Scarlett Johannson has replaced Emily Blunt in the upcoming Iron Man 2, according to Deadline Hollywood.

Johannson will be playing Russian spy and possible Tony Stark love interest Black Widow. Which means the nearly 44-year-old Robert Downey Jr. will be sucking face with an actress 20 years his junior.

To be fair, Blunt's only about a year and a half older. But somehow she comes across as more woman than jailbait, no?

(Oh yeah: Mickey Rourke's definitely in, too.)

That's what The Wrestler star told Barbara Walters in her pre-Oscar special last night, so don't feel too bad that Rourke lost the Best Actor race to Sean Penn.

And if you've yet to re-fall in love with Rourke like the rest of America, watch these clips. The first is his interview with Walters. (How I wanted to smack her when she interrupted to underline and italicize his perfectly clear and very sad "I didn't want to be here.") The second is his joyful, foul Spirit Awards acceptance speech.

The Oscar would have been nice, but I'm guessing that Rourke isn't too down on himself today.

I'm always excited about the Academy Awards -- yeah, there are still a few of us left out there -- but I'm guessing there won't be a whole lot of thrilling and/or shocking moments this year. (Most any upset would go thusly: Oooh, the frontrunner didn't win! Which means...someone or -thing completely undeserving did.)

But for the record, here are my predictions anyway. And tune in at 8:30 when, give or take some DVR-shifting, I'll be live-blogging the entire ceremony. Or at least for as long as my cold medicine holds out.

BEST PICTURE
WALL*E. Not nominated? The Dark Knight. Sigh! How about The Wrestler? OK, I'll stop. It's gonna be Slumdog Millionaire, though between the five that were chosen I loved Milk the most.

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An odd thing occurred to me as I was watching the 66th Annual Golden Globe Awards last night -- I wasn't all that excited. Maybe it was because I was tired from an evening spent running around. Maybe it was because Thursday's Critics Choice Awards had sapped some of my I LOVE MOVIES! gush.

(Seriously. I expected to FF through it underwhelmed, a la the common man's trophyfest, the People's Choice Awards. But I was enraptured, unable to skip a single "thank you" or moment of the brilliant Mingle Cam.)

But it's probably just because the Hollywood Foreign Press has terrible taste.

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The Washington, D.C. Area Film Critics Association today announced its pick of Fox Searchlight's Slumdog Millionaire as Best Film of 2008, additionally awarding it Best Director (Danny Boyle), Best Breakthrough Performance (Dev Patel), and Best Adapted Screenplay (Simon Beaufoy).

Other notable nods include a posthumous Best Supporting Actor win for Heath Ledger, whose creepy, mesmerizing Joker in The Dark Knight more than compensated for Two-Face's limp storyline and Batman's phlegmy growl, and Best Actor going to Mickey Rourke as The Wrestler's charming titular fuck-up.

The rest:

Best Actress: Meryl Streep (Doubt)
Best Supporting Actress: Rosemarie DeWitt (Rachel Getting Married)
Best Original Screenplay: Jenny Lumet (Rachel Getting Married)
Best Animated: WALL-E
Best Documentary: Man on Wire
Best Foreign Film: Let the Right One In
Best Ensemble: Doubt
Best Art Direction: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

The Washington, D.C. Area Critics' Association got to hobnob with director Darren Aronofsky and actress Marisa Tomei at the Ritz-Carlton Georgetown last night, at a prescreening reception to promote The Wrestler, out Dec. 26.

The film is a surprisingly touching story about a washed-up pro wrestler that stars Tomei and an Oscar-worthy Mickey Rourke. Fans of Aronofsky's, whose previous work includes Pi, Requiem for a Dream, and The Fountain, may be disappointed to find that The Wrestler is...absolutely straightforward. Linear. No trippiness, no confusion. (Drugs, though...there are drugs.)

But it's a stellar movie, a standout in a year that's seen far too few. Here are a few fun facts from the postfilm Q&A:

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