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Link Time! George Clooney Gets Behind A New TNT Show

BuzzSugar — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 13:30:05 -0700

George Clooney is signing on to exec-produce Delta Blues (with an Elvis impersonator cop!) for TNT - TV Squad
January Jones will star in the Nicolas Cage thriller The Hungry Rabbit Jumps - Coming Soon
The Short Circuit remake gets a director - MTV Movies Blog
Those DirectTV ads with Chris Farley and David Spade suffer some backlash - E! Online
Kristin Davis talks the Sex and the City sequel - Hollywood Crush
Lots of photos from this past weekend's CMJ Festival - Stereogum
Weezer and Lil Wayne's collaboration "Can't Stop Partying" is pretty darn catchy - Idolator
Check out this list of the best rock-'n'-roll movies - Rotten Tomatoes
Author Augusten Burroughs is working on two new TV series, one for CBS and one for Showtime - Movieline
Norah Jones plays a pirate in her new music video - HitFix
Just in time for Halloween: The 5 scariest TV episodes ever - TV.com
Plus, 10 girl-power inspired costumes (Bella Swan made the list!) - TresSugar

Spike Lee and Robert De Niro Are Headed to Showtime

BuzzSugar — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 11:45:44 -0700

Talk about a power duo! Hollywood business titans, Spike Lee and Robert De Niro, are working together on a new series for Showtime called Alphaville. Set in New York's Alphabet City during the crime and drug-filled 80s, the show will focus on the diverse residents of the neighborhood. Both Lee and De Niro will executive produce, and Lee will direct the pilot.

A gritty New York landscape is nothing new to this talented pairing - De Niro's Taxi Driver took place in the very same area, and many of Lee's films have been set in the borough of Brooklyn - so I expect a pretty realistic depiction of this era in Manhattan life. I'm hoping it can be to Showtime and New York what The Wire was to HBO and Baltimore.

The show is just in the development stages right now, so there's no word yet on when it might debut, but will you check it out when it airs?

Showtime to Revive the L-Word - as a Reality Show

BuzzSugar — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 11:30:28 -0700

We may have bid adieu to Shane and Alice back in March, but now we can get ready to follow a whole new group of ladies - this time in an unscripted series. Showtime is planning a reality show version of The L-Word titled The Real L Word: Los Angeles.

Whether or not they go through with the show is dependent on casting, but if they do go forward with it, the project "will follow six lesbians in Los Angeles as they go about their lives - a lesbian answer to Bravo's Real Housewives franchise."

The creator of Showtime's L-Word, Ilene Chaiken, is behind the whole thing. She said, "I believe we are not nearly finished telling our L Word stories. Showtime has yet again come forward to continue with us this mission to entertain and enlighten and bring more 'L' to the world."

You know, as far as reality shows go, this isn't totally the worst of the bunch. I'll probably watch it, I'm not gonna lie. What about you, L-Word fans? Would a reality show like this interest you?

Photo courtesy of Showtime

Showtime Hires Oliver Stone For Documentary Series

BuzzSugar — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 05:30:26 -0700

Never one to just rest on his laurels, director Oliver Stone is planning a 10-part documentary TV series for Showtime in which he'll explore events in US history that he feels were under-reported. Stone says of the show, titled Secret History, "Through this epic 10-hour series, which I feel is the deepest contribution I could ever make in film to my children and the next generation, I can only hope a change in our thinking will result."

The series will go more deeply into "human events" from America's past that helped to shape our country's history. Here's more:

Topics range from President Harry Truman's decision to drop the atomic bomb on Japan to the origins and reasons for the Cold War with the Soviet Union, to the fierce struggle between war and peace in America's national security complex. Newly discovered facts and accounts from the Kennedy administration, the Vietnam War, and the great changes in America's role in the world since the fall of Communism in the 1980s will be presented.

Stone's drive to make movies seems to be inexhaustible. And as is often the case with him, it's likely that this project will prove controversial. Do you think you'll be curious to check out Stone's Showtime series?

