Rueben's Ramblings

Hey All,

The end of another week is finally here and October is nearly upon us. Where does the time go?

Meanwhile, there is a quite a bit of news to share with all of you:

NEWS

Andrew Lloyd Webber has finally found his Wizard of Oz: Stage legend Michael Crawford — who originated the role of the Phantom in Webber’s Phantom of the Opera 24 years ago — will take on the role as the ruler of Oz in the forthcoming London-based production. This is a rather buzzed-about London production that finds the British Webber producing and writing new songs with regular collaborator Tim Rice. The show’s Dorothy was found via the BBC talent-search show Over the Rainbow. (Variety and Tanner Stransky at Entertainment Weekly)

TELEVISION

As I posted yesterday in a separate item, Lifetime has renewed its two hit show Army Wives and Drop Dead Diva for their fifth and third seasons, respectively, to premiere in 2011, during which 13 all-new episodes of each program will air on the network. (The Futon Critic)

The CW has ordered 6 more scripts for both their new show Hellcats and long-running series One Tree Hill. (The Futon Critic)

Marc Blucas (Buffy) has landed the lead role opposite Callie Thorne (Rescue Me) in the USA Network pilot Necessary Roughness, which centers on a female shrink (Thorne) who becomes the therapist for a professional football team. After succeeding beyond expectations, she is sought after by other athletes, musicians, politicians, and those living in the spotlight who all want her unique brand of tough-love therapy. Blucas will play the team’s hunky trainer and a romantic foil for Thorne. (Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

Victor Garber (Alias and Eli Stone) has joined the USA Network pilot A Legal Mind as a senior lawyer (Twitter)

Summer Glau (Firefly and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) has signed on to guest star in Chuck as one of the many versions of Greta, the Buy More’s rotating undercover agent. She will appear in the eighth episode. Other upcoming Gretas include Stacy Keibler and Isaiah Mustafa. Olivia Munn originated the role in Monday’s season premiere. Glau will next appear opposite David Lyons in the NBC midseason drama The Cape. (Michael Auseillo at Entertainment Weekly)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Courteney Cox and David Arquette are reportedly close to landing a new drama at ABC centering on the stories of 911 operators. No other details were given. (The Futon Critic)

CONDOLENCES

1950s pop singer Eddie Fisher (and father of Star Wars alum Carrie Fisher) passed away last night from complications related to hip surgery at the age of 82. Fisher was married to well-known actresses Debbie Reynolds, Elizabeth Taylor and Connie Stevens during his lifetime, creating one of the biggest romantic scandals when in 1959 he left then wife (and America’s sweetheart) Debbie Reynolds to marry Elizabeth Taylor. He was also the father of Tricia Leigh Fisher and actress Joely Fisher. (Robyn Ross at TV Guide)

ME: Consider Fisher and his scandal just like that of Brad Pitt leaving Jennifer Aniston for Angelina Jolie. Only imagine it 10 times bigger than the coverage that scandal received and you’ll just touch on how big that scandal was at the time.

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Chloe Moretz (Let Me In and Hit Girl) will take the lead role of Emily the Strange in the adaptation of the cult fave Dark Horse comic series of the same name. (Deadline and First Showing)

Kimberly Peirce (Director of Boys Don’t Cry and Stop-Loss) has been chosen by Universal Pictures to direct Wicked Lovely, the adaptation of the first book in the best-selling young adult fantasy series by Melissa Marr. The film centers on a teenage girl, Aislinn, who has seen dangerous faeries her entire life and must go against everything she was taught to confront a world she was raised to fear. (Nicole Sperling at Entertainment Weekly)

Former Veronica Mars star, Kristen Bell, has told The Hollywood Reporter that she would self-finance a feature film version of her dearly departed noir drama IF Warner Bros. would release the rights to Veronica Mars. At this point, though, Warner Bros. feels they will not make any money out of a film version and will not release the movie rights. (Lesley Goldberg at The Hollywood Reporter and Televisionary)

Emma Watson (Harry Potter franchise) is in negotiations to join the box office movie My Week With Marilyn, which is based on a diary by Colin Clark (Eddie Redmayne), a young actor who worked for Laurence Olivier (Kenneth Branagh) when the veteran actor shepherded Marilyn Monroe (Michelle Williams) around London while she shot The Prince and the Showgirl in 1956. Clark and Marilyn shared many confidences and became close despite her recent marriage to playwright Arthur Miller. Emma will play Lucy, a wardrobe assistant working behind the scenes during the making of the film who has a few dates with Clark. Dominic Cooper (Mamma Mia), Derek Jacobi, Judi Dench (among others) co-star. (The Daily Mail and Dark Horizons)

Warner Bros. has snapped up a sci-fi spec script dubbed Expulsion by mystery writer Gregg Hurwitz and set it up with Brad Weston. The story centers on a small band of survivors escaping to a planet beyond the solar system after a terrorist attack destroys Earth. (Dave McNary at Variety)

Billy Zane (Titanic) is to produce and direct the project Photismos (the working title) [which means illumination] is about the relationship between a young man and his uncle and will touch on philosophy, theology, Pythagoras’ theories, geometry….and Frisbees. (Nick Holdsworth at Variety)

AJ Michalka (Secretariat) has joined the cast of the J.J. Abrams movie Super 8, which includes cast members Elle Fanning, Kyle Chandler and Ron Eldard. (Brian Warmoth at MTV Movies Blog)

Pixar has named its first female director, Brenda Chapman, to direct and write the animated film Brave, which is due out in June 2012. The story follows Merida, a tomboyish royal with a love of archery. After a fight with her mom, Merida makes a decision with some major repercussions for her father’s kingdom. Reese Witherspoon, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson, and Julie Walters are all expected to provide voices for the film. (The Hollywood Reporter and Breia Brissey at Entertainment Weekly)

BOX OFFICE TRAILER

Must Watch: Tom Hooper’s The King’s Speech Official Trailer

That’s it. Enjoy!

Have a terrific weekend!

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Hey All,

Another big night of TV is coming up tonight with new episodes of The Vampire Diaries and Nikita on the CW as well as the returns of Bones and Fringe on FOX and CSI and The Mentalist on CBS. There is also the debut of the new show My Generation and the returns of Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice all on ABC. Enjoy the viewing.

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

TELEVISION

Jon Seda (The Pacific and Homicide: Life on the Street) has joined the cast of the HBO drama Treme as a series regular, playing a politically connected developer and venture capitalist from Dallas, who becomes involved in the renewal efforts in post-Katrina New Orleans. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Jason Wiles (Third Watch and Persons Unknown) will guest star on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in an upcoming episode. (Robyn Ross at TV Guide)

Eliza Dushku (Dollhouse) will guest star in at least one upcoming episode of The Big Bang Theory as an FBI agent assigned to conduct a background check on Wolowitz (Simon Helberg) when he needs high-level clearance for a new project. (Matt Mitovich at Fancast)

Showtime has officially announced the debut date for their new shows Shameless and Episodes as well as the return of Californication. All three shows will air on January 9, starting at 9 PM with Californication followed by Episodes and Shameless closing the night at 10 PM. (Showtime and Televisionary)

Serina Swan (Smallville) will guest star in an upcoming episode of Supernatural, playing a news reporter chronicling an unsettling series of suicides. She is to appear in the fourth episode of the new season, which returns starting tomorrow night. (Matt Mitovich at Fancast and Televisionary)

MADE-FOR-TV MOVIE

Jacqueline Bisset will star in the Hallmark Channel movie An Old Fashioned Christmas on December 11 at 8 PM, reprising her role of Isabella Crawford in this sequel to the movie An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving that came out in 2008. This sequel continues the narrative of Isabella (Bisset) and Tilly (Catherine Steadman of The Tudors) traveling the globe so the wealthy grandmother can teach her talented writer/granddaughter the nuances of character development and refined living. (The Futon Critic)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

