Skye McCole Bartusiak, who portrayed Mel Gibson's young daughter in the 2000 war epic The Patriot, died in her Houston home on July 18. Bartusiak's mother, Helen, said the 21-year-old had been living in a garage apartment at her parents' house and was found unresponsive on her bed on Saturday. The family did not yet know the cause of death. Bartusiak made her acting debut in the television mini-series Storm of the Century in 1999 and also had a role on 24 in 2002-2003. Her most recent movie was Sick Boy in 2012. Bartusiak was best known for her role in The Patriot, where she played the daughter of the militia leader Benjamin Martin. The cast also included Heath Ledger, who died after an accidental overdose of painkillers and sedatives in 2008. – AP
Actor Tyler Posey to host Teen Choice Awards
The actor Tyler Posey will host Teen Choice 2014, with the musical groups Magic and Rixton performing on the show that awards popular teenagers in television, music, film, sports and fashion. The show airs on August 10 on Fox. Winners are determined by online fan voting. Posey, who stars on Teen Wolf, won a Teen Choice Award last year for Male Summer TV star. Previously announced presenters include Kellan Lutz, Chloë Grace Moretz, Cody Simpson, Hailee Steinfeld and Zendaya. The singer Jason Derülo will perform. – AP
Aamir Khan might play a baddie again
The actor Aamir Khan, last seen in 2013's Dhoom 3 in which he played the villain, has been tipped to play the baddie in Robot 2, the planned sequel to the 2010 blockbuster action drama starring the southern Indian superstar Rajinikanth and the Bollywood A-lister Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. Robot ranks among one of the most expensive movies made in India, and was released in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil. – The National staff
Jane Fonda and Kim Kardashian to voice Fox animated episodes
Jane Fonda, Sarah Silverman and Nick Offerman are among the guest voices on The Simpsons this autumn, while Kim Kardashian lends her voice in the final episode of American Dad. Fox said Kardashian plays an alien in the woods who has a fling with Roger when the series wraps up its run on September 21. Jane Krakowski is heard in the one-hour season premiere on September 14, with a second episode immediately following. The Simpsons returns for its 26th season on September 28. Fonda plays Mr Burns' girlfriend, while Willem Dafoe voices the part of Bart's bullying teacher Mr Lassen. Offerman and Silverman are heard in other episodes. Judd Apatow writes a special episode set to air later in the season. – AP
Kapoor ancestral home ‘crumbling’ in Peshawar
The ancestral home of Bollywood's Kapoor family in Pakistan's northwestern city of Peshawar, is falling into ruin, according to a Pakistani media report. The Kapoors lived in Dhakki near Peshawar's Qissa Khwani Bazaar before the historic India-Pakistan partition in 1947. The actor Dilip Kumar recently made news when his ancestral home, also in Pakistan, was declared a national heritage site by the country's prime minister, Nawaz Sharif. – The National staff
American Idol has lacked engaging contestants
American Idol needs to find contestants the audience cares about. That's a criticism Fox's chairman and chief executive, Peter Rice, admitted to at the Television Critics Association summer press tour. "We haven't found, in the last two years, a group of kids who've captured the imagination of the public," he said, adding that American Idol, launching its 14th season next year, is "ageing gracefully". He said too much attention has been placed on "this constant conversation about who should be judges." Jennifer Lopez, Keith Urban and Harry Connick Jr will return to the panel. Rice says he still believes "Idol has a very committed fan base". This year's season finale was its lowest- rated yet. – A
