Press junkets for Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous - Audio

Download audio interviews with Dietrich Bader, Regina King and Sandra Bullock from the press junkets for Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous!

Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous audio interviews and Junket Coverage by World Famous Cinema Haustersute Paulington (he'll like your film for nothing more than a pat on the back).

Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous picks up a mere few weeks after the first film ended. Trying to acclimate herself back into the undercover world of the FBI isn't as easy as it looks for Gracie Hart. On her first mission since the Beauty Pageant that won her copious amounts of attention, Hart is recognized and the assignment is blown. A bank robbery sting goes horribly haywire, and it comes to the FBI's attention that Gracie can no longer function as an agent. So, she is turned into a media liaison for the organization, acting as its sweetheart role model. This is all fine and dandy until friend and former Pageant winner Cheryl is kidnapped and held for ransom. Taking a cue from Axel Foley, Ms. Hart teams up with her bodyguard, Sam Fuller, and the two set out to crack the case on their own in what essentially turns into a female buddy picture along the lines of Lethal Weapon.

The film's charm rests heavily on the shoulders of its star, the always-likable Sandra Bullock. Teaming her with Regina King instead of some faceless male love interest takes this cop dramedy out of the realm of the ordinary, and gives us something extraordinarily rare. It's not often we see a working relationship between two women that turns into a strong friendship full of camaraderie and compassion. What could have been another lame sequel turns out to be a worthwhile follow-up that actually accentuates its predecessor, instead of tainting it.

I was recently invited to attend the Miss Congeniality 2 junket by the wonderful people over at Warner Brothers. I got to meet everyone involved with the production (except for the grips; tee-hee). Being a fan of the Drew Carey Show, I was most excited about getting to chat with Dietrich Bader. In the film, he plays an overtly homosexual image consultant, in charge of keeping up appearances. Namely that of Gracie Hart. There comes a moment late in the film where Bader's caricature orders an expensive Cosmopolitan in an Airport Bar and then leaves it lingering on a table without nary a sip. I asked him why? Why order a drink and not even taste it. Bader explained that woofing it down would go against Joel's beliefs. It wouldn't seem polite. It would come as an undignified move. Asked if he'd leave a drink sitting untouched out of character, Dietrich exclaimed, "No." The conversation then turned to his taking over the role Michael Cain originated in the first film, and the dissolution of the Drew Carey Show. Baders also told a very funny story about how people constantly come up to him in the airport and tell him that they love him. "It happens all the time. Before I get on a plane, at least five people come up and give me a hug, and tell me how much they love me. That's a nice thing to have happen before you get on a flight."

Also on hand were the film's two major stars, Sandra Bullock and Regina King. They discussed having to fight each other in real life, which they do a lot of in the movie. Regina argues that she'd win, but Sandy sees it as a tie. The two actresses went on in great detail about how this film could set up a buddy-franchise in the realm of Lethal Weapon. And Regina discussed her stunt training at length. Both girls were approachable, and friendly. Their open demeanor made it a pleasure to sit with them for twenty minutes apiece. Regina is not the rough and tumble girl she portrays on screen, but a beautiful actress with thick upper arms. And Bullock presented herself as the friendly girl-next-door we've all come to love.

(Note: This particular junket was overflowing with journalists. The room these interviews were recorded in was particularly overcrowded.)

For Sandra Bullock, nothing personal

By Donna Freydkin, USA TODAY
NEW YORK — Don't even try delving into Sandra Bullock's personal life.

"Eighty percent of what I read is absolutely fabricated and hilarious," Bullock says.
By James White, Warner Bros.

The actress has been dating tattooed Monster Garage host Jesse James, 35, but you'll never catch her spilling the beans about her relationship.

"Anything about personal stuff — people know me well enough to know that I will dodge that question fast," she says, laughing. "You get numb after a while to hearing how many times you're getting married and are pregnant and you're with someone either you've never met or you know socially.

