Rueben's Ramblings

Hey All,

Here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

Syfy has made a 13-episode straight-to-series order for the dark thriller called Helix from Ronald D. Moore, the man behind the reboot of Battlestar Galactica. The series is about a team of scientists investigating a possible disease outbreak at an Arctic research facility who find themselves trying to protect the world from annihilation. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Actress Kasha Kropinski, who recurred on the first two seasons of Hell on Wheels as Ruth, the courageous religious leader, has been promoted to series regular for the show’s upcoming third season on AMC. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actor Sebastian Roche will join Liam Neeson in the upcoming box office film called A Walk Among the Tombstones. He will play Yuri Landau, a middle class Russian drug dealer whose daughter is kidnapped. He asks hard-boiled ex-NYPD cop and unlicensed private detective Matt Scudder (Neeson) to help get her back before it is too late. (Dominic Patten at Deadline)

Actress Bella Heathcote (Dark Shadows) has the as-yet titled romantic comedy that is set to star Hugh Grant and Marisa Tomei in a story that follows a creatively washed up, divorced and broke former award-winning screenwriter (Grant) forced to take on a job teaching screenwriting at a small college. Heathcote will play one of his students. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

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

Question: Do you have anything regarding Castle‘s 100th episode? Any scoop will be very much appreciated! –Martina

Mitovich: One hundred, shmun-hundred! How about, instead, Episode 105 – aka the Season 5 finale? “We’re looking at a very emotional finale,” series creator Andrew W. Marlowe previews. “We’re dealing with something very explosive, personally… ‘he says cryptically and mysteriously.’” With a smile, he added: “Stay tuned!”

Question: I am really looking forward to the rest of Season 2 on Revenge. Especially after that last episode, what can we expect? –Matt

Mitovich: You know how Gabriel Mann teased for us a “Nolan-centric” season finale? At this week’s TV Academy event showcasing the ABC sudser, he elaborated – somewhat – about what’s on tap, saying that over “the next three or four episodes, you’re going to have a very good idea of where these events may be leading.” In fact, he’s left to wonder “whether we may hit that apex even prior to the finale — and if we do, what does that mean for what the finale actually could mean?” His working theory: Simply that the season-ender “is going to be next-level [stuff]. It’s going to be hard to top last year, so they’ve got their work cut out for them.”

Question: Will Neal’s fiancée play a role in future Once Upon a Time episodes? –Devin

Mitovich: Yes — though probably not in quite the way you expect. And that’s all I’ll say, for now, on the matter… so here’s series co-creator Eddy Kitsis, pre-PaleyFest: “Tamara’s not going anywhere anytime soon…. We’re very excited for the audience to see what she’s all about.”

Question: Will Nashville‘s Deacon find out about his secret child with Rayna this season? –Stephanie

Mitovich: Series creator Callie Khouri confirms that Deacon thus far “has no idea” about his progeny, and she seems in no rush to drop that paternity bombshell. “That’s a big deal… We’ll hold that,” Khouri says – though, keep in mind, she hasn’t tackled the season finale yet.

Question: Is the rumor true that T.J. Ramini is returning to NCIS (as Mossad Officer Malachi Ben-Gidon)? –Ted

Mitovich: “It’s no secret Eli David’s killer is still out there — and Ziva wants answers as does Mossad,” answers showrunner Gary Glasberg. “But we will have to wait and see if that means Malachi is coming back as well.”

Question: Now that things are starting to heat up between Person of Interest‘s Reese and Zoe, are we going to see Paige Turco again soon? –Kelly

Mitovich: I was prepared to break the news that, no, Turco has not booked her next visit just yet. And now, in light of her new commitment, it might be a while ’til she’s available for an encore.

Question: You guys have been lacking on the Nikita scoop lately! Give up the goods! – Lauren

Team Watch with Kristin: Say goodbye to Division! Yep, the President has hired a Navy SEAL team to disband Division, but things get complicated when a certain black box ends up in the wrong hands.

Question: Supernatural? – Haley:

Team Watch with Kristin: Prepare to meet a new angel: Metatron! The CW hit is currently casting the role of the aged, hunched angel, who is the Scribe of God. While he’s a bit of a scatterbrain, he knows how to get the job done. Think Obi-Wan Kenobi meets The Usual Suspect’s Virgil Kent. Fans can expect Metatron to stick around for at least three episodes and potentially next season as well!

Question: Revenge it up! – Lauren

Team Watch with Kristin: Is that young people speak for “give me Revenge spoilers?” If so, here it is! Henry Czerny tells us that for those fans who want Conrad and Victoria together and happy (do those fans exist?), they should know that he thinks Conrad would “go through the gauntlet” to get to a happy ending with Victoria. “There is hope,” he tells us. “But there is juicy stuff coming up that we have to get through before they can think about being together.”

That’s it. Enjoy!

Have a great weekend!