(Detail - Photo credit: Mark Seliger/ Rolling Stone)
This is a really pretty picture:
It's really best appreciated in the paper version of the magazine, IMO--that's why I subscribe. I've framed some Rolling Stone magazine photos, quite a number over the years. The 'True Blood' cover (see right sidebar, below) was up on my 'private' bathroom wall for some time.
I don't recall seeing any of Peter Dinklage's work prior to Game Of Thrones on HBO where he's been a huge success, including earning both an Emmy and a Golden Globe award for his portrayal of "Tyrion Lannister" on the HBO series, based on the George R.R. Martin epic book series.
ROLLING STONE is still a magazine worth subscribing to/paying for. I've done so for about 35 years now. The Peter Dinklage article is a good example of Rolling Stone's ability--still--to take a pop culture phenom and offer a fresh take on the human side of him.
Good interview by Brian Hiatt and lovely photography by Mark Seliger with beefcake courtesy of Peter Dinklage.
BONUS: Co-star and onscreen sister, Lena Headey ('Cersei' on GoT), an off-screen friend since their work together in 2006, refers to Dinklage as 'the most successful flirt I've ever met.'
PETER DINKLAGE as TYRION LANNISTER in GAME OF THRONES on HBO.
SAMUEL L. JACKSON as Nick Fury and SCARLETT JOHANSSEN as Black Widow a/k/a Natasha Romanov in MARVEL'S The AVENGERS:
Hulk Smash! Mark Ruffalo was an interesting choice for The Hulk but he's inhabited the persona and played Bruce Banner very convincingly. Lucky number 3 --we have ourselves a winner! (Also pictured: Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye.) SOURCE: EW Magazine
We saw Marvel's The Avengers on Friday night. At the end, the audience cheered, which doesn't happen too often. So, in its second week, The Avengers is still getting THAT kind of audience reception. I am so glad Whedon is getting the recognition he deserves it on its own, and for his body of work thus far. I hope a whole new crop of Whedonites sprout.
Whedon has an awesomely loyal following. And this time, they brought ALL their friends.
You may have already heard that Stephen Moyer is trying his hand at directing this season, taking the reins of episode 8 (written by Mark Hudis). I asked Michael McMillian, who plays Steve Newlin, what it’s like to work with Moyer in such a different capacity and he had quite a bit to say:
"It's clear Stephen has a deep appreciation for these characters and a need to dig into things a little deeper than usual to find the truth in each scene. He has a natural talent for directing. He's really in his element behind the camera and brings a playful and wicked sense of humor with him. It was fun working with him. I felt like the parents had left town and our cool big brother was in charge of all us kids. He took his role seriously, but still managed to throw us a party."
This newly-available TRUE BLOOD CASTING CALL is so descriptive, so exacting in the detail of the the creatures being cast, that it qualifies for a SPOILER label.
First, this Casting Call is for episode 11 of TRUE BLOOD season 5--the penultimate eppy. It should be a big setup for the finale and, from the variety of characters that are being cast for episode 5.11, I'd say True Blood is going to end the "Alan Ball as showrunner"- era with a bang.
Vamp security guard. Check.
The Minister of the European Vampire League--which explains the need for the guy above.
A middle-aged werewolf 'elder' warns Alcide of a new breed of vampire(!)
Feral evil teen-girl vampire,
Feral, evil "businessman" vampire.
Feral, evil biker 'baby' vamp. Travels wit the teen-girl and businessman vampires.
Authority guards, vampire most likely.
It sounds like the faeries, who everyone thought were pretty funny anyway, are being played for laughs in this scene:'The ANGRY FAERIE gets into an argument with the Belligerent Faerie and the Pissed Off Faerie in a faerie free-for-all.'
This also sounds really goofy: [FAERIE BOY, FAERIE GIRL] 'This Faerie boy and girl get all amorous and excited as they pull Jason into their Faerie Club. '
So at a minimum, you have Alcide still up to his neck in vampires and still breathing which is good!-- as well as Jason alive and well it seems, and tangled up (sexually) with a couple of faeries! Go Jason. Though if he's gone to faeryland will he too, be away from Bon Temps for an extended time (ala Earl and Sookie)?
[GONDRY] Mid-30's, slimy and conniving, with slicked back hair, Gondry is a Vampire Security Guard. He has a sort of amused contempt for his assignment. Guest star.
[BERTRAND] A swarthy Frenchman, authoritative, confident, he is the Minister of the European Vampire League. Guest star.
[MURPHY ROLLINS] Mid 50s, a werewolf, strong, a man who speaks his mind, he brings a warning about a new breed of vampires to Alcide and Jackson. Guest star.
[TEEN-GIRL VAMPIRE] This teenage girl vampire with a ravenous, feral, just plain evil look about her. Co-star.
[ANGRY FAERIE] This angry faerie gets into an argument with the Belligerent Faerie and the Pissed Off Faerie in a faerie free-for-all. Co-star.
[AUTHORTY GUARD(s) #1, #2] These rough Authority Guards at the prison help keep order. Co-star.
[BIKER VAMP] This newly formed vampire with a feral, ravaneous, evil look is traveling around with the Teen-Girl Vamp and the Businessman Vamp. No lines, 2 scenes. (40)
[BUSINESSMAN VAMP] This businessman vamp with a ravenous, feral, just plain evil look. Co-star.
[FAERIE BOY, FAERIE GIRL] This Faerie boy and girl get all amorous and excited as they pull Jason into their Faerie Club. Co-star.
RUTINA WESLEY as TARA THORNTON in TRUE BLOOD Season 5 premiering on HBO June 10:
Despite reassurances that 'Tara' would again be a featured player in TRUE BLOOD season 5, some viewers were skeptical on account of her final scene in Sookie's kitchen. Wesley herself has said 'half her head' was blown off when Tara flung herself between (now dead) Debbie Pelt's shotgun blast and Sookie. Didn't look survivable.
However, through what can only now be attributed to mystical/supernatural forces of which there are many in Bon Temps, Tara looks fairly intact in this headshot (no pun) poster art, though to be fair, we are only seeing half her head.
CLICK TO Enlarge these TRUE BLOOD Season 5 Character Posters (May 10 2012)
Question: Do you have any True Blood scoop? The wait is seriously killing me!
Ausiello:
Terry (Todd Lowe) will spend much of the season on the road with his ex-military buddy Patrick (Scott Foley). “Most of the time we are out in the greater 50 states tracking down other members of our platoon trying to get some closure to this event that happened over in Iraq,” reveals Foley of the duo’s hush-hush storyline, which required “a lot of running and fighting and jumping. There’s a lot of physicality.”
VALENTINA CERVI as SALOME in TRUE BLOOD season 5 on HBO:
True Blood Season 5: Vampyr Tease:
True Blood returns with its 5th season on June 10th:
CHRIS MELONI as the leader of The Vampire Authority drops fang in TRUE BLOOD Season 5:
KRISTEN BAUER VAN STRATEN as 'Pam' in TRUE BLOOD Season 5 Official Character Promotional PHOTO (John P. Johnson/HBO): Click thumbnails (below) for full size.
True Blood - Season 5 - Various Promotional Episode Photos:
First look at the Authority! Chris Meloni looks like 'Stabler' in a more expensive suit. All the Authority looks/dresses like well-paid corporate people, save Jacob Hopkins as thes the youngest Vampire Authority chancellor who looks like he's dressing up as high-powered business guy (or maybe they all are all in fact, a vampire version of the one-per-cent).
TRUE BLOOD - Episode 5.01 - Turn! Turn! Turn! SYNOPSIS: Sookie and Lafayette clean up the Tara and Debbie Pelt mess; Bill and Eric are visited by the Vampire Authority; Sam and Alcide deal with an angry werewolf pack. (Written by Brian Buckner; directed by Daniel Minahan) (TV-MA) June 10 premiere
With the release of the TRUE BLOOD EPISODE 5.01 (#49) synopsis and the photo above we now know that Lafayette is the one we previously saw hooded, pictured with Sookie appearing to be filling in a grave in Sookie's yard. From there, it is really hard to tell. Did a vampire show up as well and attempt to turn Tara? Did Tara fully die making that impossible? Will Lafayette's new-found abilities as a medium--a communicator with the dead--'resurrect' Tara?
We know that the actress playing her, Rutina Wesley, is on-board with the show as a featured player but in what form? My guess is as a spectre or a ghost, if you prefer. She's not coming back as a (mindless) zombie. That would make no sense given that the stage is set with her cuz Lafayette being able to 'speak' with her still.
I suppose we could play around with the notion that oh, Pam say, turns her but I just don't get why Pam would be inclined to do so--even if she could.
(Fun observation: When the photo above is blown up, the blood pattern on Sookie's forehead looks just like the one she has in season 1 when she wakes up after nearly being killed by the 'Rattrays,' to Bill licking her forehead where blood was drying on her now-healed wound. Could it be a call-back to the time when Sookie was 'resurrected' by Bill?)
TRUE BLOOD - Episode 5.02 - Authority Always Wins - SYNOPSIS: Tara resurfaces in Bon Temps; Pam recalls her human life and first encounter with Eric; Bill and Eric meet Salome at the Vampire Authority headquarters. (Written by Mark Hudis; directed by Michael Lehmann.) (TV-MA) : June 17 Premiere.
TRUE BLOOD - Episode 5.03 - Whatever I Am, You Made Me- SYNOPSIS: Bill and Eric barter for their lives with Roman, the head of the Authority; Jason reunites with his old high school teacher; Sookie searches for Tara. (Written by Raelle Tucker; directed by David Petrarca.) (TV-MA) June 24 Premiere
CLICK FOR FULL SIZE TRUE BLOOD SEASON 5 POSTER ART:
ANNA PAQUIN and ALEXANDER SKARSGARD in TRUE BLOOD - 'Conjuring Up Season 4' Promo VIDEO airing MAY 27 on HBO:
Conjuring up True Blood Season 4 premiering May 27th on HBO.
True Blood Season 5 premiers this June 10th on HBO.
Looks like the TRUE BLOOD gang's all here except Rutina Wesley (Tara) who tooka bullet to the brain for Sookie (Anna Paquin) at the end of season 4. Very much reminds me of the season 1 cliff-hangar with the foot of a person unknown with toenails painted much like Lafayette's hangin' outta the back seat of Andy Bellefleur's (Chris Bauer) car. We'd last see "Lala" takin' out the trash behind Merlotte's and then being startled by something coming at him at vamp speed. He wasn't seen in any of the season 2 previews prior to the season premiere but then we found he was safe and sound locked up in Eric's dungeon as punishment for sellign "V' (vampire blood).
Here's some intel on what to expect from True Blood season 5 fresh off the press earlier today:
Question: Any True Blood scoop? Answer:
Sorry, Sookie (and fans of the love triangle), but this is the season of the bromance!
"There's a bit of a bromance between going on this year between Eric and Bill," Alexander Skargård tells us.
"It's fun because I love Stephen Moyer to death and after four years of butting heads, this is more like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. We have a common enemy and we have to team up this year."
GAME OF THRONES - Episode 15 – 'The Ghost of Harrenhal' – RECAP:
We open the episode in King Renly’s tent as Renly talks war strategy & alliances with Catelyn Stark. Things sound somewhat promising but because of Melisandre's demon spawn birthing scene last week, everyone probably guessed that Renly's number was about to be up. Sure enough, but a few minutes into the episode Renly is driven through with the shadow demon's sword, falling into Brienne's arms and dying. Guards are upon her immediately but she quickly dispatches them. Then, with Catelyn's urging, she and Cat beat a hasty retreat. Later is a heart-rending scene between Brienne and Catelyn, where a still very distraught Brienne pledges her loyalty to Catelyn Stark. Perfectly played by both Gwendoline Christie as Brienne and Michelle Fairley as Catelyn.
Back in Renly’s camp, the Tyrells have discovered the fate of poor Renly. Loras seems much more upset than Margaery expressing his desire for revenge by killing Stannis himself. Margaery advises caution, as does Littlefinger. She though, is thinking only about the end game, and Littlefinger appears to be on the same page. Says he, 'You wish to be a queen?' Says she, 'No.'...pause...'I wish to be THE queen.'
Stannis has arrived in Renly’s camp and all of his bannermen except the Tyrells who have fled, have joined him. Davos needs to speak with Stannis of a 'hard truth' in the forthcoming battle strategy. Stannis tells him they next sail to Blackwater Bay and, despite Davos's protestations, Davos will command the fleet. Davos advises Stannis to leave Melisandre behind because, he tells him, he will lose his men to the Red Woman if they are victorious as she will be credited her for the victory. Stannis glumly acquiesces without argument.
In King’s Landing, Tyrion meets with Cersei about Renly’s death. Tyrion warns that they will be Stannis's next target. Cersei blithely responds that Joffrey has begun making siege plans, but she plays coy about what those plans are. Undaunted, Tyrion goes to Lancel to get the inside scoop. After verbally kicking around Cersei's boy-toy, Tyrion learns that the Queen Regent has ordered alchemists s make wildfire. Tyrion journeys to the Alchemist’s Guild seeing firsthand the potential in “the substance.” He orders Hallyne to continue making it under Tyrion's direction now.
On the Iron Islands, Theon is preparing to set sail on his ship, the Sea Bitch. His motley crew doesn’t respect him. He meets Dagmer Cleftjaw for the first time; Dagmer suggests instead of raiding some fishing villages, they attack the under-defended Torrhen’s Square. Theon tells him they could take it, but couldn’t hold it once Winterfell sends forces to reclaim it. The two men exchange knowing glances and Theon now sees a path to victory and the much-desired respect from his men.
In Winterfell, Bran is taking yet another 'town hall' meeting,' continuing to listen to the complaints of minor lords. To his irritation, little brother Rickon noisily mashes walnuts by his side. Breaking the staid process, Rodrik bursts in declaring Torrhen Square is under attack. Despite most of them off at battle with Robb, Rodrick tells Bran he could round up 200 fighting men. Bran orders him to do so and to reclaim Torrhen Square. Later, he talks with Osha about his dreams. He talks of the three-eyed crow and then tells Osha about his dream of the sea crashing over the walls Winterfell.
