On 2010-01-30 22:17 , honeykid Wrote:


This is awesome news. This is going to be great.

From digitalspy

ABC has ordered a comedy pilot from writer and comedian Dana Gould. The single-camera sitcom stars Gould as a high school guidance counsellor and conflicted father, says The Hollywood Reporter. The character is torn between raising his children using his father's conservative approach and his wife's progressive ideals. Gould is also producing with collaborators Tom Lassally and Dave Becky. The comedian's stand-up routine has been featured on Comedy Central, HBO and Showtime.

CBS has reportedly rejected an ad from a gay dating website submitted for broadcast during the Super Bowl. The spot features two male football fans kissing, according to The Live Feed. In a letter to the site, ManCrunch, the network said that it refused to air the commercial because it "is not within the network's broadcast standards for Super Bowl Sunday". The statement continued: "After reviewing the ad - which is entirely commercial in nature – our standards and practices department decided not to accept this particular spot." CBS maintained that it would consider an alternative ad, should ManCrunch opt to submit one. The network also said that it had trouble verifying that the site could guarantee the $2.5m (£1.56m) cost to air the ad on Super Bowl Sunday. However, ManCruch spokesperson Elissa Butcher stated that the site fully intended to pay for the spot. "If the ad showed a man and woman kissing it would have been accepted. You see ads for erectile dysfunction morning, noon and night. It's discriminatory that they won't show this," Butcher said. Butcher added: "If the ad doesn't air on the Super Bowl, it will air on another network. It's not like it plays like Adam Lambert ."

Nelly has revealed that he is planning a new television series with Jermaine Dupri and Trey Songz. The rapper has described the project as a male version of the ABC chatshow The View. Speaking to BV Buzz, the 35-year-old said: "Not sure if you're familiar with the Ocean's 7 Crew. It's me, Jermaine Dupri, Trey Songz, Johnta Austin, Brian Michael Cox and Tyrone 'International' Davis. We're working on kind of like the male version of The View. "We're working on that. You ever seen that movie called The Ugly Truth? You know how the guy had his show; well we're working on that. I'm starting to do more now, but I wanted to do stuff that made sense to me. I had a lot of offers and a lot of things that probably could've been cool, but I turned it down because I felt I wasn't ready yet. "I never want to disrespect the culture and the thing that is acting, thinking just because I'm Nelly I'm going to transition and be good at it."

Melissa Joan Hart and Joey Lawrence have been picked up by ABC Family for a ten-part run of their new series. Melissa & Joey, which piloted last year, is scheduled to premiere later in the year. Access Hollywood reports that president of ABC Paul Lee said: "We love Melissa and Joey. "Melissa has a long history on the network, and she and Joey recently starred in the network’s original movie My Fake Fiancé which broke records for the network last year. "They have fantastic chemistry and are just so relatable to our viewers. We knew we wanted to get them together again, and developed this comedy specifically with them in mind."

The series finale of Dollhouse could only muster 2.16m for Fox on Friday night, according to early viewing figures. The concluding episode of Joss Whedon's sci-fi saga was up slightly on the audience for the penultimate episode. Dollhouse was edged in the 8pm hour by a new episode of Smallville, which pulled in 2.52m for The CW. ABC's Supernanny brought in a reasonable 4.72m, while a repeat of Law & Order nabbed 6.76m for NBC. CBS's Ghost Whisperer won the hour with 8.34m. CBS continued strongly in the 9pm hour, taking 7.98m with Medium. NBC's Dateline had 7.35m. ABC's Shark Tank was third with 4.38m. The season premiere of Kitchen Nightmares drew 3.28m for Fox, while a repeat of Smallville gathered 1.48m for The CW. At 10pm, Numb3rs dropped to 8.7m but won its slot for CBS, with ABC's 20/20 close behind on 8.07m. The Jay Leno Show put in 4.95m for NBC.


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

Allison Janney has reportedly joined Matthew Perry's new comedy Mr Sunshine. The comedy, which is filmed with a single camera, follows a stadium manager who has an identity crisis on his 40th birthday. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Janney will play Perry's boss Crystal in the show. Janney and Perry starred alongside each other in several episodes of The West Wing. Janney also worked with Mr Sunshine's director Tommy Schlamme on the political drama. ABC picked up the pilot for Mr Sunshine earlier this month.

Cops performed strongly for Fox on Saturday night, the latest viewing figures show. A new episode and repeat of the show averaged 6.19m across the 8pm hour. Elsewhere in the hour, Truth in Motion: Road to Vancouver could only draw 1.78m in a poor hour for NBC. Meanwhile, a repeat of movie The Magic of Ordinary Days was the most-watched show of the evening with 7.32m tuning in between 8pm and 10pm. Repeats of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition averaged 2.86m for ABC during the same period. At 9pm, Fox continued its strong evening as America's Most Wanted interested 5.62m across the hour. A repeat of Law & Order pulled 3.79m for NBC. 48 Hour Mystery won the 10pm hour for CBS with 7.11m, up over 500k on last week. NBC continued its reruns of Law & Order: SVU, coming second with 5.12m. A repeat of Castle was seen by 4.04m for ABC.

Ricky Gervais has confirmed that David Brent will make an appearance in the US version of The Office. The 48-year-old comedian told The Sun that his character will clash with Steve Carell's Michael Scott when he pops up in the show. "I think it would be funny for David Brent to walk into the US Office and hear them go 'Oh my God, there's two of them!'," he said. "We don't need to know about Brent's back story - the English office exists in a cocoon. "Michael Scott could just bump into Brent who is a bloke from England." Gervais added that Brent is likely to be the only character from the UK version making his way over to America. "I don't think we'll take any of the other UK characters over - we'll probably leave it with just me as it's just too complicated."

