ELLE February 2013

THE MUST-DO CHECK LIST Friday, February 1 WARM BODIES In this sweet (no, really) zom-com Nicholas Hoult plays an emo zombie who is slowly brought back to life after meeting the very-much-alive girl of his dreams. Tuesday, February 5 THE HIGHWAY Nashville music royalty and fashion-plate singer-songwriter Holly Williams (granddaughter of Hank Sr.) self-releases her third album of whiskey-soaked, honey-sweet country laments. Download now: "Drinkin'," a fiddle-heavy plea to a cheating man Sunday, February 24 THE 85th ACADEMY AWARDS First-time host Seth MacFarlane earns his master-of-ceremonies stripes tonight at the Oscars. Tuesday, February 26 EIGHTY DAYS Author Matthew Goodman chronicles 25-year-old reporter Nellie Bly and magazine journalist Elizabeth Bisland's 1889 competition to break the record for fastest trip around the world. 12 "When, in 2010, Time magazine selected [Banksy]…

The best Fashion Week surprises take place not on the runway but backstage. Whether your favorite scoops are casting coups (remember when shots surfaced of Gisele at Alexander Wang?) or the newest makeup trend (we're still swooning over Pat McGrath's glittering lids at Dior last season), ELLE.com is your destination for unrivaled access to all the glossy behind-the-scenes details—plus interviews with top models and the beauty pros who glam them up. TALKING HEARTS Escape the candy-and-roses rut this Valentine's Day by sending your guy over to ELLE.com, where we've uncovered chic February 14 finds guaranteed to ignite a spark. TRUE ROMANCE When it comes to modern love, conventional wisdom need not apply. Enter author and columnist Catherine Townsend, whose approach to dating avoids touchy-feely rhetoric in favor of tangible results.…

In this golden age of TV, industry muscle can take many forms—corner-office clout, a gift for drama with gravitas, the knack for spotting reality gold. Herewith, 10 of the most influential outside-the-box movers, shakers, and Honey Boo Boo makers. Find out who else made our list at ELLE.com/tvpowerlist. THE PULSE TAKER Susanne Daniels The reign of Snooki couldn't last forever, and the responsibility of crowning a new cast of MTV cult characters falls to Daniels. The former Lifetime and WB honcho was hired this past November to be MTV's president of programming, just as Jersey Shore was winding down (and newer shows like Awkward were still waiting for their big break). Daniels' new gig comes with one big item on the to-do list: Be cool. THE FUNNY GIRL Suzanna Makkos…

Several years ago, I had the pleasure of appearing in two episodes of the much-loved ABC comedy Ugly Betty. When I arrived on set, a public park where a 40-foot ELLE banner had been stretched from one end of an enormous fence to the other, there was a trailer the size of my first New York apartment waiting for me, with a fully stocked fridge, a wet bar, and a shower, lest I break a sweat walking between the air-conditioned trailer and the field. I was playing a fictionalized version of myself, with lines full of the diva clichés that fashion-magazine editors are thought to spout regularly. The story arc was pretty straightforward: ELLE was playing a softball game against the staff of Mode, the pretend fashion magazine that was…

FLAMING HEARTS Whether due to her strong, stunning looks or her honesty with Deputy Editor Maggie Bullock for our cover story, "Game Changer," [December 2012]—"In Hollywood, I'm obese. I'm considered a fat actress. I'm Val Kilmer in that one picture on the beach," the actress said—hard-core fans and Jennifer Lawrence neophytes alike took to our cover girl and The Hunger Games star like moths to the girl-on-fire's flame: "Not gonna lie, kinda [more] obsessed with #jenniferlawrence after reading @ELLEmagazine's December interview" —@victoriazabel, via Twitter "Hallelujah, a model with brains and curves, that's just what the world's been needing more of!!!!"—Gigi Gioelle, on ELLE's Facebook page "Good for her, I hope she sticks with her own vision of beauty and doesn't let Hollywood brainwash her into becoming a walking stick figure."—Tamara…

It's not every day that the small screen finds a star who radiates as much intelligence and strength as she does sex appeal, which is why Claire Danes' return to television, as Homeland heroine Carrie Mathison, has both critics and viewers hooked. Among those devotees are ELLE Creative Director Joe Zee and photographer Carter Smith, who envisioned a modernized film-noir milieu for this month's cover story—a milieu well suited to the Emmy winner's dramatic prowess and Old Hollywood features. Zee dressed Danes in sleek shades of black, white, and gray from Proenza Schouler, Chloé, and Chanel's spring collections. Though known for her serious acting chops, Danes revealed her lighthearted side on set, taking breaks from Smith's flashing bulbs to banter with our styling team and groove to a soundtrack of…