matt.mitovich

3-D Monsters Mash Moved Up, More Movie News

Per Variety, DreamWorks Animation has moved up the release of Monsters vs. Aliens, its first pic produced in stereoscopic 3-D, to May 15, 2009  a week before James Cameron's 3-D Avatar is set to bow.... John Leguizamo has joined M. Night Shyamalan's The Happening, playing Mark Wahlberg's best friend.... Ron Howard is set to direct an adaptation of The Emperor's Children, Claire Messud's novel about Ivy League grads snobbing up Manhattan.... Oscar-nominated screenwriter Michael Tolkin is penning Rob Marshall's big-screen take on Nine.

Wed, Jul 18, 2007

Ratings: Food Network Star Supersizes Its Audience

 Sunday's penultimate episode of The Next Food Network Star's third season served up 2.6 million viewers, making it the highest-rated telecast in the channel's history. The finale airs Sunday at 9 pm/ET. Lifetime's Army Wives delivered 3.7 million total viewers this Sunday and was basic cable's top-rated program in several key demos, even besting the Big 3 in women 18-to-49.  Leading into Wives, Marisa Coughlan's Side Order of Life premiered to 2.4 million, followed by Lili Taylor's State of Mind, which opened with 2.3 mil.

Wed, Jul 18, 2007

Bones' Star Ties the Knot, and More Love Notes

Bones' Tamara Taylor and attorney Miles Cooley exchanged vows on June 10 in an intimate ceremony on a Mexican beach.... Also per People, Rules of Engagement's Megyn Price and her husband Eddie welcomed their first child, a daughter named Grace, on Friday the 13th. "We had an exorcist at the ready," the actress quips. "Thank god he wasn't needed".... Ashlee Simpson's spokesperson tells Us that talk of the singer and Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz being altar-bound is "absolutely not true." (Or at least that's what the rep's prerecorded track said.)

Wed, Jul 18, 2007

Bones' Star Ties the Knot, and More Love Notes

Emmy Nods, GMA, "Cool Star" Poll and More Short Cuts

60 Minutes leads the news and documentary Emmy nominations with 12, including nods for its Mike Wallace tribute, Ed Bradley's story on the Duke U. rape case, and Katie Couric's piece on toxins at Ground Zero.... DIY will launch in January 2008 Today Show Tips, a half-hour series cohosted by NBC's Natalie Morales and DIY's Amy Matthews, and featuring "best of" home-improvement segments from Today.... Bianna Golodryga is officially a correspondent for Good Morning America.... Standoff creator Craig Silverstein has inked a three-year deal to stay at Fox, where he will exec-produce K-Ville.... Who is TV's coolest star? Choose from our list and vote (bottom right).Message to Supernatual fans: We love you, you know that, but unless you cut out the "funny stuff" (re: the polls), your show risks being shut out entirely.

Wed, Jul 18, 2007

Emmy Nods, GMA, "Cool Star" Poll and More Short Cuts

Katee Sackhoff Is On, as Bionic Woman's Baddie

Not long after her semiconspicuous absence from Bionic Woman's TCA press tour session, Katee Sackhoff and NBC agreed to terms that will make her a recurring player on the new series, says the Hollywood Reporter. Sackhoff's Sarah, a bionic woman herself (but one in desperate need of debugging), plays a meaty role in the pilot. Despite being passed off thus far as a recurring cast member, the actress and the studio had actually still been negotiating terms.According to the trade mag, some had speculated that Sackhoff  a bit of an icon to the lesbian community from her run as Battlestar Galactica's Starbuck  had taken issue with Bionic Woman's hiring of Isaiah Washington, yet others deny that that played into her holdout. (I hear she was lobbying to make her borg an eco-friendly hybrid.)RELATED: Bionic Sis Gets New Face (and Ears), Isaiah's Bionic Makeover and Other Random Thoughts

Wed, Jul 18, 2007

Katee Sackhoff Is On, as Bionic Woman's Baddie

Chris Benoit on 'Roids, Other Drugs at Time of Killings

WWE star Chris Benoit had in his system a synthetic version of testosterone considered an anabolic steroid, as well as amounts of Xanax and hydrocodone, at the time he killed his wife and son then took his own life, authorities disclosed on Tuesday. Benoit's body, in fact, boasted 10 times the normal level of testosterone, and he appeared to have injected steroids not long before his suicide. Georgia's chief medical examiner says there is no way to link steroids to the killings, citing "conflicting scientific data as to whether or not testosterone creates mental disorders or... outbursts of rage."An attorney for the WWE, which has trumpeted the fact that Benoit was clean at his last drug test, reacted to the findings by saying, "All it means is that... between April 10 and when he died, he had treatment with testosterone. That's all it establishes."Investigators also concluded that Benoit's 7-year-old son, Daniel, was sedated at the time he was strangled.

