matt.mitovich

Ratings: Housewives Shoots and Scores

A few Sunday-ratings headlines: 7th Heaven, up 700,000 total viewers week-to-week, had its biggest audience (3.83 million) since being moved from Monday. Desperate Housewives' gunplay was witnessed by 22.5 million, the series' best draw since the season opener. Brothers & Sisters, in turn, was up more than a mil, and had its own best audience since Oct. 1.And some Friday footnotes: In its new home, Vanished (3.35 mil) was on par with, say, time-slot predecessor Nanny 911, but lost nearly half its average Monday audience. This is unsettling: A special 9 pm edition of 20/20 (7.86 mil) outperformed the previous week's Men in Trees by a million heads. Despite a 300K dip for lead-in Las Vegas (8.95 mil), Law & Order and its Mel Gibson riff surged 1.9 million, to 10.7 mil.

Mon, Nov 6, 2006

The "New" James Bond: The Reviews Are In

Is Daniel Craig's 007 on target, or a misfire? The first reviews from H.M.S.S., or at least the London papers, are in, and thus far Casino Royale, in theaters Nov. 17, is being declared a winner. The Daily Telegraph hails Craig's debut as the licensed-to-kill secret agent "terrific," adding that the actor "steps with full assuredness into Sean Connery's old, handmade shoes," while the Times says Craig's "main asset quickly becomes evident: He can act." Hey, don't be talking smack about Lazenby.

Mon, Nov 6, 2006

[Ill-phrased Title about Borat Being No. 1 Goes Here]

So much for worrying about how it would play in Kazakhstan. Sacha Baron Cohen's Borat topped the box office in its first weekend of release, racking up $26.4 million (or 3.52 billion Kazakhstan tenge). What's more, Borat did that business in just 837 theaters, less than one-fourth as many as runner-up The Santa Clause 3 ($20 million). Rounding out the top five were Flushed Away (debuting to $19.1 mi), Saw III ($15.5 mil) and The Departed ($8 mil).

Mon, Nov 6, 2006

CBS Salvages Borat-y Pilot with Online Debut

After two years in development, one never-greenlit CBS comedy pilot will finally see the light of day  via an online debut, starting today, on the network's Innertube broadband channel. The Papdits, written by Da Ali G Show's Ant Hines and deemed to have some of the flavor of Ali G creator Sacha Baron Cohen's current theatrical release, Borat, follows a fictional family from Kashmir as they travel across the United States in an RV. Sounds to me like a lampooned international family's vacation.

Mon, Nov 6, 2006

Lauren Graham Is One Very Busy Girl

Not satisfied as the winning yet perennially underrated star of Gilmore Girls, Lauren Graham has heaped much onto her plate as an executive producer, selling Objects of Desire, pegged as a "sexy, auction-house-set comedy," to the CW. Also, Variety reports, Graham is shopping around Praying on People, a single-camera comedy penned by Everybody Hates Chris' Lance Crouther and revolving around a stand-up comic who, after a breakdown, leaves showbiz and returns to his inner-city nabe, where his brother is a preacher, to find god. Sound like one crazy chap... pelle.

Mon, Nov 6, 2006

At the Movies: Lindsay Lohan Mines a Diamond

Per the Hollywood Reporter, Lindsay Lohan is set to star in a big-screen adaptation of The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond, Tennessee Williams' long-forgotten story of a disliked 1920s debutante (Lohan) with a penchant for shocking and insulting those around her. Chris Evans is Lo's love interest, David Strathairn her alcoholic pop, and Ellen Burstyn her mom.... Kim Basinger will star in While She Was Out, a real-time thriller about a housewife accosted by four hooligans while running a Christmas Eve errand. (And you thought those overzealous storefront bell ringers were a nuisance.)

Mon, Nov 6, 2006

"I'll Take SNL's Best of Darrell Hammond for $200, Trebek!"

