods in Legally Blonde. Currently writing for three Law Journals while participating in student government and studying, he is the living opposite of a child star breakdown

The post Remember the girl from The Ring? See what child horror film stars look like in real life appeared first on Now magazine.

As you're counting the sleeps till Santa comes why don't you catch up with your favourite Christmas stars...

Christmas without a Christmas film is like Halloween without the spooks; Easter without the eggs, or… well, Christmas without the presents. We also know that as many times as Hollywood tries to give us new Christmas films, they can’t dislodge that warm love in our hearts for the classics.

So to get you ready for the nostalgia Christmas festival of film coming your way, Now has found out where your favourite actors and actresses are from these legendary festive movies.

READ BREAKING CELEBRITY NEWS

Macaulay Culkin as Kevin McCallister in Home Alone (1990)

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Not only is he the seminal Christmas kid star, but probably the most famous child actor of all time. Poor Macaulay has been through a lot: he cut off his dad from his multi-million dollar finances when he was 14, broke up with the love of his life Mila Kunis only to fall into rumoured drug problems, and started his own pizza-based cover band of The Velvet Underground, The Pizza Underground. That aside, he seems in relatively good shape, having retired from acting and just touring extensively with his pizza-band.

Devin Ratray as Buzz McCallister in Home Alone (1990)

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While the bullying older brother has acted until this day, his crowning achievement is probably starring in a 2007 documentary of his attempts to court then-Secretary of State of the real-life United States of America, Condoleezza Rice, called Courting Condi. Moving on, like Macaulay, he also has a band, the infinitely less-interesting sounding Little Bill and the Beckleys.

Joe Pesci as Harry Lime (The Wet Bandits) in Home Alone (1990)

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Continuing his flare for villainy, Joe starred in an Oscar-winning role as Tommy DeVito for mobster film The Goodfellas (1990), receiving ‘Best Supporting Actor’ and giving the second shortest speech of all time: ‘It is my privilege.’ His personal life may share some similarities to his speech writing abilities: he has been married and divorced three times (the last in 1997) and broke with fiancé Angie Everhart in 2007. Poor Joe!

Daniel Stern as Marv Merchants in Home Alone (1990)

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With both real-life acting buddies leaving the Home Alone franchise after the second film, Daniel went on to narrate comedy-drama The Wonder Years, write an off-Broadway hit play Barbara’s Wedding, and become a bronze sculpture artist. He also won the US’ highest award for volunteering in 2009, The President’s ‘Call to Service Award’ for his long running youth charities in Malibu. What a champ!

Catherine O’Hara as Kate McCallister in Home Alone (1990)

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Kevin’s neglectful mother continued her career by slowly weaning herself from Christmas comedies to horror ones: transitioning from A Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) to Frankenweenie (2012). An acclaimed comedy actress and singer-songwriter, Catherine is now married with two sons and is on the Canadian Walk of Fame. Bet she won’t forget that.

Tim Allen as Scott Calvin/Santa Claus in The Santa Clause (1994)

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After the Box Office success of the second best Santa-based film on this list, Tim continued to embed himself into our collective nostalgia by starring in hit 90s sitcom Home Improvement (which he won a Golden Globe for) and voicing THE Buzz Lightyear. Vowing to become sober after a DUI in Michigan in 1997 (and some questionable drug offences even earlier), Tim settled down with actress Jane Hajduk, who he has a daughter with. Now that’s a turnaround we like to see.

Eric Lloyd as Charlie Calvin in The Santa Clause (1994)

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Eric reprised his role as Santa’s son in the not-so-great sequel The Santa Clause 2 (2002), but this wasn’t the only time poor Eric has made some dubious acting decisions. He played young Bruce Wayne in comic book mega-flop Batman and Robin (1997). At least he can tell people he was cast as young George Clooney… Now taking a break from acting, Eric works behind the cameras instead.

