Rueben's Ramblings

Hey All,

Here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

HBO has given a 10-episode order to The Leftovers a new drama series from Damon Lindelof (Lost) based on the best-selling novel by Tom Perrotta. The series will take place as the Rapture happens — but not quite like it’s supposed to, telling the story of the people who didn’t make the cut and a world that will never be the same. Among the cast are Justin Theroux (fiancé to Jennifer Aniston and actor-director in his own right), who will play the police chief trying to maintain some semblance of normalcy in a world that is beginning to reject that notion and Liv Tyler as a young woman about to be married who needs an escape. Other cast members are Amy Brenneman (Private Practice), Christopher Eccleston (Doctor Who), Chris Zylka (The Secret Circle and Twisted) Michael Gaston (Jericho) and Max and Charlie Carver (the twins from Desperate Housewives and Teen Wolf) [among others]. (Lesley Goldberg and Lacey Rose at The Hollywood Reporter)

Actor Paul Johannson (One Tree Hill) will guest star in an upcoming episode of Beauty And the Beast, appearing as Kurt, father to Tori (new addition to the show, Amber Skye Noyes), an arrogant and powerful Manhattan business mogul whose career has had a meteoric rise within the last few years. He’s become increasingly paranoid as a result of his career ascent, surrounding himself with armed bodyguards and keeping a close eye on his daughter. Beauty And the Beast will be back starting on October 7 on The CW. (Philiana Ng at The Hollywood Reporter)

Actress-comedienne Rosie O’Donnell will have a recurring role in the ABC Family drama series The Fosters, playing Rita Hendricks, a tough yet compassionate woman who works in the foster care system and becomes a mentor to a member of the Foster family. The series will be back with the rest of its debut season starting in January. (TV By the Numbers)

Actor Robert Knepper (Prison Break and Cult) will guest star in an upcoming episode of the new NBC drama The Blacklist, playing a target of the FBI. The Blacklist debuts on NBC on September 23. (Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

Actor Jon Tenney (King & Maxwell) will guest star in and direct an episode of Major Crimes when the show returns in 2014. He will reprise his role of FBI Agent Fritz Howard in one episode and then direct the following episode. (Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

Syfy has picked up the upcoming Canadian series Bitten – based on the best-selling novels by Kelley Armstrong – for 2014. The 13-episode thriller will star Laura Vandervoort (Smallville and V) as Elena Michaels, the lone female werewolf in existence, who attempts to escape a world she never wanted to be part of (as well as the man who turned her into a werewolf), abandoning her pack and taking refuge in a new city, where she works as a photographer and hides her werewolf existence from her boyfriend. When bodies begin turning up in her pack’s backyard, she finds herself back at Stonehaven, the werewolves’ ancestral domain, where she will stop at nothing to defend her pack. The series also stars Greg Bryk (XIII The Series) and Greyston Holt (Alcatraz and Durham County). (Lesley Goldberg at The Hollywood Reporter)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Lifetime has ordered a pilot called The Lottery, a futuristic conspiracy thriller that is set in a world destined for extinction as women have stopped having children. When remarkably 100 embryos are successfully fertilized, a national lottery is held to decide the surrogates. As conflict, control and mystery over this important scientific breakthrough unfolds, government interests and power begin to dominate one of the most personal and basic elements of humanity — the right to have a family. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actor Lucas Black will reprise his role of Sean Boswell in the upcoming Fast & Furious7. He appeared in the third movie in the franchise and is set to be part of at least the next 3 films in the franchise (yes, it would seem there will be plenty more). (Mike Fleming, Jr. at Deadline)

Actress Carey Mulligan (Shame and The Great Gatsby) will appear in the film adaptation of the classic novel Far from the Madding Crowd that tells the story of independent, beautiful and headstrong Bathsheba Everdene (Mulligan), who attracts three very different suitors: Gabriel Oak (Matthias Schoenaerts from Rust & Bone), a sheep farmer, captivated by her fetching willfulness; Frank Troy (Tom Sturridge from Pirate Radio), a handsome and reckless Sergeant; and William Boldwood (Michael Sheen from the upcoming Masters of Sex), a prosperous and mature bachelor. Also among the cast is Juno Temple (The Dark Knight Rises). (First Showing)

Actress Amber Tamblyn (Joan of Arcadia and House) has joined the cast of the upcoming independent comedy-drama called Girlfriend’s Day. She will star opposite Bob Odenkirk (Breaking Bad) in a story about a greeting card writer (Odenkirk), who becomes entangled in a web of murder and deceit as writers scramble to create the perfect card for a new holiday dubbed Girlfriend’s Day. Tamblyn will play a Cardie, a fan of greeting card writers, who becomes involved with Ray and helps him recapture his former glory. (Jen Yamato at Deadline)

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Here are the news items from Friday and today:

TELEVISION

Actor Grant Gustin (Glee) has been cast in the role of Barry Allen, aka The Flash on The CW series Arrow. (Jenna Busch at Fanhattan)

BET has quietly given the soon-to-be-regular-series Being Mary Jane a second season order before the debut season has event aired, which will be sometime early next year. The 90-minute pilot aired this past July, starring actress Gabrielle Union as a successful TV news anchor. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Actor Danny Glover will guest star in an episode of the new remake series Ironside, playing Frank Ironside, Robert’s father. He will appear in a flashback sequence. (The Futon Critic)

Actor James Tupper (Revenge and Men in Trees) has joined the cast of the ABC mid-season series Resurrection for a multi-episode arc, playing Dr. Eric Ward. Little else is known about his character at this time. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actors Powers Boothe and Robert Ray Wisdom will NOT be returning as series regular on Nashville when it returns for its second season on ABC starting on September 25. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Singer Iggy Pop will now voice the character of The Caterpillar in the spin-off series Once Upon a Time in Wonderland. It seems that singer Roger Daltrey, who originally provided the voice wasn’t available. (James Hibberd at Entertainment Weekly)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

FOX is developing a new drama called The Middle Man from executive producer Ben Affleck and Glenn Gordon Caron (the man behind Medium and Moonlighting) that will be set in 1960s Boston, exploring the unique relationship between Rudy MacAteer, an FBI agent charged with taking down the Italian-American mafia, and his confidential informant, Irish-American gangster Mickey Flood. (FOX Press Release)

