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TV Tonight: The Philanthropist

BuzzSugar — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:30:53 -0700

NBC's The Philanthropist, a project with a fairly odd journey to the small screen, premieres tonight. Once envisioned as a breakout series and the anchor of NBC's Monday night lineup, it's now morphed into an eight-hour Summer burn-off with little chance of renewal. But does it still deserve a spot in your viewing lineup? I recently checked out the first episode, and swiping the format from my Pilot Watch series, here are some of the pros and cons.

What's it about? Following personal tragedy and an eye-opening trip, a billionaire decides to do good with his riches.

Who's in it? James Purefoy, Neve Campbell, Jesse L. Martin, Michael K. Williams, Lindy Booth

The good: Teddy Rist (Purefoy) is an interesting character, caught somewhere between do-gooder and devil-may-care playboy, and Purefoy plays him well. Even as he becomes committed to saving the world, he's still slyly trying to pick up a bartender with his wild tales, and the things we learn about his past hint at some potentially interesting conflicts down the line. The show was shot on location, and it's clear the producers know how to use settings to their best advantage - it just looks good.

The bad: The storytelling device of the pilot - Rist explaining his adventures to a skeptical bartender as we see flashbacks - is clunky, and it's tough to get a good read on how future episodes will feel as a result. Part of the behind-the-scenes drama with this show was its tone (the story goes that creator Tom Fontana wanted to make something darker than what NBC wanted), and as a result, the show seems stuck somewhere between "compelling" and "trite." The supporting actors (one of the biggest draws for me) are really not given much to do in the first episode.

Will I watch? I'm interested to see another episode to see how a normal installment of this show feels. But given that it's airing on a night when I'm already booked with So You Think You Can Dance and Top Chef Masters, I'm not sure how long I'll keep making time for it.

To check out a preview for tonight's episode, just read more.

Photo courtesy of NBC

First Look: The Philanthropist

BuzzSugar — Thu, 28 May 2009 09:30:40 -0700

When NBC first announced The Philanthropist more than a year ago, I was intrigued from the start. Created by Tom Fontana (Homicide, Oz), the drama focuses on a renegade billionaire with cash to burn who will stop at nothing to get his money to the people he feels need it most. The concept sounded promising, and I've liked Fontana's work before.

But then the show - which was originally supposed to air Mondays at 10 p.m. this Spring - never materialized. Fontana left the show over the ol' "creative differences" - and had time to return to it before an episode had aired. And NBC gave Jay Leno a show at 10 p.m. five nights a week - and announced a new schedule - that left little room for new dramas on the network.

All of this to say: My hopes for The Philanthropist becoming a seasons-long hit are pretty much nil at this point. But I'm still curious to see the show, which finally premieres June 24. British actor James Purefoy stars as the billionaire, Teddy Rist, but I'm mostly drawn in by the supporting cast, which includes Michael K. Williams (The Wire's Omar) and Neve Campbell as the wife of Teddy's partner.

Are you interested in checking out The Philanthropist, even if it turns out to be more miniseries than series? To see the first promo, just read more.

Photo courtesy of NBC

Buzz News Roundup, 3/13

BuzzSugar — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 13:30:46 -0700

Spider-Man 4 has gotten a release date of May 6, 2011. - Zap2It
Jack White has formed a new group called The Dead Weather with The Kills frontwoman Alison Mosshart, Raconteurs bassist Jack Lawrence, and Queens of the Stoneage guitarist Dean Fertita. - Billboard
Scrubs's Dr. Turk, Donald Faison, has joined Cedric the Entertainer in ABC's comedy pilot The Law. - The Hollywood Reporter
Mickey Rourke is confirmed to play the Russian villain in Iron Man 2. - Variety
NBC has unveiled a surprising Summer lineup that includes several scripted projects - including the long-awaited scheduling of The Philanthropist, starring James Purefoy and Neve Campbell. - Reuters
New Line is planning a sequel to Journey to the Center of the Earth. - ComingSoon
TV production company Granada America is planning a show titled American Storytellers in which country songs are used to make one-hour TV dramas. - Billboard
Director Joe Wright (Atonement, The Soloist) will next take on a film adaptation of the book Indian Summer. - Variety

Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures

Neve Campell Could Return to TV in The Philanthropist

BuzzSugar — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 11:30:05 -0800

Another Salinger kid could be coming back to TV. Neve Campbell, the former Julia Salinger on Party of Five, is reportedly close to taking a starring role in The Philanthropist, a new NBC drama.

The show stars James Purefoy as a "renegade billionaire" named Teddy Rist, who uses his massive fortune to help others around the world. (Seems appropriate for our current times, no?) Campbell would play the wife of Teddy's business partner, Phillip, played by Jesse Martin. Her character runs the two men's charitable foundation - and it would seem she might have feelings for both of them, as The Hollywood Reporter notes that her character "has strong chemistry with Teddy."

Save for a few episodes of Medium, Campbell hasn't been on TV much since Party of Five ended in 2000, and I think she'd be a welcome presence now. The Philanthropist has had its share of troubles - the original producers left the show in the Spring after NBC found their original vision for the show to be too dark - but I'm curious about this one and glad to see it back on track. What do you think? Would you like to see Campbell on a regular basis again?

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Buzz News Roundup, 7/21

BuzzSugar — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 13:31:30 -0700

Variety reports that Fergie will, in fact, join the star-studded cast of Rob Marshall's movie musical Nine, which so far includes the likes of Daniel Day-Lewis, Marion Cotillard and Judi Dench, among others.
The fine for Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction" has been overturned, the New York Times reports.
The AP has the news that Ebert and Roeper are both done with their movie review TV show.
James Purefoy is in negotiations to play the lead in NBC's The Philanthropist, Reuters reports.
Remember "The Bro Code" from How I Met Your Mother? Well, it's going to be a real book in stores this Fall, writes the Chicago Tribune.
Over the weekend, Montreal's Just for Laughs comedy festival honored Judd Apatow with the Comedy Person of the Year trophy, according to Variety.
Battlestar Galactica's Jamie Bamber will star in the UK version of Law & Order, E! reports.
The AP declares the best albums of 2008 so far.

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