Rueben's Ramblings

Hey All,

More breaking news from the networks on their plans for the fall TV schedule are breaking along with much other news so let’s get into today’s update, shall we:

TELEVISION

Actor Ernie Hudson (of Ghostbusters fame) will play Isaac Jeffries, the loving childhood mentor of Mozzie (Willie Garson) in an upcoming episode of White Collar. The series returns with all new episodes on June 7 at 9 PM on the USA Network. (Kate Stanhope at TV Guide)

Actor Matt Lauria, whose new show The Chicago Code did not get picked up for a second season by FOX has booked a potentially recurring role on Burn Notice. He will play Ethan, a discharged soldier whose intelligence and tenacity piques the interest of the CIA. Burn Notice will be back starting June 23. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actress Míriam Colón, (HBO’s How to Make It in America and Guiding Light) will guest star in an upcoming episode of HawthoRNe, appearing as the ailing mother of Marc Anthony’s Detective Nick Renata. The medical drama is back with new episodes on June 14 at 10 PM. (Megan Masters and Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

Actress Susan Saint James (Kate & Allie) will guest star on the new USA Network series called Suits that stars Gabriel Macht (Behind Enemy Lines) as a top-shelf attorney and Patrick J. Adams (Friday Night Lights) as the young savant/legal whiz who assists him. St. James will play Joy McAfee, the founder of a toy company who, on the cusp of inking a major licensing deal, reconsiders her life priorities upon meeting Adams’ off-beat character. Suits will debut on June 23. (Megan Masters and Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

Actress Aimee Garcia (Off the Map and Trauma) has joined the cast of Dexter, playing Jamie, the younger sister of Batista (David Zayas) whom Dexter (Michael C. Hall) hires as a nanny for baby Harrison. (Joyce Eng at TV Guide and TV Line)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

It appears that Syfy is developing a spin-off of its popular Warehouse 13 dramedy series. The project will center on the character of H.G. Wells, putting Wells in a 1890s steam-punk environment (at least right now – that could change, though). As more news breaks on this proposed project, you will see it here. (Lacey Rose at The Hollywood Reporter)

UPFRONTS NEWS

Chuck has been renewed for a final season with a 13 episodes order while The Event and Law & Order: Los Angeles have both been canceled. Meanwhile, NBC has picked up the new dramas The Playboy Club, Grimm and “Awake” (formerly known as R.E.M.). And, both Parenthood and Harry’s Law have been renewed. This mean the much-talked-about Wonder Woman pilot is dead as is the 17th Precinct pilot from Ron Moore. (The Futon Critic)

ME: I can personally live without the Wonder Woman pilot, but “boo” on NBC for not moving forward with 17th Precinct.

Meanwhile, word is leaking from ABC that Brothers and Sisters, Off the Map, No Ordinary Family, Detroit 187 as well as V have all been canceled. While new drams Good Christian Bitches, er, I mean Belles (really, that’s the new name) and Charlie’s Angels have been picked up as well as a Pan Am. And, it looks like new shows Once Upon A Time, The River, Revenge and Scandal (formerly Damage Control) have been picked up too. Body of Proof has been picked up too. (Twitter)

ME: Really, Charlie’s Angels and Pan Am are picked up? I’m making the prediction now that Pan Am will crash and burn literally and figuratively. C’mon, ABC. What are you thinking?

JUST BREAKING: CBS has picked up Person of Interest from pilot to series. (Twitter)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

French star Dany Boon and actress Diane Kruger have joined the high-concept action-adventure comedy film Fly Me to the Moon. Kruger plays a 30-something woman who has a great career and a loving boyfriend, though her family is plagued with a curse that turns every first marriage into a divorce. So when her boyfriend presses her to get hitched, she embarks on a mission to marry and divorce a stranger before her actual wedding. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Actress Zoe Saldana will join actors Bradley Cooper and Jeremy Irons in the film The Words that tells the story of a writer (Cooper) who discovers the price he must pay for stealing the work of another man (Irons). Actor Dennis Quaid will also star in the film as Clay Hammond, another celebrated writer. (Coming Soon, The Hollywood Reporter and First Showing)

Actor Rob Lowe will star in Knife Fight, a film that deals with the dark side of political operatives. He will play a political crisis specialist who plays hard and tough in dealing with various October campaign surprises. (Deadline and First Showing)

Actor Paul Wesley (The Vampire Diaries) has joined the cast of the film The Baytown Disco that stars Eva Longoria and Billy Bob Thornton. He will play Anthony Reese, a federal agent who comes into a small Southern town to investigate the Oodies — three redneck brothers who get more than they bargained for after agreeing to help a woman get her son back from his seemingly abusive father. (The Wrap)

BOX OFFICE TRAILER

Must Watch: Colin Farrell Bares Teeth in First Trailer for ‘Fright Night’

SPOILER ROOM (with Sandra Gonzalez at Entertainment Weekly)

‘WHITE COLLAR’: HOW WILLIE GARSON’S REAL-LIFE EXPERIENCE INSPIRED AN EPISODE. PLUS: NEAL SCOOP!

It’s almost time for White Collar, Collars! And if you’re half as excited as I am about what’s in store, here’s a bit of fun news. First, the Mozzi flashback episode creator Jeff Eastin told me about last year is definitely happening/filmed/done/amazing. But here’s what you may not know: Willie Garson (who plays Mozzi) motivated much of the story. “[The episode] was inspired by Willie’s real-life journey to get his son, who he got out of foster care,” Eastin says. “Early on, I sat down with Willie and we talked about that. It was similar to a story I had been working on for him anyway. And after talking to him, we decided to embrace that idea, and we find out Mozzi was an orphan. It’s a pretty cool story.” Also cool? Seeing Mozzi in the different stages of life, “from an infant all the way up to the present day,” Eastin says. Much more White Collar scoop coming your way in the coming weeks. But here’s some bonus Neal news to tide you over: Look for more “library“-esque sexy time, according to Matt Bomer; the gang will face Keller again this season; and look for a not-so-happy Neal in an upcoming episode where the team encounters “the young Neal Caffrey.” Jealousy? I think so.

