Category Archives: Entertainment

Frank Darabont finds solace in new period project ‘L.A. Noir’

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Frank Darabont is a name you should be familiar with. He directed movies like The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile. Most recently he developed the TV adaptation of Robert Kirkman’s comic book series The Walking Dead. For reasons not made public, Darabont was sacked and replaced by writer Glen Mazzara at the AMC zombie show during the time between season 1 and 2. He moved on, clearly, and today his next project was revealed: L.A. Noir. TNT has ordered a pilot for Darabont’s next TV venture which is based on a book (not the Rockstar video game) by author John Buntin’s titled L.A. Noir: The Struggle for the Soul of America’s Most Seductive City. The story “chronicles the epic battle between Los Angeles Police Chief William Parker and mobster Mickey Cohen.” Also behind the project is Michael De Luca (The Social Network, Moneyball) and Elliot Webb (Tall Time Tales).

In a press release Darabont expressed his vigor in developing this new bold series. “Noir is a passion of mine, so I feel blessed to delve into a project that speaks in the hardboiled vernacular. John Buntin’s superb book, though non-fiction, is our touchstone and inspiration for the stories we’ll be telling, weaving fiction throughout the facts and facts throughout the fiction. The book provides elements that are irresistible, a big canvas with endless possibilities. The goal is to deliver on the tone that the title L.A. Noir promises: a smart, gritty, authentic, period noir drama. Also a blessing is the warm welcome we’ve gotten from Michael Wright and TNT, a great bunch of folks with huge enthusiasm for the source material. The best bonus of all is getting to work with my friend Mike De Luca. He’s terrific, a tremendously smart and talented producer, a gem. Partnering with him on this marvelous project after knowing him for so many years is an absolute treat for me.”

TNT’s Michael Wright had this to say about the cable channel’s latest pilot pickup. “The story of L.A. Noir is inspired by an incredibly dramatic period in the history of Los Angeles. This project is a sweeping tale of the battle for the soul of the city that was waged between the forces of the LAPD and the West Coast mob. We’re thrilled to be working with Frank Darabont and Michael De Luca, two award-winning storytellers behind some of the most entertaining films of the past two decades, as they to bring this intense and exciting crime-drama to TNT.”

If there’s anything we’ve learned from The Walking Dead, it’s that Frank Darabont knows how to develop, executive produce, and run a show. Keep L.A. Noir on your radar. Full PR after the break.

[Via Collider] Continue reading Frank Darabont finds solace in new period project ‘L.A. Noir’ →

2012 Winter TCAs: ‘Breaking In’ banked on ‘New Girl’ success at FOX for comeback; star Megan Mullally confirms ‘Party Down’ movie

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Today at the TCAs, FOX brought together its new, spectacular Tuesday night comedy lineup: New Girl, Raising Hope, and the back-from-the-dead series Breaking In. Co-creator of the Christian Slater workplace comedy Adam F. Goldberg shared with the critics in attendance the secret ingredient behind his show’s revival: New Girl‘s success. “[Fox Entertainment president] Kevin Reilly said, ‘I want to build a whole comedy night,’ so he picked up the [Breaking In] actors’ options,” said Goldberg. “I was in a holding pattern. Nobody wanted New Girl to work more than I did, because that meant we could come back.” He continued, “I got this e-mail [from Slater] saying we’re going to come back from the dead.” Slater commented, “I decided to relocate to Miami. As soon as you move away from where you shoot the show is when they decide to bring it back. I thought it was adorable.” More like, adorkable!

Megan Mullally, who will be joining the show as a series regular in season, was also in hand to celebrate Breaking In‘s renewal. With New Girl shining star Zooey Deschanel just a few feet away from her, Mullally made it known that “I’m adorkable — there’s going to be two.” She went on: “I met these people for the first time at Tuesday night’s table read. I just pulled it right out of my ass yesterday morning. That’s pretty much how it went.” Ha! On a more serious note, Goldberg said that the addition of Mullally’s character Veronica Mann (who is Oz’s boss at the Contra Security firm) will make the show “feel more like an office show — that meant building in more people in the office that could be funny. Also one thing that was missing for me was a foil for Oz, Christian’s character.”

