Natalie Portman refused to play an emotionally conflicted nun in new movie ”Doubt” because she didn’t ”understand celibacy.”

Director John Patrick Shanley – who also penned the play on which the film is based – has revealed Natalie was in the running for the part of Sister James, which was eventually taken by Amy Adams.

He said: “We asked Natalie Portman, and Natalie was very interested but kept saying she had a problem.”

“And we finally nailed down as to what the problem was. She basically said she didn’t understand celibacy.”

“Doubt” – which also stars Meryl Streep as Sister Aloysius Beauvier – tells the story of a nun who confronts a priest after discovering he has been sexually abusing a black student.

Meryl has already been tipped for an Academy Award for her role.

However, Shanley downplayed the Oscar buzz surrounding the film, insisting: “Our job is to do the very best we can and strive for excellence, to do it because it means something to us and that we think its worthy of communicating to other people.”

“Awards are a wonderful thing

Natalie Portman and Devendra Banhart have reportedly split up.”The Other Boleyn Girl” star – who first started dating the folk singer in March after starring in the music video for his single “Carmensita” – has decided to call time of their relationship, despite moving from New York to Los Angeles to be with Devendra.

A source close to the musician told In Touch Weekly magazine: “Natalie and Devendra have broken up. They will remain friends but need some space and time away.”

In April, Natalie, 27, and the bearded singer, who is also 27, were photographed kissing and holding hands as they strolled through the West Village wearing matching black coats and sunglasses.

and Natalie – who has previously been romantically linked to a host of actors including Jake Gyllenhaal, Zach BraffGael Garcia Bernal – recently vowed to never marry.

She explained: “I’m into monogamy. But I’m not really into marriage. I sort of hate the legal aspect of it. What does the state have to do with it?”

Natalie Portman plays a Bollywood princess in her boyfriend Devendra Banhart’s new music video.

The “V for Vendetta” actress – who has been dating the Venezuelan folk singer since April – wears full Indian costume, complete with a bindi, and must be saved from peril by Devendra’s “rebellious beard” in the promo for “Carmensita.”

Natalie is seen pouting, fluttering her eyelashes and giggling throughout the tongue-in-cheek video.

Subtitles appear at the bottom of the screen, including: “The princess whose golden beauty sang through the soul of heaven waited three full eclipses for her love to return.”

By the end of the film, Natalie’s character is reincarnated as an octopus.

Since they began dating, the couple have holidayed in various locations, including New York and Israel.

Before getting involved with Devendra, Natalie was romantically linked to stars including, Jake Gyllenhaal, Orlando Bloom, Zach Braff, Moby and Gael Garcia Bernal.

It was recently reported Natalie left movie bosses fuming after quitting her role as Cathy Earnshaw in “Wuthering Heights,” the big screen adaptation of Emily Bronte’s classic 1847 novel, despite having “seduced” them into giving her the part.

A movie insider said: “It’s fair to say we were seduced by her and we should have been on our guard.”

Stunning actress Natalie Portman is dating a man more notable for his mass of hair, singer Devandra Banhart.

The Star Wars actress reportedly fell for the long-haired, bearded folk star when filming a video for his new single ‘Carmensita’.

The pair were spotted this week smooching on the streets of their home town New York.

A source tells the News Of The World, “They looked loved-up and couldn’t keep their hands off each other.”

A new film sheds light on how sibling rivalry can turn your closest friend into your most hated foe, writes Deirdre Reynolds

She’s supposed to be your closest friend and confidante. Yet in reality, she’s often the biggest bitch you’ve ever met in your life.

The latest film to hit cinemas here shows how the harmless hair-pulling that goes on between young sisters across the world can degenerate into full-blown battle.

Based on the best-selling novel by Philippa Gregory, The Other Boleyn Girl charts one of the most explosive cases of sibling rivalry in history. It tells the tale of aristocratic sisters Anne and Mary Boleyn, who went to war over sex-mad monarch King Henry VIII in the 16th century. And the true story, starring Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman, reveals how women who are flung together by birth can wind up becoming bitter rivals rather than bosom buddies.