MTV has ordered two hour-long pilots. The first being Finder Carter, an unconventional family drama about a girl realizing that sometimes the people closest to you are the ones who have the most to hide. It centers on teenage Carter, who has the perfect life with her fun-loving single mom Lori until a police bust at a high school party reveals that Lori abducted her as a toddler. Now Carter must return to the family who thought they had lost her. As she navigates brand-new parents, a twin sister, high school and boys, Carter vows to find Lori before the police capture the only mom she’s ever known and put her behind bars. The other drama is called Eye Candy and is based on the R.L. Stine’s novel. It will center on tech genius Lindy, who is persuaded by her roommate to begin online dating and begins to suspect that one of her mysterious suitors might be a deadly cyber stalker. When her friends at the elusive cyber-police uncover a potential serial killer in Manhattan, all signs point to one of Lindy’s dates. Teaming up with this band of hackers, Lindy works to solve the murders while unleashing her own style of justice on the streets of New York City. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Carnival Films (the London based company behind Downton Abbey) is working on a drama project that will be seen through the eyes of Winston Churchill and based on the Michael Sheldon novel called “Young Titan”, telling the story of Churchill’s early career from 1901 to 1915 at the height of England’s imperial glory. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

ABC is developing a new drama project called The Thirteen, a contemporary drama that takes place in a world in which the 13 colonies lost their bid for independence and America is still fighting the British for freedom. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Actress Lisa Edelstein (House) will have the starring role in the Bravo adaptation of the Vicki Iovine book “The Girlfriend’s Guide to Divorce” that will be executive produced by Marti Noxon. The hour-long dramedy will follow best-selling author of a self-help book series, Vicki (Edelstein), who is secretly hiding her separation from her husband and starts to navigate her life as a single woman in her 40s in Los Angeles. She begins to side with and take advice more often from her divorced friends rather than her married ones, and it leads her to some unexpected life-changing experiences. (Lesley Goldberg at The Hollywood Reporter)

NBC is developing a drama series called Conspiracy based on the Christopher MacBridge 2012 found footage-style indie feature that centers on a conspiracy theorist who vanishes after a man is killed at an Occupy Wall Street protest, leaving behind his sister and an FBI agent to investigate. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

FOX is working on a drama series called Unthinkable based on the comic book series that tells the story of the unlikely pairing of a by-the-book FBI agent and a washed-up screenwriter who team up to stop a plot to attack the U.S. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

MADE-FOR-TV MOVIE NEWS

Lifetime has given a green light to a made-for-TV movie about Gabby Douglas, the first African-American gymnast in Olympic history to become the Individual All-Around Champion and the first American gymnast to win gold in both the gymnastic individual all-around and team competitions at the same Olympic Games. The cast will include Imani Hakim (Everybody Hates Chris) and Sydney Mikayla as the two-time Olympic gold medalist, Regina King (Southland) as her mother and S. Epatha Merkerson (Law & Order) as her grandmother. Mikayla will portray Douglas during her childhood while Hakim will play her as a teenager and young adult. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Tony Award-winning veterans Audra McDonald (Private Practice), Laura Benanti (Royal Pains) and Christian Borle (Smash) have joined the cast of the NBC live production of The Sound of Music that will air on December 5. McDonald will portray Mother Abbess, the head of Nonnberg Abbey while Benanti will play Elsa Schrader, Captain Von Trapp’s rich would-be fiancée, and Borle will play Max Dettweiler, Captain Von Trapp’s friend. The cast also includes the previously announced Stephen Moyer (True Blood) as Capt. Georg Von Trapp and country singer Carrie Underwood) as Maria. (Philiana Ng at The Hollywood Reporter)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Here’s the Top Ten list based on weekend estimates courtesy of Deadline and Box Office Mojo:

1. Insidious: Chapter 2 – 41 million
2. The Family – 14.5 million
3. Riddick – 7 million
4. The Butler – 5.9 million
5. We’re The Millers – 5.4 million
6. Instructions Not Included – 4.3 million
7. Planes 3D – 3 million
8. One Direction: This Is Us 3D – 2.4 million
9. Elysium – 2 million
10. Percy Jackson 2 – 1.8 million

Actresses Julianne Moore and Lily Rabe (American Horror Story) have both joined the cast of the Hunger Games third film Mockingjay (that will be seen in two parts). Moore will play President Alma Coin, the leader of the rebellion against the Capitol while Rabe will play Commander Lyme, one of the leaders of the Rebellion at District 13. (The Deadline Team and Mike Fleming, Jr. at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE TRAILER

Hot Trailer: Grace Of Monaco

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

Question: Not to pester you on the abrupt cancellation of The Glades, but exactly what happened? Also, is it expecting too much from a cable channel or broadcast network to allow a multi-year series to have a proper resolution or ending? Lastly, is there any chance another cable channel — like sister LMN or USA or TNT or even Netflix — picking up The Glades up for a fifth season or two-hour wrap-up episode? — Jim

Matt Roush: Cancellations like these are basically business decisions that involve a calculus of slipping ratings, cost analysis and the network’s future goals (as in, maybe A&E is developing something that might be a better fit with Longmire). But these tough calls also involve a creative component, and someone really dropped the ball here by allowing the show, if it was seen as being in any ratings jeopardy, to end the season on such a downbeat cliffhanger. It’s inexcusable. As far as I can tell, there’s no news about the producing studio shopping the property around to other channels, and I’d think it unlikely to be picked up elsewhere (such things happen very rarely), so the best hope is that A&E has a change of heart and decides to film a wrap-up of some sort. But until you hear of such a thing happening, assume that it won’t.