Orlando Jones has revealed that he may make a permanent return to House. The 41-year-old actor-comedian, who makes his debut on the medical series in tonight's episode, said that he hopes to become a series regular next season. Asked if he will be appearing in more than one episode during the show's current sixth season, he replied: "This season, no. I'm actually on location shooting a movie right now, so I'm sort of out-of-pocket for the rest of their shooting season. "But hopefully I'll rejoin them next season, and we’ll see what happens from there." Jones also teased that his character's storyline will get "a little dicey".

The Jersey Shore cast could reportedly be relocating to the Hamptons for the second series. MTV recently confirmed that the reality show, which followed a group of friends as they spent the summer together, would return later this year but in a "new destination". According to the New York Post, representatives for the show have been viewing locations in the Hamptons and Delaware. However, the Chicago Sun-Times has reported that Miami's South Beach and Los Angeles destinations are also being discussed. MTV has yet to comment on the reports or confirm the destination. Jersey Shore star Nicole 'Snooki' Polizzi recently suggested that fans could expect "crazy stuff" when the show returns this summer.


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

Lost stars Matthew Fox and Evangeline Lilly have both said that they are quitting television acting after the show wraps its current and final season. Speaking to E! at the Lost season premiere party in Honolulu, Fox revealed that he is done with TV and hopes to move on to film roles or something else entirely. "I think this will be the last time you see me on TV," he said. Fox, who plays Jack Shephard on the programme, added: "I'm either going to do the kind of things I want to do in the film world, or maybe I'll just do something else entirely." Lilly (Kate Austen) hinted that she might quit acting altogether, opting for an off-screen role in film or doing philanthropic work in Rwanda. "I'm not passionate about acting the way you probably should be to call yourself an actor," Lilly said.

The 52nd Grammy Awards drew a huge audience for CBS last night, early viewing figures show. The ceremony, which saw Beyoncé pick up six awards including 'Best Contemporary R&B Album' for I Am... Sasha Fierce, averaged 26.61m for the Eye network between 8pm and 11pm. Over on NBC, Dateline logged 4.92m at 8pm, then the audience dropped to 3.07m during the two-hour SNL Sports All-Stars event. ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition pulled in 8.53m during the 8pm hour, then Desperate Housewives and Brothers & Sisters put in 11.43m and 7.72m at 9pm and 10pm respectively. The Simpsons and The Cleveland Show interested 5.11m and 4.53m for Fox during the 8pm hour, then 6.21m watched Family Guy at 9pm. American Dad followed at 9.30pm, drawing 5.06m.

NBC has renewed sitcom Parks and Recreation for a third season. The network picked up the comedy early in order to "lock in" performers' schedules, says The Hollywood Reporter. The show has reportedly seen an upswing in viewership this season, ranking among the top 15 primetime network programmes viewed by the upscale 18-49 demographic. Parks and Recreation, starring Amy Poehler and Aziz Ansari, airs Thursday nights on NBC.


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

Fred Willard and Swoosie Kurtz have signed to guest star on NBC action comedy Chuck. According to Entertainment Weekly, the pair will portray a spy couple in a forthcoming episode of the series. The instalment will air toward the end of the current season. Willard, a comedy TV staple, recently guest starred on an episode of ABC's Modern Family. Ward has appeared on Heroes, Nurse Jackie and Rita Rocks.

Syfy has announced plans to air five TV movies based on fairy tales. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the cable network will broadcast contemporary film versions of Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel and three other classic stories. The projects will air on Saturday nights starting February 27 with Beauty and the Beast. "It's exciting to take a treasured brand and put our own sideways spin on it," said Thomas Vitale, executive VP programming and original movies at Syfy. He added: "By turning familiar timeless stories inside out, we're creating an entertaining new genre for our popular Saturday night movie franchise." The network found ratings success with Alice, a TV movie based on Alice in Wonderland.

Interior designer and decorator Nate Berkus has received a television deal to host The Nate Berkus Show, according to The New York Times. Berkus rose to fame after regular guest appearances on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Winfrey's production company Harpo, along with Sony Pictures Television, will produce the show and is expected to make a public announcement on Wednesday. "Nate is a bona fide star," said Erik Logan, co-president of Harpo Productions. “We know our viewers love him.” “When Nate appears with Oprah, the ratings spike”, said John Weiser, president of distribution for Sony Pictures Television. Weiser claimed that total audience ratings increased by 13% when Berkus joined Winfrey and by 20% for women viewers between 25 and 54 years old. Berkus is the latest in a growing list of Oprah-spawned hosts that includes Dr Phil McGraw and Rachael Ray.

Ricky Gervais has revealed that it is his ambition to write a drama series for US audiences. Speaking to The Sun, the 48-year-old comedian said that he admires shows like Dexter and Damages. "I would like to write a show for US TV because there's different ambitions," he said. "They're coming out with the best comedy and drama the world has ever seen at the moment. "I'd probably like to do something like Dexter. It's great, really different and dramatic but funny too. We're nowhere near quality like that in the UK. Damages is another great US show... nowhere near it." He also praised comedy series Arrested Development and Curb Your Enthusiasm.

The writers of House have admitted that it is becoming increasingly hard to write for the show. During a Twitter interview conducted by director Greg Yaitanes, Garrett Lerner and Russel Friend said that they are running out of medical conditions to use on the drama. When asked if it is becoming easier to write for House as the seasons continue, they responded: " harder. There are so many illnesses." Lerner and Friend also named 'House's Head', the first part of the season four finale, as their favourite episode to date.


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

James Van Der Beek may direct a future episode of The Vampire Diaries, Digital Spy has learned. The former Dawson's Creek star has entered discussions with Diaries creator Kevin Williamson, who also worked on Dawson's. Asked if the pair are still in touch, Van Der Beek replied: "Yeah I do talk to him actually - fairly regularly." He added that Williamson has not approached him for a part on The Vampire Diaries, but confirmed that they have been "talking about maybe going down and directing one of the episodes".