In related news, it was announced that British actress Erin Richards (Being Human) has been added to the cast to fill in the “hot girl” void (my words) that the show will be lacking without Odette Annable’s presence. It has been confirmed that Annable’s Melanie will only appear in four of the upcoming series of episodes due to her series regular commitment to another FOX show House. Richards will be introduced in the season 2 premiere as the executive assistant to Mullally’s character. Breaking In returns to FOX’s schedule March 6.

That’s where the Breaking In newsfeed ends, but there’s one more matter to be discussed. At the panel, Mullally let slip that the Party Down movie is in the works! Her words: “I will be doing the Party Down movie. [Co-creator] John [Enbom] is writing it right now.” Boom. Like Breaking In, the Starz cult-hit is going to be revived, but on the big screen. Mullally kept her lips flapping about a possible storyline for her character. “I think we’re going to see Lydia’s ex-husband — Ed I think is name — who was really racist and a misogynist.” Arrested Development and Party Down resurrected and coming to theatres soon? Praise almighty.

[Via Deadline 1, 2; THR]

This week in NEW TV: ‘The Firm’ & ‘House of Lies’

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Last year I posted my Midseason TV Preview. This time around I’m breaking that idea in pieces with a new kind of post called This week in NEW TV. Essentially they will serve as expanded versions of my usual TV Reminders. These posts will crop up through January and February as new TV shows premiere this winter. I will recommend new, buzz-worthy shows for you to watch. If you want a broader overview of all the new series airing on the big four networks, check out 2011-12 Upfronts coverage.

::SUNDAY::

The Firm — NBC — 9PM

NBC’s latest drama The Firm is based on the 1991 John Grisham novel of the same name. The show continues the story of attorney Mitchell McDeere and his family 10 years after the events of the book and film. (In 1993 Tom Cruise stared in an adaptation of the legal thriller.) On TV Josh Lucas (The Lincoln Lawyer) plays McDeere and it’s his intention to “homage Tom Cruise’s performance” from the movie rather than mimic it. The modern day McDeere will see that his past (as laid out in the movie) will come to haunt him. A brief summary: As a young associate, McDeere brought down the prestigious Memphis law firm of Bendini, Lambert & Locke, which operated as a front for the Chicago mob — and his life was never the same. After a difficult decade, which included a stay in the Federal Witness Protection program, Mitch and his family now emerge from isolation to reclaim their lives and their future — only to find that past dangers are still lurking and new threats are everywhere. It’s certainty not necessary for viewers to have seen the movie or read the book before watching the TV series, but those who are fans of the previous works should be anticipating this return to the trials and tribulations of Mitchell McDeere. Though I don’t exactly have the highest of hopes for it, I will be giving this legal drama a try. I do believe that next month’s Smash has a better chance at lifting the Peacock’s spirits out of the gutter. The 2-hour pilot airs tonight at 9PM and The Firm lands in its regular Thursday 10PM slot next week.

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House of Lies — Showtime — 10PM

Here is another show premiering that is based on a book: Martin Kihn’s House of Lies: How Management Consultants Steal Your Watch and Then Tell You the Time. Shortened for obvious reasons, House of Lies is a dirty sexy black comedy set in the world of corporate management consulting and it follows a team of cut-throat business people who are willing to go extremes to make deals happen. Movie star Don Cheadle transitions to TV in the lead role, and he is surrounded by a cast of incredibly funny people. Veronica Mars’ Kristen Bell returns to TV at long last (her stint on Heroes was OK, I guess) and Ben Schwartz has brought his infectious sense of humor with him from Parks and Recreation. Josh Lawson, Dawn Olivieri (Heroes) and Richard Schiff (The West Wing) are also involved. It’s on Showtime so you know what that means: profanity will fly and nudity will define itself. The premise and cast alone, however, should draw you to at least watch the pilot.

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[Images via IGN 1, 2]

2012 Winter TCAs: Tim Kring & Kiefer Sutherland on the upcoming “profound” FOX drama ‘Touch’

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At the center of Touch is Martin Bohm (Kiefer Sutherland), a widower and single father, haunted by an inability to connect to his mute 11-year-old son, Jake (David Mazouz). After multiple failed attempts at keeping Jake in school, Martin is visited by Clea Hopkins (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), a social worker sent to evaluate Jake’s well-being. Everything changes when Martin discovers that Jake possesses the gift of staggering genius – the ability to see things that no one else can and the patterns that connect seemingly unrelated events. Jake is indeed communicating. But it’s not with words, it’s with numbers. Martin meets Arthur Dewitt (Danny Glover), a professor and an expert on children who possess special gifts when it comes to numbers. Now, it’s up to Martin to decipher the meaning and connect the numbers to the cast of characters whose lives they affect.

