News
The Weekly Round-Up for March 3 to 7
Here are the entertainment news items for this week:
CONDOLENCES
Stage and screen actress Lynn Redgrave passed away this week at the age of 67 after battling breast cancer. Condolences are extended to her family, friends and fans.
Long-time soap actress Helen Wagner, best known for playing Nancy Hughes on As the World Turns for more than a half-century, passed away this week at the age of 91. Condolences are extended to her family, friends and fans.
NEWS
Wayne Brady will be joining the cast of Rent to be staged at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles from August 6 to 8, which will be directed by Neil Patrick Harris. Other cast members include Vanessa Hudgens and three Broadway “Rent” cast members Tracie Thoms, Telly Leung and Gwen Stewart.
Jimmy Fallon has been named host the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards to air on NBC on August 29.
Congrats to all the Tony nominees – good luck.
Do you want to hear Chuck star Zachary Levi singing with American Idol runner-up Katharine McPhee. Go to this link to hear the song and see the singers for yourself: http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2010/05/american-idol-katharine-mcphee-vs-chucks-zachary-levi.html
A soundtrack for the first season of Drop Dead Diva will be released on June 1. Get your copy while you can.
TV SERIES NEWS
Speculation is high at the networks as final plans are made for what shows will return next season. Among those shows “on the bubble” include The New Adventures of Old Christine and Ghost Whisperer both of which may transition to ABC if CBS decides to cancel them. Chances seem strong that Chuck will be returning for another season at NBC.
The new FX series Justified has been renewed for a second season; and recurring guest star Walton Goggins has been made a series regular for the 2nd season.
Mark Moses will be back as Paul Young on Desperate Housewives on a full time basis next season.
The half-hour comedy 10 Things I Hate About You has been cancelled by the ABC Family Channel.
The two-hour series finale of Lost, which is set to air on Sunday, May 23 starting at 9 PM will now be extended by a half-hour.
Elizabeth Perkins is leaving the series Weeds.
The new ABC shows The Gates and Scoundrels will debut on Sunday, June 20, but they will now be switching timeslots. Scoundrels will now air at 9 PM with The Gates airing at 10 PM.
Chazz Palminteri will play Frank Rizzoli, Sr., the father of Jane Rizzoli (Angie Harmon) in the new TNT series Rizzoli & Isles that will debut on July 12 at 10 PM.
Psych will be back with new episodes on the USA Network on Wednesday, July 21 at 10 PM.
NBC has picked up the new J. J. Abrams drama Undercovers for 13 episodes. The series stars Boris Kodjoe and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as domesticated husband and wife who return from years in retirement and are re-activated as CIA agents. Gerald McRaney and Jessica Parker Kennedy co-star.
NBC has also picked up three more series, two of which are dramas: The Event, a conspiracy thriller that follows Sean Walker (Jason Ritter), a regular “Joe” who investigates the vanishing of his fiancée; and in doing so, he unwittingly starts to expose the biggest cover-up in US history. The series will co-star Blair Underwood, Laura Innes (ER), Scott Patterson (Gilmore Girls), Zeljko Ivanek (Damages) and Ian Anthony Dale. The other series is Love Bites, a romantic comedy anthology series featuring three loosely connected, modern stories of love, sex, marriage and dating. Stars include Becki Newton (Ugly Betty) and Jordana Spiro (My Boys).
Mariana Klaveno will return to True Blood this summer as Bill’s maker, Lorena. No other details are available about her storyline and what havoc she will wreck for Sookie and Bill.
The CW announced this week they will air reruns of the short-lived CBS series Moonlight at 9 PM after repeats of The Vampire Diaries at 8 PM starting on Thursday, June 3. Repeats of Supernatural will be seen at 9 PM after repeats of Smallville at 8 PM starting Friday, May 28.
DEVELOPMENT NEWS
Megan Park (The Secret Life of the American Teenager), David Charvet (Baywatch) and Boti Bliss (CSI: Miami) are set to star in the new Lifetime series The Perfect Teacher, which will be about a spoiled high school student who becomes obsessed with seducing her teacher. Park and Charvet will play the student and teacher, respectively, with Bliss as Charvet’s girlfriend.
Lauren Iungerich (10 Things I Hate About You) will star in the new pilot That Girl to air on MTV. The scripted comedy is about Jenna Hamilton, a high school sophomore and wallflower striving for attention who gets her wish and more when a clumsy bathroom accident has the whole school convinced she tried to commit suicide.
Thomas Haden Church and Claire Forlani have both dropped out of the new Showtime comedy Episodes, which stars Matt LeBlanc in a show-within-a show.
Kristin Lehman has joined the cast of the AMC drama pilot The Killing, which tells the story of the murder of a young girl and the subsequent police investigation. She will play Gwen Eaton, Darren Richmond’s (Billy Campbell) campaign advisor. Michelle Forbes (True Blood) also stars.
