Heating Up the Box Office

It's that time of year again-birds singing, plants growing, animals frolicking, sun shining, and of course, the first summer blockbusters entering the multiplexes. This week focuses on two fine young actors-Shia LaBeouf, who stars in the long-awaited Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and Emile Hirsch, star of the much-buzzed-about Speed Racer.

Young Shia rose to fame as the trouble-making Louis Stevens on the Disney Channel series "Even Stevens", for which he earned a Daytime Emmy Award. He starred in three of last summer's hit movies: Disturbia, the surprise hit thriller, the blockbuster action film Transformers, and the animated family comedy Surf's Up. Shia has one film in the can, Eagle Eye, a thriller co-starring Michelle Monaghan, Rosario Dawson, and Billy Bob Thornton, due in theaters in late September and is currently filming the multi-story romance New York, I Love You alongside a large all-star cast including Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Ethan Hawke, and "Gossip Girl" star Blake Lively, just to name a few.

As a child and teen, Emile guest-starred on many popular television shows, including "ER", "Early Edition", and "NYPD Blue". He made his way to the big screen in 2002's The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys and The Emperor's Club. His performance as soul-searching drifter Christopher McCandless in the recent biopic Into the Wild garnered the young actor critical acclaim. He stars as the title character in May's much-anticipated action flick Speed Racer, a big-screen adaptation of the popular 60s anime cartoon, co-starring Matthew Fox and Christina Ricci. He has completed filming on the biopic Milk, co-starring his Into the Wild director Sean Penn, James Franco and Josh Brolin. So, who's hotter?

Shia



or

Emile



Fun Fact: Both men have been in films featuring Christina Ricci: Shia in New York, I Love You, and Emile in Speed Racer.

Catch Shia in theaters May 22. Speed Racer opens May 9.

Look, drool, debate and VOTE!

Voting ends Monday, May 5 at 2 pm PST.



UPDATE: The votes are in! Final Tally:

Shia-0
Emile-2

Aw, no votes for Shia. :( Oh, well. I agree with my voters. Emile, though not by definition "hot", is cuter than Shia. Emile has always been cute. I've thought he was cute since I first saw him in 'The Emperor's Club' six years ago. Eek! Has it really been that long?! Golly...*feels old*

Thanks for voting, ladies. My new post will be up shortly.