Just a quick note here to say that if you enjoy Darrell Hammond, aka he of the many spot-on celebrity impressions, do not miss this weekend's Saturday Night Live. It's a special "Best of Darrell Hammond" episode, and all of the funnyman's best stuff is here, including: Hammond as Chris Matthews, in one of SNL's best Hardball riffs ever, with Tracy Morgan doing Harry Belafonte ("The poodle is the black man of the dog world."), Rachel Dratch as a daffy ACLU rep ("Blow up one embassy, and suddenly you're a terrorist. It's just hypocritical."), and John McCain as John Ashcroft. Hammond's Sean Connery choosing "THE RAPISTS for $200" during Celebrity Jeopardy. Hammond as Al Gore, on-and-on-ing during a presidential debate about his "lock box." And, of course, a montage of some of Hammond's best takes on Bill Clinton. (Remember when he made a play for Teresa Heinz Kerry? "There are 57 varieties of things I'd like to do to you.... And I'd do 'em with relish.")Must-se...

Fri, Nov 3, 2006

Ratings: The O.C. Marisses Marissa

This Thursday's ratings highlights: Despite my best effort to sell y'all on Beth Lacke, both Fox's 'Til Death (4.3 million total viewers) and her Happy Hour (3.18 mil) took severe hits, down 1.4 mil and 1.26 mil, respectively, from their last original outings. Smallville (4.93 mil), up 180K week-to-week, had its best outing (tied with Oct. 12) since the season premiere. Diwali-wowee: The Office (8.87 mil) also had its best numbers since the season's start. While Grey's (21 mil) bested CSI (20.53 mil) at 9 pm, The O.C. returned to a series-low audience of 3.38 mil (says MediaWeek), tying it with Supernatural for fourth place. Somewhere, a Brinks truck is backing up to Mischa's bungalow. ER nipped Shark this go-round, 13.77 mil to 13.17, while Six Degrees (which I feared everyone forgot was still around) hit a new low of 7.59 mil.A side note to my Supernatural buddies: enough with asking Kripke for a Sam-Dean hug. We get it, we get it.... Now don't make m...

Fri, Nov 3, 2006

Exclusive: Recastin' Kirk? Shatner Just. Can't. See it.

In an interview with TVGuide.com, William Shatner  out to promote his new ABC game show (Show Me the Money, previewing Nov. 14) as well as the Boston Legal Season 2 DVD (in stores Nov. 21)  revealed that he has, in fact, had "a long talk" with J.J. Abrams about the Lost creator's in-the-works Star Trek feature, which by some unconfirmed accounts will chronicle James T. Kirk's early days as a Starfleet Academy cadet. So who is Shatner's pick to originate Kirk's bravado? "I think it's essentially uncastable," he answers with a wink. TVGuide.com also asked Shatner about the Trek-inspired DirecTV commercial currently on the air, in which he seems to have magically shed a few Tribbles. "They've got me CGI'd," he admits. "They've got a computer program trying vainly to make me look younger."Read our complete conversation  in which Shatner previews what's ahead for Boston Legal's Denny Crane, and dismisses our suggestion for a cameo in Abrams' Trek  in an upcoming I...

Fri, Nov 3, 2006

Tom Cruise Named Top Gun at Legendary Studio

Bounding back nicely from his public spankings at the hand of Viacom's Sumner Redstone, Tom Cruise, in tandem with longtime producing partner Paula Wagner, has been tapped to breathe new life into United Artists, the film studio founded in 1919 by Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks and others. Under the agreement, Wagner will oversee day-to-day operations while Cruise produces and stars in films for the MGM-owned shingle. While UA aims to churn out four films a year, Cruise is free to star in projects for rivals, as well. "He's back in a bigger way than anyone could have imagined," Cruise's attorney boasts to the New York Daily News. Since going into business together in 1993, Cruise and Wagner have reaped nearly $3 billion at the box office with such efforts as War of the Worlds and the Mission: Impossible franchise.

