HBO is pushing out teaser trailers for Game of Thrones like it’s their job. OK, so it is their job. This next one is called “The More You Love.” Check it.
Game of Thrones returns for a second season April 1 at 9PM.
Category Archives: Television
‘Lost’ EP Carlton Cuse checks into A&E’s ‘Bates Motel’
Earlier this year A&E announced that they are working on a Psycho prequel TV series based on the classic 1960 Alfred Hitchcock thriller. This week THR reveals that former Lost executive producer and showrunner Carlton Cuse is attached to this buzz-worthy project that’s being described as Twin Peaks meets Smallville. Bates Motel will tell the dark back story of how Norman Bates’ mother twisted her son’s psyche, molding him into a serial killing motel owner. Cuse will serve as executive producer and oversee the writing and production of the series. THR also reports that A&E plans to hype the show with an initial six-episode “event” which will eventually lead into a standard 13 or 20-something episode first season and beyond. Kerry Ehrin (Friday Night Lights) will exec produce with Cuse, Mark Wolper and Roy Lee also share producing titles, and Anthony Cipriano is developing the script. Next up: find a suitable actor to play the historic lead role of Norman Bates. This delicate decision will likely determine the success of the show.
[Via THR]
FOX cancels ‘Terra Nova’ after one season
Fans of the Steven Spielberg-produced time travel drama, your days at Terra Nova are now over. Today FOX pulled the plug on the special effects heavy prehistoric sci-fi series, despite all the speculation that the show was tipping towards renewal. With House out of the way next year, there will be at least one vacant spot left open on Monday nights next season. But due to moderate ratings and a lack of creative focus, FOX prez Kevin Reilly made the final decision to close Terra Nova for good.
Back at the Winter TCAs, Reilly foreshadowed this decision. “There were a lot of chefs in the kitchen. The show was hunting for itself creatively through the season. 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.” I suppose the subtraction of House wasn’t enough to keep Terra Nova afloat on the schedule.
Am I surprised Terra Nova was erased from TV? No, not really. Though the thirteen episode first season managed to output a handful of exciting hours, overall the series disappointed due to poor writing, character development, and acting, plus the dino CGI was mostly lackluster. Props to Stephen Lange (Nathaniel Taylor) for commanding this show on his tired back. It’s certainly sad to see a show that started with so much buzz, potential, and pedigree lose its way so early on.
Can we lay Terra Nova to rest forever? Not quite yet. Backing studio 20th Century Fox TV has plans to shop the show to other networks to see if anyone else will bite. Unfortunately for fans, in all likelihood networks will not show much interest in resurrecting the show simply because it is extremely expensive to make. The question remains: is Terra Nova worth saving?
[Via Deadline]
This week in NEW TV: ‘Breakout Kings’ & ‘Breaking In’
SUNDAY (3/4)
Breakout Kings — A&E — 10PM
A&E’s breakout drama from 2011 is back. From the producers of Prison Break Matt Olmstead and Nick Santora, Breakout Kings is centered around a special task force led by veteran U.S. Marshal Charlie Duchamp (Laz Alonso) and a former one Ray Zancanelli (Domenick Lombardozzi). In season one, the Marshals came up with this ingenious plan: collect convicts and have them help catch other cons. Last year’s season tag, of course, was “it takes a con to catch a con.” The incentive? For each con they help the Marshals capture, their jail sentence gets reduced by one month and they get transferred to a more friendly minimum-security facility. The resourceful cons are ex-gangbanger Shea Daniels (Malcolm Goodwin), bounty hunter with anger issues Erica Reed (Serinda Swan) and the brilliant factist-not-racist Dr. Lloyd Lowery (Jimmi Simpson). Also part of the task force is Julianne Simms (Brooke Nevin), the neurotic analyst who stations herself at their Brooklyn headquarters.
What can you expect to see in season 2? In an interview with TVLine, Serinda Swan spilled some details. “We have this through line of Damien [the season premiere’s elusive target], which is pretty cool. But the main thing we heard from the fans last year was the desire to know more about the characters’ stories, about their lives, to see them interact more. And I think [series creators] Matt [Olmstead] and Nick [Santora] and the whole writing team did a wonderful job listening, because this year they did that. As a result, we got to have more fun, and we get more laughs. For example, there is a lot of humor in the breakouts. You’ll have [a convict] running naked across a field, while all of us are staring at each other like, “What exactly is going on here?”
Then there’s this: the tag for season two (as revealed in the key art pasted above) is “one king will fall.” Now get this: the name of the premiere episode is “An Unjust Death.” Will one of the Kings perish in tonight’s opener, drastically changing the show’s dynamic? Tune in at 10PM on A&E.
TUESDAY (3/6)
Breaking In — FOX — 9:30PM
This right here is proof that TV shows can in fact come back from the dead. After airing just seven episodes last year, FOX cancelled the modestly rated workplace comedy Breaking In. And then it was decided that it would make for a great midseason replacement on FOX’s Tuesday night comedy lineup while Glee is on hiatus. So now it’s back and this is definitely a show you need to put on your (DVR) schedule.