At the TCA winter press tour, Heroes creator Tim Kring shared his enthusiasm about his upcoming FOX drama Touch. “I can’t say enough about [FOX entertainment president] Kevin [Reilly]’s support. It was a script that I thought was a challenging one for a network to want to do to, I frankly didn’t think it would be done at a network. And Kevin read it and believed in it instantly and has absolutely been its tireless champion within the company. So I’m hugely indebted.”

Series star Kiefer Sutherland was also on hand to shed some light on how he landed the lead role and what exactly drew him to a show involving “global unity” and interconnectedness among human lives. Kring admits that he did not write the Martin Bohm character with Sutherland in mind. Additionally, Sutherland wasn’t so much interested in returning to TV after his long run on 24 which only concluded two years ago. But when he read the pilot script he was going to make an exception here. “I remember getting to Page 35 and thinking, ‘Shit. I’m in real trouble here,’ ” Sutherland shared. “The character is so vastly different [from that of 24‘s Jack Bauer], the tone of the piece is so vastly different. And that’s part of its appeal.” He continued, “I had to read the script twice to make sure that all the things that were affecting me were affecting me on a personal level as opposed to trying to manage a career. Does it happen to be a nice diversion from 24? Yes. I just couldn’t turn this down because it spoke to me on a really profound level.” He added, “My choice to do this had nothing to do with trying to get away from 24. It was because I want to spend hopefully the next seven or eight years sinking my teeth into something interesting.”

Sutherland made a comparison between his iconic 24 role and the new shoes he’s about to fill. “The one parallel between the two characters is Jack Bauer was asked to save the day, and there was always going to be casualties. Martin will never have an idyllic relationship with his son. With both characters, they’ll never completely win, and that’s something I’m drawn to as an actor.” At one point he described the father/son relationship between Martin and Jake as “really beautiful.”

After discussing how and why he positioned himself in the lead role, Sutherland described the logistics of Touch. “Some characters will be woven over [multi-episode] arcs, but Tim and I both learned – he from Heroes and me from 24 — that there is great value in a procedural drama. So every week there will be a set of circumstances set about by Jake that will put Martin in a situation to deal with someone new, and that situation will be resolved. There will be a beginning, a middle and an end, in theory, to every episode.”

Later, it was revealed that Kring’s son is autistic and that he is an inspiration for the show. Touch will explore the facets of autism and “Tim feels very responsible to stay true to [autism] in that regard,” says Sutherland. “So we’re not go to be making stuff up to explain stuff. We’re going to deal with the medicine and what doctors know.”

Before the panel could conclude, critics asked Sutherland about the current status of the 24 movie. He confirmed rumors that shooting will begin “at the end of April, beginning of May.” He teased that the movie is “relatively a direct continuation” of the series finale that aired on FOX in May 2010. We’re talking maybe six months from the end of that episode.” As previously reported, the movie will cover a 24-hour period in about two hours, so obviously it will not be told in real-time like the show was. Last, it was recently announced that Mary Lynn Rajskub’s Chloe will factor into the movie.

Touch premieres March 19. FOX will be airing a preview later this month on January 25 at 9PM.

[Via Deadline; TVLine 1, 2]

2012 Winter TCAs: FOX’s Kevin Reilly on future of ‘House’, ‘Glee’, ‘Terra Nova’ & ‘Fringe’

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Today at the Television Critics Association’s winter press tour, FOX became the second big network to address its current status. Network president Kevin Reilly spent most of his time on stage addressing the future of FOX’s staple shows like House and Glee. He also made sure to feed critics with status updates on newbie Terra Nova and cult-hit Fringe. While NBC’s Greenblatt made it his mission to address head-on the ratings woes at his panel, Deadline reports that FOX’s Reilly barely had time to discuss his network’s 14 percent year-to-year ratings increase because so many of his shows are on the bubble. Let’s dive in.

