Oh, if this isn't a match made in TV heaven, I don't know what is: Gilmore Girls creator Amy Sherman-Palladino has tapped fast-talking Parker Posey to star in her Fox pilot The Return of Jezebel James. Per the Hollywood Reporter, the indie darling will play an infertile book editor who asks her estranged kid sister to have her baby. "I can't believe it's happening," AS-P said of landing the picky actress. "The character runs the gamut of emotions from laughing to flipping out to breaking your heart in 22 minutes, and only one in a zillion people has enough skill and charm to pull that off. Parker Posey is that person." I couldn't agree more. In other pilot-casting news: • Scream king Matthew Lillard has joined NBC's Area 52, a comedy about G-men babysitting an alien.• Anthony Anderson will topline Fox's K-Ville drama about cops in post-Katrina New Orleans.• Katheryn Winnick (House's recent rape victim) has been added to Philadelphia General, a Fox drama revolving arou...
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Question: What's going to happen with our beloved Stabler and Benson on Law & Order: SVU now that Olivia has requested a new partner?
Answer: Benson's going to get transferred to the computer-crime division, where she'll be working alongside TARU Tech Morales (Joel de la Fuente). Stabler, meanwhile, will be marking time with temp partners (including Anthony Anderson on May 2) until Connie Nielsen shows up in September. Short-story-shorter: We're probably not going to see a Benson-Stabler reunion until at least November.
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Kenneth Johnson and Michael Chiklis, The Shield
Question: Am I the only one who can no longer "root" for the Strike Team on The Shield because Shane killed Curtis Lemansky? I mean, I realize logically the Strike Team is a bunch of dirty cops, but I could still be on their side since some criminals, such as Antwon Mitchell (played perfectly by Anthony Anderson), are even worse. However, now that Shane got rid of Lem, I am concerned that the show has turned a very sad corner. I kind of want them all to go down in flames for everything they ever did that was remotely dirty. Yet, how do I support the hunt for them when I believe Aceveda and Internal Affairs freak Kavanaugh are also responsible for the death of Lem? I am concerned that with no heroes anywhere to be found on The Shield, it may not be worth watching. Are you still watching? What do you think?
Answer: Not worth watching? Who are you kidding? Your dilemma about who or what to root for is exactly the reaction this show should be stimulating, never more intensely than in this
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Tennis great Serena Williams will guest-star on the April 7 episode of Fox's The Bernie Mac Show, playing an expert on (heh-heh) sibling rivalries. Hustle & Flow's Anthony Anderson and Shar Jackson also appear in the episode.
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Question: Forest Whitaker had better win the Emmy for his amazing performance on the Feb. 28 episode of The Shield. When he burst out of the room and ordered the arrest of Lem, it gave me chills and made me want to jump into the TV and strangle him. I can't wait to see what everyone in the Barn's reaction will be when he puts Lem in the same place as Antwon Mitchell. Do you have any idea if Anthony Anderson will be coming back for any more episodes? I heard that he is coming back for one more, but I feel he could be in a lot more of them. Also, I seriously hope that we do not need to wait until next January for the rest of the season. I hope FX is smart and starts the "second half" in September. Having Nip/Tuck and The Shield in the same week would be great. Let's just hope Nip/Tuck can rebound from its weaker season.
Answer: Agreed on Forest Whitaker. If he gets submitted in the supporting-actor category, he'd have to be considered a front-runner. I think Anthony Anderson was scheduled
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Question: I think The Shield is one of the two or three best shows on TV right now. However, I am disappointed that it has lost its edge compared to Season 1. What made the show so different was that Mackey was alternately a scumbag and a hero, so you were never sure how to feel about him. That tension seems to have completely disappeared as Mackey is being portrayed more and more like a typical Dirty Harry, a crusading cop who only bends the rules and beats up people we all know are guilty. Do you think this has anything to do with the fact that Michael Chiklis has become a producer and is directing some of the episodes?
Answer: Mackey's lost his edge? Granted, this question came in before the Feb. 28 episode, in which Mackey took great, gleeful pleasure in eavesdropping on Kavanaugh's disturbing scene with his ex-wife (Gina Torres) and said to Lem: "At least we found his weak spot." Mackey is still as much a monster as he is a crusader, and from the start he has had a soft spot for
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Question: Any spoilers on The Shield?
Answer: Sounds like this season's eighth episode is going to be phenomenal. Not only is Anthony Anderson back, but a member of the Strike Team is going to get arrested.
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Campus Ladies' Christen Sussin, Carrie Aizley and (inset) Cheryl Hines
Curb Your Enthusiasm player Cheryl Hines is going back to school — the fictional University of the Midwest — as executive producer of Oxygen's new improvised comedy series, Campus Ladies (premiering Jan. 8 at 10 pm/ET). Starring Carrie Aizley and Christen Sussin as Joan and Barri, two middle-aged housewives in search of the wild college years they missed the first time around, Campus Ladies represents one of Oxygen's most daring endeavors ever. TVGuide.com spoke with Hines about the series' origins, May-December sex and whether Curb fan
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Question: Any scoop on the upcoming season of The Shield? Anything on how much impact Forest Whitaker will have on it? Also, how great is it that it will be 21 episodes? That's almost like a whole other season of 24, unless they do what USA does with Monk. Will this season be split up or will it run for 21 straight weeks?
Answer: The Shield will almost certainly split this next (possibly its last) extended season into two parts. Nothing's set yet, beyond the fact that the season will premiere in January. As for the buzz, those who've seen early rushes say Forest Whitaker is terrific as the new Internal Affairs snoop, as he sets about taking down Vic and the Strike Team. (Of course, I wouldn't expect to hear anything negative from the buzzmeisters at FX, but they were certainly right about Anthony Anderson last season.) Can't wait ...
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Question: I need some Shield poop! Do you know who the new captain will be?
Answer: Shawn Ryan was incredibly vague about that topic, saying, "It's somebody new to that role.… I didn't think we could equal what we had, with three years of Benito Martinez and then a year of Glenn Close, so we're taking a very different tone with this year's captain. It's more about absentee leadership than any kind of new leadership." And here's some other breaking Shield poop: Catherine Dent's real-life pregnancy will be written into the show, setting up a "Who's your daddy?" mystery within Farmington; Guiding Light alum Paula Garces joins the force as Julien's new partner; and Ryan says there's a "decent-to-good chance" that Anthony Anderson will be back. Sadly, the same can't be s
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