book actress

C'mon, kids, despite the NC-17, there's nothing to be ashamed of here -- and that's the attitude Michael Fassbender and associates adopted Wednesday at the AFI Fest premiere screening of "Shame."

The spicy rating "can be an all right thing," Fassbender told The Times on the red carpet in Hollywood. "It can stimulate curiosity for sure."


"I think it's unusual that a lot of violent films seem to pass through the system easily enough. But whenever you sort of try to question or deal with sex, it becomes something that's dirty or not to be watched -- so I find that to be confusing."

Just don't confuse this movie as one to see if you want to ogle naked people. "You're wasting your money," director Steve McQueen said on the red carpet.

Cast members on hand included Fassbender, James Badge Dale, Elizabeth Masucci and Nicole Beharie. Also spotted? Richard Chamberlain, Sally Kellerman, Steve Railsback and wild card Mia Wasikowska, who stuck close to an agent-type at the after-party.

Fassbender (everyone's new crush) was the man of the hour at the "Shame" party, which was held in the Blossom Room at the Hollywood Roosevelt. Forget the typical Hollywood drop-by-and-bolt -- he stayed and shook practically everyone's hand.

The movie opens Dec. 2.

Team Madonna is very upset — and you know what you did. A track from the star's forthcoming album leaked this week, and Madge is said to be "very upset" with the responsible parties. Did we mention she's upset?

Madonna's manager, Guy Oseary, took to Twitter to clarify that the leaked version of the song — "Give Me All Your Love" — was just a demo, nowhere near the masterpiece that will allegedly appear on the disc.

"Im very happy with the positive reaction to the demo, but we are very upset with whoever leaked the song!!!!!!!!" he wrote. Exclaim much?

Well, here's why: Guy followed up with another tweet saying the pop queen was disappointed and that her "true fans wouldn't do this."

We see their collective point: that making an album is a process, and the final product is what matters. But this whole thing smacks of hydrangeas.

Expect to see a lot of Madonna in the new year. She's in talks to play the Super Bowl halftime show, is on track to release the album before spring, and is promoting her latest directorial effort, "W.E."