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION (SORT OF)

For those who wonder where the short-lived ABC Family drama The Nine Lives of Chloe King would have gone if it had gotten a second season, you can now read the script for the two-hour telefilm conclusion online at Alloy Entertainment’s official website starting at 9:13 AM (Pacific time) on – what else – September 13. (Jen Yamato at Deadline)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

NBC has bought the new drama project called Spec from writer Michael Alaimo (Major Crimes and The Closer) and producer Aaron Kaplan that centers on a mysterious alien life form recovered from a derelict spacecraft, who escapes into the woods outside a small Oregon town. The show explores the characters of that town, and one family in particular, as they are forever changed by the discovery of this new visitor. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Actor William Moseley (The Chronicles of Narnia franchise) will star opposite actress Elizabeth Hurley in the hour-long pilot The Royals on E! that is a contemporary drama about a fictional royal family informed by the regal opulence of the British monarchy and framed by Shakespeare’s Hamlet. It will tell a tale of men and women corrupted by power, wealth and desire. Moseley will play Prince Liam, the younger brother to the beloved Prince Robert. When Robert is killed in a military training accident, Liam is thrust into a spotlight. Sexy, charming and smart, he’s in love with a young American woman, Ophelia, who helps him cope with the loss of his brother and his new position as the next King of England. Liam bristles at the strict rules, which govern the monarchy: being told what to say, where to go and how to it. At the root of it all, Liam has lived in Robert’s shadow and worries that he is not a credible successor. Hurley will play Liam’s mother, Queen Helena. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Endemol Studios is developing an English-language adaptation of the hit French crime thriller series Engrenages. The original format followed a murder investigation and reveals the cooperation, conflict, transgression and corruption within the French legal system from the perspective of the lead characters: a police captain and her two lieutenants, a judge, a prosecutor, and a defense lawyer. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

It looks like author J.K. Rowling is back working with Warner Bros. on a new Harry Potter franchise; well actually, the new potential films would be based on an original story based on the Hogwarts textbook “Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them” featured in the original story: Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone. This would be the first in a planned series of films, featuring magical creatures and characters from the Potter mythology, including the textbook’s fictitious author, Newt Scamander. It should be noted that this possible film franchise would not be a sequel or a prequel to the Potter adventures, but will kick off in New York, 70 years before Harry’s story starts. No other details are available at this time. (Nancy Tartaglione at Deadline)

Actor Djimon Hounsou has joined the cast of the upcoming Fast & Furious 7 film, joining franchise veterans Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson and Tyrese, along with recent addition Kurt Russell and new baddie Jason Statham. There are no details on what part Hounsou will play in the latest incarnation, though. (The Deadline Team)

Q&A SECTION (with TV Scoop Team at E! Online)

Question: Excited for the Kitsune on Teen Wolf, but can we expect to meet other supernatural creatures? – Jessica

TV Scoop Team: Possibly, but they will all have ties to the Kitsune, a were-fox known for trickery, according to boss Jeff Davis. “You may see others, but it revolves around the Kitsune myth,” he dishes. “You’ll see, but we have some great new bad guys this season that we’re excited about.”

Question: Once Upon a Time scoop? – Thomas

TV Scoop Team: It looks like Peter Pan will have more than just Lost Boys on his payroll as the ABC hit is currently looking to fill the roles of Glasses and Keychain. Yes, those are their names. Both Brits in their late 20s, both have been hardened by their years of servitude. While Glasses is sophisticated, erudite and focused, Keychain is a wild card who lost his innocence a long time ago.

Question: Hit me with an Arrow… scoop that is. – Liam

TV Scoop Team: “I feel like it’s season one times ten,” Katie Cassidy teases of season two. “I feel like every episode has been so big and I literally did not think when we shot the first season it would get bigger I would just figure it would get smaller. Literally they have taken season two and just have expanded it bigger and it’s just amazing! Expect the unexpected and just know it’s darker.” So not only is she gorgeous, but Cassidy knows how to tease her show. Sometimes God gives with two hands, y’all.

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

First and foremost, let’s take a moment (or two) to remember all those we lost 12 years ago in New York, Pennsylvania and Washington D.C. on the fateful day!!

And now…

Here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

The Killing has, once again, been cancelled by AMC. (Tierney Bricker at E! Online)

Actor Jonathan Togo (CSI Miami) has joined the cast of Covert Affairs where he will play Nelson Smith, an associate of Henry Wilcox (Gregory Itzin). CIA operative Annie Walker (Piper Perabo) will attempt to turn the family man into an asset. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

Actress Carly Pope (Popular and 24) will have a recurring role on the new CW series The Tomorrow People, playing Morgan Burke, one of the super-powered folk who has managed, thanks to an illicit relationship with a very powerful man, to conceal her paranormal abilities from the government organization which hunts down her kind. But when her connection is exposed, Morgan becomes a pawn in a shadow war between the species. (Vlada Gelman at TV Line)

Irish actress Caitriona Balfe (the online series H+ and the box office film Now You See Me) will play Claire Randall, the woman in love with two men in two different time periods in the Starz adaptation of the Diana Gabaldon best-selling books Outlander. (Lesley Goldberg at The Hollywood Reporter)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Actress Julia Goldani Telles (she played Sasha on Bunheads) has joined the cast of the Showtime drama pilot The Affair that will tell the story of Noah (Dominic West from The Hour), a New Yorker spending the summer on Long Island with his family who begins an affair with Allison (Ruth Wilson from Luther), a woman who works at a pancake house. Allison is married to Cole (Joshua Jackson from Fringe), a tough cowboy who manages a ranch, and Noah is married to Helen (Maura Tierney from ER), his college sweetheart and best friend whose life is turned upside down by Noah’s infidelity. Telles will play 16-year-old Whitney, Noah and Helen’s eldest child. (Kate Stanhope at TV Guide)

Kerry Ehrin (EP of Bates Motel) will team with Jason Katims (EP of Parenthood) for an hour-long project at NBC that is as-yet untitled. The project will tell the darkly comedic story of two unlikely female partners in the Boston PD, one a fortysomething single mom with a ton of baggage, the other an ambitious Latina twentysomething wannabe-hotshot with a lot to learn. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

ABC is developing a new drama project with Brillstein Entertainment Partners called Drama Princess, which centers on a regular girl who falls in love with the heir of a political dynasty, becoming a modern-day princess. But what seems like a fairytale quickly unravels. The plot echoes the real-life story of Britain’s Princess Diana. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

FOX has picked up a script for Far From the Tree from Becky Hartman Edwards (EP of Switched at Birth) and Ruben Fleisher (Producer on Gangster Squad) that will center on the family members whose lives are turned upside down when their eldest son is involved in a large scale eco-terrorist attack. (Lesley Goldberg at The Hollywood Reporter)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actress Jessica Brown Findlay (Lady Sybil from Downton Abbey) has joined the cast of the upcoming box office film Frankenstein that will star James McAvoy and Daniel Radcliffe. But plot details as well as information on the character for which Findlay will play are being kept under wraps. (Justin Kroll at Variety)

Q&A SECTION (with TV Scoop Team at E! Online, Natalie Abrams and Adam Bryant at TV Guide and Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Question: In dire need of some scoop on Arrow! – Beth

TV Scoop Team: Prepare to see a darker Laurel in season two after the events of the finale. “She has definitely grieved a bit and tried to deal with the death of Tommy and the Glades being destroyed, and I feel she has mainly focused her energy on working to distract herself so she does not have to deal with it. She definitely goes into a darker place,” shared Katie Cassidy. “You see her doing stuff that you would never imagine or think she would do, but it’s credited because Tommy passed.”