The new development projects by J.J. Abrams have been picked up. His Alcatraz project, which he is working on with Elizabeth Sarnoff (Lost) has been picked up as a pilot by FOX. The show is about the mysteries and secrets of the most infamous prison of all time. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Meanwhile, his yet-to-be-named Michael Emerson and Terry O’Quinn (both stars on Lost) series has been given a pilot commitment by ABC. (Vulture)

The new pilot Exit Strategy from Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci (the men behind Fringe and the new Hawaii Five-0) has received a pilot commitment from FOX. The series is described as a high octane procedural set in the world of CIA agents who are sent in to “fix” operations gone bad. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

A period racing drama called Kings of Speed is being developed for the cable station Starz by Wolfgang Petersen and Ron Shelton. This will potentially be a ten-hour limited series focusing on the international automobile racing circuit of the 1950s and 19960s, Enzo Ferrari, and the underground car culture of Southern California. (Variety and Televisionary)

BOX OFFICE

Elizabeth Banks has joined the cast of the crime thriller Man on a Ledge, starring Sam Worthington as a cop falsely imprisoned who escapes after being let out for his father’s funeral and stands on a hotel ledge threatening suicide. At the same time his brother (Jamie Bell) plans the heist of a jewelry store across the street while his brother’s actions are keeping everyone occupied. Banks will play the NYPD crisis negotiator who tries to talk the cop, with whom she has a past relationship, down from his precarious perch. (Dark Horizons)

BOX OFFICE TRAILERS

Check Out the Newest Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Trailer!

Watch: ‘Mrs. Peppercorn’s Magical Reading Room’ Early Teaser

Q&A SECTION (with Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

Question: I think you’ve been a little stingy with The Vampire Diaries scoop. How about some enlightenment? —Robin

Ausiello: How about some casting scoop? She Spies alum (and season 7 American Idol almost-finalist) Natashia Williams has landed the role of Lucy, a mysterious hipster who possesses a fun swagger.

Question: Castle scoop, please? —Ellen

Ausiello: Scrubs: Med School alum Michael Mosley will be guest-starring in an episode tentatively scheduled to air in November. No details on who he’s playing, though.

Question: Okay, so in order for me to make it ’till Thursday, I need some Grey’s Anatomy scoop—specifically on Mer/Der. —Olivia

Ausiello: By the time Meredith tells Derek about her pregnancy and subsequent miscarriage in next week’s episode, she will have kept both secrets for a grand total of three months. Why wait so long? “The man was shot and he’s already feeling [responsible] for getting a bunch of people killed,” explains series creator Shonda Rhimes. “So for her to tell him that the shooting also caused her miscarriage seems a little bit cruel. He doesn’t need one more thing to worry about.” Makes sense to me!

Question: I’d love a little Grey’s Anatomy scoopbit. —Christine

Ausiello: Yet another Buffy grad is checking into Seattle Grace. Amber Benson (ex-Tara) will guest star in this season’s seventh episode as the estranged daughter of one of Cristina’s patients.

Question: Any scoop on Ziva’s storyline on NCIS? —Jennifer

Ausiello: During November sweeps, Ziva “comes face-to-face with her father for the first time since her return from Israel,” reveals exec producer Shane Brennan. “It’s an emotion-charged reunion in a two-part episode that also reveals much about the enigmatic Eli David and one of the other team members.”

Question: I am just wondering about NCIS: Los Angeles and the status of Peter Cambor and his character Nate; in the premiere episode he’s only listed as a special guest star. What’s going on? —Kevin

Ausiello: You’ll get your answer in next week’s episode.

Question: A Brothers & Sisters scoop ahead of this weekend’s season premiere? —Kelly

Ausiello: Justin the golden child will replace Justin the hothead screw-up this season. “Justin returns from Afghanistan a very different Justin,” reveals exec producer David Marshall Grant. “We all felt that it was time for him to grow up. He becomes a much (stronger) and a much more helpful force in the Walker family. I don’t think Justin is going to be the problem anymore as much as he might be the solution.”

Question: I’m a Charice fan and was wondering when we’ll see her again on Glee? —Mauruce

Ausiello: Probably not until after Sectionals in January. That girl’s got pipes to spare!

Question: What can you tell us about the 200th episode of Smallville. Rumor has it there is going to be a major Clois moment in that episode. —Lisa

Ausiello: I can confirm that the final shot in the episode will drive Clois fans bonkers. I can also confirm that Kristin Kreuk will make a cameo appearance… sort of. The landmark episode contains a Lana flashback.

Question: Is there any news at all about the Pushing Daisies comic books? —Eric

Ausiello: Here’s an update from Bryan Fuller himself: “Issue no. 1 will hopefully be out in early 2011, issue no. 2 is being colored as we speak, and issue no. 3 is being written. Our Emmy-Award winning composer Jim Dooley and I have been talking about giving the audience a multi-media experience with the comic—specifically a score. We have no idea whether we can actually afford to do an actual Pushing Daisies comic soundtrack (because the cast has agreed to sing songs and those licensing fees are expensive), but Jim has already started composing musical cues that we will either release officially or stream for free online when the comic book is published. I’ve already heard the track for Lee Pace’s cover and it’s fantastic.”

Question: How about a Friday Night Lights spoiler? —Steve

Ausiello: In the fifth episode of the new season, the wife of a college TA screams the following words in a crowded library: “Julie Taylor is a whore!”

Question: I just saw the premiere of The Event, and it was so good! Do you have any scoops? —Marie-Eve

Ausiello: I just watched next week’s episode and was completely satisfied with both the quality and quantity of the answers we got. In addition to learning what happened to the plane and its inhabitants, we find out what turned Scott Patterson into the pilot from hell and who exactly The Others (a.k.a. Laura Innes & Co.) are. Bonus scoops: A rather pivotal character from the premiere is murdered and someone else is not who he/she claims to be.

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

It’s over the hump day and we’re now in the middle of the big fall TV premiere week. Lots more shows to check out tonight, including the debut of Undercovers on NBC, The Whole Truth on ABC and The Defenders on CBS (depending on your preference of subject matters). There are the returns of SVU on NBC and Criminal Minds on CBS too. Then there are new episodes of Terriers on FX and Hellcats on the CW. What will you be watching?

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

TELEVISION

Odette Yustman (October Road and the upcoming movie You Again) will appear with off-screen beau Dave Annable in upcoming episodes of Brothers & Sisters as his new love interest. (Kristin at E! Entertainment Online)

Lindsay Hartley, real-life wife of Justin Hartley has been cast in the final season of Smallville, playing a woman who takes matters into her own hands. She won’t be working with her husband but she’ll have her hands full with Clark. She will appear in Episode 8, which is titled Abandoned. Smallville is back this Friday at 8 PM on the CW. (Natalie Abrams at TV Guide)

Jorge Garcia (Lost) will guest star on the Matthew Perry midseason comedy, Mr. Sunshine. He will be playing a staffer at the Sunshine Center, a second-rate San Diego sports arena managed by Perry’s self-involved character, Ben. His character will also be added to the retooled pilot. (Entertainment Weekly and Joyce Eng at TV Guide)

Abby Brammell (The Unit) will guest star in an upcoming episode of NCIS, playing a bomb tech who becomes linked to a homicide. This episode is slated to air on October 5. (Adam Bryant at TV Guide)

Singer Lyle Lovett will guest star on Castle as Agent Darryl Shafer, a shadowy government figure who detains and interrogates Castle (Fillion) and Beckett (Stana Katic) as they investigate the death of a prominent astrophysicist whose body was found in her car—a victim of explosive decompression. He will appear in this season’s ninth episode. (Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

Emmanuelle Chriqui (Entourage) will guest star on the new Showtime series The Borgias in three episodes as Sancia, the beautiful and seductive Neapolitan princess who marries the Pope’s youngest son Joffre (Aidan Alexander), even though she has her eye on another Borgia brother. The series is a complex, unvarnished portrait of one of history’s most intriguing and infamous dynastic families. (Seat42f)

Teri Hatcher (Desperate Housewives and The New Adventures of Lois and Clark) will appear in the final season of Smallville as Lois Lane’s (Erica Durance) deceased mother Ella. This won’t be a creepy back-from-the-dead episode but rather in the episode, Lois discovers old videotapes of her mother. (Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