Fri, Nov 3, 2006

Bedbugs Bite Too Much for SNL Star

Saturday Night Live funnywoman Maya Rudolph isn't laughing at the move-in condition of her Soho condo, and has filed a $450,000 lawsuit claiming that the premises are "infested with bedbugs." Rudolph, who shares the $13,500-a-month loft with director-beau Paul Thomas Anderson and their year-old child, says it was touted as "perfect" and in a "first-class luxury" building, but in actuality bore bedbugs, as well as a nonworking elevator. The property's broker has no comment on the suit, but I think we just got a new SNL sketch.

Fri, Nov 3, 2006

John Corbett Is One Sexy Manchild

Sex and the City alum John Corbett has joined the cast of Manchild, a Showtime comedy pilot based on a BBC series and concerning four male friends mired in midlife crises. Corbett will play a former Deadhead who still smokes pot  the superpopular "MILF weed," perhaps?  and tends to sabotage his work and romantic lives.

Fri, Nov 3, 2006

Will Showtime Deal More Weeds?

Yes, it's terrif that Dexter has been renewed for a new season (as I reported here Thursday afternoon), but what about the Botwins? In its own story on Dexter's Season 2 pickup, Variety says that an announcement regarding Weeds' Season 3 "is imminent."

Fri, Nov 3, 2006

In the Works: CW, You've Got Males!

Per Variety, producer brothers Sean and Bryan Furst (The Cooler) have sold to the CW network Beta Males, a single-camera comedy revolving around a trio of guys coping with their lives as domestic caretakers, while their girlfriends and wives bring home the bacon.... Fox has granted a 13-episode order to David E. Kelley's The Wedding Store, a romantic comedy about "wedding planners dedicated to having their clients live happily ever after  or at least until they get to the parking lot." (OK, that alone made me snicker.) Per Reuters, Wedding Store was inspired by a pilot penned in 2004 by Kelley and Friday Night Lights' Jason Katims, then for ABC.

Fri, Nov 3, 2006

Hips, Hips, Hooray! Shakira Rocks Latin Grammys

The votes don't lie: Shakira dominated Thursday night's Latin Grammy Awards, taking home quatro trophies, including honors for album (Fijacion Oral Vol. 1) and song of the year ("La Tortura"). Other multiple-Grammy winners, albeit boasting less fascinating abs, were the reggaeton group Calle 13, and Argentine rocker Gustavo Cerati.

Fri, Nov 3, 2006

Other Accolades on Parade: Kate Moss, J.T.

Wafer-thin wild child Kate Moss was named "Model of the Year" at Thursday's Britian Fashion Awards. Now that's nothing to sniff at.... Justin Timberlake won awards for best pop and best male (Cameron gets a say in that, yes?) at Thursday's MTV Europe Music Awards. The Red Hot Chili Peppers claimed best-album honors, and Christina Aguilera was crowned best female artist.

Fri, Nov 3, 2006

At the Movies: Buffy Alum Joins Book Club

Per Variety, Marc Blucas (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and a recent candidate to play Sam's new love interest on ER), Lynn Redgrave and Kathy Baker have joined the big-screen adaptation of The Jane Austen Book Club. Already on board are the likes of Maria Bello, Amy Brenneman, Maggie Grace and Jimmy Smits.... Per the Hollywood Reporter, Project Greenlight's Chris Moore is making his directing debut with Killers, a horror-action flick about a group of friends forced into a game where they have to snuff each other. Patrick Flueger (The 4400), Agnes Bruckner and Taryn Manning star.

Fri, Nov 3, 2006

Short Cuts: The Hoff, Degrassi and More

David Hasselhoff will don a dress and tap-dance as Adolf Hitler in a Las Vegas production of The Producers, beginning its run Jan. 31, 2007.... The N's Degrassi: The Next Generation presents its mid-Season 6 finale on Nov. 17.... Reminder: Fox's Vanished (finally) returns tonight at 8 pm/ET.... WE has announced a Dec. 6 premiere for its Dirty Dancing reality series.... Adrienne Shelly, best known for her roles in Hal Hartley's Trust and The Unbelievable Truth, was found hanged in her New York City office on Wednesday evening. She was 40.