Matthew Broderick has reportedly signed up to star in a new NBC comedy pilot. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the 47-year-old actor is attached to Beach Lane, which was given the green light yesterday. The project revolves around a celebrity author (Broderick) hired by a millionaire heir to run his struggling newspaper based in the Hamptons. Broderick, who is married to Sarah Jessica Parker, recently revealed that he turned down repeat offers to star in Sex And The City. In other pilot news, CBS has greenlit a medical drama project from ER chief John Wells and an NYC cop-based drama called Reagan's Law.

James Van Der Beek has ruled out a Dawson's Creek return. The 32-year-old actor, who played the lead role of Dawson Leery, told Digital Spy that it is unlikely the show will make a comeback. Asked about the possibility of a Ten Years Later special, he replied: "I think we already did that for the end of the show - we jumped ahead by a couple of years." He added that he believes his alter ego is "probably directing somewhere" and said that he would be keen to work with his former co-stars on new projects.

24 dropped around 930,000 viewers last night, early figures show. The latest instalment of Day 8 pulled in 9.76m during the 9pm hour, down from last week's 10.69m. The current season has steadily declined since its premiere on Sunday, January 17. Earlier on Fox, House, which featured guest star Orlando Jones, drew 13.35m at 8pm. How I Met Your Mother and Accidentally On Purpose logged 9.37m and 8.53m for CBS during the 8pm hour, then 16.5m watched Two And A Half Men at 9pm. The Big Bang Theory followed at 9.30pm, drawing 15.44m, then the 10pm CSI: Miami took 13.3m. Bachelor: On The Wings Of Love averaged 11.66m for ABC across the 8pm to 10pm period, then a rerun of Castle interested 7.96m during the 10pm hour. Chuck managed 6.72m for NBC at 8pm, then the audience dropped to 4.4m for the penultimate episode of Heroes at 9pm. The Jay Leno Show brought in 3.91m during the 10pm hour. Over on The CW, One Tree Hill and Life Unexpected put in 2.15m and 2.07m at 8pm and 9pm respectively.

CBS has confirmed that it has sold all of its advertising space for the upcoming Super Bowl game. The Los Angeles Times reports that the network is expected to pull in 100 million viewers this weekend. Over $200m (£125m) will reportedly be spent on advertisements during the televised event, which is traditionally the most-watched programme of the year in the US. Jo Ann Ross, president of CBS network sales, confirmed: "We have had a healthy sales effort, and the game is full of blue-chip advertisers. We still have a few spots left in the pre-game hours, but the Super Bowl itself is sold out." Mike Sheldon of advertising agency Deutch LA said: "It used to be a championship football game, then it became an advertising showcase, and now the Super Bowl has turned into a microphone for special interests. It has become so much bigger than a football game." The chief executive, who secured slots for Dr Pepper Cherry and Volkswagen, added: "This is the only media event where some 90 million people watch, and they want to see your advertising. In every other medium, people are clicking on their remotes or turning the pages to try to get away from your advertising."


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

Resident Evil: Extinction director Russell Mulcahy has signed to direct MTV's Teen Wolf remake. Shock Till You Drop reports that Mulcahy will helm the pilot, an update of the 1985 comedy starring Michael J. Fox. Young actors Tyler Posey, Tyler Hoechlin, Crystal Reed and Dylan O'Brien joined the pilot presentation in December. Criminal Minds scribe Jeff Davis is scripting the pilot.

Oprah Winfrey's OWN network will launch a behind-the-scenes reality series about her chatshow. According to The New York Times, a contract agreement prevents Winfrey from appearing on another talk programme until her current syndicated series ends in September 2011. Instead of hosting another chatshow on OWN, which launches next January, the network will debut Behind the Scenes: Oprah's 25th Season, a weekly reality show about the production of Winfrey's Emmy-winning daytime series. OWN is also launching four other unscripted series, including Kid-napped, in which children 'kidnap' their overworked parents, and Sentenced, which takes place at a women's prison in India.

Reno Wilson and Katy Mixon have joined the cast of CBS pilot Mike and Molly. Mike and Molly will feature overweight cop Mike and his love interest, Molly, who meet at an Overeaters Anonymous meeting, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The romantic comedy is the project of producer Chuck Lorre, who was also the brains behind shows such as The Big Bang Theory, Dharma and Greg and Grace Under Fire. Wilson will play Mike's partner at the police department and Mixon will play Molly's older sister. The premiere date for Mike and Molly is not yet known.

Hayden Panettiere's pilot HMS has received a presentation order from The CW. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the project has gathered interest at the network along with two others titled Hellcats and Betwixt. HMS focuses on a group of sexy Harvard Medical School students and sees the Heroes actress serve as co-executive producer. Hellcats, which centres on the world of cheerleading and is executive produced by Smallville's Tom Welling, also received a presentation order, while Betwixt, based on the novel of the same name, will film a full pilot.

Joe Jonas has reportedly been cast in Brothers & Sisters. According to zap2it, the singer-actor has landed the role of a young Tommy Walker, played by Balthazar Getty. Jonas has apparently signed up to star in two episodes which will be set in the past and shed some light on the relationships between different members of the Walker family. Other famous faces rumoured to be in the frame for the flashback episodes include Fame's Kay Panabaker as Kitty, Anna Wood as Sarah, Kasey Campbell as Kevin, and Rachel Leigh Cook as Nora.


