Hollywood Exclusive by Marilyn Beck & Stacy Jenel Smith

Julia Louis-Dreyfus Weighs in on That NYT 'Douche' Report/'Grey's' Star Kevin McKidd Admits Story Line Difficult

"Douche" is just fine with Julia Louis-Dreyfus — and she doesn't care who knows it.

The comedienne's "The New Adventures of Old Christine" sitcom was cited in a recent New York Times Page-One article for its usage, 26 times this season, of the word that is unarguably offensive to some people.

Dreyfus is not one of those people. "I have to be honest. It makes me laugh," she says of the word that, according to the Parents Television Council, has been used some 76 times this year on primetime series. "I guess I'm crass. I don't know, there's something about the combination of vowels and consonants in the word I find inherently funny." (As, apparently, does David Letterman, who mocked the Times' story on his show this week.)

Dreyfus, the mother of sons Henry and Charles, ages 17 and 12 respectively, adds, "I'm afraid I must admit I've heard the word in my house. I've tried to be stern about it, but just couldn't keep a straight face,"

She says that, like her television alter ego who babies her son, she is finding it hard to "to let go of my babies. It's obvious they must grow up, but the whole separation thing is a bit of a bear."

She refers to husband Brad Hall as "a wonderful man as involved in our children's lives as I am. I'm fortunate that way. Also, being on a show with many working mothers makes everyone keenly aware that work is a juggling act, to get the job done and go home. The show is very well organized as a result."

She can see the terrific "Christine" going on for some seasons yet, "but nothing lasts forever." She does foresee Christine finally finding a love life but says, "There will definitely not be a happily ever after for her." Why not? "Because it's not funny," says the very funny lady.

THE COURSE OF TRUE LOVE: "Grey's Anatomy's" Kevin McKidd admits to a certain degree of personal turmoil over the testing of his character, Owen's, relationship with his beloved Cristina (Sandra Oh) — as Kim Raver's heart surgeon character, Teddy, has appeared on the scene out of Owen's past. "I love Owen so much; he's a really great character. And I love Cristina very much. I find it hard, playing a character like this, I'm very attached to Owen's happiness and contentment. I don't want anything that disturbs that to happen, but the truth is, for it to be a drama, things have to happen," acknowledges the actor. Expect the situation to intensify on tonight's (11/19) episode.

The red-haired, Elgin, Scotland-born-and-bred actor, who rose to fame in films including "Trainspotting," addresses those Internet reports that have him taking on the title character in a remake of the cult fave big screen "The Highlander." "My agents are looking into this," he says of the stories that have been cropping up for over a year.

He can, for sure, be seen as the god Poseidon in "Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief," "Chris Columbus' next big movie. It's about a teenage boy in modern-day New York who discovers his actual father is the Greek god of the sea. It's so different — a huge fantasy movie with big-budget special effects — it was really a blast," he says of the feature, scheduled for February 2010 release.

READY FOR HER CLOSE-UP: Beautiful 20-year-old Katerina Graham, known to fans of the CW's hit "Vampire Diaries" as the psychic novice witch Bonnie Bennett, certainly takes the responsibility of her role seriously. "I'm constantly working on her, doing her back story," says Graham, whose own back-story is intriguing stuff (more on that later). "During the week we were shooting the episode where she's possessed, I was researching possession and people who've been said to be possessed — monks, gurus, priests — looking for any sort of religious findings to give myself a better perspective on how to go about playing it."

She goes on: "Since my character's ancestors were in the Salem witch trials, I read about those. I watched 'The Crucible' and 'The Craft.' I also watched 'Dawson's Creek' to see how Kevin Williamson's stories evolved, and 'Kyle XY' to see Julie Plec's," she says, referring to the "Vampire Diaries" co-creators' past credits. And she's viewed the previous work of "Vampire Diaries" director Marcos Siega, to understand him better, too. "There's a lot of work that goes into playing a character," she says.

Graham, whose grandfather was a U.N. Ambassador from Liberia, is the daughter of a Liberian father and a Russian Jewish mother. She was born in Geneva, Switzerland, and speaks four languages. With her father a music executive, Graham has been around show business all her life and has been acting professionally since the age of 6. She has a long list of episodic credits including such shows as "The O.C." and "Hannah Montana." She's also performed as a background dancer for names ranging from Li'l Bow Wow to Missy Elliott and Jamie Foxx. Now, however, she's focused completely on "Vampire Diaries," which has a full 22-episode order from the network.

"I haven't had a break in about two or three weeks. Thanksgiving I 'm going to be with my family, cook and have four days off. I'm definitely ready," she says.

With reports by Emily-Fortune Feimster

To find out more about Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith and read their past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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