It’s quirky, it’s fun, and best, it’s different. In sum, Christian Slater plays a master of manipulation at Contra Security, a company that gets hired to break into places to test their security systems and make them more secure if they’re found to be weak. In season one, nearly every episode involved Slater and his team (Bret Harrison, Alphonso McAuley, Trevor Moore, and Odette Annable) breaking into people’s homes, companies, whatever and we laughed at all the antics that went on at the office. This season co-creator Adam F. Goldberg promises more laughs because the show will truly shine as a workplace comedy and most of the action will take place at Contra. Other changes this year: Trevor Moore’s master of disguise character is out, Annable sexy Melanie will be mostly absent due to her obligations at House (will her boyfriend Dutch (Michael Rosenbaum) return, we don’t know), and Megan Mullally is in as a series regular. She plays Slater’s boss, and British bombshell Erin Richards will factor into things as her assistant.
Missed out on season one? No worries. You can easily hop into Breaking In tonight and see what you missed out on. This show was resurrected for a reason: it’s good. The season two opener airs Tuesday night at 9:30PM on FOX.
Ryan Murphy confirms returning actors to ‘American Horror Story’ season 2
Last month Ryan Murphy guested on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live and revealed that Golden Globe winner Jessica Lange will return to his FX anthology series American Horror Story. He also let slip that four other actors from the first season of the show will be back in season two. AHS opened the 2012 PaleyFest last night, and in front of critics and fans of the show, Murphy confirmed the returning actors and they are: Zachary Quinto (he played the gay previous murder house owner Chad Warwick), Lily Rabe (she played Nora Montgomery, the baby-obsessed wife of the original murder house owner Dr. Charles Montgomery), Sarah Paulson (the mysterious medium Billie Dean Howard who could speak to the spirits in the house and (we think) rightfully predicted the birth of the demon baby), and (drum roll, please) Evan Peters (the son of Lange’s Constance character Tate Langdon).
Besides announcing the returning lineup, Murphy and co-creator Brad Falchuck remained mum about season two plot details. Here is what the panel got out of them. “We don’t want to talk about it too much, we’re still writing, anybody could pop up at any time,” said Murphy when questioned about the return of Quinto, Rabe, Paulson, and Peters. He added that “everyone is playing the opposite of what they played before.” (As we already know, AHS has been called an anthology series and each season will take place in a new location featuring all new characters.)
A day before the panel, EW reported Lange’s comeback and during that interview Murphy hinted that the next season of the show will revolve around her new character. Chew on this quote: “We have designed the second season of American Horror Story completely around her [Lange’s] character. Last year Jessica came in with Connie Britton and Dylan McDermott. This will really be the Jessica Lange show so I’m very excited about it. We are designing this amazing new opposite of the Constance character for her. She and I have spoken about different things. She has a lot of ideas, and has a lot of input into her character. She told me some things she has always wanted to play as an actress. She’s a great collaborator and a great friend.”
Back at the panel, a few more morsels of intel surrounding season two were dropped: Quinto is set to play one of two male leads; Murphy: “A supernatural element will always be a part of the show. But we’re trying to do something more historically accurate”; Murphy again: “Our only rule is no werewolves, and no vampires”; and in the first season Lange’s Constance alluded to a fourth child she had and Murphy shared that “We have not lost sight of the fourth child. We want to answer that.” So perhaps some things will bleed from season one into proceeding seasons. We shall have to wait and see.
American Horror Story begins production on season two this July with an expected October premiere date.
TV teaser 4: ‘Game of Thrones’ season 2
HBO has released yet another trailer promoting the upcoming second season of its fantasy series Game of Thrones, and I am quick to say that this might just be the best one yet. It features brand new, never before seen footage playing over a chilling track from Florence and the Machine called “Seven Devils.” War is coming, and here is proof.
Game of Thrones returns April 1.
TV reminder: ‘Awake’ premieres tonight at 10PM on NBC
From creator Kyle Killen (Lone Star) and executive producer Howard Gordon (24) comes an inventive new series starring Jason Issacs (Lucius Malfoy from the Harry Potter films) as Michael Britten, a detective who lives a double life in two separate realities. In tonight’s pilot episode, Britten will survive a tragic car accident while his wife played by Laura Allen (Terriers) and son Dylan Minnette (Lost) will go on to distinctly define the alternate realities Britten experiences after the crash.
If this sounds confusing to you, after you watch the pilot things should become clearer. Recently at the Winter TCAs Gordon casually explained the concept: “[Britten]’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.” There you go. In each reality Britten has a different partner–Steve Harris (The Practice) in one and Wilmer Valderrama (That ’70s Show) in the other; and he also sits down with a therapist in each reality (Cherry Jones, 24 & BD Wong, Law & Order: SVU) to deal with the ramifications of his dual existence.
Killen has confirmed that the show will not be taking the easy way out and wrap up by saying “it was all a dream.” One (or potentially both, or neither?) of these realities is in fact real and over the course of the series the mystery behind that pivotal car crash will reveal itself.
I say take a chance and tune into the series premiere of Awake that airs tonight (3/1) at 10PM on NBC.