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

The news isn’t too long today, but there are still some interesting things to share with everyone. Please read on:

TELEVISION

Acting vet Danny Trejo (Machete and The Devil’s Rejects) will appear in a multi-episode arc on the FX series Sons of Anarchy, playing Romero “Romeo” Parada, a charismatic and dangerous former commando for the Mexican military who becomes a new associate of the SONS. The series is expected to return with new episodes in early September. (Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

UPFRONTS NEWS

NBC let slip a few of their new season pick-ups, including some new comedies and the dramas Smash – that stars Debra Messing – and Prime Suspect – that stars Maria Bello in an American adaptation of the classic British series. It also looks like Chuck will be back for a 5th season; albeit a shorter one, as it’s been rumored it will get a 13-episode season. Official word will be made to the New York advertisers on Monday. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actors Julianne Moore, Steve Coogan and Alexander Skarsgård (True Blood) will co-star in the dramedy movie What Maisie Knew that is a contemporary-set adaptation of the Henry James novel, centering on Maisie, a six-year-old girl enmeshed in the bitter divorce of her mother (Moore), a rock and roll icon, and her father (Coogan), a charming but distracted art dealer. Skarsgård will play Moore’s new husband. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

Actors Ben Whishaw and Hugo Weaving are to play major roles in the ambitious adaptation of the David Mitchell novel Cloud Atlas, joining the already confirmed Halle Berry and Tom Hanks in the ensemble drama which spans six different story lines over a millennia. Each tale is revealed to be a story that is read (or watched) by the main character in the next. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

Actors Luke Evans and Kristin Scott Thomas are set to star in the box office film called Only God Forgives, which is a story of a Thai police lieutenant whose rivalry with a gangster sees the two settling their differences in a Thai boxing match. (Reuters and Dark Horizons)

Actors Emile Hirsch and Penelope Cruz are set to star in film Twice Born, which is based on the book Venuto Al Mondo, which tells the story of a woman who returns to Sarajevo with her son in tow and revisits the tumultuous past she shared with his late father. (Screen Daily and Dark Horizons)

Recent Aussie acting graduate Elizabeth Debicki will play Jordan Baker in the remake of The Great Gatsby. Baker is a famed golfer and love interest of narrator Nick Carraway (Tobey Maguire). (Deadline and Dark Horizons)

Actor Dylan McDermott certainly is busy. He has been cast in the FX pilot American Horror Story from the men behind the FOX musicomedy Glee; but he has signed on for two movies as well. First is Nobody Walks that is about a Los Angeles family that takes in a stranger who winds up disrupting their lives. John Krasinski, Olivia Thirlby and Jane Levy also star. Second is Perks of Being a Wallflower that revolves around a boy whose life dramatically changes as he learns about secrets buried deep in his past during his freshman year of high school. McDermott will also play the father of the main character. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Actress Helen Hunt is set to star in, produce and direct the romantic comedy Ride, playing the mother of a 20-year-old NYU student. When he leaves for a summer in California, this strong-willed magazine-editor mother is alarmed. When he reveals he’s abandoning school for the surfing life, she follows him to L.A. There, each finds their own version of love, sex and self discovery. (Deadline and Dark Horizons)

Actors Robert De Niro, Diane Keaton, Katherine Heigl and Amanda Seyfried will star in the comedy called Gently Down the Stream. De Niro and Keaton play a long-divorced couple who, for the sake of their adopted son’s wedding and his biological mother, pretend they are still married. They quickly learn that acting the part isn’t easy, especially when their ‘relationship’ unravels for all to see. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Actress Mary Lynn Rajskub (24) joins Aubrey Plaza and Kristen Bell (among others) in the film called Safety Not Guaranteed that is a real-life-inspired story of three magazine employees sent to investigate a classified ad from a man seeking a partner for time travel. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Well, it’s less than a week away from the official upfront presentations in New York City by the major networks, but you wouldn’t know that by the flurry of news that was hitting Twitter last night. There is more on that below and there will be much more news on the upfronts as they come up. Be prepared. In the meantime, let’s look at today’s news:

TELEVISION

Actor Seth Gabel (Dirty Sexy Money) has been made a series regular on Fringe, which will be back for another season this fall. He has played recurring character Lincoln Lee for the past two seasons. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actor and hip hop artists Mos Def will have a multi-episode arc on Dexter, playing a hardened ex-con who claims to have found religion yet seems to continually find himself surrounded by violence. (Marisa Guthrie at The Hollywood Reporter)

UPFRONT NEWS

The $*&^ hit the fan last night all over Twitter with FOX picking up two new dramas while canceling a number of shows. Among the casualties are Human Target, Breaking In, The Chicago Code, Traffic Light and Lie to Me. Meanwhile the new dramas picked up are Alcatraz and The Finder while two comedies – The New Girl and I Hate My Teenage Daughter – have been given season orders. The dramas that did NOT make the cut include Locke & Key and Weekends at Bellevue. Meanwhile, the drama pilot Exit Strategy may be retooled for possible mid-season consideration while a fourth, the Kiefer Sutherland-led Touch has yet to film. (The Futon Critic)

TBD is giving a series order to the hour-long pilot The Wedding Band that stars Brian Austin Green, Peter Cambor and Harold Perrineau. The series is to follow a group of guys performing in a wedding band, anchored by two lifelong best friends — perennial bachelor Tommy (Brian Austin Green) and Eddie (Peter Cambor), a married father of two. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actor Woody Harrelson has landed the role of Haymitch Abernathy in the film adaptation of the Suzanne Collins best-seller Hunger Games. Meanwhile, two more newcomers – Jeremy Marinas and Dakota Hood will play the tributes from District 10 while actor Alexander Ludwig (Race to Witch Mountain and actress Isabelle Fuhrman (Orphan) will play the pivotal roles of District 2’s tributes. (E! Entertainment and The Hollywood Reporter)

Actors Katie Holmes and Chace Crawford (Gossip Girl will star in the rom-com Responsible Adult that follows a 30-year-old med student (Holmes) who meets and falls for a younger man (Crawford) only to realize she was his baby sitter fifteen years beforehand. (Screen Daily and Dark Horizons)

Actors Orlando Bloom, Nick Nolte, Stanley Tucci and Cristiana Capotondi have joined the cast of the comedy Idea in America that is a coming-of-age road-trip following a young Italian ornithologist who travels from California to Georgia in the pursuit of the American bald eagle, a dream job and her independence. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

