Upon the news, the publicist for Bullock, who has a home in New Orleans, released a statement:

Ms. Bullock was originally contacted through her attorney to be a part of the PSA in order to promote awareness of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. At no time was she made aware that any organization, oil company or otherwise had influence over Women of the Storm or its message. We have immediately asked for her participation in the PSA be removed until the facts can be determined.

Anne Milling, founder of Women of the Storm, denies any funding from oil companies and says she hopes Bullock will rejoin the video once "she listens to the facts and understands that Women of the Storm has had no connection or taken money from oil companies."

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Like a good sport, Bullock showed up to last night's MTV Movie Awards wearing a back-revealing black sequined number and some serious platform heels (that some might liken to a type of shoe worn by another type of female performer). It was a costume of triumph, a "look at me now" getup. She looked gorgeous and graceful as Johansson and past costars Bradley Cooper and Betty White called her up on stage to accept the award for her "riveting and diverse contributions to the film industry." She was charming and funny when she told White: "I want your life. I'm serious, I want your life. I want your life." Although, per the usual, White stole the show by interrupting with a piece of advise: "Honey, don't ever wear that dress backward."

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James, whose seemingly picture-perfect marriage to America's sweetheart took an abrupt nosedive earlier this year with the revelations of his grandly ill-advised infidelities, is the subject of an entire edition of Tuesday's "Nightline" (apparently there's only so much of a public appetite for oil spills), a lengthy preview of which aired today on "Good Morning America." Speaking out directly for the first time since his marital combustion, James repeated a familiar list of platitudes from the Philanderer's Guide to Public Contrition, admitting, "I lied," and, "I deserve everything bad that's coming my way."

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Mabrey: "You cheated on your wife."

James: "Yup."

Probing, illuminating! How will we survive until it airs Tuesday on "Nightline"? Presumably, there will be a little more emotional insight in the full interview, although his declaration that he's "the most hated man in the world" suggests a certain lack of perspective.

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In the story, Bullock confirms that she's filed for divorce from James and is the new mother of 3-and-a-half month-old Louis Bardo Bullock. She says she and James initiated the adoption process four years ago and brought the child, who was born in New Orleans, home together in January. Bullock is finalizing the adoption as a single parent.

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"Yes, I have filed for divorce," the 45-year-old Oscar-winning actress said in an interview with People. "I'm sad and I am scared."

Bullock and James, 41, began the adoption process four years ago, the report said, and brought 3 1/2-month-old Louis Bardo Bullock home in January but decided to keep the news to themselves until after the Academy Awards.

In the interview, Bullock said she is savoring her new maternal status.

"You wake up, you feed, you burp, you play, you do laundry," she said. "I'm still in that stage where I'm just amazed with him and at life."

"All I said when I met him was, 'Oh, there you are.' It was like he had always been a part of our lives."

The baby, called Louie, is named after jazz great Louis Armstrong, who had particularly touched her with his signature song, "What a Wonderful World," said Bullock. The child was born in New Orleans, a city where Bullock and James had both spent time after Katrina.

Bullock said she got the call that a baby might be available for adoption during what she described as "the media craziness of the awards season."

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Speaking of, Radar reports that McGee returned to the stage at San Diego's Pure Platinum strip club Friday night. She worked the pole and performed lap dances for $100 a pop. One of Radar's intrepid video journalists procured some one-on-one time with the tabloid star and recorded the whole thing in the style of P.O.V. porn. Now all you folks at home can pretend Sandra Bullock's husband's mistress is crawling on your lap and humping your knee.

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OK, so he doesn't go so far as to say that personal ambition is responsible for Sandra Bullock winning an Oscar and, you know, "losing" her husband. He doesn't frame it outright as a uniquely feminine compromise. He doesn't even touch on the absurd "Oscar curse" buzz. He instead poses some "philosophic" questions -- "Would you take that as a deal? Would you exchange a tremendous professional triumph for a severe personal blow?" -- and then scolds the "absolutely crazy" readers who answered in the affirmative. (Yet more proof of the masochism of people who read David Brooks.) But, let's be real, he's chosen to write about a piece of pop culture gossip that has largely been talked about in terms of a woman ultimately trading love for her career. And promulgating the work-home dilemma is Brooks' bread and butter: He believes that women are happier in the domestic sphere. So, I can't help suspecting that there is a stay-at-home undercurrent in his argument.

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A week and change after Sandra Bullock won her Academy Award for best actress, Michelle McGee -- tattoo model, webcam girl and occasional fan of Gestapo garb -- spilled to InTouch magazine about her liaisons with Mr. Sandy B., Jesse James. The story was tawdry stuff: While Bullock was filming "The Blind Side," McGee claims she was getting it on for nearly a year with with the stunt-loving motorcycle entrepreneur, who turned out to be so impressively endowed she nicknamed him "The Vanilla Gorilla."