Daniel Tay as Michael in Elf (2003)

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Daniel stepped away from live-action and started voice acting, firstly as Doogal (2006) – that’s The Magic Roundabout’s dog in a solo film – then in video game Grant Theft Auto IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony (2009), where he played half of a parody on the Blues Brothers called… wait for it… the Blue Brothers. Award winning writing, there. He’s now dropped out of the public eye – his last picture is from 2009!

James Caan as Walter in Elf (2003)

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Buddy’s workaholic father is definitely best known outside of Christmas circles for playing Sonny Corleone, eldest son of the Corelone crime family in The Godfather (1972) (All Christmas stars play mobsters?!) but he was also in the equally iconic role of Flint’s father in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009). James has been married four times, including Sheila Marie Ryan – a former girlfriend of Elvis Presley. He now has five kids and four grandchildren.

Mary Steenburgen as Emily in Elf (2003)

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Buddy’s caring stepmother has kept herself in a comfort zone in recent years: with Will Farrell again, she appeared in Step Brothers (2008) as his biological mother and in Four Christmases (2008) as Reese Witherspoon’s mother. She most recently appeared in Orange is the New Black as unsympathetic weirdo Mendez/Pornstache’s… Mother! True to form, in real life she is mother to two children, and step-mother to the kids of her current husband, actor Ted Danson. Mother.

Taylor Momsen as Cindy Lou Who in How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)

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Taylor played the little girl who restored the Christmas spirit into the Grinch’s heart… then ten years later released ‘Makes Me Wanna Die’ with her hit pop-punk band The Pretty Reckless. That’s puberty for ya’. Before her transformation into a punk diva she played Jenny Humphrey in Gossip Girl and auditioned for Hannah Montana, which she missed out on to a certain wrecking ball… Pretty sure that’s a bullet dodged.

Jeffrey Tambor as Mayor Augustus Maywho in How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)

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The love-stealing Mayor is probably best known for his role as George Bluth Sr. in the sensational Arrested Development, though he did continue his movie career as Alan’s dad in The Hangover (2009). Jeffrey now has five kids and one grandchild (born within several days of his youngest!). He was reported to be a Scientologist, but refuted claims, according to The Hollywood Exclusive: ‘I have nothing against it, but I am no longer a Scientologist.’

Brent Kelly as Thurman Merman in Bad Santa (2003)

Columbia Pictures Corporation/IMDB

After playing the ray of hope in the otherwise dark comedy film, he appeared in a few movies before his final role to date, in stoner comedy High School (2010). He’s taken a break from acting to study for his degree, though he’s looking to make a grand return – which is convenient as the sequel Bad Santa 2 is confirmed for 2016!

Tony Cox as Marcus in Bad Santa (2006)

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His time as Santa’s bad helper was in fact his first time as a main character: he has only ever played side parts, including a parody of Will Smith’s character in the easily-forgettable rom-com Hitch (2005) for the should-be-forgotten ‘comedy’ Date Movie (2006). There is one other great role he can share with his wife and kid: he was an EWOK in Return of the Jedi (1983)!!!

Bonnie Bedelia as Holly Gennaro McClane in Die Hard (1988)

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John McClane’s wife appeared in the sequel Die Hard 2 (1990) but the couple fictionally split up for subsequent films. She played an Emmy-nominated role in Fallen Angels (1993) and the family matriarch in NBC drama series Parenthood for six seasons. Also, I bet you didn’t know that Bonnie is actually Christmas superstar Macaulay Culkin’s aunt!

SEE MORE CELEBRITY THEN AND NOWS

Reginald Veljohnson as Sgt Al Powell in Die Hard (1988)

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The only LA policemen on John McClane’s side reprised his role for the sequel – which, by the way, is also a legitimate Christmas film like the first one – as well as for a cameo in comedy spy show Chuck. He’s most well known for playing Carl Winslow in sitcom Family Matters and a viral campaign to get his twitter account verified.

Aled Jones as ‘The English Boy’ in The Snowman (1982)

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Aled Jones stole The Snowman spotlight from original singer Peter Auty when he covered ‘Walking in the Air’ for Top of the Pops (it’s stuck in your head now). Aled became one of the most successful classical music singers of all time, has an MBE for his work in music, and has an actress daughter, Emilia. Sorry, Pete.