French acting legend Jean Reno has joined the cast of the film adaptation of the James Patterson novel I, Alex Cross that has Tyler Perry playing forensic psychologist Dr. Alex Cross who manages to save a victim from a brutal death at the hands of an assassin named Michael Sullivan (Matthew Fox), aka. the Butcher of Sligo. The Butcher kills Cross’ wife and then it becomes a battle of wits between the two. Ed Burns also stars as Cross’ partner Tommy Kane. Details of Reno’s role haven’t been revealed. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Actors Kiefer Sutherland, Gerard Depardieu, Thomas Jane and Til Schweiger are to star in the ensemble heist comedy Sleight of Hand that revolves around a crew of small-time crooks in Paris who inadvertently end up possessing a rare gold coin belonging to a notorious French gangster. (Dark Horizons)

Actor Aaron Eckhart and actress AnnaSophia Robb will star in a dark re-imagining of Peter Pan where Captain Hook (Eckhart) is a tormented former detective on the trail of a childlike kidnapper with Robb playing Wendy, the lone survivor who leaves an asylum to help in the hunt. Sean Bean has already been cast as Smee, a chief detective and Hook’s only ally on the force. (Screen Daily and Dark Horizons)

Looks like actor Alec Baldwin is asking to leave the big-screen adaptation of the Broadway’ play Rock of Ages due to “a new medical condition.” There is no confirmation if he will be let go or not, though. (TV Guide)

Actress Rachel Weisz is in talks to take the lead female role in the franchise spin-off The Bourne Legacy with Jeremy Renner. The role would have her playing an operative from a covert government program that is even more dangerous than the Treadstone brainwashing program that hatched Matt Damon’s Bourne character. Though the story exists in the same universe, the character is new. Meanwhile she is supposed to be close to taking a role as one of the witches in the upcoming film Oz: The Great and Powerful. This could create a conflict schedule-wise; but neither role has been confirmed yet. (Deadline and First Showing)

Actor Ryan Reynolds may star in a movie called A Boy Named Sue. That is presumably a comedy about a guy who decides to disguise himself as a woman to win his ex-girlfriend back. There is no full confirmation on this film or Reynolds’ role in it yet. (Deadline and First Showing)

Actor Colin Firth and actress Emily Blunt are set to team for a dark comedy that follows two damaged souls fleeing their pasts who meet and break into empty homes to assume the identities of the absent owners. Over the course of their misadventures the pair fall in love. (Screen Daily and Dark Horizons)

Q&A SECTION (with Adam Bryant and Natalie Abrams at TV Guide and Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

SPOILER ALERT!! Please tread lightly!!

Question: Anything good coming up on In Plain Sight? — Whitney

ADAM: Who knew that babies attracted men? The show is on the lookout for an actor to play a handsome, fit former Army Ranger-turned-attorney who works with Mary to get an Army sergeant into witness protection late in the season. His quick wit makes him a natural sparring partner for Mary, but there’s definitely an attraction bubbling beneath the surface. It looks like he’ll be hanging around for a few episodes to test the waters.

Question: So happy to hear that Ed Asner will be on Royal Pains. Got any more details about his character? — Luke

ADAM: Hank and Evan are as shocked as anyone to meet Grandpa Ted… because they’ve always been told he was dead! Turns out Ted disapproved of his son’s life choices and kicked Eddie (Henry Winkler) out of his house. Eddie reciprocated by changing his last name and cutting off all contact. We expect at least one big showdown before those old wounds can begin to heal.

Question: What can you tell us about the season finale of Nikita? — Paul

NATALIE: For one thing, it’s an hour not to be missed. Obviously, Nikita isn’t dead, but Alex faking her death does not mean a truce between the pair. What Nikita thought was right, in turning the black box over to the CIA, may turn out to be her undoing.

Question: I am dying to know what happens in the NCIS finale. — Eric

ADAM: Expect even more bloodshed. But the Port-to-Port Killer case doesn’t completely rule the hour. “The finale really hits a lot of the Vance-Gibbs tension,” executive producer Gary Glasberg says. “It’s going to provide a lot of answers to what Vance has been dealing with all season. Gibbs is going to become privy to a lot of it… and it’s going to bring his relationship with Vance to another level.” Does that signal an administrative shakeup? “There are definite changes that affect NCIS,” Glasberg says. “The team is going to have to work together in a way they’ve never had to work together before next season.”

Question: Can you tell us anything about the Smallville finale? — Brad

NATALIE: Here’s what we can tell you: As Darkseid’s Apokolips speeds toward Earth, Clark and Lois will attempt to walk down the aisle — with a little help from Chloe and a little what’s-the-opposite-of-help from Oliver. But it won’t be that easy! Lois will find herself in peril yet again, in a scene that fantastically recalls one of the Superman movies. Meanwhile, back at the barn, you’ll see another scene that will make your spirit positively… float.

Question: Does someone important really die in this week’s episode of Bones? — Rachael

ADAM: You bet, and the emotional fallout is intense. But even though Booth has thus far shouldered the responsibility of trying to bring down sniper Broadsky, it’s Brennan who feels the most guilty after the death. “Brennan actually needs more consoling than Booth,” Emily Deschanel tells us. And Booth is just the man for that job. “I think if fans watch the season-ender, they will be back in droves for Season 7,” executive producer Hart Hanson says.

Question: I am a closet ABC Family watcher and really enjoy Pretty Little Liars. Got any juicy scoop? —Jay

Ausiello: Guess who’s finally showing her face in Rosewood? Ali’s mama! The soap is casting the recurring role of Jessica DiLaurentis, the late teen’s mother who comes to town to attend a sure-to-be-sabotoged tribute to her daughter. The role’s recurring so I guess she’s gonna stick around for a bit.

Question: Details on the Chuck finale, please! —Megan

Ausiello: Images of Yvonne Strahovski in a wedding dress have leaked. The show recently shot scenes on location at a Los Angeles-area church. The entire season has been building towards a Chuck-Sarah wedding. Yet in spite of all of this, exec producer Chris Fedak says fans shouldn’t assume those two crazy kids will end up getting hitched in Monday’s finale. “Just because we may’ve shot something at a church doesn’t mean [there’s a wedding],” he teases. “Once you see how our season finale works there should be a degree of doubt. It’s structured in such a way that we don’t know if Chuck and Sarah are going to get together in the end.”

Question: Worst-case scenario — Chuck doesn’t get renewed. Will producers excise the finale’s top-secret cliffhangery epilogue that’s supposed to set up Season 5? —Ryan

Ausiello: Good question. Let’s ask Fedak. “From a technical perspective, we probably won’t know the fate of the show until after we lock the cut of the finale,” he says. “However, I really like this ending that we’ve built and I think it works no matter what situation we’re going into. I really love this episode. I don’t think I would change it.”