Emmanuelle Vaugier will star alongside Piper Perabo in the new spy drama Covert Affairs, playing a fearless journalist/blogger.
BOX OFFICE NEWS
Summit Entertainment announced this week that the final installment of The Twilight Saga – Breaking Dawn – will be released on November 18, 2011.
Richard Gere and Topher Grace will star in the espionage thriller The Double.
John Krasinski (The Office) and Drew Barrymore will appear in the fact-based movie Whales, which revolves around the real-life 1988 rescue of three California gray whales trapped under Arctic Circle ice.
Isabelle Fuhrman (Orphan) has joined the comedy crime thriller Salvation Boulevard based on the novel by Larry Beinhart, which also stars Pierce Brosnan, Jennifer Connelly, Greg Kinnear, Ed Harris, Marisa Tomei and Jim Gaffigan.
Stana Katic (Castle) will star in the movie For Lovers Only.
Josh Lucas will star in the movie Red Dog alongside Keisha Castle-Hughes and Luke Ford also star.
Emily Deschanel (Bones) will star in the indie comedy/drama The Perfect Family alongside Kathleen Turner, Jason Ritter and Richard Chamberlain.
Dominic Purcell (Prison Break) has joined the indie action-thriller The Killer Elite that also stars Jason Statham and Clive Owen.
Brendan Gleeson (Green Zone, In Bruges) will star as legendary Irish horse trainer Dermot Weld in the film The Cup about the 2002 Melbourne Cup horse race.
Alice Braga (I Am Legend), Ciarán Hinds (The Eclipse) and Toby Jones (Infamous) have joined the cast of the movie The Rite based on the non-fiction novel by Matt Baglio.
Steve Martin, Jack Black and Owen Wilson have joined Rashida Jones, Anjelica Huston, Jim Parsons, Rosamund Pike, JoBeth Williams, Brian Dennehy, Dianne Wiest, Anthony Anderson and Tim Blake Nelson in the comedy The Big Year.
Chiwetel Ejiofor (Serenity and 2012) will play the late African musician and activist Fela Anikulapo Kuti in the upcoming movie based on his life.
Kristen Stewart (Twilight) will play Mary Lou, the child-bride of the Neal Cassady-inspired character Dean Moriarty (Garrett Hedlund) in the box office movie On The Road.
Greta Gerwig, who can be seen alongside Ben Stiller in the indie film Greenberg has been cast in the remake of the film Arthur, playing the Lisa Minnelli character opposite Russell Brand, who will play the Dudley Moore character.
Terrence Howard will play Nelson Mandela in the movie Winnie that stars Jennifer Hudson in the title role.
MADE FOR TV MOVIES NEWS
Greg Kinnear, Katie Holmes, Barry Pepper and Tom Wilkinson will appear in the eight-hour mini-series The Kennedy Family on the History Channel. Kinnear and Holmes are to appear as John and Jackie with Pepper as Bobby and Wilkinson as Joe Kennedy, Sr.
Britt Robertson (Life Unexpected) has been cast in Disney Channel original made-for-TV movie Avalon High, where she will play a high school transfer student who discovers that her fellow classmates are actually the reincarnations of King Arthur and his round table. The project is based on a Meg Cabot novel.
A mini-series about the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. from 1954-68, called America in the King Years, will be undertaken by HBO and Oprah Winfrey.
CASTING SCOOP
Zoe Kravitz (daughter of rocker Lenny Kravitz and actress Lisa Bonet) will have a recurring role on Californication, playing Zoe, a wild musician who recruits Becca (Madeline Martin) for an all-girl band. She is slated to appear in six episodes.
Newcomer Jeff Rosick will appear on a recurring basis as Buddy Jr. in the fifth season of Friday Night Lights, but despite Buddy Jr. having a “sweet heart” he will have enjoyed his two years in California and will not be happy about being dragged back to Dillon.
Allison Janney (The West Wing) will appear in the May 11 episode of Lost, but no details are available about the character she will be playing.
Jaime Ray Newman (Eastwick) will appear in the second season of Drop Dead Diva, playing an accomplished lawyer from a rival law firm who possesses a killer instinct. Additionally, Emily Kuroda (Gilmore Girls) will appear in the series as the mother of Margaret Cho’s character, Teri, and Robin Givens will play a mean-spirited cosmetics lab exec who accuses Jane’s (Brooke Elliott) client of wrongdoing.
Jessica Walter, last seen in 90210, will play Lauren’s (Cassie Scerbo) grandmother in an upcoming episode of ABC Family Channel series Make It or Break It.
Stephen King will make a cameo appearance in Sons of Anarchy, playing a quiet loner who shows up during Gemma’s (Katey Sagal) time of need. The series will be back in September.
