Transformers 2 director Michael Bay confirmed on his message board that Aussie actress Isabel Lucas has been cast as Alice in the sequel. He also denied speculation in an Australian newspaper that producer Steven Spielberg hand picked her.

Never trust those newspapers. Blogs are much more reliable. Lucas is perhaps best known for her role as Tasha Andrews on the Australian soap Home and Away. Well, that and her dedication to animal issues. Lucas joined Heroes star Hayden Panettiere and several others in an October protest against dolphin hunting in Japan.

Next time, she’ll be able to take Optimus Prime to Japan with her. That’ll show those fishermen. Huh? My wife just told Optimus Prime is not real and that the Transformers cartoons and live action film were not documentaries. La la la! I’m not listening!

Image courtesy of Newscom

You’ve heard of Quarterlife and SecondLife, but how about Afterlife?

According to Techcrunch, Steven Spielberg is preparing to launch his own social network totally devoted to UFO’s and the paranormal.  It should come as no surprise that the director of “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” and “E.T.” is into aliens, but the word is that Spielberg may have had a close encounter of a different kind.  The ghostly kind!

Most people just write a book about their creepy encounters — but when you’re Steven Spielberg you create an entire community about it. 

From NBC:

Steven Spielberg will be honored at next January’s Golden Globe Awards telecast with the Cecil B. DeMille Award for his “outstanding contribution to the entertainment field.” The award, voted by the Board of Directors of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, was announced today at a morning press conference by Josh Brolin.

The DeMille Award will be presented to Spielberg at “The 65th Annual Golden Globe Awards” to be held Sunday, January 13, 2008 and telecast live on NBC (8-11 pm EST).

Spielberg has received six Golden Globes; for Best Director for “Schindler’s List” and “Saving Private Ryan,” for Best Motion Picture (Drama) for ”E.T., The Extra-Terrestrial,” “Schindler’s List,” and “Saving Private Ryan;” and for Best Foreign Language Film For “Letters From Iwo Jima.” He received 12 additional Golden Globe nominations; eight as Best Director for “Jaws,” “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” “E.T., The Extra-Terrestrial,” “The Color Purple,” “Amistad,” “A.I.: Artificial Intelligence” and “Munich,” three as a producer on Best Motion Picture (Drama) nominees “The Color Purple,” “Empire of the Sun,” and “Amistad,” and one for his screenplay for “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.”

Recent Cecil B. DeMille winners include Warren Beatty (2007), Anthony Hopkins (2006), Robin Williams (2005), Michael Douglas (2004), Gene Hackman (2003), Harrison Ford (2002), Al Pacino (2001), and Barbra Streisand (2000).

I say, that’s some mighty fine company you got there, Mr. Spielberg! Congrats!