Category Archives: News

Comic Con: Martin Freeman & Benedict Cumberbatch appear at ‘Sherlock’ panel

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Comic Con hosted a Sherlock panel, but its two big stars Martin Freeman and Benedict Cumberbatch couldn’t make it in person. So they both filmed prerecorded bits for those in attendance and you can watch what they saw in the clip embedded above. Freeman is rocking some scraggly hair as he finishes shooting The Hobbit in New Zealand and Cumberbatch explains how he survived his big fall from the series 2 finale (or he attempts to, at least).

As you’re enjoying this humorous clip, know that lots more Sherlock is on the way. “As long as everyone wants to keep doing it, we’ll keep doing it,” shared creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss and producer Sue Vertue. “There is something lovely about the idea of Benedict and Martin aged 55, around the same fireplace, becoming the same age we associate with Holmes and Watson,” added Gatiss.

Comic Con: Neil deGrasse Tyson hosts ‘Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey’ (teaser inside)

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FOX is rebooting Carl Sagan’s Cosmos: A Personal Voyage (a 13-part TV series that aired in 1980 on PBS) with Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey hosted by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson.

Sagan’s original creative collaborators, namely writer/executive producer Ann Druyan and astronomer Steven Soter, along with executive producer Seth MacFarline (yes, of Family Guy fame) have teamed together to continue where Sagan left off.

The series will explore how we discovered the laws of nature and found our coordinates in space and time. It will bring to life never-before-told stories of the heroic quest for knowledge and transport viewers to new worlds and across the universe for a vision of the cosmos on the grandest scale. Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey will invent new modes of scientific storytelling to reveal the grandeur of the universe and re-invent celebrated elements of the legendary original series, including the Cosmic Calendar and the Ship of the Imagination. The most profound scientific concepts will be presented with stunning clarity, uniting skepticism and wonder, and weaving rigorous science with the emotional and spiritual into a transcendent experience.

When asked why do a reboot, Sagan’s wife Ann Druyan explained, “Well, it’s a very big universe, and in the first series we covered a lot of territory. But there’s so much left. We have new stories that have yet to be told.” She promises it “is as accessible as the first one and contains information that’s at times arcane, that at other times is as less complicated. But it’s for everyone.”

Interested in exploring the mysteries of space? Then the 13-part docu-series Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey–premiering in 2014 on FOX–is a can’t miss TV event. See how cool science can be in the teaser trailer posted after the break. Continue reading Comic Con: Neil deGrasse Tyson hosts ‘Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey’ (teaser inside) →

Comic Con: Zack Snyder teases ‘Man of Steel’ sequel featuring Batman (!)

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During the Warner Bros. panel at Comic Con, Man of Steel director Zack Snyder announced that another Superman movie is in the works, and most titillating, the Man of Steel sequel will reintroduce Batman into the mix. In a press release Snyder said, “I’m so excited to begin working again with Henry Cavill in the world we created, and I can’t wait to expand the DC Universe in this next chapter. Let’s face it, it’s beyond mythological to have Superman and our new Batman facing off, since they are the greatest Super Heroes in the world.”

At the panel Synder had actor Harry Lennox (who played General in Man of Steel) read an excerpt from the comic book The Dark Knight Returns: “I want you to remember, Clark, in all the years to come, in your most private moments, I want you to remember, my hand, at your throat. I want you to remember the one man who beat you.” And then the logo formed on the giant screen behind him. Cue insane applause and cheers from the crowd. (Note: Snyder says the upcoming pic will not adapt that comic but will use it as a springboard to tell a new story.)

With Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy complete, Warner Bros. and Snyder’s crew are looking for a new Batman to step into the iconic role and join Cavill’s Superman “in one explosive new film.” I mean, the simple yet powerful logo hanging here says it all. This is going to be epic in ways it’s currently hard to imagine. Personally I’ve been holding out for a Batman versus Superman flick since the ’90s and now the pieces are finally in place. Snyder, bring it.

