Livewire

Scarlett Johansson,the actress who’s known more for low-key performances in films like Lost in Translation or Vicky Cristina Barcelona is in fighting form to reprise her role as S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Natasha Romanoff,a.k.a. Black Widow,in The Avengers. Talking about the new fighting skills she had to learn for the film, Johansson says,“We incorporated this Wushu style (of fighting) when the Widow wields a huge alien gun. That was new and really challenging. I had to learn how to spin it and move it. It was hard because I’d hit myself with it all the time. And it’s heavy. You learn (by using) a broom handle so you’re like,‘Ah,I got it down,I’ve mastered it.’ Then all of a sudden they’re like,‘Here’s the prop’ and you’re like,‘What? This thing is 20 lbs!’ I was so terribly battered.”

Gotye,the 31-year-oldAustralian singer who’s conquered the world with his heartfelt pop tune Somebody That I Used To Know,is eager to become someone fans will always know for his “peculiar” sound. Gotye has enjoyed a rapid rise in fame for the song of a failed relationship that features New Zealand artist Kimbra. But his offbeat music and rocket ride to stardom has led many to consider whether his career will be short-lived. He doesn’t think so. For Gotye,whose real name Wouter “Wally” De Backer,the smash hit song stems from 10 years of hard work starting,like many others,in front of a home computer. He has three albums behind him,is playing ever bigger gigs and there is more music he wants to create. “What’s happening around the world is unexpected,but still a gradual move forward,” Gotye said.

Greta Gerwig,the 28-year-old actress who made her mainstream debut in 2011 in No Strings Attached,will now be seen in Lola Versus and Woody Allen’s romantic comedy,To Rome With Love. In Lola,her first turn in the title role in a studio movie,Gerwig plays a downtown grad student who is dumped a few weeks before her wedding,and must learn what it means to be unattached in New York as she rounds 30. It’s certainly not an untapped subject,but Gerwig’s signature style helps divert it from conventional romantic comedy. “I’m slutty,but I’m a good person,” Lola proclaims plaintively. I had tons of trepidation. I was scared because it was a bigger movie. I didn’t want it to feel like we’re just a bunch of kids who were given a lot of money,” she said.