Rueben's Ramblings

Hey All,

Happy Over the Hump Day! There is quite a bit of interesting news to share with all of you so let’s get right into it:

TELEVISION

Actress Louise Lombard will be back on CSI for one episode to reprise her role as Sofia Curtis during the CSIs’ hunt for escaped serial killer Nate Haskell (Bill Irwin) in a May sweeps episode. (TV Line)

Mark your calendars!! Doctor Who will be back on BBC America with a two-part episode starting on April 23 at 9 PM. You can expect the following for the return of the doctor: “The Doctor (Matt Smith), and his companions Amy (Karen Gillan) and Rory (Arthur Darvill), find themselves on a secret summons that takes them on an adventure from the desert in Utah — right to the Oval Office in 1969.” (James Hibberd at Entertainment Weekly)

Actor Sean Patrick Flanery (The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles and The Dead Zone) will be heading to the CBS soap The Young and the Restless, playing a country veterinarian named Sam. (Michael Logan TV Guide)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Actress Natalie Dormer (The Tudors) has joined the cast of the ABC drama pilot Poe, which is a crime procedural following Edgar Allan Poe (Christopher Egan), the world’s very first detective, as he uses unconventional methods to investigate dark mysteries in 1840s Boston. She will play Celeste, a beautiful spitfire, with a firm moral center – the logical yin to Poe’s wildly theoretical yang. She owns the newspaper for which Poe writes, having inherited it from her fiancée who died in mysterious circumstances. (Deadline)

Actor Sasha Roiz (Caprica) has joined the cast of the NBC pilot called Grimm that is about Nick Burckhardt (David Giuntoli), a police detective who discovers fairy tale creatures live among us and is tasked with defending humans from these mythical beasts. Sasha will play Captain Ericson, Nick’s supervisor. (The Futon Critic)

Actress Arielle Kebbel (Life Unexpected and The Vampire Diaries) is the newest cast member of the ABC drama pilot called Hallelujah, which is about a tiny town in Tennessee which finds itself being torn apart by the forces of good and evil. She is expected to play Veda Roman, the stunning wife of Del Roman (yet to be cast), a local mobster. (The Futon Critic)

Brian O’Byrne (Flash Forward) has joined the cast of the NBC drama pilot Prime Suspect, which is about Jane Timoney (Maria Bello), an iconoclastic female detective who has to make her bones in a tough New York precinct dominated by men. He is expected to play Reg Duffy, a detective who’s the most hostile towards Jane. (The Futon Critic)

Actress Brooke D’Orsay (Drop Dead Diva and Royal Pains) has landed the female lead in the ABC comedy pilot called Smothered that is about a young couple – Zach (Kyle Howard) and Gillian (D’Orsay) with a one-year-old daughter who find themselves smothered by their two very different sets of parents – his (Marcia Gay Harden and Adam Arkin) are pretentious and disengaged while hers (John C. McGinley and Julie White) are scrappy and exuberant. (The Futon Critic)

Actress Kristin Kreuk (Smallville) will guest star in the Ron Moore/NBC drama pilot called 17th Precinct, as Susan Longstreet, the wife of Jamie Bamber’s crime scene expert. If the pilot is picked up to series her role could becoming a recurring one. The pilot is set in the fictional town of Excelsior, where magic and supernatural elements rule over science, 17th Precinct revolves around the lawmen at the local cop shop. (TV Line)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actor Jeffrey Donovan (Burn Notice) and rising young actor Miles Fisher (Final Destination 5) have joined the cast of the Clint Eastwood Hoover biopic called J. Edgar. The story focuses on the FBI director’s scandalous career and controversial private life. Donovan will play Hoover’s rival Robert F. Kennedy while Fisher will play Agent Garrison, an FBI man who interviews Hoover at different points throughout the movie. (Deadline and Dark Horizons)

Q&A SECTION (with Adam Bryan and Natalie Abrams from TV Guide, Maureen Ryan from AOL TV and Michael Ausiello from TV Line)

Fair Warning: SPOILER ALERT – tread lightly:

Question: What can you tell me about my favorite new show, The Chicago Code? — Wes

ADAM: It sounds like Vonda (Devin Kelley) and her partner Isaac (Todd Williams) might be doing more than just working cases. “We just got upgraded to organized crime, so we’re going to explore a little more of that,” Williams tells us. “And then we’re going to explore a little more of each other.” But it won’t all be about, er, nightstick-waving. We’ll also learn more about Wysocki’s family through his cop niece. “It gets a little rocky,” Kelley tells us.

Question: I’m so glad Stargate Universe is back. Can you share any spoilers about the final season? — Toby

NATALIE: Two main characters will bite the dust, and much sooner than you think. Plus, two other passengers of the Destiny fall victim to a deadly radiation attack.

Question: Pretty please, can I get some No Ordinary Family scoop? —Stephanie

Ausiello: A series regular will perish in the show’s season finale.

Question: I am addicted to Castle! Please, please, please tell me that Josh will be gone by season’s end. And any really good spoilers leading up to the season finale? —Laura

Ausiello: Poor Victor Webster. Sorry to disappoint you, but I don’t believe we have seen the last of Josh. In other Castle news, I hear a dangerous character from the past will reappear in the season finale. And that can’t be good.

Question: With the Chuck/Sarah wedding likely this season, any word of if we will get to meet Sarah’s mom or will her family only consist of Gary Cole? I’d love to see Cheryl Ladd cast as Sarah’s mom. [Is] the sister she mentioned in ‘Chuck Versus The Wookiee’ real or just a cover story? Will we find out about her?

Mo says: I did speak to ‘Chuck’ executive producer Chris Fedak recently, and though he did talk a bit about Sarah’s mom in the interview, it didn’t sound like introducing her was going to be a priority for the current season. Of course Fedak could have been faking me out, but at this point I’m going to take him at his word. I did want to ask him about potential Sarah siblings, but the interview was brief and we didn’t get around to that subject. Personally, I think it’d be fun to find out more about Sarah’s mom and possible siblings next season, if there is another season. There’d be more time to explore her back-story in depth at that point, and I think your idea of casting Cheryl Ladd sounds just about perfect.

Question: I trust the ‘Supernatural’ writers, but I can’t figure out who the ultimate threat for the season finale will be. Any thoughts?

Mo says: I wondered about that same topic in my most recent weekly review of the show. Will it be the Mother of All? The Wall in Sam’s mind? Will there be a climactic angel battle? Who knows. So far the Mother is shaping up to be the Big Bad at the end of the season, but I’m guessing we won’t really know much until the show returns in April.

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Today’s news is from both today and yesterday, as I mentioned I attended the White Collar panel at this year’s Paley Fest last night and was camped out in line for part of the day yesterday to ensure my friends and I got good seats in the section for which we purchased tickets. It was a great panel that included a sneak peek at tonight’s season finale (which rocked by the way).