Wed, Jul 18, 2007

Chris Benoit on 'Roids, Other Drugs at Time of Killings

Batman's Dad Is Law & Order's New Crusader

NBC and Law & Order executive producer Dick Wolf announced on Tuesday that British thesp Linus Roache (Kidnapped, Thomas Wayne in Batman Begins) will join the long-running procedural this season in the capacity of executive assistant district attorney  the office formerly held by Sam Waterston's Jack McCoy, who is now the full-on DA. "I've known Linus' work for several years. He is an actor who totally gets inside his roles," Wolf says in a statement. "I think he and Sam are going to raise the bar and add intellect and passion in the back half of the show." RELATED: Law & Order pulls reruns featuring Fred Thompson.

Wed, Jul 18, 2007

Batman's Dad Is Law & Order's New Crusader

House Calls on O.C. Alumna and Four More Newbies

They've finally staffed up at Princeton-Plainsboro. Fox has officially announced the casting of not four but five newcomers to the fellowship race on the hit drama House. Olivia Wilde (The Black Donnellys, Mischa's O.C. crush), Kal Penn (Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle), Peter Jacobson (The Starter Wife), Anne Dudek (Big Day) and Edi Gathegi (Lincoln Heights) are coming on board as candidates for the plum opportunity (assuming you define "plum" as "learning from Dr. Crankypants"). With the flurry of new faces arriving in the wake of Foreman's exit, Chase's firing and Cameron's resignation, who's a keeper and who's a goner? Teases Fox, "Any effects of this 'housecleaning' or the changes it may bring to House professionally or personally remain to be seen." Ya think?

Tue, Jul 17, 2007

House Calls on O.C. Alumna and Four More Newbies

Posh Spices Up Monday's Ratings

A few Monday ratings bits: In the 8 o'clock hour, a hair under five million people welcomed Victoria Beckham to America, giving NBC a virtual tie for second in total viewers and the top spot in the 18-to-49 demo. It also marked a 47 percent improvement over whatever the Peacock ran in the time slot a year ago. Hell's Kitchen dominated at 9, gaining 870,000 week-to-week to serve up a season high of 8.2 million (even besting CBS' Two and a Half Men). Extreme Makeover (4.96 mil) and Age of Love (4.54 mil) delivered typical numbers.

Tue, Jul 17, 2007

That William Shatner, He Has Some Nerve!

William Shatner is boldly going where he has not gone before, having signed on to host a celebrity-interview show for the Biography Channel. In Shatner's Raw Nerve, ordered for 13 half-hour episodes and to bow sometime in 2008, the Star Trek icon turned Boston Legal blusterer will aim to "explore life's most intriguing questions and unearth his guests' strange and unknown stories." And hopefully never duet with a guest on "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds."

Tue, Jul 17, 2007

That William Shatner, He Has Some Nerve!

NBC's Revised Schedule Features Bee Sing

The Peacock's latest prime-time premiere plan:Tuesday, Sept. 118 pm/ET The Biggest LoserMonday, Sept. 248 pm Chuck9 pm Heroes10 pm JourneymanTuesday, Sept. 259:30 pm The Singing Bee 10 pm Law & Order: SVUWednesday, Sept. 268 pm Deal or No Deal 9 pm Bionic Woman10 pm LifeThursday, Sept. 278 pm My Name Is Earl (hour special)9 pm The Office (hour special)10 pm ERFriday, Sept. 288 pm Deal or No Deal9 pm Las Vegas (two-hour premiere)Thursday, Oct. 48 pm 30 RockFriday, Oct. 59 pm Friday Night LightsThursday, Oct. 259:30 pm Scrubs

Tue, Jul 17, 2007

NBC's Revised Schedule Features Bee Sing

Son of Ace Ventura, and More Movie News

Per Variety, Nancy Drew's Josh Flitter has been tapped to star in Ace Ventura 3, playing (an assuredly off-camera) Jim Carrey's son, who fancies himself a pet detective for the 7th-grade set.... Brittany Murphy, Jason Lee, Giovanni Ribisi, Jim Broadbent  pausing for a breather amidst indie overload... OK  Tim Roth, and Lili Taylor are signed on for The Other Side, a comedy in which a grad student toiling for a scientific institute on a remote island discovers a community of people who are hiding a secret about a tragedy that took place years before. Sure the title isn't "The Others Side"?.... All the Boys Love Mandy Lane, which was set to spook moviegoers this Friday, has had its release pushed to early 2008  ostensibly to get a wider run.

