Celebrities by The Times

Mickey Rourke, photographed with his 16-year-old Chihuahua Loky at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills on Nov. 7, 2008. Rourke is being touted for what is called his comeback role in “The Wrestler,” as a retired professional wrestler making his way through the independent circuit to compete one last time with his former rival.  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Meryl Streep cut loose and had some fun earlier this year with the musical “Mamma Mia,” but now she’s back in the kind of role she is known for -- a dramatic tale of tension and accusation with the film “Doubt.” She portrays a nun and Catholic school principal who believes a priest is molesting one of the children.  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Actor Hugh Jackman stars in the epic film “Australia,” directed by Baz Luhrmann. He was recently named People Magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive” as well as the host of the 2009 Academy Awards telecast.  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Michelle Williams stars in the new movie “Wendy and Lucy.” She was photographed at Four Seasons Hotel on Nov. 10, 2008.  (Spencer Weiner / Los Angeles Times)

Benicio Del Toro plays revolutionary icon Ernesto Che Guevara in director Steven Soderberg’s new biopic, “Che.” Del Toro was photographed at the Four Seasons Hotel in Los Angeles.  (Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)

Viola Davis has a small, but crucial, role in the movie “Doubt” with Meryl Streep. Davis plays the mother of a boy who may have been molested by a priest. Davis is photographed at the Four Season Hotel in Beverly Hills on Nov. 20, 2008.  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Freddy Rodriguez, seen on TV’s “Six Feet Under” and “Ugly Betty,” is a member of the ensemble cast of the new film, “Nothing Like the Holidays.”  (Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

Bijou Phillips, photographed at the Beverly Hilton on Dec. 3, 2008. She portrays a dancer in the new movie “Dark Streets,” about a nightclub in New Orleans in the 1930s.  (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

Film director Ron Howard photographed on Nov. 6, 2008, on the sofa in his Beverly HIlls offices of Imagine Entertainment, where he works with his filmmaking partner, producer Brian Grazer. Howard’s new film, “Frost/Nixon,” is a re-telling of the post-Watergate television interviews between British talk-show host David Frost and former president Richard Nixon.  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Actress Kristen Stewart poses for a portrait during the promotion of her new movie “Twilight,” on Nov. 08, 2008, in Beverly Hills.  (Stefanoo Paltera / For The Times)

“American Idol” winner David Cook is photographed in Los Angeles on Nov. 3, 2008. Cook debuts his major-label album this month.  (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Singer-songwriter Dido is seen with her guitar in a studio at the Sirius Satellite Radio station in Manhattan. The platinum-selling chanteuse of quiet moments and little things returns with the follow-up to 2003’s “Life For Rent” album.  (Jennifer S. Altman / For The Times)

Actress Sally Hawkins photographed at the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills on Oct. 27, 2008. Hawkins stars as the chirpy weather girl who stays eternally positive in the face of negativity in Mike Leigh’s “Happy-Go-Lucky.”  (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

Director Baz Lurhman‘s new film, the sweeping period epic “Australia,” stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman.  (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

Keira Knightley, photographed on Sept. 9 at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City, talks about her role in “The Duchess,” the story of an 18th century aristocrat who goes from being a young bride to an embittered third-wheel in her marriage.  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson star in the mid-life romance “Last Chance Harvey.” They were photographed at the Four Seasons Hotel in Los Angeles on Nov. 10, 2008.  (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Nicole Kidman is photographed at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills on Oct. 7, 2008. She stars in the movie “Australia” with Hugh Jackman.  (Liz O. Baylen / Los Angeles Times)

Anne Hathaway has left her Disney “Princess Diaries” roles far behind with her new role in “Rachel Getting Married” in which the 25-year-old actress plays a recovering addict with a tragedy in her past. Hathaway was photographed at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills on Oct. 6, 2008.  (Mark Boster/Los Angeles Times)

Kristin Scott Thomas stars in the French film, “I’ve Loved You So Long,” about a woman released from prison after 15 years for killing her son.  (Ken Hively / Los Angeles Times)

Actress Julie White in the stage production of “Little Dog Laughed” at the Kirk Douglas Theater.  (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)

Actor Ben McKenzie photographed in Hollywood on Nov. 10, 2008. McKenzie stars in “Johnny Got His Gun,” a film that takes place in the mind of an irreparably injured WWI vet. Regaining consciousness, he discovers that while his brain is healthy and able to reason, he cannot communicate with the outside world.  (Ricardo DeAratanha/Los Angeles Times)