In the far North, the Night’s Watch has arrived at the Fist of the First Men. As they set up camp, Qhorin Halfhand arrives with a force from the Shadow Tower. Qhorin and Jeor Mormont, the Old Bear, talk strategy; the Halfhand wants to take a small force of men to eliminate Mance’s scouts and Jon Snow wants to go with him. Commander Mormont resists at first, but relents after an internal dialogue where he seems to remember his end-game with Snow. It doesn't hurt that Sam cheerfully offers to pick up Jon’s steward duties.
Across the Narrow Sea, Daenerys is a guest of Xaro Xhoan Daxos, the prince who vouched for her and her troupe at the gates of Qarth. Dany has finally figured out how how to feed her dragons or rather how they can now feed themselves (they like their meat singed). Xaro hosts a meet and greet for Dany including the shiver-inducing warlock, Pyat Pree. He shows Dany a bit of magic and invites her to the House of the Undying. Clad in a bizarre wooden mask, Quaithe makes an appearance, delivering cryptic warnings to Jorah of impending danger. Later that night, Xaro demonstrates his immense wealth and then proposes marriage to Dany. He also delivers the news that King Robert is dead. Dany consults with 'adviser and friend,' Jorah. She considers accepting Xaro’s proposal and setting sail to Westeros immediately. Jorah advises her that they wait, that their allies are in Westeros and they need just one ship, not three, to get them there.
Tom Wlaschiha as Jaqen H’ghar
At Harrenhal, Arya attends to Lord Tywin as he meets with his lords. They are discussing what to do about Robb, as he continues to make mincemeat of them at every battle. Tywin recognizes Arya as a northerner. He asks of her what they say of Robb in the north. She tells him the tales of Robb riding a direwolf into battle, or even turning into a direwolf, and that he can’t be killed. “Do you think he can’t be killed?,” he intones. Arya meets his eyes steadily: “No. Anyone can be killed.” Tywin tells her to fetch some water as the already long meeting will continue much longer. On her way, she runs into the enigmatic Jaqen H’ghar dressed as a Lannister soldier. He tells her she owes the Red God three lives, that she must give a man three names and a man will do the rest. Arya gives him his first name, the torturer nicknamed The Tickler. Later, a scream and a thud comes from the courtyard. The Tickler lies on the ground, his head twisted 180 degrees around, facing up. Arya looks up at the battlements and sees Jaqen. He acknowledges her by holding one finger up to his face.
Also at Harrenhall, 'Gendry' (Joe Dempsie)
My thoughts on 'The Ghost of Harrenhal':
Maybe because I'm new to the book series, currently at the beginning of 'A Storm of Swords', I'm not getting bent about the changes being made in the adaption from the A Song of Ice and Fire book series to the HBO telling of the story. The author of the books, George R.R. Martin is an advisor on the adaption process and it seems most choices are done in service to the process that must be gone through in order to come out the other side, so to speak.
I don't care who Arya chose as her first kill. It needed to be someone that she hated's name. She more or less just plucked out of the air as Jaquen sprang the three deaths for three lives offer on her and she answered quickly. In my mind, the Tickler was as good as any. Book readers fussing over 'what will they do when' in book 3 need to focus on the now (adaption of book 2). If you love the book version so very much, go back and reread it to assuage your feelings of being cheated.
Speaking of 'Arya', Maisie Williams is a fantastic Arya. She's acting at the level of the best adult actors on the show. When I read the books now I picture her and that's about as good as it gets.
Though he didn't impress me all that much in season 1, Isaac Hempstead Wright as 'Bran' is increasingly growing on me. He never overplays and his restrained performance serves the story quite well.
Tom Wlaschiha as Jaqen H'ghar is mysterious, strange and very alluring. He's an instant favourite of mine.
Finally, the scene in the aftermath of Renly's murder between Stephen Dillane as Stannis and Liam Cunningham as Davos was churning with tumult just beneath it's muted surface. Kudos to both actors.
Lena Headey as Cersei and Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister in GAME OF THRONES - Episode #16:
Game Of Thrones Season 2: Episode #16 Preview
GAME OF THRONES NEXT WEEK: Episode #16: “The Old Gods and the New”: Debut: SUNDAY, MAY 6 (9:00-10:00 p.m. ET/PT)
Theon (Alfie Allen) completes his master stroke. In King’s Landing, the Lannisters send Myrcella (Aimee Richardson) from harm’s way in the nick of time. Arya (Maisie Williams) comes face to face with a surprise visitor; Dany (Emilia Clarke) vows to take what is hers; Robb (Richard Madden) and Catelyn (Michelle Fairley) receive crucial news; Qhorin (Simon Armstrong) gives Jon (Kit Harington) a chance to prove himself.
Written by Vanessa Taylor; directed by David Nutter.
AFTER THE JUMP: Game Of Thrones Season 2: Inside The Episode #15
ALEXANDER SKARSGARD as Eric Northman in TRUE BLOOD HBOGO Season 5 SNEAK PEEK:
True Blood Season 5: (EXTENDED) Waiting Sucks - Eric and Pam
TRUE BLOOD Season 5: Waiting Sucks - Eric/Pam VIDEO:
KRISTEN BAUER van STRATEN in TRUE BLOOD in HBOGO Season 5 SNEAK PEEK:
In which Pam does the unthinkable and demands that Eric, her maker, release her if he is unwilling to trust her. She seems especially aggrieved that Eric she says, takes the word of Bill Compton and 'a werewolf' (probably Alcide) over hers.
Eric had just accused her of lying about digging up Russell Edgington--which she vehemently denied--to which he responded he trusts no one and she should not, either.
ALFIE ALLEN (Theon Greyjoy), LENA HEADEY (Queen Cersei), KIT HARRINGTON (Jon Snow), EMILIA CLARKE (Daenerys) - ROLLING STONE magazine shoot - March 2012:
GAME OF THRONES Melisandre (Carice van Houten) gazes upon the demon spawn (HBO):
LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Last week’s “Game of Thrones” episode proved to be a shocker not just to the audience, but to one of its stars — Liam Cunningham.
The Irish actor was part of the eye-popping cliffhanger scene where his character, Ser Davos Seaworth, watched the red priestess, Melisandre (played by Carice van Houten), give birth to some sort of “monster.” “After I lifted my jaw off the ground, when I read the end of it, I was astonished,” he told AccessHollywood.com of his initial reaction to the script.
“I just really wanted to know how they were gonna shoot this. “When I saw where we were shooting it and what it was gonna look like, I thought, ‘This is like a Caravaggio — a beautiful painting.’ And [Director David Petrarca] said, ‘That’s exactly what our brief was — to make it look like this,’” Liam continued. “And this thing — it’s just so weird to watch. “When I do turn around — you have to get your head around this as an actor — to turn around and see the red priestess dropping the robe and [she’s] nine months pregnant, and two second before, she wasn’t pregnant at all? And for my character, who’s very real, he’s very human, and to see this thing crawl along the ground… this CGI-ed monster, is very, very scary and it’s an amazing end shot,” he enthused.
...“It’s not something you can rehearse. You kind of have to just play it and it’s very taxing on Carice, as well, because of the screaming and the different angles and the basic delivery — it’s not as difficult as a real one. However, when you’re in a cave, in the cold weather, and she’s virtually naked, it’s, I mean she had the tougher job of that,” he said.
To make the lithe Carice look pregnant in the scene, they brought in the experts, who made her faux belly move. “Carice had a prosthetic on which was operated by pneumatics, so we had the wonderful Conor O’Sullivan, who did ‘Clash of the Titans,’ he did ‘The Dark Knight’ — incredible guy, top of his game, whose operating this um, tummy,” he said.
... “It’s just really surreal. You’ve got a film crew and somebody’s giving birth to a monster in a cave, in Northern Ireland, in the middle of the night,” Liam said. “You’ve gotta laugh at that stuff. It could twist the mind of a sane person.” “... this is a wonderful cliffhanger… to finish [the episode]. ‘What the hell is this woman up to and what is she doing at this point?’ And we just cut it,” Liam laughed...
It seems that the casting for roles in DEXTER season 7 has begun in earnest. A number of casting calls went out earlier this week and now there's a name to go with a character with a 'major recurring role.'
From AUSIELLO:
In the first piece of casting for the show’s upcoming seventh season, Dexter has tapped Rome (HBO) actor Ray Stevenson to join the ensemble in a 'major recurring role' TVLine has learned exclusively.
Stevenson will play a high-ranking member of an Eastern European crime ring who arrives in Miami determined to learn who killed one of his associates.
Ray Stevenson
Stevenson has starred in TV's "Rome" and in movies like "Thor" and "Punisher: War Zone," will also star in the "Thor" sequel and this summer's 'G.I. Joe: Retaliation.'
"Dexter," which was renewed for a seventh and eighth season by SHOWTIME in November, will begin its seventh season on September 30.
No further details were available, including whether Stevenson will function as the new season’s 'Big Bad'.
Looking over the casting descriptions, it's possible that Stevenson will be playing this guy:
[VIKTOR KAREV] 30s, handsome, well dressed, stylish, slight Eastern European accent. He is a polished businessman who can get his hands dirty when he has to.
Also, I must take exception to Ausiello's assumption that there will be a single 'big bad' in season 7 DEXTER. If you recall (and how could you not?!) when last we saw them, Dex's (Michael C. Hall) sister Deb (Jennifer Carpenter), had just discovered Dexter in the act of committing a murder, decked out in his usual garb in his made-to-order 'kill room.' There is no way, no how that this is going to be a 'normal' season of Dexter (if there is such a thing) so I'm not ready to wager that anything this season will be business as usual.
Dexter‘s seventh season premieres Sunday, Sept. 30.
HOMELAND SCOOP!
Q: Is it too early to ask for Homeland scoop?
TVGuide: Never! Even though Carrie (Claire Danes) was booted from the CIA by David Estes at the end of Season 1, I hear she'll be travelling overseas on a special mission -- with Estes' approval -- when the new season, which reportedly takes place six months later, begins. And speaking of Estes: One of Brody's (Damien Lewis) first assignments from Abu Nazir requires him to break into a safe in his office!
Janina Gavankar as 'Luna' and Sam Trammell as 'Sam' film TRUE BLOOD episode 5.05:
True Blood Season 5: Waiting Sucks - Sam/Luna VIDEO:
Hardcore TRUE BLOOD fans know that there remains just 6½ weeks until the premiere of season 5 on HBO Sunday nights. In past years there's been an absolute blitz of media like giant murals, adverts on the side of buses and at bus stops, tons of sneak peeks, and many other "extras." This year seems, to me anyway, more muted.
Perhaps it is wise that HBO continues to hype to the extreme it's massively successful adaption of George R.R. Martin's book series "A Song Of Ice and Fire" which is almost halfway through it's 10-episode season 2 run (Yep. It's in True Blood's timeslot).
Thus far, there's been three NEW behind-the-scenes snippets from Season 5. Wisely, the promo people chose to insert Sookie (Anna Paquin) in one as well as Alcide (Joe Manganiello) and if you perused the HBOGo site you'd see Lafayette (Nelsan Ellis) enter that scene, too. Pretty good, though completely spoiler-free spot.
I figured that to build anticipation that we'd next get a scene with Eric (Alexander Skarsgård) or Bill (Stephen Moyer) as they are two of the featured stars of the show. If not them, then a scene with the hotly anticipated, newly cast Chris Meloni.
But no.
What we have is Sam & Luna & Terry & Patrick.
We also have a problem. Problems, actually.
Sam (Sam Trammell) and Luna (Janina Gavankar) have no chemistry what.so.ever. and they are playing a couple so that scene is a big zzzzz, save for it's extended version, also residing at HBOGo (sense a pattern?) in which Sam exits stage left leaves Luna's only to have her hear a gunshot ring out seconds afterward. Anyone worried that Sam is shot? No? Me neither. You know that in episode 5.05 True Blood is not killing off Sam. And they are ripping themselves off in that they had Sam in similar circumstances with the,"Did Sam shoot Tommy?" scene that was a season 3-ender. Mostly, we didn't care but just the same, it was a red-herring, Tommy got winged. At most, Sam will too.
True Blood Season 5: Waiting Sucks - Terry/Patrick VIDEO:
OK. Terry and Patrick. Terry (Todd Lowe) is well-liked by fans and a scene with him and maybe his cousin Andy (Chris Bauer) might have been good enough but they didn't do that. Instead, we are offered up 'Patrick', an old Iraq war buddy of Terry's that showed up at Merlotte's at the tail-end of last season. We don't know anything more about Patrick so why should we care when shown a behind-the-scenes sneak peek of him and Terry getting caught doing "whatever" by some guys we've never seen before? We don't. Which defeats the point, the very reason for a sneak peek/teaser: to entice us to watch.
Given that True Blood is coming off a disappointing season 4, you'd think that they would haul out their big guns (those would be the stars of the show) and tease the hell out of us.
Six more weeks guys, to entice, to build anticipation and excitement about the TRUE BLOOD season 5 premiere.
Time to haul out the big guns.
Season 5 of "True Blood" premieres Sunday, June 10th. For more on True Blood, go to http://itsh.bo/HAObVp or jump in on the Twitter conversations http://twitter.com/truebloodhbo
TRUE BLOOD Star ANNA PAQUIN, who last week announced her pregnancy, is ambushed by paparazzi as she tries to run errands near her home in Malibu.
Credit: Pacific Coast News /Apr 25, 2012 via PEOPLE
True Blood stars Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer confirmed this week that Anna is expecting their first child. This of course has set off a media frenzy to get a snap of Anna's belly. Though her tummy does not look particularly big her boobs are ginormous. My guess is she could have hid the evidence of a growing tummy a bit longer but no way could the formerly conservatively endowed Paquin hide her now-ample breasts.
I'm not now, nor have I ever been very interested in Paquin and Moyer's private lives. You won't find but a couple of photos like the one above over the 4-plus years I've written about the show, as I do feel her privacy is being compromised.
HOWEVER, I am really curious as to how this will affect her work on HBO's TRUE BLOOD.
Unconfirmed reports have the baby arriving this fall, 2012. Filming of TRUE BLOOD season 6, if there is to be one, would commence around the beginning of 2013 if the show sticks to it's previous schedule. It seems then that this baby was perfectly planned to give Paquin and Moyer a traditional maternity leave of about 3 months or so. She'll need to get back into 'perfect' shape in time for season 6 though one wonders if Anna's bare-it-all True Blood scenes are now behind her, not so much because she won't ever look great (I'm sure she will). More, she's attained power-player status and really doesn't have to 'serve the story' any longer.
