Rueben's Ramblings

Hey All,

Here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

The CW has revealed what role actor John Wesley Shipp (who appeared in the short-lived 90’s version of The Flash and was Dawson’s dad on Dawson’s Creek) will have on the upcoming fall Arrow spin-off The Flash. He will be Barry Allen’s dad Henry. (Vlada Gelman at TV Line)

Actor Kerr Smith (Dawson’s Creek) will recur in the second season of the ABC Family drama The Fosters as Robert Quinn, the biological father of Callie Jacob. The show’s second season will begin on June 16. (Zap2It and Andy Swift at TV Line)

Actor Max Martini (The Unit and the box office film Captain Phillips) will guest star in Covert Affairs, playing Nathan Mueller, a former CIA operative who resurfaces after mysteriously going off the grid. When Annie (series lead Piper Perabo) comes face to face with Nathan, she’s unsettled to discover they share similar inner demons. Covert Affairs will be back for the start of its new season on the USA Network on June 24. (Philiana Ng at The Hollywood Reporter)

ONLINE SERIES NEWS

Actor Charlie Cox (Boardwalk Empire) has landed the lead role in the Netflix series Daredevil based on the Marvel superhero. The online series received a 13 episode order. (Andy Swift at TV Line)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

It looks like a sequel to the box office smash My Big Fat Greek Wedding is being developed with stars Nia Vardalos and John Corbett expected to return. The story, which like the original film will be written by Vardalos, follows the lovably loud Portokalos family who return after a family secret is revealed and a bigger, fatter wedding brings the big fat Greek family back together again. (Justin Kroll at Variety)

Actor Robbie Amell (The Tomorrow People and cousin of Arrow star Stephen Amell) has joined the cast of the upcoming box office film The DUFF (which stands for “designated ugly fat friend”). He will play Wesley, a slick but charming jock who Bianca (film lead Mae Whitman from Parenthood) enlists in her quest to find herself and overthrow the school’s evil queen Madison (Bella Thorne from Big Love and Shake It Up), who had just named her their group’s DUFF. (Jethro Nededog at The Wrap)

Q&A SECTION (with Matt Mitovich at TV Line and the folks over at TV Guide)

Question: I am loving that Hook and Emma finally kissed in the Once Upon a Time finale! Any hints about how Emma now views him/their relationship? –Liz

Mitovich: I can’t speak for the fictional character of Emma, but Jennifer Morrison, at least, feels that the couple’s new closeness makes sense. “If you had said it to me when we first started the show, I never would have anticipated it — but the reality is that he’s a very kindred spirit. They’ve both been through similar things, they’re both survivors and they’ve both had to fight in order to literally just live. There’s also something in them where they’ll both go to great lengths to protect the people they care about — and sometimes they’ll do really bad things to do that, but they both have really good hearts, so I think they see a lot of themselves in each other.” Emma is also seeing impressive changes in the pirate. “This season in particular, because Hook has really fought for Emma to be true to herself and be the most powerful version of herself, he’s earned a tremendous amount of trust from her, and that’s what really makes it organic for Emma to feel vulnerable with him,” Morrison notes. “I know that in my own life, I have a strong reaction to people who empower me and say, ‘You should be yourself, even if it means making some mistakes.’ So the fact that he does that, and isn’t at all put off by that, makes it a good place to start a relationship.”

Question: What secrets can you reveal about Season 2 of Defiance? –Sally

Mitovich: Jaime Murray says that because things pick back up following a time jump, “Whichever cliffhanger you left the characters in, they’ve had to deal with the repercussions of that, so they’re all in an extremely different position at the beginning of Season 2 (premiering June 19).” And you can be certain that includes Stahma and husband Datak, who when last we tuned in had clumsily killed an E-Rep biggie. “You already saw Stahma dealing with her own resentments of Datak to begin with,” the actress reminds, “so she’s pretty angry with him for his impulsive stupidity that changed their lives irrevocably.” Hmm, might Stahma thus be spending more time at the NeedWant…? Murray smiles: “She may be, actually!”

Question: Do you have any scoop on Arrow and Amanda Waller? That last scene of the season finale got us really curious, and Season 3 is too far away. –Ana

Mitovich: I asked Stephen Amell how this new stretch of apparently Waller-centric flashbacks will inform the coming season, and the way he put it is this: “Oliver lost a lot of his humanity in those five years [away from Starling City], so as we see that continue to happen it in the flashbacks, we will see how much of his humanity he wants to get back in the present.”

Question: I’d love to know what’s in store for Rusty on Major Crimes this season. Can you help me out? –Estee

Mitovich: I just screened the season premiere (airing June 9), and without revealing too much, the oft-troubled lad has a big secret he needs to share with someone – and for the time being at least, that someone will be a somewhat gobsmacked Provenza.

Question: On Rizzoli & Isles, will Frost’s absence be addressed immediately in this new series of shows? –Bobbi

Mitovich: How the show will write in the tragic passing of cast member Lee Thompson Young is not addressed immediately-immediately in the Season 5 premiere (airing June 17), but then it sneaks up on you and all of a sudden you’ll be clamoring for Kleenex. The following episode then delves deeper into the sad, sad aftermath.

Question: Got anything on what Pope is up to in Season 4 of Falling Skies? –JJ

Mitovich: I will go for the TNT Summer Series trifecta and tell you that when we first see Pope again, dude is on the wrong end of a flamethrower. But a little bit later, he’s kicking back, enjoying some Gilligan’s Island, when Hal shows up asking for a “favor.” Pope’s not big on favors, especially these days, so it won’t surprise you to know that the gents soon enough end up in a bit of a scuffle.