Reilly on House: “It’s hard to imagine the network without House. This is not going to be the pink slip goes out and this is the end of House. We haven’t had the big meeting [with the producers] about what we want to do. It is no secret that it will be a close call, we said in May that it would probably be the show’s last year, but we just haven’t made the decision. Should it be the last season, this is not going to be an unceremonious finish, I can tell you that…It will absolutely have a satisfying conclusion on FOX. There’s no way [series creator] David Shore isn’t going to let fans feel it wasn’t properly capped off.” Though there was a period when Reilly and Shore discussed a potential House spinoff, Reilly confirms “that time has come and gone.”

On Glee: Reilly confirms that there will not be a Glee spinoff following Rachel and Kurt to New York City. In a nutshell he explained, “We’re graduating the characters that are arcing toward graduation. What’s come out of it is [series co-creator] Ryan Murphy has come up with a really cool idea. There will not be a Glee spinoff. But those characters will graduate and that’s led to a really interesting idea that I think will give us something to dig into next season, and it [starts with] the spring batch of episodes. That’s all I can say about it now.” He added that Lea Michele is definitely back next season (should Glee be renewed and it will), but he wouldn’t confirm the return of Chris Colfer and some other actors. “What I said before is creatively, we’d want everybody back,” he explained. “I’ve got to look at the contractual situation for all of those. And we will…I’m just trying to whet your appetite. But I think [what’s planned] is going to be a good thing for the show…It’s cool. It’s different.”

On Terra Nova: “It was an exciting bet to take, and it’s proven it was worthwhile. It is the second highest-rated new drama, one of the highest-rated new shows of the season. It has a distinct audience [and they] enjoyed it; they had amble opportunity to reject it and they didn’t. There’s a show there to bring back, there’s an audience to access. There were a lot of chefs in the kitchen. The show was hunting for itself creatively through the season. Creatively it was hunting. I loved some of the episodes. If this is all we make [of Terra Nova], we made money on it, the studio made money on it, and it seems to have resonated with the family audience. If we had more holes in our network, we’d be thrilled to lock that right in.” He admitted that “we won’t be able to drag our feet for much longer because it does need to get back into production in the next month” if it’s granted season 2 renewal.

On Fringe: You take the good and take the bad. First, the good: “Fringe has been a point of pride for me, I share the fans’ passion for the show. I love the fact that with it FOX put genre back on the network. I’m grateful to the fans who followed the show to Fridays, and with Fringe there, we have a real Friday night for the first time.” And now, the bad: “We lose a lot of money on the show. At that rating on that night it’s almost impossible for us to make money. We are not in the business of losing money, so we’re trying to figure out if there is a number at which we can continue with the series. He added, “I do not want to drop the ball on the end and let the fans down. Please don’t start the letter writing campaign now. I can’t take it. We haven’t even sat down with the producers and the studio yet. I hope we get some credit with the fans for seeing through a great show.”

Series co-creator J.J. Abrams even through in his two cents on the matter. “For some sick reason I’m hopeful,” Abrams said. “There’s some stuff coming up this season that’s so great. Maybe it’s dumb optimism that the good work [of the Fringe showrunners] will be rewarded. “And if not on FOX, maybe somewhere else,” he teased. Executive producer Jeff Pinkner addressed fans of the show as well. “Worst case scenario, if this were the last aired season of Fringe — and as we’ve said before, there are other outlets where we could continue our stories, be they graphic novels or webisodes — we know what the end of this season is going to be, and it can function as a series finale.” He matter-of-factly shared that even last season’s finale could have rightfully served as a proper series finale. “Had Peter, the lynchpin for the reason the show existed, been the one to sacrifice himself heroically to save the two universes and the woman he loved, it would have been a very authentic end.” And it seems like things will go the same way this time around, too. Reilly says that Pinkner and fellow exec producer J.H. Wyman will not know if the show is coming back as they come up with the season 4 finale. The episode will be written before FOX and Warner Bros. talk about a potential renewal. But if there’s anything we’ve learned from the Fringe creators thus far, it is that we can trust them.