ABC has placed a pilot order with Jerry Bruckheimer Television and Warner Bros. TV for a project based on the travel memoir The Lost Girls: Three Friends. Four Continents. One Unconventional Detour Around the World. The book follows the real-life travels of three Manhattan women who decided to quit their jobs and embark on a yearlong trip around the world. (Variety and John Young at Entertainment Weekly)

Pt. Dume, the new series from Baywatch creator Gregory Bonnan has been sold to Tribune Broadcasting stations in many major markets and will debut on weekends in Fall 2011. Set in Malibu, the series follows the story of a group of teenage delinquents who are forced to take part in a Coast Guard training program. The series has been cleared in 30% of the country and will appear on Tribune stations in several major cities including New York, Los Angeles, Miami and Seattle. (Hunter Walker at The Wrap)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Carla Gugino will star opposite Jim Carrey in the modern adaptation of Mr. Popper’s Penguins, which is based on Richard and Florence Atwater’s classic 1938 children’s book. Carrey will star as a powerful New York businessman who suddenly inherits six penguins, which proceed to disrupt his personal and professional life. Along the way, he learns the value of family and friendship — both human and otherwise. (Jeff Sneider at The Wrap)

Alexis Bledel (Gilmore Girls) will join Saoirse Ronan as the teenage assassins Violet & Daisy. The story sees the pair lured into what is supposed to be just another quick and easy job, only to find complications as the man they’re supposed to kill is not what they expected. (Variety and First Showing)

Guy Pearce (Memento) and Cloris Leachman (The Women) have joined the cast of the box office comedy Mis-Fits, which follows a necro-detective who goes in search of people’s lost, dead relatives. Catalina Sandino Moreno (Twilight: Eclipse), Seymour Cassel (The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou) and Virginie Ledoyen (The Beach) have also joined the cast. (The Hollywood Reporter and First Showing)

Leslie Mann (Funny People) has landed one of the lead female roles in The Change-Up, which finds Jason Bateman and Ryan Reynolds in a classic body switch story where a responsible family man (Bateman) trades bodies with his lazy, man-child of a best friend (Reynolds). Olivia Wilde also stars. (The Hollywood Reporter and First Showing)

Q&A SECTION (with TV Gurus at TV Guide)

Question: How will House and Cuddy’s co-workers respond to their newfound love? — Mary

MICKEY: “Some of them think it’s great,” says House executive producer Katie Jacobs. “Others think, ‘Oh my God, this will never work and will be the worst news for us.'” As House puts it, his protégés are “in favor, indignant and indifferent,” respectively. Guesses in the comments to match doctor with reaction?

Question: Anything on The Mentalist? Will there be anything happening with Jane and Lisbon this season? — Clarisse

ADAM: Creator Bruno Heller tells us the events of the finale leave Jane pulling away from everyone he’s close to, out of fear that they will be Red John’s next victims. But Lisbon will have none of it. “Her faith in him and her willingness to go to bat for him means they’re much tighter,” Heller says. “As much as he wants to protect her by pulling away from her, he feels more love for her this year because they’ve been through so much, yet she’s proven that she’ll be there for him.”

Question: Big Fringe fan here — what, pray tell, will Walter be up to this season? — Matt

MICKEY: In addition to his groundbreaking research on chocolate milk, Walter’s initial caseload will center on that mysterious doomsday device. Personally, though, he’ll be mourning the death of his old friend William Bell. At some point, those two facets of his life will actually converge in a really fantastic way.

Question: I need some fresh NCIS spoilers. — Brandon

ADAM: I’m your guy, Brandon. The show is looking to add a new recurring character. Described as an authoritative leader with an operational history dating back to the Cold War, this former NCIS agent is an old workhorse who likes strong coffee and carries a flask. But he’s got a troubled past: Look for him to try to right the wrongs in his life.

Question: Any scoop on what comes next on The Event? I’m so confused already! — Colin

MICKEY: The producers promised that they’d be doling out answers quickly, and they weren’t lying! Episode 2 reveals both how Sophia and the other 96 detainees of Inastranka came to our country and where that disappearing jet (with Michael and Sean on board) went. Both answers involve crashes. On the other hand, when President Martinez asks more difficult questions — namely, how and why did those two events occur? — Sophia is not forthcoming.

Question: Got any intel on Bones? — Mitch

ADAM: Get ready for this sweet episode. To celebrate the launch of a new giant candy confection, a famous chocolatier creates the world’s largest candy bar. Just one problem: The nutty crunch inside is actually a body.

Question: Is Castle planning anything big this season besides the serial killer story arc? — Trevor

ADAM: Creator Andrew Marlowe tells us that the success of last year’s explosive two-parter with Dana Delany has him and his team planning a similar multi-night event for the spring. Naturally, details are sparse. “I can tell you that Beckett’s apartment won’t blow up this time,” he jokes.

Question: I’m so glad Parenthood is back. Can I get some Adam and Max scoop? I love their scenes together. — Carole

MICKEY: Max and his dad are finding it difficult to spend time together. Unfortunately, it’s not going to get any easier when Adam faces new challenges at work that will require him to be away from home even more. In the other Braverman employment news, househusband Joel will up-end Julia’s life when he decides to head back into the salt mines.

Question: I’ve watched the Smallville trailer a hundred times. What should we make of Chloe putting on Dr. Fate’s helmet? — Evan

ADAM: Not that much. While we’re pretty sure she’s not going to be the next Dr. Fate, that scene is quite significant. Chloe uses the helmet to find Oliver, and while she’s wearing it, she sees several other intriguing things — not the least of which is Clark not wearing black.

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

It’s day 2 of the big fall TV premiere week and the question is: Did you make it through all the programming options last night? Hope so, coz there is even more tonight. What will you be watching?

Meanwhile, here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

The HBO series Boardwalk Empire just premiered and already it has been given a second season pick-up, but with the series getting 7.1 million viewers for its first time on the air, I guess it stands to reason they would renew. (The Hollywood Reporter)

Jay Karnes (The Shield) will have a recurring role in the ABC series V when it returns this fall. He will play FBI agent Chris Bolling, a newly assigned partner for agent Erica Evans (Elizabeth Mitchell). The two have some history, having trained together at Quantico. However, Bolling quickly begins to suspect Erica may have divided loyalties when it comes to her dedication to the Visitor resistance group, the Fifth Column. The second season of V is slated to begin airing in November on ABC. (Adam Bryant at TV Guide)

Jim Gaffigan (My Boys and Flight of the Conchords) will guest star in the season two finale of Royal Pains. The comedian/actor will play Pete Stambleck, a by-the-books park ranger who emerges from the woods one day with a massive personality change and no recollection of the evening before. While the series ran over the summer, it will be back this winter with six new episodes. The finale date for Royal Pains has not been set yet. (Joyce Eng at TV Guide)

Showtime announced yesterday they are picking up the ½ hour shows Weeds and The Big C for another season each. Both shows will return with new episodes for these seasons in 2011. (Twitter)

Mena Suvari (American Beauty) will appear in an episode of Psych, playing the only surviving victim of the Yin killer, joining Ally Sheedy, who reprises her role as the psychotic Mr. Yang. This is a planned trilogy, comprising of three season finale episodes, all revolving around a mysterious killer and his links to Shawn Spencer. The show’s season 5 finale is set to air sometime in 2011. (Daemon’s TV)

USA Network has closed a deal to bring Law & Order: Criminal Intent back for an 8-episode 10th season with the series’ original star Vincent D’Onofrio, who will return as Detective Robert Goren, a role he played for the first eight seasons. Discussions are under way with Kathryn Erbe and other CI alums (but not Jeff Goldblum, who recently announced his exit) to come back for the show’s farewell season. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

MADE-FOR-TV MOVIES

Christine Taylor (Zoolander) stars as cynical scrooge and jaded journalist Ann Wahl who is forced by her editor Zoe (Vivica A. Fox) to travel to a Christmas-themed town to meet a man whose passion for Christmas traditions has transformed a town in the made-for-TV movie Farewell Mr. Kringle to air on the Hallmark Channel on December 4 at 8 PM. The cast also includes Christopher Wiehl (Jericho) and W. Morgan Sheppard (Love’s Abiding Joy). (The Futon Critic)

ARTICLE ABOUT TELEVISION

20 of the most epic failures in network science fiction TV

ME: How many of these shows can you say you watched? I can say that I’ve watched nearly 2/3 of these shows. Wanna guess which ones?

