Justin Timberlake’s “Tunnel Vision” music video strips & strides (NSFW: nudity)

“Tunnel Vision” is a fine choice as the third single off Justin Timberlake’s new album The 20/20 Experience. Like “Suit & Tie” and “Mirrors” before it, it contains that infectious flow with executive producer Timbaland’s signature touch that emits freaky sound effects you can’t help but groove along to. Above, eye the dual nature of the track’s single artwork; it’s JT, no, wait, it’s a naked woman! The song’s music video grows naturally from here, featuring a cool, quick-on-his-feet Timberlake whose dance moves embody Timbaland’s beats with perfection and many, many naked women whose breasts are supple with desire. “I got that tunnel vision for you / I got that tunnel vision, I only see you,” croons JT. Look out for Timba, too; he’s in there! The racy, intoxicating clip awaits after the break. Continue reading Justin Timberlake’s “Tunnel Vision” music video strips & strides (NSFW: nudity)

Kanye West goes CGI in leaked music video for “Black Skinhead” [Update: Final version with interactive twist is up]

Kanye West opted out of a traditional marketing campaign when he launched his sixth studio album Yeezus last month. There was no lead single, there was no radio play. He performed two tracks when he visited Saturday Night Live, he previewed a number of songs at New York’s Governors Ball music festival, and he projected himself on buildings around the world leading up to the album’s release. Unorthodox, yes; but we’re talking about Kanye West here, remember.

The rapper is still tied to a record label (read: Universal Music Group) and so he’s likely been guided to select a track to become Yeezus‘s lead single. The winner is the harsh yet addicting romp “Black Skinhead;” it’s making its way onto the radio in edited form and a new music video for it has leaked onto the ‘Net. There’s no telling whether or not this is the real deal–it originally landed on a Universal Music staging site that is now password protected–but nevertheless it’s provocative and worth a watch. In it a CGI West with major muscles raps shirtless (and at times pants-less) inside a black void that’s pixelated and made to look homemade. It borrows the dark imagery from his SNL performance and still manages to reel you in and not let go until the very end. It’s bizarre, it’s different, it’s Kanye.

Update (7/9): A day after the leak Kanye addressed it on Twitter claiming it is not the final version of the music video. Across six tweets he said, “The BLKKK SKKKN HD video that leaked yesterday was not the official version. Me and Nick Knight have been working on this video for 5 months and for creatives it’s heartbreaking when something like this happens. The final version will be ready within the next week. So any website that may have the unapproved / unfinished ruff. I ask you to please take it down. Allow me and Nick to give the world what we’ve been losing sleep over. And to who ever leaked the video… FUK YOU!”

In consideration, I’ve taken down the leaked cut and will post the final version when it launches soon. Even Rapdose, the source of the leak, removed it from their website. It’s still hanging around though (like at Billboard.com) if you’re curious.

Update (7/22): The final version of the “Black Skinhead” music video is up and it’s only accessible via kanyewest.com. That’s because there’s an interactive element to it; in addition to some aesthetic changes, the main difference between the leak and the final cut is that this one’s playing speed can be manipulated by the viewer. Using your curser which happens to be giving the finger you can speed up and slow down the clip as it’s rolling (the slight lag time is disappointing, though). There’s also a social element as well; viewers can snap photos at any time and post their pics to Twitter and the like. Give the Nick Knight-directed interactive experience a go at Kanye’s site.

Netflix’s next original show ‘Orange is the New Black’ premieres July 11

Netflix is on a roll with pushing out exclusive content. First it was Lillyhammer with Steven Van Zandt, next it was David Fincher’s House of Cards with Kevin Spacey, then came the resurrection of Arrested Development, and now get ready for Orange is the New Black from Weeds creator Jenji Kohan. It’s loosely based on Piper Kerman’s memoir Orange Is The New Black: My Year In a Women’s Prison. Over the course of 13 episodes–all available simultaneously on Netflix starting July 11–viewers will witness a fish-out-of-water story following Taylor Schilling (The Lucky One) playing a version of Piper Kerman, a woman who all of a sudden finds herself locked behind bars. A synopsis follows with a trailer posted after the break.

