Uncle June’s back!
Beloved Sopranos curmudgeon Dominic Chianese has landed a multi-episode arc on Damages, sources confirm to me exclusively.
Chianese will play a shady associate of the Tobin family, the clan at the center of Patty’s new case. He’ll first appear in the sixth episode of the third season, which premieres Jan. 25.
In other Damages casting news, READ FULL STORY »
Talk about an embarrassment of riches. At NBC’s press tour soiree last Sunday, Joel McHale handed me not one, not two, not three, not four, but five exclusive Community casting scoops. Unfortunately, only this one was real: Lauren Stamile is returning for several episodes as the statistics professor whom Jeff was crushing on in the Halloween outing. What were the fake scoops? And where does McHale stand on Jeff/Britta vs. Jeff/Annie? Watch the below video and find out! And keeping watching for my red carpet Q&As with McHale’s hilarious Community co-stars Alison Brie, Donald Glover, Ken Jeong, and Yvette Nicole Brown. READ FULL STORY »
NBC has just unveiled its post-Olympics, Leno-free midseason schedule, and there’s good news for fans of Friday Night Lights who don’t have DirecTV. The drama’s fourth season — the one currently airing on DirecTV — will make its Peacock debut on Friday, April 30.
To see the rest of NBC’s new sked, head over to Hollywood Insider.
On the heels of NBC’s announcement on Jan. 10 that it will no longer air The Jay Leno Show in prime time, the Peacock released its midseason schedule today, set to start on March 1 after the conclusion of the network’s Winter Olympics coverage. The dramas Trauma, the new Parenthood, Law & Order, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and a new comedy from Jerry Seinfeld called The Marriage Ref will occupy the slot previously held by Leno, with Dateline NBC picking up the slack on Fridays. Meanwhile, the series Who Do You Think You Are from Lisa Kudrow and the new game show Minute to Win It also join the lineup after the Olympics, and Friday Night Lights will air Fridays at 8 p.m. starting April 30.
Mondays
8-9 p.m. Chuck
9-10 p.m. Trauma (beginning March 8 )
10-11 p.m. Law & Order (returns March 1 with two-hour episode, 9-11 p.m.; resumes in regular time slot March 8 )
Tuesdays
8-10 p.m. The Biggest Loser
10-11 p.m. Parenthood (premieres March 2)
Wednesdays
8-9 p.m. Mercy
9-10 p.m. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (encores beginning March 3)
10-11 p.m. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (originals beginning March 3)
Thursdays
8-8:30 p.m. Community
8:30-9 p.m. Parks and Recreation
9-9:30 p.m. The Office
9:30-10 p.m. 30 Rock
10-11 p.m. The Marriage Ref (premieres March 4; sneak preview Feb. 28)
Fridays
8-9 p.m. Who Do You Think You Are? (premieres March 5; Friday Night Lights returns on April 30)
9-11 p.m. Dateline NBC (begins March 5)
Sundays (beginning March 14)
7-8 p.m. Dateline NBC
8-9 p.m. Minute to Win It
9-11 p.m. The Celebrity Apprentice
And now for some news that will shock no one: CBS has issued early season 2 renewals to its hit freshman dramas NCIS: LA and The Good Wife.
Anyone shocked? Didn’t think so.
In other (less obvious) pickup news, TNT has ordered a second season of the Ray Romano/Andre Braugher/Scott Bakula dramedy, Men of a Certain Age.
Got a scoop request? An anonymous tip you’re dying to share? Just want to say hi? You can send any/all of the above to ausielloscoop@ew.com
Question: What’s coming up for Sam and Addison on Private Practice? —Lisa
Ausiello: Things will heat up between those two crazy kids in February, but their guilty consciences will prove a major obstacle. There will also be an added complication involving (MAJOR SPOILER ALERT) another doctor who has long been waiting in the wings.
Question: I am drinking a Diet Raspberry Snapple and thinking of you (in a non-stalker sort of way) and am hoping you might give me some Grey’s Anatomy scoop! —Lesley
Ausiello: Mexie is M’over. The lovers will break things off this week, but it doesn’t really become official until next week when word of their respective dalliances comes to light. Interestingly, someone’s not as pissed off as I would’ve thought. READ FULL STORY »
She’s baaaaaaaack!
Sources confirm to me exclusively that Jennifer Morrison is heading back to House later this season. READ FULL STORY »
Lost among all the news about Jay Leno’s cancellation at 10 p.m. and his return to 11:30 p.m. was this (disappointing) update from NBC: the suits have decided to air Day One – an apocalyptic drama from Heroes scribe Jesse Alexander – as a two-hour backdoor pilot (that’s industry code for: it’ll run as a TV movie and if viewers like it, it may be turned into a series).
NBC had originally planned to air the high-concept show as a 13-episode series after the Winter Olympics, but ended up downgrading the project to a four-hour miniseries back in October. Now Alexander’s handiwork has been cut back to a TV movie that has yet to get an airdate — a decision that was no doubt fueled by the disappointing ratings for the similarly themed ABC’s sci-fi series FlashForward and V. Despite lots of early fanfare, FlashForward‘s audience dropped from 12.5 million to 7.07 million in just three months, while V lost 35% of its audience (14.3 million to 9.3 million) over just four airings.
But other concerns about making it into a series may have been in play, like the show’s potentially high cost given the amount of computer-generated images it was expected to demand (in a rough trailer leaked last year, the drama features smoke columns that rise from the city). Alexander described his high-concept show this way on his website: “It is the story of ordinary people working together to save the world from an extraordinary threat. Though Day One’s prime time adventures are simple and compelling, its mythology is vast and designed to be experienced across multiple media platforms.”
Entertainment President Angela Bromstad tried to temper expectations at NBC’s press conference for the nation’s TV critics Jan. 10 by saying what she didn’t expect from Alexander’s show — that is, before it was turned into a two-hour movie. “We’ve always looked at Day One as a big event for us and not necessarily a show that would be an ongoing…you know, a returning show for a second season. It would depend on its success. I think just by the nature of the genre, [these genre shows] tend to get a little narrow.”
It’s a showdown 24 fans would no doubt pay big bucks to see see: Jack’s two loves, Audrey and Renee, battling to the death. Winner takes Jack. But according to Annie Wersching, such a duel would quickly turn into a one-sided massacre. “Renee could definitely take Audrey,” she says, “no question.” Them’s fightin words! But as you’ll see in our video interview below (shot Monday night at Fox’s press tour bash), Wersching’s thoughts about Jack/Audrey vs. Jack/Renee are a little more complicated than that… READ FULL STORY »
J.J. Abrams has found his next great heroine.
English actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Doctor Who) has nabbed the coveted female lead in Undercovers, the new NBC dramedy about married spies from Abrams and Josh Reims, sources confirm to me exclusively. READ FULL STORY »
James Hibberd
@James_Hibberd
Lynette Rice
@EWLynette