RUMOR PATROL
Jon Hamm, Dianne Wiest and Matt Lucas are in talks to join Maya Rudolph, Rose Bryne and Kristen Wiig in the as-yet untitled wedding comedy Wiig wrote about a maid of honor (Wiig) begrudgingly competing with a bridesmaid (Byrne) for the bride’s attention.
Dwayne Johnson is in talks to join the Fast and the Furious franchise, starring opposite Vin Diesel and Paul Walker. The movie will be in theatres June 10, 2011.
It looks like Chris Lowell will not be returning to Private Practice next season. It’s also possible that Audra McDonald may be leaving as well, but nothing has yet been confirmed.
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
The following movies and specials will air this weekend as well as this coming week:
The CBS movie Jesse Stone: No Remorse will air on Sunday, May 9 at 9 PM. Boston murders are probed by Jesse Stone (Tom Selleck) while deputies Rose and Suitcase investigate a crime spree in Paradise. The movie co-stars Kathy Baker and William Devane.
The movie Meet My Mom will air on Saturday, May 9 at 9 PM on Hallmark. The movie is about a divorcee (Lori Loughlin) who falls for a soldier (Johnny Messner) who has become a mentor for her son.
NOTE: The above movie will reair at 9 PM on Friday, May 14.
A marathon of episodes of Eureka will air on Syfy throughout the day on Sunday, May 9. Check local listings for start and end time.
The Lifetime movie Accused at 17 will air on Tuesday, May 11 at 9 PM. The movie is about a teenage girl (Nicole Gale Anderson) is framed for murder by her best friend when a prank goes too far and a schoolmate ends up dead. Cynthia Gibbs co-stars.
A History of the Doors will be aired on PBS as part of the American Masters series on Wednesday, May 12 at 9 PM.
The movie Second Chances will air on Lifetime Movie Network on Wednesday, May 12 at 8 PM. The movie stars Melissa George as a professor who fears she is being haunted by a serial killer who she interviewed years earlier.
Here are the new episodes of the dramas (and a few others) that will be airing this coming week:
Saturday, May 8:
Doctor Who on BBC America at 9 PM
NOTE: Legend of the Seeker will air in syndication this weekend. Check your local listings for date, time and channel.
Sunday, May 9:
Desperate Housewives on ABC at 9 PM
Brothers & Sisters on ABC at 10 PM
Breaking Bad on AMC at 10 PM
The Pacific on HBO at 9 PM
Treme on HBO at 10 PM
Army Wives on Lifetime at 10 PM
The Tudors on Showtime at 9 PM
NOTE: Legend of the Seeker will air in syndication this weekend. Check your local listings for date, time and channel.
Monday, May 10:
Castle on ABC at 10:02 PM
CSI: Miami on CBS at 10:01 PM
One Tree Hill on the CW at 8 PM
Gossip Girl on the CW at 9 PM
House on FOX at 8 PM
24 on FOX at 9 PM
Chuck on NBC at 8 PM
Law & Order on NBC at 10 PM
10 Things I Hate About You on ABC Family at 8 PM
Tuesday, May 11:
Lost on ABC at 9 PM
V on ABC at 10:02 PM
NCIS on CBS at 8 PM
NCIS: Los Angeles on CBS at 9 PM
The Good Wife on CBS at 10 PM
Glee on FOX at 9 PM
90210 on the CW at 8 PM
Parenthood on NBC at 10 PM
Justified on FX at 10 PM
Law & Order: Criminal Intent on USA at 10 PM
Wednesday, May 12:
Happy Town on ABC at 10:01 PM
Criminal Minds on CBS at 9 PM
CSI: NY on CBS at 10 PM
Mercy on NBC at 8 PM
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit on NBC at 10 PM
In Plain Sight on USA at 10 PM
Thursday, May 13:
FlashForward on ABC at 8 PM
Grey’s Anatomy on ABC at 9 PM
Private Practice at 10:01 PM
CSI on CBS at 9 PM
The Mentalist on CBS at 10 PM
The Vampire Diaries on the CW at 8 PM (Season Finale)
Supernatural on the CW at 9 PM (Season Finale)
Bones on FOX at 8 PM
Fringe on FOX at 9 PM
Friday, May 14:
Ghost Whisperer on CBS at 8 PM
Medium on CBS at 9 PM
Miami Medical on CBS at 10 PM
Smallville on the CW at 8 PM
Friday Night Lights on NBC at 8 PM
Stargate Universe on Syfy at 9 PM
Merlin on Syfy at 10 PM
NOTE: Please check your local listings for the correct air dates and times for all of the above.
Have a great weekend!
Please note that I will feature a weekly round-up of sci-fi based (and similar genres) news items at our sister site located at http://scifitvzone.com/. Please visit there as often as you can. Thanks!
2 Comments