Anyway, here is all the news for the past two days:

TELEVISION

Singer-actor Marc Anthony has joined the cast of the TNT medical drama HawthoRNe, reprising his newly expanded role of police Det. Nick Renata. (The LA Times)

Actor Victor Webster (Charmed and Melrose Place) [and who is currently playing Beckett’s boyfriend on Castle] will make a guest appearance on NCIS: Los Angeles as Stanley King, a world-class thief suspected of several high-end heists. He lands on NCIS’ radar after a secure facility housing sensitive materials on a Marine base is compromised. In order to get close enough to keep an eye on King, Kensi (Daniela Ruah) must work alongside him as a savvy thief. His episode is expected to air on March 29. (Adam Bryant at TV Guide)

A newly revamped Law & Order: Los Angeles will be re-launched in April by NBC. It will return with a two-hour episode on April 11 at 9 PM before moving to its regular timeslot on Mondays at 10 PM the following week. Part-time cast members Alfred Molina and Terrence Howard are now full-time regulars, with Molina’s character moving from the district attorney’s office to the police force (to work as a detective alongside Corey Stoll’s character) and Howard’s character will become the show’s sole senior district attorney. Alana De La Garza will reprise her Law & Order role of A.D.A. Connie Rubirosa to team with Howard’s character in the courtroom. (Kate Stanhope at TV Guide)

Congrats to all the winners of this weekend’s NAACP Awards, including Denzel Washington, Halle Barry, Regina King, LL Cool J, S. Epatha Merkerson, Usher, Idris Elba, John Legend and Keke Palmer (among many others).

MUSIC NEWS (WITH A TV-TIE IN)

Blaine and the Dalton Academy Warblers – characters in the popular FOX musicomedy Glee are releasing their own album in April. Be on the look-out for its release if you are a fan. (Denise Martin at TV Guide)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

The NBC series Love Bites that has been on hold for months is looking like it is officially DOA. Reason being: Lead actress Becki Newton (Ugly Betty) has signed on to star in a CBS comedy pilot that revolves around a blue-collar man who lives under the same roof with his wife, their grown daughter (Newton) and her 12-year-old son, and his recently widowed mother. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actor Jim Caviezel (The Prisoner and Passion of the Christ) has been cast in the CBS drama pilot Person of Interest (that comes from J. J. Abrams). He joins Michael Emerson (Lost) and Oscar-nominated actress Taraji P. Henson in this drama that centers on a paramilitary CIA officer (Caviezel) who is presumed killed in the line of duty, but resurfaces in New York City where he teams up with an eccentric billionaire (Emerson) to clean up the city’s violent underworld. (The Hollywood Reporter)

Actresses Darby Stanchfield and Liza Weil have joined the ABC drama pilot called Damage Control that is about Olivia Price (Kerry Washington), a professional fixer with a dysfunctional staff. Stanchfield is set as Abby, the tireless investigator for Olivia’s firm while Weil will play Julia Tannen, the woman at the center of the pilot’s crisis – an aide that’s going around saying she’s sleeping with the President. Columbus Short and Henry Ian Cusick are among the co-stars. (The Futon Critic)

Actor Chris Egan (Kings) and actress Tabrett Bethell (Legend of the Seeker) have joined the cast of the ABC drama pilot called Poe that is a period drama which envisions famed author Edgar Allan Poe as the world’s very first detective in 1840s Boston. Egan will play the title role while Bethell is set as Sarah Elmira Royster, Poe’s sweetheart in adolescent and muse in adulthood. (The Futon Critic)

Actor Bruce Greenwood has joined the cast of the ABC drama pilot called The River, which is about a family who travels to the deep Amazon to locate and rescue their missing father, a famous TV explorer. He will play the missing man, Emmet Cole who is billed as part Don Herbert, part Carl Sagan, and part Doctor Henry Walton Jones. Eloise Mumford and Joe Anderson co-star. (The Futon Critic)

Anjelica Huston has joined the growing cast of the NBC drama pilot called Smash that is to be a show-within-a-show about a group of people who come together to put on a Marilyn Monroe-themed Broadway musical. She will play Eileen, a shrewd Tony-winning producer. Among the cast members are Debra Messing, Jack Davenport, Katharine McPhee and Megan Hilty. (The Futon Critic)

Actor Brandon T. Jackson (Tropic Thunder) will play the lead role opposite Minnie Driver in the CBS pilot called Hail Mary, that centers on Mary Beth Baker (Driver), a suburban single mom in Atlanta who, after her teen son gets killed, teams up with her son’s best friend KZ (Jackson), a fast-talking con artist from the streets, to solve her son’s murder and other crimes. (Deadline)

Actor Robert Carlyle (Stargate Universe) is set to portray Rumplestiltskin in the ABC drama pilot Once Upon a Time, about a woman drawn into a town where the magic and mystery of fairy tales may be real and hold the key to unlocking the mysteries of her troubled past. An expert on black magic, Rumplestiltskin agrees to help Snow White and Prince Charming counteract the Evil Queen’s dark spells, but for a price. (Deadline)

Actress Emma Bell (The Walking Dead) has been added to the NBC drama pilot now called Reconstruction (formerly called The Crossing) that is set in a Missouri town during the post-Civil War Reconstruction era and centers on Jason (Martin Henderson from Off the Map), a soldier who crosses the country and settles into a complicated town where he is welcomed as its savior. Bell will play a strong-willed woman who denounces Jason as a coward. (Deadline)

Actress Emily VanCamp (Everwood and Brothers & Sisters) has landed the lead in the ABC drama pilot called Revenge that is a contemporary re-imagining of The Count of Monte Cristo. It centers on Emily Thorn (Van Camp), a mysterious woman who comes to the Hamptons to exact revenge on the people who destroyed her family. (Deadline)

Actress Meredith Hagner (Lights Out) has been cast as the second lead opposite actress Lucy Griffiths in the CW zombie pilot called Awakening that is about two sisters, Jenna (Lucy Griffiths) and Jayce (Hagner), who are coming of age and facing off against one another amidst the beginning of a zombie uprising. Also, actor Brian Hallisay (Privileged) will play Jenna’s Calvin Klein-handsome boyfriend. (Deadline)

Actor Riley Smith (24) is set to co-star in the CW pilot Cooper & Stone that is about Jenna Cooper (Alex Breckenridge) and Stone (yet to be cast), two smart young female detectives on Chicago’s North Side who are best friends, equally adept at discussing fashion, music and pop culture as they are solving homicides. Smith will play a hot-shot vice detective with the Chicago PD who is transferred to the Northside from the Southside after his cover is blown in a high-risk operation. He enjoys needling Stone, whom he competed against at the academy, and it seems they have a history of sexual tension as well as professional tension. (Deadline)

Actor Chris Carmack (The O.C.) has joined the cast of the ABC drama pilot called Grace, which centers on famous choreographer and womanizer Michael Grace (Eric Roberts). He will play a musician. (Deadline)

Actress Nancy Travis has joined the CW drama pilot Hart of Dixie in a guest-star/recurring role. The comedic drama centers on a young New York City doctor, Zoe Hart (Rachel Bilson), who inherits a medical practice in a small Southern town inhabited by an eclectic group of characters. Travis will play a no-nonsense nurse who becomes a surrogate mother to Zoe. (Deadline)

Actress Madchen Amick (Twin Peaks and Damages) has landed the female lead in the NBC drama pilot S.I.L.A., which is a complex drama in the vein of Traffic set in the world of crime, law enforcement and politics in modern-day Los Angeles. She will play Mary, who came from a blue-collar background to become a successful Century City lawyer. (Deadline)

Kelli Garner (My Generation) is set to co-star opposite Christina Ricci in the ABC drama pilot called Pan Am that is a sexy soap set against the Jet Age about a group of pilots and flight attendants working at Pan Am Airlines in the 1960s. She will play Kate, a well-educated, sharply intelligent and tri-lingual stewardess who is also a bit of a rebel. (Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

It looks like it’s been confirmed that Kristen Stewart (The Twilight franchise) will appear as Snow White in the upcoming box office film Snow White and the Hunstman, joining Viggo Mortensen as the huntsman and Charlize Theron as the evil queen. (MTV, Twitter and First Showing)

