Robert Downey Jr. has a packed shooting schedule ahead of him between "The Avengers" and other projects, but even he isn't too busy for acclaimed filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson.

The "Iron Man" superstar and "There Will Be Blood" director are reportedly teaming together for "Inherent Vice," an adaptation of the Thomas Pynchon novel about a Los Angeles private eye who wholeheartedly embraces the notions of free-love and psychedelic thinking. Deadline reports the news, but there's no indication of when the film might shoot, and even Downey and Anderson's official participation remains unconfirmed at this point.
But that's not all the news we've got for you today. Read about Steve Carell's upcoming dramatic turn, the maybe-maybe-not adaptation of "Dead Island" and more past the jump!
Have you started getting ready for Oscar night? You're running out of time if you want to catch up on all ten Best Picture nominees and the various other films that have been nominated for awards. But thankfully, you're just in time to find out about the most exciting thing the Oscars have in store for you: our official live-stream coverage of the show!
by Patrick Hester
Earlier this month,
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Oscars 2011: Five Movies That Could Follow 'Avatar' And 'Inception' As 2012's Blockbuster Nominee
Posted 2/22/11 5:30 pm EST by MTV Movies Team in Commentary, Oscars
Two years have passed since the Academy Awards expanded the number of Best Picture nominees from five to ten, and thanks to the enlarged field, blockbuster Hollywood productions stand a greater chance than ever at scoring a prestigious nomination.
In 2009, "Avatar" pushed "The Hurt Locker" all the way in a close race before eventually losing out on the Oscar, and this year, Christopher Nolan scored one with his thinking man’s thriller, "Inception." In fact, one could argue that Nolan contributed to the Academy’s decision to expand the Best Picture category after the backlash of "The Dark Knight," which transcended its comic book roots to become a box office and cultural phenomenon, missing out on a nomination in 2008.
If the 2009 and 2010 nominations are any indication, a big-budget production will get a shot at the coveted Best Picture award in 2011. The question is, which one? We're weighing in with some possible contenders past the jump!
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Tags cowboys and aliens, harry potter and the deathly hallows part 2, Oscars 2011, Super 8, The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn, transformers dark of the moon