I'm curious too, how her maternal status has affected the True Blood season 5 story. Obviously, Paquin's character Sookie Stackhouse, won't get pregnant and now it seems that unless she filmed her sexy-time scenes already she won't be baring too much at all in season 5 (body doubles are not ruled out, I suppose).
That jibes with what has been reported about True Blood season 5, that the Vampire Authority will be the central focus and that this year will deviate greatly from the original source material by writer Charlaine Harris.
I do applaud leaving the Sookie Stackhouse books behind as after the first couple they decline greatly in quality. (Just the same, I read the entire series in an effort to be well-informed about the show.)
With showrunner ALAN BALL exiting TRUE BLOOD after this season, and Paquin and Moyer starting a family, my feeling is that True Blood is winding down. I'm curious too about what kind of audience numbers True Blood will pull in for it's debut on June 10--and beyond. It's my prediction that this will be the first year that True Blood loses some of it's steam. I'm no psychic but perusing the bloated terrain of True Blood websites I have read hundreds of comments especially from fans of the Sookie Stackhouse book series, that they are done with the show. I've seen such 'threats' (promises?) before but after last season I totally understand where they are coming from. Even tho' I'm not a Charlaine Harris book fan-- I am a fan of good TV. And season 4 True Blood to put it kindly, was uneven in quality, as was to a lessor extent, seasons 2 and 3.
You can only squeeze so much juice out of what was a sexy, bloody, fantastical R-rated romp before the source runs dry. Better to exit while you still have a respectable fan base than dying a slow death. In other words, after season 5 TRUE BLOOD, let's stake it and move on.
Claire Danes and Damien Lewis in HOMELAND on SHOWTIME. Season 2 debuts on Sept 30, 2012:
Despite there being many questions remaining for HOMELAND, due to Claire Danes' sublime performance as 'Carrie Matheson', a bi-polar CIA agent who is right about a returned war hero in the wrong way and because of Mandy Patinkin's wonderful portrayal of her mentor , a man with many years CIA and as many psychic demons, I totally need to know if Carrie is alright. Danes did such a convincing job of Carrie's meltdown which culminated with her admitting herself for electroconvulsive therapy, that I'm anxious to get back to the show to see if she's gonna pull through enough to piece her life--which she was just barely keeping on track--back together.
Homeland : Season 2 - 'Burning Questions' VIDEO:
The truth was uncovered, but not everything was revealed. Homeland season 2 premieres September 30th, 2012.
Cool! We are beginning to get DEXTER intel. I'll never not love DEXTER. The actors are incredible and the show was so daring and crazy when it was a bit 'younger.' It's still one of the best shows--on any channel on television.
DEXTER, Episode #701, "Are You....?" Writer: Scott Buck Director: John Dahl Location: Los Angeles Shoot dates: o/a 5/23-6/4
[GEORGE NOVIKOV] 30s to 40s. Russian heritage but American born, so no accent. Tough, aggressive, possibly a little overweight but imagines he is "all that". Basically, he's just not a good guy. RECURRING GUEST STAR.
[VIKTOR KAREV] 30s, handsome, well dressed, stylish, slight Eastern European accent. He is a polished businessman who can get his hands dirty when he has to. GUEST LEAD.
[DET. ANGIE MILLER] 30s, African American. Attractive, straightforward, she is a divorced mother of two who has no time for nonsense, so she simply goes about her job at Miami Metro Homicide. MAJOR RECURRING CO-STAR ROLE.
[YOUNG DEXTER] Dexter (Michael C. Hall) at 9 years old. Reddish-brownish hair and brown eyes. 2 Speeches and 6 lines/3 scenes.
[YOUNG DEBRA] Debra (Jennifer Carpenter) at 5 years old. Long brown hair and hazel green eyes. 2 Speeches and 2 lines/3 scenes.
[TICKET AGENT] 30s, Caucasian, female. She is a ticket agent at an airport. 1 Speech and 2 lines/1 scene.
[BLACK-HAIRED STRIPPER] Mid 20s to early 30s and with a thick Russian accent. She is a stripper at a Miami strip club. 2 lines/1 scene.
[EVIDENCE CLERK] Female, Latina, 30s to 40s. She works in evidence at Miami Metro Homicide. 1 line/1 scene.
It was clear from this first photo released from The Lone Ranger set last month, that Johnny Depp was sticking by his word to make his Tonto a radical departure from the Jay Silverheels' Tonto of the the 1950s-era television show.
But ever since the photo still of Depp and Armie Hammer as the Lone Ranger was made public, inquiring minds have been asking: What exactly is the origin of his black-and-white painted warrior?
“I’d actually seen a painting by an artist named Kirby Sattler, and looked at the face of this warrior and thought: That’s it,” Depp said in a recent interview. “The stripes down the face and across the eyes … it seemed to me like you could almost see the separate sections of the individual, if you know what I mean.”...
Depp explained that the lines of paint on the Native American’s face looked to him like a cross-section of the man’s emotional life.
“There’s this very wise quarter, a very tortured and hurt section, and angry and rageful section, and a very understanding and unique side. I saw these parts, almost like dissecting a brain, these slivers of the individual,” he said.”That makeup inspired me.”
The painting also provided inspiration for Tonto’s headdress. “It just so happened Sattler had painted a bird flying directly behind the warrior’s head. It looked to me like it was sitting on top,” Depp said, which led him to another eureka moment. “I thought: Tonto’s got a bird on his head. It’s his spirit guide in a way. It’s dead to others, but it’s not dead to him. It’s very much alive.”...
For his part, Depp has said his motivation to play the character came from disliking how Tonto was relegated to subservience in the old... TV series. While the look may not be historically authentic, Depp wants Tonto’s character to be honorable and self-reliant...
“The whole reason I wanted to play Tonto is to try to [mess] around with the stereotype of the American Indian that has been laid out through history, or the history of cinema at the very least — especially Tonto as the sidekick, The Lone Ranger’s assistant,” Depp told EW. “As you’ll see, it’s most definitely not that.”
There have been a lot of remembrances of Jonathan which have appeared on the Internet since yesterday. I’m proud and honored that mine has been quoted and linked to by many sites. But I want to share two posts I read this morning which are special and revealing.
The first is from Jonathan’s hometown newspaper The Spec and includes wonderful quotes from Jonathan’s nephews and friends about Jonathan’s everyday life in Ancaster.
The second is from The Plain Dealer. Mark Dawidziak writes with such insight. It really is the best appreciation of Jonathan that I’ve read so far.
Jonathan Frid, best known for playing vampire Barnabas Collins on ABC's Dark Shadows, has died. He was 87. The actor died on April 13 of natural causes at Juravinski Hospital in Ontario, Canada, according to Digital Spy.
Dark Shadows, a gothic soap opera, aired from 1966 to 1971 and drew nearly 20 million viewers at the height of its popularity. Frid joined the show in 1967 as Barnabas Collins, a vampire returning to his family's estate, and quickly became the star of the show.
Above: On the set of Dark Shadows - Jonathan Frid, Kathryn Leigh Scott, John Karlen
"May Jonathan Frid, 'our reluctant vampire,' live on in our hearts!" Frid's co-star, Kathryn Leigh Scott, wrote on her website. "How blessed I am to have known this dear man and to have such wonderful memories of him, both on screen and off. ... He was irascible, irreverent, funny, caring, lovable and thoroughly professional, and in the end became the whole reason why kids ran home from school to watch Dark Shadows."
Before his death, Frid, who also starred in the TV movie The Devil's Daughter and the horror film, Seizure, filmed a cameo appearance for Tim Burton's forthcoming big-screen remake of Dark Shadows, in which Johnny Depp will play Barnabas. The film is set to be released May 11.
Johnny Depp on Jonathan Frid's Death:
LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Johnny Depp paid tribute to his "Dark Shadows" predecessor Jonathan Frid on Thursday, telling the Los Angeles Times that the first time he met Frid was "elegant and magical." Frid, who played vampire Barnabas Collins from 1967 to 1971 on the soap opera, died April 13 at the age of 87, though news of his death began to filter out on Thursday. "Jonathan Frid was the reason I used to run home from school to watch ‘Dark Shadows,'" Depp told the paper. "His elegance and grace was an inspiration then and will continue to remain one forever more. When I had the honor to finally meet him... generously passed the torch of Barnabas." Depp, who called Frid "a true original," plays Collins in the big-screen adaptation of "Dark Shadows," which hits theaters on May 11.
Frid has a bit part in the film, as a party guest. According to Depp, when he met Frid, the elder actor was " elegant and magical as I had always imagined."
'I won’t ever forget the moment when the two Barnabas Collinses met, one in his late 80s and the other in his mid-40s, each with their wolf’s head canes. Jonathan took his time scrutinizing his successor’s appearance. “I see you’ve done the hair,” Jonathan said to Johnny Depp, “but a few more spikes.” Depp, entirely in character, replied, “Yes, we’re doing things a bit differently.' -KATHRYN LEIGH SCOTT
Well, look right here! It's our Ms. Nancy (Mary-Louise Parker) and she's looking pretty good for a lady that just took a bullet!
'Happy 4/20 from Weeds! Don't miss the premiere of the new season on Sunday, July 1st at 10PM ET/PT on Showtime.'
Kevin Nealon (SHO) WEEDS:
Q: Is Nancy really dead on Weeds?
TVGuide:
Let's take a look at the evidence, shall we?
The producers are casting for three very telling roles:
1) a paramedic who tries to keep Nancy talking while she's being rushed to the hospital;
2) a head surgeon who speaks calmly to the Botwin family; and
3) a hospital chaplain who confers with Andy. Is it time for Nancy to be read her last rites? Probably not! Come on, people; she's the star of the show!
There are still a few months left to wait for Showtime’s 30-minute dramedy series WEEDS to return for its eighth season, but in my time zone its officially 4/20 and so it seems perfect timing that a new teaser for Season 8 WEEDS was just released.
Sadly, the new WEEDs teaser does not offer any footage from Season 8, but it does give us a look at the cast dancing and smiling (with Nancy the notable exception--she looks angry then sticks her tongue out--impressively far!).
Mary-Louise Parker looks like her gorgeous self, not appearing until the almost-end, following the “Happy 4/20” message.
This is actually not the first teaser released by SHOWTIME for for WEEDS Season 8. The last promo released celebrated Nancy's "Wicked World." You can check that one out here.
Emilia Clarke as Daenerys Targaryen and Iain Glen as Ser Jorah Mormont in Episode 14 of Game of Thrones (HBO Sundays):
Game Of Thrones Season 2: Episode #14 Preview VIDEO:
Tune in to the new season of "Game Of Thrones" every Sunday night at 9PM. For more on Game of Thrones, go to http://itsh.bo/HpR8b1.
Lena Headey as Queen Regent Cersei Lannister and Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister in Episode 14 (or 15) of Game of Thrones (Credit: HBO)
Aimee Richardson as Princess Myrcella in Episode 14 (or 15) of Game of Thrones (Credit: HBO):
Game of Thrones Episode: "Garden of Bones" Season 2, Episode 4 -
Original Air Date: Apr 22, 2012
Episode #14 Synopsis:
Tyrion steps in when Joffrey holds Sansa accountable for Robb Stark's recent decisive victory on the battlefield, though the ill-tempered king finds another target for his cruelty. Meanwhile, Arya and Gendry are imprisoned at Harrenhal, where they witness unspeakable acts of torture; Daenerys and the khalasar seek salvation at the prosperous city of Qarth; and Stannis calls on Davos' past as a smuggler to carry out a secret mission.
Guest Cast: Stephen Dillane: Stannis Baratheon Michael McElhatton: Roose Bolton Charles Dance: Tywin Lannister Natalie Dormer: Margaery Tyrell Carice van Houten: Melisandre Anthony Morris: The Tickler Nicholas Blane: Spice King Ian Beattie: Meryn Trant Gethin Anthony: Renly Baratheon Fintan McKeown: Amory Lorch Joe Dempsie: Gendry Eugene Simon: Lancel Lannister Gwendoline Christie: Brienne Liam Cunningham: Davos Seaworth Tony Way: Dontos Hollard Ian Whyte: Gregor Clegane Ian Hanmore: Pyat Pree (TVGuide.com)
Game Of Thrones Season 2: Inside The Episode #13 VIDEO
Game Of Thrones Season 2: RECAP #13 VIDEO
Episode thirteen, entitled “What Is Dead May Never Die" BEST SCENES RECAP:
Best scenes in episode #13:
Who is the snitch?:
'In the book, this scene works well with Tyrion’s internal monologue counting off each of his offers but that obviously needed to be adapted for the visual medium of television.
What writer Bryan Cogman and director Alik Sakharov did, having Tyrion’s three offers all come in one scene with seamless cuts, was perfect and a wonderful example of taking a memorable sequence from the books and adapting it to screen while using the strengths of the visual medium to make it different, but just as good.'
Brienne of Tarth:
Not a disappointment
Though I'm relatively new to the world of a Game of Thrones, it became clear quickly when speaking of characters introduced in the second installment of the "A Song of Ice and Fire' series that 'Brienne of Tarth' (not 'Lady' Brienne, TYVM) is a fan favourite. The actor portraying her is Gwendoline Christie and at a height dwarfing many, she seems to physically suit the role terrifically and her personality seems spot on, too.
Yoren, we hardly knew ye:
Francis Magee did a really nice turn as Yoren, the 'wandering crow' who at season one's end shielded Arya from actually seeing her father's beheading and has kept her safe thus far under the pretext of collecting orphan boys as The Wall recruits. Arya was 'Arry' a' boy', but her and Yorn's luck especially, ran out when King Joffery's posse, sent in search of King Robert's bastard Gendry, stormed the gates of Yoren's haven with it's ragged band of boys. Yoren went down vastly outnumbered and fighting hard.
Theon Greyjoy is a Very Bad Boy:
Theon (the Ironborn) Greyjoy – Alfie Allen is making a memorable impression in season 2 with a compelling arc that paints a picture of the son that Balon Greyjoy handed over as a guarantee that he would war no more. Robb Stark has sent Theon into the lion's den to the Iron Islands to broker an alliance with Theon's father, Lord Balon Greyjoy and Allen is doing a doing a bang-up job showing the internal conflict of Theon’s character. I actually felt sorry for him this episode. And that baptism scene was perfect. “What is dead may never die, but rises again harder and stronger.”