Reilly wrapped up the panel by touching on failed animated series Allen Gregory, the fate of Ryan Seacrest on American Idol, and changes to The X Factor. On Allen Gregory: “We will not be making more Allen Gregory. Our goal was to keep as many as possible of our the legacy shows intact but continue to take shots with the next-generation (animated) shows. It turned out Allen Gregory wasn’t one of them.” On a related note, Reilly sees Bob’s Burgers joining FOX’s next generation of animated shows. On Ryan Seacrest: “As we know it is a much harder job than meets the eye. I think everyone has come to realize the value of Ryan Seacrest. It’s very hard to imagine American Idol without Ryan. We certainly want to keep him.” Seacrest’s contract is up after this upcoming season of American Idol and the network is working hard to land a new deal with him. On The X Factor, Reilly teases that “there will be some changes” and one of them might be replacing host Steve Jones with someone new. Says Reilly, “Whether Steve is the guy or not, it comes under the heading of growth in general.”

All in all, many of FOX’s shows are up in the air concerning their renewal status. With Alcatraz, Touch, The Finder, and Napoleon Dynamite still waiting to be thrown into the midseason schedule, Reilly has many things to take into consideration before making final decisions to bring back the aging House, the potential hit Terra Nova, and the genre darling Fringe.

[Via Deadline; EW 1, 2; TVLine 1, 2]

2012 Winter TCAs: Kyle Killen & Howard Gordon talk trippy NBC drama ‘Awake’

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After Detective Michael Britten wakes up from a car accident with his wife and teenage son, he learns the devastating news that his wife died in the crash. Trying to put the pieces of his life back together, he wakes up a few days later to realize that his wife is very much alive and his son died in the accident! Did he lose his wife or his son? Or neither of them?? What if your life split in two in the face of a situation like this, and you could actually have everything you wanted, just not all at the same time? Michael goes back to work solving crimes while trying to put things back on a “normal” track, alternating between realities.”

At the TCA winter press tour, creator of the ill-fated FOX series Lone Star Kyle Killen talked up his latest project Awake. After reading the summary above above, do you feel confused? The creative team behind the sci-fi crime drama assures once you see the pilot and fall into the groove of the show confusion will not be one of the feelings you’re left with each week. “It is a fairly gettable concept once you sit down and actually pay attention to it,” executive producer Howard Gordon (24) said. “And whatever learning curve there might be, we hope it’s a shallow one.” Gordon went on to give his even briefer summary of the show. “He’s a guy who goes to sleep, wakes up, he’s with his wife, goes to sleep, wakes up, and he’s with his son.  And he’s a cop who sees clues and details that crossover from one world to the next, and he uses that insight to solve crimes.” Not that doesn’t sound so confusing, now does it?

Killen compared the writing process for this show to “putting together a Rubik’s Cube every eight days.” Intriguing. “It’s a dramatic procedural. On a week‑to‑week basis, there is a self‑contained question and answer. There’s a puzzle every week. At its heart, it’s a unique twist on the procedural dramas that you are actually very used to.”

He doesn’t make it a secret that he’s learning from his past mistakes, too. “I think there were aspects of Lone Star that were more difficult to get a wider, broader audience interested in. [The main character] was somebody that you couldn’t decide if you liked or hated, and I think that [Detective] Britten’s dilemma is something that we’re not only sympathetic for, but somehow we want him to win.”

The series creator concluded the panel by saying that the show will not end like this: “It was all a dream.” He went on, “There are 100 ways out, but 99 of them are probably unsatisfying to most of the population. I personally believe ‘It was all a dream’ is not particularly satisfying. We will work hard to avoid frustrating ourselves and you if we have the opportunity to wrap it all up 8 or 9 years from now.” Awake star Jason Isaacs confirmed that they do know how things will end. “We have a plan, and we’re never going to tell anyone, so stop asking us.”

Awake is set to premiere this midseason on NBC; a specific date and timeslot still haven’t been confirmed.