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Consider: In addition to Bullock and Winslet, Jane Wyman, Reese Witherspoon, Halle Berry, Hilary Swank and Helen Hunt all got divorced within a couple years of winning Academy Awards -- and Julia Roberts broke up with Benjamin Bratt not long after she did. (Also, although Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick have been married for over a decade, and she's never been nominated for an Oscar, LaPorte would like you to know that Broderick was "glumly trailing his wife" on the red carpet this year, as she "was fawned over by the paparazzi and fashion police." Beverly Hills psychiatrist Carole Lieberman agrees that "He was looking miserable the whole time" and her success "may well doom that marriage." So there's that.) Since at least three of these break-ups famously involved the male partners cheating -- and we all know that never happens unless a guy is feeling threatened by a woman's success -- what more evidence do we need that the fundamental problem in each relationship was men suffering "the ultimate castration"? (Aside from, you know, actual castration, which I imagine would feel somewhat more definitive to the man experiencing it.)

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James told People magazine in a statement Thursday that he exhibited "poor judgment" and "I deserve everything bad that is coming my way."

Internet tabloid reports surfaced Wednesday alleging that 40-year-old motorcycle builder had been unfaithful to Bullock, whom he married in 2005. Bullock subsequently canceled a planned appearance in London for the premiere of "The Blind Side," for which she won an Oscar, a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Golden Globe.

Representatives for James and Bullock did not respond to calls and e-mails seeking comment.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Sandra Bullock canceled her appearance at the London premiere of "The Blind Side" days after Internet reports alleged she was having trouble in her marriage and that she had left the couple's Southern California home.

Calls and e-mails to representatives for Bullock and her husband, celebrity motorcycle builder Jesse James, weren't immediately answered.

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Calls and e-mails to representatives for Bullock and her husband, celebrity motorcycle builder Jesse James, weren't immediately answered.

People.com said Bullock had left the couple's home just days before a report of infidelity by her husband surfaced.

The couple were last seen together publicly at the Oscars. While Bullock didn't specifically thank James in her acceptance speech for best actress, they walked hand-in-hand on the red carpet, and he attended numerous award shows with her leading up to the Oscars.

The 45-year-old actress said Wednesday in a statement by Warner Bros. UK that she cannot attend next Tuesday's premiere of "The Blind Side" for "unforeseen personal reasons." She canceled her appearance almost two weeks after winning the Oscar for her performance in the movie.

Bullock went on to apologize for canceling her commitment and to thank people for their support of the film, which has made nearly $253 million domestically.

She and James were married in July 2005.

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Although I have mixed feelings about "The Hurt Locker" itself, and about the cultural-psychological reasons for its ascendancy, Bigelow herself is a genuine and strange cinematic genius who has paid her dues several times over and richly deserves her moment of triumph. (Is "Hurt Locker" her best film? Probably not. Her second-best? Not even sure about that.) I wish producer-screenwriter Mark Boal hadn't complicated Bigelow's big moment on the stage of the Kodak Theatre by persistently tugging on her elbow, like a kid in a department store who needed to use the john. That was odd.

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-- Motion Picture: "The Hurt Locker."

-- Actor: Jeff Bridges, "Crazy Heart."

-- Actress: Sandra Bullock, "The Blind Side."

-- Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz, "Inglourious Basterds."

-- Supporting Actress: Mo'Nique, "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire."

-- Director: Kathryn Bigelow, "The Hurt Locker."

-- Foreign Film: "El Secreto de Sus Ojos," Argentina.

-- Adapted Screenplay: Geoffrey Fletcher, "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire."

-- Original Screenplay: Mark Boal, "The Hurt Locker."

-- Animated Feature Film: "Up."

-- Art Direction: "Avatar."

-- Cinematography: "Avatar."

-- Sound Mixing: "The Hurt Locker."

-- Sound Editing: "The Hurt Locker."

-- Original Score: "Up," Michael Giacchino.

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It only takes four hours per week for a voting AMPAS member (or anyone else) to watch 100 films a year. That should be the minimum requirement for voting. Impossible to prove or to monitor? So what. Maybe a few more members could at least be guilted into screening a few more of the hundreds of eligible films, in all categories. I truly believe most AMPAS members try to exercise their voting privilege earnestly, even when they're ill-informed of the options. (I honestly believe that 90 percent of all AMPAS acting branch members who voted for Sandra Bullock in "The Blind Side" would have voted first for Catalina Saavedra had they seen "The Maid.") 

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