Recapping this episode:
We spent a good while in King’s Landing, where Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) made three different offers in the hopes of uncovering Cersei’s snitch. Pycelle was ferreted both as Cersei's informant and as a traitor to the preceding King's Hands and so Tyrion ordered him thrown into the Black Cells.
In his role as both King's Hand and rule-breaker, Tyrion had the power to broker a set-up where the very bored and restless Shae became Sansa’s handmaiden. He also set Littlefinger to long lost almost love Lady Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley) about releasing Jamie Lannister, and had a drink with Varys the Spider, giving Tyrion a lot of face time in this episode.
ALFIE ALLEN AS THEON GREYJOY in GAME OF THRONES Episode 13:
'Beyond the Wall, Craster kicked out the Night’s Watch and Mormont revealed to Jon Snow that he knows what Craster does with his sons. Before leaving, Sam gave Gilly a token and promised that he would return.
At Winterfell, Bran continues to have his wolf dreams. When he explains him to Luwin, the maester explains to him that magic no longer exists in the world. Big help he is.
On the Iron Islands, Balon revealed his plans to Theon; he plans to take the North by capturing and holding the Neck and eventually conquering or accepting the surrender of the remaining holdfasts and castles.
Theon contemplates warning Robb of this surprise attack, but decides to turn his back on his adopted family and align with his true family. This was a small, quiet but hugely emotional scene with vast likely consequences, of course.'
Renly and his camp of 100,000 strong are quite an impressive sight but are they all for show with little substance?
The conquering blue knight was revealed as Brienne of Tarth, a woman, and then appointed to Renly’s Kingsguard. Later that night, Renly tried to consummate his marriage with Margaery, but failed. Margaery has a highly prgmatic understanding of the importance of an heir and offers a threesome with her brother to help Renly get the job done. That was not in the book. So go HBO! Because you can. :)
Lastly, Arya has a heart-to-heart with Yoren before Amory Lorch and his band attacks. Arya saves Jaqen, while Yoren gets killed and the rest of the group gets captured. Lommy is killed and Arya, in a moment of exceptionally quick thinking, tells the Lannister soldiers that he was Gendry.
Q: What do you have on Ayra and Gendry or cutie Jon Snow on Game of Thrones?
A: How do we put this in a way that won't make you freak out for the next week? Hmm, we dont think there is one so we'll give it to you straight. Arya (Maisie Williams) and Gendry (Joe Dempsie) are in imminent danger. Gendry in particular will cross paths with someone who has a disgusting and horrifying way of getting answers. Let's just say this particular method of gaining information isn't in accordance with the Geneva Convention. Read more: http://www.eonline.com/news/watch_with_kristin Spoiler Chat Daily: Is Anybody Safe on Vampire Diaries? Plus, Glee, Game of Thrones and More!
AFTER THE JUMP: Game Of Thrones Season 2: Burning Of The 7 Gods - Game Of Thrones Season 2: Religions Of Westeros - Game Of Thrones Season 2: Anatomy Of A Scene: Tyrion - Game Of Thrones Season 2: The Story So Far (Episodes 11-13)
I'd not ever heard of Carolyn Hennesy prior to her being cast in season 5 TRUE BLOOD but I did react to the photos that I found of her. She's not a 20-something-- yay! And this came on the heels of not-twenty-something Chris Meloni and Peter Mensah being cast as fellow vampire Authority members! Anyway, I've sorted through some recent Hennesy interviews in which she does spoil (depends on your personal spoiler threshold) aspects of both her character and that of some of her co-stars as well as some Vampire Authority plot points.
Carolyn Hennesy was recently interviewed by Lena Lamoray...* (Please someone, tell me how Lena Lamoray gets so many interviews? Never has she done a good one. Am I being non-PC when I ask if English is her second language? I'm serious, 'cause that would explain a lot and I would need to stop being snarky about it.) ...and Carolyn describes the background of her character, Rosalyn Harris, and her storyline in Season 5. In addition to TRUE BLOOD, Carolyn’s prior and current projects include; Cougar Town, General Hospital, and her Pandora book series for young adults. Book six of the Pandora series, Pandora Gets Greedy, comes out in June.
Carolyn Hennesy joins the cast of True Blood for season 5, playing Authority member Rosalyn Harris, an (ancient) vampire with a love of cigars and steaks. This Texan 'broad' enjoys the finer things in life ... and likely gets her way almost all of the time!
Q: Prior to your casting had you been a fan of True Blood?
Carolyn Hennesy: I had actually not watched the show before. We didn’t get HBO, so the day after I was cast, we got HBO, and I spent the 10 days before Christmas [watching] — 48 episodes in 10 days(!)...It’s one of those things where you snatch yourself up by the head and say, "Where have I been for the last four years? What have I been doing?" It’s like candy...
Q: So what can you tell us about your character, 'Rosalyn'?
Carolyn Hennesy: She is from Texas, or I should say, has been for maybe the last 200 years. She’s very old as vampires go, so her history before that is all over the world. She has been a member of the Vampire Authority for a very long time... She’s a broad. She’s a dame. She likes a good joke and a good cigar and a good roll in the hay...And when she was alive, she enjoyed a good steak. E-A-K not A-K-E.
Q: It seems we're going to learn more about the Authority this season. What can you tell us about this mysterious group?
Carolyn Hennesy: There’s a tremendous battle brewing. There’s been hints about who’s coming back on the show and all of that. We have learned in the past that there are those who thoroughly believe in mainstreaming and there are those who don’t. There are two main factions really of the vampire society — the mainstreamers and the fanguenistas. And Russell Edgington (Denis O'Hare) — we know he falls or where he fell: "we are vampires we will eat you."
The mainstreams, The Authority, sees the wisdom of assimilating with society. They outnumber us. They’ve made all these incredible strides in the last 2,000 years, not the least of which is creating drinkable blood, synthetic blood for vampires, well if they can do that, what else? What else can they do to help the vampire society?
Carolyn Hennesy: And in order to be a part of that we have to assimilate and mainstream and let them know that we’re not really a danger. And that’s where the Authority is coming from.
Q: Christopher Meloni has also been cast as someone in the Authority. Have you worked with him?
Carolyn Hennesy: I have worked with him for the last two months. It has been like a gift. like a master class. when Christopher Meloni speaks we go, "Oh that’s how it’s done." It’s just lovely working with him. He is very intense and rightfully so.
Q ;Can you tell me anything about his character??
Carolyn Hennesy: He is the guardian. His name is Roman. He’s one of the heads of the Authority. He’s the one we look up to, and swoon over, and follow.
Q: Are you higher up in the Vampire Authority?
Carolyn Hennesy: I am not. The Authority was started by one particular member. I am not the oldest member of the authority but I was there shortly after it started. Very shortly. There are, chronologically, older members of the Authority. But it's [all relative]. It's like if the Authority is 2,000 years old, Rosalyn has maybe been on for 1,950 years. In the grand scheme of things all the Authority members - it used to be eight with Nan Flanagan, but she's gone so it is seven - are the most powerful vampires on the planet.
Q: The description I have here says that Rosalyn has "hair high enough to interfere with air traffic."
Carolyn Hennesy; Well, where Rosalyn comes from is still something of a mystery. I've kind of solved it myself, with the character background I have created. Rosalyn is from Texas - for the last 500 years or so. Where she comes from before that is Prague, or someplace overseas. But she loves Texas. She is one of those women who helped tame the Wild West. She loves everything about Texas, that it's a man's world and she is a hell of a woman in it. In Texas, as they say with regard to everything, but especially to hair, "big is just the place to start." So Rosalyn embraces everything Lone Star. When you think of Rosalyn, you need to think of Anne Richards and Mae West and Joan Crawford in Johnny Guitar. She is a broad and a half. She's a great dame. Pearls go with everything, and your hair can never be too high. And she will kill you on the spot!
Q: How much of Rosalyn's background did you get to create for yourself?
Carolyn Hennesy: I got three things: that she is from Texas; that she has hair high enough to interfere with air traffic; and she has a "home-spun wisdom." So she'll come up with the quip that relates to gelding a horse, or say, "Well, when I was on the ranch...." But her instincts are almost always right. Once she makes up her mind, and she knows she is right - and it takes a lot to change Rosalyn's mind. But it can be done.
Q: Is Rosalyn for assimilation?
Carolyn Hennesy: Very much so. She understands the wisdom of it. In the time that Rosalyn has been alive, we have put a man on the moon; we have conquered oceans; we have this synthetic blood. What else can [humans] do that can be of benefit to vampire-kind? That is what really interests Rosalyn, and the only way vampires can reap the benefits of these discoveries is if they act in concert with human beings.
Q: Would you consider Rosalyn a "good guy" or a "bad guy?"
Carolyn Hennesy: A good guy. A very good guy. Of course, if you cross her, she will snap your neck. As far as I am concerned, Rosalyn loves humans. She loves them for what they may be able to do for vampires.
Q: I know you can't say much about the season as a whole, but is there a general direction this season is going in?
Carolyn Hennesy: Well, with only my scenes, it would be that there is a real push for mainstreaming. A real push. And then what ultimately results from that tremendous push. That's really all I can say.
Q: Are you done shooting for the season?
Carolyn Hennesy: No. We're only half-way. We started in late December / January.
Q: How many episodes are you in?
Carolyn Hennesy: So far I am in seven.
Q: Are you going to be in the whole season?
Carolyn Hennesy: I don't know. The mind of god - also known as Alan Ball - he knows all those answers. So we shall see.
Check out the Stark kids' rendition of the Game of Thrones Season 1 Show Open, one of the many features found on the Game of Thrones Season 1 DVD/Blu-ray.
GAME OF THRONES OPENING SEQUENCE & MUSIC VIDEO featuring Sophie Turner (Sansa Stark), Bran (Isaac Hempstead Wright), and Maisie Williams (Arya/Arry Stark).
Game of Thrones Season 1: Stark Kids Sing Show Open
I wasn't going to watch it but on 2nd thought did--it's not the kids singing--it's the opening GoT montage music with them humming and do-do-do-do-ing through it, then a intro from each in their 'real' voices. Really quite fun.
Head to the HBO Shop to order Game of Thrones on DVD or Blu-ray. SHOP: http://itsh.bo/Hv0PFc Connect with Game of Thrones on Facebook & Twitter: http://www.facebook.com/gameofthrones http://www.twitter.com/gameofthrones - #gameofthrones
In case you noticed a) that the guy playing 'Charlie', Jackie's 17- y.o. friend in rehab, was not credited and b) that he looks an awful lot lot like new cast addition 'Dr. Mike Cruz,' Bobby Cannavale, you may have guessed the following: We have a on-offscreen father-son acting team on Nurse Jackie this season! The '17 y.o. drug addict' is none other than Jake Cannavale and this appears to be his first official acting job.
I've watched the first three of Nurse Jackie's season 4 episodes and I find Jackie's new friend quite appealing. He has charisma like his father but wields it very differently. His character seems like a very bright, very troubled kid who Jackie appears to instantly understand. What he understands better than Jackie however is the truth of addiction. Should be interesting to see how this plays out. Jackie is so used to being on top of everything--at this point in a world-weary way. Is she opened-minded enough to listen to the wisdom of a 17 y.o.?
The other new actor that stood out for me as extremely relatable was Jackie's treatment facility therapist, 'Laura' Played by Laura Silverman.
Laura Silverman plays Jackie's therapist, 'Laura' on NURSE JACKIE on Showtime
Season 4 Nurse Jackie spoiler. Don't be surprised if young Mr. Cruz shows up later both in his own and Jackie's recovery journey.
Nurse Jackie: 'Here Come The Clowns' SNEAK PEEK VIDEO:
Jackie's stint in rehab begins with her sharing a room with an irksome kleptomaniac and forging an alliance with a 17-year-old addict who's on his fourth stay at the facility. Back at the hospital, Coop is the only member of the staff who cottons to the new director's innovations.
Akalitus joins the rest of the nurses on the floor.
Next week (4.15.12):
Episode 4.03 Detail: 'The Wall' - Nurse Jackie
Despite her counselor's warnings, Jackie leaves rehab and returns to a much-changed All Saints, where working sober for the first time leaves her feeling easily rattled. Meanwhile, Zoey second-guesses her relationship with Lenny; Eddie reveals to Jackie that Kevin knows about their affair; and Grace presents Jackie with a list of demands.
Morgan Freeman as Lucius and Christian Bale as Batman in THE DARK KNIGHT RISES (Release date: July 20th, 2012)
Fun times! It had slipped my mind that the final film in the Dark Knight trilogy was coming to theatres this July!
I don't think it warrants a confession but it is something that I'm sure people have diverse opinions on. I have a very long history with Batman starting with comic books, continuing with the 1960's live-action show (which I thought was hokey) and many iterations of cartoons and, of course, the Batman franchise on the big screen which has included actors George Clooney and Michael Keaton inhabiting Batman.
I think though that every other portrayal of Bruce Wayne/Batman pales in comparison to what actor Christian Bale and director Christopher Nolan have created with The Dark Knight trilogy. Of course, many more were involved in making it The Best Batman (Evar!) including some very memorable turns by top-notch actors. Still, Christian Bale to me, was and is the very best Batman in film.
Tom Hardy as Bane andChristian Bale as Batman in THE DARK KNIGHT RISES (Release date: July 20th, 2012)
THE DARK KNIGHT RISES Trailer #2 - Official (HD)
As was reported yesterday, Entertainment Weekly is launching its massive Summer Movie Preview this Friday. And within its pages are new The Dark Knight Rises photos. ... We now have a better look at those first three photos featuring Christian Bale as Batman, Anne Hathaway as Catwoman, and Tom Hardy as Bane. We also have a new photo of Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as GCPO John Blake.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt as GCPO John Blake in THE DARK KNIGHT RISES (Release date: July 20th, 2012)
THE DARK KNIGHT RISES comes to theaters July 20th, 2012 and stars Christian Bale, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway, Marion Cotillard &, Joseph Gordon-Levitt. The film is directed by Christopher Nolan.
The Dark Knight Rises Official Trailer [HD] The Dark Knight Rises Official Trailer [HD] Director: Christopher Nolan Release: 7/20/2012 Studio: Warner Brothers
Jason Momoa and Emilia Clarke in 'Games of Thrones' (HBO)
Emilia Clarke of Game of Thrones:
Creating the Dothraki language for 'Game of Thrones':
Here are the accompanying photos and article to CNN's The Next List "Deconstructing Dothraki" about the creation of the Dothraki language for Game of Thrones as well as the creation of other languages created for other media projects.
