Spring is here! Though we may be nearing the month where most of your favorite TV series wrap up for summer (I’m looking at you, May!), that doesn’t mean this is the end. In fact, there are a whopping 10 series premiering this month, four of which are brand new and demand your attention. Jump after the break for what you need to know. Continue reading TV reminder: 10 premieres to look out for in April
Quick update on series renewals. The following shows will return for a new season!
Netflix has renewed House of Cards and freshman Bloodline for fourth and second seasons, respectively. Showtime’s House of Lies and Shameless are coming back for fifth and sixth seasons. The Cold War will continue on FX’s The Americans in a fourth season. And Fox sitcom New Girl isn’t going anywhere anytime soon with a fifth season pickup.
Showtime exec Gary Levine on the House of Lies pickup: “When you have a gifted acting ensemble led by Don Cheadle and smart, acerbic writing led by showrunner Matthew Carnahan, you expect something special, and House of Lies delivers for us each season.”
FX exec Nick Grad on The Americans: “Remarkably, this season of The Americans has achieved even greater acclaim than that of its first two seasons. The series has cemented it status with critics as television’s best current drama and arguably the best show on TV, and we couldn’t agree more… We look forward to the final four episodes of season three, and beyond, in Philip and Elizabeth Jennings’ riveting journey.”
Fox exec David Madden on New Girl: “Four seasons in, New Girl continues to be one of the smartest and most relatable comedies on television. The writing is razor-sharp, the ensemble is consistently hilarious, and we couldn’t be more proud of… the entire New Girl team. We absolutely love this show and we’re so excited to bring it back for Season Five.”
In related New Girl news, Jon Cho (Selfie, Sleepy Hollow) will guest star in season 5, as will Anna George (Royal Pains) who is confirmed to play CeCe’s mother. Damon Wayans, Jr., sadly, is departing as a series regular at the end of the current season.
Update (4/8): Phil Miller, The Last Man on Earth, will return in a second season! Though it’s still in its infancy, the high concept comedy has already proven to be all kinds of fun and funny. Series creator Will Forte shines as star alongside an ever-growing cast that also includes the perfectly cast Kristen Schaal, infectious nice-guy Mel Rodriguez, and the stunningly beautiful January Jones. The adventures in Tucson will continue, and I couldn’t be happier.
“We knew we had something special with The Last Man on Earth,” says Fox’s David Madden. “It’s one of those rare shows that continues to add depth and dimension to its unique premise, week after week. We are so thrilled that this incredibly bold, original and inventive series has been embraced by both fans and critics, and we cannot wait to see where the creative genius and inspired vision of Will, Phil [Lord] and Chris [Miller] take us in Season Two.”
The cake is a lie. We should have known.
Remember when the Internet got all excited about a potential Happy Endings comeback? Well, it was one big April Fools prank. Series creator David Caspe confirmed to Entertainment Weekly that the countdown clock teasing “a new day” was actually set up by a former Happy Endings writer or assistant without his knowledge as a simple gag. A gag that would take the ‘Net by storm and excite fans of the short-lived cult NBC sitcom. Caspe elaborated to EW:
“It took on a life of its own to the point that actually there was some interest in finding a place to do a few more episodes or an hourlong special. So then I couldn’t comment because I wasn’t allowed to say anything yet. But as we hit April 1, nothing has really panned out, and I don’t want to keep people hanging on, so I have to say something. Happy Endings remains cancelled for now. Hopefully one day we’ll be able to do an hourlong or a couple stand-alone episodes, and I’ve talked to the cast about even just doing a five-minute cold open. I want to apologize to anyone who is annoyed. It was just a writers’ room bit that kind of got away from them. I realized that this could piss off a lot of fans, and our hardcore fans and critics are all we’ve ever had…. But I also have to say that it was really awesome to see how much love there was for the show. We didn’t really think anyone was watching anymore. It was great to see that someone was.”
