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Issue Date: December 25, 2005
What's up since their cover stories?
It's fun to look back at the celebs who graced our 2005 covers and see how far they have come.
By Frappa Stout and Elissa Petruzzi
Steven Spielberg had another one-two punch year: He followed a huge summer blockbuster ("War of the Worlds") with an Oscar-friendly heavyweight ("Munich") -- just like he did back in 1993 with "Jurassic Park" and "Schindler's List." It's a wonder that the director has time for video games, but, as he told us in June, he's an addict: "I play them on the set, at home or at the office between meetings." This fall, he signed on to develop three new games for Electronic Arts. Can you imagine the movie spin-off possibilities?
Alley worked hard to drop the weight she had gained.
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... Kirstie Alley faced her demons last spring with her self-mocking Showtime series, "Fat Actress." When we talked in February, the tabloid-tortured Alley broke down her pain, pound by pound: " 'Skinny' for me would be under 125. 'Beefed up' would be 160, 170. Anything above that is 'fat.' " In November, Alley told Oprah that, by dieting, she had dropped 55 pounds, hitting the "beefed up" mark. Her show's future was uncertain at press time, but Alley wants to keep filming, "fat" actress or not. ... Playing a wannabe NASCAR racer in summer's "Herbie: Fully Loaded," Lindsay Lohan gained a reputation on the set for having a real lead foot. "She was ready to do doughnuts around the building," a crew member told us. Since then, Lohan is still getting attention for her, ahem, troubled driving. She had her second car crash in less than five months in October. ... Some people think Jake Gyllenhaal was brave for playing a gay cowboy in "Brokeback Mountain." But, as he told us, he once turned down the role. "At 16, I was like, absolutely no way," he said. Good for him that he had a change of heart: He now could get an Oscar nod.
Zhang isn't interested in Hollywood parties.
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... Actress Ziyi Zhang told USA WEEKEND contributing editor Lisa Ling that she hates Hollywood parties: "They're so superficial. ... All everyone does is get drunk. I'd rather stay home." The "Memoirs of a Geisha" star may have to break out of her shell: The epic film is on the Academy Award short list, and we all know how much Oscar loves parties. ... When we dubbed actress Naomi Watts "Hollywood's newest scream queen" in March, we were talking about her roles in "The Ring Two" and this month's "King Kong." But the Aussie star said she warrants the title in real life, too: "In my work, I try to make myself fearless. But with everything else, things scare me all the time." It can't help that she is now said to be dating actor Liev Schreiber, aka creepy Cotton Weary from, yes, the "Scream" movies.
Dunn and O'Neal are both still giving back.
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... At 5-foot-9 and 180 pounds, Warrick Dunn is a normal-sized guy. But sharing our 2005 Most Caring Athletes cover with 7-foot-1 Shaquille O'Neal in September, Dunn looked downright diminutive. Still, the Atlanta Falcons' running back gets it done, both on and off the field. His charity helps single mothers buy new homes, and, as of last month, he averaged nearly 100 rushing yards per game.
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