Whether she's losing roles because she's too busy, because she's done with independents or because she's unreliable, Lindsay Lohan is so known for dropping out of projects that some of us have coined the action as "pulling a La Lohan." It isn't a surprise now to learn that she's being replaced in another film, The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond. You may remember the plot of the Tennessee Williams-penned film, which we told you about in November, as centering on a Southern socialite in 1920s Memphis. Lohan had been cast as that socialite, but now the role is being offered to Bryce Dallas Howard.

As far as reliability goes, Howard may be the better choice, but as for acting talent, I'd honestly rather have Lohan. Howard has so far done awful things for the films she's starred in, and she nearly damaged my faith in one of my favorite filmmakers, Lars von Trier. I'm hoping that Sam Raimi actually gets smart and cuts most of her performance from Spider-Man 3 -- she was almost completely absent from the trailer -- although it might help him to keep her just to make Kirsten Dunst look better. I think for Williams' fans, spoiled with the memories of great actors starring in film versions of A Streetcar Named Desire, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and The Glass Menagerie, among others, as well as in his previously filmed screenplays like my personal favorite, Baby Doll, Howard will be a horrible addition to Teardrop Diamond's cast.

This could be one of the most atrocious bits of information that I have ever read: Gwen Stefani is in talks to play Baby Doll! In a remake of the 1956 Elia Kazan film, which was written by Tennessee Williams, Stefani would play a woman whose husband has been waiting through a whole year of marriage in order to finally sleep with her. The original Baby Doll was nominated for four Oscars including Best Screenplay, Best Black-and-White Cinematography and Best Actress for Carroll Baker in the title role. Although the film was controversial in its time, nowadays it just seems absurd, despite having a terrific cast, and I can't imagine how it will play as a remake. Will they attempt to update the story? Will they still have Baby Doll sleep in a crib? Because Stefani would look completely ridiculous in a crib.

Actually she'll likely look ridiculous in the part altogether. It was bad enough that Baker was too old for the part (I consider her casting almost as silly as Sue Lyons' in Lolita), but at least she was a great actress. Stefani is 36. Can she really pull off 20?

I will add that I have the perfect choice to take over Karl Malden's role: John C. Reilly. Not that if he does get the part I will have any desire to see the film.