Created and executive produced by Jenji Kohan (“Weeds”) and based on the U.S. best-selling memoir of the same name by Piper Kerman, the comedic drama starring Taylor Schilling follows engaged-Brooklynite Piper Chapman (Schilling) whose decade-old relationship with drug-runner Alex (Laura Prepon) results in her arrest and year-long detention in a federal penitentiary. To pay her debt to society, Piper must trade her comfortable New York life with fiancé  Larry (Jason Biggs) for an orange jumpsuit and a baffling prison culture where she is forced to question everything she believes and form unexpected new alliances with a group of eccentric and outspoken inmates. Continue reading Netflix’s next original show ‘Orange is the New Black’ premieres July 11

‘OUAT in Wonderland’ scoop: a longer season promised with hope for more stories to tell

Once fans, perk up! Originally envisioned as a standalone, limited series to bridge the gap during Once Upon A Time‘s winter hiatus, spinoff Once Upon A Time In Wonderland is spinning into a more traditional series for the alphabet network. At the Upfronts, ABC announced that Wonderland will air concurrently in the fall alongside the flagship series; OUAT remains at Sundays at 8 and Wonderland slides into the Thursday at 8 timeslot. And now, EW reports that the original episode order of 13 is being expanded; a final count is still unknown but it will fall between 14 and 21 in total. Traditionally, a show will get a 13 episode order and if it fares well in the ratings it will get “picked up” for a “back nine” or 9 additional episodes usually rounding a full season out at 22 installments. ABC is so confident in this spinoff, however, that it is allowing creators Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis to craft a story with exactly the right amount of episodes required to tell it.

“We really want to tell the story without having to worry about how to stretch it for five years,” says Kitsis. “The upfront order will be it for the season.” Adds Horowitz, “This is not meant to be a 22-episode season. Whatever it ends up being, we’ll have told a complete story, with a beginning, middle and end.”

So Wonderland remains a standalone tale, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it can’t come back for more. “If the audience responds and people love these characters, the plan would be to bring it back next year and tell a whole new story,” Horowitz says.

The creative duo describe the difference between the flagship series and its spinoff. Once from the beginning was imagined as a long, intricate tale with multiple story arcs that necessitate more than one season to properly pull off. Wonderland, on the other hand, is inherently designed to open and close a major arc inside a single season, much like FX’s American Horror Story does.

On Wonderland Horowitz remarks, “The DNA of this show is different and consciously so. The idea is you can just come on in and enjoy the ride.” Adds Kitsis, “If you’ve seen Once, you’ll be rewarded; if you haven’t, you won’t miss a beat.”

OUAT returns and OUAT In Wonderland premieres this fall on ABC. Watch the Upfronts trailer for Wonderland here.

More ‘Arrested Development’ clips: Mitch Hurwitz and the cast on bringing back the show

It will never get old celebrating the comeback of cult classic comedy Arrested Development. Let the good times ride with these new AD clips featuring creator Mitch Hurwitz,the all-star cast, and some behind-the-scenes footage. Embedded above you’ll hear from the lot of them and get to see just how excited they all were to bring the band back together. After the break catch featurettes on characters like George Michael, Gob, Buster; plus, get an inside look at how the show’s wardrobe department works and the many challenges they faced in making the new season. Continue reading More ‘Arrested Development’ clips: Mitch Hurwitz and the cast on bringing back the show

‘The Hobbit’ production vlog #11: Peter Jackson confirms no ‘Smaug’ at Comic Con

It’s been a long while since we last heard from director Peter Jackson in a Hobbit production diary vlog; but just like he promised he returned to preview the next movie in The Hobbit trilogy. To start things off, Jackson delivered rather unfortunate news that The Desolation of Smaug will not make an appearance at Comic Con later this month. His crew and the stars will all be busy as the next two films are still in production and Jackson admits that he simply doesn’t have time to shift focus on preparing a sizzle reel for fans at the moment. With that said, our guide takes us back to Middle Earth for pickups. Though prinicipal photography wrapped in July of last year, the director explains that the gang was required to get back together to re-shoot certain scenes and additional footage that previously couldn’t be done due to factors like bad weather and other unforeseen circumstances. “It’s a reunion of people, props, and sets,” he says. He goes on to mention the upcoming Battle of Five Armies featuring the dwarves coming in the third pic There And Back Again, and we also get to hear from the luminous Evangeline Lilly who plays the elf Tauriel.

Like the rest before, this production vlog is jam-packed with all sorts of Hobbit goodness for fans to scan and devour. Witness locations, sets, costumes, and characters come back to life in this vlog all about pickups. And stay tuned; Jackson hints at another diary coming soon when pickup shooting concludes. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug hits theatres December 13.