Alec Baldwin (30 Rock) has joined the cast of the film adaptation of the Broadway musical Rock of Ages, playing the part of Dennis Dupree, an ex-rocker hanging onto his glory days while he runs the Rock of Ages nightclub. Julianne Hough, Mary J. Blige and Tom Cruise are among the cast. (Dark Horizons)

Actress Brie Larson (United States of Tara and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World) has landed the coveted lead role of Molly in the remake of 21 Jump Street. She will star opposite Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum and Ice Cube. (Deadline)

Here is the list of the top 10 movies at the box office for this past weekend courtesy of Exhibitors Relations and E! Entertainment Online:

1. Rango, $38 million
2. The Adjustment Bureau, $20.9 million
3. Beastly, $10.1 million
4. Hall Pass, $9 million
5. Gnomeo & Juliet, $6.9 million
6. Unknown, $6.6 million
7. The King’s Speech, $6.501 million
8. Just Go With It, $6.5 million
9. I Am Number Four, $5.7 million
10. Justin Bieber: Never Say Never, $4.3 million

BOX OFFICE TRAILER

Watch: New Action-Packed Official Trailer for Universal’s ‘Fast Five’

Q&A SECTION (with E! Entertainment Online and TV Guide)

QUESTION: Supernatural!!!

ANSWER: All we dare tell you is that the final episodes of the season are dark, dark, dark. No more funny meta episodes for the duration.

QUESTION: Chuck intel, por favor!

ANSWER: Zachary Levi was gracious enough to give us the goods on how much trouble Lauren Cohan will be causing. “We’re going to get some super secret weapon component,” he tells us. “Then [Vivian] shows up unexpectedly and all hell breaks loose and Bob’s your uncle.” Sidenote, when was the last time you heard someone use the phrase “Bob’s your uncle?” Keep being you, Zach.

Question: Chuck scoop pretty, pretty please with chocolate sauce on top (just not the way Morgan and Alex used it…ewww). — Ann

Answer: Since you brought up couples, what about some news on one of our favorite TV couples: Chuck (Zachary Levi) and Sarah (Yvonne Strahovski)? When Gary Cole reprises his role as Sarah’s papa, expect not only to learn more about Sarah’s backstory, but also to witness the pair seeing new sides of each other. “I think when you decide to take the leap, and you’re engaged to be married, you’re going to learn more about the person you’ve decided to spend the rest of your life with, but you often learn what they’re like in the most grueling of life situations,” co-creator Chris Fedak says. “And that isn’t disarming a bomb of prepping for a mission — it’s preparing yourself for a wedding.”

Question: Any idea what’s going to happen on the Nikita finale? Maybe a little Mikita action? I know you love them. — Lizzy

Answer: Guilty as charged. As for the finale, Maggie Q teases the following: “Let’s just put it this way, by the end of season 1 it’s going to be a different show. When I think about where we started, and I think about how we’re going to end this season, it makes me laugh. It’s a different show. We’re going to go, fingers crossed, season 2, and people’s heads are going to roll.” Um, like, literally? “Well, I guess it depends on how much you love people — how devastating it’s going to be.” Gulp.

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

It’s Friday!! Is everyone excited? Hope so!! And, I hope you have some funs activities planned for this weekend. For those in LA tonight or over the next two weeks, and you can get your hands on tickets (if you don’t have them already) you might want to attend one of the 2011 Paley Fest events held at the Saban Theatre. The first one is tonight, featuring the cast and crew of the AMC new hit series The Walking Dead. You can find out more about the 2011 Paley Fest here.

TELEVISION

Three big names will be guest starring in upcoming episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit this spring, including John Stamos (ER and Glee), Terrence Howard (Law & Order: Los Angeles) and Lori Singer (Footloose). Stamos will appear as an adoption attorney with a secret passion. Singer will have the role of a new mother who is struggling with her increased responsibilities. Terrence Howard will be part of a crossover episode between “Law & Order: Los Angeles” and “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.” (The Futon Critic)

Scott Michael Foster (Greek) will appear in three episodes of the ABC Family Channel comedy Melissa & Joey. He will play George, a younger guy who catches Melissa’s (Melissa Joan Hart) fancy — and thus likely irks Joey (Joey Lawrence). (Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

HBO will present a sneak peek of the first 15 minutes of the first episode of the new series Game of Thrones on Sunday, April 3 at 9 PM, which will be followed by the debut of part three of the HBO mini-series Mildred Pierce. Game of Thrones, based on the popular book series called “A Song of Ice and Fire” by George R.R. Martin, is set in a vast and violent fantasy kingdom. The ensemble cast includes Mark Addy, Sean Bean, Emilia Clarke, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Fairley, Lena Headey, Kit Harington and Aidan Gillen. (The Futon Critic)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Actor Aidan Quinn will appear alongside Maria Bello in the American version of the UK hit Prime Suspect, which is being rebooted as a pilot for NBC. He will play Lt. Kenny Rowe. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actor Enrique Murciano (Without a Trace) will co-star opposite Minnie Driver in the CBS drama pilot Hail Mary that is a buddy P.I. show centering on Mary Beth (Driver), a suburban single mom in Atlanta who teams up with a streetwise hustler to solve crimes. Murciano will play Carlos Moreno, a detective with the Atlanta P.D. working the Major Crimes Division who went to high school with Mary Beth and has had a crush on her ever since. He winds up being Mary Beth’s de facto mentor in criminology, although he yearns for something more. (Deadline)

Actress Rebecca Mader (Lost) has landed a role in the ABC comedy pilot called Work It, which is about out-of-work car salesmen Lee and Angel (Amaury Nolasco) who realize that it is now a woman’s world and decide that in order to find work again and succeed they are going to have to dress as women to get jobs as pharmaceuticals reps. Mader will play a bitchy and pseudo-sophisticated drug sales rep with a know-everything attitude. (Deadline)

Actress Amber Stevens (Greek and soon to be seen in The Amazing Spider-Man) has joined the cast of the FOX medical drama pilot called Weekends at Bellevue that centers on Ellie (Lauren Ambrose), the psychiatrist in charge of the weekend shift of Bellevue Hospital psychiatric unit. Stevens will play a fresh faced psychiatry intern. (Deadline)

Battlestar Galactica alums James Callis and Tricia Helfer and Matt Long (The Deep End and Jack & Bobby) have joined the Ron Moore NBC drama pilot called 17th Precinct that already stars BSG alum Jamie Bamber, legendary actress Stockard Channing (The West Wing) and Eamonn Walker (Kings). The pilot is set in the fictional town of Excelsior where magic and supernatural elements rule over science and the story revolves around the cops at the local 17th Precinct. Helfer will play Morgana, a necromancer, the magical equivalent of a coroner, who is an expert at manipulating the potions, tools, herbs and spells of her trade. Details on the roles that Callis and Long will play have not been announced. (Deadline)

Actress Lucy Griffiths (the UK series Robin Hood) is the first cast member of the CW drama pilot called Awakening that is about two combative sisters who come of age amid the beginning of a zombie uprising. Griffiths is set to play Jenna Lestrade, the elder sister, a public defender in Manhattan who’s less comfortable with her zombie status than her younger sister, Jayce. (The Futon Critic)

Actor Jeff Hephner (Hellcats and The O.C.) has joined the cast of the NBC drama pilot called Playboy, which is a period drama set at the Playboy Club in Chicago in 1963. He will play Nick Darlton, an attorney/fixer who used to work for the Bianchi crime family. The cast of this pilot includes Amber Heard, David Krumholtz, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, Laura Benanti, Leah Cudmore, Naturi Naughton and Wes Ramsey. (The Futon Critic)

