matt.mitovich

Britney Plots a "Surprise" Comeback as Bisexual Buzz Dogs Her Custody Bid

Provided she can get her act together  literally and figuratively  in time for the Sept. 9 kudoscast, Britney Spears is planning a surprise performance at this year's MTV Video Music Awards, hopefully signaling her "comeback," the New York Daily News reports. Just don't expect more girl-on-girl action... at least not on the stage. Adding fuel to the fire as ex-husband Kevin Federline wages a custody battle, a new story in OK! posits that Spears has been having a torrid affair with longtime Gal Friday Shannon Funk. Will Funk kiss and tell? Maybe so, now that she is among the BFFs who have been subpoenaed to testify in the case, says People.A Sept. 14 hearing has been set for the Spears-Federline squabble.

Wed, Aug 15, 2007

Britney Plots a "Surprise" Comeback as Bisexual Buzz Dogs Her Custody Bid

Billy Crystal Seeks a Mahvelous Late-night Gig

Saludos, my night owls.... Billy Crystal and his peeps are reportedly on the prowl for a late-night-TV hosting gig. The big question, of course, is where . "Billy was initially set on Conan O'Brien's slot when Conan takes over... The Tonight Show [in 2009]," a source tells the New York Post's Page Six. "But even if that didn't work out, he would do something in syndication." Billy's ask: $20 mil over five years. My ask: be better than Chevy.** To be fair, I'm midway through Chevy's biography, and he didn't get to do the kind of show he wanted.

Wed, Aug 15, 2007

Billy Crystal Seeks a Mahvelous Late-night Gig

Kristen Bell Sees "No Future" for Mars Movie

Your best chance for seeing Neptune again may involve a telescope, as Veronica Mars herself is bearish on the prospect of a big-screen follow-up to the cult TV series. "There is no future, unfortunately," Bell tells MTV.com, when asked about the rumored Mars movie. "Everybody's really, really sad to see it go.... [But] she has been laid to rest [and] may she rest in peace."Although Bell says she has yet to be involved in a single discussion about possibly revisiting her supersleuther via the silver screen, she won't rule out the notion of one day getting her PI on again. "Depends on how well I age," she quips, making us miss her delivery and wit all the more. Sigh.

Tue, Aug 14, 2007

Kristen Bell Sees "No Future" for Mars Movie

86-year-old Miss America Gets Shown Some TLC

Five months after CMT broke up with Miss America, the TLC cable channel has acquired rights to the super-smiley event, and will air it for the next three years starting Jan. 26, live from the Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas.According to the Hollywood Reporter, TLC will also launch a reality series in conjunction with the pageant, which will follow the 52 wannabes as they ready for the delicious catfight competition.

Tue, Aug 14, 2007

Ed's Tom Cavanagh Is Desperate, More Casting News

Tom Cavanagh (Love Monkey, if you will) has been cast as Sheriff David Reichert, the lead investigator on the trail of the worst serial slayer America has seen, in Desperate: The Search for the Green River Killer, a Lifetime mini based on Reichert's true-crime book Chasing the Devil. Also on board are Amy Davidson (8 Simple Rules) and Sharon Lawrence.... Lifetime has also greenlit Matters of Life & Dating, a TV-movie starring Ricki Lake as a woman who resumes dating after surviving breast cancer. Holly Robinson Peete also stars. The pic bows Oct. 22, during Breast Cancer Awareness month.For truly Desperate (as in Housewives) casting news, see the Ausiello Report.

Tue, Aug 14, 2007

Ed's Tom Cavanagh Is Desperate, More Casting News

Gandhi Gets with an Olsen Twin, and More Movie News

Sir Ben Kingsley, 63, passionately locks lips with 21-year-old Mary-Kate Olsen in The Wackness, now lensing in New York and concerning a drug dealer who pays his shrink (Kingsley) in weed, says the New York Post's Page Six. Consider your eyes warned.... Emma Roberts will front the live-action comedy Hotel for Dogs, in which two orphaned teens hide dozens of strays in an abandoned hotel.... Also per the Reporter, Bernie Mac has come on board Old Dogs.... Rosario Dawson has joined Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan in the D.J. Caruso-directed thriller Eagle Eye.... Also per Variety, the BCC, in partnership with Pathe, is backing a $50-million live-action take on Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book.