Question: Castle fans are holding our breath waiting for the finale, which has already been described as “explosive” and “mind-blowing”! Any other last-minute scoop to tide us over until Monday? —Cheryl

Ausiello: The final scene of the episode features nearly the entire cast. Draw your own conclusions.

Question: What can you tell us about Lisa and Ben’s reappearance on Supernatural in the May 20 finale? —Bonnie

Ausiello: Their return will “test Dean’s resolve,” reveals exec producer Ben Edlund. “It’s going to [force] him to choose what kind of hero he’s going to be. As we always knew, one day or another, he was going to have to make some choices like that.”

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Today’s news isn’t voluminous, but there are still some interesting items to share:

TELEVISION

Actresses Taylor Momsen and Jessica Szohr will not be returning as series regulars on Gossip Girl when it returns for its fifth (yes, you read that right, fifth) season this fall. Meanwhile, Kaylee DeFer has been promoted to series regular. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actor Adam Arkin (Chicago Hope) will guest star on The Closer as Steven Hirschbaum, a Bernie Madoff-like businessman who is convicted in a massive federal fraud trial and is being sued by the former employees and investors from whom he stole. The show will be back on July 11 with new episodes. (TV Guide)

House has been renewed for an 8th season with Robert Sean Leonard and Omar Epps returning as well. (Deadline)

MADE FOR TV MOVIE NEWS

Legendary actor-comedian Bob Newhart has joined the Lifetime made-for-TV movie called Project Five, which is anthology of five short films, exploring the impact of breast cancer on people’s lives. He will play Dr. Roth, a longtime friend of Pearl (Jeanne Tripplehorn), who has to tell her some bad news. The cast includes Patricia Clarkson, Rosario Dawson, Kathy Najimy, Tracee Ellis Ross, Tony Shalhoub and Jeffrey Tambor. Jennifer Aniston, Demi Moore, Alicia Keys and Patty Jenkins will each direct. (TV Guide)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actress Amber Heard (Drive Angry) and actor Shiloh Fernandez (Red Riding Hood) are set to star in the upcoming film Syrup that is about the backstabbing and corporate ladder climbing of twenty-somethings trying to make it to the top in the soda industry. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Actresses Maggie Gyllenhaal (The Dark Knight) and Viola Davis (Doubt) will star in the film called Still I Rise that takes aim at the crisis of public education in America with the pair playing two mothers who channel frustration into action and join forces to transform an inner-city public school. (Deadline and Dark Horizons)

Actor Mark Strong will join James McAvoy in the crime thriller called Welcome to the Punch that deals with a London detective whose old nemesis, an armed robber, reappears after five years away. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

Actor Ethan Hawke has joined the cast of the upcoming remake of Total Recall, which stars Colin Farrell as Douglas Quaid, a man haunted by a recurring dream of journeying to Mars and buys a literal dream vacation from a company which sells implanted memories. The man comes to believe he is a secret agent and ends up on a Martian colony, where he fights to overthrow a despotic ruler controlling the production of air. Hawke’s role is being kept secret and is a cameo in nature. (Heat Vision and Dark Horizons)

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Today’s news isn’t very long, but there are some interesting things to share with everyone. Let’s get into it then:

TELEVISION

Actor Mark Moses (Desperate Housewives) will guest star in Covert Affairs as a NASA employee who never quite made it to space and becomes suspected of leaking confidential information. The show returns to the USA Network starting June 7. (Entertainment Weekly and TV Guide)

Actress Camilla Luddington (the Lifetime movie William and Kate) has landed a major recurring role in Californication. She will appear in an 8-episode arc, playing a nanny who gets fired from her job and comes to work for Charlie and Marcy. (Deadline)

CBS has decided not to renew its deal with the Hallmark Hall of Fame after 16 years of airing their movies. It seems low ratings are to blame. There are no details on whether this once prestigious series of yearly movies will be shopped around to another network or not. (Deadline)

Actor Colin Hanks (Roswell, The Good Guys and Mad Men) is joining the cast of Dexter for a major arc in the new season. The specifics of his role are being kept under tight wraps, though. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actors Adrian Pasdar (Heroes) Bryan Batt (Mad Men) will guest star in an upcoming episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent. Pasdar will play a wine collector named Mason Kent while Batt will portray a premiere wine sommelier. The episode is expected to air on May 22. (TV Guide)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Actor Charles S. Dutton (Roc) is the first actor to be cast in the FX drama pilot Powers, which is based on the graphic novel by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming. The project is a police procedural set in a world where superpowers are relatively common and centers on two detectives, Christian Walker and Deena Pilgrim, in a Homicide department that deals with cases involving “powers” (people with superpowers). Dutton will play Captain Cross, the head of the department. Powers is one of two drama pilots FX is eying for an early January launch. (Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Here are the top 10 box office movies for this past weekend according to Exhibitor Relations and Entertainment Weekly:

1. Thor, $66 million
2. Fast Five, $32.5 million
3. Jumping the Broom, $13.7 million
4. Something Borrowed, $13.2 million
5. Rio, $8.2 million
6. Water for Elephants, $5.6 million
7. Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Big Happy Family, $3.9 million
8. Prom, $2.4 million
9. Soul Surfer, $2.1 million
10. Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil, $1.9 million

Actor Stanley Tucci will appear in the film adaptation of The Hunger Games, playing the role of Caesar Flickerman, the iconic host of the Hunger Games. Meanwhile, newcomers Annie Thurman and Imanol Yepez-Frias will play the tributes for District 9. (Philiana Ng at The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

Looks like Johnny Depp will be working with Rob Marshall again for a remake of the classic movie The Thin Man – the 1934 film that starred William Powell and Myrna Loy. (Jeff Labrecque at Entertainment Weekly)

Actor Michael Fassbender is in talks to appear in the thriller called Trance that follows an assistant at an auction house who masterminds an art heist with a gang of crooks. Afterwards, he suffers a blow to the head and wakes up with amnesia. The problem is he’s the only one who knows where the painting’s location is. The gang begins to get suspicious and hire a female hypnotist to get into his brain. Fassbender would play the shady leader of the gang. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