Actor Joe Anderson (Across the Universe) has joined the cat of the ABC drama pilot called The River, which is about the crew of a state-of-the-art research vessel on a quest to find a missing TV explorer in the Amazon. He will play Lincoln Cole, the aforementioned man’s son. Eloise Mumford (Lone Star) also stars. (The Futon Critic)

Actress Tracie Thoms (Cold Case) has joined the cast of the NBC drama pilot/reboot Wonder Woman. Thoms will play Etta Candy, the cheerful secretary for Diana Themyscira (Adrianne Palicki), Wonder Woman’s public identity. Also, Cary Elwes (The Princess Bride) has joined the cast, starring as Henry Detmer, the acting CEO of Themyscira Industries who is deeply devoted to Diana. (The Futon Critic and Deadline)

Actress and Oscar nominee Taraji P. Henson (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) has landed the lead in the J.J. Abrams/CBS drama pilot called Person of Interest. She will star alongside Lost alum Michael Emerson. The series is about an ex-CIA agent who is recruited by a crazy billionaire to help fight crime in New York City. Henson will play a female detective named Carter who will presumably team up with the as-yet uncast ex-CIA agent. (Vulture)

Roswell actor Nick Wechsler has joined the cast of the ABC drama pilot Revenge that centers on a young woman who is welcomed into a community filled with people who don’t know she’s only there to exact revenge on those who destroyed her family. The pilot also stars Ashley Madekwe (The Beautiful Life). (The Hollywood Reporter)

Grey’s Anatomy actor Jeff Perry (Lexie and Meredith’s dad) has joined the cast of the Shonda Rhimes ABC drama pilot called Damage Control that follows the follows the life and work of a professional fixer, Olivia Price, and her dysfunctional staff. Kerry Washington stars as Price, who is based on the career of legendary crisis management consultant Judy Smith. The other members of the cast include Columbus Short, Henry Ian Cusick, Katie Lowes and Guillermo Diaz. (Robyn Ross at TV Guide)

Singer-actress Caitlin Crosby (That 70’s Show and Malcolm in the Middle) will play Kelly in the NBC drama pilot called A Mann’s World that stars Don Johnson as a fifty-something Beverly Hills hairdresser and salon owner struggling to remain relevant in a superficial world. (The Hollywood Reporter)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Dancer-turned singer/actress Julianne Hough (Burlesque and Dancing With the Stars) will join Tom Cruise (yes, you read that right) in the film adaptation of the Broadway hit musical Rock of Ages. Hough will play Sherri Christian, a girl from the Midwest who moves to Hollywood with dreams of becoming an actress. Tom Cruise has already signed on to play musician Stacee Jaxx. A nationwide search to fill the part of Drew Boley (Sherri’s love interest) is underway. (E! Entertainment Online)

Catherine Zeta-Jones is in talks to join the cat of the upcoming film Lay the Favorite based on the Beth Raymer best-selling memoir called Lay the Favorite: A Memoir of Gambling. The story charts her rise from lowly Vegas cocktail waitress to one of the top sports gambling bookmakers. Rebecca Hall has been cast in the lead role while Zeta-Jones would play the wife of Raymer’s mentor, a cantankerous ex–New York bookmaker (Bruce Willis). (Deadline and Dark Horizons)

Julianne Moore and Olivia Thirlby have joined the cast of the upcoming movie Another Night based on the Nick Flynn memoir called Another Bullsh*t Night in Suck City. The story revolves around the author’s experiences as a case worker for the homeless and his relationship with his father. As a teenager, Flynn (Paul Dano) had received letters from his estranged father (Robert De Niro), a delusional con man and self-proclaimed poet. The memoir follows Flynn and his father, whose self-destructive behavior eventually drives him onto the streets and into the homeless shelter where Flynn works. (The Film Stage and Dark Horizons)

Rhys Ifans and Chris Pratt (Parks and Recreation and Everwood) have joined the cast of the upcoming comedy movie called Five-Year Engagement that stars Jason Segel and Emily Blunt in a story about the highs and lows of a lengthy relationship. Alison Brie (Community) will play Blunt’s younger sister. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

BOX OFFICE TRAILERS

Another Epic New Trailer for Fox’s ‘Water for Elephants’ Adaptation

Must Watch: Epic New Theatrical Trailer for ‘Kung Fu Panda 2’ Hits

Watch: First Teaser Trailer for DreamWorks’ Spin-Off ‘Puss in Boots’

That’s it. Enjoy!

Have a terrific weekend!

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Hey All,

It feels good to know that the weekend is nearly here, right? And, the start of the 2011 Paley Fest is tomorrow night. Safe travels are wished to all those who are traveling from far and wide to attend the annual fete.

In the meantime, here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

What is expected to be the final episode of the new NBC series The Cape – that was to air this past Monday night as part of double-header – will now air online only later this month. No more specifics have been provided, but check NBC.com for more details if you are a fan of the show. (TV Line)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Actress Abigail Spencer (Mad Men) has landed the female lead opposite Eric Roberts in the ABC drama pilot called Grace that focuses on a dysfunctional family drama set in the world of professional dance. It centers on Michael Grace (Roberts), a famous choreographer who tends to sleep with his dancers and has three daughters with different mothers. He is in danger of losing his studio until his daughter Sarah (Spencer), a former dancer-turned-lawyer, decides to buy her father’s studio and run it for him before he loses it. Newcomer Anabelle Acosta will play Eden, a beautiful and talented dancer who is the daughter Michael Grace never knew he had. (Deadline)

Actress Alex Breckenridge (Life Unexpected) will play one of the two leads in the CW pilot called Cooper & Stone that is about Jenna Cooper (Breckenridge) and Stone (still to be cast), two smart young female detectives on Chicago’s North Side who are best friends, equally adept at discussing fashion, music, pop culture as they are solving homicides. (Deadline)

Actor Martin Henderson (who is currently starring in the ABC drama Off the Map) has been cast in the NBC drama pilot called The Crossing. He is expected to play Jason, a Civil War soldier who crosses the country and settles into a complicated town where he is welcomed as its savior – whether he likes it or not. This casting is in second position to his current series, though. (Deadline)

Actress Sarah Paulson is to star in an as-yet untitled comedy pilot from Warner Bros. TV, about a relationship-challenged woman (Paulson) who, with the help of her co-workers, guides people through unexpected career transitions and downsizings. (Deadline)

Actress Lauren Ambrose (Six Feet Under) will appear in the FOX drama pilot called Weekends at Bellevue that centers on Ellie (Ambrose), the psychiatrist in charge of the weekend shift of Bellevue Hospital psychiatric unit. (Deadline)

Actress Ginnifer Goodwin (Big Love) has joined the ABC drama pilot called Once Upon a Time where she will play Snow White/Sister Mary Margaret Blanchard. The details for the show are as follows: When a young boy who purports to be her son shows up on her doorstep, Anna Swan is drawn into a town where the magic and mystery of fairytales may be real and hold the key to unlocking the mysteries of her troubled past. (The Hollywood Reporter)

Actress Angela Bassett (ER) has joined the ABC drama pilot called Identity that is set at the Identity Crimes Division, the FBI’s first cyber-crime unit mixed with traditional investigators. She will play Martha Adam, the head of the ICD. Also, actor Jay Paulson (Happy Town) is expected to play Jose Rodriguez, a junior member of the team. Orlando Jones also stars and Wentworth Miller is in talks to join the pilot. (The Futon Critic)