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

Lost made a decent return to ABC last night, early viewing figures show. The much-anticipated two-hour premiere event averaged 12.09m between 9pm and 11pm, drawing 12.42m for its first hour and 11.75m at 10pm. Previous Lost season openers have performed as follows: 18.65m tuned in for the series premiere in 2004, season two took 23.47m in 2005, 2006's season three opener had 18.82m, the fourth premiered to 17.77m in 2008 and last year's fifth season opened to 13.32m. Earlier on the Alphabet network, the Lost clips show put in 9.93m during the 8pm hour. Over on CBS, NCIS and spinoff Los Angeles drew 19.11m and 16.36m at 8pm and 9pm, then 12.72m watched The Good Wife during the 10pm hour. A rerun of The Biggest Loser managed 4.98m for NBC in the 8pm slot, then a new two-hour episode averaged 9.42m against Lost. American Idol and Kitchen Nightmares were seen by 24.44m and 9.27m at 8pm and 9pm respectively on Fox. Repeats of 90210 and Melrose Place grabbed 873k and 661k for The CW.

The Vampire Diaries has been poorly received by critics in the UK. The series, which began last year on The CW in the US, started its 12-part run on ITV2 last night (Feb 2nd). Despite being watched by nearly a million viewers, one reviewer slammed the supernatural horror drama as "a little bit teen soap". Kevin Watson of Metro wrote: "This latest addition to the neck-chomper genre couldn't help but suffer in comparison to the Cajun raunch of True Blood. "In The Vampire Diaries it took a good 30 minutes for the token slutty one to end up on the wrong end of a nice pair of fangs. True Blood would have eaten her up and spat her out in a matter of seconds. "Advance word has it that The Vampire Diaries warms up a few episodes in, when the saturnine Damon - Ian Somerhalder (from Lost) - gets into his stride as the evil brother." The Guardian summed up the series as "not really very good", while the Leicester Mercury thought it was too similar to other dramas of its genre, like "Being Human", but hoped that the plot would "perhaps get better".

NBC's Today Show will be running live from Canada's West Coast during the 2010 Winter Olympics. However, in order to conduct interviews for the show's 7am EST start time, athletes must travel by tram at 4am 20 minutes outside of Vancouver to the news programme's mountainside set. "They'll come," executive producer Jim Bell told The AP. "Even though it's 4am, we're excited to have great guests, great crowds, great energy. It's the Olympics. "People will want to come if they have a medal draped around their neck or if they want to hold up a sign saying 'hi' to the people back home. It doesn't matter to us what time it is." Matt Lauer and Natalie Morales are to arrive first at the Today set on Grouse Mountain; Lauer will carry the Olympic torch through the town of Burnaby, BC as part of the relay. Meredith Vieira, Al Roker and Ann Curry then arrive on February 12, the day of the opening ceremonies.

Scrubs actress Sarah Chalke has signed to star in a comedy pilot for ABC. The project, called Freshmen, is produced by How I Met Your Mother‘s Greg Malins and author/columnist Arianna Huffington, says The Hollywood Reporter. The series centres on three freshman members of US Congress living and working in Washington, DC. Chalke, 33, has been tapped to pay Jane, a corporate whiz who wins her district's congressional race by a landslide. Although she finds success in her career and political aspirations, she remains unlucky in love.

Lowe is rumoured to be in talks for a spinoff of CBS drama Criminal Minds. The actor has been approached by ABC about a leading role in the new series, reports E!. A source revealed that Lowe could co-star with Forest Whitaker in the show. Whitaker was reportedly nearing final negotiations for the lead in late January. However, CBS representatives have denied rumours of Lowe joining the project. Lowe recently quit his role on ABC drama Brothers & Sisters. The 45-year-old will bow out at the end of the current fourth season. ABC president Steve McPherson has said publicly that ABC would like to keep the star working at the network.


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

HBO has renewed polygamy drama Big Love for a fifth season. The show's core cast, including Bill Paxton and Choe Sevigny, are expected to return next season, with the exception of the departing Amanda Seyfried, says The Hollywood Reporter. Big Love drew 1.7 million viewers for its fourth season premiere in January, up 49% from the previous season's debut. The current season is also earning more viewers than last year, despite competition from an NFC Championship game and the Grammy Awards ceremony the past two weeks.

Daily Show correspondent Rob Riggle has signed to star in a comedy pilot for CBS. Riggle will portray a bombastic high school football coach in single-camera sitcom Team Spitz. Bill Martin and Mike Schiff wrote the pilot, which is executive produced by Sony and CBS TV Studios, says The Hollywood Reporter. Martin and Schiff have also signed as executive producers along with a team of developers including Arrested Development creator Mitch Hurwitz. Riggle penned a talent holding deal with CBS in 2008, first leading to his recurring role on sitcom Gary Unmarried.

Rumours that DC Comics and Warner Bros are planning a Young Justice League animated series are in circulation. According to Mania, actress Stephanie Lemelin revealed that she has been cast as Arrowette in the cartoon via her website. However, the report has since been removed. "I am beyond thrilled to announce that I was recently cast in the new animated series Young Justice League based on the famous DC Comics," said Lemelin. "I seriously could not be more excited about being welcomed into this amazing family. "Due to the extreme popularity of this series, however, that's about all I can say… for now. so excited, this is really a dream come true for me, I have always wanted to be a Saturday morning cartoon." The venture is thought to be based on Peter David's ongoing Young Justice comic, which featured Robin, Superboy, Impulse, Wonder Girl and new heroines Secret and Arrowette. The book ran between 1998 and 2003 before its characters were integrated into Teen Titans. DC and Warner Bros are expected to make an official announcement regarding Young Justice League over the coming months.

Melissa Rycroft has accepted a new job on Entertainment Tonight. The former Dancing With The Stars finalist, who recently married longtime love Tye Strickland, will appear on the showbiz news show for the first time tonight. Rycroft's spokesperson told Us Magazine: "She debuts on tonight's broadcast and is currently in L.A. working for them. She's going to stay in Dallas and fly in for special assignments." The 26-year-old's first task was to cover the recent 'We Are the World' recording, which raised money for victims of the Haiti earthquake.

