by Kevin P. Sullivan 18 mins ago

It’s easy to take visual effects for granted when they look as good as they do in “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.” There are literally moments in that film when you forget that the character on screen was created by hundreds of artists.

But back when the series originally started, it was up to makeup artists to do their best to make actors, like Roddy McDowell below, look like believable talking apes.

It seems primitive now, but looking back at how far effects have come gives us a better appreciation of the photorealistic creatures we can see on the screen in “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.”

“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” opens in theaters on July 11.

by Craig Flaster 20 mins ago

Reese Witherspoon’s new movie “Wild” is a journey in more ways than one.

The star optioned the rights to Cheryl Strayed’s memoir “Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail” before it was even published in 2010, and its taken four years to get from print to screen.

It’s appropriate, because Strayed, who Witherspoon plays in the adaptation, undertook a pretty long journey herself, walking 1100 miles in order to cope with her mother’s death.

Now we finally have the trailer to the film, and it looks pretty intense, as Witherspoon treks across beautiful but treacherous landscapes and flashes back to her life before. It doesn’t hurt that the movie’s directed by Jean-Marc Vallé, who last did “Dallas Buyers Club,” which earned Oscars for its two stars. Could Witherspoon be on track for another Oscar? Check out the trailer for “Wild” and let us know what you think.

“Wild” opens December 5, 2014.

by Tina Smithers 11 mins ago

If you thought having not one but two kids was a handful, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.

Not only is Kailyn Lowry-Marroquin balancing baby Lincoln and four-year-old Isaac while being a wife to her husby Javi, the “Teen Mom 2” star recently tweeted that she’s headed back to school! Seriously, where’s your cape at, Kail? Because you’re clearly Superwoman.

Bring on the highlighters and flashcards! While Kail didn’t disclose where she’ll be studying or her intended major, we know if she puts even half as much energy into school as she did with her bestselling book “Pride Over Pity” (!!!), she’ll graduate with honors.

+ Got any study tips for Kail as she heads back to school? Leave ‘em in the comments, and catch “Teen Mom 2″ when it returns next Wednesday at 10/9c!

Photo: Michele Crowe

by Kat Rosenfield 20 mins ago

Although we’re still amassing crying gifs to convey our feelings about the impending Gosling-Mendes progeny, it is nevertheless not lost on the MTV staff that this news equals the perfect chance to take the Ryan Gosling memery to a whole new level.

So, in addition to combing google images for “emotional wreckage, animated,” let’s just all imagine what it might be like if Ryan Gosling’s “Hey girl” meme made the jump to fatherhood along with him. Below, a selection of sweet sentiments from Baby Goose to his maybe-daughter. (If it’s a boy, we’ll just have to change all our headers to “Hey baby,” instead.)

by Christina Garibaldi 28 mins ago

Selena Gomez sure has a lot to say on her Instagram these days.

Just one day after (seemingly) off-again boyfriend Justin Bieber posted photos that showed him snuggling up to model Yovanna Ventura, Selena posted two mysterious messages on the site that could be interpreted to be about her relationship with Justin.

The first post was a quote from an interview Zoe Saldana did recently for Fashion magazine, on the most valuable life lesson she has learned. “The moment you compare yourself [to another woman], it weakens you, and I’m not here for that. Once you know that reality [and] claim your space, your life becomes easier.”

Selena captioned the post, “#zoesaldana #womenempowerment you are all so beautiful the way YOU are. No bigger or smaller. You all inspire me.”

Shortly after that, the “Come & Get It” singer shared another inspirational quote: “Sometimes we expect more from others because we’d be willing to do that much for them.”

Definitely an interesting choice of words for Selena considering what’s been going on between her and Justin. Just a few weeks ago, the two appeared to be back together as they were spotted going to the movies, the zoo and attending a friend’s birthday party.

Earlier this week, though, Selena got emotional on Instagram once again, posting inspirational messages from fans and a text message from an unknown sender who said they wanted to remind Selena “how special you are.”

