Lohan Takes Pass on MTV Movie Awards

By SANDY COHEN

Victoria Beckham, Cameron Diaz, Robin Williams, Jessica Biel and Bruce Willis were among the celebrities poised to pass the popcorn at Sunday's 16th annual MTV Movie Awards, but Lindsay Lohan planned to pass the show.

The actress, scheduled to be a presenter of the ceremony's distinctive "Golden Popcorn" trophy before she checked into rehab last week, was skipping the telecast, her publicist confirmed Friday.

Lohan sought treatment after a wild Memorial Day weekend during which she crashed her Mercedes-Benz into a curb, was arrested for investigation of driving under the influence and was photographed slumped in the passenger seat of a friend's car.

Two "Dreamgirls" stars, Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson and Grammy winner Beyonce Knowles, were in the running for best performance at the Sunday night awards, scheduled for live broadcast on MTV from the Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City. Sarah Silverman was set to host.

Also nominated in the best performance category were Will Smith for "The Pursuit of Happyness," Keira Knightley for "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" and Gerard Butler for "300."

Smith's 9-year-old son, Jaden Christopher Syre Smith, was nominated for breakthrough performance for his role opposite his father in "The Pursuit of Happyness." Other nominees in that category included Justin Timberlake for "Alpha Dog" and "Little Miss Sunshine" star Abigail Breslin.

Films nominated for best movie were "300," "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," "Blades of Glory," "The Devil Wears Prada," "Little Miss Sunshine" and "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan."

The blood-soaked "300" garnered a leading five nominations, followed by "Dead Man's Chest" with four.

Sacha Baron Cohen, aka Borat, was up for three awards, including best comedic performance, best fight (with Ken Davitian) and best kiss (with Will Ferrell in "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby").

The MTV Movie Awards were chosen by fans, who voted online and by text message.
___
On the Net:
http://movieawards.mtv.com/