Cynthia Watros has joined the cast of House in a major recurring role. According to Entertainment Weekly, the actress, who played Libby in Lost, has been cast as Wilson's first ex-wife. Watros will apparently first appear in the show in an episode slated to air in April, when she turns up as Wilson's new girlfriend. The actress was a series regular on Lost between 2005 and 2006 until her character was shot dead by Michael Dawson.




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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

Happy Town will begin airing Wednesday nights later this season, ABC has confirmed. The 10pm slot, originally filled by the now-axed Ugly Betty, will be the regular home for the midseason mystery-drama. Last month, ABC renewed freshman comedies Cougar Town, Modern Family and The Middle for second seasons, and picked up a new medical drama from Grey's Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes.

V has added three new actors to its cast, according to TV Guide. Charles Mesure, who starred in Xena, Warrior Princess and Crossing Jordan, has landed the recurring role of Kyle Hobbes, a black ops expert who forms an unlikely alliance with the resistance. Lexa Doig has joined as Valerie Stevens's obstetrician, and Nicholas Lea will play Erica's ex-husband, who re-enters her life at a crucial point within a two-episode arc. V returns Tuesday, March 30 on ABC in the US and begins later this year on Sci Fi in the UK.

Fringe's consulting producer has hinted that the show may be renewed for a third season. Akiva Goldsman told Entertainment Weekly that he has planned some stories for Jasika Nicole's Astrid. "One of the things we're talking about for next season is seeing some more of her life, understanding her more, and giving her some time to shoulder more episodes."

The executive producer of The Vampire Diaries has suggested that the show's central love triangle will become more complicated. Nina Dobrev's Elena is currently receiving attention from Stefan and Damon Salvatore - played by Paul Wesley and Ian Somerhalder respectively - although both have previously been involved with Katherine, a vampire who looks exactly like her. "Damon is obsessed with Elena's doppelganger, and if one day Elena's doppelganger is not in the picture, it's an immediate transference," Julie Plec told Entertainment Weekly. "We'll see him have an evolution of feelings for her. And, over time, we'll see her wonder if there's something redeemable about this guy."

So You Think You Can Dance will return Thursday, May 27, Fox has announced. The season seven auditions will resume Wednesday, March 10 in Dallas, before moving to Nashville and Chicago on March 14 and 18 respectively. The auditions will conclude in Los Angeles Friday, March 26. Regular host Cat Deeley, who is currently fronting the UK version of the dance contest, will return to present the two-hour season premiere in May.

Jack Coleman has hinted that his Heroes alter ego may be killed off in the season four finale. The 51-year-old actor, who has played HRG since the show's inception in 2006, revealed that next week's episode sees his character trapped in "a terrible predicament". " in a terrible predicament together - trapped - and it looks like it may be curtains for HRG!" he said. "I don't wanna give it away, but there's a lot of relationship development just in the season finale. It's estrangement to reunion to possibly estrangement again. It's a pretty interesting trip." He added that the finale "breaks things wide open" and "could lead anywhere". Heroes concludes its fourth season Monday at 9pm on NBC.

Kate Gosselin will return to The View as a guest co-host next month, ABC has confirmed. The former Jon & Kate Plus 8 star was drafted in as a temporary replacement for Elisabeth Hasselbeck last September while the regular presenter was on maternity leave. She will join Hasselbeck, Whoopi Goldberg, Barbara Walters, Joy Behar and Sherri Shepherd on the March 11 instalment of the series. The network has also confirmed that Valerie Bertinelli will co-host on March 4, while Victoria Beckham and Meghan McCain have previously been tapped to appear.


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

American Idol continued its ratings lead last night, early viewing figures show. The 9pm episode, which showcased a round-up of singers from seven different cities, pulled in 20.83m for Fox. Earlier, Human Target lost viewers in its 8pm slot, managing a lowly 7.76m. Over on NBC, Mercy logged 6.25m at 8pm, 4.14m watched a rerun of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit at 9pm, and the 10pm Jay Leno Show drew 4.16m. CBS's Super Bowl's Greatest Commercials had 11.18m at 8pm, Criminal Minds put in 14.18m during the 9pm hour, and 14.16m tuned in for CSI: New York at 10pm. A repeat of Modern Family grabbed 6.84m for ABC at 8pm, then the audience climbed to 7.32m during the 8.30pm screening of The Middle. A new episode of Family and Cougar Town attracted 9.07m and 6.19m during the 9pm hour, then Ugly Betty took 4.06m at 10pm. Reruns of Life Unexpected and Gossip Girl interested 1.36m and 500k for The CW at 8pm and 9pm respectively.

Caprica dropped around 200,000 viewers with its second episode, according to the latest viewing figures. Friday's instalment, which saw Amanda begin to piece together the details of Zoe's life, drew 1.4 million. The series premiere, which aired the previous week, managed 1.6 million viewers despite going up against Hope For Haiti Now.

Brit Morgan has landed the part of a villain on True Blood. According to Entertainment Weekly, the former cast member of ABC Family's The Middleman will play the psycho ex-girlfriend of werewolf Alcide in season three. Executive producer Alan Ball also revealed before the announcement that the role will be more substantial than originally conceived. "She's going to be in more episodes," he said. "So maybe that will have an impact on we can get for her, which is a big question right now." Morgan's casting means that all the major players for season three have now been filled.

Jon Hamm, Dean Winters and Jason Sudeikis will reprise their guest starring roles on an upcoming episode of 30 Rock. The instalment, slated to air February 11, features Liz (Tina Fey) getting a root canal on Valentine's Day, reports Zap 2 It. It is suggested that the anaesthetic Liz takes for the procedure will provoke a hallucination involving the three actors, who have all played her beaus in the past. The episode will also feature Role Models star Elizabeth Banks as a CNBC host who goes out on a date with Jack (Alec Baldwin). According to Entertainment Weekly, the 35-year-old actress has been recruited for at least four episodes.