But the good news for ...

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by Marty Beckerman 36 mins ago

When it comes to information about sex, we’re more likely to believe a doctor than our friends. The only problem is that we’re more likely to actually ask our friends — at least they don’t charge a copay to explain the difference between cold sores and canker sores, even if they mix up which one is herpes.

Fortunately, Mental Floss just posted a video with Dr. Aaron Carroll, author of the charmingly titled book “Don’t Put That in There!: And 69 Other Sex Myths Debunked,” to explain the top 20 misconceptions people have in the bedroom. Watch, learn, and maybe correct your gullible friends next time:

by Emilee Lindner 6 mins ago

This video of a hedgehog’s birthday party will have you making cutesy sound effects. But get it together. You’re an adult. It’s just a hedgehog. With her two hamster friends. And they’re just eating the tiniest little cake with precious hats in front of an adorable Happy Birthday banner. Pull yourself up, man. It’s not a big deal.

But look at the hamsters eating the pink-frosting confection. “Blaugh blaugh blaugghghhhh.”

And look at the hedgehog with its cute lil prickles chowing down. “Nom nom nom. Merh merh merh.”

And look at her knock down the cake at the end like that baker hadn’t spent hours preparing it. “Who me?”

I’m dedicating this one to Jessica Simpson and Little Mix’s Perrie Edwards, who are both celebrating birthdays today. May you both have joyous parties like this one – pink frosting included.

by Shaunna Murphy 8 mins ago

There were a lot of wonderful, surprising, and justly deserved moments during the 2014 Emmy Award nominations on July 10. Lena Headey finally getting recognized for her excellent work on “Game of Thrones”? Priceless. Nods for Andre Braugher, “Silicon Valley,” and half the cast of “Veep”? Huzzah! And don’t even get us started on newcomer Allison Tolman’s recognition for “Fargo” — that woman deserves every bit of high praise she gets.

However, as per the usual, it quickly became apparent that Emmy voters don’t seem to watch nearly as much television as we do — or, at the very least, they’re a couple of seasons behind. There were multiple glaring omissions and head-scratching nominations, but these three are the absolute most sinful of the sinful snubs, and the reason why your entire Twitter feed is buying pitchforks right now:

Tatiana Maslany

BBC America

It used to be that winning the Critics’ Choice Television Award for Best Actress was enough to secure an Emmy nom — call us biased, but the hundreds of critics who judge this sort of thing for a living often know a thing or two about what they’re talking about. But Tatiana Maslany, who played seven distinct characters on “Orphan Black” this season — five of them being fully actualized, nuanced human beings — was snubbed in the Best Actress category. Again.

We’re not saying that playing multiple clones — which, yes, can sometimes (Tony) seem like a pure showcase for Maslany’s talent — is deserving ...

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by Kat Rosenfield 6 mins ago

Robbie Amell might have been stripped of his status as a Tomorrow Person, but as backup options go, a coveted membership in the Justice League isn’t so bad. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Amell will be back at the CW before the year is out, playing the role of Ronnie Raymond in “Arrow” spinoff “The Flash.”

For those not in the know, Ronnie Raymond ultimately makes up one half of the nuclear-fused DC superhero known as Firestorm, whose body houses the consciousness of both Ronnie and brilliant physicist Martin Stein. However, it’s not clear as of yet where his transformation will fit into the “Flash” timeline; Amell’s role is described as a “major recurring” one beginning in episode three, where he’ll be introduced as the fiance of Caitlin Snow. (There’s also no mention yet of anyone having been cast to play Martin Stein, which means that he might never show up at all, but which also means that it’s not too late for them to get Eugene Levy in the role.)

Meanwhile, Robbie’s cousin Stephen Amell, who plays the titular character in “Arrow,” sweetened the casting news with a tweet welcoming his relative to Central City’s most elite club.

“The Flash” premieres on the CW October 7 at 8pm.