Tue, Aug 14, 2007

Criminal Minds: New Details About Joe Mantegna's Role

New cast member Joe Mantegna will make his first appearance on Criminal Minds in the fifth episode of the season, CBS has announced. "We are all thrilled to have Joe Mantegna joining our family," says executive producer Ed Bernero. "He's an incredible actor, a genuinely nice person and, as a fellow Chicagoan, I can tell you he makes fantastic Italian beef sandwiches and Chicago-style hot dogs." (Patinkin, I hear, could barely turn out a decent grilled cheese.)"We've been fans of Joe's since his early days on the stage. He will be a wonderful addition to our cast," adds executive producers Mark Gordon and Deb Spera.Mantegna will play Special Agent Rossi, an original member of the Behavioral Analysis Unit who took early retirement to go on book tours, and has now volunteered to return. Someone lock the door behind him, 'K?But wait, there's more! Mandy Patinkin is returning to Minds... under somewhat unusual circumstances. See the Ausiello Report for the exclusive (and rather juicy) de...

Tue, Aug 14, 2007

Criminal Minds: New Details About Joe Mantegna's Role

Family Guy Blows into the Windy City

Series creator Seth MacFarlane and the Family Guy voice cast  including Alex Borstein, Mila Kunis, Seth Green and Mike Henry  are taking their animated act on the road. Family Guy Live!, presented one night only  Sept. 15  at the Chicago Theater, will feature a live, uncensored reading of a classic episode, the performance of musical numbers from the series, and a Q&A with all involved.The previous Family Guy Live! took place in spring 2005 in New York and Los Angeles, in sold-out venues.

Tue, Aug 14, 2007

Brad Garrett Knocks a Paparazzo's Lights Out

Emerging from an L.A. sushi restaurant late Sunday night, 'Til Death star Brad Garrett grew agitated during a verbal sparring with an old foe, then allegedly directed his anger at a cameraman for TMZ. Glaring into the lens, Garrett said, "Excuse me," before striking the camera, knocking a light from the top of it. When the photog questioned the attack, Garrett claimed the camera had bumped into him. Said paparazzo came away with a swollen eye, but will not press charges. The whole videotaped encounter can be seen at TMZ, aka The Site Whose Cameramen You Don't Want to Beat On Because They Are Cameramen and Will Post the Incriminating Video the Next Day.

Tue, Aug 14, 2007

Brad Garrett Knocks a Paparazzo's Lights Out

John from Cincinnati, New WWE Death and More Short Cuts

HBO's John from Cincinnati is all washed up. See the Ausiello Report for more.... My Boys fans can track P.J. and the gang's fantasy baseball league at Yahoo's fantasy sports site.... Out on DVD today: Denzel Washington's Deja Vu.... TBS and Kevin Nealon present more of The World's Funniest Commercials on Aug. 30.... The Republican version of the CNN/YouTube presidential debate will be held Nov. 28.... Former WWE wrestler Brian Adams was found dead in his Tampa home on Monday. A cause of death has yet to be determined.... Denzel Washington's Deja Vu arrives on DVD today.

Tue, Aug 14, 2007

Heroes' Latest Star Trek: "Uhura" to Play Hero's Nana

Tim Kring's hailing frequency remains open to Star Trek crossovers. Having recruited George "Sulu" Takei to portray Hiro's father during Season 1, the Heroes creator has called upon Nichelle Nichols, aka USS Enterprise communications officer Lt. Uhura, to fill a short-term role. Nichols, an NBC rep tells TVGuide.com, will be playing Nana, the New Orleans-based grandmother of Monica (the new hero being played by The Nine's Dana Davis). Majel Barrett, you are now on deck.Related: Heroes Cheerleader Returns to Teenage A! N! G! S! T!, Heroes Banks on One of The Nine's Hostages