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

NBC has picked up a pilot about a CIA agent. The pilot called Legends is about a government operative with an uncanny gift for “legends” — what spooks call false identities — and is sent on a variety of missions while simultaneously coping with the possibility that his own identity may be a “legend” too. The pilot is based on the novel of the same name by Robert Littell. (The Hollywood Reporter Live Feed)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Spanish actor Alex Gonzalez has joined the cast of the box office movie X-Men: First Class”, playing Janos Quested aka Riptide, a mutant with the ability to spin his body at incredible speeds. He can also generate calcium growth in his bones which causes spikes to protrude from his skin. These abilities, when combined together, allow him to shoot his bone spikes at high enough speeds to punch through steel. (CBM and Dark Horizons)

Ron Eldard and Noah Emmerich (among others) have joined the cast of the J.J. Abrams and Steven Spielberg movie Super 8. The cast already includes Kyle Chandler (Friday Night Lights) and Elle Fanning (Somewhere) in the lead roles. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Jodelle Ferland, Samantha Ferris and William B. Davis have joined the suspense thriller The Tall Man. which features star Jessica Biel as a mother whose child is kidnapped by a shadowy figure known only as The Tall Man. She begins an intense hunt to find and retrieve her child. (Bloody Disgusting and Dark Horizons)

Emily Blunt is attached to the box office comedy Engagement Games that follows three sisters in one family who all get engaged at the same time. The only catch is that only one of them can get their mother’s cherished wedding ring. Thus their father comes up with the solution of holding a ‘Family Olympics’ where the winner will score the ring. (Pajiba and Dark Horizons).

INTERVIEW

The UNEXPECTEDly-Ugly Truth About LIFE As The Top Dog

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Well folks, the BIG week has arrived. Tonight starts the season or series premieres for a great majority of the major networks’ shows and it’s going to be insane to keep pace with all the shows. Rev up those DVR’s and make sure you figure out what to watch, record or view online at a later time because it’s gonna be one hell of a ride.

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

TELEVISION

Actor Andy Whitfield is departing the Starz TV series Spartacus: Blood and Sand again due to his cancer diagnosis. Even though he was in remission and returned to the show, that is not the case now. Best wishes are extended to Whitfield during this difficult time. (E! Entertainment Online)

Peter Coyote (last seen in FlashForward) will recur in the new fall NBC series Law & Order: Los Angeles, playing the District Attorney overseeing Peter Morales (Alfred Molina) and Joe Dekker (Terrence Howard). The series will debut on September 29 at 10 PM. (Matt Mitovich at Fancast)

Gwyneth Paltrow will be appearing in two episodes of Glee in November, playing a substitute teacher and possible love interest (of sorts) for Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison). She will sing and dance in the show too. (Kristin at E! Entertainment Online)

Oded Fehr (The Mummy and Resident Evil franchises) will guest star in V when it returns to ABC this fall. He will play Eli Cohn, an ex-Mossad, who is the leader of a new radical Fifth Column resistance movement that will have a much more uncompromising stance against the Visitors and will pose some problems for the resistance led by Erica (Elizabeth Mitchell). (Blastr)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Kate Beckinsale will star opposite Mark Wahlberg in Contraband, which centers on a security guard and former alcohol smuggler who is tempted back into illicit business by a dubious friend after encountering financial problems. (Latino Review and Dark Horizons)

It looks like Kyle Chandler (Friday Night Lights) and Elle Fanning (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) [and little sister of Dakota Fanning] have joined the super-secret movie being done by J.J. Abrams and Steven Spielberg called Super 8. No details are available on their roles or what the movie is really about but rumor has it the film centers on three siblings who discover footage of an alien. (Vulture)

Wondering what the top 10 box office movies were for the past weekend. Here’s the list from Exhibitor Relations via E! Entertainment Weekly:

1. The Town, $23.8 million
2. Easy A, $18.2 million
3. Devil, $12.6 million
4. Resident Evil: Afterlife, $10.1 million
5. Alpha and Omega, $9.2 million
6. Takers, $3 million
7. The American, $2.8 million
8. Inception, $2.02 million
9. The Other Guys, $2 million
10. Eat Pray Love, $1.7 million

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Callie Thorne (Rescue Me) has landed the lead role in the hour-long USA pilot Necessary Roughness. The potential series, which is inspired by a true story, centers on a female shrink (Thorne) who becomes the therapist for a professional football team. After succeeding beyond expectations, she is sought after by other athletes, musicians, politicians, and those living in the spotlight who all want her unique brand of tough-love therapy. (Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

Showtime is near to making a pilot-order deal for the drama Homeland, which is based on the Israeli format “Prisoners of War.” The domestic version centers on the discovery of a U.S. soldier who was presumed killed in Iraq 10 years ago. The soldier returns home, but questions arise as to whether he truly was a wartime POW or a member of a sleeper cell sent to cause the next terrorist attack. (James Hibberd at Live Feed at The Hollywood Reporter)

J. J. Abrams and frequent collaborators Josh Applebaum and Andre Nemec are pitching a comedic drama to the networks that would have Lost alums Michael Emerson and Terry O’Quinn playing former black-ops agents. Nothing is set in stone nor has any network stepped forward yet, though. (Vulture)

Syfy is developing the drama script Metadocs, which is based on the Antarctic Press comic book series created by Joe Dunn and Rod Espinoza that follows a team of specialists tasked with treating a small percentage of the world’s population who have become ‘afflicted’ with extraordinary abilities. (The Futon Critic)

FIRST LOOK

First Look: Smallville’s Chloe Makes Her Comic Book Debut

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

Question: I wanted to find out your thoughts on all the shows on Monday night. It seems like it has almost become the go-to night for TV viewing with the returning favorites and some of the more buzz-worthy new shows. My TiVos are going to get a workout that night. What do you think should be watched live, DVR’ed for viewing later and forgotten altogether? — Melissa

Matt Roush: No night this season is easy to navigate, but Mondays and Thursdays (see next question) are particularly packed. I’m getting a lot of questions concerning the face-off between Lone Star and The Event at 9/8c on Mondays, and that’s probably the trickiest choice to have to make, as both are among the few distinctive pilots of the new season. (NBC is making it easier for at least the first week by repeating Event’s pilot on multiple cable platforms, and Fox is repeating Lone Star late night Saturday. Don’t know how long this will last, but if you can’t record two things at once, that and going online are your best options.) I was very impressed with the Lone Star pilot, so that’s my priority pick, but The Event is going to appeal (at least in theory) to many of those who visit this column, if past experience is any indication. I felt the Event pilot was terribly flawed by an overly convoluted time-jumping set-up, but some of the mysteries are intriguing and the final twist is such a WTF that I can’t imagine not watching episode 2. I was not, however, nearly as emotionally connected to it as I was to Lone Star, which I truly can’t wait to see a second episode of.

For the rest of Monday, the battles are much as they’ve always been. Many people (including me) will not be able to resist the train wreck of Dancing With the Stars, but will have to find room as well for How I Met Your Mother, Chuck and House (suddenly more interesting again now that they’ve committed fully to the “Huddy”) in the first hour. And at 10/9c, Hawaii Five-0 will likely hold the former CSI: Miami crowd, while Castle loyalists will stay put. (You can forget NBC’s Chase, easily the most forgettable show on any network this night. And I broke up with CW’s Monday soaps a while back, so they’re not an option for me, but they may be for you.) So with all that in mind, if I had to pick shows to watch live, I’d go Chuck or House, then Lone Star, then Castle, though I’ll also be following Mother, The Event and even Hawaii as close to same night viewing as possible. And because of its watercooler potential, I’ll also need to be watching Dancing on the night it airs as best I can. Good thing I’ve got recorders in multiple rooms. But if it holds up, Lone Star is going to be the Monday night show that I’ll most eagerly await each week of all of them.