Actor Garret Dillahunt (Raising Hope and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) will have a cameo appearance in the box office film called Cogan’s Trade. The film stars Brad Pitt, Ray Liotta, James Gandolfini, Richard Jenkins and Ben Mendelsohn. (The Playlist and Dark Horizons)

Q&A SECTION (with Matt Roush at TV Guide)

Question: I am one of your fans, both online and in TV Guide Magazine. I’ve been wondering how I could find out when some of my favorite “summer” shows would be coming back, and then realized I could “Ask Matt.” So … do you know when Rizzoli & Isles, Burn Notice, The Glades, Fairly Legal and White Collar will return? Also, I was distressed to read in your Q&A column that Lie to Me and Human Target might not be renewed. Is that true? I’m so sad, since I think Human Target is a perfect role for Mark Valley. I loved him on Boston Legal and Fringe, but this role seems tailor-made for him. — Kathy

Matt Roush: Well, since you asked so nicely, how can I say no? Keep an eye out for TV Guide Magazine’s summer preview issue in a few weeks, where we’ll lay out the torrent of summer programming that will keep us busy until fall. Rizzoli & Isles will return July 11, paired once again with TNT’s breakout hit The Closer. USA’s Burn Notice is back June 23, and White Collar is back June 7, paired with the second season of Covert Affairs. The Glades returns June 5 on A&E. But Fairly Legal, which ended its first season recently and just got renewed for a second season, isn’t part of the summer fun. Look for it sometime in 2012. And regarding Lie to Me and Human Target: We’ll just have to wait until the network upfronts next week to see what Fox has planned for next season. I’m hoping at least one of these shows is back, even if it’s as a midseason backup.

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Happy Friday Everybody! Hope all of you have some fun plans for the weekend or maybe you plan to just relax. Either way, have a great weekend. And now, here is the news for today:

TELEVISION

Actress Jacqueline Bisset will appear in a multi-episode arc on Rizzoli & Isles, which returns on July 11 at 10 PM on TNT. She will play Constance Isles, Maura’s elegant adoptive mother who is a brilliant art historian. Her first episode will air in early August. (Natalie Abrams at TV Guide)

Actor Jonathan Silverman will have a guest appearance in an upcoming episode of White Collar, which returns with all new episodes starting on June 7. He will play a bad guy who is working with a black widow. (Sandra Gonzalez at Entertainment Weekly)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Relative newcomer Taissa Farmiga (kid sis of Up in the Air star Vera Farmiga) has been cast as the troubled offspring of Connie Britton and Dylan McDermott’s characters in American Horror Story, the FX drama pilot from Glee’s Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk. Also, actor Evan Peters (Invasion and One Tree Hill) has landed the series regular role of Tate, a patient of McDermott’s character. The cast of this pilot also includes Jessica Lange and Denis O’Hare (True Blood). (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actor Nathan Lane and British has joined the cast of the upcoming film Snow White. He will play Brighton, a servant to the Queen. (The Wrap)

Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Tommy Lee Jones have joined the cast of the long-gestating biopic Lincoln from Steven Spielberg, joining the already cast Daniel Day-Lewis and Sally Field in this historical drama about our nation’s 16th president. Gordon-Levitt will play Robert Todd Lincoln, the eldest son of Abraham (Day-Lewis) and Mary Todd Lincoln (Field), the only child of theirs to live past their teenage years. There are no specific details on Jones’ role. (First Showing)

Looks like actress Laura Linney (The Big C) is making a deal to play Eleanor Roosevelt opposite Bill Murray, who will play Franklin Delano Roosevelt, in the upcoming film Hyde Park on the Hudson. The story is set during a visit by King George VI to Hyde Park, the upstate New York home of the Roosevelts. The visit took place in 1939, as momentum toward WWII was building, and also as it was becoming clear that FDR was having an affair with his cousin Daisy. (Mike Fleming at Deadline)

Actor Joel Edgerton has signed on to play a special operative in the upcoming Kill Bin Landen to be directed by Kathryn Bigelow. The film will center on an elite Black Ops team’s attempt to assassinate bin Laden almost a decade ago, an effort that came very close to succeeding. (Dark Horizons)

Michael Kelly (Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior) has joined the cast of the sci-fi thriller film called Chronicle that revolves around three Portland teens who develop powers from exposure to a mysterious substance. Kelly will play the father of one of the teens. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Actor Walton Goggins (Justified) will star opposite Stephen Dorff and David Boreanaz in the independent film Officer Down, playing the prime suspect in the sexual assault of a young woman, a case being investigated by a gruff detective (Dorff). (Deadline and Dark Horizons)

CONDOLENCES

Actress Sada Thompson (the TV series Family) has passed away. (Twitter)

Tony-winning playwright (West Side Story and Gypsy – among others) Arthur Laurents has passed away. He was 93. (TV Guide)

ME: Rest in Peace, Ms. Thompson and Mr. Laurents. Condolences are extended to both of their families, their friends and fans.

MOMENT OF SILENCE, PLEASE…

Q&A SECTION (with Sandra Gonzalez from Entertainment Weekly)

Question: Thank you, thank you, thank you for the hilarious interview with Deeks (Eric Christian Olsen) and Kensi (Daniela Ruah) from NCIS: LA this week. I LOVE it. They seem like so much fun, and I loved this week’s episode. Any word on the final two? — Billie

Sandra: Cliffhanger. Both remaining episodes have one. Really good ones! “Full-blown panic attack,” says Eric Christian Olsen of your likely reaction. “I remember reading this script in the hair and makeup trailer, and getting to the end of it, and I literally jumped out of my seat, ran outside, and I was like, ‘What? What? What?!’ [I started] looking for a producer or someone to tell me what was going on. That’s what’s so much fun about this, is that these guys are telling stories over 100 episodes. We get it as the audience gets it, and I still get tons of adrenaline.” Daniela Ruah agrees. “I think followers of this show will definitely be having panic attacks, and will be looking forward to season 3 to know what the result is.”