Perhaps the rather cruel joke was worth going through after all! Now that Caspe and co. sense the strength and furor of the series’ fanbase, maybe they can use this to pull the Happy team back for an actual reunion at some point.
“The cast wants to do it and the writers want to do it,” Caspe said. “It wouldn’t shock me if we did something. Never say never because something may pan out in the future.”
“Happy…April Fools’ Day! Sorry! All for fun. Caspe & Co had nothing to do with it. Thanks for being so hyper-passionate about the show.” That’s the tweet that was fired out on the first of the month from the Happy Endings writers Twitter account that started it all. Here’s to hoping our collective hyper-passion will indeed bring back our beloved comedy soon.
[Via EW]
Billy Eichner follows up his face time with the First Lady and Big Bird with a lightening fast round of Billy on the Street with almost-out-the-door Late Show host David Letterman. Though you might think that at this point the streets of New York City would be prepared for Eichner’s ADD-comedy, they never, ever are. Enjoy some brand new Billy on the Street…street, street, street.
Sony’s got a new PS4 SKU in the works. No, it’s not quite as fancy (or incredibly rare) as the previously released 20th Anniversary console, but it’s something! Especially if you’re a fan of the Caped Crusader. To celebrate the upcoming summer release of the third and final entry in the Batman: Arkham video game trilogy, Sony is producing limited edition hardware featuring custom artwork. For $449.99, you can get the steel grey PS4 with a custom Batman: Arkham Knight faceplate, a matching steel grey DualShock 4 wireless controller, and of course a copy of Arkham Knight. Sony will also be selling an Arkham Knight bundle that includes the title and a standard jet black console and matching controller for $399.99. Both bundles will launch alongside the game on June 23. Preorder today.
[Via PS Blog]
Calling all Tron fans. Say what you will about the flashy sequel Tron: Legacy, but it’s hard to deny just how cool the flick is in the visual effects department. Perhaps the most bleeding cool thing from the movie is the modernized Light Cycle; see the original version here, and the updated model here. Now’s your chance to actually own a fully-functioning Light Cycle-inspired electric motorcycle. The Andrews Collection, a car collector, has completed production on the custom-made bike that entirely resembles the new Light Cycle as featured in Tron: Legacy. For all you moto enthusiasts out there, the bike features a 96 volt, direct-drive electric motor with lithium batteries and a computer-controlled throttle, rebound and compression damping with spring-preload front suspension and rigid rear suspension, and front and rear hydraulic brakes. It also sports a low seat height of 28.5 inches, making it easy to ride even at low speeds, says the Andrews family. The sleek replica is being prepared for an auction that will take place on May 2 and it’s expected to sell for anywhere between $25,000 and $40,000. Yep, that probably puts a damper on things for most of you, but that doesn’t mean you can’t fully take in the beauty that is this real-life Light Cycle.
Salivate in the gallery below, and just imagine how freakin’ rad it’d be to ride this thing around whilst blasting Tron: Legacy‘s Daft Punk soundtrack in the background. It’s fun to use your imagination!
Update (5/11): In case you were wondering, the Tron bike sold for $77,000. Crazy, huh? Perhaps for a die-hard Tron fan, maybe not so much.
[Via Engadget; RM Auctions]
In December, director Sam Mendes introduced to the world the next Bond film, SPECTRE, with the cast and car in tow. Today, we get our first look. Daniel Craig is back as 007 for the fourth time and his past comes to haunt him here. Dangling threads from Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace, and Skyfall come to a head in SPECTRE and Bond is forced to face the sinister Hannes Oberhauser, played already to perfection by Christoph Waltz. Though Waltz is credited as portraying Oberhauser, I had speculated that he’d end up being Ernst Stavro Blofeld, the actual head of the SPECTRE organization. (SPECTRE, remember, is an acronym that stands for SPecial Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion.) In the teaser, Waltz’ Oberhauser tells Bond, “It’s been a long time. And finally, here we are.” In Bond lore, Oberhauser served as a mentor for Bond before he mysteriously vanished; so perhaps Waltz really is Oberhauser and Blofeld’s portrayer is still being kept under wraps? So much speculation to be had here. It’s just so exciting how serialized Craig’s rendition of Bond has become in terms of his past meeting up with his present to propel the story forward. Watching this latest mystery unfold which has so much to do with Bond’s origins and his connection to SPECTRE and Oberhauser is going to be a fun ride, to say the least.
