ROLL CALL: Ellen Gets In Bed, & Justin Teams Up With…Everybody

Your Daily Dispatch of Celebrity Shenanigans by Tommy Vergason

May 1, 2007

JUSTIN DEMAND: Justin Timberlake tells USA TODAY’s ANTHONY BREZNICAN that writing songs for other people is what he’s most comfortable doing right now. “I want to write country music, because that’s where I grew up — Tennessee. Soul music ? I want to be involved in hip-hop,” he reportedly says. “And sometimes I feel the only way to really express all those different sides, even just for myself, is through different people.” Timberlake has already written two songs for Macy Gray, one for Rihanna, and has reportedly collaborated with Reba McEntire for a track on her upcoming album. “To write for myself, I definitely have to recharge my battery. I can’t just pump out 20 more songs and expect them all to be ‘What Goes Around.’” On a side note, Timberlake’s rep recently confirmed to Access that Justin is writing and producing tracks for Madonna’s upcoming album –along with Timbaland.

EVEN PIRATES CAN BE POLITE: The spotlight can be a harsh mistress, as Orlando Bloom reportedly tells GOTHAM magazine that he sometimes feels badly for the clamoring fans trying to get his attention. He tells a story of a fan who became angry with him when he didn’t stop to talk to her at a premiere: “She got kind of aggressive with me and was really angry,” he reportedly says. “She was like, ‘I’ve been at every premiere and you never say hello.’ And it was funny, I felt really upset. I felt bad for her. So I turned around and went over to her and just gave her a hug and said, ‘It’s cool. I’m sorry you feel let down or disappointed. But the nature of my life is I can’t necessarily stop every time, and it’s not because I don’t want to.’ I think she felt a little better afterward, and so did I.”

More Celebrity Scoop After the Video!

MESSING AROUND: Two comedic actresses known for their work on NBC have teamed up on a new film called “Spring Breakdown.” “SNL” vet Rachel Dratch and Debra Messing from “Will & Grace” star in the film, and the two spoke to THE NY DAILY NEWS’ RUSH & MOLLOY about the difficulties facing actresses in Hollywood. “Hollywood wants its women hot and funny, and that’s kind of hard because there aren’t that many super hotties who are also funny,” Dratch reportedly says. “Men can be fat, bald, old, whatever. People want to see Will Ferrell fall down naked. They don’t want to see me do that.” Messing reportedly adds: “I’m like the dancing monkey now. I’m like, ‘Okay, who’s going to give me a job?’ And there are a hundred scripts out there and there’re only two [roles], and one is for Cameron Diaz and one is for Julia Roberts.”

THE SHOW MUST GO ON: Another funny female has decided to carry on with her daily duties, despite being injured over the weekend. PEOPLE reports that Ellen DeGeneres is hosting her daytime talk show this week from a hospital bed on the stage, per doctor’s orders after injuring her back. DeGeneres reportedly “tore a ligament and did something to something else,” she says, when she bent over to pick up her dog in her kitchen. She reportedly jokes in the show airing today, “This is not a sweeps stunt or anything like that. This is not like what Regis (Philbin) did – that whole bypass surgery.”

THE WEIGHT IS OVER: Singer/actor Nick Carter has reportedly been focusing on his health, as his rep confirms to E! ONLINE’s MARC MALKIN that Carter has lost 30 pounds by working out with a personal trainer and following a NutriSystem diet program, much like another boy band veteran, Joey Fatone. The Backstreet Boys’ Carter reportedly wants to lose five more pounds before he shows off his new physique to the public. Carter is scheduled to start shooting the independent film “Fast Glass” soon, according to the report, and will be in the music spotlight again when the long-delayed new Backstreet Boys album comes out, which his rep reportedly says is nearing completion.

‘HOUSE’ WORKS THE ‘NIGHT’ SHIFT: VARIETY reports that “House” star Hugh Laurie and “Fantastic Four” actor Chris Evans have signed on to the crime drama “Night Watch,” alongside Keanu Reeves and Forest Whitaker. The Fox Searchlight/New Regency film centers around a Los Angeles cop (Reeves) who becomes wedded to the bottle after his wife’s death, and is framed by a onetime mentor (Whitaker) for the killing of a fellow officer. Laurie and Evans will reportedly play internal affairs officers. The movie is set to begin filming this month.

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