Kris Marshall as Colin Frissel in Love Actually (2003)

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Kris is known in many circles as playing the thematically similar Nick Harper in hit sitcom My Family, but we can all agree his most important role to date was as Adam in the BT Retail adverts, where we followed his hapless love life and all voted (1.6 million humans in this country) so that his fictional advertisement partner could be pregnant. He also has a real life wife and son, but it’s unknown who he cares about the most.

Thomas Brodie-Sangster as Sam in Love Actually (2003)

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Many theorise that Thomas is a Time Lord, because in twelve years he is still the exact same person. However, Liam Neeson’s forlorn-in-love stepson has broken the child star curse by being both famous and not a wreck, playing Jojen Reed in TV phenomenon Game of Thrones and currently Newt in The Maze Runner franchise. We have uncovered one dark secret in Thomas’ past: he was young Hitler in historical drama Hitler, the Rise of Evil (2003), naughty!

Miffy Englefield as Sophie in The Holiday (2006)

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The young daughter is still only sixteen but has kept acting since her appearance on the Christmas rom-com. She went on to appear in Casualty for two years, a role she missed out on earlier in life according to her adorably written biography by her DAD on IMDB. Good luck with college Miffy!

Kermit the Frog as Bob Cratchit in A Muppets Christmas Carol (1992)

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Kermit has been at the centre of some controversy after breaking up with Miss Piggy, allegedly to be with new pig on the block, Denise. He has claimed in a recent tweet that he is not, in fact, seeing her, so this frog is definitely back on the market. With two feature films and a rebooted sitcom, Kermit could be the biggest catch in the star pond.

Miss Piggy as Emily Cratchit in A Muppets Christmas Carol (1992)

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Miss Piggy’s life post-Christmas Carol has been rather traumatic. She split up with long-term boyfriend Kermit TWICE and in 2001 her, ahem, ‘inner performer’ changed from Frank Oz to Eric Jacobson. Keeping fabulous, she sang with Olly Murs in 2011 on The X Factor, starred in season 1 of Project Runway as a guest judge, and received the ‘Sackler Center First Award’ from the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art at the Brooklyn Museum in 2015. Truly sensational.

Gizmo as Gizmo in Gremlins (1984)

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Mogwai aren’t real.

Zach Galligan as Billy Peltzer in Gremlins (1984)

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Zach took a break from acting to attend university, returning for the sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990). He has stated in interviews that he couldn’t find a role after this, so instead used the money and fame from his brief acting stint to party for 12 years in LA. Rock on!

Mara Wilson as Susan Walker in Miracle on 34^th Street (1994 – Remake)

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Having her faith restored in the magic of Christmas, Susan used this new belief to transform into telekinetic smarty-pants Matilda (1996). After a brief run as a child star, Susan withdrew from the fame/saved herself and is now a writer, with her first book (K) for Kid out in 2016.

Lord Richard Attenborough as Kris Kringle in Miracle on 34^th Street (1994)

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After his success as the original Secret Santa, Richard continued acting up until his death at the ripe old age of 90! We all remember him best as mad scientist John Hammond in Steven Speilberg’s Jurassic Park (1993). He was also the brother to Earth-loving legend, David Attenborough.

James Stewart as George Bailey in It’s a Wonderful Life (1947)

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Finishing with the ultimate Christmas film, James stole the world’s hearts when he discovered the true joy of life. In World War 2 he was drafted as a pilot, and served till retirement in 1959. He starred in many films, known as a beloved everyman, including The Spirit of St. Louis (1957), before he died in 1997 at the age of 89!!

MORE: Horror film kids – Where are they now!?

Tom Capon

The post Then and now: Find out what happened to ALL the stars from your fave childhood Christmas films appeared first on Now magazine.

Bend It Like Beckham is a noughties classic - but where are the cast members now?