Tue, Jul 17, 2007

Howie Mandel, Elisha Cuthbert and More Short Cuts

Biography Channel's Biography profiles Howie Mandel on Wednesday, July 18, at 9 pm/ET, and the Coreys Haim and Feldman on the 25th.... Law & Order: SVU's Richard Belzer is penning for Simon & Schuster a mystery series featuring himself as a TV actor who solves real crimes.... Starz premieres the indie drama The Quiet, starring Elisha Cuthbert (24), Martin Donovan (Weeds) and Edie Falco, on Sept. 29.... Too saucy not to share: Gisele Bundchen, says Page Six, is not at all happy that beau Tom Brady's ex, Six Degrees stunner Bridget Moynahan, is due to give birth to her and Brady's son this Friday  aka Gisele's birthday! Ha.

Tue, Jul 17, 2007

Rosie Answers Apprentice Invite with a Big, Fat "No"

Shortly after announcing the upcoming "celebrity" edition of The Apprentice, NBC Entertainment chief Ben Silverman on Monday told reporters, "It would be great to have Rosie [O'Donnell] on" the Trump-fronted program, adding, "Donald personally told me to extend an invitation to her."Let's hope Silverman still has all his fingertips. Quick to snuff any speculation that, if only just as a lark, Rosie might take The Donald up on the offer, the mouth's mouthpiece told the Associated Press, "It will never happen in this lifetime or beyond." Meaning, not unless Ro gets an executive-producer credit?

Tue, Jul 17, 2007

Rosie Answers Apprentice Invite with a Big, Fat "No"

Paris' Jail Stay May Free Us from More Simple Life

Paris Hilton's overexposed... time behind bars didn't just take its toll on the heiress' day-to-day managing of her corporate empire, but it also crippled the ratings for The Simple Life, which this season presented Par and Nicole as camp(y) counselors. "We all thought the publicity would help the show; we were wrong. It's not doing well," TV Week quotes E! CEO ("CE!O"?) Ted Harbert as saying at a TCA function. Harbert explained that people watched Simple Life to see what Paris was really like, but no longer need the show to do that. As such, "I'm not sure we're going to do any more [seasons]. It's a 50-50 chance," he shared. "In fact, you can say it's 51-49 against."You can thank me for Today's News' endless coverage of Paris by sending M&Ms (any variety) to my office.

Tue, Jul 17, 2007

Paris' Jail Stay May Free Us from More Simple Life

Bionic Sis Gets New Face/Ears, More Casting News

Lucy Hale has joined NBC's Bionic Woman as Jaime Sommers' younger sister, replacing Mae Whitman (who filled the role in the pilot). Hale is best known (by me) as Robin's kid sis on How I Met Your Mother. Definitely more of a "family resemblance" now. Also, as rumored and since confirmed in the Ausiello Report, the sibling is no longer deaf, and has also gained mad hacking skills.Also per the Reporter, Julie White has been upped to series-regular status on ABC's Cavemen, where she plays nice Cro-Mag Joel's (Bill English) prospective (and WASPy) mother-in-law, while Drive's Kristin Lehman has been cast as a police detective's wife in Backyards & Bullets, an NBC pilot (formerly known as The Watch) about a neighborhood-watch program gone extreme.

Tue, Jul 17, 2007

Bionic Sis Gets New Face/Ears, More Casting News

Seinfeld Visits 30 Rock, FNL Moves, More NBC News

A flurry of announcements from the Peacock regarding the upcoming season of television (in addition to Isaiah going Bionic, that is): TV icon Norman Lear is producing an hourlong dramedy about a widowed mother who reenters the workforce and is thus pitted against her late husband's Wall Street adversaries. Jerry Seinfeld will play himself on the Oct. 4 second-season opener of 30 Rock. Quips Tina Fey, "Finally, my parents have an excuse to watch the show." Love. Her. My Name Is Earl and The Office will launch their new seasons on Sept. 27 with hourlong episodes. The new series Chuck has been relocated to Mondays at 8, while Friday Night Lights has been moved up an hour to Fridays at 9. Leading out of FNL is Las Vegas, which returns Sept. 28 with a two-hour episode. The Apprentice is returning with a "celebrity version" in which famous(ish) faces vie for the Donald's favor and in turn raise bucks for charity. Trump says this incarnation "will bring our wo...