SPECTRE hits theatres November 6.
Jump after the break to view more trailers. Continue reading Movie trailer round-up: ‘SPECTRE’, ‘Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation’ & ‘Entourage’
After appearing in 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Ryan Reynolds is set to reprise his superhero alter ego Deadpool in his own stand-alone spinoff film. In case you don’t know, Deadpool is perhaps Marvel’s most out-there superhero. Deadpool aka Wade Wilson aka “The Merc with a Mouth” is famous for his tendency to break the fourth wall. In his comic roots and even in video games, the character knows he’s a part of the medium he’s in. So for example, in the upcoming Deadpool movie, Reynolds’ character will be aware that he is in a movie. Freaky, huh? This opens the flood gates for all kinds of off-kilter hilarity.
The official synopsis goes like this: “Based upon Marvel Comics’ most unconventional anti-hero, Deadpool tells the origin story of former Special Forces operative turned mercenary Wade Wilson, who after being subjected to a rogue experiment that leaves him with accelerated healing powers, adopts the alter ego Deadpool. Armed with his new abilities and a dark, twisted sense of humor, Deadpool hunts down the man who nearly destroyed his life.”
Deadpool is being directed by visual effects artist Tim Miller and Reynolds is joined by Morena Baccarin, Ed Skrein, and Gina Carano. It’s due out February 12, 2016. See Reynolds in the suit above; his tweet with the image reads, “With great power, comes great irresponsibility.” It parodies Burt Reynolds’ 1972 nude Cosmo centerfold (which Ryan Reynolds tweeted out for unsuspecting fans).
Update (4/1): Just in time for April Fool’s Day, a cheeky video featuring a faux-interview between Extra’s Mario Lopez and Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds has arrived and it confirms the movie’s R-rating (thank god). And yes, that is Reynolds in the suit. Watch it after the break. Continue reading Ryan Reynolds suits up for ‘Deadpool’ stand-alone spinoff
Henry Cavill is Superman, Ben Affleck is Batman, Gal Gadot is Wonder Woman, Jason Momoa is Aquaman, and Jesse Eisenberg is Lex Luthor in Zack Snyder’s next superhero flick Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice. Here’s our first look at the Social Network star’s villainous turn as Superman’s bald nemesis, provided by Entertainment Weekly. When it was first announced that Eisenberg would be portraying Lex, people were skeptical about him filling those particular shoes. Though we’re still waiting on his performance, this harrowing still should assuage fears about him pulling it off. That’s one intimidating dome. What do you think?
“He’s not any of the Lexes that you’ve seen, that’s for sure,” Snyder tells EW, “other than him being a captain of industry and one person to the world and another person to himself. And bald, of course. Our Lex is disarming and he’s not fake. He says what he believes and he says what’s on his mind. If you can unravel the string and decipher what he means, it’s all there.”
BvS:DoJ releases March 25, 2016.
If you watch The Following on FOX, this is a real treat. To further promote the show, series executive producer and oft-director Marcos Siega put together this eight minute parody video starring Kevin Bacon as himself. Thing is, he acts just like his Following character Ryan Hardy and thinks serial killers–Joe Carroll included–are after him in real life. Co-starring is Dean Winters (currently on CBS’ Battle Creek, but you probably know him from those Allstate commercials), Joe Carroll himself James Purefoy, Michael C. Hall (Dexter, how appropriate), Sam Underwood (he plays the evil twins Mark & Luke Grey on The Following), and Bacon’s real-life wife Kyra Sedgwick makes a memorable cameo. It’s bizarre and fantastic all at the same time. With that and nothing more, enjoy.
