Pop star Britney Spears has filed for divorce from husband Kevin Federline. The Toxic star filed legal papers yesterday in Los Angeles County Superior Court citing "irreconcilable differences." In her petition, Spears asks for both legal and physical custody of the couple's two children, one-year-old Sean Preston and two-month old Jayden James, with Federline getting visitation rights. According to news website Tmz.com, the couple, who married in October 2004, has an iron-clad pre-nuptial agreement. Spears is waiving her right to spousal support and is asking the judge to make each party pay their own attorney's fees. She gives the date of separation as Monday, the same day Spears revealed her new post-baby look on David Letterman's talk show. Sources tell Tmz.com there was no single reason behind Britney's decision to divorce, but rather "a string of events." The pop star has hired powerhouse celebrity divorce attorney Laura Wasser, who has represented several celebrity clients including Angelina Jolie, Nick Lachey and Kiefer Sutherland.

Police have charged a construction worker with the murder of actress Adrienne Shelly, who was found hanging from a shower rod in her New York City apartment last week. Diego Pillco was arrested and charged with second-degree murder on Monday, according to New York Police Detective Kevin Czartoryski. Media reports speculated that Shelly had likely committed suicide, however, police had not ruled out foul play. No note was found at the scene of her death, and shoe prints did not match her shoes that were found in the apartment's bathtub. Shelly allegedly complained about construction noise in her Greenwich Village apartment building and had an argument with Pillco, who allegedly hit her, according to reports. The 19-year-old suspect was picked up early on Monday and was questioned for several hours until "he made statements," Czartoryski said. He did not elaborate on the nature of the statements. Shelly, 40, was born Adrienne Levine in Queens, New York and raised on Long Island and was best know for her appearances in the Hal Hartley movies The Unbelievable Truth and Trust. She and her husband, Andy Ostroy, have a three-year-old daughter named Sophie.

Faith Hill has laughed off speculation she was upset when Carrie Underwood beat her to the Female Vocalist Of The Year accolade at the Country Music Association (CMA) Awards on Monday night. When Underwood's name was announced as the winner, Hill was caught on camera flailing her arms and apparently shouting "What?" before walking out of camera range. Hill released a statement yesterday through her publicist responding to criticism about the sour note she appeared to have struck during the ceremony, saying, "The idea that I would act disrespectful towards a fellow musician is unimaginable to me. For this to become a focus of attention given the talent gathered is utterly ridiculous. Carrie is a talented and deserving female vocalist of the year." Hill's manager Gary Borman has also weighed in on the controversy adding, "I've worked with Faith for many years now and the idea that she would ever insult or undermine another artist, let alone another human being's success is absolutely preposterous. Those who know her know that she's incapable of such actions. She was being playful while the nominations were being read and playful after." Other nominees in the category were Sara Evans, Martina McBride and Gretchen Wilson.

Former 'N Sync star Lance Bass has inspired a new term for gay celebrities who are outed by members of the media - they're being "lanced." Bass' boyfriend, reality star Reichen Lehmkuhl, says the term was coined after Bass revealed earlier this year that he is gay. Last week former Doogie Howser MD star Neil Patrick Harris was forced to admit he was gay after Internet media reports speculated on his sexuality. Lehmkuhl explains Harris' recent predicament saying, "It's to be outed by someone in the public media and to be a celebrity, and Neil Patrick Harris, I understand, has been 'lanced.'" Bass disclosed his sexuality in July, and said he decided to "speak my mind" because rumors surrounding his sexuality were starting to affect his daily life. He also announced at the time that he was in a stable relationship with Lehmkuhl, a former Air Force captain and winner of season four of CBS' reality competition The Amazing Race. Lehmkuhl adds, "People should be able to come out on their own. I don't know so much that it helps gay equality if a celebrity is outed by someone else and it shows that they're forced out. It just seems like it just continues the vilification of homosexuality in the media in this country."