Bend it Like Beckham was a film like no other back in the noughties. A girl from a traditional Indian family playing football – say what?! It broke boundaries, had a killer soundtrack, and was home to some stars who went on to do some pretty amazing stuff. Find out what they look like now and what they’ve been up to since the 2002 flick…

Parminder Nagra as Jesminder Kaur ‘Jess’ Bhamra…
Jess was told that ‘girls can’t play football.’ Pah – she showed them! She defied the odds of her traditional Indian family, weddings, and even an incident with a can of baked beans and a stove.
After that, Parminder went over stateside to only star in bloomiin’ ER for six whole years. She also made an appearance in Batman: Gotham Knight back in 2008, and also was involved in a couple of family friendly films: Ella Enchanted and Horrid Henry.
Those kiddy films will be perfect for her to watch with her seven-year-old son, Kai, who had with photographer James Stenson. They got married in 2009 after dating for seven years, but after just three years of marriage, the couple got divorced.

Keira Knightley as Juliette ‘Jules’ Paxton…
Jules was the one who influenced Jess to try out for professional womens football – get in girls! But long gone were the slicked back hair and footy kit, and Kiera went on to wear some pretty extravagant gowns as Elizabeth Swann in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series, and the infamous Elizabeth Bennet in the film adaptation of Pride and Prejudice in 2005, alongside Colin Firth (complete with see-through wet shirt).
She’s carried on being in tons of films, from rom-coms like Love Actually, to more recently The Imitation Game with Benedict Cumberbatch. She even starred on Broadway in Thérèse Raquin – fancy!
Throughout all this busy film work, she even dated Mr.Grey himself, Jamie Dornan back in 2003, before starting a romance with Klaxons band-member, James Righton in 2011. The couple got married in 2013 and just last month had their first child, a beautiful baby girl. Congrats!

Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Joe…
He was the coach who was cool as a cucumber, and had an Irish accent and smouldering look to die for. Obviously we weren’t the only ones to think so as he because Jess’ love interest in the movie. Wit-woo!
Jonathan went on to star in the multi-award winning tv series, The Tudors, from 2007-2011, as well as Hollywood blockbuster, Mission: Impossible III along with Tom Cruise.
It’s hasn’t all been plain-sailing though, as the actor has had a long and well-publicised battle with an alcohol addiction over the past ten years, and has been in and out of rehab. He was seen as recently as earlier on this year, looking dishevelled as he drank straight vodka in the streets on London.

Shaznay Lewis as Marlena “Mel” Goines…
Mel was the coach who lead the Hounslow Harriers to victory, and although hasn’t been on our screens all that much ever since, with only featuring in the 2002 film, Hideous Man, she’s been busy being ¼ of girl group, All Saints.

The group of four are probably most known for their songs, Pure Shore and Never Ever, and although they originally split up over a jacket – yes, you read that right- back in 2001, they reunited in 2006. They realeased Rock Steady, but second single, Chick Fit, didn’t even enter the charts, and the girls parted from their label. But fear not! Just this week they’ve released a trailer teasing at a comeback – hurray!

Shaznay is also a mum to nine-year-old son Tyler-Xaine, and five-year-old daughter Tigerlily, who she had with her husband, dance Christian Horsfall.

And it’s not just the stars who went on to do well after the Beckham-mania, the film itself did too as it’s now been turned into a musical for the West End!

Amy Lo

The post Remember Bend It Like Beckham? SEE what the stars look like now, 13 years on! appeared first on Celebs Now.

Yep, remember them from that show you watched as a kid, Full house? Find out what Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen have been up to since

We remember them…
Twins Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen, now 29, made their acting debut 
at just nine months old when they shared the role of Michelle Tanner on US sitcom Full House. The Olsen girls appeared in various other TV shows, quickly climbing up the fame ladder.

They started young!
They sure did. At just six, the girls founded company Dualstar, which produced their first TV films including Double, Double, Toil And Trouble and The Adventures Of Mary-Kate And Ashley. 
MK recently revealed: ‘I always looked at myself, even as a kid, as 
a businesswoman.’ Dualstar also produced Olsen dolls, books, keyrings – you name it, they had it.