"The more you deny it, the more they think you're lying. Eighty percent of what I read is absolutely fabricated and hilarious."

To keep the craziness at bay, the never-married star, 40, lives in Austin and New York City with her two mutts, which travel with her everywhere. It's part of her effort to live as normal a life as possible, says Bullock, who gave L.A. the heave-ho years ago because she couldn't "live anyplace where there's not a great diverse mix of human beings. I didn't want my personality to become about what I did or didn't have, and it was getting that way."

Now, Bullock emerges mostly to promote her movies, including Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous, opening today. It's the sequel to the 2000 hit that earned $106.8 million and starred Bullock as Gracie Hart, a klutzy FBI agent who becomes an unlikely star after saving the Miss United States pageant from a bomb attack.

In Congeniality 2, Gracie cleans up and becomes the glam mouthpiece of the FBI — until her pal, the reigning Miss United States, is kidnapped and Gracie investigates her disappearance.

In the sequel, Bullock gets to tackle Dolly Parton in one mistaken-identity scene — and dress up as a Vegas showgirl. It was a rare opportunity to do "good comedy, and I'm not about to let that pass me up," the actress says.

Her favorite scene?

"The old lady, for the obvious reasons," she says, referring to the full disguise she dons to play a grandmother who pretends to enter a retirement home. Bullock loved "getting dressed up as an 83-year-old woman and going, 'Oh, so that's what I'm going to look like. Not bad.' "

Bullock should have plenty of time ahead of her before worrying about being put out to pasture. The actress is active behind the scenes; she produces the TV series George Lopez and movies including 2002's Two Weeks Notice and Congeniality 2.

Her latest challenge? Playing reclusive To Kill a Mockingbird author Harper Lee in Every Word Is True.

"It's really tricky and scary when you're somehow representing an individual who is such an enigma and has created such a huge impact in the literary community," Bullock says.

When it comes to appearance, Bullock says, she is happy with herself.

"I'm a big girl. Every human being has cellulite," she says, noshing on popcorn. "I'm active and I'm manic and I'm high-energy. I like my body. It's a good thing where I am in my head with my body."

Being around her, you believe it. Bullock is giggly, with an infectious energy and ready chuckle. She laughs when she is asked whether she has had work done on her face: "Two months' worth. Isn't that awesome?"

She doesn't fret if less-than-flattering shots of her appear in the tabloids.

"It's nice to see a celebrity looking like (garbage). Guess what? That's what we look like, 98% of the time. It's not pretty. It's always when I roll out of bed and grab the dogs. But I figure, keep expectations really low."

Sandra Bullock bullish about Spiderbait

Claire Sutherland
18th March, 2005

AUSTRALIAN band Spiderbait were personally chosen by Sandra Bullock for a fight scene soundtrack in her new film Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous.

In Sydney yesterday, Bullock – who starred in and produced the film – declared Spiderbait's cover version of classic Black Betty "rocked".
The song was used in a scene in which Bullock's character, an FBI agent, beats up a pair of kidnappers.

"If something works well the whole scene comes alive and without that song I don't think the scene would have been what it was. And it rocked," she said.

"We women need our big bar fight scenes and if we're going to injure ourselves doing all this stunt work we've got to be able to have that rockin' music that guys always have."

In the first Miss Congeniality, Bullock played a tomboy FBI agent working undercover at a beauty pageant. Yesterday, Bullock, 40, denied she has had any cosmetic surgery.

"The answer is no, but it's so good today, I could be lying and you'd never know," she said.

Hollywood churned out homogenised versions of the ideal woman, she said.

"I look at these great actresses who are unique and different looking, and within a year there's a hair highlighting process that seems to happen where we all go a little blonder. No one ever goes dark," she said.

"There's sort of a grooming process and a homogenising that takes place where everyone starts to look the same. We all get capped by the same doctor."

Bullock said she planned to accept growing old.

"We're all going to get old and fat, and everything's going to slide but I'm going to be really comfortable when I'm old. Still feel good, still feel sexy and healthy," she said.