Question: Is there anything you can tell us about Revolution? — Ken

NATALIE: Six months have passed since that fateful night on Level 12 and Rachel is only just recovering from a total breakdown, which we’ll experience via flashbacks to the aftermath of the Atlanta and Philly bombings. She’s determined to figure out if Randall was acting on someone’s orders, and the worst is yet to come. In possibly related news, a beloved character will fall victim to a dangerous new group.

Question: What are we going to see for Oliver on Arrow this season? — Dawn

NATALIE: Oliver will kick off the second season actually being an enemy of Starling City since the police are feeling overwhelmed in the aftermath of the Undertaking. “For some people, he’s become the symbol for what’s wrong with the city,” executive producer Andrew Kreisberg says. “One of Oliver’s missions this year is to change the way the police and the public feel about the vigilante.” As for Oliver on the island, we’ll find out by the end of Episode 3 if he really spent all five years there.

Question: More Vampire Diaries details on Stefan and Elena, please! Last week’s spoiler got me so excited! — Kaitlin

ADAM: More good news for Team Stefan! Paul Wesley recently said that he believes that Stefan will never truly get over Elena. “That love has to always exist,” he says. So how will they keep the triangle alive now that Damon and Elena are so happily in love? Look for an early-season reveal that suggests that Elena and Stefan will forever be linked.

Question: I’m so excited for Once Upon a Time in Wonderland! — Marcus

NATALIE: I’ve learned that My Super Psycho Sweet 16’s Lauren McKnight has landed a potentially recurring arc as Elizabeth, a native of Wonderland who finds herself entangled in Alice’s quest. Word on the street is that Elizabeth is also known as The Lizard, but it’s unclear whether there’s a connection to this lizard.

Question: I can’t believe that Burn Notice is almost over! What can you tease about the finale?

ADAM: To say almost anything is to say too much, but we’re confident that viewers will walk away satisfied when the final credits roll. Although Michael’s actions provoke a tense stand-off, his heroics eventually lead to a pretty happy ending. And yes, even that death that everyone is talking about will give fans more heart-warming closure than you might expect.

Question: With Under the Dome being renewed for a second season, does this mean we won’t discover who or what’s behind the dome? – Glenn

Ausiello: Well, that’s not exactly what the renewal means. Previewing Monday’s season finale, shared Dean “Big Jim” Norris, “You’re going to learn a lot about the Dome. It’s all very satisfying and it will make you go, ‘Oh, wow. OK, how are they going to play that out in Season 2?’ It sets up for a great second season.” Looking even further down the line, Norris let slip with this teaser for the eventual series finale: “There is a final ending for Under the Dome that is different than the book. And when it was pitched to Stephen King, he said, ‘Wow. I wish I’d thought of that.’”

Question: Revolution‘s Sebastian Monroe and Rachel Matheson have been burning up my screen in every scene they’ve been in, since their little heart-to-heart talk in that bunker. Do you know if we will get to see some of that tension play out this season? —Grace

Ausiello: Before Bass could ever possibly reunite in any way with Rachel, he’ll have to first dodge several bullets, literal and proverbial, coming from her daughter Charlie! In fact, if Bass/Rachel is your agenda, you might be “uncomfortable” with the scenes the former general shares with the younger Ms. Matheson — in close confines — in Episode 2.

Question: Please tell me we won’t have to endure another significant loss on Downton Abbey this season. I’ve had enough loss! —Christy

Ausiello: So has Michelle Dockery. In fact, Abbey‘s leading lady doesn’t think the show can sustain another major departure (which leads me to believe there won’t be one anytime soon). “It has to remain as the ensemble; otherwise I don’t think we can keep going”. “The core reason for the show’s success is that it’s a huge ensemble of such great characters. It was [one thing to lose] Sybil and Matthew. But any more of that, I think it will start to falter.”

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

Actor D.B. Sweeney (Jericho) will have a recurring role in the new ABC fall drama Betrayal, playing Richard Goss, the ambitious, intense and formidable new director of the criminal division of the state attorney’s office. (Lesley Goldberg at The Hollywood Reporter)

The USA Network has renewed the new drama Graceland for a 13-episode second season. (Sadie Gennis at TV Guide)

Newcomer Amber Skye Noyes (One Life to Live) has landed a role on Beauty And the Beast, playing what could potentially be the first female beast on the show. She will play Tori, an innocent offspring of a powerful beast, who is rescued by Catherine (Kristin Kreuk) and Vincent (Jay Ryan) and then taken under their wing, where she will make some shocking “discoveries” about her life. (Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

Actress Annie Wersching (24 and Revolution) will have a guest-starring role in the new CBS mid-season series Intelligence, playing a CIA analyst with a secret. (Vlada Gelman at TV Line)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

It looks like FX is developing an American Psycho drama series that would take place decades after the events in the 2000 movie that starred Christian Bale and the novel on which the film was based. The project would fast-forward from the late 1980s, when the movie was set, to present day. It would feature serial killer Patrick Bateman, now in his mid-50s but as outrageous and lethal as ever, taking on a protégé in a sadistic social experiment who will become every bit his equal — a next-generation American Psycho. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actor Eric McCormack (Perception) will star in the independent film called The Architect, playing Colin, who with wife Drew (Parker Posey) enlists the visionary modern architect Miles Moss (James Frain) to build their new home. As Drew is swept away by the artist’s sweeping creative vision, neither she nor her practical husband notice he’s building his dream house, not theirs. (The Deadline Team)

Actress Jaimie Alexander (Thor and Kyle XY) has joined the cast of the upcoming box office film called London Fields that is set to star Billy Bob Thornton, Amber Heard, Jim Sturgess and Theo James are already cast. The film is an adaptation of the 1989 Martin Amis novel that follows an American writer in London (Thornton) who’s had writer’s block for two decades and is now terminally ill. Alexander will play Hope, but no other details are known on her role. (The Deadline Team)

