Masi Oka, Heroes
Question: Now that the season has ended, I can't help but wonder which actors on Heroes have a good shot at Emmy nominations. Masi Oka pretty much goes without saying, but Jack Coleman and Zachary Quinto have been equally memorable in their roles and are just as deserving of a nod. But do they have a chance, too, or has Hiro's popularity rendered them obsolete? On another note, I'd like to give a little shout-out to Greg Grunberg as Matt Parkman. His performance is certainly not award-worthy, but the guy's a better actor than people give him credit for. Case in point: His portrayal of an evil version of Parkman, in which he was able to be menacing without going over the top.
Answer: Everyone at TV Guide loves Greg Grunberg. What a great guy, and so deserving of his success on the show. (Who else could survive taking all those bullets in the chest?) As for Emmy hopes, let's figure Masi Oka can survive the genre jinx and break through. I'm not convinced it will happen, but it should.
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Question: Give me some scoop on Heroes! Pretty please, with cherries on top of ice cream scooped out by an Ausiello ice cream scoop?!
Answer: As you'll see in our video interview (should be live soon at Ausiello Central tomorrow morning), Greg Grunberg unleashed a mild spoiler about next season: The final three minutes of this season will mirror the first three minutes of next season.
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Stars Break for RetailOn the first day of upfronts in New York City, a slew of celebs spent some time at the poshest place in town, the Lucky Club, a gift suite at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel. While Hayden Panettiere and her mom got blinged out with Lia Sophia baubles, the Heroes boys picked up some sunglasses. Though each star stopped by on his own, they all scooped up the same pair of Dolce & Gabbana aviator shades. Another popular guy pick was True Religion "Joey" jeans with white stitching. Mutual Admiration SocietyAs 30 Rock's Tina Fey was being whisked out of the NBC party, she spotted Friday Night Lights star Connie Britton across the room and screamed, "You're awesome!" Britton — who got the call that FNL had been picked up while she was editing her documentary about Ethiopian orphans — replied, "I think you're awesome!"Incredible Shrinking HeroWhile walking the red carpet, Greg Grunberg shared his secret for staying svelte: Weight Watchers. "I'm loving it. I'm los...
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Malcolm McDowell and Ali Larter, Heroes
Welcome back to Monday Night Smackdown. When the last new Heroes episode ended seven weeks ago, Mohinder (Sendhil Ramamurthy) was telekinetically pinned to the ceiling like a piñata while Peter (Milo Ventimiglia) was having his head sliced open by the brain-snatching Sylar (Zachary Quinto). This epic battle between good and evil culminates when the show finally returns April 23. And it's not even the epic battle.
"We've positioned Peter and Sylar as the two mythic superpowers of the show, so this is merely Round 1," promises creator Tim Kring. "It's not their ultimate showdown — it's more like the trailer for things to come." Still, it's a doozy. Though the entire sequence
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Hayden Panettiere by Mark Sullivan/WireImage.com
Last night, the cast and crew of Heroes celebrated the end of their first season with an exclusive, 700-person bash at the Cabana Club in Hollywood, and TV Guide was on hand for all the excitement — including Heroes-themed drinks, a musical performance by the Band from TV, and a surprise graduation ceremony for Hayden Panettiere (Claire Bennet), who slipped into a cap and gown to be presented with her high-school diploma by series creator Tim Kring as the band played “Pomp and Circumstance.”But even though the Hero-tinis and Save the World cosmopolitans were free-flowing, the cast all proved they’ve all got another superpower: the ability to keep secrets. One by one, Milo Ventimiglia (Peter Petrelli), Masi Oka (Hiro), Adrian Pasdar (Nathan Petrelli), and the rest of the series’ stars all carefully deflected any questions about the season finale. “Everybody dies,” joked Zachary Quinto (Sylar). “Actually, I’ve been telling it to everyone,&#...
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Jay Bienstock, Mark Burnett's longtime collaborator on Survivor and The Apprentice, has inked a seven-figure deal to develop unscripted projects for CBS Paramount Network Television, says Variety.... Superfans of TNT's The Closer, check this out.... DVD releases have been set for Meatballs: Special Edition (June 5) and Walt Disney's Oswald the Lucky Rabbit (leaving "the vault" for the first time on Dec. 11. Yeah, I'm thinking SNL, too.).... Brothers & Sisters' Balthazar Getty and his wife, Rosetta, are expecting their fourth child, says People.... Correction: Greg Grunberg's charity project ("Heroes' Greg Grunberg Proves to Be a Real Superman") is the Pediatric Epilepsy Project.
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Greg Grunberg
Greg Grunberg, who stars as telepathic Matt Parkman on NBC's Heroes, is using his real-life powers for good, not evil, by chairing the upcoming Epilepsy Foundation walk and working on an art auction to support the worthy cause. TVGuide.com caught up with Grunberg, whose son Jake suffers from the condition, to find out more about his charitable efforts, his celebrity band and, of course, what's coming up on Heroes.
TVGuide.com: Tell me a little bit more about the auction. How did you convince the artists and the show to donate art to the Epilepsy Foundation?Greg Grunberg: That would have been the greatest feat of salesmanship for me, but it wasn't. They're just incredibly generous and they know how important it is to me. Also, I've been working for NBC for a long time, so [NBC Entertainment honchos] Kevin Riley a
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Question: I hear that when Heroes returns, Greg Grunberg's Matt will be a shadow of his former self.
Answer: If you're referring to Greg's recent weight loss — 30 pounds and counting! — then the answer is yes. If you're alluding to some kind of twist with his character, that I don't know about.
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Tonight, everyone had a different agenda, and of course, plans went awry and things got messier than they already are. And what would a Heroes episode be without some murders? I wouldn't want any of these people chasing me... that is, unless I had a power of my own. But there was a departure from the heroes using or testing their powers tonight, with the exception of Sylar (and he's no "hero" in my eyes). More on him later....The episode picked up right where it left us last week: with Nathan. He knew nothing about Meredith (Jessalyn Gilsig) surviving the fire and offered her $100,000 to keep her mouth shut. Hey Nate, I'll keep my mouth shut.... Do you hear me? Meredith's not even truthful! She only offered Claire $25K. She really creeps me out — her high, eerie voice doesn't help to convince me otherwise, either. At least Nathan has a heart and feels responsible, even though he's clearly afraid of getting involved and actually being a father to a new daughter. But I like seein...
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Sure, Golden Globes and Emmys are nice. But there's another big honor that TV shows covet — being a part of the Museum of Television & Radio's Paley Festival in L.A. The 24th-annual event, which this year takes place March 1-15, pays tribute to hot series by screening an episode followed by a question-and-answer session with the cast. This year's honorees include American Idol, The Office, Brothers & Sisters, The Closer, Nip/Tuck, Prison Break, Heroes, Ugly Betty, Jericho and The Simpsons. "To be part of such a tradition is something I'll remember forever," says Heroes star Greg Grunberg. "Something to tell the grandkids one day." — Reporting by Craig Tomashoff
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