Editor’s Note: The tenth and final Hobbit production diary that covers the days and hours leading up to and including the world premiere of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is posted after the break in case you missed it, like me. Continue reading ‘The Hobbit’ production vlog #11: Peter Jackson confirms no ‘Smaug’ at Comic Con

Movie trailer round-up: “In Saturn’s Rings” takes you into real space, Laika’s next animated pic “The Boxtrolls” & more

There are countless movies that take us into the great unknown called space. The recent summer blockbuster Star Trek Into Darkness wowed audiences with its grand special effects as the USS Enterprise battled the Vengeance among the stars. With today’s advanced computer technology filmmakers can make us truly believe we are witnessing action taking place in space. However, if you’re looking to actually journey into space in theatres, you might want to put In Saturn’s Rings on your radar.

With the aid of equipment set up in Saturn’s orbit, filmmaker Stephen van Vuuren has been capturing over a million extremely high-resolution images and stitching them all together to form a 45-minute trek around the sixth planet from the sun. He notes:

The film is 100% created using only flat 2D photographs (often hundreds or thousands per frame) stitched together for massive hundred megapixel+ resolutions that are scaled and zoomed using techniques developed by the filmmaker, based on Ken Burns and 2.5D photo animation processes. No 3D models, texture mapping, 3D CGI, camera projection, cloning or painting or any other VFX techniques are used – every pixel is what was captured in the photograph. The photographs are processed as minimally as possible – much less than your average Instagram photo.

Catch a first look at the breathtaking film in a teaser embedded above. Experience space like never before when In Saturn’s Rings comes exclusively to IMAX theatres in spring 2014.

Jump after the break for more trailers. Continue reading Movie trailer round-up: “In Saturn’s Rings” takes you into real space, Laika’s next animated pic “The Boxtrolls” & more

Kid Cudi drops WZRD-produced track “Going To The Ceremony”

Out of nowhere, months after debuting his fourth studio album Indicud, Kid Cudi released a never-before-heard track titled “Going To The Ceremony.” In the SoundCloud stream, embedded below for your listening pleasure, Cudder acknowledges that it’s WZRD-produced, meaning his WZRD partner Dot Da Genius also had a hand in the production of the guitar-tinged song. Whether or not it was made during WZRD‘s production window to be left on the cutting room floor remains unknown. On the song streaming site Cudi leaves a note, “it’s all happening.” Is WZRD 2 in the works? I leave you with this.

Daft Punk remixes R.A.M.’s “Get Lucky”

Can’t get enough of “Get Lucky,” the irresistable hit single off Daft Punk’s latest prize Random Access Memories? Well the Pharrell Williams assisted and Nile Rodgers enhanced track has been remixed by the electronic duo themselves. Clocking it at over 10 minutes in length, the remix does not deviate too far from its original incarnation, but it’s chopped and mixed up just enough to notice and appreciate the revitalized orchestration. The remix streams exclusively on Spotify; log in and listen to it after the break. Also after the jump you’ll find a video promo for the new track. Buy “Get Lucky” (Daft Punk Remix) on iTunes and preorder the vinyl here which drops July 16. Continue reading Daft Punk remixes R.A.M.’s “Get Lucky”

TV reminder: ‘Under the Dome’ premieres Monday, June 24 at 10PM on CBS (extended trailer inside) [Update: big ratings]

It’s finally here: a series premiering on network TV over the summer that is worth watching.

From executive producer Steven Spielberg and showrunner Brian K. Vaughan (Lost) comes Under the Dome, a series based the 2009 Stephen King novel that is the story of a small New England town named Chester’s Mill that is suddenly and inexplicably sealed off from the rest of the world by an enormous transparent dome. The town’s residents need to survive the deteriorating post-apocalyptic conditions while searching for answers to what this barrier is, where it came from, and how to make it go away.

Under the Dome stars Mike Vogel (Bates Motel), Rachelle Lefevre, Dean Norris (Breaking Bad), Natalie Martinez, Britt Robertson (The Secret Circle), Alexander Koch, Colin Ford, Nicholas Strong, Jolene Purdy, and Aisha Hinds. And for you Lost fans, you’ll spot Frank Lapidus himself, Jeff Fahey, too.

Though CBS is touting it as a “mini-series event,” Vaughn and his creative team envision the story expanding to multiple seasons if ratings allow for it.

Is the dome an act of terror or an act of God? The mystery unravels starting Monday night at 10PM on CBS. Jump after the break to watch a new extended trailer hyping Under the Dome. And don’t forget to take in the touching key art posted above of a boy separated from his dog.

