As we've already reported, Sean Penn and Hollywood are breaking up. Or at least going through a trial separation. One of the consequences of this newly announced hiatus is Penn's departure from the Farrelly Brothers' "The Three Stooges," a film that's now in jeopardy thanks to the actor's sudden exit.

With the role of Larry now open, it'll be up to a last-minute replacement to save the film. So who in the movie business could possibly jump in at the eleventh hour to knock noses and poke eyeballs with Jim Carrey and Benicio Del Toro? It remains to be seen -- but I've certainly got my picks. Read more...

"The Three Stooges" are down to Two. Sean Penn has said "soitenly not" to the Farrelly Bros.' "Stooges" revival, and walked away from the project, leaving Moe and Curly without their Larry. Quick, somebody call Shemp!

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Penn is dropping out of "Stooges," as well as the thriller "Cartel." The actor's sudden change in plans is based on the need to spend more time with his family. Sources say that he may keep away from movie-making for as long as a year, though the two-time Oscar winner gave no set timetable. Penn and his wife Robin Wright Penn have been in and out of the tabloids for their marital woes. Who can really blame them for taking a little personal time?

Maybe the Farrelly Bros., who are facing a collapse of their "Stooges" remake. While Universal plans to move forward with "Cartel" and recast the leading role, "Stooges" has really been left in the lurch. The writer/director siblings have spent years trying to get their slap-happy film off the ground. They scored a big victory in landing Penn, Jim Carrey and Benicio Del Toro for the cast. "Stooges" was scheduled to begin shooting in August and MGM had set a release date of 2010.

Now the Farrellys need to decide whether they'll recast the part or wait for Penn, a delay that could cost them the other two Stooges. There's even a possibility that the entire film could be scrapped. That's certainly what MTV's Larry Carroll is hoping for. THR notes that "half of Hollywood would poke their eyes out for the part," so maybe the casting fun, drama and violence is just beginning...

MTV readers, are you sorry to see Sean Penn take a break from the big screen? What do you think should happen to "The Three Stooges" remake? If it goes forward, who would you like to see replace Penn as Larry?

As a lifelong, die-hard 3 Stooges fan, I’m not ashamed to admit that I bought a ticket and saw the 1986 dud “Stoogemania" in a movie theater. If the producers are reading this – yes, it was my father and I who gave you folks the $10 that the movie grossed domestically.

Until today, the idea of casting Zero Mostel’s kid as “Howard F. Howard” in a poorly-written clunker stuffed with archive footage was one of the worst Hollywood ideas I’d ever seen executed on the silver screen. Then, I read that the rumors were true and that the Farrelly brothers were casting Sean Penn, Jim Carrey and Benicio del Toro as the new Stooges. Josh Mostel, you might finally be off the hook. Read more...

When you're a double Oscar-winner like Sean Penn, you don't exactly have much to prove anymore ... except maybe that you've got a sense of humor, or that you could hold your own against MTV's Greatest Badass. According to Variety, Penn has decided to try the latter and star in Universal's thriller "Cartel," which will be directed by newcomer Asger Leth and scripted by Peter Craig.

Penn will play Ed Marker, who journeys south to protect his son after his wife is brutally murdered in the gritty, dangerous world of Mexican cartels. Interestingly, the film was originally remake of the 1993 Italian film "La scorta," which followed four cops struggling to guard a special prosecutor from the mob bosses he was trying to bring to justice. But the film evolved into an action thriller for Penn, which suggests that he really wants to delve into the world of badass cinema. Read more...

We're a few short days away from another Oscar gala so it's as good a time as any to share our latest ambitious little short. Yes, for the second year in a row MTV's Movies Editor Josh Horowitz has found himself cast out into a special circle of Oscar hell thanks to the mysterious powers of none other than Kurt Loder. You may think it's a dream come true to journey Billy Crystal-style through the year's biggest nominees but think again. You try going toe to toe with Benjamin Button, the Dark Knight, and Richard Nixon in under five minutes.

They're not using "Got Milk?" as their official campaign, but the filmmakers behind the story of Harvey Milk are hoping that's a slogan the rest of us abide by.

"If every single person who bought a ticket to 'Brokeback Mountain' bought a ticket to 'Milk,' we'd be very happy producers," laughed producer Bruce Cohen when we caught up with him at the Out 100 New York gala, where the director, writer, producers, and cast of the film were being honored for filming the tale of the man who was California's first openly gay elected official (only to be later assassinated).

"Gus Van Sant goes back and forth between things like 'To Die For' and 'Good Will Hunting' to his more experimental fare, and this is a combination," Cohen said. "It's not mainstream subject matter, it's way out there on the edge, but we're hoping it appeals to a larger audience." Read more...

Reporting by Josh Horowitz

Long before Sarah Palin was talking crazy or banks were going out of business faster than “We Sell it on eBay” stores, a truly bizarre political scandal erupted in 1970’s San Francisco, changing politics forever. We’ve already written extensively about the December release “Milk," and when we recently caught up with super-producer/Focus Features Co-President James Schamus, he promised that our enthusiasm over the Sean Penn biopic was justified.

“He’s just channeling him; it’s crazy. He is Harvey Milk,” Schamus said of the Oscar-winner’s performance as America’s first openly-gay politician. “Go online and look at Harvey Milk and look at the trailer, and it’s like we hired Harvey Milk.”

Co-starring Josh Brolin, Emile Hirsch and James Franco (who reportedly shares a kissing scene with Penn), the film tells the true tale of a larger-than-life man who ran for office seeking tolerance and equality, then became a martyr for the gay movement after being shot down by a Twinkie-loving madman. Read more...