Mon, Jul 16, 2007

Seinfeld Visits 30 Rock, FNL Moves, More NBC News

Criminal Minds, Mandy Patinkin Confirm Parting of Ways

As first teased in Michael Ausiello's TCA press tour diary, CBS and Criminal Minds lead Mandy Patinkin have agreed to disagree and thus part ways effective immediately, meaning that fans of the hit crime drama have seen the last of Jason Gideon. "Mandy Patinkin asked to be released from his role on Criminal Minds. We have honored this request, which was not in any way connected to contract renegotiations or salary issues," says a statement from CBS Paramount Network Television and ABC Studios (which produces Minds). "His departure... will be explained to audiences in an episode to be filmed in the near future and broadcast early next season. We thank Mandy for helping to make Criminal Minds a strong and successful series, and we wish him the best in his future endeavors. A new character will be added to the series for next season."A statement issued on behalf of Patinkin, in turn, reads: "Due to creative differences, Mandy has asked not to return to Criminal Minds this season. Mandy...

Mon, Jul 16, 2007

Criminal Minds, Mandy Patinkin Confirm Parting of Ways

Isaiah Washington Begins Rebuilding with Bionic Gig

Isaiah Washington is back in action  literally. First up, says USA Today, the actor will guest-star this fall on at least five episodes of NBC's Bionic Woman update, playing "an outsider with a mysterious agenda" that will either help or raise hell for Jaime Sommers. Beyond that, the disgraced Anatomy star has inked a deal to star in a potential action drama he pitched to the Peacock for the 2008-09 TV season.Hailing Washington as "a brilliant actor," NBC Universal Media Studios president Katherine Pope believes viewers will welcome him back to the screen, in that "people watch characters... not personalities. He's put that [drama] behind him," Pope adds. "Let's give him a chance to do what he does."UPDATE: In a statement, NBC co-chairman of entertainment Ben Silverman says, "Isaiah Washington is a very talented and versatile actor and I've always admired his work, These episodes on Bionic Woman and the new development deal will showcase his talents, and we look forward to pro...

Mon, Jul 16, 2007

Isaiah Washington Begins Rebuilding with Bionic Gig

Spielberg's Multiple-personality Series Seeks Singular "Extraordinary" Star

Showtime and Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks Television this fall will start production on The United States of Tara, a half-hour comedy pilot "with a twist," in that it concerns a mom with multiple personality syndrome, and whose alter egos include a burly biker dude, a slutty teen and a cake-baking Martha Stewart type. Actually, there's another twist: United States still seeks its Tara. Regarding the as-yet-unfilled "tour-de-force role," Showtime president of entertainment Robert Greenblatt says, "We look forward to finding an extraordinary actress." May I suggest Megan Gordon? And if I do, will more than seven of you "get it"?

Mon, Jul 16, 2007

Criminal Intent Fills Regular's Pregnant Pause

Its berth on USA Network isn't the only change in store for Law & Order: Criminal Intent this season. Alicia Witt (The Upside of Anger, Cybill) has been tapped to join the crime drama as Det. Nola Falacci, a new partner for Chris Noth's Mike Logan. Witt is subbing, at least temporarily, for Julianne Nicholson, who will miss a string of episodes this season due to maternity leave.L&O: CI returns Thursday, Oct. 4, at 10 pm/ET on USA. (Don't make me remind you again.)

Mon, Jul 16, 2007

Criminal Intent Fills Regular's Pregnant Pause

Farscape Lives, and Sci Fi's Other Awesomes Plans

Sci Fi Channel announced at the summer TCA press tour that cult fave Farscape is returning in the form of a 10-part broadband-channel series. The cabler is also giving Battlestar Galactica fans an eight-part series of broadcast "minisodes" concerning the original Cylon war and leading up to the Nov. 24 premiere of the full-length "Razor." These shorts and the full episode will then be packaged together on a DVD, as well as offered on the channel's website. Sci Fi's new offerings in development include The Awesomes, an animated series from SNL's Seth Meyers; Going Homer, an Odyssey-inspired six-hour miniseries from Farscape star Ben Browder and producer Andrew Prowse; and God, Inc., a sitcom about His administrative staff.

Mon, Jul 16, 2007

Farscape Lives, and Sci Fi's Other Awesomes Plans