So they’re business-savvy, then…
Deffo. In 2006 they became the faces of luxury clothing brand Badgley Mischka and have since headed fashion labels including The Row and Elizabeth And James. Oh, and they’re also the creative directors for Superga. To top it off, they released a book in 2008 titled Influence, containing interviews with various designers who inspired their clothing lines.

So how much are they worth?
Just under £200 million. They were millionaires by the age of 10.

Wow! What are they doing now?
The girls announced their retirement from acting in 2012. ‘We still feel welcome in the industry, but it’s not the one we’re in,’ admitted Mary-Kate. Both have faced health demons – in 2004, MK embarked on treatment for anorexia, while last month it was reported that Ashley had been diagnosed with Lyme disease.

Have they settled down?
Ashley’s been dating film director Bennett Miller, 48, for a year. And Mary-Kate’s loved up with banker Olivier Sarkozy (half-brother of former French president Nicolas), 46, who popped the question 
while they were on holiday in Jamaica in February 2014. Aww.
The Olsen girls might look the same but in fact they’re non-identical twins. They have an older brother Trent, 31, 
a younger sister Elizabeth, 26 (herself a movie star), plus a half-sister Courtney and half-brother Jake. Phew!

Lucy Gornall

The post Whatever happened to the Olsen Twins? appeared first on Celebs Now.

It’s been 20 years since Cher and co. made us lust after over the knee socks and coined 'As if' as the ultimate put down…so where is the Clueless cast now?

Hands up who knows ALL the words of the Clueless script – yup, us too. But can you believe it’s been 20 years since it revolutionised our lives? Time flies, hey.

As well as the uh-mazing fashion statements: the socks, the tartan skirt-suit, Dionne’s INCREDIBLE hat collection and that LWD Calvin Klein number that we all wanted, who can forget the incredible put downs it taught us?

As well as the ultimate boy-bashing comeback of, ‘Urgh, as IF’ and the, ‘I mean, come on, it looks like they just fell out of bed and put on some baggy pants and take their greasy hair – ew – and cover it up with a backwards cap and like, we’re expected to swoon? I don’t think so,’ Cher and co. also taught us some incredible bitchy-backhanders, which we’re still using today.

Tai [Looking at Amber]: ‘Do you think she’s pretty?’
Cher: ‘No, she’s a full-on Monet.’
Tai: ‘What’s a monet?’
Cher: ‘It’s like a painting, see? From far away, it’s OK, but up close, it’s a big old mess.’

And let’s not forget the ultimate: ‘You’re a virgin, who can’t drive!’ Even from where we were sitting, that was way-harsh, Tai.

So, what is the Clueless crew doing now? We’re hoping Miss Geist and Mr Hall are still playing Suck and Blow.

Following the 1995 film, Alicia Silverstone, who played Cher, went on to play Batgirl. Her side-kick, Dee, played by Stacey Dash, has gone on to star in numerous American TV shows including The Game and Single Ladies.

Dee’s boyfriend, Murray, played by Donald Faison has also had TV success with the brilliant Scrubs. But it’s Paul Rudd, and those dreamy puppy-dog eyes, who has made the big bucks. His estimate wealth is £15million and with comically brilliant films like Knocked Up, I Love You Man and Anchorman under his belt we’d be lying if we said our crush on him hasn’t got bigger over this past 20 years.

Sadly, even though Brittany Murphy, who played Tai, went on to have film success following her debut in Clueless, she’s the one member of the cast who’s no longer with us.

Brittany died in 2009 at the age of 32. Her death, which was concluded to be accidental, was attributed to multiple drug intoxication, pneumonia and ‘iron deficiency anemia’.

RIP Brittany, thanks for bringing us Tai. She changed our lives forever!

See what The Craft stars look like now!

Lydia Southern

The post WOW! Look at the Clueless stars – 20 years on! appeared first on Celebs Now.

Hands up who had a MEGA crush on Joey Lawrence? Hasn't he changed!

