The Weekly Round-Up for Dec. 27 to 31

Here are the entertainment news items for this past week:

TELEVISION NEWS

Starz plans to give viewers an early look at its upcoming drama Camelot by airing the full 64-minute premiere after the finale of Spartacus: Gods of the Arena airs on Friday, February 25. Spartacus airs at 10 PM and the Camelot sneak peek should air at approximately 11 PM. Camelot will then formally launch on April 1 at 1 PM.

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Over a year ago we heard that director Michael Mann (Public Enemies, Collateral) was developing a biopic of renowned war photographer Robert Capa, with a focus on his two-year romance with fellow photographer Gerda Taro during the Spanish Civil War. Simply called Capa, the story begins in Paris in 1935, where Capa, a refugee from Hungary, met Taro, a Jewish refugee from Nazi Germany. Now it sounds like Mann has found his two leads in some promising young talent as Total Film caught up with Gemma Arterton (Prince of Persia, Clash of the Titans) who revealed that she and Andrew Garfield (The Social Network and the upcoming Spider-Man reboot) are set to star in the biopic.

Actress Diane Kruger will appear as Marie Antoinette in the adaptation of the Chantal Thomas novel called Farewell, My Queen that will be a look at the 1789 French Revolution through the eyes of a royal reader played by Lea Seydoux (Robin Hood), who recalls the historical events 30 years later.

Joining Leonardo DiCaprio and Armie Hammer (The Social Network) in the upcoming movie J. Edgar will be Damon Herriman (Justified) as Bruno Hauptmann, the man convicted of kidnapping and killing the Lindbergh baby as well as Judi Dench in an unknown role. Charlize Theron MAY appear as Helen Gandy, a Justice Department file clerk who ended up being Hoover’s personal secretary.

Actor Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker) will play Hawkeye in the upcoming movie The Avengers (to be directed by Joss Whedon), but this character is expected to make a cameo in the soon-to-be-in-the-theatres movie Thor. Make sure you stick around for the very end of the movie Thor to see if this cameo actually takes place.

Samuel L. Jackson and Luke Wilson will star in the adaptation of the novel Meeting Evil by Thomas Berger. The film will follow a depressed real-estate agent recently fired from his job who crosses paths with a mysterious stranger (Jackson) in need of his help. Before you know it, the duo embarks on a day-long crime spree in a strangely odd symbiotic relationship. Leslie Bibb (Talladega Nights and Iron Man) will also star as Wilson’s wife.

CASTING SCOOP

Legendary actor Ed Asner will appear on the new CMT show, Working Class, which stars Melissa Peterman as a single mom who takes a job at a frou-frou grocery store. Asner will her neighbor and co-worker Hank.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

With the fall season fully upon us, there is a lot of programming for which to keep track. The list below covers most of what you can expect this coming weekend and next week:

Saturday, January 1:

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Primeval on BBC America at 9 PM (Season Premiere)
Firebreather (animated) movie on Cartoon at 7:30 PM
Avalon High movie on Disney at 6:30 PM
NCIS marathon on USA Network (check local listings for airtimes)
Boardwalk Empire marathon on HBO (check local listings for airtimes)
The Twilight Zone marathon on Syfy (check local listings for airtimes)

Sunday, January 2:
Desperate Housewives on ABC at 9 PM (NEW)
Brothers & Sisters on ABC at 10:01 PM (NEW)
Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam movie on Disney at 7:30 PM
Boardwalk Empire marathon on HBO (check local listings for airtimes)

NOTE: There are still a number of repeats for most of the dramas this coming week, but the fall shows are slowly coming back with new episodes and those are reflected below along with any made-for-TV movies that will air.

Monday, January 3:
Castle on ABC at 10:01 PM (NEW)
Hawaii Five-0 on CBS at 10 PM (NEW)
Pretty Little Liars marathon on ABC Family (check local listings for airtimes)
Pretty Little Liars on ABC Family at 8 and 10 PM (Mid-Season Premiere)
Greek on ABC Family at 9 PM (Return)
The Closer on TNT at 8 PM
Men of a Certain Age on TNT at 9 PM

Tuesday, January 4:
No Ordinary Family on ABC at 8 PM (Return)
V on ABC at 9 PM (Season Premiere)
Detroit 1-8-7 on ABC at 10 PM (NEW)
Parenthood on NBC at 10 PM (NEW)
Southland on TNT at 10 PM (Return)
Caprica marathon on Syfy from 6 to 11 PM (Final 5 episodes)
Deadly Honeymoon movie on Lifetime Movie Network at 10 PM

Wednesday, January 5:
Human Target on FOX at 8 PM (NEW) (Two-Hour Airing)
Friday Night Lights on DirecTV at 9 PM (NEW)
People’s Choice Awards on CBS at 9 PM

Thursday, January 6:
Grey’s Anatomy on ABC at 9 PM (NEW)
Private Practice on ABC at 10:01 PM (NEW)
CSI on CBS at 9 PM (NEW)
The Mentalist on CBS at 10 PM (NEW)

Friday, January 7:
Medium on CBS at 8 PM (NEW)
CSI: NY on CBS at 9 PM (NEW)
Blue Bloods on CBS at 10 PM (NEW)
Merlin marathon on Syfy (check local listings for airtimes)
Merlin on Syfy at 10 PM (Season Premiere)

NOTE: Please check your local listings for the correct air dates and times for all of the above.

Have a great weekend!