[Via Deadline; EW]

2012 Winter TCAs: NBC’s Bob Greenblatt on ‘really bad fall’, hope for success with ‘Smash’, the return of ‘Community’

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Last week at the Television Critics Association’s winter press tour NBC was the first big network to publicly shed light on its fall TV season performance and hint at where they’re headed in 2012. NBC entertainment president Bob Greenblatt didn’t waste anyone’s time with these opening words. “We had a really bad fall, worse than I’d hoped for but about as I expected,” he said. “People say the only way to go is up which I believe is true, but there is a long way to get there.” He continued, “We had few strong lead-ins — our most recent scripted hit is six years old [30 Rock]. Some of our older hits lost cast members [Law & Order: SVU and The Office].” He also blames the network’s overall ratings decline on “the fact that we have few strong lead-ins.” He added, “There was no great revelation or shocking epiphany about fall expect it just [reinforced] how hard it is to break through.” Later he spun things positively acknowledging the recent NBCUniversal/Comcast merger. “But the good news is we now have new owners, they’re investing in our business, not only with financial resources, but with their patience.”

NBC’s major disappoints this fall were Prime Suspect, The Playboy Club, and the Hank Azaria comedy Free Agents. Greenblatt made sure to share his thoughts on each failed project. On Prime Suspect: “[It] was probably the biggest disappointment. Was it too cable, was [Maria Bello’s character] too abrasive? Maybe I should say it was the hat and move on…the audience wanted to be entertained with comedy and fairytales [this fall], and there wasn’t appetite in the country for a hard-hitting cop show.” On The Playboy Club: ” “Was Playboy Club too dark? I don’t know. I think it was a just a rejected concept…I know everybody thinks we sat in a room and said, ‘Oh, we have a show like Mad Men, let’s put that on.’ We thought going into the period would interest people, but I don’t think people were that fascinated by that milieu and place.” And finally on Free Agents:  “I’ll go on record stating I liked it. Am I surprised that it went down? I’m really not surprised about anything going down today.” Though comedies Whitney and Up All Night haven’t become ratings hits yet, Greenblatt is confident that in time they will find bigger audiences.

The NBC chairmen went on to share his excitement about upcoming drama Smash, and at the same time he made sure to keep expectations at a realistic level. “I think that Smash is going to be very important to us,” said Greenblatt. “I don’t believe it’s a make or break show for us. I think we’re all proud of it and we’re excited to see what it can do. If I had a dime for every time someone said to me, ‘You just need one hit…’ I think in this day and age you need four or five shows to start to turn things around. Smash could be one of those. If it isn’t, it’s not like we’re going to go into receivership. But we do think it’s special and it can break through the clutter.” He noted that the musical will have a ratings advantage since it will be attached to one of the network’s “few and far between” lead-ins in The Voice.

He also discussed the future of cult-favorite Community. “When I announced our midseason changes last fall and took Community off the schedule, I failed to explicitly say that it would be back,” he said. “I want to expel any notion that it is just disappearing off the schedule.” It has been confirmed that season 3 will resume this spring. He continued, “Community was moved to 8PM a couple years ago and that’s an incredibly competitive time slot now on Thursday and I’m really curious to see what something else [30 Rock] would do there. I don’t know if it makes sense to ask it to start off the night again. We’ve tried to migrate some comedies to Wednesday this year. It’s a matter of looking at what happens with the six comedies we’ve got at midseason, to figure out where Community makes the most sense.” And when can viewers expect to hear news of possible renewal? “We’re just going to look at the success of what pilots yield, what the scheduling needs are and make that decision closer to the upfront [in May],” Greenblatt explained.

Greenblatt went on to share his thoughts about other NBC programming. Here are some choice quotes. On Howard Stern joining America’s Got Talent: “I have headaches about a lot of other things but that’s not one of them. I think he’s going to be a great judge and take it seriously. I don’t think his plan is to usurp the show and make it the Howard Stern Circus.” On the status of Fear Factor: “People like to see the snake cage and the swallowing of the bees. What can I say? We’re always happy to have those ratings. It’s [a show] that will probably come and go [on the schedule] as needed.”

The former head of programming at Showtime ended the panel like this. “The beauty of cable is the ratings for a program really don’t correlate to the bottom line. At Showtime, Prime Suspect would have been picked up in the third episode, it would have been declared a hit and it would have been in production for four or five years.” With broadcast TV, “You can’t be as cavalier about, ‘Oh we love the show. We’re just going to keep it on as long as we want.’ That’s the big dilemma that I’m in.” He concluded, “We have to figure out how to cease up on that and not end up in a narrow place.”

Can new midseason shows like Smash, Awake, The Firm, and Are You There, Chelsea? help lift the Peacock out of the ratings rubble and into a better place? Like many things in life, time will tell.