For sisters flocking to see the flick together over the weekend, there may have been a few moments of uncomfortable silence. And while pinching your clothes, helping themselves to the last of your favourite perfume, or eyeing up your man might not be on the same level as tearing the heart of the Tudor palace in two, they underline the complex blend of backstabbing and loyalty that define sisterhood, according to psychologist Dorothy Rowe.

Party girl pals/catfight combatants Paris Hilton and Nicole Ritchie may have propelled the term ‘frenemy’ to the urban dictionary, but for its origins look no further than your own family.

Dr Rowe, who wrote My Dearest Enemy, My Dangerous Friend: Making and Breaking Sibling Bonds, reckons most women both love and loathe their skin and blister at various times throughout their life.

“The reason I came up with the title was to try and encapsulate that deeply ambivalent relationship between most siblings,” she added.

“Up to now, psychologists and therapists have been looking at the relationship between the child and mother; but while doing that, they’ve steadfastly ignored the relationship between siblings.

“Yet we all know how important siblings are — they’re the people we have the longest relationship with and it doesn’t matter how old you get, the connection is always there. I decided to look at how siblings form an attachment to one another and explain the dynamic that develops.”

And although the study looks at both brothers and sisters, Dr Rowe says things usually get more complicated between the girls.

“Siblings can demolish us,” she added. “You know those frequent occurrences, when your sister says something which to an outsider might seem quite banal, but you’ve been struck through the heart with an arrow by it.

“You know the other so well. They know the things that upset you most and those that give you deepest pleasure.

“The book is about both brothers and sisters, but I think women talk about it more. A lot of men aren’t troubled by not keeping up with relatives or they leave it to their wives.”

Just because you’re related, there’s no guarantee you’re going to get on, Dr Rowe explained. But whether you bond or bicker, your filial feelings could colour your relationships for the rest of your life.

“If you look at conflicts around the world, the ones that are hardest to resolve involve some kind of family relationship,” she said. “The war between the Israelis and Palestinians is effectively a family squabble. Likewise, in Northern Ireland, Catholics and Protestants fought throughout the years but they also bedded each other. There’s no genetic difference between these groups and they row like siblings.”

She added: “Siblings are our first peer group, so even when we go to school and work we often see others in terms of our relationship with them — sometimes causing us to make really bad mistakes. For instance, if you’ve got a female boss, you might immediately assume she’s going to be as nasty to you or look after you the way your sister did.”

And sibling rivalry starts the second an interloper arrives in the house to steal the affections of mum and dad. Whether you’re the halo-wearing first born, overshadowed middle-child or attention-seeking youngest, your placement in the clan can determine whether you enjoy girly get-togethers with your sis, or barely stand the sight of each other in the years to come, says Rowe.

“When you’re an only child, you’re in this nice situation of being treated like a prince or princess by your parents or grandparents. Suddenly, this thing turns up and you’re displaced, and it can cause tremendous trauma for the child — even when the parents deal with it well.

“I remember one young woman who found out she was pregnant with her second child and did all the things you’re supposed to, like telling her daughter about the baby in mummy’s tummy, involving her in shopping for the baby and giving her a present the day the baby was born. She thought everything was fine until her daughter turned around and said, ‘Couldn’t you have kept that thing inside you for another while?’”

She added: “The older sibling is a trailblazer, while the younger ones test the limits set by them. Within families, there’s usually a ‘good’ sibling and a ‘bad’ one and it can be difficult to break out of that mould.”

No matter how many years pass, it can be impossible to view your sister as anyone other that the girl who mutilated your beloved teddy bear, snitched to your parents when you smoked pot in college, or beat you down the aisle, Dr Rowe revealed: “Most people I spoke to say that when they’re with their siblings, they feel like a swan — calm on the surface but paddling underneath.”