Question: I can’t believe how jam-packed with shows the new Thursday-night lineup is going to be! I will hardly know what to DVR vs. what to watch! Thank goodness they moved Supernatural to Fridays. What will your plan be for Thursdays this fall? — Debby

Matt Roush: Thursdays are tough, and the CW made it tougher by premiering The Vampire Diaries and Nikita early, and I’m now hooked on both, especially the new season of Vampire, which has gotten off to a fun start. The shows that I will feel the greatest need to watch night-of-air will be (at 8/7c) The Big Bang Theory (then probably switch to 30 Rock and catch up with Community as best I can, since $#*! My Dad Says is pretty lousy), but also keeping an eye on Vampire and Bones as best I can; then at 9/8c, watching Grey’s Anatomy and recording Fringe (or vice versa, depending on the week; CSI and The Office, and probably Nikita will take a back seat); and at 10/9c, The Mentalist would be my first choice, but most weeks, I’ll use that hour to play back stuff I was recording in the earlier hours. I’m exhausted just thinking about it. But in a good way. (The shows I will most likely not be bothering with include ABC’s mawkish My Generation, CBS’s Dad and NBC’s Outsourced. Life’s too short, and so’s the week.)

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Happy Friday to one and all. Got any fun plans for the weekend? I’ll be seeing The Town tomorrow and then spending every waking moment (however long or short that might be) writing. Hope you have a good weekend regardless of what you’ve got planned.

Meanwhile, here are the news items for today:

AWARDS

Glee, Modern Family, The Good Wife, Nurse Jackie and the box office movie Precious were name winners of the 2010 Humanitas Prize, an honor given to films and TV shows that “explore the human condition in a nuanced, meaningful way.” Congrats to all involved. (Rick Porter at Zap2It)

TELEVISION

Geoff Stults (October Road and Happy Town) will guest star in the fifth episode of How I Met Your Mother, playing Max, the new guy in Robin’s (Cobie Smulders) life at least for that one episode. (William Keck at TV Guide)

Lee Tergeson (Oz) will appear in Castle as Gates, a shrewd, hardened, and violent felon who becomes the prime suspect in this season’s big “3XK” serial-killer investigation. He will turn up in episode 7. Castle is back on September 20. (Posted by Castle cast member Jon Huertas at Twitter followed up by more details from Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

Nancy Travis (Becker and The Bill Engvall Show) will play the mother of Brian Austin Green’s character in Desperate Housewives. The series is back with new episodes on September 26. (Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

Warehouse 13 will be back with a third season although an official announcement from Syfy will probably not be made until October (Executive Producer Jack Kenny via Twitter)

FALL TV EXCITEMENT

10 reasons to watch Chuck (even if you’ve never seen it before)

ME: I cannot WAIT for Chuck to be back on the air; but I should also say I’m anxious for the returns of Castle and Supernatural too. Just too much good TV this fall (well, at least among the returning favorites that is).

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Ryan Murphy (the man behind Glee) and Howard Gordon (one of the men behind 24) are teaming up for a new procedural TV drama that is near to getting a deal from FOX for a pilot order. Details are scarce on the project but it is being called a “high-concept character-driven supernatural procedural about a psychiatrist that deals with people facing their worst fears and phobias”. (James Hibberd at Hollywood Reporter)

Jennifer Love Hewitt (Ghost Whisperer) just may be coming back to TV in the form of a half-hour comedy described as a female Big Bang Theory. The project would reunite Hewitt with FOX where she got her break as co-star on Party of Five. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

J.J. Abrams is a busy man lately. Yet another one of his project, teaming him with Jonah Nolan (brother of Christopher Nolan, the man behind such films as Dark Knight and Inception), has gotten the attention of the folks at CBS. The project currently called Person of Interest and is to be a crime thriller. (Vulture)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Bryan Fuller (Dead Like Me and Pushing Daisies) has been selected to write the live-action feature film Pinocchio. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat) will portray Queen front man Freddie Mercury in an as-yet untitled movie that will follow Queen’s formative years, leading up to the band’s performance at Live Aid in 1985. (Deadline and Movie Web)

That’s it. Enjoy!

Have a great weekend!

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Hey All,

Quite a bit of casting and development news to share today along with other TV and movie news so let’s get right into it:

TELEVISION

Victor Garber (Alias and Eli Stone), French Stewart (3rd Rock from the Sun), Kathleen Quinlan (Prison Break) and former Stargate franchise stars David Hewlett and Robert Picardo will be guest starring in upcoming episodes of Stargate Universe, which returns for its second season on September 28 at 9 PM. (The Futon Critic)

Tracie Thoms (Cold Case) and Roger Bart (Desperate Housewives) will guest star in the same upcoming episode of Human Target on FOX. (Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

Candice Bergen will guest star in a multi-episode arc on House, starring as the mother of Dr. Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein). (Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

Law & Order: UK will be coming to US television sets via BBC America starting on October 3 at 10:30 PM before moving to Fridays at 9 PM. The series is set, of course in London, starring Jamie Bamber (Battlestar Galactica), Bradley Walsh (The Old Curiosity Shop), Ben Daniels (The State Within) and Freema Agyeman (Doctor Who). (The Futon Critic)

TNT has renewed their new series Memphis Beat for a second season. The series received a 10 episode order for the new season. (Twitter)

Elizabeth Reaser (The Twilight Saga franchise) and Lili Taylor (Six Feet Under) are joining The Good Wife. Reaser will play a sports writer who will serve as a new love interest for Will (Josh Charles) while Taylor will guest-star as a possible romantic foil for Kalinda (Archie Panjabi). It is not yet known when each actress will make her first appearance on the CBS legal drama. The Good Wife returns on September 28 at 10 PM. (Kate Stanhope at TV Guide)

Rachel Ticotin is replacing Wanda De Jesus on the upcoming NBC series Law & Order: Los Angeles, playing the new Lieutenant who heads the LAPD Robbery Homicide Division. She will star alongside Skeet Ulrich, Corey Stoll, Alfred Molina, Terrence Howard, Megan Boone and Regina Hall. The series debuts on September 22, at 10 PM. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

MADE-FOR-TV MOVIES

Jewel Staite (Firefly and Stargate: Atlantis), Eric Johnson (Rookie Blue) and Lauren Holly (NCIS) will star in the Hallmark Channel movie Debbie Macomber’s Call Me Mrs. Miracle that is set to air on November 27 at 8 PM. The film is about Mrs. Miracle (Doris Roberts) who is back to ensure that this Christmas is the most magical and meaningful of all. When Mrs. Miracle appears as a seasonal employee in the toy department at the financially troubled Finley’s Department Store, neither the store’s owners, nor the customers, have any idea of the saintly events that are about to unfold. (The Futon Critic)

Lifetime has ordered the four-hour miniseries Marry Me, which will star Lucy Liu (Charlie’s Angels), Steven Pasquale (Rescue Me), Bobby Cannavale (Third Watch), Enrique Murciano (Without a Trace) and Annie Potts (Designing Women). The movie revolves around a woman (Liu) looking for Mr. Right. (Variety and Televisionary)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

FOX has giving a pilot order to the much buzzed about J.J. Abrams and Elizabeth Sarnoff Alcatraz project, that revolves around the infamous San Francisco island prison that was shut down in 1963 (Variety and Televisionary)

Lou Diamond Philips (Stargate Universe) has been cast in the as-yet untitled Josh Berman drama pilot for Lifetime. He will play a police lieutenant and the boss to Sherry Stringfield’s (ER) Molly Collins and Jamie-Lynn Sigler’s (The Sopranos) Brooke Kross. (Deadline and Televisionary)