Actress Dawn Olivieri (House of Lies and Heroes) has been cast in the independent romance film called To Whom It May Concern, playing Anna, a woman whose suicide plan is sidetracked when she rescues her charming neighbor (Wilmer Valderrama of That 70’s Show fame) after his girlfriend kicks him out of their apartment. Given the chance to live another day, Anna finds herself falling for her unexpected new roommate. (The Deadline Team)

Actress Lea Thompson (Back to the Future franchise and Switched at Birth) will join Nicolas Cage, Chad Michael Murray and Jordin Sparks [among others] in the reboot of the Left Behind franchise that chronicles the events following the biblical rapture. Those left behind have to learn to survive in a world that is quickly plunging into chaos. Thompson will play the wife of Cage’s character. (The Hollywood Reporter and Dark Horizons)

BOX OFFICE TRAILER

Watch: World War II Drama Railway Man First Trailer with Colin Firth

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

I’m back from vacation and it’s so nice to be home.

Here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

Actress Cynthia Nixon (Sex and the City) will have a recurring role on Hannibal when it returns to NBC mid-season. She will play Kade Purnell, who works in the Office of the Inspector General in FBI Oversight. She will help investigate the events of Season 1 that landed FBI profiler Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) in jail. (Natalie Abrams at TV Guide)

Actress Carrie Preston (True Blood) will guest star on The Following in 2014 when the show returns for its second season. She will play a groupie of serial killer cult leader Joe Carroll (James Purefoy). (Natalie Abrams at TV Guide)

Actress Annie Ilonzeh (Arrow and Switched at Birth) and actor Blair Redford (Switched at Birth and The Lying Game) will both appear in Beauty And the Beast. Ilonzeh will play Beth, a high school friend of Catherine (Kristin Kreuk), a strong-willed, dynamic journalist who witnesses a frightening assault while Redford will play Zach, a long-lost Army buddy of Vincent’s (Jay Ryan), who turns out to be a terrifying opponent and a dangerous threat. (Robyn Ross at TV Guide)

Actor Matt Davis (The Vampire Diaries and Cult) will have a recurring role on CSI, playing a smart, athletic and competitive son of a decorated fireman. While on the surface outgoing, he is deep down a bit of a loner, with the soul of a poet and the mind of a mathematician. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actor Simon Merrells (Spartacus) will have a recurring role on the new CW series The Tomorrow People, playing somebody who has a lot of power over Jedikiah (Mark Pellegrino). (Michael Ausiello at Vlada Gelman at TV Line)

Actor Jason Priestley (Beverly Hills, 90210) will appear in the 300th episode of CSI, playing a casino mogul. (Lynette Rice at Entertainment Weekly)

Actress Paul Adelstein (Private Practice) will have a recurring role on Scandal this fall. His part is being kept under wraps though. (Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

TV TRAILER

First teaser trailer for BBC’s new fantasy series Atlantis

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Matt Nix, the creator of the USA Network spy drama Burn Notice is developing a new show for the network called Complications, which is a medical drama that would center on an ER doctor whose life changes after he is involved in a gang shooting. He is forced to explore his role in treating the cause of his patients’ medical problems. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

FOX is developing a thriller called Frayed based on the Dutch mini-series called Bellicher, which was an adaptation of the novel “The Power Of Mr. Miller” by author Charles den Tex. The project would center on an arrogant and entitled corporate consultant who gets embroiled in a grand conspiracy that forces him to go on the run. As his entire life unravels, he’ll come to realize that the only man who can help him is a perpetually paranoid and possibly delusional former NSA agent. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actress Katee Sackhoff (Battlestar Galactica and Longmire) will appear in the box office film called Somnia that is a psychological horror film about an orphaned child whose dreams — and nightmares — manifest physically as he sleeps. (Mike Fleming, Jr. at Deadline)

Actress Emma Watson (Harry Potter franchise) will have the lead in the book-to-film adaptation of the novel “Your Voice In My Head” from author Emma Forrest. The story is about a young bipolar Englishwoman living in New York. (The Deadline Team)

Actor Christopher Plummer will join actors John Travolta and Tye Sheridan, who appeared in this year’s movie Mud) in the box office film The Forger. Travolta will play a former art prodigy and second generation petty thief who buys his way out of prison to spend time with his ailing son. To do so he must team up with his father (Plummer) for one last job to pay back the syndicate that arranged his release. (The Deadline Team)

Actor Ben McKenzie (Southland and The O.C.) will star in the box office film The Swimmer, which is about an American extreme swimmer who sets out to conquer one of Norway’s wildest rivers and in doing so must confront his inner demons. (The Deadline Team)

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

1. Riddick – 18.7 million
2. The Butler – 8.9 million
3. Instructions Not Included – 8.1 million
4. We’re the Millers – 7.9 million
5. Planes – 4.3 million
6. One Direction: This Is Us – 4.1 million
7. Elysium – 3.1 million
8. Blue Jasmine – 2.7 million
9. Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters – 2.5 million
10. The World’s End – 2.3 million

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

There was a lot of news, of course, while I was on vacation last week and here it all is:

TELEVISION

Actress Stephanie Jacobsen (Battlestar Galactica) will appear in the new mid-season CW series Star-Crossed, playing Eva, a charismatic biology teacher at Marshall High School, who has a wealth of knowledge when it comes to the Atrians (aliens) and who is sympathetic to their cause. She quickly becomes a favorite among human and Atrian students alike. (Zap2It)

Actor Dan Stevens (Downton Abbey) will lend his voice to the new CW series The Tomorrow People. He will voice TIM, an artificially intelligent mentor who helps the team of kids with special abilities that are the focus of this remake of the UK original. (Give Me My Remote)

Actor William Atherton (Die Hard) and actress Anna Hopkins (Human Trafficking) have joined the cast of Defiance. Atherton will play Viceroy Mercado, a jaded, Earth Republic official while Hopkins will play a documentarian Jessica “Berlin” Rai. (The Futon Critic)

True Blood will air its final season in 2014. (The Futon Critic)

Actor Elias Koteas (The Killing) has joined the cast of the new, upcoming NBC spin-off series Chicago PD, playing Alvin Olinsky, a longtime undercover detective in the Intelligence Unit. (The Futon Critic)