Fri, Nov 3, 2006

Showtime's Dexter Takes a Stab at Season 2

This just in, from Showtime:"Showtime has ordered a second season of its freshman drama Dexter, starring Emmy- and Golden Globe-nominated actor Michael C. Hall, it was announced today by Robert Greenblatt, Showtime President of Entertainment. Dexter premiered last month to widespread critical acclaim and ranks as Showtime's top-rated series. Production is set to begin on 12 new episodes next spring [to] premiere on Showtime in late 2007."New episodes of Dexter air Sundays at 10 pm/ET.

Fri, Nov 3, 2006

Ratings: Another Death Doesn't Become Lost

Did Criminal Minds do it, finally, truly and actually? In Wednesday's ratings round-up.... NBC's 30 Rock (4.83 mil) and Twenty Good Years (4.24 mil) both suffered 1.2 million viewer hits. Jericho, just shy of 10 million, was down 500,000 heads, but held onto the 8 o'clock hour's No. 2 spot (ahead of Bones, 7.42 mil). The fast overnights suggest that Criminal Minds (16.73 million) bested Lost (16.12 mil, down 680K week-to-week) in total viewers, though Lost, of course, dominated the key demos. The Nine hit a series low with 6.68 million, down 1.3 mil from last week, and again was plagued by 10:30 tune-out (this time to the tune of minus 1.9 million viewers).UPDATE: The final tailies tallies are in, and it's official. Per a CBS press release, this marks the first time Criminal Minds has topped a first-run Lost in total viewers (16.97 million to 16.07 mil); the first time Criminal Minds topped Lost in both half-hours in viewers; and the first hourlong scripted p...

Thu, Nov 2, 2006

NBC Sweeps: Heroes, Jim and Pam Reunite, and More!

My personally selected highlights from NBC's November-sweeps preview press release:Nov. 3: Chevy Chase channels Mel Gibson on Law & Order.Nov. 6: Rena Sofer makes her first appearance as Nathan's wife on Heroes, John Goodman begins a two-episode gig on Studio 60.Nov. 9: Jenny McCarthy visits My Name Is Earl, and a Dunder-Mifflin branch is closed on The Office.Nov. 13: Heroes' Horn-rimmed Glasses and a surprising associate focus their attention on another "hero."Nov. 14: Tim Riggins gives up the sauce on Friday Night Lights.Nov. 15: Medium returns with a two-hour outing.Nov. 16: Supersize episodes of Earl (guest-starring Christian Slater), The Office (Jim and Pam come face-to-face for the first time in months!), and 30 Rock (guest-starring Rip Torn).Nov. 21: Rob Marshall (Chicago) directs Tony Bennett: An American Classic.Nov. 22: Madonna, minus the cross.Nov. 27: Studio 60's Jordan tells Danny that she's pregnant.Nov. 28: A brewing love triangle leads to "a vicious confrontation...

Thu, Nov 2, 2006

Casting About: Rob Lowe Joins Sisters Act

UPDATE ON ROB LOWE: Be sure to check out Brothers & Sisters exec producer Jon Robin Baitz' brand-new TVGuide.com blog entry regarding Lowe joining the cast.As first spilled by the Ausiello Report, former West Winger Rob Lowe is joining ABC's Brothers & Sisters as a Republican senator and romantic interest for Calista Flockhart's Kitty (and no, that was not a euphemism). Lowe will appear in at least six episodes; Mike has the details.... Per Reuters, Alicia Witt (Cybill) will star in Blue Smoke, a Lifetime movie based on the Nora Roberts best-seller about a female arson investigator haunted by a pyromaniac stalker. Scott Bakula, Talia "Adrian!!!" Shire (as Witt's mother) and Matthew Settle (Brothers & Sisters) also star.... Relative newbies Rachel Specter (Entourage), Brendan Miller (Accepted), Anna Osceola, John Keefe (The Practice), Christopher Todd (The Sopranos) and Jocelin Donahue will populate the Comedy Central pilot Not Another High School Show, which promises to ...

Thu, Nov 2, 2006