'When the promos start you know that the biggest part of the wait is over.'***
HBO producer Jenn Grauer was present at a cast interview for behind the scenes promos with Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer and Alexander Skarsgård and posted the following pic on Twitter.
Emilia Clarke as 'Daenerys Targaryen' in GAME OF THRONES Season 2 (HBO)
When Game of Thrones premiered on HBO last season I sat down in front of the teevee for exactly three reasons--and none of them had anything to do with Games of Thrones.
Since I'd seen advertisements for the show whilst watching other HBO programming, I was aware that 2 actors I like were in GoT: Sean Bean (Ned Stark) and Lena Heady (Queen Cersei Lannister). But as much as I enjoy the two, they were not a compelling enough reason to watch the new series.
No, it was the fact that my 18-year-old son had read the entire book series up to that point and asked me if I'd planned to watch it as he was--that was the tipping point where I said, "What the heck" and cajoled his dad to join us as well. Despite this being a cable television show, I went on the assumption that the voracious reader that resides with us had never steered me wrong in his choice of book recommendations and wouldn't do so now with this book series adaption for TV (though he provided plenty of disclaimers that he had no idea if the show would be any good). Granted, I read but a fraction of what he does, but what I have read that he recommends is always well worth reading. Also, in the case of HBO's Game of Thrones--season 1, his having read the book series greatly enhanced the viewing experience for me as I could 'cheat' by asking him to clarify aspects of the show's characters, because as I stated then, I was 'never going to read the books'--I simply did not have the time.
I now know of some very specific events--as millions of "A Song of Ice and Fire" aficionados do, but I'm very short on details. Now, going forward into the fabulously successful series' season 2 I've decided to write about it and since I have a rule that if it's been written and then adapted for the screen (small or big) I have to read the source material, my copy of the first volume in the series is on it's way as I type this.
I'll be back with plenty more but for now I hope you'll have a look at the videos I've embedded wherein you'll enjoy 'a vivid and illuminating special that revisits the stunning events of Season 1, introduces the major players, and presents a tantalizing peek at Season 2.'
Also, I made almost 200 nice quality screencaps of the actors interviewed both in and out of costume. Emilia Clarke (Daenerys Targaryen) is particualarly captivating and there's plenty of eye candy as well as insights offered up via Nikolaj Coster-Waldau who plays 'Jaime Lannister' as well as the swoon-inducing Kit Harington (Jon Snow).
Enjoy!
Game of Thrones: 'You Win or You Die' VIDEO:
Enter the world of the hit HBO series 'Game of Thrones' in this vivid and illuminating special that revisits the stunning events of Season 1, introduces the major players, and presents a tantalizing peek at Season 2.
Making Of Game Of Thrones: Season 2 - Weapons:
Making Of Game Of Thrones: Season 2 - Weapons Take an inside look at the weapons created for Game of Thrones Season 2. For more on Game of Thrones, go to http://itsh.bo/gHfJPE.
From E! Online:
'A non-spoilery sophomore-season primer from creators and executive producers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss.
"This season is largely about how [Ned Stark's] death leads to a series of events that ultimately culminate in a war, pulling all the different factions in this world into open-armed conflict with each other," says Weiss. "Almost every character is directly affected by the war in some way or another. Even Jon Snow (Kit Harington) and Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke), who are on far different corners of the world, feel the effects" after some characters lose their heads. (You could say the whole kingdom goes mad!) "I think fans of the show can expect to be surprised by some of what happens," says Weiss, adding that "we're taking approaches that might surprise [fans of the books] as well. A lot of the characters that George created are so rich and so wonderful that you often find yourself wondering what would happen if this one met that one…So there will definitely be some nice surprises [and] excitement for both longtime readers and newcomers to the material." Benioff points out,
"We're not looking at our series as a book-by-book adaptation so much as an adaptation of George's entire saga. In other words, in our minds season two is not A Clash of Kings [the series' second book]."
"It is the second season of our adaptation of [the entire saga], A Song of Ice and Fire."
With psychopathic kings, black magic, dragons and direwolves afoot, it's no wonder that Princess Arya learns much too young the meaning of the Valyrian phrase Valar morghulis: All men must die.
Is Emmy Rossum ever not completely adorable and fun? She seems so at ease in her own skin. My guess is that she is in really high demand for photoshoots like this one with Zooey Magazine where they pulled out all the stops in showing the many sides of Emmy. This video is a terrific behind-the-scenes record of some of what goes into being a cover girl. Bonus: Emmy's little dog 'Cinnamon' wanders in and out of the frame several times.
Emmy Rossum's Glamorous Zooey Magazine Outtakes:
Offering up a behind-the-scenes look, Emmy Rossum is featured in just-released outtakes from her cover gig with the January 2012 issue of Zooey. The 25-year-old actress strapped on a $2,000 Mandalay dress for the magazine's front page shot, which was taken by renowned photographer Derek Wood.
Emmy Rossum plays Fiona Gallagher on "Shameless," the oldest child in the rambunctious Gallagher clan. And although her character's only 21 years-old, because her dad Frank is alcoholic and her mother's gone, taking care of her 5 brothers and sisters (and father) is her responsibility.
There was only one problem with the role for Rossum: in real-life, she's an only child. She told "CBS This Morning" (weekdays, 7 a.m. EST on CBS) about the creative way "Shameless" producers got her some experience taking care of kids. "The producers kind of gave me $80, and were like, 'Here's a mini-van, take all of these kids to putt-putt. Feed them, change them, deal with them. And also deal with Bill Macy. So it was that kind of idea and I kind of got thrown into it pretty quickly," Rossum remembered.
That mini-golf outing wasn't the only quality time the cast spends together off-set. Rossum told Gayle King that they get together at Bill Macy's house for Sunday night dinners and "Shameless" watching. "We'll all watch together, and if the kids are there, we'll cover their eyes during the naked naughty bits. We're a cable show, so we have to do that," she joked. Clearly, the mini-golf paid off.
Kristen Bauer van Straten as vampire 'Pam de Beaufort' in True Blood (HBO)
For the next few months, if you stay current on the casting calls and newly-cast members you'll have a good chance at getting a rough sketch of what some of TRUE BLOOD Season 5 will look like. So far, the biggest casting coup has been that of one Mr. Chris Meloni.
Casting however, is ongoing along with the rest of the season 5 True Blood production so between now and True Blood's June 2012 season 5 debut, I'll gather up the latest scoopage (and spoilers!) and periodically share with you. I'm not wild about blaring trumpets announcing casting calls for expendable extras (for example) so I'll hold on to that stuff to include with posts like this one with news worthy of you sinking your fangs into.
Kristen TRUE BLOOD SCOOP - January 23, 2012:
Anything more on True Blood? Fact: We love us a good flashback, but we love 'em even more when they answer questions that we've been pondering for years. In episode four we're finally going to learn what happened to Terry (Todd Lowe) back in '03 when he was serving in Iraq—and believe us when we say it's going to be intense.
Newcomer Giles Matthey has landed the multi-episode role of a hot and mysterious British faery. One report has him catching Jessica’s attention, but that’s not confirmed. 'Claude' was previously played (briefly) by Neil Hopkins (LOST) on the show.
In the books, Claude is described as “the nephew of Sookie’s half-human/half-faery grandfather, 'Fintan', and cousin to Sookie’s father … He makes an impact on all women and is described as being absolutely breathtaking … He started out as a stripper at Hooligans, a club in Monroe, which he later becomes owner of, and has branched out to print and runway modeling … Women usually say “wow” when they see him, but his interest is men.”
There has been speculation that this season Pam (Kristen Bauer van Straten), Eric Northman’s (Alexander Skarsgård) 'child' and confidante, will have her origin story explored.
Alan Ball, creator and lead writer on the True Blood team is looking for a diverse roster of new cast members. A 'non-threatening man in his 30s' and a prostitute named 'Washcloth Helen' are among the casting calls. Both of these characters will be introduced during a flashback to a San Francisco brothel in 1905. The date is significant because 1905 is supposedly the year when Eric maid Pam vampire if you are following the books. The True Blood scribes have previously changed the story so the 'book fact' that Pam actually turns in London doesn't at all mean that TV Pam will do the same.
It's no secret that the legions of Pam fans have been clamouring for her backstory (we've witnessed both Bill and Eric's being turned) and it's also no secret that a) vampires don't age and b) human actors do. So doing the math, yes, season 5 would be a very good time to enjoy the story of how Pam voluntarily(!) became a vampire.
1 | Janina Gavankar revealed that “a major thing happens to Luna early in the season, and it’s going to change her life forever.”
2 | The cast learned that Chris Meloni was Bon Temps-bound last month at a table read, news that elicited “gasps” throughout the room, recalled Gavankar. “We’re so excited to have him.”
3 | Alcide’s days of playing Mr. Nice Guy are over. “As you saw at the end of Season 4, he’s not taking anyone’s s— anymore,” said the man-beast’s portrayer, Joe Manganiello. “Now you’re going to see an Alcide who’s going to slam you up against the wall and do his thing. Who doesn’t like being slammed up against the wall, right?” Asked to clarify his use of the word “slam” — i.e. is it a euphemism for, ahem, another s-word — Manganiello cracked a devilish smile and replied, “It could be a fun slam. And it could be an angry slam. You never know?” He then reminded us that, “Alcide is single.”
4 | The latest True Blood script Manganiello read contains “some really fun [Alcide-Sookie] stuff,” he revealed. “Stuff that makes you really nervous… I’m watching my words really carefully.”
5 | Ryan Kwanten hinted that Jason may have bitten off more than he could chew with regard to his romance with Jessica. “As you know, anyone who gets involved with Jason better have her wits about her,” he said. “But I think in this case, it’s Jason who better watch out. The tables have finally turned.”
6 | Where do you go after spending half of Season 4 being raped by a werepanther? “Even that can be topped,” teased Kwanten. “Jason was very lucky to survive; he was down for the count. He has a desire to life. I admire that in a man.”
Christopher Heyerdahl, who plays an ancient vampire in the Twilight Saga movies, will now play one in another screen adaptation of a popular book series, this time on TV. Heyerdahl is joining HBO’s hit vampire drama True Blood in a recurring role. He will portray 'Dieter Braun', an ancient, powerful vampire who plays a large part in the intelligence of the Authority and especially enjoys enhanced interrogation. That is familiar territory for Sanctuary alum Heyerdahl who played the ancient Volturi vampire Marcus in 3 of the Twilight movies: New Moon, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 and the upcoming Part 2. Additionally, he played a demon in an arc on the CW’s Supernatural. Heyerdahl... currently co-stars on the AMC drama series Hell On Wheels, playing Norwegian badass The Swede. The period Western was recently renewed for a second season.
[TODD JEFFRIES] Seen in flashback to Iraq in 2003, this U.S. Marine joins his squad (which includes Patrick and Terry) on a trip to a small village, where their plans to party and wreak a little havoc go tragically awry. 5 lines, 1 scene (26).
[JEMARCUS KESSLER] Seen in flashback to Iraq in 2003, this Marine Lance Corporal is traveling into a town with his squad (which includes Patrick and Terry) and is preparing for a night of partying and mischief-which goes tragically awry. 7 lines, 1 scene (26).
[IRAQI BOY] YOUNG LOOKING ARAB 18 YEAR OLD. Seen in a flashback to 2003, this Iraqi boy whose village is being blown up by American soldiers speaks out in Arabic to the soldiers. 2 lines in Arabic, 1 scene (28) MUST SPEAK ARABIC OR BE FAMILIAR WITH IT.
[IRAQI MAN] Seen in a flashback to 2003, this Iraqi man whose village is being attacked by American Marines as a lark speaks out in grief and rage after they murder a 12 year old Iraqi boy. 1 line in Arabic, 1 scene (29) MUST SPEAK ARABIC OR BE FAMILIAR WITH IT.
[IRAQI WOMAN] Mother of the Iraqi boy seen in a flashback to 2003, wails with grief. Recurs in episode 505. [Non speaking in episode #504, recurs with lines in episode #505] (29) MUST SPEAK ARABIC.
[ANGELA, LILIANNE, DELILAH] These three impossibly gorgeous, flirtatious, charming women in cocktail dresses greet Judge Clements (an old customer) and Jason and Andy as they take them on a limo ride to a mysterious destination where they find a sensual party in an exclusive club. 4 lines, 2 scenes; 3 lines, 2 scenes; 3 lines, 2 scenes respectively (35).
[LEDA] This radiant, beautiful woman with just a hint of sadness in her face is in the exclusive club. She beckons to Jason and freaks him out a bit by seeming to know a bit too much about him. 6 lines 2 scenes (43). [DANCER] FEMALE, SCANTILY CLAD. This beautiful dancer in a very exclusive, secret nightclub recognizes Judge Clements and goes off with him. 1 line, 1 scene (43).
[MELANIE] 20s, this female fangbanger goes with Pam to entice a young vampire to feed on her. 2 lines, 1 scene (49).
Joan Cusak as "Sheila' in Shameless, Sunday nights at 8c/9e on Showtime.
Sheila (Joan Cusak) makes it farther and farther away from home. Karen (Laura Slade Wiggins) reminds Frank (William H. Macy) that soon her mom will get to meet all of Frank's friends at the bar.
Why Emmy Rossum Wanted to Be on Shameless
What the Shameless Kids Have in Common:
Actor Jeremy Allen White, who plays Phillip "Lip" Gallagher on Showtime's hit series Shameless, reveals that he's the only Gallagher child with a sibling in real life—none of the other children have brothers and sisters! Emmy Rossum, who stars as Fiona, explains why she thinks that's one of the reasons the cast is so close.
Jeremy Allen White as 'Lip" in Shameless on Showtime
Does William H. Macy mentor his castmates? What's it like for Emmy Rossum to play a not-so-glamorous character? The stars of Showtime's hit series Shameless answer burning questions from some of their biggest fans. Plus, watch an impromptu musical performance from Laura Slade Wiggins.
Rosie's Favorite Shameless Character:
A die-hard fan of Shameless asks Rosie who her favorite character is on the Showtime hit series. It's a hard choice for Rosie, who says that "every character is perfect," but she shares which one she likes the most and why.