Actor Jason O’Mara (Vegas and Terra Nova) will have a recurring role on The Good Wife this fall, playing Colin, a wild-eyed Irish attorney who has spent a decade successfully defending gang members and crime families. Now he’s looking for a home at a corporate law firm like Lockhart/Gardner where he clashes with the more conservative culture. (Deadline)

TV TRAILER

Hot TV Trailer: Downton Abbey Season 4

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

ABC is developing the drama called Saga about a family of fans of a J.K. Rowling-esque writer who discover she’s been kidnapped into the very real world of her books and attempt to rescue her. (Deadline)

HBO is developing a pilot called Westworld from Jonathan Nolan (Person of Interest) and Lisa Joy (Burn Notice) based on the Michael Crichton 1973 movie that is a dark odyssey about the dawn of artificial consciousness and the future of sin. (Deadline)

Actors Christopher Egan (Letters to Juliet) and Alan Dale (Lost) have been cast in the Syfy supernatural drama pilot called Dominion based on characters from the 2010 box office film Legion. The project will be set 25 years after the events of the movie, picking up in the aftermath of a catastrophic war between an army of angels and mankind that has transformed the world. Set against a backdrop of the ultimate celestial battle as it touches down on earth, the series follows the perilous journey of Alex Lannen (Egan), a rebellious young soldier who discovers he’s the unlikely savior of humanity. Dale will play Rysen, the general who led the humans to victory against the angels during the Extermination War. (Deadline)

Actress Jennifer Finnigan (Monday Mornings) will play the female lead in the FX drama pilot called Tyrant that will tell the story of an unassuming American family — Barry (Adam Rayner); his strong, smart and idealistic wife Molly (Finnigan); and their kids Emma (Anne Winters) and Sammy (Noah Silver) — drawn into the workings of a turbulent Middle East nation. (Deadline)

Actress Samantha Mathis (Under the Dome) has joined the cast of the AMC drama pilot Line of Sight that tells the story of Lewis Bernt (David Morrissey), a National Transportation Safety Board investigator who survives a mysterious plane crash, bringing him on an emotionally disorienting quest to discover the accident’s cause. Mathis will play Tony’s (Kai Lennox) wife. (Deadline)

No Way Back, a drama project based on the 2013 mystery/thriller novel by best-selling author Andrew Gross, has landed at ABC. The series centers on two women who join forces and embark on a dangerous odyssey to find the truth and save their lives. One is a suburban mother and ex-cop, whose chance meeting with a stranger in a hotel ends when the man is murdered and she’s the only witness. The other is a young woman from Mexico who has a deadly secret that has driven her into hiding until she can prove her innocence. (Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actor Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy) and actress Dakota Johnson (Ben and Kate) have been cast in the lead roles of Fifty Shades of Grey. (Deadline)

Here are the top 10 box office films from last holiday weekend courtesy of Deadline:

1. The Butler – 20 million
2. One Direction: This Is Us 3D – 18 million
3. We’re The Millers – 16.3 million
4. Planes 3D – 10.5 million
5. Instructions Not Included – 10.3 million
6. Elysium – 8.2 million
7. The Mortal Instruments – 6.8 million
8. The World’s End – 6.5 million
9. Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters – 5.9 million
10. Getaway – 5.5 million

Actor Bradley Copper (Silver Linings Playbook) has joined the voice cast of the upcoming box office animated film Guardians Of The Galaxy. He will lend his voice to the character Rocket Raccoon, a furry gun-toting hero. The voice cast includes Chris Pratt, Benicio Del Toro, Zoe Saldana, Glenn Close, Lee Pace, Michael Rooker and John C. Reilly. (Deadline)

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All

Here are the news items for today, few though they are:

TELEVISION

There is good and bad news coming from the cable network A&E: they are renewing Longmire for a third season, but they are canceling The Glades after four season and a whopper of a cliffhanger episode. (John Covney, Executive Producer of the show via Twitter and Philiana Ng at The Hollywood Reporter)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Former Chuck alums (behind the scenes) Matt Miller and Zev Borow are developing a cop/family drama pilot for FOX called Bad Guys that will center on Lea Morris, a NYPD detective and a single mom raising a teenage son, and her dad Nalin Morris, a recently paroled ex-con who wants a second chance with his daughter and a first with his grandson. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Cinemax is developing another drama project called Blanco that will center on an uptown gangster who uses his status as a confidential informant to turn the tables on law enforcement and build his criminal empire. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

That’s it. Enjoy!

Have a terrific holiday weekend.

PS: I’ll be on vacation next week so there won’t be any updates until September 9.

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Hey All,

TELEVISION

Actress Lisa Kudrow (Friends) will have a recurring role on Scandal, playing a character named Shelley Meyers, who is a powerful and smart politician. Scandal returns to ABC on October 3. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actor Michiel Huisman (Nashville) has joined the cast of Game of Thrones in an as-yet unidentified role. Game of Thrones will return to HBO sometime in 2014. (Michael Ausiello at TV Line)

Actress Andrea Roth (Rescue Me) will have a major recurring role in the DirecTV series Rogue, playing Marlene, a fallen from grace FBI agent who butts heads with Grace (Thandie Newton). (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

France and Sony Pictures Television Network have renewed Crossing Lines, the international series that aired on NBC this summer starring William Fichtner, Donald Sutherland, Marc Lavoine, Tom Wlaschiha, Gabriella Pession and Richard Flood; but, there is no word yet on whether NBC will pick it up for airing here in the States or not. (TVSeriesFinale.com)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

FX has ordered a drama pilot called Hoke that will star Paul Giamatti. The dark comedy is based on the Charles Willeford series of novels, centering on Hoke Moseley (Giamatti), a hard-boiled and possibly insane homicide detective in 1985 Miami. (AJ Marechal at Variety)

Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas is working on his next project, the as-yet untitled Les Miserables-themed FOX pilot that will take a contemporary look at the story as a primetime soap about a brilliant lawyer running a legal exoneration program who fights to evade the consequences of his own unjust conviction many years before. He must navigate high society, continue his mission of saving innocent people, and manage his tumultuous family and romantic life all while staying one step ahead of a ruthless U.S. Attorney who refuses to let the ghosts of the past die. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actor James Spader (the star of this fall’s The Blacklist) has been cast as Ultron in the upcoming The Avengers sequel. (Dominic Patten at Deadline)

Q&A SECTION (with TV Scoop Team at E! Online)

Question: If I could I would move to Bluebell and never ever leave! What’s coming up on my beloved Hart of Dixie this season? – Dani Bree

TV Scoop Team: We recently chatted with the lovely Kaitlyn Black and she exclusively told us that AnnaBeth and Zoe are going to get super close—like braid each other’s hair close. “Yes there will definitely be a stronger relationship between the two of them and we will get to see lots of AB/Zoe shenanigans,” she says. So does this mean that AB and Lemon’s Belle bond is broken? Black explains, “Zoe is not taking the place of Lemon but with Zoe being very close to Lavon and AB being in love with Lavon they definitely get to hang out with each other quite a bit more.”