Question: Anything to share on the new “mini” season of 24? –Greg

Mitovich: If you suspect that the latest drone strike has left Kate Morgan large and in charge at the CIA’s London command center – if only by process of “elimination” – you’d (seemingly) be right. “That would make sense, yes,” Yvonne Strahovski concurs, “but that storyline is going to take us down some quite unexpected avenues.”

Question: Are there going to be any life-changing events for any of Gibbs’ team members during Season 12 of NCIS? –Marsha

Mitovich: I don’t know if the storyline surrounding this reveal will be “life-changing” per se, but show boss Gary Glasberg tells me he still is on track to put a face to the long-MIA Mrs. Gibbs No. 2 during Season 12 — as well as unveil another never-seen spouse. “I look forward to introducing [Gibbs’ second ex-wife], and I look forward to meeting Bishop’s husband,” he shares. And along those lines, “We’re already playing with some ideas that I think are going to be fun for people.”

Question: On Covert Affairs, how has Annie going dark and now trying to come in from the cold changed the relationship between her and Auggie? –Shelby

Mitovich: All told, “It’s a bit of a reset” when Annie resurfaces after months off the grid, Christopher Gorham reveals. “Coming off of what happened to her, she kind of ‘needs a minute’…. Her big challenge this year is that she wants to keep her work life separate from her personal life. Auggie understands that and gives her the space she needs – but at the end of the day, he may end up giving her more space than she bargained for!”

Question: We saw Calder go from potential bad guy to hero last season on Covert Affairs. What can we expect from “the Sheriff” this year? –Shelby

Mitovich: You can expect struggles on the personal and professional fronts. “We may see him mess up in his personal life,” Hil Harper hints. “He starts having sex, that’s for sure – but maybe sex with the wrong person!” Meanwhile at the CIA, Calder is still the interim boss, “but Joan wants her job back, so there’s a bit of a thing there that we’ve got to figure that out,” Harper previews. P.S. Speaking of Joan, know that Kari Matchett’s real-life tot will be playing Joan and Arthur’s new bundle of joy.

Question: Got any Graceland scoop about Paige? –Hayley

Mitovich: If you’re familiar with Serinda Swan’s extracurricular endeavors, you can appreciate how much the following Season 2 storyline means to her. “Last season, I pitched to the writers a story on human trafficking, because that’s something that I’m very passionate about and I fight a lot on my own time — and they took it. We have a storyline on human trafficking going on,” she shares. “So I’m excited for Paige to bring that story into people’s homes in a way that raises questions.”

Question: I’m trying to find out when is the new season of Twisted going to premiere?

Mitovich: There’s still no official word that there will be a second season – though the show is still listed on ABC Family’s press site, which has to mean a little something.

Question: What’s the difference between the premise of The Returned and Resurrection? Is there a story behind this that I missed? –Lillian

Mitovich: This is easy: ABC’s Resurrection, a supernatural drama about people who come back from the dead not much worse for the wear, is based on the novel The Returned, while A&E’s The Returned is a U.S. adaptation of the French series Les Revenants (or The Returned), which is based on the French film Les Revenants (or The Returned) and concerns people who come back from the dead not much worse for the wear. Very different shows. Glad I could help!

ME: This is, clearly, sarcasm at work!

Question: Do you know if Crossing Lines will be back? I really enjoyed the characters and hope to see more. –Laurie

Mitovich: Sources confirm what we all probably suspected: Though picked up for Season 2 over in France (the country that brought us Les Revenants aka The Returned!), Crossing Lines will not be back on NBC.

Question: Suits scoop, please! — Petra

TV Guide: The Season 4 premiere will pick up three months later, and Mike still hasn’t hit a “home run” in his new investment banking gig. Worse, his strategy to help Walter Gillis (guest star Michael Gross) and his fledgling business won’t go over well with Harvey, who’s instructed to drop Mike completely! But will he?

Question: Got any more Under the Dome scoop? — Rachel

TV Guide: Want more ghosts? It seems Big Jim’s “come to dome” moment will involve a few of those tricky apparitions that plagued certain residents last season. “There are moments where Big Jim maybe sees ghosts,” Dean Norris says. “While it’s a terrifying situation, it’s also funny to see Big Jim have to squirm with these kind of ghosts of Christmas past and the future and have to deal with them.”

Question: Got any scoop on the new season of Falling Skies? — Tony

TV Guide: When the show returns for Season 4, what’s left of the 2nd Mass will quickly be decimated, save for a few plucky survivors who will be separated and forced to fight off a number of foes just to stay alive. In fact, they’ll encounter a threat even more deadly than the Espheni. (Think Hitler Youth.) Isn’t dystopia grand?

Question: Got anything on the new season of Major Crimes? — Alison

TV Guide: The gripping season opener is a twisty tale involving the disappearance of two kids and their father. Unfortunately, the missing persons case soon becomes a homicide investigation, which reveals a dark and ugly truth for all the family members involved. Speaking of complicated families, Rusty’s world will once again be turned upside down because of his. But who he shares that information with could surprise you

Question: You’re so lucky that you got to watch The Flash! Can you please spill! — Donna

TV Guide: Ever since “The Scientist,” where Barry talked about a blur, not his father, being the real culprit behind his mother’s death, savvy comic book fans have suspected that the Reverse Flash would play a role in the spin-off. Those fans won’t be disappointed, but the final moments of the series premiere will also hint at other nefarious forces at work in Central City.

That’s it. Enjoy!