Ashlee Simpson-Wentz
Photo: Bryan Bedder/Getty Images

Ashlee Simpson-Wentz is married to Chicago-area native Pete Wentz, and she starred in the London production of "Chicago" in 2006 as fame-hungry, husband-killer Roxie Hart. Now, Simpson-Wentz will reprise the role of Roxie, this time for the Broadway production of the show. The stint will be her Broadway debut.

"I'm honored to be reprising my role as Chicago's Roxie Hart, returning to the stage and joining this amazing cast," she said in a statement to MTV News. "Being on Broadway is a childhood dream come true."

According to several online reports, Simpson-Wentz will star in the show from November 30 through February 7; further details were not available at press time.

"My family, my mother especially, taught me to be a fighter, and that's the thing Roxie is: She always finds a way to pick herself up," Simpson said in 2006. "Roxie's a fun character to play. For me, it wasn't like I ever wanted to have my name in the papers. It was usually like, 'Oh, no!' But I know what the feeling is. And I know what the celebrity life is like, so I tried to bring a little comedy to that."

The singer/actress recently left the CW show "Melrose Place." According to the network, Simpson-Wentz was only expected to be on the program for 12 episodes, but in numerous interviews the actress did not say that was the case.

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Ashlee Simpson-Wentz
Photo: Chris Weeks/ Getty Images

Her casting made headlines, and the show's launch prompted countless articles, billboards and commercials setting her up as the show's star — but now, producers of the "Melrose Place" remake have announced that Ashlee Simpson-Wentz will be leaving the series, and claim that it was their plan all along.

"We always knew that this murder mystery would end in episode 12," executive producer Todd Slavkin told Entertainment Weekly, explaining the exit of Ashlee and co-star Colin Egglesfield while referring to a plotline that has connected their characters during the ongoing first season. "And we always knew that [Ashlee's] character of Violet would be instrumental in that as a suspect, and [Colin's character of] Augie as well. And once that murder mystery was solved, she would go on her way. That was the original plan going into the development of the show."

As a result, Wentz and Egglesfield are off "Melrose" barely six weeks after the first episode of the series aired. But as the producers make plans to tie up their "Who Killed Sydney?" plotline with episodes that will air through January, skeptical fans are already suspecting that the firings are an attempt to shake up the program, which launched to low ratings that have continued to erode.

"Well, I understand that perspective," Slavkin told told EW. "None of us foresaw the ratings; there's nothing we can do about that. All we can do is write and produce the best show we know how. It's fine to speculate, but in the end there was always a plan."

Simpson said in a statement, "Having the chance to play Violet on 'Melrose Place' has been a thrill. Although I always knew her story would come to a final, insanely unpredictable end, playing a creepy, unstable character was something I always wanted to do, so I jumped at the chance. Thanks to the CW and the entire cast and crew of 'Melrose Place' for allowing me this opportunity!"

Although Ashlee apparently knew she was on the show for only 12 episodes, she didn't mention it in any of of the numerous interviews she'd given since her casting last March as Violet Foster.

"They're total professionals and they took it like professionals," Slavkin said of how Wentz and her co-star took the news. "When you go into a show you never know what's going to evolve and what the possibilities are. But because they knew ahead of time [that leaving was a possibility], it wasn't a complete shock."

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Ashlee Simpson
Photo: Jonathan Goldner/MTV News

We've all heard that Ashlee Simpson is headlining the CW's revamped "Melrose Place," but what everyone really wants to know is if prime time's ultimate bad girl, Heather Locklear, will be getting back in the Melrose pool anytime soon.

"That's the big question, but none of us know if she's going to come back or not," Simpson told MTV News about the new show, which premieres Tuesday. "I mean, of course everyone would love for her to come back, but we don't know. [It's] up in the air."

Even if the show's original drama queen doesn't return, Simpson promises plenty of new drama. "I had never watched the original 'Melrose Place,' " she revealed. "They had such a good vision for it, and it's a little bit grittier than the original and a little bit more cinematic. There's still good ol' drama, and I was really intrigued by my character."

And there will still be plenty of action going down in the pool. "It's a new apartment complex; it looks similar to the old one. [And we have the] swimming pool," she said. "We've all been in the pool."

Simpson's character, Violet Foster, might seem nice, but there's a lot more to the West Coast newbie.

"For me, Violet [has] such an arc," she explained. "I'm not quite hip to what's going on, but I'm looking for a family member and looking for love, and my character has a little bit of an obsession thing with people. She's a little bit creepy sometimes, but I don't think she means to be, so that part's fun. There is a little bit of heart even though it's dramatic."

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Ashlee Simpson-Wentz
Photo: Bryan Bedder/Getty Images

Come this fall, Ashlee Simpson-Wentz will make her way back to the small screen for a new full-time gig on the CW's new "Melrose Place." The series, based on the drama-filled original from the '90s, which starred Heather Locklear, Marcia Cross and Kelly Rutherford of "Gossip Girl," promises to be just as scandalous as the original.