Joey Lawrence first made a name for himself as Joey Donovan in US sitcom Gimme A Break, which aired for six seasons from 1981- 1987. He starred in the latter three series before taking on the role we know him best for: Joey Russo in hit TV comedy Blossom from 1991-1995.

That’s a lot of Joeys!
It certainly is. Throughout Blossom, Joey became famous for his beautiful head of hair and the catchphrase: ‘Whoah!’ In a recent interview, he admitted: ‘It’s so weird that word has transcended 20 years.’

So what came next?
Joey appeared in a number of TV series including Brotherly Love, American Dreams and CSI: NY. In 2009, he starred in the film My Fake Fiancé alongside Sabrina The Teenage Witch actress Melissa Joan Hart.

Did they get on well?
Yes! Since 2010, Joey has worked alongside her in US sitcom Melissa & Joey. Unfortunately, due to a drop in ratings, the popular show was cancelled earlier this year after four seasons and 100 episodes. Joey gratefully described his loyal followers on Twitter as ‘#bestfansever.’

Anything else?
He doesn’t just act ­ he released his self-titled debut album in 1993 and his single Nothin’ My Love Can’t Fix made it all the way to number 13 in the UK music charts. More recently, Joey’s released singles Rolled and Give It To Ya.

So what now?
Well, according to his Twitter account Joey, now 39, is working on a new film titled The Bridge. He regularly updates his fans ­ or ‘Angels’ as he prefers to call them ­ with news of the upcoming movie.

He’s still hot! So, er, is he single?

Sadly not. After divorcing his first wife Michelle Vella in 2004, Joey went on to marry childhood friend Chandie Yawn-Nelson. The pair tied the knot at Disney World in 2005 and have since gone on to have two daughters: Charli, nine, and Liberty, five.

Whatever happened to the Olsen Twins?

Lucy Gornall

The post Blossom’s Joey Lawrence – whatever happened to him? appeared first on Celebs Now.

Remember those ginger ringlets? Yes, we miss them too. So we did some investigating to find out what Byker Grove's Spuggie is up to now

OMG, we loved Byker Grove!

Yes! Lyndyann Barrass, now 39, played Spuggie ­ who could forget those ginger ringlets?

Lyndyann, from Sunderland, was just 12 when she began working on the BBC kids show and stayed for six series from 1987-1993.

So what did she do after, we hear you ask.

Well, she was involved in three other TV drama productions ­ King Leek, The Resurrection Man and Harry ­ and did panto at the Sunderland Empire. ‘I played the fairy princess ­that was loads of fun,’ says Lyndyann. She studied performing arts at Sunderland College, but left after 18 months, saying: ‘There was a lot of jealousy and I was victimised a bit by some of my fellow students.’ Boo.

So were ther any other TV roles?

Sadly not, but in 2000 Lyndyann joined a four-piece girl group called Angel. ‘We did a couple of gigs around the northeast, recorded a couple of studio tracks in London and produced a demo CD,’ she says. ‘I remember two of the songs ­ one was called Glamorous Girlfriend and the other Bachelor Girls.’ She then worked in Newcastle as an assistant manager for a clothing brand and in a designer boutique.

What about a family?

In 1999, she married husband Allan in Cancun, Mexico. They had two children Joseph, 13, and Scarlett, eight. Lyndyann and Allan have since divorced and she describes herself on social media as: ‘Actress and single mum of 2 angels.’

What about her co-stars?

Aside from Ant and Dec, obvs, the most famous Byker Grove star is Jill Halfpenny, now 39, who played Nicola Dobson from the age of 14. After high-profile roles in Corrie and EastEnders, she won Strictly in 2004 and has starred in West End plays, including Calendar Girls and Legally Blonde, plus lots of TV dramas. Also still acting is Andrew Hayden-Smith, now 31, who played bad boy Ben Carter in 1995. When his character was killed off he hosted kid’s show UK Top 40. He came out as gay in 2005 and starred in Channel 4’s Cucumber and E4’s Banana last year.

Lyndyann now works in a call centre and recently admitted it would take her two years to earn the equivalent of her former co-stars Ant and Dec, who earn around £23,000 a day. ‘They owe me a drink,’ she joked.