Actress Jaime King (My Generation) has joined the cast of the CW drama pilot Hart of Dixie that is about Zoe Hart (Rachel Bilson), a young big-city doctor who inherits a medical practice in the oddball town of BlueBell, Alabama. King will play Lemon Breeland, an overly effusive member of the Blue Belles, elite young ladies chosen to keep the town’s history alive. (The Futon Critic)

Actress Elizabeth Hurley announced via Twitter that she will play the “evil villain” in the much-talked-about drama pilot Wonder Woman. (Twitter and Coming Soon)

MADE FOR TV MOVIES NEWS

Mark Harmon (NCIS) will star in an in-development made-for-TV movie for USA Network based on the John Sandford “PREY” novels. This particular movie will be based on the 10th novel in the series called “Certain Prey” that pits popular antihero, Minneapolis Deputy Police Chief Lucas Davenport, against a duo unlike any he’s ever encountered; a lethal hit woman and a ferociously cunning killer determined to hunt him down. (The Futon Critic)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actress Diane Lane will play Martha Kent in the upcoming Superman movie that stars Henry Cavill (The Tudors) in the lead role. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

Actress Alison Brie (Community and Mad Men) is joining the cast of the upcoming movie Five-Year Engagement that charts the ups and downs of the relationship between a couple (Emily Blunt and Jason Segel). Brie will portray the younger sister to Emily Blunt’s character. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All

Happy Over the Hump Day Everyone! Hope your work week is going well. Here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

Actor Michael Zegan (Rescue Me) will appear as a young Benjamin “Benny” (late known as “Bugsy”) Siegel in the HBO series Boardwalk Empire when it returns for its second season. (Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Actress Katie Cassidy (Melrose Place and Gossip Girl) will star opposite James Wolk (Lone Star) in the ABC drama pilot called Georgetown, which centers on the young people behind the power brokers of Washington, DC. The main protagonist, Andrew Pierce (Wolk), is an effortlessly charming and brilliant Yale graduate and the youngest Presidential speech writer on record. Cassidy will play Nikki, a smart and quick-witted junior staffer in the White House Communications Office with connections to the First Lady. Also cast in the pilot is Daisy Betts (Persons Unknown) as Samantha, an idealistic young staffer for the Democratic President who shares a romantic history with Andrew. (Nellie Andreeva at TV Line)

Actor Steven Pasquale (Rescue Me) will star in the USA Network drama pilot called Over/Under that centers on Paul (Pasquale), a day trader with a massive gambling problem who is fired from his job six months after a bad trade costs his firm millions. Shut out of the job market, he and his wife move to Brooklyn. There, Paul finds an unlikely partner, expectant father Marino (Anthony Carrigan), to start a high-end bookie business. (Deadline)

Actress Leslie Bibb (Crossing Jordan and both Iron Man films) will play the lead in the ABC dramedy pilot called Good Christian Bitches that is based on the Kim Gatlin book. It centers on Amanda (Bibb), a recently divorced mother of two who moves back to the affluent neighborhood where she grew up to find herself in the whirling midst of gossip, Botox and fraud. She joins previously announced cast members Jennifer Aspen and Annie Potts. (Deadline)

Actress Jennifer Ehle (The King’s Speech) will star opposite Patrick Wilson in the as-yet untitled CBS drama pilot by Susannah that centers on an ultra-competitive surgeon (Wilson) whose life is changed forever when his ex-wife (Ehle), a doctor running a free clinic, dies and begins teaching him what life is all about from the here-after. (Deadline)

Actor Stephen Tobolowsky (Heroes, Glee and Californication) has been cast in the CBS drama pilot called Hail Mary that centers on a single mom (Minnie Driver) who teams up with a hustler to solve crimes. Tobolowsky will play the part of Cox. (The Hollywood Reporter)

FX has announced they are producing a pilot for a proposed series based on the comic books series called Powers, a long-running saga about cops in a city teeming with superheroes. You can think of it like NYPD Blue meets Watchmen or Jack Kirby meets James Ellroy. Charles H. Eglee (formerly of The Shield and Dark Angel) and veteran TV director Michael Dinner will be involved in this project as will comic book scribe Brian Michael Bendis, who created Powers with artist Michael Avon Oeming, will work on the show as an executive producers. Melissa Rosenberg (the writer of the Twilight saga films) is adapting the comic. (Jeff Jenson at Entertainment Weekly)

MADE FOR TV MOVIE NEWS

The made-for-TV movie called Truth Be Told, starring Candace Cameron Bure, David James Elliott and Ronny Cox will premiere on Saturday, April 16 on FOX. The project revolves around Annie Morgan (Bure), a marriage counselor who – fearing her single status will ruin her chance at a dream job hosting a radio advice program – conspires with an old college friend (Elliott), a recent widower with two teenagers, to pass as a married couple after her potential boss (Cox) invites them to spend the weekend at his New Mexico ranch. No airtime has been announced yet. (The Futon Critic)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Katherine Heigl’s bounty hunter comedy called One for the Money has been pushed up a month from July 8 to June 3 where it will now open opposite X-Men: First Class. (Dark Horizons)

British actress Eleanor Tomlinson (The Illusionist) is set to play the female lead in the upcoming box office movie called Jack the Giant Killer. She will play Isabella, a princess who runs away from her kingdom and is kidnapped by giants. Before being taken, she meets a farmer’s son named Jack (Nicholas Hoult) who later leads a mission into the land of the giants to save her. Stanley Tucci, Ewan McGregor, Bill Nighy and John Kassir also star. (Dark Horizons)

Looks like Disney may try to bring their tame boat ride Jungle Cruise into a feature film. Tim Allen and Tom Hanks have been tapped to lead roles. No other specifics seem to be available yet, though. (Deadline and Dark Horizons)

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

QUESTION: So, will Kurt be back with New Directions on Glee any time soon? — Lizzie

ADAM: Sorry to break it to you, Lizzie, but Kurt will still be singing with the Warblers at least through Regionals. That means he won’t be singing Glee’s original song, the geek anthem “Loser Like Me,” either. But don’t worry, Kurt and the Warblers have their own underdog ode. Hint: It’s by Pink!

QUESTION: Any spoilers for the return of The Event? — Marcus

NATALIE: We’ll learn right away that the message that Thomas (Clifton Collins Jr.) sent was an invitation of sorts, and you’ll soon be reminded of the final scene of Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Meanwhile, Sterling (Zeljko Ivanek) will find himself in the middle of a violent break-out at Inostranka that not everyone will survive.

QUESTION: When will we see Wo Fat on Hawaii Five-0 again? Will his story be resolved with the “champ box” mysteries? — Greg

ADAM: Wo Fat’s connections to McGarrett’s father will be brought up again in the next new episode (airing March 21), which also introduces Larisa Oleynik’s new team member. “She brings some of that Wo Fat backstory to light and sheds new light on his character. She sort of reinvigorates McGarrett’s interest,” co-executive producer Paul Zbyszewski tells us. But I wouldn’t expect to see all of Wo Fat’s story wrapped up this year. “We see him more in terms of a series-long character, much like the original Five-0,” he says.

QUESTION: Justified is so good this season. What’s coming up? — J. Baker

ADAM: Even though Boyd roughed up fellow miner Kyle at the end of last week’s episode, the two will soon make peace — at least long enough to plan a robbery. As with most things Boyd gets involved in, the results are both explosive and deadly.

Question: Is Terri returning to Glee his season? I have a sinking feeling she won’t be back next year. —Rion

Ausiello: I can’t speak about next season, but I can tell you that Jessalyn Gilsig reported back to the set this week for an episode to air in late March/early April. And rumor has it Terri’s up to her old tricks again.