Tue, Aug 14, 2007

Heroes' Latest Star Trek: "Uhura" to Play Hero's Nana

Medium's Big on Oscar Winner Anjelica Huston

Academy Award winner Anjelica Huston has been tapped to visit Medium during the NBC drama's fourth season, playing an investigator for a firm called Ameritips who strikes an unusual bargain with Allison. "When we decided to embark on a six-episode arc involving a formidable female character, the challenge was to find an actress who could hold the screen with Patricia [Arquette] while creating sparks of her own," series creator Glenn Gordon Caron explains to the Hollywood Reporter. "I couldn't be more excited or more inspired [to have Huston in the role]. The idea of writing for two such extraordinary actresses... is exactly the kind of creative kick in the ass we relish on Medium."Sounds like Medium is sizing up a 2008 guest-actress Emmy.

Tue, Aug 14, 2007

Medium's Big on Oscar Winner Anjelica Huston

Clay Achin': Idol Musical Closes After Opening Night

Idol: The Musical  A Musical Based on the Worship of Clay Aiken lasted about as long as Brandon Rogers. Mere hours after its Aug. 12 premiere, the off-Broadway show shut its doors "due to a lack of advance ticket sales, a lack of positive feedback from audience members and critics, and a lack of sustainable financial resources," explains a statement from producer Todd Ellis.Apparently the fans of Clay Aiken refused to come out.

Tue, Aug 14, 2007

Clay Achin': Idol Musical Closes After Opening Night

Heroes Cheerleader Returns to Teenage A! N! G! S! T!

Being impervious to injury does not safeguard one from the typical perils of the Clearasil set  as Claire will learn when Heroes returns for its second season. Picking up four months after the freshman finale, "Obviously, [the heroes] are still hiding and running" from the organization H.R.G. was toiling for, Hayden Panettiere told TVGuide.com during a conference call to promote the NBC series' Aug. 28 DVD release. "Claire is really trying to get in touch with her inner teen self once again. She hasnt given that up, and I think it'd be a shame if she did."Claire also gets in touch with a new love interest named West (played by Nick D'Agosto; see the June 18 Q&A). Asked to preview that courtship, Panettiere hesitates, then allows, "The funny thing about Claire is that she has that beautiful naïveté, but she also has that spitfire quality. She has that sass about her. When she meets West... you will see. It's teenage angst."Related: Heroes' Latest Star Trek: ...

Tue, Aug 14, 2007

Heroes Cheerleader Returns to Teenage A! N! G! S! T!

NBC to Name New Today Team Tomorrow

NBC is expected to announce on Tuesday that Ann Curry, Natalie Morales and Hoda Kotb will cohost the fourth hour of Today, sources tell the Hollywood Reporter. This added hour of the morning show, premiering Sept. 11, has been cleared in some 96 percent of the country and will air at 10 am/ET in most markets. Today proper's Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira will be MIA from the overextended portion, save for Lauer appearing briefly at the top of the hour to turn the show over to the new team.

Tue, Aug 14, 2007

Chris Parnell Harasses Harold, More SNL Film News

Calling Dr. Spaceman! Saturday Night Live vets Chris Parnell and Rachel Dratch have joined the cast of Harold, an indie comedy about a prematurely balding teen (played by Spencer Breslin). Parnell is the poor lad's gym coach, Dratch the teacher who exposes his dome to his peers.... Also per the Reporter, SNL's Kristen Wiig has booked a pair of big-screen gigs: as Ricky Gervais' oral surgeon in Ghost Town, and as the female lead opposite Paul Giamatti and Billy Crudup in the indie laffer Pretty Bird.

Mon, Aug 13, 2007

Chris Parnell Harasses Harold, More SNL Film News

Stardust Can't Beat Box-office Rush

The sequel-the-world-couldn't-wait-for, Rush Hour 3, topped the weekend box office with a $50.3 million haul, well shy of No. 2's $67.4 mil bow but good enough to be the fourth-best August opening ever.Rounding out the top five were The Bourne Ultimatum ($33.7 million), The Simpsons Movie ($11.1 mil), Claire Danes' Stardust (opening with $9 mil) and Underdog (flying steady with another $6.5 mil).

