As summer approaches many of your favorite shows will be airing their season finales this month. But don’t freak–May is home to a handful of exciting premieres headlined by the return of 24 and Louie. Jump after the break for details. Continue reading TV reminder: 4 premieres to look out for in May
J.J. Abrams and J.H. Wyman’s followup to Fringe is not coming back next season. The futuristic Almost Human, an action-packed sci-fi drama that paired a human cop with a humanoid android, has officially been cancelled by Fox. Low ratings and sluggish creativity are to blame.
The series premiered with great potential but it quickly turned into a by-the-books procedural without much forward-momentum in terms of character development. Some of the standalones were absolutely fantastic; one that comes to mind is “Simon Says” in which a cyber criminal gets a buzz off of strapping intricate bombs on people and forcing them to follow strict instructions or else die and all the while it’s being live-streamed across the Internet. It was like Saw in the future and it proved that the show could handle itself in a procedural matter. However, unfortunately, this was not enough to keep it fresh. John Larroquette’s Dr. Nigel Vaughn, who was introduced in episode 9 “Unbound,” finally started to unravel mysterious introduced in the pilot with the introduction of The Wall and we even started to get morsels about Dorian’s past (flashes hinted that he may have been human at some earlier point), but it was too little, too late. Of course I’m sure Wyman had plans to followup on these fun mysterious in a second season, but there simply wasn’t enough of a draw to come back in my opinion. A cool world indeed was set up, but I felt little emotional attachment to the main slate of characters (where was the strong female lead a la Olivia Dunham?) and I just wasn’t all that invested due to lack of a proper mythology arc.
In the end, Almost Human will be remembered for its kick-ass action sequences and the fun rapport between leads Karl Urban and Michael Ealy. For now, I cannot wait to see what Wyman has coming next because I’m positive that the man who carried us through the magnificent Fringe must have more engaging stories to tell.
At last, the cast of J.J. Abrams’ Star Wars: Episode VII has been announced and it includes many familiar faces as well as new, fresher ones. Harrison Ford (Han Solo), Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca), and Kenny Baker (R2-D2) are all back to reprise their roles from George Lucas’ original trilogy. They are being joined by the following newcomers: John Boyega (Attack the Block), Daisy Ridley (Mr. Selfridge), Adam Driver (Girls), Oscar Isaac (Inside Llewyn Davis), Andy Serkis (The Lord of the Rings), Domhnall Gleeson (About Time), and Max von Sydow (The Exorcist). Eye a candid black-and-white shot of the cast and creatives during the first table read above.
Abrams released this statement along with the announcement: “We are so excited to finally share the cast of Star Wars: Episode VII. It is both thrilling and surreal to watch the beloved original cast and these brilliant new performers come together to bring this world to life, once again. We start shooting in a couple of weeks, and everyone is doing their best to make the fans proud.”
Abrams is directing from a screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and himself, he is executive producing Kathleen Kennedy and Bryan Burke, and original composer John Williams returns to handle the film’s score.
After the break, Abrams and Kasdan wish fans a Happy Star Wars Day from London. May the Fourth be with you!
Episode VII opens December 18, 2015.
[Via Star Wars] Continue reading ‘Star Wars: Episode VII’ cast revealed
There And Back Again is no more. In a Facebook post director Peter Jackson announced that the third and final movie in The Hobbit trilogy will now be named The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies. The change makes sense, according to Jackson.
Our journey to make The Hobbit Trilogy has been in some ways like Bilbo’s own, with hidden paths revealing their secrets to us as we’ve gone along. “There and Back Again” felt like the right name for the second of a two film telling of the quest to reclaim Erebor, when Bilbo’s arrival there, and departure, were both contained within the second film. But with three movies, it suddenly felt misplaced—after all, Bilbo has already arrived “there” in the “Desolation of Smaug”…And so: “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies” it is.
The old title may not completely bite the dust, however. “As Professor Tolkien intended, “There and Back Again” encompasses Bilbo’s entire adventure, so don’t be surprised if you see it used on a future box-set of all three movies.”
And speaking of home releases, Jackson says he and his team are tirelessly working on the Extended Cut of The Desolation of Smaug coming later this year which includes 25 minutes of new scenes all scored with original music by composer Howard Shore.
Read Jackson’s post in full after the break, and look forward to The Battle of Five Armies set for release into theatres on December 17, 2014.
Continue reading Peter Jackson’s ‘Hobbit’ threequel gets a new title
Joss Whedon is a master of the art of juggling. During the shooting of The Avengers he somehow managed to brilliantly cobble together his adaptation of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing. And now, during the early shooting days of Avengers sequel Age of Ultron he’s putting out another micro-budget movie under his Bellwether Pictures banner.