Synder is directing and co-writing the story with David S. Goyer. Production begins next year with a tentative Summer 2015 release. Official PR is after the break. Continue reading Comic Con: Zack Snyder teases ‘Man of Steel’ sequel featuring Batman (!) →

Comic Con: Marvel sheds light on ‘Avengers’ sequel & ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’

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At Comic Con 2013 in San Diego, Marvel packed Hall H to share with fans new footage from its upcoming slate of super hero flicks including Thor: The Dark World and Captain America: The Winter Soldier. At the very end of the panel, surprise guest Joss Whedon took the stage to announce the title of his next Avengers movie and it is Marvel’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron. In case you didn’t know, Ultron is a famous Marvel supervillain that is a robot with massive amounts of artificial intelligence. The nearly indestructible foe will prove to be a worthy villain in the Avengers sequel due out May 1, 2015. Thanos, the other-worldly villain teased during The Avengers‘ credits sequence, will likely make a grand appearance before A2 now that we know Ultron is the big bad our heroes will face in the sequel.

In addition to naming the next Avengers film, Marvel touted another Phase 2 flick in the works: James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy. Due August 1, 2014, Galaxy stars Chris Pratt (Zero Dark Thirty) as Peter Quill aka Star-Lord, Zoe Saldana (Star Trek Into Darkness) as Gamora, Dave Bautista (Riddick) as Drax the Destroyer, Lee Pace (The Hobbit) as Ronan the Accuser, Michael Rooker (The Walking Dead) as Yondu, Karen Gillan (Doctor Who) as Nebula, Djimon Hounsou (Gladiator) as Korath, Benicio del Toro (Traffic) as The Collector, John C. Reilly (Chicago) as Rhomann Dey, and Glenn Close (Fatal Attraction) as Nova Prime.

Actual footage from these Marvel movies has yet to be released to the general public; for now, eye the official logos in the gallery below.

Bonus! Actor Tom Hiddleston crashed the Thor part of the panel in-character as Loki. Watch him command the crowd in an entertaining clip embedded after the break.

Continue reading Comic Con: Marvel sheds light on ‘Avengers’ sequel & ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ →

2013 Emmy nominations: ‘AHS: Asylum’ & ‘Game of Thrones’ collect most nods, Netflix enters the fray

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Here we go. It’s Emmy season, everybody! Today the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards nominations were announced to much fanfare, as always. For the second consecutive year, the show that picked up the most nods is American Horror Story: Asylum with 17; following close behind are HBO’s Game Of Thrones (16 nods) and Behind The Candelabra (15), Saturday Night Live (15), Breaking Bad and 30 Rock (13 apiece), Downton Abbey, Mad Men, and Modern Family (12 apiece), Homeland and Phil Spector (11 apiece), and Boardwalk Empire (10). The most intriguing turn of events: streaming service Netflix is a real Emmy contender racking up 14 nods for House of Cards (9, including Outstanding Drama Series), Arrested Development (3, including Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series), and Hemlock Grove (2).

Duking it out for Best Drama are Breaking Bad, Downton Abbey, Game Of Thrones, Homeland, House of Cards, and Mad Men. Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Hugh Bonneville, (Downton Abbey), Damian Lewis (Homeland), Kevin Spacey (House of Cards), Jon Hamm (Mad Men), and Jeff Daniels (The Newsroom) are up for Best Lead Actor in a Drama Series. Leading ladies include Connie Britton (Nashville), Claire Danes (Homeland), Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey), Vera Farmiga (Bates Motel), Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men), Kerry Washington (Scandal), and Robin Wright (House of Cards). In the Supporting Actor categories, Bobby Cannavale (Boardwalk Empire), Jonathan Banks (Breaking Bad), Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad), Jim Carter (Downton Abbey), Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones), Mandy Patinkin (Homeland), Anna Gunn (Breaking Bad), Maggie Smith (Downton Abbey), Emilia Clarke (Game of Thrones), Christine Baranski (The Good Wife), Morena Baccarin (Homeland), and Christina Hendricks (Mad Men) vie for the golden statue.