The Following airs Mondays at 9pm on FOX.
At last, we no longer have to call it the Walking Dead companion series! On Friday, Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman made it official and announced his new AMC series’ name via Twitter: Fear The Walking Dead. See above for the spinoff’s companion series’ logo.
Up to this point, AMC has been referring to Fear The Walking Dead as a “companion series” as opposed to a “spinoff” because while the new show takes place in the same zombie apocalyptic universe as featured in The Walking Dead, it features a brand new cast and it’s set in a distinctly different location (Los Angeles, not Atlanta). Click over to this post for more details.
And don’t forget! The Walking Dead airs its 90-minute (!) fifth season finale this Sunday night at 9pm on AMC.
Update (3/29): “There’s a strange virus” going around in the first promo for Fear The Walking Dead which made its debut tonight during the season finale of The Walking Dead. The trailer backs up what Kirkman said before:
“From the beginning of the show one thing we’ve heard is, ‘What’s going on over here or there.’ So the intent of the new show is to expand that world and show another corner of the United States and what’s happening there. The timeline is taking place a little bit earlier timeframe than the original show. Rick Grimes woke up from a coma and was like, ‘Oh, man, zombies, weird!’ We’re going to possibly see that unfold a little more in the other show. But I wouldn’t call it ‘prequel’ because the entirety of the show is not going take place before [The Walking Dead]. It will eventually form a path running concurrently.”
Sounds like we’re going to get more insight on how the zombie outbreak unfolded in its early days. Plus, those visuals of cells dividing might be a hint that we’re also going to learn more about the virus and its origins. These are topics mostly untouched by the comics and the flagship TV series. This is pure speculation, of course, but the possibilities are exciting. Watch the promo after the break. Fear premieres this summer on AMC.
[Via TVLine] Continue reading Robert Kirkman confirms ‘Walking Dead’ companion series title [Update: First promo inside]
Following the revivals of Arrested Development and 24, 20th Century Fox Television is bringing back yet another cult TV series. Sci-fi supernatural staple The X-Files is returning as a six-episode event series to FOX. Original series creator Chris Carter is helming it, and stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson are reprising their iconic roles as FBI Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully.
The X-Files ran on FOX for nine seasons; 202 episodes aired between September 1993 and May 2002. Later in 2008, the franchise was adapted for the big screen in The X-Files: I Want to Believe. The series was a success as it dominated pop culture at the time and went on to earn sixteen Emmy awards, five Golden Globes, and a Peabody. Plus, we cannot forget its lasting mark on the sci-fi genre; series like Lost and Fringe likely wouldn’t have existed as they did (if at all) were it not for The X-Files and its lasting legacy for producing riveting stories entwined in mystery, intrigue, and the unknown.
Besides knowing that Carter is steering new paranormal stories for Duchovny and Anderson to investigate, the lid is remaining tight here. So, here are some choice quotes from the press release.
“I think of it as a 13-year commercial break,” said Carter. “The good news is the world has only gotten that much stranger, a perfect time to tell these six stories.”
“We had the privilege of working with Chris on all nine seasons of The X-Files – one of the most rewarding creative experiences of our careers – and we couldn’t be more excited to explore that incredible world with him again,” said Fox network heads Gary Newman and Dana Walden. “The X-Files was not only a seminal show for both the studio and the network, it was a worldwide phenomenon that shaped pop culture – yet remained a true gem for the legions of fans who embraced it from the beginning. Few shows on television have drawn such dedicated fans as The X-Files, and we’re ecstatic to give them the next thrilling chapter of Mulder and Scully they’ve been waiting for.”
Production on the X-Files event series is set to begin this summer. Stick it here for more as it leaks out.