Question: Any clues about the big Glee death at Regionals? —Cindy

Ausiello: I never said the death was big — I said the fallout was. And the only other clue you’re getting is the gender of the victim: male.

GREAT ONLINE TV-RELATED LIST

100 Most Memorable Female TV Characters

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Happy Tuesday! How is everyone’s week going so far? Hope it is good and that you enjoyed all the great programming that was on last night especially the conclusion of the two-part Castle episode.

Meanwhile, here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

The season finale of the ABC drama Detroit 1-8-7 has been moved to Sunday, March 20 at 10 PM. Tonight’s episode of the series will be pre-empted for a 20/20 special with the episode that was to air tonight airing now on March 8 at 10 PM followed by a new episode on March 15 and then the finale on March 20. Mark your calendars! (The Futon Critic)

Actor Enrique Murciano (Without a Trace) will appear in a multi-episode arc on NCIS as Ziva’s (Cote de Pablo) never-seen-before boyfriend CIA agent Ray Cruz. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actress Diane Neal will return to Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as Casey Novak, who was disbarred for violating due process in a rape case. She will be back for one episode this spring. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Actress Lana Parrilla (“Miami Medical”) has joined the cast of the ABC drama pilot called Once Upon a Time that will be about a small town in Maine where the magic and mystery of Fairy Tales just may be real. She will play Regina the town’s mayor who also happens to be the Evil Queen of Fairy Tale Land. (The Futon Critic)

Actress Poppy Montgomery (Without a Trace) has landed the lead role in the CBS drama pilot called The Rememberer that is about Carrie Wells, an FBI agent who remembers everything, helping her career but making for turmoil in her personal life. (The Futon Critic)

Oscar-nominee Janet McTeer (Tumbleweeds) is first to join the cast of the FOX drama pilot called Weekends at Bellevue that follows the weekend physician in charge of Bellevue’s psychiatric emergency room. She will play Diane Wallace, the hospital’s head of psychiatry. (The Futon Critic)

Actress Rachelle Lefevre (Off the Map and the first two Twilight movies) will play the female lead in the NBC drama pilot called The Crossing that is set in a Missouri town during the post-Civil War Reconstruction era. The pilot centers on Jason, a Civil War soldier who crosses the country and settles into a complicated town where he is welcomed as its savior. She will play Anna, a war widow who watched helplessly as Union soldiers burned her husband and two little boys alive in their barn. Now living with her five-year-old daughter, Anna is smitten with Jason at first sight and embarks on a torrid affair with the troubled outsider. (Nellie Andreeva at TV Line)

NOTE: Depending on the fate of the new series Off the Map, Lefevre would have to return to the ABC medical drama if it is picked up for another season. If not, then she will be free to pursue this new NBC drama SHOULD it be picked up as a series by the Peacock network.

CONDOLENCES

Legendary actress Jane Russell, who starred in the Howard Hughes film The Outlaw and the film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes with Marilyn Munroe passed away yesterday at the age of 89. (LA Times)

ME: Rest in Peace, Ms. Russell. Condolences to her family, friends and fans.

MOMENT OF SILENCE, PLEASE…

BOX OFFICE NEWS

It looks like film maker/director Tim Burton and actor Josh Brolin just might be teaming to do a new film adaptation the classic 1831 novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame. The story follows Quasimodo, a deformed and hunchbacked bell-ringer of the Norte Dame cathedral who tragically falls in love with a beautiful gypsy named Esmerelda. (Reuters and Dark Horizons)

Actress Malin Akerman (Watchmen) is negotiating to join the kidnapping thriller called Medallion that stars Nicolas Cage as a former master thief who has only a few hours to find his daughter when she is kidnapped and locked in the trunk of a New York taxi cab. Akerman will play Cage’s former girlfriend and a former bank robber who agrees to help him save his daughter. (Reuters and Dark Horizons)

Singer-Actress Mandy Moore (Tangled) and actor Rodrigo Santoro (I Love You, Phillip Morris) are set to co-star in the film Falling Slowly that follows a couple whose apartment is haunted by a dark presence. (Variety and First Showing)

BOX OFFICE FIRST LOOK

X-Men: First Class International Posters

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Well, the Oscars aired last night and the consensus seems to be the same as previous years. The awards show was boring, the hosts seemed either bored or too perky at times and the winners were, if nothing else, predictable. What was your take on the annual fete?

In the meantime, here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

The new ABC drama No Ordinary Family has had its episode order trimmed down to 20 episodes, meaning the season finale will air on April 5 at 8 PM (instead of in May). A new episode will air tomorrow night followed by two weeks of repeats with the finale 3 episodes to air starting on March 22. (The Futon Critic)

Oscar winner Marlee Matlin (Children of a Lesser God) will have a guest-starring role in the ABC Family Channel drama called Switched at Birth that is set to air in this summer. The show will tell the story of two teenage girls who discover they were accidentally switched as newborns in the hospital. Matlin will portray Melody, the mother one of the girls in the show. (Seat42F)

Actress Liz Vassey (CSI) will guest star in a spring episode of Castle, as a real estate broker who gets caught in the middle of New York’s pizza wars. (Michael Auseillo at TV Line)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Actor Russell Hornsby (Lincoln Heights) and actress Bitsie Tulloch (Quarterlife) have joined the NBC drama pilot called Grimm, which is being described as a fantastical cop drama in which characters from Grimm’s Fairy Tales exist. The main story revolves around Nick (David Giuntoli); a cop who starts to see some humans for what they actually are — animals/beasts — and realizes it’s his destiny to protect society from them. Hornsby and Tulloch will play Bruce’s partner in crime and love interest, respectively. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actor David Krumholtz (Numb3rs) will have a co-starring role in the NBC drama pilot Playboy, which is, of course, set at the Playboy Club in Chicago circa 1963. He will play the club’s general manager, a young Albert Brooks-esque bottom-line kind of guy. The cast also includes Amber Heard (Zombieland), Naturi Naughton (Fame) and Laura Benanti (Eli Stone) as Playboy bunnies. (Nellie Andreeva at TV Line)

Actor Tony Goldwyn has landed a role in the ABC drama pilot now called Damage Control (formerly known as In Crisis) about Olivia Price (Kerry Washington) who is a professional fixer and her dysfunctional staff. He will play Fitzgerald Grant an old friend of Price’s who is now the President of the United. (The Futon Critic)

Actress Frances O’Connor (Cashmere Mafia) will star in the ABC drama pilot called Hallelujah, which is about a tiny town in Tennessee that finds itself being torn apart by the forces of good and evil. She will play Ruth Turner, whose family welcomes Jared O’Neal (Jesse L. Martin), a mysterious stranger who arrives to restore faith to the town’s residents, into their home. (The Futon Critic)

Don Johnson (Miami Vice) will play the title role in the NBC drama pilot called A Mann’s World that is about a straight Beverly Hills hairdresser in his 50s who is struggling to stay young and relevant in a place where looks are everything. The pilot also stars Taylor Kinney. (The Futon Critic)

Actress Frances Fisher (Eureka) has a role in the ABC drama pilot called Partners, which is about half-sisters – Mattie (Scottie Thompson) and Jess (Annie Wersching) – who work together as police detectives. She will play their incarcerated mother, Colleen Scott, who confessed to killing Mattie’s abusive father 20 years ago. Kenneth Mitchell, Larry Gilliard Jr. and Michael Beach also star in the project. (The Futon Critic)