Update (6/25): You wouldn’t think we were in network TV off-season if you looked at the big numbers CBS’ Under the Dome took in last night. Check it: 13.1 million viewers tuned into the buzzy Stephen King adaptation and it scored a solid 3.2/9 rating in the 18-49 demo. It’s the most watched summer debut on network TV since NBC premiered The Singing Bee in 2007 and CBS’ most watched summer series premiere since Big Brother in 2000. In the coveted 18-49 demo, it ranks as CBS’ highest rated summer debut since some show called Fire Me…Please circa 2005. And get this: Under the Dome goes head-to-head with some of last season’s most popular dramas that premiered in the fall and midseason; it ties Fox’s The Following as the second-highest-rated drama premiere of the 2012-13 season behind NBC’s Revolution. I predict a ratings climb next week; but even if the numbers were to remain steady here, it won’t be long before the Eye announces a second season. As it stands, the Dome is a bonafide hit. Continue reading TV reminder: ‘Under the Dome’ premieres Monday, June 24 at 10PM on CBS (extended trailer inside) [Update: big ratings]

Netflix renews ‘Hemlock Grove’ for a second season

Hemlock Grove, Eli Roth’s horror series produced for Netflix is coming back for more. On Wednesday the streaming service renewed the series based on Brian McGreevy’s gothic horror novel for a 10-episode second season to premiere all-at-once sometime next year. Chic Eglee–a veteran TV producer who’s worked on shows like The Walking Dead, Dexter, and The Shield–is joining Hemlock Grove as an executive producer in season 2.

Executive producer Roth on the renewal: “The worldwide fan response to Hemlock Grove was phenomenal. Netflix members loved the potent combination of sexy monsters, mystery, and the dark family soap opera that ended with a huge twist, leaving audiences worldwide totally shocked. Season One was just a warm up for what we have in store for season two. Get ready to be scared in ways you never expected.”

Netflix VP of Original Content Cindy Holland: “In its first season, Eli, Brian, [exec producer] Lee [Shipman] and the team did an incredible job of introducing viewers to a unique world of memorable charactersChic’s addition to the show, and his experience on such fan favorites as The ShieldThe Walking Deadand Dexter, will heighten the intensity of the mystery that grips Hemlock Grove.”

[Via Deadline]

‘Community’s Dan Harmon poops on season 4, issues lengthy apology

Since Dan Harmon confirmed he was returning to Community to executive produce the NBC sitcom he created, he didn’t wait long to take a giant proverbial dump on the entirety of season 4, the one in which he had no involvement. Before he could start imagining the fifth season of the show, he forced himself to sift through the previous season to catch up on what happened during his off-season, a result of him being fired by Sony TV. In his unfiltered podcast called Harmontown he spat out the following:

“It’s very much like an impression and an unflattering one. It’s very much like an impression — an unflattering one. It’s 13 episodes of people doing, ‘Derpy, derpy, der, I’m Dan Harmon, der.’ I’m going back to work tomorrow morning and I’m just like, do I talk like that?”

He compared watching the fourth season to “flipping through Instagram watching your girlfriend blow a million [people].”

He went further: “There’s something awesome about having all of those preconceived notions kind of ripped away from you. It’s exciting. There’s something awesome about being held down and watching your family get raped on a beach. It’s liberating. It makes you focus on what’s important.”

Later: “There’s a system in place that’s winning because I would have had too much leverage, too much power, too much salary as would have a lot of writers coming into Season 4. So they just flushed us, and replaced us with two guys who didn’t know what they were getting into… Writers fighting other writers is the American Dream in the eyes of Sony. That is what they want. They want creative people rewriting each other. They want creative people replacing each other. They want us interchangeable. They want to think about writing the way they think about the guy on assembly line 24 that puts the final screw in the fucking Playstation… I shouldn’t even say ‘they’ because it’s an ‘it,’ it’s a fucking machine. There isn’t a single person that works at that corporation that isn’t also thought of like that by the fucking SkyNet… The system just wants us all to not be human.”

A day after the Harmontown rant, Harmon took to his Tumblr to share a formal apology to those involved with the show and its fans. He tweeted, “I feel bad if I made anyone feel bad with my comments in harmontown. It’s a dirty, personal comedy podcast, not charismatic for quoting. I like making stuff that pleases people, I like being honest about my feelings but I hate hurting other people, especially community fans.” You can read his lengthy apology post here.

With the firing, the rehiring, and the Harmontown rant behind him, hopefully the sorrowful showrunner can now return to making Community great again in its fifth and possibly final season.