Mon, Aug 13, 2007

Here Comes Thor! And Voltron! And More Movie News!

Liz Lemon will be so excited. Marvel Studios has lined up Matthew Vaughn (Layer Cake, and who came thisclose to helming X-Men 3) to direct a big-screen Thor.... Also from Variety, Twentieth Century Fox is close to a deal with the Mark Gordon Company to adapt Voltron: Defender of the Universe into a live-action pic.... Anne Hathaway has joined Debra Winger and Anna Deveare Smith in the ensemble for Jonathan Demme's Dancing with Shiva.... Per the Reporter, Rob Corddry and Lake Bell are the respective best buds of Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz in What Happens in Vegas.... 3rd Rocker Joseph Gordon-Levitt has booked back-to-back indies: Uncertainty, about a couple facing a big decision and presenting the two different fallouts of their two choices, and The Frog King, a Darren Star-directed coming-of-age drama.

Mon, Aug 13, 2007

Here Comes Thor! And Voltron! And More Movie News!

Britney's Flunky Speared by Subpoena: "Kevin Is Very Serious About Custody"

Britney Spears' assistant and cousin, Alli Sims, was subpoenaed on Sunday to make a statement "in connection with the Britney Spears/Kevin Federline issue," K-Fed's attorney tells the Associated Press. Sims was flagged as a person "believed to have relevant information," says the lawyer, who declined to discuss the specifics at hand. Subpoenaing Sims was not a matter to be taken lightly. According to the New York Daily News, Federline's peeps retained "security expert" Aaron Cohen (formerly of the Israeli army!) to track down and serve Sims at an early-am Hollywood Hills bash. "Kevin is very serious about the case," his lawyer tells TV's Extra. "[We] believe [Alli] has been around the environment where the kids are... and [is a] witness to many things." Including countless fashion don'ts.

Mon, Aug 13, 2007

Britney's Flunky Speared by Subpoena: "Kevin Is Very Serious About Custody"

James Gandolfini Makes Camp with HBO Biopic

Per Variety, The Sopranos' James Gandolfini will produce and star as Sonny Vaccaro in ABCD Camp, a biopic about the onetime Nike exec who made a fortune inking deals to shoe college hoops teams and is also credited with helping launch the careers of such NBA stars as Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. Vaccaro, who later worked for Adidas and then Reebok, rubbed the NCAA the wrong way, allegedly playing a role in compensating amateur athletes.

Mon, Aug 13, 2007

James Gandolfini Makes Camp with HBO Biopic

Deal or No Deal: Here's the Half-hour Deal

NBC Universal is telling potential buyers that the syndicated version of the red-hot Deal or No Deal will only be a half hour, and the top prize will be a "mere" $250,000 (as opposed to a full mil). Variety also reports that while Howie Mandel is continuing on as host, the bevy of suitcase-toting hotties will be narrowed down from 26 to an as-yet-undetermined number. The Banker has also been instructed to start talking faster.

Mon, Aug 13, 2007

The O.C., Victoria's Secret and More Short Cuts

SOAPnet is staging a seven-hour marathon of Summer-and-Seth-centric O.C. episodes on Labor Day, Sept. 3, starting at noon/ET with "The Heartbreak" (Seth beds Summer for the first time) and concluding with "Earth Girls Are Easy" (Summer tries to conceal her pregnancy scare).... An Aug. 28 DVD release has been set for The Odd Couple: Season 2 and A Night at the Roxbury: Special Collector's Edition.... The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show this year will be broadcast by CBS on Dec. 4, and includes appearances by Heidi Klum, Adriana "Is She Still a Virgin?" Lima and Selita Ebanks.

Mon, Aug 13, 2007

The O.C., Victoria's Secret and More Short Cuts