Office Space actor Gary Cole has signed to star in a new pilot for TBS. Cole, 53, will play a Philadelphia homicide detective partnered with his bumbling nephew in the hour-long comedy Uncle Nigel, says The Hollywood Reporter. The nephew role has not yet been cast. The project is written and produced by Monk creator Andy Breckman. Cole recently wrapped a recurring stint on Fox's Family Guy.


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

Oscar nominee Virginia Madsen has signed to star in new ABC dramedy series Scoundrels. The project, based on New Zealand show Outrageous Fortune, centres on the matriarch of a family of con artists who decide to change her life after her husband is sent to prison, says The Hollywood Reporter. ABC first adapted Outrageous Fortune in 2008 as pilot Good Behavior with Catherine O'Hara in the lead role. The show's eight episode run will debut this summer.

Jennifer Morrison will return to House during episode 17, the show's director has announced. Last year, it was confirmed that Morrison had been written out of the medical drama as Dr Allison Cameron. She later hinted that it was not her decision to depart, insisting that she would never leave House. The same week, the show's producers revealed that she would be reprising her role later this season. During a Q&A with fans on Twitter, director Greg Yaitanes confirmed that Morrison will be back during episode 17, which is scheduled to air mid-March. "Ep17 she is back for an ep," he wrote. Syfy has acquired the basic cable rights to Merlin.

The first series of the UK fantasy series, which stars Colin Morgan as a young mythical wizard, previously aired on NBC during primetime. Merlin will now join Syfy's lineup from April, with all 26 episodes from the first two series slated to air. "A viewer favourite after only one season, Merlin will be a strong addition to our schedule this spring," said president of programming Thomas Vitale. "We expect its enthralling imaginative vision, engaging young talent, and rich production values to resonate with our audience." Last year, the BBC confirmed that it had ordered a third series of the Saturday night drama.

Michael Kelly has been cast in the Criminal Minds spinoff, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The CBS project, which centres on a new group of profilers who work outside the FBI, sees the ex-Sopranos star play a former gang member who has joined the squad. The spinoff will be introduced on an episode of Minds scheduled to air in the spring. In other pilot news, Reaper's Bret Harrison has been tapped as the lead on Adam Goldberg's untitled Fox comedy, and ABC comedy Awkward Situations for Men has recruited Laura Prepon of That '70s Show fame.

Michelle Trachtenberg will will return to Gossip Girl for its third season finale, according to TV Guide. The actress, who currently stars on NBC medical drama Mercy, will reprise her role as Georgina Sparks for an episode scheduled to air later this season. It was also announced that her former co-star Connor Paolo - Eric Van Der Woodsen in Gossip - will guest star on Mercy in the upcoming March 3 episode. Paolo, who is filming his Mercy scenes this week, will play someone who sets off a pipe bomb on a bus.


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

John Rhys-Davies has landed a role in Legend of the Seeker, it has been confirmed. Craig Horner, who stars as Richard Rahl/Cypher on the Sam Raimi-produced series, told xenite that the Lord Of The Rings actor had recently filmed a guest spot for an upcoming episode. "John Rhys-Davies guest-starred in an episode just recently," he said. "He's a really great person."

Dawn Olivier has joined the cast of True Blood, says TV Guide. The actress, who played Lydia in Heroes before being killed off in a recent episode, has reportedly landed the role of Janice Herveaux. Her character, Janice, is the sister of Joe Manganiello's werewolf Alcide, who is rumoured to become romantically involved with Anna Pacuin's Sookie Stackhouse. Janice is described as a "tough-as-nails biker chick" who is fiercely overprotective of her younger brother. According to Olivieri's rep, she originally auditioned for the role of Alcide's ex-girlfriend Debbie Pelt, a part which was later won by Brit Morgan.

Christopher Gorham has reportedly been approached to return to Ugly Betty for the series finale. It was previously reported that the final episode of the ABC comedy will feature a wedding, but series creator Silvio Horta refused to reveal whether Gorham's rumoured return was connected. Characters tipped to make it to the altar include Betty, Amanda, Wilhelmina, Marc, Hilda and Ignacio. Weighing in on the possibility of Betty getting married, Michael Urie (Marc) suggested that she should end up single by the final episode. "I don't think the right guy has come along yet for Betty," he told Entertainment Weekly. "Besides, I don't think would be truly satisfied if she ended up with anybody'."

Joe Simpson is developing a new comedy for Nickelodeon, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The father and manager of popstars Jessica and Ashlee Simpson claimed that the series will be loosely based on his real-life experience as a psychologist raising his daughters in the suburbs of Dallas, TX. Simpson has teamed with veteran teen show producer Tommy Lynch (South of Nowhere, The Troop) to produce the as-yet-untitled show. The story reportedly centres on one daughter "who begins imitating her father and giving life advice to other kids in her school". Simpson was also behind Jessica's 2003 MTV reality show Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica and 2005's The Ashlee Simpson Show. Carpoolers writer Emily Cutler is penning the script, with Simpson and Lynch serving as executive producers.

Last night's Vampire Diaries added around 320,000 viewers from last week's performance, early viewing figures show. The 8pm screening of 'Children of the Damned', which featured flashbacks from Stefan and Damon's childhood, attracted 4.02m to The CW. Supernatural followed at 9pm, drawing 2.35m. Over on CBS, Surviving Survivor logged 8.29m at 8pm, 14.57m watched CSI during the 9pm hour, and the 10pm Mentalist drew 14.75m. Community and Parks and Recreation put in 5.22m and 4.87m for NBC during the 8pm hour, then The Office attracted 7.36m at 9pm. 30 Rock followed at 9.30pm, drawing 5.93m, then 3.94m tuned in for The Jay Leno Show at 10pm. ABC's The Deep End grabbed 5.08m at 8pm, then Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice interested 12.5m and 9.33m at 9pm and 10pm respectively. Bones pulled in 12.29m for Fox during the 8pm hour, then the audience dropped to 7.41m during the 9pm screening of Fringe.