Whatever happened to the Olsen Twins?

Lucy Gornall

The post Whatever happened to Spuggie from Byker Grove? appeared first on Celebs Now.

The Parent Trap is a Sunday afternoon favourite – see what Lindsay Lohan and co. are doing now

The Parent Trap made us all wish we had a twin like Hallie and Annie so we had someone to plot extragavant plans with and swap placecs with to travel to the other side of the world. The 1998 family film classic had our fingers crossed that their divorced parents would be together once again, and caused girls all over the world to copy the secret handshake (minus the butler), and have one attempt to many at trying to pierce a friend’s ear with nothing more than an apple, a needle and an ice cube. Ouch.

But fast forward 17 years, what are the cast doing now?

Lindsay Lohan as Hallie and Annie James
Way before the days of Mean Girls in 2004, LiLo was double trouble playing both the twins in the movie, and she’s probably now the best known member of the cast – for reasons both bad and good. 
After appearing as sweet and scheming duo Hallie/Annie in this Disney classic, she went on the typical Disney route with family friendly films and comedies, including Freaky Friday and Herbie: Fully Loaded, before appearing in the film that would create a whole new dictionary worth of fetch catchphrases.
After appearing as Cady in 2004, her life sadly took the turn of many-a childhood celebrity. In 2006, she attended Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and rehab, before being arrested the next year for driving under the influence. Later in July of 2007, just two weeks after she was out of rehab, she was arrested yet again for drink driving, as well as the possession of cocaine, which she even lost a movie role because of. ‘It is clear to me that my life has become completely unmanageable because I am addicted to alcohol and drugs.’
She was put on probation, and after getting her life back on track a bit, she starred in some independent films and some cameors here and there, as well as an eight-part documentary of her life. And after being on probation for seven years, she made her stage debut in 2014 on the London West End in play, Speed-The-Plow.

Dennis Quaid as Nick Parker
Dennis played dashing Dad Nick Parker who had THE best house ever, complete with wine vineyard and horses to gallop on. He was already known for a plethora of films that he appeared in in the 80s, and after he appearance in Parent Trap, he went on to appear in more films than we can count. These included the critically acclaimed Far From Heaven in 2002, Day After Tomorrow with Jake Gyllenhaal in 2004 and a remake of the musical classic Footloose in 2011.
Being a dad in real life too, he has three children from the three times he’s been married. After divorcing actress P.J Soles in 1983, he met future wife Meg Ryan on the set of Innerspace, who he married in 1991 and ultimately got divorced from in 2001. The couple had a son, Jack Henry, together, who is the oldest of the children, which includes twins Thomas and Zoe, who Dennis has in 2007 with wife and real-estate agent Kimberly Buffington. Alas, it wasn’t meant to be as the pair separated in 2012. Sigh – looks like Dennis isn’t as lucky in love as his on-screen self!

Natasha Richardson as Elizabeth James
Who didn’t wish Natasha was their mum while watching the film? She was beautiful, designed wedding dresses, and got ready with a cigerette in her mouth and rollers in her hair and still managed to look fabulous while doing so!
Playing mum Elizabeth, Natasha was already an established stage actress before the film, beginning her career in a regional theatre up north in Leeds.
She made her debut on the big screen in 1986 in Gothic, and after The Parent Trap, she continued to work her way through film, TV and theatre roles, including Maid in Manhattan in 2002 with Jenny from the Block, Jennifer Lopez herself.
After separating from first husband Robert Fox in 1992, she was married to Taken actor Liam Neeson in 1994 and the couple had two sons, Micheal and Daniel together.
Devastatingly though, Natasha suffered a head injury after a fall from a beginner’s skiing lesson in Canada, which led to her death in 2009. The theatre lights in New York’s Broadway and London’s West End were dimmed as a mark of respect for Natasha.