Miss Congeniality 2 opens in Australia next Thursday.

Sandra Bullock's Aussie pick

By Jonathon Moran

HOLLYWOOD star Sandra Bullock hand-picked a song by Australian band Spiderbait for her latest film, Miss Congeniality 2 - Armed and Dangerous.

Spiderbait's cover of Leadbelly's Black Betty features in a fighting scene in the film and on the motion picture soundtrack.
"Without that song, the scene wouldn't be what it was and it rocks,'' Bullock, who also produced the film, said in Sydney today before attending its Australian premiere.

"The song just laid in perfectly and it was one of those moments where the gates of heaven open, thanks to Spiderbait, who rock.''

The three musicians who make up Spiderbait - bassist Janet English, drummer Kram Maher and guitarist Damian "Whitt" Whittey - all hail from the small NSW town of Finley.

They got together in the early 1990s and built up a strong following through touring and the release of their first label album, The Unfinished Spanish Galleon of Finley Lake.

Their fifth album, Tonight Alright, was released last year, featuring Black Betty.

That song put Spiderbait back in the ARIA charts, sitting at number one for three weeks.

For Miss Congeniality 2, the song provides the music for a scene where Bullock's character, FBI agent Gracie Hart, gets in a fight with another agent, Sam Fuller (Regina King).

"It is hard when you have that many elements to sort oof tie together and one song is supposed to represent all of those things,'' Bullock said of choosing the right music for the film.

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While choosing the soundtrack to Miss Congeniality 2, the sequel to the hit 2000 comedy Miss Congeniality, Bullock worked with music supervisor John Houlihan.

"You literally sit in a room with stacks of music, from old-school to new bands,'' she said.

"As soon as something works well, the whole scene comes alive.''

It is not the first time Spiderbait has gained exposure in the US.

The band's song Shazam featured in an episode of Sex in the City last year when Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica-Parker) had to deal with a case of "sweaty knickers'' on the catwalk.

Spiderbait songs have also been used for films such as Ten Things I Hate About You, Ice Age and Sugar and Spice.

Speaking about Spiderbait's renewed successes, Janet English said the group was just enjoying the ride.

``It has been an incredible year,'' English said recently.

"We have just been riding it. We didn't have any kind of grand plan and it has always been a bit of a strange trip and here we are."

Sandra Bullock light on her feet at this Congeniality premiere

Associated Press
LONDON
The world premiere of Sandra Bullock's new film, Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous, was held in Leicester Square, with former co-star Hugh Grant among her guests.
'The last time I was here I fell into the premiere, and I figured I had to redeem myself,' Bullock said Wednesday night, explaining the decision to hold the world premiere in London. 'I thought if I walked in normally this time it would make up for it.'
She made a memorable entrance at the British premiere of the first Miss Congeniality film five years ago when she famously tripped on the red carpet outside the theater.
In the first movie, Bullock played an accident-prone FBI agent who went undercover at a beauty pageant. For the sequel, she goes undercover again, this time in Las Vegas.
Grant, Bullock's co-star in 2002's Two Weeks Notice, arrived at the Vue theater in central London without his girlfriend, Jemima Khan.
'He's a great friend and a great support. He's fantastic,' said Bullock, dressed in jeans and a black Chanel coat embroidered with pearls. 'And he takes a blinkingly good picture. He's disgustingly photogenic.'
Miss Congeniality 2 also stars Regina King, Ernie Hudson and William Shatner.

Sandra Bullock believes old age look is accurate

Hollywood beauty SANDRA BULLOCK was unperturbed at appearing twice her age in her latest movie - as she believes the look was spot-on.
The 40-year-old actress credits make-up artists on comedy MISS CONGENIALITY 2: ARMED AND FABULOUS with giving her an insight into how she'll appear as an octogenarian, but was disappointed not to look as good as her grandmother.
Bullock says, 'I didn't see my grandmother when I looked at myself in the old-age make-up. My grandmother was far better looking.
'But I have a feeling that this is what I'm going to look like. Face it, wrinkles were all in the right places.
'However, I hope I'm still going to have my own teeth at that age because I have good dental hygiene. But apart from the hair, which I would never wear like that, it's pretty much how I'm going to look.'

