HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — John Travolta returns to the big screen this weekend in the action thriller From Paris With Love.

A personal aide to the U.S. Ambassador in France, James Reese (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) has an enviable life in Paris and a beautiful French girlfriend, but his real passion is his side job as a low-level operative for the CIA. All James wants is to become a bona fide agent and see some real action. So when he’s offered his first senior-level assignment, he can't believe his good luck – until he meets his new partner, special agent Charlie Wax (Travolta).

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — Get ready for the battle of the exes.

James Cameron's Avatar and Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker each racked up nine nominations to lead the field of contenders for the upcoming Academy Awards, organizers announced Tuesday.

The former spouses will go head-to-head in both the best picture and best director categories. They'll face a crowded field for best picture, which features 10 contenders instead of the usual five for the first time since 1943. The extended category also includes An Education, The Blind Side, District 9, Inglourious Basterds, Precious, A Serious Man, Up and Up in the Air.

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Kristen Bell and Josh Duhamel team up on the big screen this weekend in Disney's new romantic comedy When in Rome.

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — The stars stepped out Friday night for the 15th annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards held at the Hollywood Palladium in Hollywood, Calif.

The Hurt Locker, a low-budget indie drama about an American bomb-disposal unit in Iraq, won best picture and best director honors for Kathryn Bigelow at the star-studded event. Other notable winners included James Cameron's sci-fi epic Avatar, which won six times, including best action movie.