The cast of Showtime's Shameless on the Rosie Show:
Working it, Shameless style
Shameless: This Year's Crop
Kevin (Steve Howey) shows Lip (Jeremy White) his grow house which will be shut down unless he finds $9000 to pay the electric bill.
I really like the True Blood - season 5's new cast thus far, both the female (below) and the (alpha) male (above). Chris Meloni is pretty awesome playing awesome so he ought to be quite enjoyable to take in on screen with the rest of the True Blood crew. Another flavour of male. Yum.
I'm anxious too to see Eric (Alexander Skarsgård) and a female not Sookie have some heated discussion--which no doubt his sister, 'Nora' plyaed by Lucy Griffiths (below) and he will do.
This would be a good season for True Blood to surprise people with it's regained momentum. Adding Meloni is a very positive step in that direction.
I am looking forward to bringing Denis O'Hare as Russell Edgington too, back into this mix as the True Blood Season 4-ender all-but-spelled out (previously hinted at, after the finale his return was verified in the press). Right now, he's doing a glorious job on American Horror Story on FX as a murderous, treacherous, brain-cancer-addled, love crazy, serious burn victim.
An HBO spokesperson confirmsthat Chris Meloni is joining True Blood as a series regular for Season 5!
Executive producer Alan Ball, True Blood's creator, first shared the news with TVLine. Ball describes Meloni’s role as 'an ancient, powerful vampire who holds the fate of Bill and Eric in his hands.'
Ever since the news broke that Meloni was negotiating for a role, fans have suspected he may be part of 'The Vampire Authority', the council which rules over all vampires and gives its royalty their power.
Meloni recently left Law & Order: SVU after 12 seasons on the show. This casting represents a homecoming for the actor after starring in the HBO series, Oz, from 1998-2003. He has also starred on several other series, including NYPD Blue. He appears in the next Superman movie, Man of Steel, due out in 2013
Dec 2011 Update: True Blood season 5 Episode Title - Episode 5.02 - 'Authority Always Wins'
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A fresh pile of crazy is making tracks for Bon Temps.
Italian actress Valentina Cervi is joining True Blood‘s upcoming fifth season as a series regular —
The 35-year-old beauty will play Salome, an ancient vampire who is a world class seductress and fiercely intelligent. She also has quite a lot of madness in her. She is the most powerful person in every way yet capable of hiding this power when it serves her purposes.
True Blood Small Season 5 Premiere Spoiler:
The season-five premiere of True Blood will have a flashback to Sookie's (Anna Paquin) childhood, and we get to see her use her powers in a deliciously evil way to embarrass a couple of playground bullies. What did they do to piss her off? They don't pick her for their kickball team!
Lucy Griffiths will play Eric Northman's sister who has a 'higher calling'--to The Authority in True Blood - Season 5. Griffiths has been cast as 'Nora,' at several centuries old, very much Eric's junior--yet Bill's senior.
British actress Lucy Griffiths is coming to America in a big way.
The 25-year-old stunner — best known for her role as the ill-fated 'Marian' in the BBC drama Robin Hood — is joining True Blood‘s Season 5 cast as a series regular.
Griffiths will play 'Nora', 'Eric'’s (Alexander Skarsgård) centuries-old vampire “sister” (they were both progenies of Godric) who is working as a double agent within The Vampire Authority.
Described as 'intelligent, intimidating, cool under pressure and a very good liar, Nora loves Eric deeply, but has dedicated her life to a higher purpose.' (SPOILER: Serving 'The Authority.')
True Blood‘s fifth season starts production later this year ahead of a Summer 2012 premiere.
One thing is clear about Fiona Gallagher (Emmy Rossum) in the SHO series SHAMELESS: she does not spend her summer moping for "Steve," her love interest of most of season 1 who beat a hasty exit when his double life and car stealing operation both came to light. I read some time ago that 'Steve' (Justin Chatwin) does make an appearance but is not featured as prominentlyas he was in SHAMELESS' first season.
Shameless: Lip Truth or Dare [VIDEO] and Aftermath (Shameless Spot) :
Jeremy White as "Lip' in Showtime's Shameless season 2: beginning January 6, 2012:
SUBMIT YOUR TRUTHS AND DARES FOR LIP AT www.facebook.com/ShamelessOnShowtime OR BY TWEETING #LIPTRUTH OR #LIPDARE.
Fierce, Fun and Foxy (Shameless and House of Lies Spot)
Published on Nov 4, 2011 by SHOWTIME They work hard and play harder. Don't miss new episodes of Shameless beginning January 8th followed by the series premiere of House of Lies.
Showtime has just released an intriguing Dexter 'look ahead' video which I've screencapped so you can better enjoy all the gory details:
...and there are quite a few of them.
Though not all the scenes are 'looking ahead,' as hopefully you've now been able to enjoy episodes 1 & 2, the video contains scenes through at least episode 4 which makes them all the more worthy of perusal.
I admit, the religious-based storyline with the iconic Edward James Olmos in the lead and Colin Hanks as his partner-in-crime has already gotten under my skin partly because I suspect that their 'sacrificial' acts will only grow more grandiose. Also, I feel pretty awful about what they are doing to poor, innocent folks randomly selected for sacrifice. Scary stuff.
Meanwhile, Dexter is mulling over whether "Brother Sam,' played by the surprisingly great Mos (I'd not seen his acting work before), is 'worthy' of going on Dexter's table. Is Brother Samtruly repentant for his murderous ways or as Dexter has reasoned, has he only gotten better at not getting caught? Seems like the conclusion that Dexter draws will quite literally be a matter of life or death (Brother Sam's).
Sneak Peeks for DEXTER & HOMELAND Episode 3! (Below) :
I've also got some links to some great new interviews with the Homeland cast [VIDEO]:
You simply must view each of these videos as the actors fill in some very interesting back-story on their characters that may--or may not be revealed in the show (they have not yet done so through episode 3).
One revelation in particular is going to have me watching two characters on Homeland with a completely different mindset and it has nothing to do with whether or not the character of ex-POW 'Brody' (Damian Lewis) has been turned(!)
The original Dark Shadows was 'a memorably offbeat ABC daytime drama about a vampire whose extended family are bedeviled by ghosts, witches, and other Gothic woes.'
Johnny Depp has recounted how as a boy he practically raced home to watch Dark Shadows after school each day. I did the same but living in the Northeast (versus Depp's Kentucky) we got released from school too late in the afternoon to watch the entire episode. I still turned it on and caught the second act of each one-hour installment. As Depp says, Dark Shadows was 'very weird' so it didn't really seem to matter that I was only getting about half the narrative. The parts I saw were terrifically fun and seemed quite subversive being unreeled during weekday afternoons.
“I remember seeing a group photograph of the cast of the original series,” he told EW. “For me it captured the weird Dark Shadows vibe in a single image." - Dark Shadows director Tim Burton
'Weird certainly sums up this particular family portrait — a shot director Tim Burton, who also obsessed over Dark Shadows as a boy, staged in the early days of production.
Here’s the Collins family, from left to right with a brief description of each character following:
Dr. Julia Hoffman (Helena Bonham Carter) – From Alice in Wonderland’s Red Queen, to the cannibalistic cook Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd, Burton can’t help but cast the mother of his children as a deranged person. This prim and proper psychiatrist, who has taken up residence with the Collins family to care for their troubled youngest boy, might seem to break that trend — but don’t bet on it....
Carolyn Stoddard (Chloë Moretz) — Though she played a voracious child vampire in the critically acclaimed Let Me In, Moretz is on the human side of the spectrum in Dark Shadows — though that doesn’t mean this cousin of young David Collins (and daughter of Michelle Pfeiffer’s character, seen on the far right) isn’t without her own peculiarities...
Angelique Bouchard (Eva Green) — The Bond girl from Casino Royale turns up here as the villain of the story. “Angelique is a witch who has known Barnabas since the 1700s, when they had an affair that went sour. She is the one who cursed him to be a vampire and locked him in that box...”
David Collins (Gulliver McGrath) — Lonely, confused, and neglected by his pompous father (Jonny Lee Miller, over on the right next to Pfeiffer), David has no one to confide in except his bizarre psychiatrist — and the dead people he claims to see...
Victoria Winters (Bella Heathcote) — This young woman arrives to become David’s new governess, only to find herself swept up in the vampire-witch melodrama. “When Barnabas meets Victoria, he’s instantly reminded of the woman he lost in the 1700s, before he was cursed to be a vampire...”
Mrs. Johnson (Ray Shirley) — “Poor old Mrs. Johnson …” Grahame-Smith sighs when talk turns to the old woman seated in the back behind Depp. “She is the mostly blind, mostly deaf maid, who has been with them for decades and decades... I don’t think she actually says anything in the entire film....
Willie Loomis (Jackie Earle Haley) — How awesome is it to play an actual Groundskeeper Willie? The Oscar-nominee for Little Children is... the guy who takes out the trash, mows the lawns, and fixes the cars, except he’s usually so drunk and so disinterested that he doesn’t take his job seriously anymor..."
Roger Collins (Jonny Lee Miller) — This scion of the once-great Collins family is one of the main reasons the aristocratic clan has fallen into such disgrace. “He’s a creepy, self-centered guy who likes to order Willie around, likes to pretend the family is still on top of his game...”
Elizabeth Collins Stoddard (Michelle Pfeiffer) — The mother of Carolyn Stoddard, and mother-figure to David, she’s the one adult member of the Collins clan who is at least slightly competent. “Elizabeth is the rock of the family. She’s the matriarch,”...with a witch perpetually trying to destroy her, and a long lost vampire relative turning up to reclaim control...'
SOURCE:EW Weekly - Johnny Depp's true 'Dark Shadows' vampire revealed!
Before shooting, Depp said: “What Jonathan Frid did with that character and that classic look he created… I find it very difficult to stray very far from that. I think it’s going to be somewhere in that arena, with maybe just a couple of different touches here and there.
“I do remember, very vividly, practically sprinting home from school in the afternoon to see Jonathan Frid play Barnabas Collins,” the actor says. “Even then, at that age, I knew — this has got to be weird.” -- Johnny Depp
SOURCE: The Inquisitr - ‘Dark Shadows’ Cast Photo Released; See Johnny Depp as Barnabas Collins
Claire Danes and Damian Lewis star in the suspenseful new SHOWTIME Original Series HOMELAND. New episodes Sundays at 10pm ET/PT beginning October 2nd, only on SHOWTIME.
Dexter Poster - Key Art Giveaway!:
Leave a comment saying you'd like a full size copy of the awesome season 6 key art poster featuring Michael C. Hall as Dexter. I'll announce the winner Thanksgiving week. More deets later!
Dexter - Season 6: Episode 1 - 2 Small Spoilers:
Q: Please give us scoop on the new season of Dexter!
A: The season premiere opens on a bleeding Dexter calling 911 to report that he has been stabbed.
Has someone finally discovered his secret and exacted a poetic revenge? Did he slip in a pool of someone else's blood and fall on his own knife? Will he analyze his own spatter pattern while he waits for the ambulance to arrive? Nope, nope and nope.
SOURCE:TVGUIDE (make sure you have you pop-up blocker actived!)
Dexter - Episode 6.01 - Those Kinds of Things - Short Synopsis:
Dexter Morgan attends his 20th high school reunion; Dexter considers his son's legacy; Debra becomes an unexpected hero.
On the subject of HOMELAND, Showtime is teaming up with GameSpot to give away 5000 beta keys to preview the newest version of the first-person shooter game Ghost Recon: http://www.gamespot.com/event/codes/ghostrecon/ Beta keys will be given out at random times over the coming weeks, so keep an eye out on Homeland's Facebook and Twitter pages to claim yours!
Also, all of the games at http://watchcareful.ly are live, and starting today, you can unlock the first episode of HOMELAND. Watchcareful.ly is the only place where HOMELAND will be shown unedited online.
Published on Sep 7, 2011 by SHOWTIME
The CIA debriefs Sergeant Brody.
After the jump - Homeland - 'Presumed Dead' Sneak Peek (VIDEO)
True Blood's Season 4 finale was very uneven--much like most of the season:
It's easier to rattle off the 'misses' than the hits so that's where I'll start.
Misses (in no particular order):
1. Alcide's (Joe Manganiello) 'Let's use our brains instead of hearts' chat with Sookie (Anna Paquin). What a way to approach asking a lady out! Having dumped his adulterous, V-addict wife, Debbie Pelt and disapproving of Sookie's choices in men (vampires) he suggests that Sookie start using her head and give him--a werewolf a shot.
This was probably among the longest bits of convo that Joe Manganiello as 'Alcide Herveaux' has had and though others have criticized the actor for being 'wooden,' I did not see it. Until now. Not only did Alcide seal the deal that he will NEVER 'have' Sookie but he pretty much guaranteed that the Alcide storyline is going to evaporate in season 5. Hopefully, Alcide's ending won't be as as brutally abrupt as Jason's stint with the dentally-impaired denizens of Hotshot because let's be honest, he is one fine male specimen. Sookie is going to be man-free for a time--and then--who knows, but at most, a short stint with the wolf-man is all there will be. Too bad.
2. OMG, Marnie (Fiona Shaw) no! Not again with the 'I've been a freak all my life and people are mean, POOR ME.' This has got to be at least the third full-blown pity poor me speech they've given Shaw as the mousy palm reader turned revenge-seeking uber-wiccan. Was her crappy life supposed to justify her behaviour? It would have been better to simply go with her being driven mad. Instead Marnie simply became a harpy. Waste of Shaw's abilities--at least as the season wound down.
3. WTF?! with the long, lingering suckling sounds then wider shot of both Eric (Alexander Skarsgård) and Bill (Stephen Moyer) feeding on Sookie's wrists?! All three are snug on the sofa with Sookie, as Jason would put it, using Sookie as their own private soda fountain. Just ugh and OMG how freakin' cheesy is the fact that both men were in matching robes? No wonder she dumped them! She knows that a big bromance is brewing between them! Did you see some of the eye-fucking going on between Eric and Bill in the last couple of episodes? I'd love a nice Eric & Bill adventure if only to stir up both sides cheering for Sookie to pick one. The scene though was just icky on all kinds of levels though I think it was meant to be slightly campy and amusing (before Sookie got all traditional and decided she just could. not. love. both of them at the same time).