Sandra Bullock questions concept of marriage

Sandra Bullock has quashed all rumours of her plans to get married to boyfriend Jesse James, questioning the idea of marriage and labelling it as an overhyped concept.
Producer Jesse James is reported to have proposed to the 40-year-old actress, only to hear Bullock insist, that marriage was not on her cards and that the idea of it was certainly not the pinnacle of her life.
'Why is marriage the pinnacle for everyone? People get married for the wrong reasons. We need to start looking at different packages, whether it's living together, or being with six partners or dedicating your life to taking care of flowers', Femalefirst quoted the actress as saying.
She insists happiness is not going to come in the same package one's next-door-neighbour has.

Sandra Bullock with Hugh Grant at Miss Congeniality 2 World Premiere

Hollywood actress Sandra Bullock invited old friend Hugh Grant along to the premiere of her latest film tonight.

Bullock was in London for the screening of Miss Congeniality 2.

And she made sure Grant, her co-star in the 2002 film Two Weeks’ Notice, was on the guest list.

“He’s a great friend and a great support, he’s fantastic,” she said.

“And he takes a blinkingly good picture. He’s disgustingly photogenic.”

Grant arrived at the Vue cinema in Leicester Square without current girlfriend Jemima Khan.

Bullock, 40, made a memorable entrance at the UK premiere of the first Miss Congeniality film five years ago when she famously tripped on the red carpet.

Explaining the decision to hold the sequel’s world premiere in London, she said: “The last time I was here I fell into the premiere and I figured I had to redeem myself.

“I thought if I walked in normally this time it would make up for it.”

The Speed star wore jeans and a black Chanel coat embroidered with pearls.

In the first film she played an accident-prone FBI agent who went undercover at a beauty pageant.

For the sequel she goes undercover again, this time in Las Vegas.

The film, which goes on nationwide release on March 25, co-stars Star Trek actor William Shatner.

Celebrities at the premiere included Eurovision hopeful Javine and model Nell McAndrew.

Sandra Bullock is Armed and Fabulous

March 7, 2005
Five years after she captured America's heart in 'Miss Congeniality,' sassy SANDRA BULLOCK is back for more hilarious and heartwarming action in the eagerly awaited sequel, 'Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous' -- and ET has her talking about the fun flick as well as her real-life romance!

"Oh gosh, the 'M' word," she says to our MARY HART about the rumors of her getting married to boyfriend JESSE JAMES, host of the hit show "Monster Garage." "I'm just lucky to be able to wake up every day and have what I have. I am better cared for than I ever thought I would be -- better than I thought I deserved!"

The new comedy, in theaters March 24, picks up shortly after the first 'Congeniality' left off, with FBI agent Gracie Hart (Sandra) having successfully disarmed a major threat while working undercover as a contestant in the Miss United States Pageant. Now a media celebrity on the talk-show circuit as "the face of the FBI," Gracie travels around with a personal stylist (DIEDRICH BADER) and has embraced her all-new persona -- perhaps a bit too much.

Sandra tells Mary that she can relate to both sides of Gracie. "I have to carry myself a certain way the minute I walk out the door," she says of her public persona. "Because I forget and I unravel and that's when the picture is taken and you're going 'oh my God!'"

"It was a relief to put on that blue suit again -- the men's button-down, the orthopedic shoes; to stand like a guy and pick your teeth if you feel like it," says Sandra about her character's stripping back to basics. "It's really liberating. That's one of the things I like about Gracie -- she doesn't care what people think."