Movie mogul Martin Scorsese has replaced Tom Cruise as the big man at Paramount after signing a four-year, first-look deal to develop projects with studio executives. Just days after Scorsese scored his biggest cinema hit by taking new film The Departed past the $100 million mark at the US box office, Paramount boss Brad Grey announced he's thrilled to welcome Scorsese. In a statement released yesterday, Scorsese says, "I have had a great personal relationship with Brad Grey for several years now and am looking forward to working with him at Paramount, a studio rich in cinematic history and responsible for making some of my favorite films." Under the terms of the new deal, Scorsese will direct and produce a number of projects from movies to TV dramas. Cruise was unceremoniously dumped from Paramount this summer by studio boss Sumner Redstone, who stated, "He was embarrassing the studio and he was costing us a lot of money." Scorsese isn't the only big name tied to Paramount following Cruise's departure - Grey's former partner Brad Pitt is the studio's movie star coup.

Comedian Will Ferrell, who announced in July he is expecting his second child with wife Viveca Paulson, has revealed the new baby is a boy. Ferrell appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman on Monday night and the talk show host asked him if he knew the sex of the upcoming arrival. The 39-year-old joked, "You know, I don't know if we do. I've gotta check my Blackberry." He then explained, "Well, we do know, but I forget if we're telling people. I told the Today show we weren't telling them. But it's a boy!" Ferrell and Paulson, 37, an art auctioneer, have one son, Magnus, two. When Letterman asked what Magnus' reaction was to having a new brother in December Ferrell added jokingly, "He doesn't like it. He's in denial about it... I'm like, 'You better live it up now, 'cause number two is coming and it's not going to be fun for you!'"

Tom Cruise will marry Katie Holmes in a lakeside castle near Rome, according to the latest Italian reports. Italian newspaper Il Messaggero reports the couple has already made plans to throw a party on November 16 and then wed the following day at Bracciano's Castello Odescalchi. The medieval castle, located on the shores of Lake Bracciano, is considered to be one of Europe's finest. The castle isn't the only possible wedding site - Lake Como's Villa D'Este has also been mentioned as a location. Cruise and Holmes are staying tight-lipped about their wedding plans, confirming only the big day will take place in Italy next weekend.

Russell Crowe was shocked while he was filming American Gangster in New York City when he found out the movie's police supervisor was the same person that took his mug shot when he was arrested for assault last year. The Oscar winner was arrested and charged with second degree assault in connection with an incident at the Mercer Hotel where he threw a telephone at clerk Nestor Estrada, who refused to help him phone his wife in Australia. Crowe explains, "Oddly, right at the beginning of the shoot, there was a guy walking around the set a lot that I just thought I recognized from somewhere. He came over on about the third or fourth day and he said, 'Hi, I'm Scotty. I'm the police advisor on the movie.' I said, 'Great, cool, we'll have a bit of a chat later on...' And he said, 'No, no, I, uh, you know that night you had your problem? I took your mug shot.' I'm looking at him and I actually thought I recognized him and I had this sort of flashback to the very thing the guys said to me so I said, 'Mate, if you're that guy, you said a very specific thing to me.' And he goes, 'Oh, yeah, yeah. I said put your jewelry away, it makes you look like a Hispanic gangsta' and don't smile so much, buddy!' And I said, 'Yeah, Scott! Good to see you again!"

Christopher Walken is to play Ozzy Osbourne in a new Hollywood movie. The Oscar winner will make a cameo role as the shock rocker in a new movie based on Motley Crue's 2001 autobiography The Dirt, Crue frontman Vince Neil has revealed. The book, fully titled The Dirt: Confessions Of The World's Most Notorious Rock Band, details the band's wild behavior. Osbourne toured with the band and appears in the book snorting a line of live ants and taking Lsd every day for a year. Val Kilmer is also lined up to play David Lee Roth in the film - but band members Neil, Nikki Sixx, Mick Mars and Tommy Lee will be played by unknown actors. Neil says, "How funny is that going to be. We're doing big, giant cameos with those people."

Acid-tongued American Idol judge Simon Cowell has branded the city of Seattle, Washington as "totally miserable." Cowell's talent-finding visit to the city was unsuccessful, with the British music mogul lamenting the lack of decent Seattle-based singers. He tells USA Today, "Seattle is going to be known for something other than coffee this year. They had the worst bunch of miserable singers that I've ever met in my life. It was two days of total misery. And the weather was bad, as well."