Despite including appearances by much of the cast from the night's big winner -- "Twilight: New Moon" -- and the much-hyped debuts of trailers for the latest installments of both the "Twilight" and "Harry Potter" film franchises, ratings for Sunday's MTV Movie Awards were off from last year.

On the main channel, viewership was off by a lot, dropping from 5.3 million to 4.6 million. However, with the addition of sister station VH1 to the simulcast lineup along with MTV2, total viewership was down only slightly from 5.9 million to 5.8 million. MTV reports that total viewership (i.e., anyone tuning in for a minute or more) totaled 16.4 million.The kudocast faced fierce competition with ABC airing Game 2 of the NBA Finals.

Last year's awardscast, hosted by "Saturday Night Live" star Andy Samberg, was notable for the staged meeting between Sacha Baron Cohen's butt and Eminem's face, which prompted a walkout by the latter. Each had a project to promote -- the actor's new movie, "Bruno," and the rapper's latest disc, "Relapse" -- and the resulting controversy spiked interest in them.

This year, Tom Cruise of the upcoming flick "Knight and Day" hoped for a boost by appearing throughout the awards in a running gag reprising his "Tropic Thunder" character Les Grossman. He opened the show, was featured in promos with "Twilight" stars Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner, and did a dance-off with Jennifer Lopez.

Ah, not too long ago, Tom Cruise was a heartthrob coddled and cooed over at the MTV Movie Awards. Between 1993 and 2005, Cruise was nominated a dozen times and won twice: best male performance of 1997 ("Jerry Maguire") and 2001 ("Mission: Impossible II"). But now that his career looks like it's had all the blood sucked out of it, a vampire swooped down to Cruise's rescue at the awardscast tonight: stud du jour Robert Pattinson ("Twilight: New Moon"). Here's a replay of their memorable vignette.

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Pssst! Here's everything you need to know about tonight's MTV Movie Awards

Video: MTV

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Vampires ruled the night at the MTV Movie Awards as "Twilight: New Moon" snared the top prizes, winning best movie, kiss (Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart), male and female performance (Pattinson and Stewart, natch). Curiously, their costar Anna Kendrick won best break-out star for a different flick, "Up in the Air."

There was something especially creepy about the vampire sweep: it looked like a virtual repeat of the romp the original "Twilight" film performed last year at the MTV Movie Awards, winning best movie, kiss and female performance,

Among notable losses at the kudofest: Betty White may be the hottest senior in the tween world these days, but her "cop a feel" scene in "The Propopsal" lost best WTF moment to "naked trunk surprise" in "The Hangover."

BEST MOVIE: "Twilight: New Moon"

BEST KISS: Kristen Stewart & Robert Pattinson ("Twilight: New Moon")

BEST MALE PERFORMANCE: Robert Pattinson ("Twilight: New Moon")

BEST FEMALE PERFORMANCE: Kristen Stewart ("Twilight: New Moon")

BEST BREAKOUT STAR: Anna Kendrick ("Up in the Air")

BEST SCARED AS S--T PERFORMANCE: Amanda Seyfried ("Jennifer's Body")

GENERATIONS AWARD: Sandra Bullock

BEST WTF MOMENT: Ken Jeong ("The Hangover")

BEST VILLAIN: Tom Felton ("Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince")

BIGGEST BADASS STAR: Rain ("Ninja Assassin")

BEST COMEDIC PERFORMANCE: Zach Galifianakis ("The Hangover")

RELATED LINKS

Poll: Was Sandra Bullock awesome or awful at MTV Movie Awards?

MTV Movie Awards prediction: 'Twilight: New Moon' will slay 'Avatar'

Pssst! Here's everything you need to know about tonight's MTV Movie Awards

Photo: MTV.com

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It's easy to be critical of Sandra Bullock's appearance at the MTV Movie Awards. As she accepted the Generation Award, she defined the prize as something given to old people being pushed aside for young, emerging superstars.

Then Sandra Bullock added, "I'm staying. Because no matter what you might have seen or heard or read lately, I love what I do. And I'm not going anywhere."

Really? Who said that Bullock doesn't love acting? Who said she's going away? Nobody with a brain has proposed either idea.

Nonetheless Bullock was amusing, especially when she added her reasons for not vanishing: "One, I'm not dead. Two, everyone has cellulite, not just me. Paparazzi need more flattering lenses. And whoever established the high road and how high it should be should be fired."

Give us your vote in our earlier poll: Is Sandra Bullock crazy to appear at the MTV Movie Awards?