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Lots of news to share today so let’s get right into it all:

TELEVISION

Actor Quinton Aaron (The Blind Side) will guest star in an upcoming episode of Drop Dead Diva, playing a law student with everything going for him who is about to get married. Then, just before the wedding, his fiancé gets trampled by a bunch of bridezillas at one of those off the rails bridal gown super-sales. Jane (Brooke Elliott) takes their case against the store. The Lifetime series will be back on June 19 at 9 PM. (Jethro Nededog at Zap2It)

Actor Seth Gilliam (The Wire) will guest star on the May 17 season finale of The Good Wife as a man on trial for killing a judge. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actress Molly Ringwald (The Secret Life of the American Teenager) will guest star in an upcoming episode of Psych, which will be back with new episodes this fall. She will play a nurse at a mental hospital who Shawn suspects is abusing her powers. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

MADE FOR TV MOVIE NEWS

Casting announcements have been made for the upcoming Hallmark Channel movie called William & Catherine: A Royal Romance, which will debut on August 27 at 9 PM. Jane Alexander will play Queen Elizabeth while Victor Garber (Alias) will play Charles, Prince of Wales and Jean Smart (Samantha Who?) will play Camilla Parker Bowles. It was already announced that newcomer Alice St. Clair will play Catherine (aka Kate) and Dan Armbroyer will play William. (The Futon Critic)

CONDOLENCES

Legendary actor Jackie Cooper passed away on Tuesday at the age of 88. He is best known for his roles as a child actor in the films Skippy and The Champ; but he went on to become a successful TV star in the 1950s, a top television studio executive in the ’60s and an Emmy Award-winning director in the ’70s. (LA Times)

ME: Rest in Peace, Mr. Cooper. Deepest sympathies to his family, friends and fans.

MOMENT OF SILENCE, PLEASE…

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actress Malin Akerman has landed the last “key role” in the film adaptation of the Broadway play Rock of Ages. She will reportedly play Constance Stack, a journalist who is seduced by rocker Stacee Jaxx (Tom Cruise). Other cast members include Alec Baldwin, Mary J. Blige, Paul Giamatti, Russell Brand, Julianne Hough and Diego Gonzalez Boneta. The film is expected to be released in 2012. (Zap2It)

Actor Bradley Cooper is reportedly interested in the role of Lucifer in the film adaptation of the John Milton epic 17th-centry poem Paradise Lost that tells the story of Lucifer’s fall from grace, his temptation of Adam and Eve, and the first couple’s subsequent banishment from the Garden of Eden. No official offer has yet to be made to Cooper, though. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Actors Josh Duhamel, Bruce Willis and rapper-actor Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson are expected to appear in the independent film called Fire With Fire that centers on a fireman in the witness protection program. When he’s threatened by the man he plans to testify against, he takes matters into his own hands to save his love. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Actress Dana Delany (Body of Proof) has joined the independent crime drama film called Freelancers that is to star Robert De Niro, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson and Beau Garrett in the story of the son of a murdered police officer who has succumbed to the “culture of corruption” that’s infected the force. Delany will play a woman from his past. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Actor Hugh Grant will provide his voice for the animated film The Pirates In An Adventure with Scientists. He will voice a bearded Pirate Captain who travels far and wide in a quest to win the much coveted Pirate of the Year Award. Other cast members include Martin Freeman, Selma Hayek, David Tennant, Imelda Staunton, Jeremy Piven, Brendan Gleeson, Brian Blessed and Ashley Jensen. (Variety and First Showing)

Actor Wes Bentley (American Beauty) has joined the cast of the adaptation of the Suzanne Collins novel The Hunger Games. He will play Seneca Crane, the “Head Gamemaker” of the 74th Hunger Games. Meanwhile, more newcomers have been added to the cast include Sam Ly, Leigha Hancock, Samuel Tan and Mackenzie Lintz who are set to portray the unnamed tributes from Districts 7 & 8. (Dark Horizons)

BOX OFFICE TRAILERS

Conan the Barbarian Trailer: Can Jason Momoa Fill Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Loincloth?

Ryan Reynolds Gets All Lit Up in ‘Green Lantern’ Trailer

‘Colombiana’ is the ‘Alias’ movie we’ll never get

‘X-Men: First Class’ Mutants Banshee, Havok & Beast Character Spots

Q&A SECTION (with The TV Addict)

Question: Loving me some Sara and Neal on WHITE COLLAR, got anything to tide me over until the show returns this summer? — Joanna

The TV Addict: Suffice to say, summer lovin’ will see Neal and Sara having a blast. Particularly when they are forced to go on a Sarah Palin-esque New York City shopping spree in an effort to catch the eye of a clever corporate hacker who siphoned over $100 million in bank assets. Oh, and if that’s not enough summer lovin’ for you, said shopping spree may also introduce Mozzie to his next lady love.

Question: So incredibly stoked for TERRA NOVA, any scoop? — Bram

The TV Addict: Despite the fact that Fox is keeping an incredibly tight lid on the mysterious and highly-anticipated new series, your very own TV Addict has learned that a jump back through time will most definitely not be the quick fix to Jim and Elisabeth Shannon’s troubled marriage. Especially when what awaits Mama Shannon back in time is a certain Chief Science Officer who may-or-may-not be the proverbial man who got away.

Question: Anything for this ROYAL PAINS Addict?

The TV Addict: How does scoop on an upcoming episode that will see Hank and Evan’s father turn over an unexpected leaf when he plays angel to a friend confined to a hospital bed. While, Jill has an unexpected visit of her own to the E.R. that concerns everyone, including the always watchful Boris.

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

There is a lot of news to share with everyone today so happy over-the-hump day! Let’s get right to all of it:

TELEVISION

BBC has confirmed that no more episodes of the popular Doctor Who spin-off series The Sarah Jane Adventures will be made, but that the six episodes completed WILL be aired. This is due to the shocking and sudden death of series lead Elisabeth Sladen. (Twitter)

Recently retired WWE superstar Edge will visit the Syfy series Haven in the potentially recurring role of Dwight, a longtime resident of the spooky town and close confidant of Luke’s late father. Season 2 of the supernatural series premieres Friday, July 15 at 10 PM. (Megan Masters at TV Line)

Actor Jim O’Heir (Parks and Recreation) will pop appear as a rich, tightly wound public figure during the second season of TNT’s Rizzoli & Isles. (ShaneSaunders.com and Megan Masters at TV Line)

Actor Raymond J. Barry (Justified) will show on Law & Order: Criminal Intent, playing the role of dad to Alex Eames (Kathryn Erbe). (Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

AWARD SHOWS NEWS

Actress Naya Rivera (Glee) will be hosting the GLAAD Media Awards that will be held on May 14 in San Francisco. (Megan Masters at TV Line)

Meanwhile, actor Neil Patrick Harris Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother) will return as host of the Tony Awards in June. (Deadline and Zap2It)