Elaine Hendrix as Meredith Blake
We may have seen her as the baddie while watching the film as a kid, but you’ve got to admit, Dennis’ fiancé in the movie, Meredith was the most stylish women our little 8-year-old eyes ever did lay eyes on. The woman knows how to rock a big floppy hat and some red lips!
Elaine hasn’t appeared in many other films since The Parent Trap, but has made cameos in a lot of TV movies, short films and TV series since, including Friends, CSI, Charmed, ER and 90210.

Maggie Wheeler as Marva Kulp Jr.
Does camp counsellor Marva look familiar? Well, she should do, because – OH. MY. GOD. – she’s only bloomin’ Janice from Friends!
Ever since her days of teaching camp kids how to fence in the film, Maggie’s appeared in ALL the best TV shows. As well as being Chandler’s on-off love interest in Friends, she’s also starred in Will and Grace, CSI (CSI is a popular ol’ boy!) and How I Met Your Mother.

Remember the Jurassic Park kids? See what they look like now…

Amy Lo

The post Remember The Parent Trap? LOOK what the stars are like now, 17 years later! appeared first on Celebs Now.

It's 25 years since the film Ghost starring Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore was released. So what's happened to its stars in that time?

If you’re anything like us, all it takes is a bar or two of The Righteous Brothers’ tear-jerking tune Unchained Melody to instantly transport you to a potting wheel with a hunky topless man wrapping his arms around you.

Such is the power of Ghost.

It’s 25 years on Monday (13 July) since the classic (and oh-so weepy) film was released, yet the romantic drama still has the power to hit us right in the feels.

Which is why we’re marking the film’s 25th anniversary with a look back at the stars that made the movie – and what’s become of them since…

Demi Moore

Fresh-faced Demi shot to megastardom on the back of Ghost, in which she played Molly Jenson, a potter (who could forget THAT saucy scene with co-star Patrick Swayze?) who is left in danger when her boyfriend is murdered.

She was also half of one of the 90s most famous celebrity couples, being married to Bruce Willis from 1987 until 2000. The couple had three daughters, Rumer, Scout and Tallulah, who have become stars in their own right.

Demi took a break from acting after 1997’s GI Jane (the film that famously saw her shave her head), but made a killer return in 2003’s Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle thanks to one helluva bikini body. She went on to marry Ashton Kutcher in 2005, but the couple divorced in 2013.

Demi was last seen in 2014 indie film Very Good Girls and will appear in upcoming comedy Wild Oats later this year.

Patrick Swayze

Patrick was a bona fide hunk back in the late 80s and early 90s, thanks to his roles in Ghost and another romantic blockbuster – Dirty Dancing.

In Ghost, he played Sam Wheat, the banker boyfriend of Demi’s character Molly, who is murdered and comes back as the film’s titular ghost to seek revenge – and to hold his love one last time (sob!).

What’s even more heartbreaking is that Patrick is no longer with us; the actor sadly passed away from pancreatic cancer in September 2009. He appeared in over 40 TV shows and movies during his 57 years, and worked right up until his death; his final show The Beast (pictured right) aired for just one season in early 2009.

Whoopi Goldberg

Nineties megastar Whoopi (do you also remember the Sister Act films??) took on one of her most memorable roles with Ghost.

She won an Oscar, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Saturn Award for playing the fast-talking, fancy hat-wearing Oda May Brown, a bogus psychic who ironically turns out to be the only person (well, the only live person) that Sam can communicate with.

Twenty-five years later and Whoopi has swapped the silver screen for the small screen, having co-presented American chat show The Voice since 2007. She’s also a keen human rights activist, and has given high-profile support to the LGBT rights and AIDS awareness campaigns.

Tony Goldwyn

Tony was Ghost’s main baddie, playing Sam’s best-friend-turned-back-stabber Carl Bruner, who met a grisly end thanks to a shattered window to the abdomen and those scary shadowy creatures.

He went on to appear in films including The Pelican Brief and The Last Samurai, and also voiced Tarzan in the Disney’s 1999 animated film (who knew?).

Nowadays he’s a pretty dishy 55 year old who was last seen played Shailene Woodley’s father in 2014’s Divergent.

MORE! Whatever happened to Spuggie from Byker Grove?

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