INSIDE SCOOP (with Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

Question: Will Once Upon a Time explain how Mulan and Aurora helped Philip get his soul back from the wraith, before they found an injured Baelfire? –JJ

Mitovich: In a word, kinda. “We’ll hint at it, but we probably aren’t going to show that [back]story for a while,” says co-creator Eddy Kitsis. For one, it’s not like Neal has reason to raise it as a conversation topic. But more importantly, Kitsis explains, “One of the things about Season 3 is we’ve really tried to focus on the core characters, including the six people on that boat and Neal. We do eventually want to get to that [Philip/wraith] story, but we’re coming out of the gate with the people on that boat.”

Question: Is there any way that Once Upon a Time‘s Ariel and Regina already met? Assuming that the “certain mermaid” Regina referred to in Episode 1×12, “Skin Deep,” was Ariel? –Mirza

Mitovich: I suspect you are onto something, though co-creator Adam Horowitz will only say that “we might” flash back to that aforementioned encounter during JoAnna Garcia’s turn as the Little Mermaid.

Question: Last year, OUAT ran a one-hour special to recap the season before the new season starts. Do you know if they will be doing that again? –Bernadette

Mitovich: Yes, they shall. Once Upon a Time: Journey to Neverland will air Sunday, Sept. 29 at 7/6c, leading into the Season 3 opener.

Question: Can you give us any hints on how Deeks’ mom will come into play this season on NCIS: Los Angeles? –Anna

Mitovich: Actually, somewhat interestingly, she won’t – meaning, I hear that at this time there are no plans to introduce her. (This topic, on which I have received multiple reader emails, is apparently the result of some game of “Telephone.” Sorry!)

Question: On NCIS: LA, will we learn more about Callen’s past? –Molly F.

Mitovich: Oh yes. As show runner Shane Brennan shared with me, “You know that little tea tin sitting on the mantle in Callen’s house, filled with little pieces of his past, pieces of that jigsaw? Well, he adds another very significant piece of the puzzle to that box” early this season. “It’s incredibly emotional.”

Question: Have you heard anything yet about Oded Fehr’s “secret” Covert Affairs return date? – Jo

Mitovich: A) It’s still a secret, because B) Eyal’s appearance is designed to catch you – as well as Annie – quite off guard. Teasing the encore, Piper Perabo told me, “Something happens, a door opens and it’s him — and when this door opens, you are not thinking about him at all. There is no reason he should even know where she is.” In fact, Perabo says she was slightly distracted when first reading that script, and thus was startled herself to see Eyal pop into frame! “It’s so shocking when he appears,” she reiterates. “For me to be reading one of the scripts and be so like, ‘W-w-what?’ is really fun.”

Question: Any info on the remaining Graceland episodes? –Hayley

Mitovich: Only on, like, you know, the season finale, which airs Sept. 12 and finds Jangles taking a resident of Graceland hostage. The rest of the house thus must band together to (hopefully) rescue one of their own.

Question: Do you have any scoop on Haven? Will Nathan and Audrey be reunited early in the season? –Stephanie

Mitovich: Early might be stretching it. Granted, I’ve only seen the season premiere thus far, but there are obstacles a-plenty standing in the way of them finding each other. For one, Nathan is kinda persona non grata, having fled town after his acts in the finale failed to do squat. (Jordan, for one, is very much not a fan of his now.) Secondly, Audrey doesn’t believe she needs to be “found,” wherever she now is. In fact, she seems pretty content just kicking back and schmoozing Colin Ferguson’s charming mystery man.

Question: Any word on whether NCIS will bring back family members of the team? And if so, do you happen to know which? –Daniel

Mitovich: Thus far, both Ralph Waite and Robert Wagner are likely (though not double-secret confirmed) to again play pop to Gibbs and DiNozzo, respectively.

Question: Is there a 100-percent chance that Monroe’s son is revealed during Revolution Season 2? –Jack

Mitovich: Definitely 97 percent, I’d say. Series creator Eric Kripke tells us that while that reveal will be “a slow burn,” “It does become a storyline this season” – one that offers “some twists and turns” along the way.

Question: Robert Sean Leonard was great (although almost unrecognizable) on Falling Skies. Any word if he he’ll return in Season 4? –Sue

Mitovich: Yes, RSL was almost unrecognizable, and yes, at this early stage, he is confirmed to appear in at least one episode of the upcoming season.

Question: Is there any hope that King & Maxwell gets renewed for a second season? I was just getting to know everyone! –Susan

Mitovich: Show boss Shane Brennan says he hopes to get the good word next month – “perhaps in early September” – about any possible Season 2, adding: “Fingers crossed!”

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Hey All,

Here are the news items for today:

TELEVISION

Actor Zeljko Ivanek (Damages, Heroes and Big Love) will guest star in an upcoming episode of Revolution this fall, playing Dr. Calvin Horn, a meticulous and deeply curious scientist. Revolution will be back on NBC on September 25. (Sadie Gennis at TV Guide)

Actor Brendan Hines (Lie to Me and Scandal) will have a recurring role on the new fall series Betrayal, playing Aidan, a wine representative. Betrayal will debut on ABC on September 29. (James Hibberd at Entertainment Weekly)

Actor Todd Stashwick (Supernatural and Heroes) will have a recurring role on The Originals, playing Father Kieran, a tortured Priest with a dark past. The Originals will debut on October 3 on The CW. (Sandra Gonzalez at Entertainment Weekly)

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

NBC is developing a new hour-long series called Outbreak with former ER executive producers John Wells and Jack Orman. This project will be based on the 1995 feature film that is a medical thriller, following an ensemble of characters as they race to contain a lethal virus before it becomes a global pandemic. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