Dylan Baker (The Good Wife) has been cast in a potentially recurring role on the USA Network series Burn Notice, where he will play Max, a power broker who could hold Michael’s fate in his hands. He will first appear in the fourth season finale and could return in Season Five. (Deadline and Televisionary)

CBS has given a script order to an untitled New Jersey crime drama pilot Gary Lennon (Justified). The project revolves around the first female police chief of Newark who must battle crime and law-enforcement corruption as well as a difficult home life. (Hollywood Reporter and Televisionary)

ABC is developing a show based on the Pat Conroy best-selling novel The Prince of Tides, which was adapted into a film in 1991, starring Barbra Streisand and Nick Nolte. The TV project will follow the novel more closely, telling the story of a married Southern football coach from an abusive and dysfunctional family who falls in love with a New York psychiatrist. (James Hibberd Live Feed at Hollywood Reporter)

ABC has picked up the Darren Star-produced dramedy based on the Kim Gatlin book Good Christian Bitches. The as-yet untitled project centers on Amanda Vaughn, a recently divorced mother of two who, to get a fresh start, moves back to the affluent Dallas neighborhood where she grew up to find herself in the whirling midst of salacious gossip, Botox, and fraud. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

The network has also made a pilot commitment to a thriller from Paranormal Activity writer-director Oren Peli and Michael R. Perry. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Jennifer Garner is in talks to star in the dramatic thriller Better Living Through Chemistry, which follows a small-town pharmacist (Jeremy Renner) who is stuck in a loveless marriage and rediscovers himself through an affair with a trophy wife (Garner) who introduces him to the pleasures of prescription drugs. Things spin out of control when the affair escalates and the lovers begin plotting to kill the woman’s husband. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

Malin Akerman (Watchmen) is set to join the comedy film Wanderlust that centers on a couple (Paul Rudd, Jennifer Aniston) who, after losing all of their money and move from New York to Atlanta, take refuge at a hippie commune. Akerman’s role has not been specified yet. Lauren Ambrose and Justin Theroux also star. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

BOX OFFICE TRAILER

Watch: Second New Full-Length Trailer for Disney’s ‘Tangled’

ME: I cannot say enough how much I really want to see this movie and it’s animated (not the typical movie I clamor to see I should add); but it’s because of the terrific Zachary Levi providing the voice of the “hero” that has been enamored more than anything.

Watch: ‘The Nutcracker 3D’ Official Trailer with Elle Fanning

TV INTERVIEW

Vampire Diaries’ Katerina Graham: Bonnie “Will Do Something Unthinkable”

GUIDE TO UPCOMING TV

A complete guide to 68 midseason genre shows, movies and miniseries

Q&A SECTION (with Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

Question: Fringe scoop please?

Ausiello: Here you go: The first one comes courtesy of John Noble, who reveals exactly how Walternate plans to pull Peter’s strings from the alt-universe. “[Walternate] has to ensure that [Peter] continues to work on our side,” says Noble, “and he’ll do that through alt-Olivia.” Okay, I’ll bite: How exactly will Bolivia manipulate Peter? Noble hesitates before whispering, “She seduces him… Did I just say that? Did I just drop a big teaser?” I believe you did, sir!

Question: Does the fact that Fringe is setting every other episode “over there” mean that we’re going to see more of Charlie this season? —Melissa

Ausiello: That’s precisely what that means. Charlie remains active in the alt-world’s Fringe division, so look for him to appear in multiple episodes—beginning with next Thursday’s season premiere.

Question: The DirecTV press release about the final season of Friday Night Lights doesn’t mention anything about Gaius Charles returning. Does this mean Smash is not in season 5? If so, did they want to bring him back and couldn’t for scheduling reasons, or was it a creative choice? —Jake

Ausiello: Smash will not be back for the fifth and final season, and, according to exec producer Jason Katims, creative and scheduling considerations came into play. “It was a combination of [Gaius’] availability and the storytelling,” he tells me. “With only 13 episodes, we ended up having to pick and choose which stories and characters to service. The story drives everything. We didn’t want to bring [alums] back just to bring them back. We wanted to make sure we had a good story for them.” That said, Katims says Smash is “referenced” in one of the episodes. “We find out how he’s doing in school.”

Question: I have a craving for anything Castle! —Trish

Ausiello: I’ve got three words for you: Castle. Beckett. Nudity. Allow exec producer Andrew Marlowe to explain: “They have to go to a strip club to investigate a murder, and Castle is very excited about this. Unfortunately for him, it turns out to be a male revue with crazy bachelorettes running around. He, of course, ends up being fresh meat.”

Question: Can I have a scoop on Bones please? —Pauline

Ausiello: The rumors are true: Angela, who had a little pregnancy scare last season with boyfriend Wendell, is actually having a baby with husband Hodgins. Actress Michaela Conlin expects Angela to “weave in some of her craziness” to their impending parenthood. “I think we may see her interviewing some doulas and wild pediatricians and things like that. And hopefully, she’ll be eating a lot of weird stuff,” Conlin says. “I think it’s going to be nice to see another side of her this season.”

Question: I love Sweets on Bones, but I hate to see him get the short end of so many sticks. Any news on what’s in store for him this season? —AJ

Ausiello: A possible reunion with Daisy is in store—provided he’s able to forgive her for choosing her career over him. “He’s taking baby steps to finally let [Daisy] back into his heart,” reveals Sweets’ portrayer, John Frances Daley. “He has a very fragile heart. He’s been through a lot. Obviously, they have very strong feelings for each other, and they can’t really stay apart for too long—as we establish [in the premiere]. He’s a good guy generally, so I think ultimately, yeah, he’ll take her back.”

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

I have lots of great news for television and film to share with all of you so let’s get right into it all:

TELEVISION

Matthew Lillard (Scream and the Scooby Doo movies) will gust star on an upcoming episode of House. He will be playing a bass player in a band who has been struggling for years and years. He finds himself in a very extreme circumstance in the beginning of the episode and becomes an unexpected hero. (William Keck at TV Guide)

Amy Irving (Alias), Dylan Baker (The Good Wife) and Jennifer Grey (Dirty Dancing) will also guest star in upcoming episodes of House. (Hollywood Reporter and Gina DiNunno at TV Guide)

David Newsom (Homefront) will guest star on an episode of Men of a Certain Age, playing the younger brother of Terry (Scott Bakula). This will be a reunion (of sorts) for Newsom and Bakula as they played siblings in Quantum Leap. Men of a Certain Age is back on TNT for its second season starting December 6 at 10 PM. Newsom is expected to appear in the January 3 episode. (Adam Bryant at TV Guide)

Sterling Beaumon (who played young Ben on Lost) will guest star on Criminal Minds, playing Jeremy, young boy who is suspected of killing families in the Midwest. Mare Winningham will also also guest-star as Nancy Riverton, a woman who takes in Jeremy. Criminal Minds returns on September 22 at 9 PM. This episode is slated for October. (Adam Bryant at TV Guide)

Cristián de la Fuente (In Plain Sight) will play the potential recurring role of Eric Rodriguez, a self-possessed, confident, wickedly funny doctor on Private Practice this fall. His first appearance will be sometime in late October or early November. (Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

John Schneider (Smallville) will play the dad of Brian Austin Green (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) in upcoming episodes of Desperate Housewives. The series is back with new episodes on September 26. (Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

John Larroquette will appear in a multi-episode arc on CSI: NY, playing Deputy Chief of Manhattan Borough Detectives Ted Carver. His first episode is slated for November 5. (Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

Jamie Hector (The Wire and Heroes) will guest star in the third season premiere of Lie to Me, where he will play a character involved in a major bank heist. (The Hollywood Reporter and Televisionary)

TNT has picked up its medical drama HawthoRNe for a third season. The new season will contain 10 episodes. (TNT)

Rumor has it that Stephen Lang (Avatar) is in talks to play the merciless leader of a prehistoric settlement in the much-anticipated FOX time travel drama Terra Nova, which has Jason O’Mara (Life on Mars) in the lead role. FOX has announced it will preview the new series for one night in May 2011 and then will bow the drama officially in the fall of 2011. (Lynette Rice at Entertainment Weekly)

