Kiefer Sutherland: New York D.A. won't prosecute for headbutting

24 star Kiefer Sutherland will not stand trial for allegedly headbutting designer Jack McCullough, a spokesperson for the Manhattan district attorneys office confirms to EW. The office conducted "a thorough investigation" into the matter, according to the spokesperson, who added that the DA had found McCullough to have been "quite uncooperative." -- Jeff Jensen

More Kiefer Sutherland:
Brooke Shields' rep contradicts Kiefer Sutherland
Ken Tucker: Kiefer Sutherland headbutt: What's the big deal?
Kiefer Sutherland will surrender to prosecutors

Stephen Baldwin files for bankruptcy

Stephen Baldwin filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New York earlier today, according to Reuters. The actor reportedly owes about $2.3 million and owns a New York propery valued at just $1.1 million. A lawyer for Baldwin had no comment.

Report: Sony Pictures to release Michael Jackson concert film in October

Sony Pictures has paid $60 million for the rights to release a movie of footage shot during Michael Jackson's rehearsals for his This Is It concert tour, according to the Hollywood Reporter. The film will hit theaters October 30. According to other reports, AEG Live, which is said to have 80 hours of rehearsal footage at its disposal, and Jackson's family will split Sony's money, with Jackson's family receiving 90 percent of the fee and establishing a charity in the late singer's name. 

Jackson Browne and Republicans settle lawsuit

Musician Jackson Browne has settled a lawsuit with the Republican party over its use of the song "Running on Empty" during the 2008 presidential election campaign, according to the New York Times. 

Browne, the baby-boom rocker behind such hits as "Doctor My Eyes" and "Boulevard", received apologies today from both Sen. John McCain and the party, as well as a promise that the GOP would refrain from using Browne's songs without permission in the future. Beyond the apology, financial details of the settlement were not announced.

Browne sued McCain and the Republican National Committee after they used the 1977 hit in a Web ad mocking Barack Obama's energy policies. He wasn't the only one who took objection with the McCain campaign's playlist. The Foo Fighters, Heart, and John Mellencamp were also unhappy when their songs were used. 

'Harry Potter' actor sentenced on drug charge

Jamie Waylett, who plays Harry Potter bully Vincent Crabbe, must serve 120 community service hours after admitting to growing 10 cannabis plants in his mother's London home, BBC News reports. The 20-year-old was sentenced in the Westminster Magistrates Court. He was arrested earlier this month after police found pictures of the plants on his camera after stopping him for taking snapshots of officers while driving past.

'American Idol' fans lobby for Paula Abdul

A Twitter campaign is fighting to make sure Paula Abdul returns to American Idol next season, according to The Hollywood Reporter. After her manager said publicly that she might not return to TV's biggest hit as a judge -- which she's been since it began in 2002 -- fans started the #keepaula group on Twitter. Abdul, meanwhile, thanked them for their support on her own Twitter page: "If it weren't for you, this specific time and situation would feel a lot worse! xoP," she wrote. Her manager, David Sonenberg, has said she's yet to receive a new contract, even though auditions begin Aug. 6 for season 9, which airs in January.

Talk about in on PopWatch:
Michael Slezak on Paula Abdul's possible departure from American Idol

'Daily Show' correspondent Josh Gad joins 'Love and Other Drugs'

The Daily Show's Josh Gad will play Jake Gyllenhaal's brother in Love and Other Drugs, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Ed Zwick is directing the film (originally titled Pharma), which also costars Anne Hathaway and is based on Jamie Reidy's nonfiction book Hard Sell: The Evolution of a Viagra Salesman. It follows a pharmaceutical salesman in the competitive racket of male-enhancement drugs, who falls in love with a Parkinson's patient played by Hathaway.

Ashley Williams, Andie MacDowell cast in Lifetime original movies

Ashley Williams, Andie MacDowell, Dihann Carroll, Annabeth Gish, and Daniel Sunjata have joined the casts of Lifetime's upcoming TV movies based on Patricia Cornwell novels, Variety reports. At Risk and The Front will mark the first time the bestselling author's works have been adapted for the screen. They both follow Massachusetts state investigator Winston Garano (Sunjata) and his supervisor, district attorney Monique Lamont (MacDowell), as they solve cases. Williams will play Garano's love interest, Carroll his grandmother, and Gish his coworker.

Joe Jackson denies plans for Michael's children to become Jackson 3, again alleges foul play

In an interview Monday night with CNN's Larry King, Michael Jackson's father denied allegations that he'd physically abused the pop star when he was a child (though he admitted his son had barred him from his life) and that he was hoping to take Michael's three children on tour next year as the Jackson 3. Responding to the abuse claim, Joe Jackson said, "That's a bunch of bull-s....I raised him just like you would raise your kids, you know? But harm Michael, for what? I have no reason. That's my son. I loved him and I still love him." He called rumors of a Jackson 3 tour "a bunch of jive": "I'm not encouraging them to do nothing," he said. "They have to be what they are, kids at the moment." He also reiterated that he believed foul play was involved in Michael's death, noting the amount of time it took for Dr. Conrad Murray, the physician attending to Michael at the time of his passing, to come in for questioning. Murray's attorney has denied that his client was ever in hiding.

Get Ken Tucker's take: Joe Jackson's hollow denials about beating Michael on 'Larry King Live'

Uma Thurman starring in indie drama 'Girl Soldier'

Uma Thurman will headline Girl Soldier, a drama about a nun who helped rescue 140 kidnapped Ugandan schoolgirls, Variety reports. The independent film from Caspian Pictures is based on Kathy Cook's book Stolen Angels, which documents a 1996 raid by armed rebels on a boarding school, when girls were taken to be turned into soldiers or sex slaves. Teacher Sister Caroline tracked the rebels back to their camp and liberated 110 of the girls, then campaigned for help from parents, the government, the Pope, and the United Nations to win the release of other captured children.