Rueben's Ramblings

Hey All,

Here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

Actor Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters) will guest star as Poseidon on Once Upon a Time in an episode set for 2015 that will find actress JoAnna Garcia Swisher reprising her role as Ariel.  Actor Sebastian Roche (The Originals) will also guest star on Once Upon a Time, playing King Stefan, the father of Aurora (recurring guest star Sarah Bolger), who has a complicated past with Maleficent (recurring guest star Kristin Bauer Van Straten). (Natalie Abrams and Jonathon Dornbush at Entertainment Weekly)

Actor Michael Pitt has been replaced by actor Joe Anderson (The River) as sociopathic meat-packing magnate Mason Verger on Hannibal. (Michael Slezak at Entertainment Weekly)

The cast has been fleshed out for the Syfy space drama Dark Matter, including actor Roger Cross (24 and The Strain) and Anthony Lemke (Witches of East End) and actresses Zoie Palmer (Lost Girl) and Jodelle Ferland (The Cabin in the Woods). The series focuses on the crew of a derelict spaceship, who are awakened from stasis with no memories of who they are or how they got on board. Facing threats at every turn, they have to work together to survive a voyage charged with vengeance, betrayal and hidden secrets. The 13 one-hour episodes will debut on this coming summer. (Etan Vlessing at The Hollywood Reporter)

Actor Mike Colter (The Good Wife and Ringer) has landed the role of comic book hero Luke Cage in the Marvel and Netflix series Jessica Jones that will star Krysten Ritter in the lead role. Marvel and Netflix have partnered to adapt four of the Marvel’s properties — Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist — into four hour-long, 13-episode series, with Daredevil set to debut first in 2015. (Laura Prudom at Variety)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Here are the top 10 box office movies for this past weekend courtesy of Box Office Mojo:

1. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies – 56.2 million
2. The Night at the Museum: The Secret of the Tomb – 17.3 million
3. Annie – 16.3 million
4. Exodus: Gods and Kings – 8 million
5. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1 – 7.7 million
6. Wild – 4.1 million
7. Top Five – 3.57 million
8. Big Hero 6 – 3.56 million
9. Penguins of Madagascar – 3.52 million
10. P.K. (The Bollywood comedy) – 3.4 million

Q&A SECTION (with Natalie Abrams at Entertainment Weekly)

Question: Do you know when Agent Carter picks up? — Donald

Natalie: It obviously takes place after Captain America: The First Avenger, but actually before Stark asks her to head up S.H.I.E.L.D. with him at the end of the Marvel One Shot. “That will essentially be the last thing that ever happens in the series,” executive producer Michele Fazekas says. “We will never have S.H.I.E.L.D. in this series. So, in some regard, the One Shot is the end of the series.”

Question: What are three words/things that are mysterious now, but won’t be once Once Upon a Time returns this March? — OnceStorybrooke

Natalie: I took your ingenious question straight to the OUAT bosses and the answer is… interesting. “Voice, Feinberg and eggs” executive producer Edward Kitsis says. “Take that, Once people!” Any guesses as to what the heck that means? The comments section is yours for the taking.

Question: Will Sarah Bunting return for season five of Downton Abbey? — Tonya

Natalie: Yes, Sarah Bunting (Daisy Lewis) will play a larger role in the upcoming fifth season. “She creates quite a lot of crisis for [Tom] Branson,” creator Julian Fellowes tells my colleague C. Molly Smith. Not being a Downton follower myself, Molly offers up her best guess as to what the “crisis” is: “It has to do with politics, the foundation of Tom and Sarah’s connection,” she says. “But, I wouldn’t rule out romance either. The two share said common interest, and Tom just might be ready to find new love.”

Question: Do you have any scoop on the next time Barry will face Reverse Flash on The Flash? — Steve

Natalie: After the disastrous first bout, Barry will set his sights on testing the limitations of his powers in a bid to match his nemesis. “We’re exploring the vibrating a lot going forward and what the vibrating can do,” Grant Gustin says. “And how to slow things down, see things and survey situations with time stopped, essentially.” Will those powers also include time travel? “Maybe,” Gustin says with the highest pitch voice of someone trying to keep a secret.

Question: Now that Nolan and Louise are friends, does that mean she won’t be having anymore visions on Revenge? — Derek

Natalie: Alas, she’s still crazy. “She still has her visions,” showrunner Sunil Nayar says. “Louise is wonderfully damaged in a lot of ways. There’s going to be an element to Nolan and Louise—we’re going to deepen their dynamic together. We’re also going to bring Louise’s brother in and we’re going to dig deeper into the Ellis family history so that we understand who Louise is more and understand what it is that she really wants and what makes her tick.”

Question: Please tell me anything about Slade’s return to Arrow! — Tim

Natalie: Burning questions will be answered! “Everyone’s been asking: How does he feed himself?” executive producer Marc Guggenheim says. “You’re going to get an answer to that question. He loomed so large in season 2 that his return in episode 14 really makes it feel incredibly epic. You’ll see why it’s very appropriate for us to revisit Slade Wilson in episode 14 when you see the end of episode 13.”

That’s it. Enjoy!