"I play the girl that's straight-off-the-bus. It's fun," Simpson-Wentz told MTV News about her character, the seemingly naive Violet Foster. "It's exciting because we don't get to see the next episode. We don't get to read the scripts until we're actually about to shoot it, and everyone is dying to know what's going to happen to their characters, so it's fun. It'll be exciting to play that arc. ... It's got good drama."

And with rumors that a dead body is already involved in the plotline of the first episode, it's a far cry from Simpson-Wentz's other TV series. "For me, I started off doing '7th Heaven.' I went on to do my music career so now I'm really, really thrilled [to be back on TV]. This is what I wanted to do and this is such a great show. I'm so excited about the show."

Recently, Simpson-Wentz made a cameo on "CSI" alongside her hubby, Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz. But don't expect to see him on the show anytime soon. "He hangs with me, but we don't read lines," she laughed. "I'm sure he would if I asked him to. I don't know about [him making a cameo]!"

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Ashlee Simpson at the "DJ Hero" event in Los Angeles on Monday
Photo: Kevin Mazur/WireImage

On Wednesday, reports emerged that at the "DJ Hero" event in Los Angeles on Monday night — at which Jay-Z and Eminem gave surprise performances — singer/ "Melrose Place" star Ashlee Simpson and Michelle Trachtenberg from "Gossip Girl" got into a verbal altercation over Pete Wentz, who is now married to Simpson and once dated Trachtenberg.

"The evening started off very civilly," an unidentified source reportedly told Perez Hilton. "Pete and Ashlee had a pleasant conversation with Michelle and her boyfriend for close to 20 minutes. Simpson even showed Trachtenberg some baby pictures of her little boy, Bronx."

But according to the source, the good vibe quickly changed. "As the evening went on and Ashlee started to get sloppier, things got out of control."

Before long, it's reported that "[Ashlee] was staring directly at Michelle and started hurling insults at her" before she began to dance with Wentz "like a stripper." Then she reportedly went up to Trachtenberg and said, "I hope you know, the whole time you were dating Pete, I was f---ing him!" It was reported that Trachtenberg said to her, "I've never said bad things about you. I'm happy for you guys."

Simpson's publicist said the scenario has been greatly exaggerated. "It was just a misunderstanding," the publicist said in a statement. "Ashlee has since apologized to Michelle, and they remain on good terms."

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Ashlee Simpson and Pete Wentz
Photo: Cameron Spencer/Getty Image

Last week, the New York Post and other gossip sites were abuzz with rumors that Pete Wentz and Ashlee Simpson's marriage was "on the rocks" due to the Fall Out Boy bassist's party-packed schedule.

But on Friday, perhaps attempting to dispel those rumors (or perhaps because they're a married couple), Wentz and Simpson shared an onstage smooch at the Australian Video Music Awards. "Sorry, we haven't seen each other in a while," Simpson told the audience. "We're going to find a quiet place to fornicate."

We got it. But, if PDAs weren't enough to silence the chatter, well, then perhaps this is: Late Friday night — sometime before winging his way from Australia to the red carpet of the Kid's Choice Awards — Wentz decided to e-mail MTV News about the rumors that his marriage was in trouble, dismissing them as "nonsense" and cautioning his fans to consider the source before leaping to conclusions.

"We're still going steady. She's still wearing my letterman jacket," he wrote. "And you shouldn't believe everything you read on the Internet. It's nonsense."

All the speculation is nothing new for the couple, who got engaged in April 2008, then married the following month amid intense media scrutiny that Simpson was pregnant. Wentz initially denied those rumors, then announced via a post on FriendsOrEnemies.com that they were, in fact, expecting a child.

In November, Simpson gave birth to son, Bronx Mowgli, a name that launched a whole new wave of media attention.

The couple will celebrate their one-year wedding anniversary on May 17.

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Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz at the 2009 Kids' Choice Awards on Saturday
Photo: MTV News

LOS ANGELES, California — Although Ashlee Simpson had to stay home with their newborn Bronx Mowgli on Saturday night, Pete Wentz was eager to talk about his wife's new gig when he walked the orange carpet at the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards. The Fall Out Boy rocker boasted that Ashlee will soon be getting down and dirty on the upcoming "Melrose Place" redux.

"I hope she gets to play the bi---," Wentz said of her reported role as a manipulative small-town girl who gets what she wants by any means necessary. "I'm excited to watch. She's a good actress, so I think it will be awesome."

Created by Darren Star, who also brought fans "Sex and the City" and the recently-rebooted "90210," the original "Melrose Place" ran from 1992-1999 and centered on an apartment block in West Hollywood filled with young, attractive, drama-embracing tenants. The series starred Heather Locklear, Courtney Thorne-Smith, Marcia Cross and Andrew Shue.

But if you're too young to remember all that, don't feel bad — because Pete and Ashlee didn't watch the original "Melrose" either.

"She was way too young, and I was just a little bit too young," Wentz said. "I was into '90210' and maybe some 'Melrose Place,' but I was always more of a 'Saved By the Bell' kind of guy."

Some might think that before Ashlee moves into "Melrose" alongside Katie Cassidy and (possibly) Mischa Barton, the Wentz family would give themselves a crash course by renting all the DVDs. But Pete insisted that familiarizing herself with the old show wouldn't do Ashlee much good.