Doctor Who has entered the new Guinness World Records book as the longest-running prime-time sci-fi series in television history, airing 769 episodes, including 212 storylines and a full-length TV movie. It first aired in 1963. (What’s On TV UK)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

ABC is developing an untitled drama pilot about the vice president of the United States and his female chief of staff. The as-yet untitled series is less about politics and more about office dynamics, including a budding romance between the chief of staff and the Vice President’s son. (Variety and Televisionary)

MTV has greenlit two new projects: That Girl, which follows a 15-year-old who gains notoriety after an accident leads her classmates to think she attempted suicide. And, Death Valley, a documentary-style series, including cast members Caity Lotz (Mad Men) and Tania Raymonde (Lost), which follows the Undead Task Force, which battles zombies, vampires and werewolves that have overrun the San Fernando Valley. (James Hibberd at Hollywood Reporter)

MADE-FOR-TV MOVIES

Catherine Bell (Army Wives) will reprise her role of Cassie Nightingale in another sequel to the popular Hallmark Channel movie The Good Witch, filming the 4th movie in November during her hiatus from Army Wives. The third movie in the franchise – The Good Witch’s Gift – will debut on the Hallmark Channel on November 13 at 8 PM. (The Futon Critic)

Stockard Channing and Ivan Sergei (Jack & Jill) have been added to the cast of the Alyssa Milano-led, Lifetime made-for-TV movie Sundays at Tiffany’s, which is based on the James Patterson best-selling novel. The movie is about Jane (Milano), who as a young girl regularly accompanied her mother to the titular NYC landmark – with her imaginary friend “Michael” in tow. Now a grown businesswoman, Jane is set to be married. The return of Michael (Eric Winters from Brothers & Sisters) after a 23-year absence, however, threatens to throw Jane’s plans askew when he prompts his old “friend” to rethink her life path. Channing will play Jane’s mother and Sergei will be her fiancé. (Matt Webb Mitovich at Fancast)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Ron Perlman (Sons of Anarchy) has joined the cast of the box office movie Drive, starring opposite Ryan Gosling, who plays a loner Hollywood stuntman who moonlights as a getaway driver and lands in hot water when he helps the ex-con boyfriend of his beautiful neighbor. (Screen Daily)

Olivia Wilde (House) will appear in the box office movie The Change Up with Ryan Reynolds and Jason Bateman. Bateman plays a married man who switches bodies with his slacker best friend (Reynolds). Wilde will play the married guy’s law firm co-worker, who’s an impetus for the body switch. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE TRAILER

Must Watch: Depp & Jolie Star in ‘The Tourist’ Official Trailer

Q&A SECTION (with the TV Gurus at TV Guide)

Question: How is Nolivia different than Olivia on Fringe? — Ken

MICKEY: The season premiere, titled simply “Olivia,” addresses that question in an unexpected way. You see, not only has Olivia been kidnapped and imprisoned “over there,” but her captors are trying to forcibly convince her that she is Nolivia. They start with her marksmanship skills.

Question: Will Callen get some answers about who’s been following him in the NCIS: Los Angeles premiere? — Maggie

ADAM: Yeah, I’d like that answer as well, but executive producer Shane Brennan says that solving that riddle would give away the series’ ultimate end. Instead, he promises smaller bits of insight. “The truth of what he finds out is startling,” Brennan says. “It’s a mystery now, and the further he goes down the rabbit hole, the deeper the mystery gets.” Instead, Brennan says to keep your eyes on Callen’s boss: “There’s a little moment at the very end of Episode 2 that lifts the veil on Hetty. It’s setting up something that comes later in the season that will be one of the most powerful episodes we do all season.”

Question: Any Kevin-Scotty spoilers from Brothers & Sisters? — Wendy

ADAM: You know about the couple adopting a troubled teen. What you don’t know is that Kevin, who was baby-crazy last year, is initially opposed to the idea. He’s taken the surrogate’s miscarriage badly, and worse, he won’t even talk to Scotty about it. Possibly because he’s as torn-up over Robert as Kitty is.

Question: Will The Good Wife’s Eli clean up his act this season? I hope not! — Carole

MICKEY: Let’s ask Alan Cumming. “I do something at the start of the season that, if [Alicia] ever finds out, there will be trouble,” he says. If you’re thinking that something has to do with that fateful call in the cliff-hanger, you’re right, and duh — of course she finds out. “There are fireworks ahead,” Cumming warns.

Question: I am badly in need of some killer Dexter scoop! — Brad

ADAM: Rita’s murder sends Dexter on the run from the FBI, but our favorite blood-spatter analyst can’t disappear too easily: He gets shot within the first three episodes of Season 5 — but not with a bullet.

Question: Parenthood is nothing without Lauren Graham — what’s she up to this season? — Matthew

MICKEY: That Sarah Braverman is a gigantic flirt. It’s no wonder that the on-a-good-day dyspeptic Adam is even more irritated when his sister joins his company and almost immediately finds not one, but two co-workers with which to behave inappropriately. One of them is Adam’s boss.

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

With more shows coming back this week for the fall TV season, another Paley Center for Media event tonight (this one is for some of the new ABC shows) and, well, real life stuff to deal with it’s going to be a busy day and week to come.

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

TELEVISION

Another Twin Peaks alum is joining the planned Twin Peaks-inspired episode of Psych, which will air during the show’s fall run. Julee Cruise – the singer who frequently appeared in the series as the singer at the local biker bar “The Roadhouse” – and whose song “Falling” (an instrumental version that is) served as the theme song for the series – will appear. Other Twin Peaks alums in the episode include Sherilyn Fenn and Sheryl Lee. (Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

The Glades has been renewed for a second season by cable network A&E with a 13-episode order. (TV By The Numbers)

TNT will be celebrating the 6th season premiere of Supernatural (which will air on the show’s home network the CW) with a 21-hour marathon of episodes, including episodes from the 5th season. The marathon will start at 12 midnight on September 24. (TNT)

Director James Cameron (the man behind Terminator, Titanic and Avatar) is reportedly bringing his 1994 action comedy film True Lies to television. For those who may not know or have forgotten, True Lies centered on on Harry Tasker (Arnold Schwarzenegger), a computer salesman/family man who lives a double life as a government spy. During a top-secret mission, Harry discovers that his mousy wife Helen (Jamie Lee Curtis) is seeking adventure. Harry sets out to give her the excitement she craves while battling Middle Eastern terrorists who threaten nuclear war with the U.S. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Looks like TBS has cancelled the comedy series My Boys after four seasons on the air. This could possibly open up lead Jordana Spiro’s chances of returning to the NBC series Love Bites for which she was one of the leads. That show is anticipated to arrive mid-season. (Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

Rachael Taylor (Transformers and Shutter) will appear in a multi-episode arc on Grey’s Anatomy, but there is no confirmation on what part she will be playing. Grey’s Anatomy will be back on September 23. (Michael Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly)

ARTICLE ABOUT TV

Grading the Networks on Their New Fall Slates

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Steve Buscemi, Sigourney Weaver, Anne Heche, Cynthia Nixon and Robin Wright have joined the cast of the thriller Rampart, which is based on a story by James Ellroy. The story follows a single cop against the backdrop of the corruption scandal surrounding the anti-gang unit of the LAPD’s Rampart Division in the late 1990s. Over 70 officers were implicated in misconduct which included unprovoked shootings, beatings, planting of evidence, framing of suspects, stealing and dealing narcotics, bank robbery, perjury and covering up evidence. The cast already includes Woody Harrelson, Ice Cube and Ben Foster. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Christian Slater will play the lead in the indie horror thriller Playback that follows a group of high school students digging into their town’s infamous past and unwittingly unlocking an evil that preys upon their classmates. Slater plays a sinister cop who is pivotal in exposing the town’s secret. (Variety and First Showing)