MADE FOR TV MOVIE – FIRST LOOK

Here is your first look at the Syfy made-for-TV movie Red Faction: Origins, which is based on the popular video game:

Syfy’s ‘Red Faction: Origins’ trailer

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actress Rachel Weisz is in negotiations to star in the upcoming film Oz: The Great and Powerful, playing Evanorah, the Wicked Witch of the East and older sister to Theodorah (Mila Kunis), the Wicked Witch of the West. James Franco is already locked to play the title character in this story which explores the origins of the three witches and The Wizard. (Deadline and Dark Horizons)

Actress Anna Kendrick (Up in the Air and the Twilight franchise) and actor John Francis Daley (Bones) are in talks to join the post-apocalyptic comedy film called Rapture-Palooza” that will be a comedic look at life in the fallout of a religious apocalypse. Craig Robinson (The Office) will also star. (Reuters and Dark Horizons)

Actors Clive Owen and Anil Kapoor (Slumdog Millionaire and 24) will star in the financial thriller called Cities that will interweave stories of a New York hedge fund manager, a young London couple looking to buy their first home and a Mumbai cop fighting corruption. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

Actor David Boreanaz (Bones) will star in the independent film called Officer Down that is to tell the story of a doctor and security guard whose dreams consist of what each other did during the day. They meet when the security guard murders his wife, is then hit by a car and brought into the doctor’s emergency room. Boreanaz will play a humorless and ambitious rival detective to another cop played by Stephen Dorff. The cast also includes Dominic Purcell, Stephen Lang, James Woods and AnnaLynne McCord. (Deadline and First Showing)

Actor Bokeem Woodbine (Devil) has landed a role in the remake of Total Recall that stars Colin Farrell. The story is an updated version of the original which follows Douglas Quaid, a man who believes he is a secret agent on a Martian colony. Woodbine will play Quaid’s best friend who is more like a big brother to him than anything. (Variety and First Showing)

Actor Sam Claflin, who will be seen in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (which opens on May 20) is in negotiations to join the cast of the upcoming fairy tale film Snow White and the Huntsman. He will play the prince. In this version the Huntsman acts as a mentor and teaches Snow White (Kristen Stewart) to fight and survive when he spares her life after the evil Queen (Charlize Theron) orders her death. (Universal Pictures and Dark Horizons)

BOX OFFICE TRAILERS

Watch: Badass Red Band Trailer for Medieval Action Movie ‘Ironclad’

Must Watch: Sundance Hit ‘Martha Marcy May Marlene’ First Trailer

Q&A SECTION (with Adam Bryant and Natalie Abrams at TV Guide and Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Question: What can you tell me about the death in the Hawaii Five-0 finale? — Alan

ADAM: I can tell you that McGarrett may not be blameless in the demise. It seems his single-mindedness about catching Wo Fat may put his team members at risk. “McGarrett is a guy who goes to extremes,” executive producer Peter Lenkov tells us. “I think he’s going to go further than he’s gone all season and he’s going to be very reckless.”

Question: How will Oliver get rid of the Omega symbol and the darkness on Smallville? — Dan

NATALIE: We’ll have to wait until the finale to find out, but who better than Superman to solve that problem? “Oliver ends up, in the finale, having to ask Clark to help him,” Justin Hartley reveals to us. “[The darkness] is overpowering him. He’s not in control anymore. Oliver is gone, just disconnected. We figure it out in the finale, to a point. We do the story justice.”

Question: Castle is killing me with all the Beckett-Castle teasing. Something has to happen between them in the finale, right? — Erica

ADAM: Something huge is going to happen. “Both characters lay their cards on their table,” creator Andrew W. Marlowe tells us. “[They] come to an understanding about the issues that they’re dealing with, the ways in which each of them were approaching the relationship.” The catch? The powwow is necessitated by Beckett’s obsession with her mother’s case and the end result isn’t very romantic. “At the end of the day she cares too much about this case to care about being protected,” Marlowe says. “[She’s] pretty much pushing everybody away.”

Question: Will we see anymore flashbacks on The Vampire Diaries this year? — Betty

NATALIE: The final two episodes left are very much about the present. If you’re a fan of the history lessons, though, you’re going to love next season, which has already been dubbed “the year of the originals,” and thus will feature many flashbacks. The bad news: Neither Joseph Morgan nor Daniel Gillies (Klaus and Elijah, respectively) have new contracts yet.

Question: The season finale of Nikita sounds insane. What can you tell us? — Steve

NATALIE: With the clock ticking down to an imminent attack on the U.S., Ryan will put his job on the line to get Nikita released from CIA custody. Meanwhile, Birkhoff decides to ditch Division, but not before pointing Michael in Nikita’s direction. Too bad he’ll be stuck inside Division, which is not the safest place to be in the finale.

Question: Anything cool you can tell me about Burn Notice’s new season? — Andrew

ADAM: This sounds very interesting. The show is looking to cast Michael Westen’s doppelgänger. The poor sap is hired by a group of powerful people with dubious intentions. And even though he knows he’s mixed up with some bad dudes, he’s kind of too stupid find his way out of it.

Question: How will Mary’s pregnancy affect her working relationship with Marshall on In Plain Sight? — Christina

NATALIE: The snarky WITSEC partners will still have their moments, Mary McCormack says. “There’s a really beautiful scene where Mary tells him she’s pregnant and he asks who the father is.” (Does this mean Marshall isn’t? Not necessarily!) “It’s a really touching scene. There’s a lot of stuff that’s not said and you feel it should be said, but it’s all still there.”

Question: Since you are almost as big a fan of Chuck as I am, I need to know: What is your degree of confidence that the season finale can also serve as a satisfying series finale if NBC does the unthinkable and unforgivable? —Jeff

Ausiello: To be honest, my confidence level was pretty low. But then I spoke to exec producer Chris Fedak and it shot through the freakin’ roof. Despite the finale being titled “Chuck vs. the Cliffhanger,” Fedak assured me that the episode features “some fantastic resolution to a number of the stories that we set up this season.” But as has become something of a Chuck tradition, the final scene features a “cliffhanger component that launches us very much into [a possible] Season 5,” Fedak adds. What would such a season look like? “There were a number of stories that we’ve always wanted to do – even from Season 1 – involving who Chuck is as a person and as a hero. So [Season 5] would be an extension of that.”

