Oxygen has OK'd a reality show about rapper Coolio's attempts to raise six teens as a single parent. Coolio & the Gang will debut in the second quarter of '08.... Fox and McG (The O.C.) are developing Spaced, a comedy based (of course) on a British series from Shaun of the Dead creators Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright. In it, two singles pose as a couple so they can rent a flat. Er, apartment.... Andy Barker, P.I. creator Jonathan Groff's new laffer, Private Lives of Public People, started a bidding war between ABC and CBS. In the end, the Eye landed the pilot about upstanding citizens whose home lives are disastrous.... Arrested Development alum Abraham Higginbotham got a go-ahead from Fox for his untitled comedy pilot featuring Reno 911's Niecy Nash among the lowbrow staffers at a highfalutin NYC hotel. — Ben Katner
read more
Gloucester, England-born Simon Pegg (Hot Fuzz) and Harold & Kumar's John Cho are boarding J.J. Abrams' Star Trek feature in the roles of engineering wizard/Romulan-ale enthusiast Montgomery Scott and Lt. Hikaru Sulu, says the Reporter. They join other future Enterprisers Zachary Quinto (as Spock), Zoe Saldana (Uhura) and Anton Yelchin (Chekov), while Eric Bana has been tapped to play the villain. I know what you're wondering: But who... has... the com? According to the trades, Chris Pine is in talks to play young Kirk. Just My Luck, indeed. For more discussion of the Star Trek castings, listen to the Oct. 12 TV Guide Talk podcast.
read more
DVD Tuesday Hot Fuzz pokes pitch-perfect fun at the excesses of Hollywood cop pictures while simultaneously delivering real action How cool is thatThis weeks DVD Tuesday pick isnt profound or obscure or controversial I just loved it Hot Fuzz does for American-style buddy-cop pictures what Shaun of the Dead 2004 did for zombie movies Writer-director Edgar Wright and cowriter Simon Pegg take every clich every stock character every narrative contrivance and give it a sly half twist The result is so close to the real thing a careless channel surfer could go right by without realizing it wasnt while being completely utterly hilarious even more so on a second viewing Pegg plays London supercop Nicholas Angel whose compulsive overachieving has cost him his girlfriend and his job The girlfriend because shes sick of competing with the job and the job because everyone else is sick of competing with Angel and coming up short So to keep peace in the ranks Ang
read more
Question: While on vacation recently I came across a movie about zombies. The nonzombies were either British or Irish, most of the movie took place during the day, and it was more comedy than horror. The main character was a bit of a wussy guy who was trying to impress a girl with his zombie-fighting abilities, and the majority of what I saw took place in a pub. Can you tell me the title and whether it's available on video?Answer: You saw Shaun of the Dead (2004), a wickedly funny spin on George Romero 's seminal cannibal-zombie movie Dawn of the Dead (1978). Romero himself got a kick out of the sardonic spin writer-director-star team Edgar Wright and
read more
It's not a big-budget action flick like the upcoming Alexander or a high-toned biopic like next month's Ray, but Shaun of the Dead (opening Friday) is one of the best movies you're likely to see this fall. A "romantic zombie comedy" from England, Shaun is both a dead-on homage to such genre classics as Evil Dead II, 28 Days Later — and, of course, Dawn of the Dead — and pretty hilarious besides. Director Edgar Wright and star Simon Pegg spent 18 months crafting the screenplay, which follows Shaun, the titular slacker hero, as he attempts to win back the heart of his estranged girlfriend while fighting off legions of the undead. On their recent visit to the States, the Brits allowed TV Guide Online to pick their brains about their love of zombies.
TV Guide Online: Name your favorite zombie film and your favorite romantic comedy.Simon Pegg: Dawn of the Dead.Edgar Wright:
read more