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MTV Movie Awards prediction: 'Twilight: New Moon' will slay 'Avatar'

Pssst! Here's everything you need to know about tonight's MTV Movie Awards

Photo: MTV.com

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Who's nominated for the MTV Movie Awards, you wonder? Check out this list.

Who's going to win? Gold Derby predicts "Twilight: New Moon" will beat "Avatar" and "The Hangover" for best picture.

The Envelope will feature sexy photos of red-carpet arrivals here.

What will Aziz Ansari say in his opening monologue? "Usually, at these shows, the host has to point and trash celebrities, so I'll probably point and say look at the guy's dumb jacket!'" he tells Zap2It. "'That looks silly. Your hair looks bad.' I'll say stuff like that. That should work."

With "Twilight: New Moon" looming over the MTV Movie Awards as a top nominee and with MTV promising to air a preview of "Twilight Saga: Eclipse," Zap2It seeks out who's on Team Edward and Team Jacob.

Zap2It also probes the biggest "Twilight" cliffhangers of all: Will Robert Pattinson approve of his gift bag, seat and meal?

Who's performing? Who's presenting? The Associated Press breaks it down.

Katy Perry confesses "she may not wear any clothes" while performing, reports MTV.com.

Photo: MTV.com

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Do you think it's gracious or crazy of Sandra Bullock to attend the MTV Movie Awards? Our forum posters are having a smackdown over their opinions.

"Why would Sandra waste her time by making this farce of an awards show her first public event appearance since her personal saga?" asks GoBlue! "You'd think it would be at a more reputable event."

Rockstitution replies: "Well, they are presenting her with an award especially dedicated to her. It'd be kinda rude not to attend. Plus, she's riding the wave of being hip at the moment, so why not attend?"

Babypook adds: "I agree. They love her. Why not be gracious and attend? Besides, Sandra showed up for her Razzie. She's class, all the way."

See more fierce opinions in our forums. Below, share what you think.

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MTV Movie Awards prediction: 'Twilight: New Moon' will slay 'Avatar'

Photo: Sandra Bullock at the Oscars. Credit: Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times

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At the MTV Movie Awards, voters will surely prefer bloodsuckers ("Twilight: New Moon") to booze guzzlers ("The Hangover"), even though the latter flick leads with the most nominations (six compared with five for the vampire flick).

"Twilight: New Moon's" biggest foe for best picture is "Avatar" since these awards are decided by popular vote of Web users. "Avatar" was a bigger hit at the box office, earning $749 million versus $296 million for "Twilight." Oh, yeah, and "Avatar" earned more respect within Hollywood, reaping an Oscar nomination for best picture.

But "Twilight" will probably prevail at the MTV Movie Awards anyway. Last year at the MTV kudos, "Twilight" won best film, best fight (Robert Pattinson, Cam Gigandet), kiss (Pattinson, Kristen Stewart), female performance (Stewart) and breakthrough male performance (Pattinson). It suffered only two defeats. Taylor Lautner lost best breakthrough male (to costar Pattinson — only one could win the category) and best song ("Decode" lost to "The Climb" from "Hannah Montana: The Movie").

Winning last year doesn't hurt "Twilight's" chance to triumph again. All three installments of "The Lord of the Rings" won the same crown from 2002 to 2004.

Photos: "Twilight: New Moon" (Summit), "Avatar" (20th Century Fox)

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The cast of "The Hangover" shouldn't bother guzzling too much Champagne to celebrate leading with the most MTV Movie Award nominations (six). "Twilight: New Moon" may have merely earned five, but that's exactly how many MTV trophies the original "Twilight" claimed last year. Clearly, voters love blood guzzlers.

Last year at the MTV Movie Awards, "Twilight" won best film, best fight (Cam Gigandet, Robert Pattinson), kiss (Kristen Stewart, Pattinson), female performance (Stewart) and breakthrough male performance (Pattinson). It suffered only two defeats. Taylor Lautner lost best breakthrough male (to costar Pattinson — only one could win the category) and best song ("Decode" lost to "The Climb" from "Hannah Montana: The Movie").

Just because "Twilight" won best film last year doesn't mean "New Moon" is ill-starred. All three installments of "Lord of the Rings" won the same crown from 2002 to 2004.

But the romp by "Rings" does suggest that a movie other than "The Hangover" might have a shot at besting "Twilight: New Moon." That's "Avatar, which, just like "Rings," was a fantasy blockbuster that broke box-office records. Or, rather, "Avatar" is sci-fi, that is, a genre voters preferred when picking past best films "Transformers" and "The Matrix."