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

HBO is to produce a series about the world of Hollywood blogging, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The network will team with Academy Award-winning writer-director Bill Condon and Tell Me You Love Me creator Cynthia Mort for Tilda. Condon and Mort will write and co-executive produce the half-hour comedy. The project, which marks the series writing debut for Condon, centres on a powerful and daring Hollywood showbiz journalist. Condon recently directed Showtime pilot The C-Word and has signed on to helm Tilda, if it gets picked up. He won an Oscar for writing Gods and Monsters and garnered a nomination for 'Best Director' from the Broadcast Film Critics Association for his work on Dreamgirls.

Christopher Meloni has announced plans to depart Law & Order: SVU. Speaking to Courier Mail, Meloni said that he wants to pursue theatre and film roles after leaving the NBC crime drama later this year. Meloni, 48, has starred as Detective Elliot Stabler on the programme since it premiered in 1999. "I think 12 years is enough, a good number," he said. He added: "The writers will have fertile ground to figure out how to arc out to another place - whether it's this world or the next." Meloni's SVU co-star Mariska Hartigay said that she plans to remain on the show after his departure.

That '70s Show star Laura Prepon has joined the cast of ABC comedy Awkward Situations for Men, says The Hollywood Reporter. The project is co-written by and stars UK comic Danny Wallace. The programme takes its inspiration from Wallace's forthcoming book of the same name, in which his personality and behaviour clash with his new American neighbours. Prepon has signed to portray Wallace's wife, a US native who works at a smoothie bar for a boss (Matt Letscher) with whom she was once romantically involved.

David Goyer has stepped down as showrunner on FlashForward, ABC has confirmed. The show's co-creator will still be involved with the series, which stars Joseph Fiennes and Dominic Monaghan, in capacity as executive producer. In a statement, Goyer said the decision was due to time constraints. "As my feature projects have started ramping up again, I felt I was being pulled in too many directions," he said. "I'm proud of the show and excited about the relaunch. It's in great hands." Goyer became sole showrunner in October last year after Marc Guggenheim departed the cult drama amid speculation that the network was concerned about its creative direction. It is unclear who will replace Goyer. Filming is currently taking place on FlashForward's 17th and 18th episodes in Los Angeles. On screen, FlashForward began a 15-week hiatus in December. It returns for a final batch of 13 episodes March 18.

Sheryl Crow has reportedly signed up to appear in Cougar Town. The singer will appear in several episodes of the Courteney Cox comedy, Entertainment Weekly reports. Crow, who will not play herself in the show, will take on the role of a new girlfriend for Grayson, played by Josh Hopkins. There are currently few other details about Crow's character, but her first episode is expected to air in March.


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

Joe Jonas's role in Brothers & Sisters has reportedly fallen through. Earlier this week, reports claimed that Jonas would appear in the programme as a young Tommy Walker, played by Balthazar Getty. However, Entertainment Weekly reports that Jonas will not be joining the show because of a "scheduling conflict". Cody Longo, who stars in Make It Or Break It, is now expected to take on the role in the two-hour flashback episode. Executive producer David Marshall Grant said that the episode will be set in three different time periods and added that it will expose a "shocking and transformative" secret about the Walkers.

Julie Benz's role in Desperate Housewives has reportedly been extended. Benz, who plays a former stripper called Robin, originally signed up for three episodes but will now stay at the drama for an undetermined length of time. Executive producer Bob Daily told Zap2It: "We've been enjoying so much. We've extended her at least one episode and possibly more beyond that." He added that Robin, who initially befriends Teri Hatcher's character Susan, will soon become close to Katherine, played by Dana Delaney. "Robin will be getting into a friendship," he explained. "That maybe turns into more than a friendship with Katherine. Katherine has had kind of a rough year and I think she's open to new experiences. She's had a rough time with men. It's going to be a sort of twisty and turny conflicted relationship for her, I think."

The executive producer of Law & Order: SVU has denied reports that Christopher Meloni is leaving the show. Meloni, who plays Detective Elliot Stabler, recently sparked speculation that he has decided to quit after saying in an interview that "12 years is enough". He added: "The writers will have fertile ground to figure out how to arc out to another place - whether it's this world or the next." However, Access Hollywood reports that executive producer Neal Baer denied the rumours when asked about them on Twitter. Baer also dropped hints about future cast members, claiming that Jeri Ryan, Teddy Sears, Quinton Aaron, a "star of Tyler Perry's movies" and the "star of an HBO series" will all appear on an upcoming episode.

Smallville's ratings were boosted by a special double episode on Friday night, the latest viewing figures show. The two-parter, titled 'Absolute Justice', pulled in 2.6m and 2.94m at 8pm and 9pm respectively, topping last week's performance of 2.52m. Viewing figures were on the rise overall at 8pm compared to last Friday. Ghost Whisperer won the hour to make it a clean sweep for CBS with 8.77m. ABC's Supernanny claimed 5.39m, while a rerun of House took 3.85m for Fox. Another repeat showing of Law & Order brought in 5.64m for NBC. Fox's Kitchen Nightmares, hosted by British chef Gordon Ramsay, rose from last week's premiere audience of 3.28m to 4.13m at 9pm. Elsewhere, Medium on CBS won the hour with 9.10m, up over a million on last week. Dateline on NBC fell the same distance to 6.49m. Shark Tank drew 4.38m for ABC. At 10pm, Numb3rs continued CBS's stronghold with 9.18m, while 20/20 picked up 8.66m for ABC. Meanwhile, the last The Jay Leno Show only managed a 4.46m for NBC.