Switching over to the comedy categories, the following shows were nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series: 30 Rock, The Big Bang Theory, Girls, Louie, Modern Family, and Veep. Alec Baldwin (30 Rock), Jason Bateman (Arrested Development), Louis CK (Louie), Don Cheadle (House of Lies), Matt LeBlanc (Episodes), and Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory) are up for Best Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. Leading ladies include Laura Dern (Enlightened), Lena Dunham (Girls), Edie Falco (Nurse Jackie), Tina Fey (30 Rock), Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Veep), and Amy Poehler (Parks and Recreation). Supporting funny people include Adam Driver (Girls), Jesse Tyler Ferguson/Ed O’Neill/Ty Burrell (Modern Family), Bill Hader (Saturday Night Live), Tony Hale (Veep), Mayim Bialik (The Big Bang Theory), Jane Lynch (Glee), Julie Bowen/Sofia Vergara (Modern Family), Merritt Wever (Nurse Jackie), Jane Krakowski (30 Rock), and Anna Chlumsky (Veep).

And of course, there’s no going on without discussing those who were snubbed. Some that come instantly to mind: Parks & Rec, Happy Endings, and New Girl for Best Comedy (or at least recognition for their ensemble casts)…Hannibal is certainly worthy of Best Drama though being a poorly rated NBC drama it likely will never reach that peak, but perhaps stars Hugh Dancy and Mads Mikkelsen will soon receive some well deserved recognition…besides recognizing Margo Martindale for portraying Claudia aka Granny and its theme music, The Americans was pretty much left in the dark; though in its first season, the series is certainly Best Drama material and its stars Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys are worthy of Best Actor nods…and even though it’s never expected it still stings that genre shows like The Walking Dead and Fringe are passed over come Emmy season; in fact, this marks the last opportunity to give John Noble an Emmy nod for playing the incomparable and incredibly impressionable Walter Bishop on Fringe–he’s always been a winner in my book.

The 65th Primetime Emmy Awards airs live Sunday, September 22 at 8PM EST with host Neil Patrick Harris. Cop a list of all the nominees at the official Emmys website, and if I left off any of your personal snubs lemme hear it in the comment section below.

Justin Timberlake and Macklemore & Ryan Lewis lead 2013 VMA nominations

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We’re nearly approaching August and you know what that means: the MTV Video Music Awards is fast approaching. Justin Timberlake and Macklemore & Ryan Lewis lead with the most nominations for a Moonman this year with six apiece. JT’s “Mirrors” off his solid comeback album The 20/20 Experience and Macklemore & RL’s catchy “Thrift Shop” are in the running for Video of the Year along with Bruno Mars’ “Locked Out of Heaven,” Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines,” and T. Swift’s “I Knew You Were Trouble.” Close behind are Bruno Mars with four nods, and artists Pink, Robin Thicke, Miley Cyrus, and Thirty Seconds To Mars managed to pick up three nods each.

For 2013 the VMAs will air live on Sunday, August 25 from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. To honor the new host venue, one of the borough’s most influential artists KAWS was asked to redesign for this year only the famous Moonman statue. It features his signature x’s for eyes, crossbones through the head, and puffy gloves for hands. No doubt artists will be clamoring for a win to claim the limited-edition, wickedly awesome trophy pictured above.