Actor Raza Jaffrey (MI-5) has been added to the cast of the NBC drama pilot Smash, which is about a show-within-a-show following a group of people who come together to put on a Marilyn Monroe-themed Broadway musical. He will play Dev the live-in boyfriend of the musical’s star, Karen (Katharine McPhee), who works in the mayor’s office. Debra Messing, Jack Davenport and Megan Hilty are among the other cast members. (The Futon Critic)

Actor Danny Pino (Cold Case) is the first actor cast in the NBC pilot S.I.L.A, described as a complex drama in the style of Traffic and Syriana set in the world of crime, law enforcement and politics in sprawling modern-day Los Angeles. (Deadline)

AWARD WINNERS

Congrats to the winners of the Independent Spirit Awards, including Black Swan, Natalie Portman and The King’s Speech (among others) that were presented over the weekend. And, of course, congrats to all the Oscar winners from last night, including Christian, Bale, Inception, Toy Story 3, Alice in Wonderland and Melissa Leo (among others). Also, here is an “inappropriate” kudos to the ‘winners” of the Razzie Awards, including Jessica Alba, Jackson Rathbone and The Last Airbender (among others). (E! Entertainment and TV Guide)

CONDOLENCES

Director Gary Winick – the man behind Letters to Juliet, Bride Wars, Tadpole, 13 Going on 30, Pieces of April, Charlotte’s Web (among others) – passed away at the age of 49. (Variety)

ME: Rest in Peace, Mr. Winick. Condolences are extended to his family, friends and fans.

MOMENT OF SILENCE, PLEASE….

BOX OFFICES NEWS

Actress Kate Mara and actor Treat Williams will star in the independent crime thriller film called Blackbird that is to star Eric Bana and Olivia Wilde as a pair of sibling fugitives who cross paths with a young convict boxer (Charlie Hunnam). Williams and Mara will play a father-daughter duo whose storyline intertwines with the main plot. Kris Kristofferson and Sissy Spacek also star as the boxer’s parents. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

It’s official! Actor James Franco will play the lead in the film Oz, The Great and Powerful, which is a prequel to The Wizard of Oz, telling the story of the origins of the Wizard and Oz’s infamous witches like Glinda the Good Witch of the North and Evanorah, the soon-to-be squashed Wicked Witch of the East. (Deadline and Dark Horizons)

Here are the top 10 box office movies for this past weekend according to Exhibitor Relations and updated tallies from Variety:

1. Hall Pass, $13.5 million
2. Gnomeo & Juliet, $13.4 million
3. Unknown, $12.4 million
4. Just Go With It, $11.1 million
5. I Am Number Four, $11 million
6. Justin Bieber: Never Say Never, $9.2 million
7. The King’s Speech, $7.6 million
8. Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son, $7.55 million
9. Drive Angry, $5.1 million
10. The Roommate, $2 million

Actor Jimmi Simpson (Psych and the upcoming Breakout Kings) has joined the cast of the box office movie Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, playing Lincoln’s right-hand man. (Dark Horizons)

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

Question: Is it likely Castle would ever do an episode inside the Nikki Heat universe? Say Castle is working on some aspect of a book and Beckett drops by to flip the roles so to speak. She pokes and prods to see how Castle creates his world, his story. And boom, the episode is set in the world of Nikki Heat. You would get to see all the characters of the show be portrayed differently: a more sultry Beckett, less goofy Castle. I know in TV everything is possible, up to a point at least, but is this something the producers have ever hinted at doing? — Trenton

Matt Roush: Sounds like a great idea, the kind of Moonlighting-style fantasy stunt that would suit this show very nicely. (Also sounds like something that’s the stuff of fan fiction, but I’m not opening that door.) I haven’t heard that the show is planning something like this; the closest they’ve come so far is bringing in Laura Prepon as the actress playing Nikki Heat in a movie adaptation of the books. Bones dipped from this fantasy role-playing well a while back, which may keep Castle from doing it anytime soon so it doesn’t look like they’re copying. But I always like it when Beckett’s persona gets confused with Castle’s Nikki creation, so why not?

Question: TV Guide Magazine’s recent article about Castle posed a great question: Why aren’t more people watching the show? I just can’t understand why it’s not a huge hit. Castle has all the standards of the day for a hit: very attractive people solving crimes. It is currently the show I look forward to watching most. The writing and acting are excellent and it is just so much fun. I love that it is character rather than case-driven and doesn’t take itself too seriously, unlike other procedurals. Rick Castle is easily one of my favorite TV characters. The recent episode dealing with the murder of Beckett’s mom highlights everything that is great about the show. So why does Castle seem like a largely ignored show? — Amy

Matt Roush: Maybe our current cover story can help turn that perception around. The fact is, as enjoyable as Castle is, it’s one of many shows in an oversaturated genre that is dominated mostly by CBS blockbusters. Castle does just fine for ABC, and tends to flourish even more when Dancing With the Stars is in season, and if there are big storylines and stunts coming, I’m sure we’ll give them proper coverage. But with episodic procedurals, it can be very easy to take them for granted week in and week out. Doesn’t mean we don’t enjoy them.

Question: For the most part, I’m really enjoying Hawaii Five-0, even though the writing seems uneven at times, but then so it is with most procedurals. I have to ask, though: Is it just me or is Scott Caan being given the meatiest material to work with? In nearly back-to-back episodes, his character had a “personal crisis” to deal with, which basically separated him from the regular procedural element of the script, thereby giving Scott a chance to develop his character and shine a bit. I don’t see that happening with any other role, even the McGarrett character. Is this all happening because the network gave orders to give Scott more material so they could ride his Golden Globe nomination, or do you think the writers just haven’t figured out how to write properly for the other three leads? And while we’re talking about undeveloped characters, how awful is it that the wonderful Daniel Dae Kim is basically relegated to saying “copy that” every episode and fiddling with tech stuff? What a waste of talent! When does Chin get his turn to shine, or Kono? I know that the producers have promised more McGarrett-centric episodes, but does that mean more scenes of Steve jumping through windows or showing off his SEAL skills, or does it mean that Alex O’Loughlin actually gets some good material too? My one and only hope as far as the McGarrett character is concerned is that his uber-annoying, whiny sister stay on the mainland and away from Hawaii permanently. I know that’s a long shot, but we can hope. — Rachel

Matt Roush: Seems to me that Scott Caan’s “Danno” character broke out long before the Golden Globes nod, and I don’t imagine that has much to do with the show’s creative direction, or lack thereof. Is it really such a surprise that the comic fish-out-of-water sidekick to the brooding all-business/all-action leading man pops out from an ensemble like this? Points well taken that Daniel Dae Kim and Grace Park have been woefully underused, and their characters seriously underdeveloped. But in the big picture of a franchise like this, it’s still early days.

Question: Last week, Glee hit a new low. To say it’s been uneven since the original 13 episodes is an understatement, but as bad as some episodes have been, I was unprepared for just how awful “Blame It on the Alcohol” turned out. Glee’s decline reminds me of Heroes. In both cases, the first seasons were extremely entertaining, even taking into account both shows had obvious problem areas. In the second seasons, the problem areas overtook and defined the shows with only occasional flickers of what was so entertaining just one year earlier. I can tell you why Glee is bad from a viewer’s perspective, using this episode as an example: bad song choices (all of a sudden, the previous week’s Justin Bieber songs seem fantastic!), confusing mixed messages, inconsistent and unlikable characterizations, and hideous 1970s bridesmaid dresses worn by an underage hostess. I could go on and on, but I’m sure you get the drift.