Daniel Dae Kim has joined the cast of CBS's Hawaii Five-O remake. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the 41-year-old actor, who has played Jin-Soo Kwon on Lost since its inception in 2004, has landed a lead role on the project. In the updated cop series, Kim will take on the role of Detective Chin Ho Kelly, which was originally played by Kam Fong. Alex O'Loughlin, who recently starred in the ill-fated Three Rivers, is said to be in talks to play Detective Steve McGarrett. Kim is the first core Lost actor to land a role outside of the show.


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

A Heroes special.

From digitalspy

Hayden Panettiere has hinted that Heroes may be renewed for a fifth season. Ratings for the current fourth season have been the lowest to date, suggesting that the show may not be renewed for another run. However, Panettiere - Claire Bennet on the drama series - has proposed that the end of season four will lead into an exciting fifth season. " is a very cool end of the season and it's something that you know will change everything next season! It's simple and it's awesome!" she said. She added that the season four finale sees Claire trying to be the peacemaker and prevent Samuel from killing thousands of innocent people.

Hayden Panettiere has defended the fourth season of Heroes. Some fans have been unimpressed with the show since its first season back in 2006, but Panettiere - Claire Bennet on the NBC drama - has claimed that the show is still fresh. "It's been very new and different," she said. "On the show you never know what to expect, but this season has been this trip with new people. It's very much about people with abilities hiding and them coming out. She added that the current season has seen her character head in a new direction which has not been seen before. "Claire's been chasing this normal life, but maybe that's not what she wanted. She always find a reason to jump back into it - to save people and fix things."

Jack Coleman has revealed that he is expecting Heroes to return for a fifth season. Speaking exclusively to Digital Spy, the actor - HRG on the NBC series - said that the season four finale will enable them to "wade" into a new volume. "It's an ending which Heroes does, which is closes one volume and opens another," he teased. "It poses the question of what might happen with the lid torn off and everyone aware of these powers and no longer able to hide or deny it. "I don't know if we're coming back or not - I expect that we are, I hope that we are, I anticipate that we are. We have opened a new volume and I think we will wade into that new volume." Coleman added that the cast are likely to find out about a renewal in March.

Tim Kring has offered fans an explanation for the fourth season of Heroes. Speaking behind the scenes during filming for the 'Redemption' finale, Kring claimed that he had the carnival story planned for a while. "We really wanted to explore this idea of what would happen if people explored the idea of presenting themselves to the real world and telling the world that they exist as people with superpowers," he said. "What would happen? "The carnival represented this idea of people who were living just on the outside of society and were hiding in plain sight by being here but not really here - they come to your town and then mysteriously disappear in the middle of the night." He added: "They sort of mix with people and use their superpowers, but people think they're carnival acts. This story brings in literally all of the characters we've had over the years."


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

From digitalspy

Matthew Fox has admitted that he was never supposed to make more than a guest appearance on Lost. The actor, who plays Dr Jack Shephard on the drama, told WENN that his character was intended to be killed off in the second episode. "Damon Lindelof and J.J. Abrams thought it would be cool to set Jack up as the hero, and then kill him off in the second episode," Fox revealed. "But various people told them they thought this would be a bad idea." In 2008, Fox apparently believed that a DUI arrest would grant him an early exit from the programme.

Michael Shanks has admitted that landing the part of Danno on the new Hawaii Five-O remake would be a "dream come true". The Stargate: SG1 star told Scifiwire that he hopes the programme will be updated for the 21st century, after auditioning for the detective role. "I'm sure there's some updates, because I don't think we could pull off that kind of brow furrowing with a straight face in this day and age. I'll tell you one thing, to go to Hawaii to shoot a series would be a dream come true, that's for certain," he said. The actor also commented that he doesn't feel sorry for the cast of Lost since they shoot in Hawaii every day. "I don't feel too bad for the people on Lost. Oh, you're on Lost. Poor guys. Yeah. Boo-hoo. Go back to your cabana and have another mojito," he joked.

Christopher Lloyd has been cast on NBC spy-comedy Chuck. According to Entertainment Weekly, the Back to the Future star is slated to play a therapist who counsels Chuck when the pressures of the spy business get too much for the main character to handle. Executive producer Josh Schwartz broke the news via Twitter and noted that the time travel classic "has had a huge influence" on Chuck. Lloyd will appear in this season's 16th episode, which is to air in April or May.

NBC has announced an airdate for the third season finale of action comedy Chuck. According to Entertainment Weekly, Chuck will end its current season with a two-hour episode on Monday, May 24. The series started off strong this year, earning 7.69 million viewers for its January premiere.


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I often wonder how I'm going to die. You don't want to embarrass friends.

On 2010-02-08 18:17 , honeykid Wrote:


I have no idea why NBC would bring back this show but I think some of it has to do with not having anything else to replace it other than new unknown shows. NBC really has fallen off from a few years ago and needs to find new fresh shows to bring it back to the top.

On 2010-02-08 18:19 , honeykid Wrote:


This would really have made the show totally different. I wonder how they would have played out the stories without Jack Sheppard in the show.



This would be really cool. I like Shanks as an actor and seeing him in something new would really be great. I liked his little role on "Burn Notice" last season.



They keep getting the stunt casting on this show right. They really have added the right actors to play parts on this show. It had better come back for another full season.

I for one would like to see "Heroes" return. I enjoyed this season more than expected, partly due to Robert Knepper. Last night's ep left off at an interesting place. This makes 3 cast members so far who feel it will return. Despite the low ratings, the saving grace for the show is that it does very well worldwide in video sales. And yeah, frankly, NBC is sorely lacking hit scripted shows.