To view the full list of nominees, pop after the break. Continue reading Justin Timberlake and Macklemore & Ryan Lewis lead 2013 VMA nominations →

Kid Cudi announces ‘Cud Life Tour’ hitting 20+ cities starting this summer

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Kid Cudi is going on a 20+ city tour starting later this summer and rappers Big Sean, Tyler The Creator, and Logic will be joining him on the road. The Cud Life 2013 Tour kicks off in Salt Lake City, Utah and will travels to major cities like Las Vegas, San Diego, Seattle, Philly, Boston, Toronto, and East Rutherford, New Jersey. Noticeably absent from the current list of tour stops are New York City and Los Angeles. According to all things Cudder source DatNewCudi.com, the Lonely Stoner plans to add additional dates and locations in the fall so stay tuned. For now, jump after the break for more tour details and a link to snag tix. Continue reading Kid Cudi announces ‘Cud Life Tour’ hitting 20+ cities starting this summer →

‘American Dad’ moves to TBS in 2014

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The upcoming tenth season of animated comedy American Dad will be its last on FOX. But don’t fret, AD fans; the Seth MacFarlane-produced series is not being cancelled. It is relocating to cable’s TBS. Fifteen episodes have been ordered for AD‘s eleventh season which will premiere on TBS in late 2014. Sister network Adult Swim will air encores of each episode after initial airings on TBS.

“American Dad! is a great fit for TBS, a favorite of comedy fans who like smart, irreverent humor with ample doses of biting wit and skewering satire,” said TBS head Michael Wright. We look forward to welcoming Seth MacFarlane and the rest of his team as they bring this iconic show to TBS.”

“American Dad! is a brilliantly inventive series, and TBS’s desire to platform new episodes demonstrates the enduring power of great and compelling content,” added 20th Century Fox TV chairmen Gary Newman and Dana Walden. “Seth, Mike and Matt have created an incredibly rich world of unique characters, and we couldn’t be happier that they will be able to continue to tell their trademark brand of subversive, hilarious stories to their millions of fans.”

This is an interesting move on FOX’s part. Though the network did not disclose its rationale behind the relocation, one can ponder that it’s making room for a fresh new series in its Sunday night “Animation Domination” block. With The Cleveland Show MIA this fall and American Dad moving after this season, the network will have at least a couple vacancies to fill next year. Time will tell which new shows will join up-and-comer Bob’s Burgers and veterans Family Guy and The Simpsons on Sunday nights.

The Smiths, Rodger the alien, and Klaus the German-tongued goldfish return to Fox this fall for their final run on the net.

TV reminder: ‘The Newsroom’ returns Sunday, July 14 at 10PM on HBO

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Will McAvoy and his team of reporters at ACN return to our airwaves this Sunday night at 10PM on HBO in the season 2 premiere of The Newsroom. Together Aaron Sorkin’s creations stand alone in the season 2 key art posted above, and quite literally in the character stills packed in the gallery below. Are you ready for some more fast talking, fast walking, and fast talking and walking? This season will cover major news such as “the Tea Party/American Taliban, the general election including the primaries and conventions, Trayvon Martin, the Affordable Care Act, and drones” and will span August 23, 2011 to Election Day 2012.

Your first look at George R.R. Martin’s “real” Iron Throne

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If you read the books and watch the show you might have two very different images in your head of how you perceive the Iron Throne. In case you didn’t know, the Iron Throne is the enormous pedestal the ruler of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros sits upon when he reigns over the land and its people inside the world of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire novels and the HBO series Game of Thrones. Martin addressed this matter this week in an explanatory blog post I will extrapolate here. In essence, Martin says it would not be possible to replicate his imagination’s version of the Throne. In his words:

The HBO throne has become iconic. And well it might. It’s a terrific design, and it has served the show very well. There are replicas and paperweights of it in three different sizes. Everyone knows it. I love it. I have all those replicas right here, sitting on my shelves. And yet, and yet… it’s still not right. It’s not the Iron Throne I see when I’m working on THE WINDS OF WINTER. It’s not the Iron Throne I want my readers to see. The way the throne is described in the books… HUGE, hulking, black and twisted, with the steep iron stairs in front, the high seat from which the king looks DOWN on everyone in the court… my throne is a hunched beast looming over the throne room, ugly and assymetric… The HBO throne is none of those things. It’s big, yes, but not nearly as big as the one described in the novels. And for good reason. We have a huge throne room set in Belfast, but not nearly huge enough to hold the Iron Throne as I painted it. For that we’d need something much bigger, more like the interior of St. Paul’s Cathedral or Westminster Abbey, and no set has that much room.