Actress Angelina Jolie is photographed at the Beverly Hilton Oct. 27, 2008, for her role in “Changeling,” which has some Oscar watchers predicting she’ll earn a best actress nod after being overlooked by the academy last year.  (Kirk McKoy/Los Angeles Times)

Michael Sheen is photographed at Il Cielo restaurant in Beverly Hills on Oct. 27, 2008. He stars as David Frost in “Frost/Nixon,” the story of the struggling interviewer who saves his career with an interview with the fallen president.  (Gary Friedman/Los Angeles Times)

Actress Jennifer Aniston photographed at her Beverly Hills office Oct. 7, 2008. Aniston stars in the movie “Marley and Me” with Owen Wilson and a whole passel of adorable golden labs. It’s a heartwarming story of a relationship that has its ups and downs while the dog remains a constant.  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Three actors who will appear in the upcoming “Twilight” movie. Robert Pattinson, center, Nikki Reed, left, and Kellan Lutz, right. Film is the big-screen adaptation of the first installment in the wildly successful young adult book series by Stephenie Meyer.  (Spencer Weiner / Los Angeles Times)

Elizabeth Banks portrays Laura Bush in Oliver Stone‘s “W.”  (Stephen Osman / Los Angeles Times)

Teen singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, whose debut album became one of the biggest hits out of Nashville in recent years, selling more than 3 million copies before Swift had turned 18.  (Ken Hively / Los Angeles Times)

Photographed in his apartment on Sept. 17, 2008, beneath a painting of himself at 45 given by his mother. Veteran actor George Hamilton, 69 has a new autobiography coming out, “Don’t Mind If I Do.”  (Jay L. Clendenin/ Los Angeles Times)

Actress Mila Kunis photographed at the 20th Century Fox Studios lot on Sept. 29, 2008. Kunis is one of the rare TV sitcom actresses who has been able to make the transition from small to big screen. She was surprisingly good in “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” and now she is playing opposite Mark Wahlberg in “Max Payne.”  (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

Criss Angel photographed Aug. 5, 2008, in his Las Vegas dressing room. The magician-illusionist who has a popular cable TV show is teaming up with Cirque du Soleil on a production at the Luxor Hotel/Casino in Las Vegas.  (Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times)

Robby Benson directed a new film about the early years of the Rev. Billy Graham. Benson lives in New York where he also teaches at NYU film school.  (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

Josh Brolin’s slow-boil career has taken a political turn. He’s in Gus Van Sant’s “Milk” and has the commander-in-chief role in Oliver Stone’s “W.” Says Stone: ‘Bush wants to be John Wayne, and Josh has that John Wayne quality of being cranky, rural, don’t back down.”  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

Debra Messing, on set in Malibu, made sure that “Starter Wife,” her series on the USA Network, was filmed locally and not in Australia, where the miniseries was shot: “I’m a mother, and I said it would have to shoot in Los Angeles.”  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Actress/writer/producer Debra Winger is seen in Westchester, NY. Winger was a standout actress in the ‘80s. More recently, she’s written a book and stars in the movie “Rachel Getting Married.”  (Jennifer S. Altman / For The Times)

Actress Kat Denning is photographed in Burbank on Sept. 25, 2008. Dennings is quite unlike her vulnerable, insecure character in “Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist.” “I’m fine with myself,” she says.  (Robert Lachman / Los Angeles Times)

Beck’s new album, “Modern Guilt,” lacks the crowd-pleasing humor he’s shown on previous works. “It just doesn’t have the part of it that’s the punch line or the thing that’s winking at you . . .,” he says.  (Benjamin Reed / Los Angeles Times)

Meg Ryan is photographed in Beverly Hills on Sept. 3, 2008. She stars in “The Women” and hopes for a career comeback.  (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

Actress Thandie Newton has two films coming out this fall and they could not be more different -- “RocknRolla,” a London criminal underground picture directed by Guy Ritchie, and Oliver Stone’s George W. Bush biopic “W,” in which she plays Condoleeza Rice.  (Lyle Stafford / For The Times)