2009 Comic-Con: Michael C. Hall, John Lithgow and a Preview of Dexter's Season 4

BuzzSugar — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 07:30:40 -0700

At Comic-Con's Dexter panel, we not only got a glimpse of season four with a fairly extensive preview (the video of which I've included after the jump), but we got to hear from the show's producers and actors - including new addition John Lithgow. Lithgow's character is chilling indeed, even from the brief snippets we see of him in the preview. And Lithgow is pleased as punch to be playing such a scary villain.

The video after the jump is great - very funny in a serial-murderer-gently-holding-a-baby kind of way. Before that, though, some highlights from Thursday's panel:

Michael C. Hall addressed the challenge of being both funny and scary: "Well, it’s hard. That has so much to do with what’s written for the character. I think the writers manage to infuse the show with a certain degree of levity and humor and without that I think it wouldn’t be so palatable." He likes playing a character that has such humor but who "also stabs people in the heart."
Julie Benz said of her character, Rita: "Her journey, the strength that she has gained through her love and her relationship with Dexter has been beautiful." Though she also said it’s like watching "a train wreck about to happen" because Dexter is, you know, a serial killer.
The producers chatted a little about Dexter being in other countries now, and Michael C. Hall explained a difference between Europe and America's understanding of the show: In America people remark that Dexter's bad because "he's killing people," but then someone points out that he's killing murderers and Americans basically nod and are like, "yeah, you're right." In Europe they reply, "Yeah, but he's still killing people!"

More Dexter goodness if you read more.

Moderator: "John, I have to say it's great to see you being bad again."
John Lithgow: "It's good to be bad. . . . I'm proud as can be of Third Rock From the Sun, but it’s nice to put it in its place and move on," he said with a grin.
Michael C. Hall talked about going from playing David Fischer on Six Feet Under to playing Dexter: "You know, if you’re gonna play two characters, I can’t think of a better two." And after playing David for so long, "it is a relief, you know, David was a wonderful character but it is good to play a character who’s more of a go-getter, a bit more proactive."
One of the producers responded to a question about the show's occasional inclusion of comic book characters and references: "It wasn't a conscious decision, one of our writers, Tim Schlattmann, is kind of a comic book geek . . . and Tim wrote the 'Dark Defender' episode. And there is a superhero aspect to who Dexter is . . . like Clark Kent . . . so it’s not a conscious decision on our part but it is a natural [thing]."
Michael C. Hall was asked what scene or episode really freaked him out: "I would say, the tenth episode of the first season, doing the face plant into that room full of blood . . . I mean, it was fun, it brought back memories of Slip-n-Slide, but that was pretty heavy. But honestly, nothing really freaks me out."
John Lithgow talked more about how "elated" he is to be a part of Dexter: "I'd seen snippets of Dexter . . . I really had not seen the show, but I heard a fantastic pitch . . . to persuade me to take this part, they had me on the edge of my seat. [Now] I’m the only one on this set who knows what happens . . . I could say two sentences here right now that would make the building explode!" And now that he has watched the whole series thus far, "I absolutely love the show and I'm elated to be a part of it."

And now . . . a preview of season four!

Photo courtesy of Showtime

Showtime Has a Revelation With Religion-Themed Series

BuzzSugar — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 10:30:55 -0700

Looks like Showtime is tossing in some religion among the pot-dealin' moms, serial killers, not-so-stable nurses, and, um, King Henry VIII. Dirty Sexy Money creator Craig Wright, a former minister, is teaming up with producer David Janollari to bring the religion-themed show Revelation to the network. Here's more:

Hourlong project revolves around an unconventional minister who moves to a Texas church with his two teens after his wife suddenly dies.

Wright was once a minister himself and plans to rely on his base of knowledge to tackle issues of religion, faith and spirituality.

The two also worked on Six Feet Under and Wright has written for Brothers and Sisters and Lost. I eagerly anticipate pretty much anything Showtime does, as these series can, of course, push the envelope a bit more than other networks' shows can. I'm guessing this will be a far cry from Seventh Heaven, and I look forward to that.

Does Nurse Jackie Discourage People From Nursing?

