Rueben's Ramblings

Hey All,

Here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

Actress Sheryl Lee Ralph, who originated the role of Deena Jones in the Broadway musical Dreamgirls will be playing the mom to Jennifer Hudson (who is an Oscar-winner for the 2006 theatrical remake of Dreamgirls) in the upcoming season of Smash. Hudson will play Veronica Moore, a Tony-winning star who reached her Broadway dream but paid a price for it; and Ralph will be her mom Cynthia. Smash is expected back on NBC during mid-season. (Vulture)

Actor Enrique Murciano (Without a Trace) has landed a multi-episode arc on the new ABC drama 666 Park Avenue. The premise of this new series is about an innocent Midwestern couple (Dave Annable from Brothers & Sisters and Rachael Taylor from the short-lived Charlie’s Angels) who get hired as resident managers of an Upper East Side apartment building in New York owned by Gavin (Terry O’Quinn from Lost) and Olivia Doran (Vanessa Williams from Desperate Housewives). Unbeknownst to them, the residents have all made deals with the devil to have their desires fulfilled. Murciano will play Dr. Todd Scott, a handsome young surgeon living at The Drake. 666 Park Avenue debuts on September 30 on ABC at 10 PM. (Natalie Abrams at TV Guide)

Actress Lara Jean Chorostecki (Camelot) has joined the cast of the upcoming mid-season series Hannibal, base on the legendary literary character Hannibal Lecter. The drama comes from Bryan Fuller, the man behind Dead Like Me and Pushing Daisies; and stars Hugh Dancy as FBI agent Will Graham and Mads Mikkelsen as his mentor Dr. Hannibal Lecther. Chorostecki will play Freddie Lounds, a tabloid reporter (who had been previously played by Stephen Lang and Philip Seymour Hoffman in previous incarnations of the character). (Vlada Gelman at TV Line)

Actor John Barrowman (Torchwood) will have a recurring role on the new CW drama series Arrow that focuses on the life of billionaire offspring Oliver Queen, who is found alive after being presumed lost at sea for five years. Details on Barrowman’s character are being kept under wraps except for these tidbits: he will play a “well-dressed man” who is “as mysterious as he is wealthy and he is an acquaintance of the Queen family and a prominent figure in Starling City”. Arrow debuts on The CW on October 10. (James Hibberd at Entertainment Weekly)

Actress Miriam Shor (from the short-lived GCB) will recur as a reporter covering the Florrick campaign on The Good Wife. The CBS drama will be back with new episodes starting on September 30. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

TV TRAILER

Downton Abbey Season 3 Trailer

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Actor Lennie James (Hung and Jericho) will co-star alongside Mark Strong in the AMC drama pilot called Low Winter Sun that is a contemporary story of murder, deception, revenge and corruption that starts with the murder of a cop by fellow Detroit detective Frank Agnew (Strong). Seemingly the perfect crime, in reality the murder activates forces that will forever alter that detective’s life and pull him into the heart of the Detroit underworld. James will play Joe, who is described as part cop, part perp. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Actor Joe Anderson (Across The Universe and The River) has been cast in the other drama pilot from AMC that is currently unnamed; but is an ensemble legal drama/thriller that is centered on Adam Powell, a District Attorney who uncovers new evidence that prompts the reinvestigation of a sensational murder case. Anderson will play Terry Kaminski, a man of Polish descent convicted of a crime. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

FOX has won a bid on a new as-yet untitled hour-long comedy project about a quirky single female attorney by Parenthood duo Jason Katims and Sarah Watson. The project is an edgy, twisted romantic comedy set in a Chicago law firm that is centered on a single 30-something attorney working at the firm. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actor Tim Roth (Lie to Me) will play Monaco’s ambitious and strong-headed Prince Rainier III in the upcoming box office film called Grace of Monaco that will star Nicole Kidman in the lad role. The film will be set six years into Grace’s marriage to the monarch of the wealthy but small European nation; now retired, Princess Grace is called upon to save Monaco from an escalating situation regarding its standing as a tax haven. Rainier initially lets his emotions get in the way of his work and marriage, but eventually lets Kelly guide him in decision-making. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Actor Morris Chestnut will play the male lead role opposite actress Halle Berry in the upcoming film called The Hive that focuses on a 911 call center. Berry plays a veteran operator who takes a call from a kidnapped teen stuffed a trunk. Using her considerable skills to keep the girl calm, she tries to find the kidnapper before it’s too late. (Deadline and Dark Horizons)

Actor Tobey Maguire will star in the upcoming box office film Z for Zachariah, which is a post-apocalyptic story about a girl who lives alone and operates a farm in the last breathable section of a nuclear-ravaged land. Her world is rocked when two strangers stumble in from the forest, though. Maguire will play a scientist that she nurses back to health. (Variety and First Showing)

That’s it. Enjoy!