And society may frown on it, but don’t be afraid to give a malicious sis the flick.

The author, who confessed to having a tumultuous relationship with her own big sister, said: “Women can feel guilty if they haven’t fulfilled what is expected of them by society and so they maintain a relationship with a difficult sibling and do things for them they wouldn’t for a troublesome friend.

“We get caught up in this thing of blood being thicker than water. But I think you’ve got to work out the cost of keeping in touch with someone who really isn’t on your side. If she was a friend who was consistently horrible, you’d drop her.”

But provided she isn’t trying to get her claws into your hubbie, a la Anne Boleyn, it is possible to make her a mate — and not just a relation.

And in spite of the contradictory concoction of devotion, rage, envy, competitiveness and loyalty they inspire, sisters can be the best friend a girl will ever have.

Dr Rowe joked: “I think sisters are more likely to row over who’s got the better job nowadays, than over a man like the Boleyns! But once there isn’t an insurmountable level of resentment there, it’s possible to have a great relationship and look after each other in that way that only sisters do.”

Hollywood actress Natalie Portman is smitten by her The Other Boleyn Girl co-star Scarlett Johansson’s boobs.

The Oscar nominated actress got a glimpse of Johansson’s twin assets during filming of the film and is now a fan of her boobs.

‘Seriously, I would really want to grab Scarlett’s breasts,’ The Sun quoted Natalie, as saying.

‘She’s got beautiful ones,’ she added.

The Other Boleyn Girl was recently premiered in London and was attended by Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall.

‘Star Wars’ beauty Natalie Portman has topped a list for the 20 most stylish women in tinsel town.The list was complied by In Style magazine, which choose the actress because “she exhibits unwavering faith in the cut and quality of a great dress.”

Coming in close on her heels was Drew Barrymore, who beat best pal Cameron Diaz to the second spot.

Diaz came in third on the list, reports Contactmusic.

The top five was rounded off by Spanish beauty Penelope Cruz and Latina Jennifer Lopez, who came in fourth and fifth place respectively.

Natalie Portman used to get sent disturbing letters from pedophiles.

The actress played a young girl who was trained to be an assassin by an older man in “Leon” when she was just 12. She also landed the role of an older man’s object of desire in “Beautiful Girls” at the age of 13.

Natalie has revealed the two controversial roles led to her receiving sexually explicit fan mail from obsessive and disturbed men.

She revealed to Film and Music magazine: “I was a pedophile’s dream! It was weird, and it dictated a lot of my choices afterwards because it scared me.”

“When you’re a little kid you get really excited about it and you think being famous is really cool. But then you get a fan letter and you read it, and you’re like, ‘Eeeeeeugh!’ Terrified.”

“You can imagine what they said. I obviously stopped reading them, but it made me reluctant to do sexy stuff, especially when I was young.”

Natalie, now 25, has vowed never to talk about her sex life.

The “Star Wars” actress wants her personal life to remain private and admits she is shocked when female stars talk about their bedroom antics.

She said: “It’s nobody’s business. Remember there was that time when Britney Spears and Jessica Simpson were proclaiming their virginity. I was like, ‘Are you kidding?’”

Halle Berry is to shave her hair off.

The Oscar-winning actress has to lose her locks for new movie “Nappy Ever After” and admits she is “scared to death” about the prospect of being bald.

She said: “In the course of the story something bad happens to my character’s hair and she shaves it all off.”

“I’m scared to death but that’s what I must do. Though I suppose going bald could be a little exciting too. So we’ll probably film the process from beginning to end.”

Britney Spears recently shocked the showbiz world by shaving off all her hair off during a visit to a Los Angeles hair salon. She has since been seen wearing a number of different wigs in the wake of her drastic decision.

Halle isn’t the first actress to shear her locks for her art.

Natalie Portman shaved off her hair for her role in “V For Vendetta,” while Demi Moore sported a cropped style for 1997 action film “G.I Jane.”