BuzzSugar — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 15:15:14 -0700

If any buzz is good buzz, then Showtime execs must be mighty pleased right now as nurses react to the new series starring Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie. Falco's lead character is no Florence Nightingale . . . well, unless Nightingale also snorted drugs, had sex on the job, and stole money, just to name a few of Nurse Jackie's proclivities. Some real-life nurses have expressed their anger and dismay:

"I don't know what they wanted from us," said [Barbara] Crane, a nurse in the intensive care unit at St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center in Smithtown, N.Y., and president of the National Federation of Nurses. "I have no clue what the screening was supposed to be about," she said. "They couldn't think that those of us in the most ethical profession - and we are the most ethical profession - that we could possibly find that entertaining."

The folks at Showtime maintain that it's just entertainment and "negative publicity is publicity." Plus, plenty of nurses are actually praising the show for presenting a nurse character "with such smarts, fierce dedication to her patients and human contradictions." But Tina Gerardi, chief executive officer of the New York State Nurses Association, has concerns that the show will discourage people from joining the nursing profession.

Do you think TV shows are that influential? Will would-be nurses avoid the profession because of Nurse Jackie?

Photo courtesy of Showtime

Not Coming to a TV Near You: L Word Spin-Off, Matthew Perry

BuzzSugar — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 12:30:36 -0700

Bad news for folks who were hoping to see The L Word's Alice in prison or Matthew Perry getting foul-mouthed: Showtime has passed on both the L Word spin-off and Perry's comedy The End of Steve.

Steve featured Perry as a bitter afternoon TV talk show host, with a script co-written by Perry and Peter Tolan. Showtime once thought the duo would be "a twisted match made in heaven," but apparently the final product didn't seem right for the network. Word is that the show is still looking for a home on other cable networks, though. Meanwhile, Showtime's pass is the end of the road for the L Word spin-off, which would have featured Leisha Hailey's Alice in prison with a new group of characters.

Two pilots are still possibilities for Showtime: Possible Side Effects, a drama about a family in the pharmaceutical industry starring Josh Lucas and Ronna and Beverly, a comedy based on YouTube sketches that Weeds creator Jenji Kohan is developing for TV.

I was excited for Matthew Perry's project, so I'm bummed that it's not making it to Showtime, but I'm still crossing my fingers for Ronna and Beverly. What about you? Are any of these shows you would want to see?

Source

Weeds Creator Starts Work on New Showtime Comedy

BuzzSugar — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 12:30:02 -0800

Weeds creator and executive producer Jenji Kohan (one of my favorite names in showbiz, by the way) is filling her time between Weeds seasons developing a new comedy for Showtime. Titled Ronna and Beverly, the show is based on a series of sketches that two hilarious ladies, Jessica Chaffin and Jamie Denbo (that's them on the left), developed in comedy venues and on YouTube.

Just reading the description of the show cracks me up:

Ronna and Beverly revolves around two middle-aged women in Boston who decide to self-publish and aggressively promote a dating guide for Jewish singles, "You'll Do a Little Better Next Time."

Sure, the meddling Yenta's been done before (I'm thinking of Mike Myers's "Coffee Talk with Linda Richman" sketch on SNL) but it really never fails to make me laugh. A quick look at some Ronna and Beverly clips online reveal just how fertile this ground still is for comedy. The pilot will start shooting in February, with - yay! - Paul Feig of Freaks and Geeks directing.

Does this sound promising to you? To watch Ronna and Beverly in action, read more.

Source

Watch The United States of Tara - Right Here!

BuzzSugar — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 09:30:07 -0800

One of my dozen reasons to watch TV this month, Showtime's The United States of Tara sounds like a fascinating series. From Juno screenwriter Diablo Cody, produced by Steven Spielberg, and starring Toni Collette, the show is a half-hour comedy about a subject that's not often fodder for yuks: multiple personalities.

Collette stars as a woman with Dissociative Identity Disorder, which causes her to experience life as a number of different people: Tara, the suburban housewife and mother; T, a flirtatious teenager; Buck, a gun-toting man; and Alice, a perfect '50s-style homemaker. This wreaks havoc - but, apparently, hilarious havoc - on Tara's husband (John Corbett) and their teenage children.

The series premieres Sunday, Jan. 18, at 10 p.m. - but there's no need to wait. Showtime's slipped me a copy of the first episode, and you can check it out right here on Buzz if you read more.

Photo courtesy of Showtime