[Via Deadline; THR; EW; TVLine]

‘Once Upon a Time’ returns Sunday night: watch the first 8 minutes of “Desperate Souls” and flick through new cast photos

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ABC’s fairy tale series Once Upon a Time returns this Sunday night at 8PM on ABC. Can’t wait until then to get your Snow White and Prince Charming fix? Head over to Hulu to watch the first eight minutes (another Lost reference!) of the new episode “Desperate Souls.” The logline: Regina and Mr. Gold play dirty politics and take opposite sides when Emma runs for a coveted Storybrooke public office against Sidney (Giancarlo Esposito). Meanwhile, back in the fairytale world that was, Rumplestiltskin tries to track down the ultimate power source in order to help his son avert the horrors of a meaningless war.

In addition, ABC has released a bunch of new cast photos that are simply stunning. They include looks at fairy tale-world and real-world versions of Snow White/Mary Margaret, the Evil Queen/Regina, Rumplestiltskin/Mr. Gold, as well as shots of John Doe, little Henry, and Archie. Scrub through them all in the gallery below. And in the gallery below that you’ll find stills from the episode!

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[Via TVLine; IGN]

‘Punk’d’ returns to MTV this Spring with celeb hosts galore

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With Fear Factor back on the air, call it a return to the early naughts with this announcement. Hidden camera reality series Punk’d is making a comeback this March. Original host Ashton Kutcher will not serve as host this time around, however he remains in the background as executive producer. Each episode will be hosted by a different celebrity. So far the list of celeb guests include Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus, Kellan Lutz, Bam Margera, and Dax Shepard. The Parenthood star, I’m sure you remember, is part of the original Punk’d team. According to Deadline, the reboot “will also offer a behind-the-scenes look at how the elaborate pranks were put together.” MTV recently aired a preview of what’s in store for unsuspecting stars. Embedded up top you’ll find celeb host Miley Cyrus pranking the eldest Kardashian sister Khloe. It involves a penis and a zipper. Use your imagination and watch it unfold above. Punk’d premieres March 19.

‘Fringe’ recap prepares viewers for what’s to come

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Fringe returns from its extended hiatus next Friday so it’s time to brush up on everything’s that has been going on. FOX makes it easy with their latest recap video titled “Neither Here Nor There.” It serves as the thirteenth installment in the Fringe: Past + Present + Future series that was originally uploaded to YouTube intended to ease long-time viewers into season four and help entice newcomers to start watching the show. Like all the videos before it, this one is narrated fantastically by Walter Bishop’s portrayer John Noble. I don’t care whether or not you watch the show; listening to Noble’s voice is like vacationing on a calm beach and hearing the ocean waves glide by. Enough words; go on and mash play and remind yourself why Fringe is one of the best series on TV right now.

Trailer: ‘Silent House’ horror flick plays out in “real-time”

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You can add Silent House to your list of must-see horror flicks in 2012 (it should sit next to The Woman in Black). The American remake of the 2010 Uruguayan Spanish-language original tracks Sarah, a woman trapped inside her family’s secluded lake house. What makes this movie special is the way it plays out: in real time, much like how events unfolded in the TV series 24. Directors Chris Kentis and Laura Lau claim that Silent House was shot entirely in one take, which is highly suspicious to say the least. But still the notion that maybe it was will certainly draw audiences to theatres, including myself. It stars the youngest Olsen sister Elizabeth who recently wowed critics in her debut film Martha Marcy May Marlene, which also happens to be a psychological thriller. Just who/what is terrorizing Sarah in this trailer? Find out March 9 when Silent House releases wide.

Megan Fox and Josh Duhamel hunt for Billy Crystal in star-studded Oscars promo

EXPERIENCE, Movies, Video, , , , , , ,

As you wait for the nominations to break, sit back and take in this premiere promo for the 2012 Oscars. It stars Transformers stars Megan Fox and Josh Duhamel searching for this year’s host Billy Crystal. William Fichtner (Prison Break, Entourage), Vinnie Jones (The Cape), and Robin Williams make cameos throughout. If the February 26 telecast is anything like this bizarrely entertaining clip, that’d be really great. Because last year’s snoozefest hosted by an overly excited Anne Hathaway and drugged James Franco is but a blip in my conscious memory.