My question to you is this: Why is Glee so bad now from an insider’s perspective? I don’t understand the decision-making process that could lead to such a steep dip in quality so quickly. Does the show’s popularity go to the creators’ heads? Are they surrounded by “yes” men and lose the ability to collaborate? Or are these just shows with a limited shelf life and any continuation is bound to stink. One last observation. At least the viewing public had the good sense to stop watching Heroes after it got bad. With Glee pulling bigger numbers now than last year, viewers are rewarding the poor creative decisions, so I see little hope of it getting better. I suppose an obvious explanation is that (as the popularity of “reality” shows proves) what entertains me is very different than that of the general public. — Lou

Matt Roush: I think many people still like the idea of Glee and are glad there’s a place on TV for such an original series, even when the weekly experience can be so maddening. They like the music more or less — although I agree with you that, besides the Rachel-Blaine duet, there was nothing from last week’s episode I was tempted to download — and fans seem to be able to tolerate the chaotic excesses and ridiculous inconsistencies for the moments of magic that still occur now and again. It’s a mess, but for me it’s still a fascinating mess. (Even in the best episodes, there’s usually something that irks me, and even in the most irksome episodes, I can usually find a moment or two of bliss.) But you’re wondering how something can go so obviously off the rails, and I fall back on the argument that it’s hard to imagine many shows that would be more difficult to produce than this weekly musical. Ryan Murphy for better or worse is an auteur pursuing his own peculiar vision, and there is a sense that Glee is operating in its own pop-culture bubble and will be given a long leash (possibly to hang itself?) as long as its popularity sustains.

Question: We know that The Cape is done, and that V, The Event and No Ordinary Family are on life support. What are the chances of a season-ending wrap-up on the programs? I really hate when they leave things up in the air. — Dennis

Matt Roush: In most of these cases, the best we can probably hope for is that the writers will wrap up some part of the story or arc so the fans can be satisfied with at least that much resolution. Given the precarious state of each of these series, it would be foolish for the producers to think that ending everything with a huge cliffhanger would somehow force the networks to bring them back for another season. That tends to result only in mass viewer frustration. At the same time, I doubt many shows in their first season would produce an actual “series” finale type of episode. The best approach would be to bring some part of the big-picture story to an end, while leaving the basic premise open-ended in case the miracle of renewal occurs. The times we’ve actually seen this happen, though, are far and few between.

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Happy Friday Everyone! I hope you have some fun activities planned for this weekend and remember the Oscars will air on Sunday on ABC starting at 8:30 PM (but check local listings for further details). In the meantime, here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

Actor Donal Logue (Terriers) will make a guest appearance on House in what is being called “ a very juicy role”. He will be in the 20th episode of the season that is slated to air in early May. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actor James Corden – who is best remembered by fans of Doctor Who as Craig Owens (the “chap” who the Doctor roomed with for a short time in the flat that was snuck beneath a downed but hidden space ship in the DW episode called “The Lodger” – will be returning as that character in the series. He may even get to visit the TARDIS with the Doctor. (BBC and Blastr)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Actor Eamonn Walker (Kings) will play Detective Chief Inspector Wilder Banks in the Ron Moore NBC drama pilot called 17th Precinct. The pilot already includes Jamie Bamber and Stockard Channing. (Deadline)

Actress Michelle Borth (The Forgotten and Hawaii Five-0) has landed the lead role in the upcoming ABC drama called Combat Hospital, playing Major Rebecca Kincaid, a trauma surgeon at the aforementioned hospital who was dumped by her fiancé just before she left for Afghanistan. (The Futon Critic)

Tony-nominee Christian Borle (Legally Blonde: The Musical) has booked the lead role in the NBC pilot called Smash that is a show-within-a-show about a group of people who come together to put on a Broadway musical. He will play Tom, a composer who spearheads the effort – a Marilyn Monroe musical – alongside lyricist Julia (Debra Messing). Among the other cast are Jack Davenport (FlashForward), Katharine McPhee (American Idol runner-up) and Broadway star Megan Hilty. (The Futon Critic)

Actress Jennifer Aspen (Glee and Rodney) has been cast in the ABC dramedy pilot Good Christian Bitches based on the Kim Gatlin book that follows a woman who moves back to her Dallas neighborhood after a divorce only to become the center of salacious gossip from the community’s church-going wives. (The Hollywood Reporter)

MADE FOR TV MOVIE NEWS

The 7th movie in the Jesse Stone series of movies – this one is called Jesse Stone: Innocents Lost – will debut on CBS on May 22 at 9 PM. Tom Selleck stars as Police Chief Jesse Stone in a story that finds Jesse, once again, on overload, looking into the death of a teenage girl and unofficially involved in the case of a convicted murderer who he thinks may be innocent. He’s also battling his familiar demons, alcohol and his ex-wife. Kathy Baker and Kohl Sudduth reprise their roles as the Paradise Police Force. William Devane, Stephen McHattie, Saul Rubinek and William Sadler also return. And Gloria Reuben will be among the guest stars. (The Futon Critic)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Ewan McGregor is in negotiations to join the cast of the upcoming box office movie Jack the Giant Killer, which is the re-telling of the Jack and the Beanstalk fairy tale that follows a farm boy (Nicholas Hoult) who leads an expedition to free a princess taken hostage by a giant, a situation which threatens the uneasy truce between humans and giants. McGregor would play the leader of the king’s elite guard, who helps fight giants. Stanley Tucci, Bill Nighy and John Kassir also star. (Heat Vision and Dark Horizons)

The cast of the upcoming box office movie called Prometheus is expected to include Idris Elba (Luthor). The cast already includes Charlize Theron, Michael Fassbender and Noomi Rapace. Not much is known about the movie besides this: it will be “a new, grand mythology and universe in which this original story takes place. (Daily Mail, The Playlist and First Showing)

Peter Stormare (Prison Break) has joined the cast of the upcoming film Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters, which already has Jeremy Renner, Gemma Arterton and Famke Janssen in the cast. Stormare will play a villainous town sheriff named Berringer in a story that sees the two siblings as full-time killers whose primary targets are witches like the one who terrorized them at such a young age. (Deadline and First Showing)

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

There isn’t a lot of news to share with all of you today, but there are at least the following:

TELEVISION

Actress Chandra Wilson will helm another episode of Grey’s Anatomy, taking to the director’s chair for the 4th time. She will direct the 20th episode of this current season. (Natalie Abrams at TV Guide)

Actor Allan Hyde will return (somehow) to his role of vampire sheriff Godric in the HBO series True Blood despite his character meeting his end at the hands of the rising sun in season 2. No details are available on how Godric will return this season, though. (TV Line)

TBS has cancelled their new hour-long comedy Glory Daze after only one season due to low ratings. The series centered on a group of college freshmen in the 1980s, who all pledge a fraternity, starring Kelly Blatz, Matt Bush, Tim Meadows and Drew Seeley. (The Hollywood Reporter)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Actor Leslie Odom Jr. (Big Day) has joined the cast of the ABC drama pilot called Poe, which is about the 19th century adventures of Edgar Allan Poe, the world’s very first detective. Odom will play Julian “Jupiter” Noble, a doctor at a free clinic who helps Poe. (The Futon Critic)

Adam Goldberg (The Unusuals) is joining the cast of the Robert DeNiro/CBS drama pilot called Rookies, which is about six NYPD rookies who balance their personal lives with learning the beat on the streets of Manhattan. It is presumed he will play Kenny McCormack, one of the six cops. Leelee Sobieski also stars. (The Futon Critic)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

It looks like plans are in the making for Warner Bros. to remake the 1992 hit movie The Bodyguard. Writers have been hired to do the script and the new version will have the male lead being a former Iraqi war vet. No other details are available. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

That’s it. Enjoy!

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