Sam Riley (who will be seen in the adaptation of Jack Kerouac’s On the Road) will play British playwright Christopher “Kit” Marlowe in the movie A Dead Man in Deptford. He joins James Purefoy, Ray Winstone, Ed Speleers and Adam Sinclair. The movie is based on the Anthony Burgess novel of the same name and follows the intriguing theory that Marlowe, a notorious bar room brawler, was also a royal spy for Elizabeth I and that his death in Deptford at age 29 may have been an assassination ordered by the English Secret Service. (The Hollywood Reporter and First Showing)

Demi Moore, Kate Bosworth, and Thomas Haden Church will star in the comedy The Reasonable Bunch, which is about messy exes and their splintered relatives getting into it at a family wedding. The supporting cast includes Martin Landau, Ellen Barkin, and Ellen Burstyn. (Hollywood Reporter and Karen Valby at Entertainment Weekly)

INTERVIEW

INTERVIEW: “LIFE UNEXPECTED” CREATOR LIZ TIGELAAR

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All

Here we are at the start of another week with more fall TV to look forward to this week. In the meantime, please check out today’s news:

TELEVISION

Michael Badalucco (The Practice) has been cast in a recurring role on the CBS daytime soap The Young and the Restless, where he will play Hogan, who is a tough bookie who helps Jeff (Ted Shackelford) and Kevin (Greg Rikaart) come up with cash to help pay for Jeff’s nightclub/restaurant, Gloworm. He’s set to make his first appearance on October 13th. (Entertainment Weekly and Televisionary)

Lennie James has been promoted to series regular on the HBO series Hung, where he previous recurred as Charlie the pimp. (Hollywood Reporter and Televisionary)

Arie Verveen (Cold Case) has been cast in a six-episode story arc on FX’s Sons of Anarchy, where he will play Liam O’Neill, a high-ranking member of a motorcycle club in Belfast, Northern Ireland. (Hollywood Reporter)

Sean Maher (Firefly) has landed a recurring role on the ABC Family series Make It or Break It, playing Max, a cute new gymnast that the Rock Girls run into when the series makes its mid-season return in early 2011. (Matt Mitovich at Fancast)

Ana Gasteyer (Saturday Night Live) will guest star on Chuck this fall as Dasha, a ruthless operative for the nefarious Volkoff organization. She will appear in the 7th episode. Chuck is back starting September 20. (Matt Mitovich at Fancast)

MADE-FOR-TV MOVIES

Daphne Zuniga (the original Melrose Place) and Faye Dunaway will star in the Hallmark Channel movie “A Family Thanksgiving that is set to premiere on November 6 at 9 PM. The movie is about a wealthy, successful corporate lawyer (Zuniga), who is living the high life in New York City with little time for anything except her lavish lifestyle until a close encounter with a bizarre mystic (Dunaway) drops her into an alternative reality to see what her life might have been like had she made different choices. (The Futon Critic)

Lifetime has given the green light to the made-for-TV movie Unanswered Prayers, an adaptation of the Garth Brooks song, which will star Samantha Mathis, Eric Close, and Madchen Amick. The movie will premiere in November. (Hollywood Reporter and Televisionary)

The Hallmark Channel will debut the sequel movie to Dear Prudence, which starred Jane Seymour (Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman), sometime next Spring. This movie to be called At Home With Prudence will reunite Seymour with her on-screen, Dr. Quinn love – Joe Lando – as well as her real-life husband, James Keach, and her daughter Katie Flynn. The movie will focus on Prudence MacIntyre (Seymour) who is asked to make changes to her successful television show when the network sends in new producers to revamp her image. To her surprise, one of the producers is an old flame, and the other is a seedy womanizer who enchants Prudence’s daughter. With the help of her faithful sidekick Nigel (Matt Jones), Prudence rekindles the love she thought she lost, protects her daughter from the wrong guy, and finds a way to keep her show right on track. (The Futon Critic)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Swedish actress Noomi Rapace (The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo) has been cast as the female lead in Sherlock Holmes 2, which will reteam Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law as his trusty sidekick Dr. Watson, and Guy Ritchie, returning to his role of director. (Jenna Mullins at E! Entertainment Online)

Lauren Ambrose (Six Feet Under) is set to join the box office movie Wanderlust that is centered on a couple who, after losing all of their money and move from New York to Atlanta, take refuge at a hippie commune. Paul Rudd, Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux also star. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Saoirse Ronan and James Gandolfini have joined the indie drama Daisy and Violet, which centers on a pair of teenage female assassins who are lured into what is supposed to be just another quick and easy job, only to find complications as the man they’re supposed to kill is not what they expected. (Variety and Dark Horizons)

Gillian Anderson, Dominic West and Rosamund Pike will join Rowan Atkinson in the comedy sequel Johnny English Reborn. The plot finds English trying to stop a group of hit men who are out to kill the Chinese premiere. The movie is to hit theatres in 2011. (Movie Web)

Here are the top 10 movies in the box from this past weekend courtesy of Exhibitor Relations via E! Entertainment Online:

1. Resident Evil: Afterlife, $27.7 million
2. Takers, $6.1 million
3. The American, $5.9 million
4. Machete, $4.2 million
5. Going the Distance, $3.8 million
6. The Other Guys, $3.6 million
7. The Last Exorcism, $3.5 million
8. The Expendables, $3.3 million
9. Inception, $3 million
10. Eat Pray Love, $2.9 million

CONDOLENCES

Legendary actor (and Golden Globe winner) Kevin McCarthy – who starred in the original sci-fi film Invasion of the Body Snatchers – passed away over the weekend. He was 96 years old. (Adam Bryant at TV Guide)

MOMENT OF SILENCE, PLEASE…

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

Question: I absolutely love Drop Dead Diva. It is cute, funny and witty. Do you have any thoughts about it? Also, we haven’t heard if it will be renewed for a third season yet. What’s the hold up? And how is it doing, ratings-wise, on Lifetime? Do critics even like this show? — Christine

Matt Roush: I haven’t a clue why Lifetime’s series (including Army Wives, although its spin-off appears dead) are in pick-up limbo for the moment, but I’m not hearing anything to indicate that Lifetime won’t eventually announce it is bringing this show back. I hope and believe it will get a third season. I find Diva a delightful diversion, a very sweet fantasy-comedy that seems a perfect fit for this channel, and perfect for summer. The critics who pay attention to the show seem for the most part charmed by it, and why wouldn’t they be?

Question: I was trying to find out when Sanctuary will be starting again and I couldn’t find anything about the show being on TV. However, I saw an ad that season 3 is going to be available on Netflix. If I’m reading things correctly, the Kali episode was the end of Season 2, so Season 3 must follow that. Are they going directly to DVD and not showing the program on TV? – Lee

Matt Roush: Nope, it’s still set to return to Syfy, but a little later than first expected. It was originally announced that the second season of Stargate: Universe and year 3 of Sanctuary would be paired on Tuesdays starting Sept. 28. Last week, Syfy changed plans and has decided to return Sanctuary to its original Friday time period (10/9c) starting Oct. 15, following wrestling. SGU will now be paired on Tuesdays with the back half of Caprica’s first season (beginning Oct. 5), so plan accordingly.

Question: I loved Scoundrels and could not believe how good it was for a summer replacement. Will the scoundrels at ABC be bringing the TV show Scoundrels back this fall? I will hate to boycott ABC and their ad products. I can’t believe they would make us wait till next summer to find out what Wolf is going to do about Sgt. Mack. Does he go back to jail for assault? Hold it against his wife? — Betty

Matt Roush: I’m afraid you may not be getting an answer to any of these questions, although you’ll probably have your opinion reconfirmed that the ABC programmers are scoundrels. The jury’s still out on The Gates, which wraps its summer season with back-to-back episodes this Sunday, but the ship has almost certainly sailed for Scoundrels. Neither show exactly caught fire, but Gates enjoyed a bit more fan and critical buzz. It all really depends on what ABC’s strategy is for next summer and whether it includes scripted product besides the Canadian import Rookie Blue, which has already been renewed. If I had to bet on either Sunday show coming back, I’d put my money on The Gates. Sorry.

That’s it. Enjoy!

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