"No, I think they're revamping it," he explained. "They're not ignoring [the original], but it's being given a new look, a makeover."

Two "Melrose" traditions that seem unlikely to change, however, are the high-profile guest stars and the naughty pool-boys out to explore far more than the deep end. Although Pete recently joined Ashlee for an episode of "CSI: NY," he was quick to insist that he won't be reuniting with her on "Melrose Place."

"I usually do the pool-boy cameo at my wife's house," he grinned. "So, I don't think I'll do it on TV."

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Ashlee Simpson-Wentz and Pete Wentz on "CSI: NY"
Photo: MTV News

Following in the footsteps of Diddy and Taylor Swift, Ashlee Simpson-Wentz and Pete Wentz will make their big debut on "CSI: NY" on Wednesday (March 18).

In a clip released early, fans got a taste of what to expect from the pop stars. The episode casts them as Chester Byron and Lila Wickfield, a young couple entangled in the world of drug-dealing.

"Well, it's not quite Bonnie and Clyde, but they're caught up in something, and we have to figure it out, of course," the show's star Gary Sinise told CBS' "The Early Show."

Pete sounds pretty excited about playing a criminal, telling People magazine, "I wish I got the chance to be murdered or rob a bank, but I heard the makeup [takes] much longer for that."

In the past, the Wentzes appeared together on "Dog Whisperer With Cesar Millan," and they've each done some acting work on their own. "It's easy to play passionate roles with the person you love," Pete told the magazine. "There's nothing weird about it when you love the person."

And this won't be Ashlee's last TV role: The singer/actress was recently cast in the remake of "Melrose Place" expected to air on the CW this fall. "I'm thrilled to be joining the cast of 'Melrose Place' and look forward to being a part of its new generation of residents," Simpson-Wentz told MTV News.

On the show, she'll be playing Violet, a small-town girl who is very manipulative, using her girl-next-door charm to get what she wants.

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Ashlee Simpson-Wentz
Photo: Tiffany Rose/WireImage

Ashlee Simpson-Wentz has confirmed to MTV News that she will be taking up residence on the revamped "Melrose Place" this fall.

"I'm thrilled to be joining the cast of 'Melrose Place' and look forward to being a part of its new generation of residents," Simpson-Wentz said.

Although she didn't comment on what role she will have on the show, reports from The Hollywood Reporter and EW.com have the onetime "7th Heaven" star playing Violet, a small-town girl who is very manipulative and uses her girl-next-door charm to get what she wants. The role is being described as similar to the Sandy Harling character from the original series.

Simpson-Wentz joins Katie Cassidy, who will play determined publicist Ella, and Michael Rady, who will play aspiring filmmaker Jonah, on the upcoming series. Original "Melrose Place" resident Heather Locklear is also rumored to be joining the cast to reprise her role as Amanda Woodward. "Both sides are talking," reports EW.com's Michael Ausiello. "It's looking good [that Heather will come back]."

In addition to the rumor that Locklear will be back for more backstabbing fun, "O.C." alum Mischa Barton is rumored to make her return to the small screen for "Melrose Place." If she does, EW.com reports she'll play the good girl — either med student Lauren or schoolteacher Riley.

"This is news to me," a rep for Barton told MTV News. "She's just returned from Europe and heading there again for contractual commitments, but I know she has been reviewing scripts for pilot season, though I haven't heard of anything specific."

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Ashlee Simpson-Wentz
Photo: Bruce Gifford/ FilmMagic

Lay off my sister! That's the message Ashlee Simpson-Wentz sent on Monday in a MySpace blog post about the wave of snarky stories and mocking headlines aimed at Jessica Simpson's apparent weight gain.

In a post titled, "Since when did a woman's weight become newsworthy," Ashlee wrote that she was "completely disgusted by the headlines concerning my sister's weight. A week after the inauguration and with such a feeling of hope in the air for our country, I find it completely embarrassing and belittling to all women to read about a woman's weight or figure as a headline on Fox News."

The scrutiny of Simpson's weight is a result of photographs from the gone-country singer's performance at the Kiss Country Chili Cookout in Pembroke Pines, Florida, where the 28-year-old Simpson wore high-waisted jeans and a large belt that accentuated her curvy figure.

"All women come in different shapes, sizes and forms, and just because you're a celebrity, there shouldn't be a different standard," new mother Ashlee wrote. "Is this something you would say to your wife, daughter, mother, grandmother or even a friend? I seriously doubt it. How can we expect teenage girls to love and respect themselves in an environment where we criticize a size 2 figure? Now can we focus on the things that really matter."

Little sis isn't the only one coming to Jessica's defense. The "Newlyweds" star's former trainer, diet author Harley Pasternak, told "Extra" that Simpson's fuller figure is a good thing.

"She has curves where a woman needs to have curves," Pasternak told the TV show on Tuesday. "We all go a little bit up and a little bit down. But she's healthy.

"She's still sexy," he added. "She's still a beautiful woman. And I have no problem with the way she looks. I think if more people looked the way she looks now, the country would be a lot healthier."

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