Because winners are decided by Web-based votes, that sets up a fierce cyber war between "Twilight" and "Avatar" fanatics. Everybody, duck!

Check out all nominations here and cast your ballot. See our forum posters' reactions to the nominations here.

Photos: "Twilight: New Moon" (Summit), "Avatar" (20th Century Fox)

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• Writer/director Bill Condon -- who co-produced last year's Academy Awards -- has inked a deal to direct the fourth film in the "Twilight" franchise. There is talk that "Breaking Dawn" will be split into two films, as is being done with the last in the "Harry Potter" series. Condon -- who won an Oscar for his script for "Gods & Monsters" -- said in a statement, "I’m very excited to get the chance to bring the climax of this saga to life on-screen. As fans of the series know, this is a one-of-a-kind book and we’re hoping to create an equally unique cinematic experience."

• The first wave of bold-faced names who will attend the presentation of the AFI lifetime achievement award to Oscar-winning director Mike Nichols ("The Graduate") has been announced. Among those speaking at the June 10 ceremony will be a pair of two-time Oscar winners who are both previous AFI honorees -- Tom Hanks (2002) and Meryl Streep (2003) -- as well as two more Oscar champs -- Cher and Julia Roberts. All four of them have been directed at least once by Nichols who is one of only 10 people to have won the grand slam of all four major showbiz awards. YAHOO

• Looks like four-time lead actor Emmy nominee Steve Carell could be resigning from "The Office" when his contract expires at the end of next season. As Willa Paskin reports, "Asked if he would stay longer, Carell, who has some ten movie projects in the works, told a BBC reporter, 'I don't think so. I think that will probably be my last year.' Of course, the last thing NBC needs is for the leading man of their highest-rated comedy to split, so they will likely offer Carell just about anything he wants to stay." NEW YORK

• The revamped official website of the Tony Awards will include a streaming feed of both the red carpet and the press room at the 64th annual edition of these top theater kudos on June 13. There will also be a section devoted to the Twitter feeds of the nominees after they are announced on May 4. TONY AWARDS

•Two-time Emmy champ Kathy Griffin talks with Scott Huver about the upcoming sixth season of "My Life on the D-List" including what sounds like a must-see episode with her taking an acting lesson from Oscar champ Liza Minnelli ("Cabaret"). Says Griffin, "What I took away from working with Liza was she wasn’t in her Liza kooky wacky mode. We see her on TV and so often she’s just putting on the Liza show. And when we were alone in her room, just the two of us rehearsing, she was so in the moment and so fantastic and that’s when you really see it." TV GUIDE

• Jethro Nededog reports on the fun MTV is having touting its choice of "Parks and Recreation" supporting player Aziz Ansari as the host of this year's movie awards on June 6. In the promo, which debuted Tuesday night, "High School Musical" star Zac Efron, music mogul Diddy and "Gossip Girl" narrator Kristen Bell answer the question: Who is Aziz Ansari? ZAP2IT

Top photo: "Breaking Dawn" book cover. Credit: Hachette

Middle photo: Steve Carell in "The Office." Credit: NBC

Bottom photo: Kathy Griffin in "My Life on the D-List." Credit: Bravo

Our forum posters don't believe recent Oscar champ "The Hurt Locker" will even be nominated for best picture at the MTV Movie Awards. As they post their predictions in our message boards, our posters agree that front-runners for nominations are "Avatar," "The Hangover" and "Twilight: New Moon" plus maybe "Star Trek," "Inglourious Basterds," "Up" and/or "The Blind Side."

Voting commenced Monday to determine nominees, which will be unveiled around May 11. Cast your own vote here. Awards to be presented on June 6 at the Gibson Amphitheatre in Los Angeles.

Oscar's recent winner of best supporting actor, Christoph Waltz ("Inglourious Basterds"), is a good bet to be nominated for the MTV Movie Award as best villain. And he may win – just like Heath Ledger pulled off the dual wins for his sinister turn in "The Dark Knight." But that's the only overlap between Oscars and MTV Awards you're likely to see this year. The two awards agreed on best picture only three times in 18 years: "The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King," "Gladiator" and "Titanic." Otherwise, the Academy Award winners – to be brutally frank about it – rarely even get nominated by the MTV hipsters. Last year "Slumdog Millionaire" made the list, but it lost to "Twilight."