4. Jason (Ryan Kwanten) and Hoyt's 3-minute "I'm doing Jesssica' scene: a total waste of three minutes intended simply to give Jim Parrack as Hoyt some season finale face time. I like the actor but this was totally superfluous.
The rest was typical Jason and the one line of any significance was repeated by Jason to Jessica (Deborah Ann Woll) after their tryst--no need for Hoyt to have been in this episode--at all.
5. Speaking of a waste of time. Kevin Alejandro got plenty of face time. He did not need to engage in the interminable back and forth with the possessed-by-Marnie, Lafayette (Nelsan Ellis). It went on forever...could have trimmed that by at least a minute with less candle-lighting and chest slashing. RIP 'Jesus', BTW. Kevin Alejandro did a very credible job this season and became a character that the audience grew fond of. That's the point of course, when you know that you will off him before season's end.
6. Luna (Janina Gavankar) & Sam (Sam Trammell). How long did it take them to say a whole lot of nothing and then goodnight? And haven't they been all about nothing? Does anyone care about them? Anyone? I like Sam--who doesn't?--but there is zero chemistry with this pairing and speaking of zero chemistry let's take on the Jason and Jessica storyline that is brewing:
7. Jessica and Jason (above). We get it: they are both really into sex. What else do they have in common? Immature, selfish behavior, punctuated by occasional bravery and selflessness. I'm willing to give this pairing some time in season 5 but what I'm not willing to do is watch the mind-numbingly awful attempts at keeping the actor who play's Jessica, Deborah Ann Woll's, boobies under cover. And by 'boobies' I mean nipples. We get cleavage, we get side boob and maybe even underboob but in the two times we've seen Jason and Jessica make love when her breasts are in camera range she clutches them in an obvious attempt at modesty. Did no one tell her that there is simply no room for modesty on True Blood? The same goofy camera angles and weird use of sheets was employed by Rutina Wesley as well in the two seasons she had a boyfriend. It's very distracting on a show that otherwise is pretty liberal in it's nudity (it is after all, NOT television, but HBO).
There were some great moments in the True Blood season 4 finale but not enough--by a long shot--to make a great episode:
Maxine Fortenberry's (Dale Raoul) quips about Sam's shifty bro Tommy's deviousness and thievery which segued into comforting Sam were a nice touch.
Nan Flanagan's (Jessica Tuck) comeuppance at the hands of Eric and Bill was spot on-- though I will miss her.
Pam's (Kristen Bauer van Straten) tirade-to-tears about Sookie's 'fairy vagina' and stupid name only to have Ginger (Tara Buck) uh, gingerly slip an arm around her in comfort was really quite a sight (you just know Pam is going to glamour that memory out of Ginger given the first chance). Scroll down after the jump for the video of the scene.
The return of dead-since season-one Gran (Lois Smith)! It was totally awesome to see her in all her glorious badassery when she literally tore Marnie's spirit out of Lafayette. (The resultant tedious and trite convo between Marnie and Antonia (Paola Turbay) took some momentum out of the scene, however. )
Debbie Pelt's (Brit Morgan) reappearance was no surprise to the 'bookies. With a few change-ups this was how she died in the Sookie Stackhouse series. In the book series however, Sookie took her out alone. 'Book' Tara is a minor character and was in no way involved.
What True Blood Tara did was pretty cool though--but ultimately pretty stupid. She got half of the side of her skull blown away. I think this was done to telegraph to any doubting audience members that yes, at last, the never-written-well character of Tara Thorton is finally over.*
But will Rutina Wesley be back? She, as you can read below, is unsure but 'trusts' Alan Ball and she reminds us, this is True Blood (so anything can happen). Other than short otherworldly-type visits I'm thinking the majority of the audience want Tara gone. We've long since realized that the True Blood writers are incapable of giving the perfectly capable Wesley a storyline she can sink her teeth into. RIP then, Tara and Jesus. I'm assuming though, that the bad guys won't be resting in peace.
Season 4 Finale Grade: B-. Out of the four True Blood seasons so far, I rank Season 1 and Season 2 in that order and Seasons 3 and 4 about on par with one another. Both suffered from sloppy, self-indulgent writing and extremely bad editing. Please, in the name of good screenwriting Alan Ball, please ditch Raelle Tucker. If you have any doubt about this women's rationalle whist writing True Blood, listen to her explain Jessica's sexuality in the 'Inside The Episode' HBO clip (embedded in this post). Tucker explains that she wanted "Jessica' to flaunt her sexuality unashamedly (like a man could). We, the audience however, see Jessica in flagrante, seemingly ashamed of her own body (the breast-clutching). Huge disconnect there. Tip of iceberg in Tucker's writing skills-issues. Don't even get me started on her apparent non-acquaintance with healthy sexuality.
From the 9.12.11 exclusive interview with Rutina Wesley (Tara Thornton):
Q: In your mind, is Tara dead?
A: Well I mean half my head is missing.
I’m just gonna keep saying that. You know, it’s True Blood. I feel like anything is possible. If anything, it is the golden hour though. If she is able to be saved, it’s like she’s got 20 seconds. It’s not a lot of time. I’m curious to see what they’re going to do with all of it. I hope I’m back. But again half my head is missing [laughs] ...
I don’t know what their plans are for next season. I know that Alan has said there are “big plans,” but I don’t know what that really means, and things can always change. I’m not for sure, but I trust him completely. At the end of the day, it’s hard to see how I’m coming back, seeing as half of my head was just blown off. I don’t know. They may figure something out. I mean it’s True Blood. There’s always flashbacks. There’s phantasms.
'As much as I like the idea of Dexter, the collateral damage he causes due to his code deviations are too high. I guess it could be attributed to human error, but is it worth the loss of innocent life?
Kills shown in chronological order.
The kill count of each of Dexter's victims is the minimum amount known, there's definitely a lot more deaths that he has avenged.'
"The explosively popular DEXTER® is back with a vengeance for a sixth season of startling suspense and unexpected twists. It's been a year since last season's shocking and heartbreaking conclusion, and mild mannered criminologist-cum-grisly serial killer Dexter Morgan has come to terms with who he is. But his existence is shattered when he crosses paths with an enemy unlike any he's faced before. A delusional religious zealot with unflinching convictions, this new adversary soon draws Dexter into a dangerous game that could well end in disaster."
During the Season 5 finale of “Dexter” (and, yes, there are spoilers ahead), Julia Stiles’ avenging (ahem) angel Lumen walked away from her partner in crime, leaving the show and our favorite serial killer’s heart in tatters.
No, Dexter didn’t take the breakup well. Neither did Stiles. We talked to the actress, a freshly minted Emmy nominee, who snagged a nod for her seasonlong guest spot on the Showtime series, while she waited for a flight at LAX.
AT: So … Lumen breaking up with Dexter caught you off guard?
J.S.: I was very surprised. I thought everything we had been building toward over the course of the season -- the trust and connection between Lumen and Dexter -- was just thrown away. I had a hard time understanding that. Their vigilante justice was so romantic in a perverse way.
'Lumen', played by Emmy-nomintaed Julia Stiles's ending on Dexter Season 5 felt sudden and weird.
It was said to be done ultimately if not especially deftly, to to serve the Dexter character in season 7. I felt though that time was wasted and talent squandered, especially if Stiles were willing to stay on in to Season 6... and it sounds as if she would have.
I liked Dexter & Lumen together, maybe not forever but a bit longer that they were. That aburpt Season 5 ending felt staged.
Gossip has it that another reason the Lumen character was seemingly given the bum's rush was personal--the breaking down of Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter's marriage over the filming of season 5. Julie Stiles ultimately issued a statement to the press expressing distress in having to even make the statement but feeling the need all the same to say NO, she was not dating Mr. Hall. NOW Stiles saying it makes even more sense since the rumours came to a boil at the end of Dexter Season 5 and Stiles would have known quite positively of her character's story arc at that point.
Guess the show-runners did not want Dexter to get into another Rita-like sitch despite the fact that Rita vs. Lumen =a huge disparity...and they'd have had different places to go...still could have had Dexter return to ultimately being a loner.
but season 5's Lumen succumbing to her demons and then turning tail and leaving was just too sudden to feel natural. It felt forced. One of the most ham-handed episodes of Dexter ever shown, perhaps.
Now to read what the most excellent Stiles had to say... (see LATIMES link ABOVE)
After the jump... Behind the Scenes: Dexter Season 6 [VIDEO]:
Nude Amnesia!Eric To Sookie Come. Come Play With Me!:
OOOh, cannot wait to see what the pic-spam people come up with from this scene...and those that follow!
That man is such ...how many times does one need to repeat this? Ad infintium? He is just so super-appealing on a way more than just the physical level. Remember Eric Northman, season 1? Compare. Alexander Skarsgård is really doing GREAT things on True Blood this season! I'm having so. much. fun. watching the series this year with his and Sookie's storyline NOT disappointing! Cannot wait to see MOAR.
"In the episode "I'm Alive and On Fire," Sookie can't control Eric, who is drunk on SPOILER (Claudine's) fairy blood. She can't even stop the playful vamp from pinching her butt. She soon loses him in the woods. With Alcide (Joe Manganiello) in wolf form, she finds him, hours later, in the sunlight, enjoying a naked dip in gator-filled waters."
This 3-second True Blood Episode 4.04 clip is a tease in every sense of the word!
Laura Linney in 'The Big C' (Photo credit: Showtime)
When I grow up* I want to be able to write as well as Ileane Rudolph does in her stellar TVGuide article on Showtime's The Big C. Writer Rudolph simply nails oh, everything I like about the show. The piece echos my sentiments about The Big C's ability to strike a chord with survivors of not only life-threatening conditions such as the protagonist, Cathy Jameson with stage 4 cancer, but of the great lot of us that have survived and often thrived in the aftermath of one of the many things that smack us HARD out of left field.
The Big C and Weeds are on tonight beginning at 10:00/9:00c on Showtime.
After coming home from the real-life fireworks I'm watching both shows which always have someone or some situation heating up, blowing up or causing massive cracking up. How about you?
*Chronologically-speaking this happened a few decades ago...but I'm still coming to grips with that.
(Photo Credit: Showtime)
With a mischievous smile, Laura Linney is gleefully ruining a take. During a tense scene between her character, Cathy Jamison, who has Stage 4 melanoma, and her bipolar brother, Sean, played by John Benjamin Hickey, she makes her costar break down in giggles.
Whoever says cancer is no laughing matter hasn't seen The Big C, Showtime's irreverent comedy about a Minneapolis teacher, wife and mom who's trying not only to beat death but to live as fully as possible in whatever time she has left. The smartly written, beautifully cast show has earned a devoted fan base and critical plaudits, and three-time Emmy winner Linney has already snared a Golden Globe for her deft portrayal of the strong-willed Cathy.
The oft-repeated mantra at The Big C is "It's not a show about dying; it's a show about living." And for sure, Cathy lives large. In the first season she kept her illness a secret, booted her immature husband, Paul (Oliver Platt), and had an affair. "Cathy doesn't behave in a safe, by-the-numbers fashion," says Hickey, during a break on the set in Stamford, Connecticut. "A lot of people who are living with cancer love the funny, outrageous, sometimes controversial way that character deals." Executive producer Jenny Bicks, a survivor herself, says, "The writers take the kid gloves off when we talk about cancer, because when you've gone through it, it's not all tragic and dramatic. It can also be super strange and funny."
New Season 4 True Blood Scenes Video and Screencaps (6.28.11)!:
True Blood Season 4: Critics Spot (6.28.11) [VIDEO]
This NEW True Blood tease is kinda cool because it, as is True Blood's way, answers some questions (sort of) and raises a few more. Like for example, what is up with Eric (Alexander Skarsgård)?! In the clip, 'Eric' has dropped fang, looks angry and/or distraught, has a pretty ladder beside him and someone has just shut him inside...whereever he is--his luxury 'hidey hole' at Sookie's rehabbed home, perhaps?
I also dig seeing the beginning of the end of SPOILER!!! witch Hallow Stonebrook in the 1700's as she is being burned (I presume) at the stake. I'm pretty certain that that scene will entail torture preceding the actual burning--my cue to cover my eyes. 'Hallow' is the present day malevolent spirit inhabiting Marnie's (Fiona Shaw) body--giving her crazy strong black magic powers. Enjoy the video and be sure to scroll down for the screencaps from this and another very recent True Blood promo video--and click through to my True Blood screencaps, photo stills, wallpapers and screensavers albums for hundreds more.
Catch the new season of True Blood on Sunday nights at 9pm. For more information on True Blood, go to http://itsh.bo/ibzU7X or jump in on the Twitter conversations http://twitter.com/truebloodhbo #TBWITHDRAWAL.
Watch True Blood online at HBO GO® http://itsh.bo/hWfz80. Free with your HBO subscription through participating TV providers.
Season 4 Role of 'Caroline Bellefleur', the grande dame of Bon Temps Cast and Terry's Army Buddy is in Town!:
The first thing that sprang to mind when I read that the luminous Katherine Helmond was set to appear in two episodes of True Blood in Season 4 was, 'She's still alive? Yay!'
Though folks who are not in my age demographic may not recall her as far back as 1977, one of the best television roles she had (that I've watched from start to finish) was as 'Jessica Tate' in the 30-minute TV series soap opera spoof, 'Soap" which ran from 1977-1981.
Katherine Helmond's most memorable scene in Soap--one that not only was sidesplittingly funny, but was truly a useful piece of 'life' or perhaps 'love' advice, was when Jessica coached her slightly-younger, albeit into-her-forties sister, 'Mary Campbell' (Catherine Damon), on what lovemaking position to use after you become a woman of a certain age so as not to not appear of a certain age.
After completely sincerely trying to describe it to her sister and failing, Helmond's Jessica hopped atop the kitchen table to demonstrate her point. I will not ever not be able to picture that scene in my mind, it was so funny and done so well. And dare I say, it's actually crossed my mind during, well, you know. (The gist is assume a position that allows for less 'hang' or droop of the lady's sagging parts--'nuff said?)
BOOK SPOILERS AHEAD - PROCEED WITH CAUTION:
Now the ginger-haired Ms. Helmond is set to take on a role which, though alluded to fairly often in some of the Sookie Stackhouse novels was more of a bullet point-type character--not fleshed out. (Old Mrs. Bellefleur, Andy & Portia's grandmother, was 'famous throughout Bon Temps' for her 'award-winning chocolate cakes', for being from old money-old Bon Temps, and for being short on humour.)
