Rueben's Ramblings

Hey All,

Here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

The BBC mini-series Downton Abbey has been confirmed for a third season. [NOTE: Those of us in the states are still patiently waiting for Season 2 to get a premiere date, but really nice to know there is so much more to enjoy!] (Michael Rosser at BroadcastNow)

Actress Deidre O’Connell (Law & Order) will appear on The Closer as the caring – yet crazy – first wife of Lt. Provenza (G.W. Bailey). She is the mother of his three children who gets ripped off when pawning some personal items in an attempt to pay for her beloved dog’s veterinary care. She’s an English teacher with a soft heart but who is always correcting everyone’s grammar. Her role may recur in the spinoff Major Crimes that will star Mary McDonnell. (Lynette Rice at Entertainment Weekly)

It looks like HBO is moving forward with their drama pilot, with now confirmed actors Chris Cooper and Diane Wiest in the lead roles. The pilot is called The Corrections and is based on the Jonathan Franzen book, which revolves around the troubles of an elderly Midwestern couple (Cooper and Wiest), and their three adult children as they trace their lives from the mid-20th century to “one last Christmas” together near the turn of the millennium. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

ABC is considering a drama series for next summer to be produced by Bob Cooper and actor Anthony Lapaglia (Without a Trace). It is Titled Beautiful Gangsters and revolves around three mafia wives who cut a deal with the FBI to enter Witness Protection together in exchange for their testimony, in the hopes of giving their families a second chance at life. The FBI relocates them to a suburban border town in Canada, where they struggle to fit in, struggle to make ends meet … and struggle to resist temptations to take criminal shortcuts. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

MADE FOR TV MOVIE NEWS

Actress Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men) is in final negotiations to play the lead in the BBC six-hour miniseries Top Of The Lake that centers on Robin Griffin (Moss), a detective investigating the disappearance of a 12-year-old pregnant girl, who is the daughter of a local drug lord. There is no set provider for viewers in the states, as yet, but Sundance Channel might get it. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actor Jason Statham will star in the action-drama called Hummingbird that centers on an ex-Special Forces soldier looking for a way out of London’s criminal underworld. A twist of circumstance allows him to assume another identity and act out his vengeance through his redemptive justice. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

BOX OFFICE TRAILER

Watch: Theatrical ‘Underworld Awakening’ Trailer with Kate Beckinsale

NOTE: There are some interesting co-stars in this movie as well, including actor Michael Ealy (FlashForward and the upcoming USA Network series Common Law), British actor Theo James (from the BBC series Bedlam), Kris Holden-Ried (Lost Girl) and India Eisley (The Secret Life of the American Teenager).

That’s it. Enjoy!