MTV Movie Awards Air Tonight

The zany MTV Movie Awards – which demonstrate their level of seriousness by handing out gilded buckets of popcorn to the winners – air tonight at 9 pm on (duh) MTV. The show was taped on Saturday and the nominees and winners (talk about spoilers) are listed here.

Keeping with the unceremonious tone of the ceremonies, there was much shenanigans at the taping:

Then there was D12. Costumed as various stars of yesteryear, the Detroit rap crew passed the time before their performance by taunting glamorous and beautiful passers-by.

“Sharon Stone! I’m Rick James,” shouted D12’s Kon Artis, who was dressed as the funky singer. He stopped the stunned “Basic Instinct” star in her tracks and caressed her hand. “I love your movies,” he purred.

She forced a smile. “I … love your music …?” she said with uncertainty, before her entourage hustled her out a side entrance.

….Eminem, dressed as Guns N’ Roses singer Axl Rose (news), remained out of sight for most of the hijinks, shrouded behind a small, curtained room.

He missed Christina Aguilera, a longtime musical foe he once famously mocked in song, as she sneaked past the D12 crew. She giggled “Nice!” to a friend, cocking her head at the ridiculously costumed guys. They were too busy cavorting in front of an MTV camera to notice.

Eminem emerged in time to cross paths with “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” remake star Jessica Biel. He looped his arm across her shoulders and escorted her to the exit, then – in the shadow of his massive bodyguard team – pretended to pick a fight with her in front of the crowd outside.

“You and me – after school!” he taunted.

Biel was happy to play along. “3 o’clock!” she yelled back.

For the less rowdy, the dimly lit hallway was just a place to hang out. Tom Cruise, who presented an award with his “Collateral” co-star Jamie Foxx, was adjusting his sunglasses to hang from the neck of his T-shirt before being confronted by a fan – Vin Diesel.

….At one point Paris Hilton and her Backstreet Boys beau Nick Carter squeezed through the crowd. The hotel heiress/reality TV star/reluctant Internet porn icon leaned back and smiled, “Do I look cute?” as if she already knew the answer.

Carter responded with a kiss to her cheek. Then they went outside so she could smoke a cigarette.

Since the talent wasn’t required to show up for rehearsals, some stars showed glimpses of panic as their presentations neared. Dunst was preparing to hand out the final award – best movie, “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” – but she had a problem.

“I have no idea what I’m saying!” she said. “I don’t know my lines.”

Minutes before she went onstage with her “Spider-Man 2” co-star Tobey Maguire, she huddled with the production crew to glance over the scripted patter. Her objective: to escort a person in a pajama-looking Spider-Man suit out to the podium. Then Maguire would came out later as a surprise.

Then the phony Spider-Man showed up. It was Ellen DeGeneres. [AP]

For complete spoilage, read the official MTV recap here.