Chris O'Donnell

NCIS Spin-off: Official Details, a "Tiva" Teaser and More

• Apr 8, 2009 12:06 PM ET
• by Matt Mitovich
• 24 Comments

Chris O'Donnell and Mark Harmon

CBS has issued its official press release and first photos for the two-part NCIS episode that will serve as a backdoor pilot for a spinoff starring Chris O'Donnell and LL Cool J.

Titled "Legend," the episode kicks off April 28 and concludes May 5. In one of the photos, Mark Harmon's Gibbs is seen walking-and-talking with O'Donnell's Special Agent G. Callen.

The setup: When the discovery of a Marine's corpse becomes a matter of national security, Gibbs' team must ... read more

Pilot News: LL Cool J, O'Donnell Say Y-E-S to NCIS Spinoff

• Feb 27, 2009 12:11 PM ET
• by Matt Mitovich
• 23 Comments

LL Cool J, Chris O'Donnell

The deals are now done, and Chris O'Donnell and recording artist LL Cool J are on board for CBS" much-ballyhooed NCIS spinoff.

O'Donnell will play Callen, a chameleon-like lead agent, while LL's character, a former Navy SEAL, is described as hard on the outside but "thoughtful, eloquent and disarmingly charming" under the surface.

Previously announced castings include CSI alumna ... read more

NCIS Spin-off Eyes Chris O'Donnell, LL Cool J

• Feb 5, 2009 10:08 AM ET
• by Matt Mitovich
• 37 Comments

Chris O'Donnell, LL Cool J

How do you assemble a team that can even compare to Jethro Gibbs & Co.? If you're NCIS and you're prepping a spin-off, you start with Chris O'Donnell and LL Cool J.

Batman's former Robin and the recording artist/sometime actor are in talks to front the CBS hit's offshoot, says the Reporter and EW. O'Donnell would play ... read more

Chris O'Donnell, Jack McBrayer Battle Cats & Dogs

• Oct 1, 2008 05:59 PM ET
• by movienews
• 1 Comment

Chris O'Donnell by Jeff Vespa/ WireImage.com

Chris ODonnell and Jack McBrayer are set to share the big screen with some rowdy animalsThe two have signed on to star in the live-action CGI-blended film Cats Dogs The Revenge of Kitty Galore The Hollywood Reporter reportsDirected by Brad Peyton and produced by Andrew Lazar the movie is a follow-up to 2001s Cats Dogs um was anyone asking for a sequel and continues the plot of the felines and canines battle for control of EarthScript is by Ron Friedman and Steve Bencich whove mastered the art of animated animals with Chicken Little Open Season and Brother BearLive-action filming has already commenced in Vancouver while voice casting is expected to follow shortly Joyce Eng read more

Baby Talk: Lily Allen Singing for Two, and More

• Dec 19, 2007 01:52 PM ET
• by TV Guide News

Lily Allen by Jamie McCarthy/WireImage.com

British singer Lily Allen — who it should be noted is not 16 but 22 — is expecting her first child with beau Ed Simons (of the Chemical Brothers). "As the pregnancy is at a very, very early stage, the couple asks that you respect their privacy," Allen's rep tells People. "[They] will be making no further comment but they are obviously both thrilled".... CNN anchor Campbell Brown birthed her and husband Dan Senor's first child, Eli James, on Tuesday.... On Dec. 10, Chris O'Donnell and his wife, Caroline, welcomed their fifth child, named Maeve Frances O'Donnell. Yes, the family is German. read more

"Night 2"