FOX is developing a drama project from writer John Scott Shepherd (creator of the short-lived NBC comedy Save Me) called Broken Girl that will focus on emotionally damaged Trish Derring who, after she loses the man she saw as her last hope for happiness, decides she has nothing left to live for only to discover she’s literally invincible. Blending elements of Girl With The Dragon Tattoo and Unbreakable, this project follows an anti-heroine who must live with a body that has become both her fortress and her cage. (Nellie Andreeva at Deadline)

Actor David Morrissey (The Walking Dead) has been cast in the lead role for the AMC drama pilot Line of Sight that is about Lewis Bernt, an investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board who survives a mysterious plane crash and becomes obsessed with finding out what caused it. (Liz Raftery at TV Guide and Deadline)

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actor Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad) has joined the cast of the upcoming Bible drama Exodus from Ridley Scott that is already set to star Christian Bale as Moses and Joel Edgerton as the Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II. Paul will play Joshua, the Hebrew slave who leads the people into the promised land after Moses. (First Showing)

Actor Allen Leech, who plays Sybil’s Irish husband on Downton Abbey, is in talks to co-star with Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira Knightley in the upcoming biopic called The Imitation Game. Turing (to be played by Cumberbatch) was responsible for cracking the German Enigma Code during World War II that helped the Allies stave off defeat, and who would later be prosecuted for being a homosexual. Leech plays a Scottish spy who worked with the Soviets to plot against Turing. (Vulture and Dark Horizons)

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

Question: What’s going to happen to Henry on Once Upon a Time? — Melanie

NATALIE: Though the Charmings and their foes are working together to rescue Henry, the real question you may want to ask yourself is what happens to Henry if and when they do save him? Does he go home with Emma, Snow and Charming? Or does the Evil Queen have other ideas about his future? First, though, they’ll have to figure out why Peter Pan even wants Henry. “In the first few episodes, you’re going to start realizing what he wants Henry for, but like any good mystery, you won’t know the whole picture until you watch the whole 11 episodes,” executive producer Edward Kitsis says.

Question: Any Vampire Diaries scoop on Damon and Elena? — Kayla

ADAM: For once they’ll be happy. But their bliss will be foiled — yet again! — by Katherine, who’ll be back to meddle in everyone’s lives. Although Damon says that he’s over her, what will Elena — who’s now off at college — think when she learns that Damon and Katherine have been bunking together at Chez Salvatore all summer long?

Question: Are there any Beauty and the Beast Spoilers? –Viv

Ausiello: I foresee a helper… and a headache. The show is currently casting the guest-starring roles of Zach, a cocky former soldier who uses a reunion with an old friend (perhaps Vincent?) for vengeance (against, perhaps, Muirfield?), and Beth, a high school pal of Cat’s who is now the hard-charging producer at a news station — suggesting to me that she’ll be the next one to get wind of the beasts now in our midst.

Question: Can you please keep us updated with the latest on Beauty and the Beast? It will be much appreciated! –Carol

Ausiello: Speak of the devil, here is the very, very latest: I can exclusively report that Bryan Dechart (Jane By Design) will debut in Episode 4 as Aaron Keller, a relative of Vincent’s (!) who is a street-smart arson investigator prone to being a (ahem) “hot” head. Hailing from a family of firefighters, Aaron is desperate to make his mark. And there you have the very latest!

Question: Can we look forward to any substantial Snow/Emma scenes in Once Upon a Time Season 3? Also, is Snow finally going to get back to her warrior ways? –Christina

Ausiello: Yes, and thus yes. As mom and daughter brave Neverland together while still adjusting to their family dynamic, “In a lot of ways, Mary Margaret may not be able to bond with Emma, but Bandit Snow and Emma have a lot in common,” notes co-creator Eddy Kitsis. Meaning, going up against Peter Pan and his Lost Boys will bring bow-toting Snow to the fore. “David and Mary Margaret last year were saying, ‘We are both,’” Kitsis reminds. “But this year it’s, ‘We need Snow and Charming.’ That’s what this mission requires.”

Question: Since Person of Interest announced that Sarah Shahi would be a series regular, social media has been lit up by passionate fans who either love or hate her character, Sam Shaw. Are they sticking by their choice? —Casey

Ausiello: Absolutely — and the thing to keep in mind is that as a result, Shaw isn’t now some full-time member of Finch’s team. As show runner Greg Plageman explained to Matt Mitovich as part of our Fall Preview Spectacular, Shaw’s betrayal by her own government “informed her opinion about belonging to anything or giving allegiance to anyone right now.” And as such, “She helps us out only when she feels like it.”

Question: Anything new on the NCIS front? –Cheryl

Ausiello: If you are by chance among the McAbby fans who worry that Tim’s new computer geek girlfriend Delilah (played by Big Bang Theory brainiac Margo Hasrhman) will be some ersatz Abby, Gary Glasberg is here to set the record straight. “I’d like to believe that maybe he’s drawn to people like that and is intrigued by women like that, but I wouldn’t say that [Abby and Delilah] are that similar,” the show runner tells us. “They have their differences, that’s for sure!”

Question: Any scoop on Grimm? –Jordan

Ausiello: The third season of the supernatural drama will feature “alligators in the sewer” and “a reemergence of the Bauerschwein-Blutbad feud,” show bosses James Kouf and David Greenwalt tell TVLine. A word to the wise: You might want to DVR the Wu-centric episode – in which the cop comes face-to-face with the Wesen world – and watch it after dinner. The baddie in that hour is “something so creepy that the last thing that creepy was the fly episode,” Greenwalt promises. “This is right on par with that.”

Question: I have to say, the more I hear about Revenge Season 3, the more encouraged I become. Anything else you can share? —Melody

Ausiello: The weekly takedowns are back, but with a twist: They’ll play out over multiple episodes. They’ll also be less plot-driven. “We’re going to use them to explore who Emily is a little bit more than we’ve had a chance to in the past,” previews new show runner Sunil Nayar. “We’re 44 hours into the show now. She’s experienced so many different things, culminating in the revelation of who [really] is to Jack. We’re examining not just who she is and what happiness means to her, but what are the ramifications of her plans are. Because now there’s someone who knows. And that’s going to have an impact on Emily. So the takedowns are still going to be wonderful, but they’re also going to have a deeper meaning and a deeper effect.”

That’s it. Enjoy!

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