Mariah Carey Scene Will Open Lee Daniels' "The Butler"

Lee Daniels's "The Butler" started shooting yesterday in New Orleans. And there's a lot of news I can tell you EXCLUSIVELY about this film starring Forest Whitaker and Oprah Winfrey.

Quincy Jones has signed to compose the soundtrack. That's a big big deal. And now I've heard that Daniels will film a scene for the opening of the film with Mariah Carey and Vanessa Redgrave far removed from the White House setting of the rest of the film.

Mariah is already said to be complaining about her makeup, which - as in "Precious" - she will be de-glamourized. And there’s more: because Liam Neeson is shooting Paul Haggi's new film in Italy, he had to drop out of the role of Lyndon Johnson. So Liev Schreiber steps in. (The role of Lady Byrd is said to be minor.) And Olivia Washington, daughter of Denzel and Pauletta Washington, will make her screen debut as a civil rights activist.

"The Butler" will be Daniels' first PG-13 movie after more adult fare with "Monster’s Ball," "Precious," and "The Paperboy," his wild new movie that opens this fall with an Oscar tipped performance by Nicole Kidman.

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