• Aug 13, 2007 02:25 AM ET
• by Todd Thatcher

With another two strong hours under its belt, The Company is really shaping up to be the miniseries of the year, and one to watch out for come the next Emmy nominations. Though the second section of a three-parter often suffers a little from being necessarily transitional (see the Lord of the Rings and Bourne trilogies), this episode side-stepped that trap, starting with a tried-and-true device: Open with a shocking dramatic event — say, the capture and torture of a main character (Jack) — then fall back three days to show how we got to this point.But what looked from the previews last week to be the climax of this episode was only the beginning of the excitement. You could have made two stand-alone films out of this one’s two main set pieces: The Hungarian uprising, shot as a bloody gun battle in an urban wasteland, and the botched Bay of Pigs invasion, a full-scale beach-storming under cover of darkness that rivaled any Hollywood war movie. While "Night 1" was about... read more

"Night 1"

• Aug 6, 2007 04:41 PM ET
• by Todd Thatcher

Let me start off with a disclaimer: I’m not familiar with the Robert Littell novel of the same name on which The Company is based. However, based on the Internet buzz, I know a lot of fans of the book have been very much anticipating this miniseries. So what I ask of you, readers, is that you be as understanding as you can about my lack of foreknowledge, while still feeling free to tell me what’s what when I get it wrong. Thanks in advance. [end disclaimer]Well, we're only a third of the way in, but so far, I like what I'm seeing. Even abridged as it must be for TV, this is clearly a complex, multilayered story. The Company is juggling a large cast of international characters who are constantly double- and triple-crossing each other, but thankfully, I didn't have to strain too hard to keep it all straight. I don't know if the novel's focus was so squarely on the characters of Jack (Chris O'Donnell) and Yevgeny (Rory Cochrane), but the friends-turned-enemies situation set u... read more

Grey's Visit Lands Chris O'Donnell in Very Good Company

• Aug 3, 2007 04:00 AM ET
• by Matt Webb Mitovich

Chris O'Donnell, The Company

Despite having more than a dozen films under his belt at the time — from the serene (Circle of Friends) to the bombastic (Batman Forever) — the gig that Chris O'Donnell credits with putting him in The Company, TNT's three-week, six-hour miniseries about the early CIA (premiering Sunday at 8 pm/ET), was his turn as a dreamy (though not McDreamy) veterinarian on Grey's Anatomy. "I had a fantastic time doing it, and I think I got a good 'pop' off it," O'Donnell says, fondly recalling his run as Meredith's onetime paramour, Finn. "I've known [executive producer] Ridley [Scott], and we've talked in the past about working together. When they were read more

Spice Girl Hauls Reluctant Babydaddy Eddie Murphy into Court

• Aug 2, 2007 01:37 PM ET
• by Matt Mitovich

Eddie Murphy by Steve Granitz/WireImage.com

Yesterday Scary Spice filed a petition in Superior Court to legally establish ex-boyfriend Eddie Murphy as daughter Angel's father and to get him to cough up some damn child support already. The baby, said the singer less frequently known as Melanie Brown, "will always know that she was planned and wanted by both of us." At least for the short while it took to conceive her. In other baby news, yesterday on Today, Chris O'Donnell revealed that he and his wife Caroline Fentress are expecting their fifth — yes, fifth — child. "We're just starting to figure out how it works," he said. "I think I know why this is happening." Well, like my mama always said, acknowledging the problem is the first step toward solving it. read more

Chris O'Donnell Weighs In on Grey's Anatomy

• Jul 16, 2007 07:12 PM ET
• by TV Guide News

Ellen Pompeo, Chris O'Donnell and Patrick Dempsey by Michael Desmond/ABC

Meredith and McDreamy called it quits (again!) in the Grey’s Anatomy season finale. So could the heartbroken doc wind up back in Finn’s arms when the show returns? TV Guide caught up with Finn's portrayer at a TCA panel over the weekend in L.A.“I’d go back for a while,” says Chris O’Donnell, who played the ex Meredith dumped for Derek. “It’s a great show. They’re having wonderful success, and I was really grateful to be a part of it.”Weighing in on the drama that ensued after his departure, O’Donnell says, “My stuff was in and out. I was not part of their ongoing crew that had any kind of drama there. My experience was fantastic!” — Reporting by Dana Meltzer Zepeda read more