Well, the Pellicano case gets deeper ... and deeper ... and now, a pretty well-known director may be going to the pokey because of it. Infamous 'Private Eye to the Stars' Anthony Pellicano has already served 2.5 years for possession of illegal weapons; Yahoo reports that he's also facing an 111-count indictment for wiretapping, bribing police and other illegal activities in the pursuit of his craft. On Judge Dale S. Fischer heard arguments regarding an earlier guilty plea entered by director John McTiernan -- of Die Hard and The Hunt for Red October fame (and Rollerball infamy) -- when faced with the serious charge of lying to an FBI agent as part of the bureau's ongoing investigation into Pellicano. McTiernan earlier claimed he only retained Pellicano during his divorce; it turns out that McTiernan also hired Pellicano to wiretap an associate during the making of Rollerball.

McTiernan was hoping to withdraw his guilty plea, based in part on his state at the time he answered FBI inquiries -- claiming that he had just taken a long plane flight, was taking antibiotics for a sinus infection and had just ceased taking anti-depressant medication. Well, Judge Fischer isn't having any of it -- and hit McTiernan with not only an $100,000 fine but also a four-month jail sentence. McTiernan has until Jan. 15th to turn himself into authorities -- it's not as if he did a perp-walk while cuffed straight to the paddy wagon -- and his counsel says that McTiernan will appeal. The question to me is if McTiernan will actually see the inside of a cell; we all know that famous people don't, technically, do time -- but, technically, is a director famous? Stay here at Cinematical for more. ...

Okay, so who watched Paris Hilton on Larry King Live last night? It's okay to raise your hand, we won't judge. Heck, even more pathetic than Hilton attempting to re-invent herself as a bible-reading, anti-substance abuse spokesmodel was the fact that I actually taped the program. Yes, I attended a private screening of Danny Boyle's Sunshine last night and was unable to catch the show at its usual time. So what did I do? I taped it. [Stands up] Hello, my name is Erik and I'm obsessed with watching Paris Hilton embarrass herself. "Hi Erik!" Anyway, I still haven't had time to watch said show, but apparently Hilton mentioned that she has lined up two movie roles for herself this summer. Two! (As I wrote that, I could sense a group of struggling actors throughout the world silently beginning to plot the girl's demise.)

Two weeks in a minimum security resort was apparently "the most humiliating experience of my life," according to Hilton. A fascinating answer, considering she made a name for herself off a sex tape that spread faster than (insert your own dirty joke here). No word yet on which two films she's lined up (or when we can expect them to go straight to DVD), but she can next be seen as Christabelle Abbott in The Hottie and the Nottie. That film apparently revolves around a hottie girl (please don't say Hilton) who refuses to get married until she can find a perfect match for her ugly best friend. Aww, so sweet. Perhaps Hilton can next take the film around to various schools and talk about how ugly people deserve to have sex too. Call it community service ... Hilton style!

Drug abuse is a terrible thing, kids. It land you in jail, ruin your reputation and turn you from a busy character actor into an uninsurable pariah. Case in point: Crazy Tom Sizemore just got fired from pre-production on a flick called The I Scream Man -- and if you can't hold on to a job in a movie with that sort of title, then you're definitely living life a little too hard. I know his drug problems are entirely of his own creation, but I really do feel for the guy. He went from working with Michael Mann, Oliver Stone and Steven Spielberg -- to a public dismissal on The I Scream Man. Ouch.

According to STYD.com, Mr. Sizemore was fired from the upcoming horror flick and replaced by sometimes co-worker Michael Madsen. The reason for his dismissal? Another visit from the "drugs and jail time" fairy. It might sound like I'm cruelly mocking the guy, but the truth is I feel really rotten for Mr. Sizemore. Here's hoping he can right the ship, toss that monkey off his back and mount a small comeback of sorts. In the meantime, J.T. Mollner's The I Scream Man will go into production this summer with Madsen, Dee Wallace, Haylie Duff, Fred Ward, Judd Nelson and the entertainingly bizarre Crispin Glover as ... The Ice Cream Man. (Yes, it's a horror movie.)

So I guess we shouldn't always bet on black, huh? Yes, it's Friday evening and before you head out for the weekend, we thought you might want to know that Wesley Snipes has finally been arrested for tax fraud. The actor traveled from Africa (where he's currently filming Gallowwalker) to turn himself in to authorities in Ocala, Florida. After pleading not guilty to charges which include "falsely claiming millions of dollars in tax refunds," Snipes was released on $1 million bond.

He now intends to travel back to Africa to complete filming (because celebrities are allowed to travel wherever they want when they're arrested). Actually, the judge granted permission for Snipes to finish things up (phew, it sure would be a sin if Gallowwalker was delayed or, God forbid, shut down for good), though he must return to the States by January 10 -- at which time he will be ordered to surrender his passport, restricted to traveling only within the continental United States. If convicted, Snipes could wind up in jail for a total of 16 years -- though, most likely, he'll get probation and have to pay back a whole lot of money. I mean, who in their right mind would sentence Blade to 16 years behind bars? Who would we get to fight all those nasty vampires, or to star in those crappy direct-to-DVD action pics? In Gallowwalker, Snipes plays a cowboy who's placed in charge of killing zombies. And it's being shot in Africa. Who knows. We'll keep you updated on both the film and Snipes' legal troubles.