Rueben's Ramblings

Hey All,

Here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

Actress Brooke Shields will have a role in the 7th season of Lifetime’s Army Wives that returns on March 10. She will play Air Force Colonel Katherine “Kat” Young, a C-17 pilot who clashes with Army General Michael Holden (Brian McNamara). (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Actor John Pyper-Ferguson (Alphas, Caprica and Brothers & Sisters) will guest star in an upcoming episode of Once Upon a Time, playing Ben, a widower who wants nothing more than to help his young son heal from the loss of his mother. (James Hibberd at Entertainment Weekly)

Actress Sarah Chalke (Scrubs) will pay a visit to Grey’s Anatomy in an episode set to air this spring, but details are fuzzy on what role she will play. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

The British adaptation of the Scandinavian series The Bridge, which will become a 10-part mini-series called The Tunnel, will star actress Clemence Poesy (Harry Potter) and actor Stephen Dillane (Game of Thrones) in the lead roles. The drama will be set primarily in Folkestone and Calais where detectives Karl Roebuck (Dillane) and Elise Wassermann (Poésy) are called to investigate the death of a French politician. When a shocking discovery is made at the crime scene, the pair is forced into an uneasy partnership as they seek out a politically-motivated serial killer who draws them into his own personal agenda. (Nancy Tartaglione at Deadline)

More cast members have joined the cast of the British biopic called Fleming that will star Dominic Cooper (Mamma Mia) as author Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond and actress Annabelle Wallis (Pan Am) as Muriel Wright, the original inspiration for the Bond Girl. The additional cast members include Lara Pulver (Sherlock and the upcoming Starz series Da Vinci’s Demons), who will play Ann O’Neill, with whom Fleming had a long-term on-off relationship before she became his wife in 1952. Actor Samuel West (the upcoming mini-series Mr. Selfridge) will play Admiral John Godfrey with whom Fleming worked during WWII and who put him in charge of Operation Golden Eye. British actress Lesley Manville (Vera Drake) will play Fleming’s mother Eve and British actor Rupert Evans (World Without End) will play his brother Peter. Also Anna Chancellor (The Hour) will play Lieutenant Monday, an inspiration for Miss Moneypenny. (Nancy Tartaglione at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actor Campbell Scott (Royal Pains) is set to direct and star in the box office adaptation of the Joan Didion novel called “A Book of Common Prayer, which centers on two American women whose paths cross in a fictional Central American country on the verge of revolution: One married into one of the families that dominate politics in Boca Grande; the other has seen her marriage fall apart and her daughter run off with a group of Marxist radicals. (Dave McNary at Variety)

Director-series creator J.J. Abrams has been selected to direct the next movie in the Star Wars franchise. (The Wrap and Dark Horizons)

Actress Chloe Moretz (the upcoming Carrie reboot and the Let Me In) will star in the film adaptation of the Gayle Forman novel called If I Say, which follows a relationship between a young classical musician (Moretz) and her indie rock boyfriend. (Variety and First Showing)

The long list of actors have been assembled to star in the upcoming JFK assassination film called Parkland. Among the already announced cast are Paul Giamatti, Billy Bob Thornton, Jacki Weaver, Marcia Gay Harden, Zac Efron, and Jeremy Strong. And the newly announced cast includes Jackie Earle Haley, Colin Hanks, Ron Livingston, James Badge Dale and David Harbour. The film will be based on the Vincent Bugliosi book called “Reclaiming History: The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy.” The film will recount the chaotic events that occurred at Parkland Hospital in Dallas following JFK’s assassination on Nov. 22, 1963. (Greg Gilman at The Wrap)

BOX OFFICE TRAILER

Kirsten Dunst & Jim Sturgess in ‘Upside Down’ Sci-Fi Romance Trailer

Q&A SECTION (with Team Watch with Kristin at E! Online and Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

Question: How will Colton Haynes’ exit be addressed when Teen Wolf returns? – Brendan

Team Watch with Kristin: Thanks to a handy-dandy four month time-jump, Jackson’s absence in Beacon Hills won’t be weighing down any of our characters that much and we’ll learn what happened to him thanks to a quippy explanation from Lydia. In the same vein, look for Isaac to have more of a presence in season three now that Jackson is gone.

Question: Is it too soon to ask about Awkward? – Jayna

Mitovich: Actually, no – because the show has just put out a Season 3 casting call for the role of Collin, a surprisingly charming classmate who will distract Jenna some, even to the point that she ignores Matty’s calls. Then again, Jenna as a whole is not quite herself when the MTV series returns. Something about not getting much sleep at home.

Question: This is not really a scoop request (or maybe it is), but the press release for the NCIS episode “Canary” (Episode 10×14) seems to be lacking guest cast. –Daniel

Mitovich: You seem crafty, Daniel, so maybe you already dug this up. But if not, that guest cast includes Chuck alum/imminent Bones guest star Vik Sahay (playing a computer hacker), Ethan Rains (General Hospital: Night Shift) and Geoffrey Wade (aka Don’s Mad Men dentist).

That’s it. Enjoy!

Have a great weekend!!