Actors Michael Cera and Kat Dennings, stars of the upcoming film “Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist,” are photographed at Canter’s Deli on Aug. 11, 2008.  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Actor Leonardo DiCaprio and film director Ridley Scott work together on the movie “Body of Lies.”  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Actor-director Ed Harris in “Appaloosa.”  (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)

Rapper Chris Bridges, also known as Ludacris, is photographed at Fox Studios in Los Angeles on Aug. 15, 2008. Bridges’ name appears in the credits of two films in October, the video-game adaptation “Max Payne” and Guy Ritchie’s lastest crime spree, “RocknRolla.”  (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Greg Kinnear stars in two films this fall, “Ghost Town” and “Flash of Genius.”  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

Actor Derek Luke appears in the World War II drama, “The Miracle of St. Anna.”  (Ken Hively / Los Angeles Times)

Guy Ritchie, director of “RocknRolla,” is photographed at the Thompson Beverly Hills hotel on July 23, 2008.  (Liz O. Baylen / For The Times)

Actor Michael Kelly is photographed in Manhattan, N.Y., on Aug. 14, 2008. Kelly stars with Angelina Jolie in the film “Changeling,” directed by Clint Eastwood.  (Jennifer Altman / For The Times)

Guy Pearce at the Four Season Hotel in Los Angeles on Aug. 18, 2008. He playsan FBI agents in “Traitor.”  (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)

Anna Paquin, who won an Oscar for “The Piano,” is photographed at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills on Sept. 2, 2008. She is starring in HBO’s “True Blood,” a sexy tale about vampires in which she plays a virginal waitress who falls in love with a bloodsucker.  (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

Chelsea Handler  (Benjamin Reed / Los Angeles Times)

KATHARINE MCPHEE  (Robert Caplin / For The Times)

Stephanie Savage  (Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

Matthew Goode. Article published July 25, 2008.  (Benjamin Reed / Los Angeles Times)

Ben Stiller. Article published August 10, 2008.  (Liz O. Baylen / Los Angeles Times)

Woody Allen. Article published August 10, 2008.  (Liz O. Baylen / Los Angeles Times)

James Franco  (Spencer Weiner / Los Angeles Times)

Holly Hunter  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Brendan Fraser  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Maggie Gyllenhaal  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Colin Firth  (Tom Wagner / For The Times)

Ron Perlman  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

Selma Blair  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

Olivia Thirlby  (Richard Hartog / Los Angeles Times)

Jason Bateman  (Jennifer S. Altman / For The Times)

Molly Ringwald  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

M. Night Shyamalan  (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

Jakob Dylan  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Blair Underwood. Read the story from June 4, 2008.  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Kyra Sedgwick. Read the story from June 4, 2008.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Christina Applegate  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Clint Eastwood.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Heather Graham  (Mark Matson / For The Times)

Carly Simon  (Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)

John Cusack  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Singer Jewel  (Christopher Berkey / For The Times)

Matthew Fox  (Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

Barbara Walters. Article published on May 7, 2008.  (Jennifer S. Altman / For The Times)

Robert Downey Jr. Article published on April 27, 2008.  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Uma Thurman. Article published on May 4, 2008.  (Robert Caplin / For The Times)

Steve Carell  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Romany Malco  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Amanda Seyfried  (Jeff Vinnick / For The Times)

Christina Ricci. Article published on Jan. 13, 2008.  (Spencer Weiner / Los Angeles Times)

Neil Patrick Harris. Article published on April 27, 2008.  (Robert Lachman / Los Angeles Times)

Miley Cyrus. Article published on April 22, 2008.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Al Pacino. Article published on April 22, 2008.  (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

Amy Poehler and Tina Fey. Article published on April 20, 2008.  (Robert Caplin / For The Times)

Evan Rachel Wood. Article published on April 13, 2008.  (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

Jessica Alba. Article published on Jan. 31, 2008.  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Angelina Jolie. Article published on Jan. 9, 2008.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

George Clooney. Article published on Jan. 30, 2008.  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Colin Farrell. Article published on Jan. 17, 2008.  (Richard Hartog / Los Angeles Times)

Matthew McConaughey. Article published on Feb. 3, 2008.  (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

Martin Lawrence. Article published on Feb. 7, 2008.  (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

Paula Abdul. Article published on Feb. 10, 2008.  (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

Sly Stone. Article published on April 20, 2008.  (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Helen Hunt. Article published on April 20, 2008.  (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)