When Gracie's best friends, pageant winner Cheryl Frazier and emcee Stan Fields (the returning HEATHER BURNS and WILLIAM SHATNER), are kidnapped in Las Vegas, Gracie is prompted to go back to her roots and rescue her pals with the help of her new partner, the tough, no-nonsense Sam Fuller (REGINA KING), who thinks that Gracie has become the "mascot" of the FBI -- and a walking Barbie doll to boot.

Sandra and Regina kick some butt in the movie, which the star says wasn't always smooth sailing. "There were a couple of injuries, a couple of owies," she says of the physical scenes. "And it was all Regina's fault," she says with a wink.

Good sport REGIS PHILBIN also makes a cameo appearance in the movie, playing himself on "Live with Regis & Kelly" with his real-life wife, JOY, filling in KELLY RIPA's shoes. In his hilarious scene, Reege sets himself up for a painful moment when Gracie and Sam demonstrate a few self-defense moves -- at his expense!

Find the ET Videos at Sandra Bullock Central
- ET

Sandra Bullock Bullock Battles Love Interest in Miss Congeniality Sequel

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) -- Sandra Bullock says her role as producer, as well as star, helped her get her way when agreeing to do a sequel to her romantic comedy 'Miss Congeniality' for Warner Bros. -- so she cut out the love interest.
In the original hit in 2000, she played an undercover agent who entered a beauty pageant and she falls for a fellow agent played by Benjamin Bratt. Now, five years later, the sequel is more of a female buddy comedy, co-starring a tough cop played by Regina King from 'Ray.'

'It's a testament to Sandy and the fact that she's a hands-on producer that she won her fight with Warner Brothers,' King says to Zap2it.com in an interview on Saturday. 'She said we can do it without falling for a guy. She fought for that. She fought for that to the end.'
Bullock says she didn't think the story should continue as a romantic comedy.
'My love interest was Regina,' Bullock says. 'It's a great love story there and it's about having to face who I was and what I'm not anymore and she has to learn to soften up some of her edges and she's got her journey. I wanted an equal partner in this film to carry this film with me and tell the story.'
'Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous' opens Thursday, March 24.

Miss Congeniality 2 - Win world premiere tickets

The official MC 2 website has been updated with some cool games. Also check out Chris' Famous Sandra Bullock Page for more info and have a chance to win tickets for the world premiere in London until March 6th!

Meet Alex, Kate and Jack

Wonder who Kate, Alex & Jack are? Sandy's character name in Il Mare is "Kate Forster" and Keanu's is "Alex Burnham". "Jack" is the dog the two characters share. Big thanks you to a friend who has seen the script.

Every Word is True Update

Some big name actors are in Central Texas shooting a major motion picture. The movie is called ‘Every Word is True’ and production started Monday in Marlin.
It's a sight even the most seasoned Marlin residents couldn't believe: Sandra Bullock and Toby Jones at the Falls County Courthouse shooting a big Hollywood production.
Marlin Main Street Manager Amanda Jeffers says, “It was our courthouse that attracted them to Marlin. We have a pretty unique courthouse.”
City officials say the production company chose Marlin because of the old-fashioned look of the building.
The movie is a 1960s true story about writer Truman Capote and his relationship with two convicted murders from Kansas who he later writes about in his book ‘In Cold Blood’. Robert Tindle watched the production all morning from his Farm Bureau Insurance business across the street from the courthouse.
Tindle says, “We can hardly get any work done. We're all at the window looking out. We know almost all the extras in the movie.”
About 100 extras were used, many of them Falls County residents. Jerry Bass brought his 1948 fire truck from Mart to be used in the film.
“It's just fun to be involved,” he says. “I've never been in anything like this before.”
Highway 7, the main street through Marlin, was shut down periodically throughout the day. All the focus has city officials smiling all the way to the bank.
“It's good, it's exciting,” Jeffers says. “It brings a lot of people to town.”
They hope all this publicity translates out to future big bucks for Marlin. Production will resume Tuesday, when they will be shooting inside the courthouse.