Whedon wrote supernatural love story In Your Eyes starring Zoe Kazan and Michael Stahl-David, but this time he handed the reigns to director Brin Hill. After the film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival this month, a special video announcement starring Joss from the set of Avengers 2 revealed that the movie would be made available to the masses immediately on the Internet. For 5 bucks you can rent In Your Eyes on Vimeo today. It’s a groundbreaking movie from a massive Hollywood director; typically it takes time for these smaller budgeted movies to get picked up and dropped into theatres after premiering at festivals. But Joss, creator and disseminator of Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, knows better.
Watch a trailer for In Your Eyes and see Joss’ video announcement from the TFF after the break. Continue reading Joss Whedon releases latest project ‘In Your Eyes’ to the ‘Net for $5
The Keri Russell/Matthew Rhys Cold War KGB spy drama The Americans will live to see a third season.
“The Americans continues be one of the best shows on television,” said Eric Schrier, President of Original Programming for FX Networks. Executive Producers Joe Weisberg, Joel Fields and Graham Yost have done a wonderful job delivering two seasons, and the performances from Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys and Noah Emmerich are stellar. Fans will be blown away by the rest of this season, and we can’t wait to see what they come up with next year.”
Elsewhere, HBO picked up the award-wining Julia Louis-Dreyfus comedy Veep for a fourth season and Mike Judge’s new tech-infused sitcom Silicon Valley for a second season.
In September of last year Graham Lineham released the final episode of his cult comedy The IT Crowd in the UK dubbed, “The Internet Is Coming.” A month later the 50-minute special leaked into the U.S. on sites like YouTube. Said leaks were pulled from the ‘Net and finding a legal way to watch the anticipated episode was tough until today. IT Crowders can now legally stream and enjoy the ep on Hulu. So what are you waiting for? Your favorite IT basement dwellers Roy, Moss, and Jen are waiting! Is the stream not working? Have you tried turning your computer off and on again?
This week HBO renewed its hit fantasy series Game of Thrones for fifth and sixth seasons. A two-season pickup is nice, but it shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. First, logistically, the sprawling drama is based on George R.R. Martin’s books which will span across seven thick novels when all is said and done; so there is much story that needs to be adapted for the small screen. Second, of course, is the show’s monster ratings. Last Sunday’s season 4 premiere drew in a record-breaking 6.6 million viewers making it the pay cabler’s most watched program since The Sopranos‘ series finale in 2007.
“Game of Thrones is a phenomenon like no other,” said president of HBO Programming Michael Lombardo. “David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, along with their talented collaborators, continue to surpass themselves, and we look forward to more of their dazzling storytelling.”
Also renewed this week is A&E’s Psycho prequel series Bates Motel. The Freddy Highmore & Vera Farmiga show will return for a 10-episode third season in 2015. Season 2 is really starting to unravel Norman’s psychosis and another season of the thriller is going to bring viewers even closer to the serial killer we know he is destined to be.
“The incredible writing team and talented Bates Motel cast has made this series one of the most compelling original dramas on television,” said A&E EVP and GM David McKillop. “The brilliant twists and turns of the past two seasons keep its loyal fan base coming back for more. We are so proud of the show.”
Game of Thrones airs Sunday nights at 9PM on HBO and Bates Motel airs Mondays at 10PM on A&E.
The late-night talk show scene is ongoing a major makeover. Shortly after Jimmy Fallon took over The Tonight Show from Jay Leno and Seth Meyers occupied Fallon’s vacant Late Night seat, it was announced this week that Stephen Colbert is going to be David Letterman’s successor when the longstanding Late Show host retires in 2015. It has been confirmed that the Comedy Central host of the politically-bent Cobert Report will not be bringing over his conservative pundit character to the Late Show but instead will play himself (can’t wait to see what that will look like). Unfortunately for Report fans, when the transition happens that show will be no more. Here are some choice quotes from those parties involved:
Colbert: “Simply being a guest on David Letterman’s show has been a highlight of my career. I never dreamed that I would follow in his footsteps, though everyone in late night follows Dave’s lead. I’m thrilled and grateful that CBS chose me. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go grind a gap in my front teeth.”
Letterman: “Stephen has always been a real friend to me. I’m very excited for him, and I’m flattered that CBS chose him. I also happen to know they wanted another guy with glasses.”
CBS CEO Les Moonves: “Stephen Colbert is one of the most inventive and respected forces on television. David Letterman’s legacy and accomplishments are an incredible source of pride for all of us here, and today’s announcement speaks to our commitment of upholding what he established for CBS in late night.”