With the Iron Throne the process has been particularly frustrating. A dozen different artists have done versions of the Iron Throne over the years. Some have been very striking, some less so, but none of them have ever been quite RIGHT. Their versions never quite matched what I saw in my mind’s eye.

Until now. Artist Marc Simonetti “has come closer here to capturing the Iron Throne as I picture it than any other artist to tackle it,” admits Martin. “This Iron Throne is massive. Ugly. Assymetric. It’s a throne made by blacksmiths hammering together half-melted, broken, twisted swords, wrenched from the hands of dead men or yielded up by defeated foes… a symbol of conquest… it has the steps I describe, and the height. From on top, the king dominates the throne room. And there are thousands of swords in it, not just a few. This Iron Throne is scary. And not at all a comfortable seat, just as Aegon intended.”

Above, behold the real Iron Throne, or as close as we may ever see one. A more polished version of this work of art will be featured in Martin’s series companion book The World of Ice and Fire coming next year.

 

‘Happy Endings’ officially cancelled, creator breaks silence on the oh-so-unfortunate news

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It’s three seasons and out for ABC’s Happy Endings. After the network cancelled the critical darling and fan-favorite series, backing studio Sony TV made an effort to shop the the show elsewhere. Cable net USA passed on reviving it, and apparently so did the rest. On July 1 the cast’s options expired and now they are free to look elsewhere for work. But never again will they all team up as Jane, Alex, Dave, Max, Brad, and Penny and that’s the real shame here. (In a world where Arrested Development saw new life seven years after its premature cancellation, perhaps never say never?)

With my personal grieving out of the way, it’s time to hear from Happy Endings series creator David Caspe and executive producer Jonathan Groff. They recently broke their silence surrounding the show being axed and they shared their thoughts in an interview with TVLine.

On talks with bringing the show to USA: “It was as close as it could come without happening,” says Caspe. Darn!! Now it stings even more.

On potential season four storylines: “We knew we couldn’t do Dave and Penny until we got Dave and Alex sorted out,” Caspe shared. At the end of Season 3, they got the break-up that they really needed to have, which is one with an even playing field and nobody having left anyone at the altar. We wanted to have them break up in an amicable way so we could go back to telling Dave’s dating stories in a way that was more serious, or Alex dating and what that would mean for the group in a way that was more even-handed. Would Penny have been part of that? Maybe. I think we would have needed to regroup because Penny and Alex are so close and that relationship is so important and they’ve known each other their whole lives. [It’s similar to] the way it was tricky for Barney and Robin to hook up on How I Met Your Mother. It didn’t come without some degree of difficulty for Ted and Barney’s relationship. We would have had to handle that. And maybe we would have, I’m not sure.”

On the possibility of reviving the show in the future: “I would never say never to anything. We would always be open to talking about it. But the only way to move on is to move on. We have other stuff that we’ve gotta do. Who knows? I’m sure when they moved on from Arrested Development they never imagined that seven years later they would do it again. If you’re thinking that it’s gonna happen as a writer, you’re not focusing on the new stuff you have to work on. None of us would ever close the door, but I can’t really spend too much time hoping for that.”

For more words, read the full interview at TVLine.

Warner Bros. promotes ‘Big Bang’, ‘The Following’ & ‘Revolution’ with Comic Con caped-bags

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As is tradition, Warner Bros. sponsors the big bags Comic Con attendees receives upon arrival at the San Diego Convention Center every summer. This year, the TV studio is promoting cult-fav shows like The Big Bang Theory, The Following, Revolution, Arrow, Supernatural, and Teen Titans Go!. The bags double as backpacks with straps, and a small detachable cape is provided just in case you forget your branded cosplay. Over 130,000 bags are being produced for Comic Con, so there should be plenty to go around. Check ’em out in the gallery below. Comic Con begins Wednesday, July 17 with Preview Night and runs through Sunday the 21st.

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