We’ve been keeping a close watch on the upcoming apocalypse film 2012 by director Roland Emmerich — mainly because it features the world cleansing itself of humanity and beating us to a pulp in the process. It stars actors like John Cusack (there had better be a scene with him standing in the rain) and Woody Harrelson, Thandie Newton, Danny Glover, Amanda Peet, Oliver Platt, and Chin Han.

Director Roland Emmerich has plenty of experience with disaster movies — having been the guy behind such faves as The Day After Tomorrow and Independence Day. And while I thought the White House getting zapped by aliens in Independence was pretty awesome, nothing compares to the sheer gratuitous insanity of watching a tumbling aircraft carrier in a tsunami wipe it out instead. Check it out below:

Note: As the trailer is getting hammered at the moment, I would recommend letting it load a bit before watching. That, or hit up Yahoo for what appears to be a faster stream.

As we’ve mentioned previously, the year 2012 is rapidly approaching — and with it, the chance that we’re all going to explode.

Actually, that’s only one of the scenarios. According to the Mayan calendar, 2012 is the moment when the world will re-boot. Some speculate that we’ll shift in thinking and enlightenment, while others have prophesied that the universe will send us an ultimate smack-down. (ie, world-wide volcanic eruptions, asteroid hit, Sarah Palin as President, etc.)

Anyways, hoping to cash in on these theories, Hollywood is getting ready to launch the disaster flick 2012 this summer. The film stars John Cusack, Woody Harrelson, Thandie Newton, Danny Glover, and Amanda Peet. (>>View the trailer here.) As is becoming routine these days, the build-up to the film also includes some well-produced “viral” websites that provide information on everything happening as if it were really happening. There’s the IHC (Institute for Human Continuity), whose mission is to ensure the survival of the human race beyond 2012, a website for John Cusack’s character’s book Farewell Atlantis, and a blog from a crazy guy (played by Woody Harrelson) called “This Is The End“.

For a taste of Harrelson’s character, named Charlie Frost, check out the video below:

The apocalyptic movie 2012 — starring John Cusack and Woody Harrelson — has just received its first trailer. Based on this early impression, it looks a little bit like eco-disaster flick The Day After Tomorrow; which I guess makes sense since Roland Emmerich is the director behind both films.

“I play a guy who’s been talking for a long time, the whole world thinks he’s crazy,” Harrelson said earlier this year of his character. “But he’s been talking that there’s gonna be hell to pay for what’s been going on ecologically and everything.”

Other actors due to star in 2012 include Thandie Newton, Danny Glover, Amanda Peet, Oliver Platt, and Chin Han. Check it out below:

I am super stoked about Igor. I haven’t seen it yet, but I think as cute as the characters look it’s got to be worth checking out. The mama in me is always searching for great kid flicks, but I have to be honest in admitting that I love ‘em, too.

So I was even more excited to find out that Igor’s got a cause–and it’s a good one. The monster cartoon, voiced by John Cusack, Steve Buscemi, John Cleese, Jay Leno, and Christian Slater, takes place in the land of Malaria. Gathering from that, and the title of this post, you’ve probably guessed the cause.

Building off the film’s message that anyone can be a hero, Malaria.com has chosen it as the perfect awareness-building tool for the disease. You can even go to their own mini Igor site to donate money to purchase mosquito netting to protect people from malaria, as well as learn about the disease.

John Cusack, Ellen Degeneres, Sugarland and loads of other celebrities are lending their star power to STOMP Out Bullying. The campaign, sponsored by Love Our Children USA, is a series of public service events to raise awareness about bullying in multiple forms. It will be carried out through V spots, videos, posters, brochures and wristbands.

“STOMP Out Bullying brings awareness and educates kids, parents and schools about the issue. It offers hope for every kid who experiences the harmful effects of bullying and teaches parents to keep open communication with their children and to look for signs. It also educates school administrators across the country, who have swept this issue under the rug for too long,” says Ross Ellis, founder and CEO of Love Our Children USA.

Other celebrities lending a hand for STOMP Out Bullying include Demi Lovato, JoJo, Elton John, Bette Midler, Donny and Marie Osmond, and Ashleigh Banfield. Additionally,  Dancing With The Stars, Live With Regis and Kelly, The View, truTV, “In The Heights”, and the NJ Nets will also be helping to raise awareness.

1 out of 4 kids in the U.S. are bullied. Want to get involved? Charity Folks is hosting an auction for the campaign, running October 6th – 20th. To learn more, click here.