Helmond will guest star as Caroline Bellefleur on HBO's True Blood as grandmother to Bon Temps sheriff Andy Bellefleur (Chris Bauer) and his sister, Portia (season 4 role cast, Courtney Ford). The actress is set to appear in two episodes of Season 4, which premieres Sunday.
In the Charlaine Harris novels, Caroline Bellefleur isn't a fan of Sookie at first* and it's later revealed that Bill is Caroline's great-grandfather.
Ms. Helmond was most recently part of the voice cast for the character of Lizzie for Disney/Pixar’s Cars and it's sequel so I'm really hoping that her voice lives on forever as part of the gargantuan 'Cars' attraction going up next to Disneyland.
It should be fun to see what the True Blood writers give Caroline Bellefleur to do. I believe she was infirm in the novels, too--at least wheelchair-bound(?). The character in the book series is quite old. I want to say in her 90's(?)
*Note: Ms. Bellefleur isn't a fan of most everyone not family in the books.
In Response to True Blood Casting Call, Scott Foley Cast As Terry’s Army Buddy Patrick:
Description of character:
[PATRICK DEVINS] 35 to 45, tough and ruggedly attractive, he served in the military with Terry Bellefleur, and they share a serious history: Terry saved Patrick’s life twice. 7 out of 13 episodes next season.
Andy Milder is returning to Showtime's Weeds. The actor, who was heavily recurring in Seasons 1, 2, 4 and 5 and a regular on Season 3, did only one episode of the show during the most recent sixth season.
Now Milder is set to recur on the upcoming seventh season, reprising his role as Dean Hodes, former husband of the infamous Celia and good buddies with 'Doug' (Kevin Nealon) who remains part of the Weeds season 7 cast.
Weeds Season 7 Theme Song (Spoiler) This video was created to be similar to the Weeds Season 1-2 'Agrestic Theme'. Music: 'Black Seesaw' by Lauren Alegre 'New York. New High.'
Q: How will Nancy be different after "Plan C"? A: Don't assume that being behind bars (for 3 years) has taught Nancy anything. You'll see that her shrewd manipulation skills are as honed as ever — and she'll put them to good use on her cellmate. On the outside, things will be less copacetic, as Nancy's plan to reunite her far-flung family won't go smoothly, as not everyone will want to see her. "This year is the chickens (are) coming home to roost," executive producer Jenji Kohan says. "You can only push your family so far before they start to rebel to a certain extent, and it's about what happens then."
Some of Nancy's family doesn't want to see her initially. Shocking. Lemme guess. The kid who just prior to his Mom finally getting arrested found out that she lied to him his entire life about 'who' his father is. (That would be Silas, played by Hunter Parrish).
Also, little 4-year-old Stevie won't want to be with Nancy--at least not at first. She's a stranger to him and he's been raised by her sister, Jill!
Weeds: Mary-Louise Parker: Plan C
Mary-Louise Parker discusses where we pick up this season, Nancy's life in prison and shooting in New York City.
Weeds Season Premiere Monday June 27, 2011 only on SHO
“I did some crazy stuff last year. I almost had sex with a Greek man and I was covered in his goo. Everything from here on is pretty childish. Everything’s quite innocent.” - Alexander Skarsgård:
Eric fans could have plenty to salivate over this season, which begins June 26 on HBO. This year, True Blood is inspired by book four of the Stackhouse series, Dead to the World, which features a steamy shower scene between Sookie and the tall, light and handsome vamp. Unfortunately, Skargard isn’t in the mood to kiss and tell. He will say, however, that sex this year is, um, a little more down to earth. -
Though these covers look fun, I'm more interested in any tidbits that can be gleaned from the 'behind-the-scenes' True Blood preview within. Hopefully, my (free) copy will be here um, later today.
*There's Joe Manganiello as Alcide Herveaux, too, but I still sort of feel that he's not going to get much time with the 'sunshine in a pretty blond bottle' girl--this season anyway (just a feeling, not a spoiler).
After the jump - The Eric and Bill True Blood Season 4 EW covers:
Everyone in the regular cast of True Blood here at the Dome at the Arclight Hollywood season 4 premiere event looks really nice of course, but pretty much themselves (meaning their real-life selves) except Sam Trammell ('Sam Merlotte') who, though he often has the lovely Missy Yager at his side, has not to my knowledge appeared by her side whilst she was blooming, soon to be a mother! Congrats to both of them!
This photo is just the best!
(Photo Credit: Albert L. Ortega/PictureGroup.co)
Todd Lowe 'True Blood' Season 4 Premiere: Red Carpet:
(Image Credit: Tina Gill/PR Photos)
I just wanted to again note how much Todd Lowe transforms himself into the character 'Terry Bellfleuer', the shell-shocked Gulf War vet-short order cook on True Blood. "
He is one fine-looking man and I think more pics of him---maybe in his band would be really nice in addition to the MANY shots of the "big three." Love them too, but oi, they are everywhere and there are only so many poses and facial gestures they can make for variety (and it's been 4 years!) So more Todd Lowe, please?
Finally, for looking her age (early 20's) and adorable:
Will You Be As Shocked By the Big Reveal As Jackie Is?:
Whether it is the delicate topic of mental illness (United States of Tara), drug-dealing moms (Weeds), sex addiction (Californication), drug addiction (Nurse Jackie) or living with incurable cancer (The Big C), the Showtime network never seems to flinch in taking on these topics while simultaneously injecting biting humour into their half-hour comedy offerings.
There's nothing inherently funny in any of the overarching themes in these series but having made their way onto the premium network, many have gone on to earn high accolades and great success.
Next on Episode 12: Jackie dodges a urine test; Kevin makes a stunning confession.
Nurse Jackie's third season-ender, 'Deaf, Blind Tumor Pee-Test' is tonight (Monday June 20) and for me, the success of this particular episode is mixed.
Season 3 of Nurse Jackie had a different tone to it than the previous two seasons. It had to, as at the end of season 2, Jackie's secret was out to both her husband and her best friend, who joined together in attempting--and failing at-- a hastily-called intervention.
The last 12 episodes of Nurse Jackie have been about her dealing with aftermath of that intervention and though there were plenty of laughs surrounding the supporting characters, there was also quite a bit of 'gallows humour' involving those closest to Jackie (the Emmy & Golden Globe-winning and currently Tony-nominated, Edie Falco).
I commend the Nurse Jackie writers for making Jackie face the consequences as viewers of better television dramas (which this is), even comedy dramas, can be quite demanding in 'keeping it real.' It was time.
They could have gone a few different ways after Jackie's dark secret was discovered. As it happened, Jackie flipped off both her spouse, Kevin (played by Dominic Fumusa--above) and her best friend, Dr. Eleanor O'Hara, played exquisitely by Eve Best (below). I'm really hoping to see some awards-time recognition for Best's performance as she was pitch-perfect.
With Jackie still in denial about her pain-killer drug addiction, life went on but she remained on a very rocky path. Jackie tried lying about quitting only to run out of her stash and start showing obvious withdrawal symptoms. When you are surrounded by medical caregivers that is tough to hide. But as her former paramour 'Eddie' (played by Paul Schulze) told Jackie, her ability to prevaricate is beyond any he's witnessed in his lifetime (paraphrase). Most of the time she had almost everyone fooled, especially those that were in denial themselves that a high-functioning nurse like Jackie could have such a huge monkey on her back.
After Jackie's smarmy drug-dealer was (fittingly) run over by a Mack truck before her eyes as he prepared to cross the street to meet her, Jackie was forced to go cold-turkey. The sudden withdrawal left her wide open for being found out so, in real pain and desperation she stole some morphine patches that were being sent over to Oncology. The missing patches were quickly noted and an investigation by HR was underway.
All of the additional stress kept the heat on at home. Both the kids, who were unaware on a conscious level of their mother's problem, reacted to what must have been an atmosphere of a powder keg about to blow by acting out. Younger daughter 'Fiona', tried to set a fire in school and the eldest, 'Grace' (so very sadly) secretly pulled out handfuls of her own hair. Finally, Fiona asked to be medicated. Spouse Kevin'appeared to do a stitch-by-stitch coming apart at the seams until the final episode--the season 3 finale tonight, in which there is the 'big reveal.'
In the Season 3 finale tonight Jackie will find herself in a truly unique situation.
Synopsis Nurse Jackie Season 3 Finale:
Jackie dodges Akalitus's request for a urine sample and forgets to order a cake for Coop's wedding; Kevin makes a stunning confession that leads to a marital split; Coop's bride stands him up at the altar.
Given the very short half-hour slot that it had to fit in, I would have preferred to see both episodes 11 and 12 back-to-back as the big reveal felt a bit rushed to me. It is going to be very interesting to find out just how she handles things now that Dr. O'Hara has begun supplying 'Jacks' with pain-killer dosages that are meant to be reduced until Jackie is drug-free. That is the plan, anyway. Will it actually come to fruition in combination with the consequences of the big reveal?
You are just gonna have to tune in to season 4 to find out.
On a recent Friday, on a soundstage representing a New Age shop in Shreveport, La., another sign warned “Live panthers on set,” but those terrifying predators were nowhere to be seen. Instead, Sookie Stackhouse, the mind-reading, vampire-attracting waitress portrayed by Anna Paquin, and her friends Tara (Rutina Wesley) and Lafayette (Nelsan Ellis) were cowering in fear of a sinister Wiccan, played by Fiona Shaw, who appeared to be carrying on a conversation with herself — or maybe with someone else inside her.
When Ms. Paquin visited behind the cameras during a shooting break and sprawled herself across a director’s chair, she playfully declined to explain what exactly had transpired in this scene from the next-to-last episode of the coming “True Blood” season.
“Would you want to know what you’re getting for Christmas on Christmas Eve?” she asked. “There’s something about anticipation that makes it more exciting.”
TRUE BLOOD kicks off its 12-episode fourth season SUNDAY, JUNE 26 (9:00-10:00 p.m. ET/PT), on HBO, followed by other new episodes on subsequent Sundays at the same time.
E!Online reported on Wednesday that a True Blood 'set spy' (loose lips sinks ships) says there is a statue of Michelle Forbes' evil maenad Maryann in the back room of the Moon Goddesses magic shop that features heavily in this season's witch storyline.
Helena Bonham Carter's fierce fashion individuality often suggests, nay insists, that there is much more to her than just a dressed-up thespian:
Helena Bonham-Carter seems to always dress in a way that expresses exactly who she is or feels like being at any given time. She looks like she is having fun with fashion--unlike so many of her peers who look as if they are enduring wearing whatever uber-fancy outfit their stylists have chosen for them for important (read: camera-friendly) events. IMO, Bonham-Carter never looks 'thrown together,' though others have snarked about how she doesn't appear to know how to match things properly (colours, a pair of shoes, etc.).
The stark reality is that in Bonham-Carter's day job in show business she is considered 'of a certain age' and that age means far fewer film roles as each year passes. She is smart and savvy to seque into something she enjoys (dressing up) that will pay the bills (face of Marc Jacobs!)
Actress Helena Bonham Carter has joined ...Victoria Beckham, Dakota Fanning and Sofia Coppola to become the latest face of U.S label Marc Jacobs.
The choice may seem like an odd one, especially as Helena is a devoted Vivienne Westwood fan, but perhaps talks began after Jacobs dressed the actress for the SAG awards...
But her mismatched style earned her a place on the Vanity Fair Best Dressed List last year.
The Harry Potter star, 44, who counts Marie Antoinette as one of her style icons, told the New York Daily News: 'It was a triumph! ....It made me laugh because I thought it was a joke when I found out.
'But when I saw the article, I thought, "Oh, the photos they've chosen are as bad as the ones they print when I'm worst dressed."'
True Blood Season 4 starts June 26, 9 pm on HBO--in any form you wish to view it in! :):
Fun, behind-the-scenes clip from Entertainment Tonight (Canada). Nice little interview with Anna Paquin in costume as Sookie. As usual, she is super-polite--and gives away absolutely nothing, LOL.
Sample: 'Eric is good to her (Sookie)...and it's kind of confusing...but it's nice.'
For his part ASkars ('Eric'), with that crazy-sexy-boyish-looking, styling-gel free look he'll sport until he gets his memory back, enthuses about how much fun he is having this season on True Blood. I can't imagine that this time in his career is anything but fun.
Stephen Moyer (Sookie's now ex,'Bill Compton') almost seems sad about Sookie's conflict of emotions. Is he just acting or does he miss his true-life true love Anna, since they seem to lack scenes together in season 4 (gotta watch to find out)? I'm sure Stephen can console himself each night (morning?) after shooting when he can go home and snuggle in marital bliss with Ms. Paquin Moyer.
Hey Nurse Jackie fans! Just a reminder, Nurse Jackie is back tonight, June 6!:
'Nurse Jackie': Eve Best as Dr. O'Hara, Peter Facinelli as 'Dr. Cooper ('Coop')
Episode 10 of Nurse Jackie (the next episode), 'F**k The Lemurs,' will air on Showtime on Monday, June 6./EDIT. Sorry, sorry, sorry. I pulled up my wall calendar, skipping June altogether and messed up the date (tho' not day). It is now correct/end EDIT
It's a bit tense waiting 2 weeks as last we saw of Jackie she was reeling from her drug supplier's sudden death (by Mack truck), forcing her to go cold turkey, only to leave us hanging as she took a evening stroll down the middle of Madison Avenue.
I thought it was one of the most powerful episodes of Nurse Jackie, ever. No matter how rough things have gotten since we've come to know Jackie Peyton, she found a reserve of 'salvation' to tide her over hidden somewhere. Before, Jackie appeared to have a rock solid foundation despite her painkiller addiction. Obviously, she had us fooled (though deep down, the audience knew better), because right now she is coming apart at the seams and it is scary to watch.
It is a testament to Edie Falco's nuanced performance that the show has brought the audience to the edge with Jackie and now we too, are looking down at the great abyss. Eve Best has turned in a performance worthy of Emmy nomination too, in her role of Jackie's best friend and as head of the ER, her boss.
Preview Nurse Jackie: Episode 10, 'Eff the Lemurs' -
Grace asks her psychologist to be put on medication; Jackie is placed on probation over the drugs she stole from Oncology; Coop reserves the chapel for a wedding.