Question: In last week’s AA you mentioned that the Chuck season finale broke the bank, budget-wise. Care to elaborate? Do you know what was so expensive? —Jeremy

Ausiello: The mother of all action sequences, according to Fedak. “It’s set in the desert and includes a super motorcycle, lots of special effects and a truck getting blown off the road,” he says. “It has an element of Duel, which is Steven Spielberg’s first movie. There’s also an element of Road Warrior… and an ode to the television show Street Hawk, which I watched as a kid.”

Question: What’s in the future for Shawn and Juliet on Psych? —Emily

Ausiello: “Their romance is evolving,” leading lady Maggie Lawson told TVLine’s Matt Mitovich at USA Network’s upfront soiree on Monday. “I can’t give away too much — we’re only in Episode 4 of the [new] season so far — but I can tell you the romance is solid and good. And there might be other characters that have some romance this season as well!

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

How is the work week going for everyone? Hope it is good and that folks are staying cool since I know the temperatures are high in a lot of places. Here is your news for today short though it may be:

TELEVISION

Lifetime has renewed Army Wives for a sixth season. (Twitter)

Bones has been renewed for a 7th season on FOX. (Twitter)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

More newcomers have landed roles in the upcoming box office film The Hunger Games based on the best-selling novel by Suzanne Collins. Kara Petersen and Ashton Moio will play the tributes from District 6. It should be noted that both are stunt doubles. (E! Entertainment Online)

Actress Greta Gerwig (Arthur) is set to star in the romantic comedy Lola Versus that is about a woman (Gerwig) who is dumped just weeks before her wedding by her college sweetheart. She embarks on a series of encounters in an attempt to discover her place in the world as a single woman before she turns thirty. Orlando Bloom is in final negotiations to play her college sweetheart. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Actress Saoirse Ronan (Hanna and The Lovely Bones) has landed the lead role in the upcoming film Host based on the Stephanie Meyer novel. She will play Melanie Stryder, one of the last humans putting up a fight against an alien species called Souls. These parasites invade human bodies, fuse to each person’s consciousness and systematically erase their personalities. Melanie finds herself captured by the Souls and implanted by one called Wanderer, one of the more infamous of the species because she has attached herself to so many “hosts” before. Wanderer intends to use Melanie to give up the location of the remaining humans, but Melanie is relentless in her resistance to Wanderer and refuses to surrender her consciousness. In this struggle the alien apparently becomes overwhelmed by Melanie’s memories and emotions and ends up reconnecting with the girl’s old life. (Deadline and First Showing)

BOX OFFICE TRAILER

First Official Trailer for Indie Thriller ‘The Ledge’ with Liv Tyler

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Happy Monday! Sorry for the delay with today’s update, but I decided to take a vacation day, allowing me some personal time to deal with normal real life “ stuff,” but putting me a little behind with the news for today. Here is everything I found:

TELEVISION

The USA Network Fairly Legal has been renewed for a second season with 13 episodes. But there is rumor that the show could undergo creative changes in the new season. (TV By the Numbers and Deadline)

Actress Cynthia Nixon (Sex and the City) will guest star in an upcoming episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent that will be loosely based on the recent Broadway debacle Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark. She will play the Julie Taymor-esque director Amanda Reese. (TV Line and TV Guide)

Wrestler-turned actor Big Snow (aka Paul Donald Wight Jr.) will appear in an episode of Burn Notice when it returns on June 23. He will appear as Griffin Black, a low-IQ lowlife who works as a hired hand for more dangerous foes. (Sandra Gonzalez at Entertainment Weekly)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Actor Dylan McDermott (The Practice and Dark Blue) has been cast as the male lead in the FX drama pilot American Horror Story from Glee co-creators Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk. He will star opposite actresses Connie Britton and Jessica Lange. The premise is still under wraps, though. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actors Dean O’Gorman (Xena: Warrior Princess) and Lee Pace (Pushing Daisies) have joined the cast of the upcoming two-part movie The Hobbit. O’Gorman will play Fili the Dwarf while Pace will play the Elven King Thrandruil. Meanwhile, actor Hugo Weaving will reprise his of Elrond in the film. (The Dominion Post and Dark Horizons)

Actor Chris Hemsworth (Thor) is the front runner to star in Snow White and the Huntsman, that already Charlize Theron and Kristen Stewart. (Mike Fleming at Deadline)

Actress Laura Vandervoort (Smallville and V) has joined the cast of the upcoming comedy film Ted. She will play Tayna, a gorgeous salesgirl and co-worker of John (Mark Wahlberg) at a rental car service who is clueless to the gaggle of men who drool over her all day. (Mike Fleming at Deadline)

Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) will play the mayor in Rock of Ages the upcoming film adaptation of the Broadway musical. He will play the husband of an Anita Bryant-like advocate who wants to ban rock and roll to be played by Catherine Zeta-Jones. The film already stars Tom Cruise, Alec Baldwin, Mary J. Blige, Russell Brand, Paul Giamatti, Diego Boneta and Julianne Hough. (Mike Fleming at Deadline)

Hugh Dancy (Ella Enchanted and Adam) is to play the lead role in the psychological thriller called Spree that follows a handsome and affable young man whose last “fling” before his wedding nuptials spirals out of control. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

Actor Sebastian Stan (Captain America and Kings) and Australian actor Socratis Otto (Home and Away) have joined the cast of the thriller called Gone that centers on a kidnap survivor who attempts to find the same kidnapper whom she believes has abducted her sister. Amanda Seyfried, Jennifer Carpenter and Wes Bentley co-star. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

The top 10 movies at the box office this past weekend, according to Box Office Mojo and TV Guide are as follows:

1. Fast Five – 83.6 million
2. Rio – 14.4 million
3. Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Big Happy Family – 10 million
4. Water for Elephants – 9.1 million
5. Prom – 5 million
6. Hoodwinked Too – 4.1 million
7. Soul Surfer – 3.3 million
8. Insidious – 2.6 million
9. Hop – 2.5 million
10. Source Code – 2.5 million (approximately)

Actor Guy Pearce will appear in the sci-fi film Prometheus to be overseen by director Ridley Scott. His character has not yet been revealed. The rest of the cast includes Noomi Rapace, Charlize Theron and Idris Elba. The film is to be released on June 8, 2012. (The Playlist and First Showing)

BOX OFFICE TRAILER

Watch: First Trailer for Jim Sturgess and Anne Hathaway’s ‘One Day’

That’s it. Enjoy!

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