Nick Lachey will be hosting the third annual Tacoma All-Star Celebrity Weekend September 21-22 to support the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Tacoma General Hospital and the Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital Parenting Partnership Program (say that one three times fast). So far $1.4 million has been raised for these charities in the past; this year Nick and Sarah Larson, Ryan Stiles, Vanessa Minnillo and other celebs will be playing softball at Cheney Stadium in hopes of raising even more.

The Detroit Red Wings are hosting the Ilitch Charities Celebrity Golf Classic today. Tim Allen, Dave Coulier, John Cusack, Cuba Gooding Jr., Thorsten Kaye, John McGinley, D.B. Sweeney and others will be playing to support Ilitch Charities, which supports community programs in community development, human services, education and recreation. 

Ben Affleck, Seth Meyers, Paul Rudd and Sarah Silverman will be playing at the PPA’s “Poker in the Ballpark” charity tournament tomorrow in support of the Paralyzed Veterans of America. Wait, check out that lineup again. I would love to be a fly on the wall to just hear the conversations between these people. Can you imagine?

Australian singer and soap star Imogen says it’s nice to be sexy for a cause. “One of the funny things about doing PETA work and other campaigns and then doing a lot of mens’ mag stuff is that I’ve always had this internal debate. Am I being a powerful female or, as some people might think, objectifying myself to men? But it’s been nice to do some sexy images that have a strong message.”

The ancient Mayans believed that the world would come to complete ruin in the year 2012. Present day Hollywood predicts this could be a box office success in Summer 2009.

It has already been announced that John Cusack will star in the Roland Emmerich film and now Woody Harrelson has revealed to MTV that he has joined the cast of the upcoming apocalyptic thriller 2012 as well.

“I play a guy who’s been talking for a long time, the whole world thinks he’s crazy,” Harrelson said of his character. “But he’s been talking that there’s gonna be hell to pay for what’s been going on ecologically and everything.”

Harrelson doesn’t know why they thought of him for the role, but for those of us who know of his outspoken activist ways, it seems a very natural fit.

Other actors due to star in 2012 include Thandie Newton, Danny Glover, Amanda Peet (fortunately the subject of vaccines isn’t in the storyline), Oliver Platt, and Chin Han.

Basically, the Mayan calendar reaches the end of its 5,126-year cycle on Dec. 21, 2012. At that point (and according to superstition, unless the 13 Crystal Skulls are reunited) the world will end. As Emmerich recently noted, his fascination with the topic came after he typed in 2012 in Google and received 240 million hits. This is less a fancied legend and more something that many, many people the world over are preparing for. Enter Hollywood. From Firstshowing,

“The script for 2012 is apparently so good, that the studios started a bidding war for distribution, with Sony ending up the winner. Emmerich has said previously that ‘it will be very expensive, you see the whole world go to shit” and other sources reported that the “project has more going for it than the big idea that studios love,” but what exactly that means yet, no one knows.

When Collider asked Emmerich whether this would achieve a new level of ‘blowing things up’, Emmerich responded with ‘it’s not blowing up, it’s something else.’ And when prodded further to explain himself, Emmerich almost gave it away: ‘This time there’s no blowing up. It’s a natural disaster. Well, actually yeah, like a… I’m not saying it! I’m giving things away.’”

What could it be? Well, we’ve already got deadly plants, nasty Woolly Mammoth parasites, evil multinational corporations, crazy mutated killer sharks, swarms of bugs, possessed permafrost possums, and well, we’re tried just thinking about the rest.

Thankfully, this movie about the year 2012 will in fact be released summer 2009. So, we’ll have plenty of time to freak ourselves out between then and December 21, 2012. Hey, at least you won’t be pressured to buy presents!

via E! Online

But here’s the thing — you’re probably still not grasping (I didn’t either) the full extent to what $3 trillion would mean to this country. That’s why Cusack is pushing everyone to visit this new site he discovered called 3Trillion.org. From his blog,

“THAT WAS FUN.  Just got done spending $3 trillion.  Try it yourself – it’s a lot harder
than you might think.  Honestly, it would have been a whole lot easier just to follow the President’s example and blow it all on one illegal occupation of Iraq. That’s a whole lot of zeroes, but what does it really amount to?  How many homes would it buy for Americans who’ve fallen victim to the subprime meltdown?  How many debts would it pay off for developing nations?  As it turns out, one whole hell of a lot of all of those things combined.”

So what did I buy with my $3 trillion? Well, I switched the nation over to solar energy, provided universal healthcare for all Americans, ended world hunger completely for one year, initiated sustainable agriculture worldwide, gave food and vet-care to low-income pet owners, and provided broadband Internet to every home in America. That, and I’m still only at $1.6 trillion. Wow.

What would you buy?

Thanks for the tip, Sarah!