Who's News: Craig Robinson, Melissa Leo, Julian McMahon, birthdays and more!

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Actor Craig Robinson voices the character Cookie, who "is ready to serve food and kick butt" for the goofy green giant and his ogre buddies, in Shrek Forever After, out May 21. Robinson, 38, says he does "OK" in the kitchen, but don't count on him to be as skilled as his animated alter ego. "I got some recipes that my mom gave me, but I don't cook that often. I wouldn't run out and say, ÔHey, Craig's having a dinner party!' Give me a couple of years."

Being glamorous on-screen isn't a priority for Melissa Leo. In Treme, HBO's series about rebuilding New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, Leo wears just a touch of makeup for her role as a civil rights attorney. "Hollywood makes it hard for us women to feel OK with ourselves," says Leo, 49, who scored an Oscar nomination for 2008's Frozen River. "But I was brought up by a mother who didn't have time for that nonsense. I like to bring reality into women I play. If they're befuddled and confused, so be it. Nobody's perfect. I was never drop-dead gorgeous, so I had nothing to lose."

Can you tell me more about How I Met Your Mother's Alyson Hannigan?

Patricia Kessler, New Albany, Ohio

Hannigan, 36, plays Lily on the CBS hit comedy, but chances are you've seen her on TV before. She's best known for playing the flame-haired lesbian witch, Willow, on Buffy the Vampire Slayer from 1997 to 2003. In 1999, she starred in the hit summer movie American Pie, which spawned a franchise of sequels. In 2006, she showed off her comedy chops as the lead in Date Movie, a parody of sappy romantic comedies. Hannigan married her Buffy co-star Alexis Denisof in 2003, and the couple welcomed their first child, Satyana, in March 2009.

Has ABC canceled Brothers & Sisters?

Jan Galler, Seymour, Wis.

The fourth season's finale is set to air Sunday (10 p.m. ET/PT), and ABC has announced plans to give the Walker family another year to stir up drama. But the show's fifth season will be without one major player. Rob Lowe, who stars as Kitty's (Calista Flockhart) husband, has announced that he will not be returning. And if you still need to catch up on the fourth season, ABC has announced it will be out on DVD on Aug. 31.

Now that the TV series Nip/Tuck is over, what's next for Julian McMahon?

L. Vittorio, Patchogue, N.Y.

McMahon, 41, has his sights set on the big screen. In October, he'll appear in the action thriller Red, which has an ensemble cast that includes Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman and Helen Mirren. McMahon is also set to shoot a dramatic film called Faces in the Crowd, opposite Milla Jovovich. If you can't wait until his movies are out, mark your calendar for the DVD release of Nip/Tuck: The Sixth and Final Season on June 8.

Which American Idol contestants made it in the entertainment world but didn't win on the show?

Ken Ingenito, Stony Point, N.Y.

On American Idol, losing is sometimes as good, if not better, than winning — just ask Academy Award winner Jennifer Hudson (Season 3), who nabbed the 2007 Oscar for Dreamgirls. Season 5's Chris Daughtry came in fourth but has the third-highest record sales of any Idol contestant, just behind winners Kelly Clarkson (Season 1) and Carrie Underwood (Season 4). Season 2 runner-up Clay Aiken's debut album, Measure of a Man, went multiplatinum, and he has since had a star turn on Broadway.