CBS Entertainment chairman Nina Tassler: “Stephen is a multi-talented and respected host, writer, producer, satirist and comedian who blazes a trail of thought-provoking conversation, humor and innovation with everything he touches. He is a presence on every stage, with interests and notable accomplishments across a wide spectrum of entertainment, politics, publishing and music. We welcome Stephen to CBS with great pride and excitement, and look forward to introducing him to our network television viewers in late night.”
Twitter is rolling out a new design layout for web profiles. The most prominent visual changes are larger profile photos and customized headers that mimic Facebook’s profile and cover photos. Dig a bit deeper and you’ll see that the update allows users to pin a tweet to the top of their feed; this locked-at-the-top tweet serves as an extension to a user’s bio and provides followers and potential followers alike another window into seeing what you’re all about. You may also notice magnified tweets that appear larger in your feed; these are called your “Best Tweets” and they appear larger because they’ve received the most engagement such as being Favorited or Retweeted a lot. Also, when you check out other people’s profiles you can filter between all Tweets, Tweets with photos/video, or Tweets and replies–a new way to quickly search a person’s feed by content type.
The new profile layout is slowly rolling out to all users “in the coming weeks.” If you’re new to Twitter and sign up today you’ll automatically see it. For everyone else, you can preview the new layout today by flocking over to certain celeb accounts such as @ChanningTatum and @KerryWashington.
[Via Twitter]
On April 2 Amazon unveiled their latest foray into the hardware space. After making ebooks and tablets the online retailer is directly competing with Apple TV and Roku with their very own media streamer called Amazon Fire TV. The $99 box comes packed with myriad subscription-based and streaming services including Netflix, Hulu Plus, and of course Amazon Instant Video with Prime benefits to Amazon’s catalog of exclusive content.
There really are three things that set the Fire TV apart from the competition. First is its raw power. The box is powered by a quad-core processor, a dedicated GPU, 2GB of RAM, and it supports 1080p video and Dolby Digital Plus surround sound. The company is claiming it has 3x the processing power and 4x the memory of Apple TV and Roku. These specs allow for a fast and fluid experience navigating the UI and media playback. Such generous guts support Amazon’s anti-buffering initiative they’re calling ASAP, or Advanced Streaming and Prediction; instead of waiting 10+ seconds for a video to buffer and stream, the Fire TV will smartly predict the movies and shows you will watch and get them ready for streaming so when you hit play it will immediately begin playback. More specs: ’round back you’ll find a port for power, HDMI, optical audio, Ethernet, and USB. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are also inside.
Amazon’s Fire TV also supports voice search. The included media remote sports a mic that listens to your audible search queries. Simply tap the voice button and speak into the remote to instantly search TV shows, movies, actors, directors, and genres. Of course, an on-screen keyboard is provided in case the software can’t pick up on what you’re saying for whatever reason. Note that the remote is paired to the streamer via Bluetooth so direct line-of-sight for control is not necessary.
Additionally, the box is being billed as a gaming machine. Does it compete with heavy hitters like the Xbox One and PS4–no way, but that doesn’t mean it won’t fight to become an affordable way to access easy-to-pickup titles like world-builder Minecraft and racer Asphalt. In fact, Amazon is so dedicated to making Fire TV a gaming destination that it is also selling a separately sold Amazon Fire Game Controller for $39.99 that is very reminiscent of Xbox’s pad featuring dual analog sticks, a d-pad, and ABXY buttons, as well as media controls. And on top of that, the company has formed Amazon Game Studios to develop games exclusively for the Fire TV such as third-person sci-fi shooter Sev Zero. Press the GameCircle button the Game Controller to view leaderboards and achievements across the Internet. Many games are offered today (a bunch of them are free) with “thousands” more on the way. Check out the Fire TV’s games and apps catalog here. Note that most games do not require the separately sold Game Controller for use, however some do.
What else? In addition to movies and TV, the Android-powered box also streams music (Pandora, Vevo, etc.) and it can wirelessly stream your photos and video saved in Amazon Cloud Drive. You can also mirror your Amazon tablet to your HDTV in the same way iOS devices can be paired with Apple TVs and your Amazon tablet can provide a second screen experience by pulling up content that’s related to what you’re watching on the big screen. Last, Amazon FreeTime allows parents to setup personalized profiles for their kids to access appropriate movies, TV shows, apps, and games.
Amazon Fire TV is available for purchase today. Get a closer look at the media streamer and its gaming controller in the gallery below, then jump after the break to see the UI in action, a sneak peek at Amazon-developed games, and the first commercial for it starring the insane Gary Busey.
Continue reading Amazon gets into the media streaming hardware business with Fire TV
January, February, March… April! Let’s take a look at five premieres airing this month. Jump after the break. Continue reading TV reminder: 5 premieres to look out for in April