‘Revenge’ promo will get your heart racing for more Thorne
A marriage destroyed [Queen Victoria & Conrad Greyson]. An empire threatened [Greyson Global]. A family torn apart [the Greysons]. An alliance forged [Emily & Nolan]. A friendship tested [Emily & Jack]. A fiancé with blood on his hands [Hello, Danny]. And she’s just getting started. When everything you love is stolen from you, someone has to pay.
This promo for Revenge aired during last night’s Oscars telecast. It might have been the highlight of the evening. The infectious soap returns this week on Wednesday, February 29 at 10PM on ABC.
TV teaser 3: ‘Game of Thrones’ season 2
Here we go again. HBO has let loose a third look at the second season of the network’s epic fantasy series Game of Thrones. This one’s titled “Power and Grace” and it hints at a love interest for Robb Stark, Daenerys’ dragons, fear of the unknown beyond the Wall for Jon Snow, and oh-so-much more. War is coming April 1.
‘FRINGE’ TV trailer: “answers are coming” tonight
Tonight Fringe airs one last episode before its winter break. Showrunner and executive producer Jeff Pinkner, like the trailer above, promises that the episode titled “The End of All Things” will provide answers for fans of the sci-fi cult series. “It’s definitely, as they say, a game-changer in that our characters learn a lot more and the audience is going to learn a lot more about the über-plot of the season’s bad guy, David Robert Jones,” says Pinkner. Also, The Observer will “peel back some layers about what his agenda has been and use that as an opportunity to revisit the things on the show we’ve seen before.” Pinkner concludes, “It’s the 14th out of 22 episodes and it’s very much an episode that’s going to launch us into the back half of the episodes.”
When Fringe returns from its month-long hiatus, an episode called “A Short Story About Love” will bring viewers back into the fold. Co-showrunner and exec producer J.H. Wyman will be making his directorial debut with this special episode and he teases it like this: “It’s an episode that’s really close to me. It’s about love and all the great things that we talk about on Fringe. To us, it’s the perfect version of what a Fringe [episode] is because it has a great, terrifying element to it that is very Fringe-y. At the same time it has this incredible love story aspect with things that people are going to be very excited for, we believe, as far as the relationships on the show.”
The showrunners also discussed with the press a possible return of Charlie Francis and the unfortunately always looming, impending cancellation of the show. Concerning the former situation, the duo hinted at discussions being had between the show and Charlie’s portrayer Kirk Acevedo about a comeback. And as for the show’s survival odds? “We will find out like everybody else,” said Wyman. “We don’t fret about it because it’s really out of our control. We can only step back and do our work and therein lies the path to serenity. We’re hoping for the best.” So are we, Mr. Wyman. So are we.
Now watch that trailer and get amped for tonight’s pivotal installment of Fringe. It airs at 9PM on FOX.
[Via EW]
NBC announces ‘Community’ comeback: March 15 is the big day
Long overdue, the Peacock finally blinked its eyes and realized it had a decision to make. Fellow Human Beings, listen up: Community will return to NBC’s Thursday night comedy lineup on March 15 at 8PM! The benched cult show from Dan Harmon ready to make its hotly anticipated comeback. The remaining twelve episodes from season three begin airing just three weeks from today! Now here’s what happens to the Thursday lineup with Community in the mix. It will return to its 8PM timeslot, bumping 30 Rock to 8:30PM, The Office to 9PM, and Up All Night to 9:30PM, taking Parks and Rec out of the equation for the time being. Parks will rest on the bench until April 19, the week after Up All Night ends its 24-episode first season run.
In addition to announcing the return of the wildly entertaining, ferociously smart and witty Community, NBC also let slip the premiere dates of three upcoming comedies Bent, Best Friends Forever and the unscripted program Betty White’s Off Their Rockers. Bent, starring Amanda Peet, David Walton, and Jeffrey Tambor, premieres Wednesday March 21 at 9PM. The network will air back-to-back episodes over the course of three weeks. When Whitney and Are You There, Chelsea wrap their seasons, BFF and Betty White’s reality series will start Wednesday April 4 and they will be paired at 8PM and 9PM, respectively.
NBC prez Bob Greenblatt on all this: “We are happy to have an unprecedented amount of original content on NBC this spring. Bent, Best Friends Forever and Betty White’s Off Their Rockers are welcome additions to the Wednesday schedule, and we know that the loyal fans of Community will be pleased with its return to its home on Thursdays at 8PM.”
[Via Deadline]
Conan to remain on TBS through 2014
Another win for #TeamCoco! Today TBS announced that Conan will remain at his relatively new late-night talk show through 2014. Here’s a quote from Michael Wright, executive vice president and head of programming for TBS, TNT and Turner Classic Movies: “We are proud to be in business with Conan O’Brien for the long run. Night after night, Conan and his team have put together terrific shows that draw a young and fiercely loyal audience. As if that weren’t enough, they have also built a dynamic online presence that keeps fans engaged like no other show in late night.” Here’s a more entertaining one from Mr. O’Brien himself: “I am excited to continue my run with TBS because they have been fantastic partners. This means I’ll be taping episodes of Conan well into the Ron Paul presidency.”
Beard or no beard, Conan is here to stay.
[Via EW]