Ben Affleck’s behavior raises eyebrows

What’s up with Ben Affleck?

That’s what some people were wondering after the star’s junket for “Surviving Christmas.” In interviews for the flick, some journalists thought Affleck behaved strangely, seemed uninterested in talking about the movie, cursed rather freely, waved his arms distractedly, and even put his head in co-star Christina Applegate’s lap. “It was, to put it mildly, an odd experience,” noted Paul Fischer, who interviewed Affleck and Applegate for DarkHorizons.com.

Affleck, for example, took a swipe at his long-time friend, Kevin Smith, who is said to be mad at him for not appearing at the DVD launch of “Jersey Girl.” “It wasn’t enough that I went to Vegas to play in his lame charity poker tournament for the DVD launch of ‘Jersey Girl,’ but I also had to go out to his f------ store where he’s opening a store where all he’s doing is selling more T-shirts of him and his jack--- friend and he’s roped in an entire generation of kids into thinking it’s worth spending $30 on and $50 if he signs it,” Affleck explained. “I mean the whole thing is a complete travesty and he wanted me to participate in it and I won’t do that.”

Regarding his participation in helping re-write and ad-lib on “Surviving Christmas,” Affleck said, “My writing is sacred. Other people’s is dull. No. If you had a Tom Stoppard script you would be wise not to try improvising much, you know, you just like speak the words as they are written precisely. But if you have a dog s--- script or even something that is decent but requires some fixing, then you just do that.”

Regarding action films, Affleck commented: “I don’t want to do any action movies, I’m tired of it. They’re boring and they’re exhausting and they suck.”

Affleck’s spokesman robustly defended his client. “He did a full hour and a half on the red carpet at the premiere the night before the junket, and did a full seven hours for two full days of junkets,” his spokesman, Ken Sunshine, told The Scoop. “He also had a bad sore throat. In all that time he answered many, many stupid questions — and answered most of them with humor, sometimes outrageously funny humor. I would probably have walked out on these jerks when they feel they must ask about Jennifer. Behaving strangely? I behaved strangely, not him.”

Party on, Demi
Details are pouring in from that Kabbalah party that Demi Moore threw for Rabbi Michael Berg’s new book: “Becoming Like God.”

Madonna and Guy Ritchie attended the swank soirée at London’s Home House. Donatella Versace and Gwyneth Paltrow were also there, and but our source says that Moore’s young sweetie, Ashton Kutcher, was notably absent.

“Maybe he’s busy with work,” says our insider. “Or maybe he hasn’t been drinking the Kool-Aid.”

Notes from all over

Adam Butler  /  AP

Yusuf Islam, the artist formerly known as Cat Stevens, says that some of the officers who detained him for being on a list of possible terrorists seemed like fans. He claims several asked for his autograph. “They were sort of enamored a little bit,” Islam told the London Daily Telegraph. “The older ones, I’m sure, had my records, because they knew the whole catalogue.” . . .  The Bush twins were spotted unwinding at Smith Point, a Georgetown bar. “Barbara was smoking a long, skinny cigarette,” says a source. “She was really sweet and down to earth.”  . . . Britney Spears got “angry” when she lost a role in “I (Heart) Huckabees” to Naomi Watts, according to World Entertainment News Network. “Britney wanted Naomi’s part and read for me three times,” according to director David Russell. “She didn’t get it and was very angry.”

Jeannette Walls Delivers the Scoop Mondays through Thursdays on MSNBC.com