NOAH EMMERICH - EMMERICH BLASTS NEPOTISM STORIES

Hollywood actor NOAH EMMERICH has slammed reports his studio executive brother helps him land movie roles, insisting his sibling's job often makes it more difficult to find work. The 41-year-old's three most recent acting jobs - PRIDE AND GLORY, LITTLE CHILDREN and CELLULAR - have all been distributed by New Line Cinema, where his brother TOBY EMMERICH works. But Noah denies nepotism is involved in his casting. He says, "If he owned the studio I wouldn't be here right now, I'd be on my yacht. "I began acting before my brother got involved in the film business. Now he's in production and I'm an actor but it can create problems just because there's such a scrutiny about nepotism. "There tends to be a general cattiness and an assumption when I work on a New Line film that he had something to do with that. "In fact, it's quite the opposite. The first time it happened my brother said, 'Isn't there anybody else we can cast?' The irony of that paradox is frustrating for me. "It's actually more of a hurdle for me to work at New Line than any other studio in town because of that supposed nepotism."