matt.webb.mitovich

Kristen Bell on Fetts, Drugs and Rockin' Roles

What? Kristen Bell is here, in the Big Apple, to promote the Tribeca Film Festival premiere of her comedy Fifty Pills? Say no more — I'm there. After all, not all of us can rub elbows with her on the set, as Ausiello did during his turn as an extra on Veronica Mars (Tuesdays at 9 pm/ET). Radiating sunniness and warmth, Bell had much to discuss in addition to Pills, in which she plays a coed whose mild-mannered beau gets roped into dealing Ecstasy "for just one day," to pay off a student loan. (Been there, done th-... um, crazy concept, I meant to say!) TVGuide.com asked the actress about her numerous new film roles as well as, of course, the up-in-the-air fate of her UPN series. TVGuide.co

Tue, May 2, 2006

Kristen Bell on Fetts, Drugs and Rockin' Roles

One Strained Melody Cuts Idol's Kellie

After finding herself "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" by her previous song choice, Kellie Pickler sealed her fate on Fox's American Idol (Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 9 pm/ET) last week by delivering what Simon called a "never-ending" take on "Unchained Melody." But while the North Carolinian admits that voters made the Righteous choice in sending her home — "Obviously, the past two weeks have not been my best, by far" — what's been wrong in all of this, she maintains, is any suggestion that her Southern-fried

Tue, May 2, 2006

Apprentice's Andrea Voted Off the Island

Actually, she was boated off the island (Ellis Island, that is). Or you could say that her "torch was snuffed", unlike Lady Liberty's. Whatever Survivor-like way you want to put it, NBC's The Apprentice (Mondays at 9 pm/ET) bid Andrea Lake adieu last week when Synergy churned out an Ellis Island brochure that was tired, poor and just shy of being wretched refuse. But why did the San Diego resident take the bullet for the bungling? In a chat with TVGuide.com, Andrea revealed the real reason her teammates loathed her so. TVGuide.com: I've been doing these Apprentice interviews for years, and you're definitely the first sticker-company owner I've talked to. Andrea Lake: Well, look at that! I actually ow

Mon, May 1, 2006

Apprentice's Andrea Voted Off the Island

There's No Escaping Prison Break's Baddie

If — I'm saying if — Michael and Lincoln succeed in busting out on Fox's Prison Break (Mondays at 8 pm/ET), one guard in particular will make it his personal mission to hunt down the fugitives: Captain Bellick, he of the shady ways and the perpetually disgusted scowl. Here, the grumpy guard's portrayer, Wade Williams, reveals just how fiercely personal it's going to get for Bellick and the boys. TVGuide.com: Fans really enjoy your work on Prison Break. Bellick is really the guard you love to hate.Wade Williams: You know, I'm so fortunate, dude. I've been doing this a long time and to get a job lik

Mon, May 1, 2006

There's No Escaping Prison Break's Baddie

Krypton Villain Now a CSI: Miami Bride?

Are Horatio Caine and Marisol Delko heading for a wedding on CBS' CSI: Miami (Mondays at 10 pm/ET)? Perhaps even en route to "happily ever after"? Or, in light of the nasty line of work that the good lieutenant is in, might this story go from a vow... to a kill? TVGuide.com rang Alana De La Garza, who plays Horatio's lady love, to get up to speed on CSI: Miami, a possible Smallville encore and her other TV adventures. TVGuide.com: We go back a few years, Alana, and you haven't been keeping me posted on your TV gigs this season. Instead, I get press releases saying, "Alana's do

Mon, May 1, 2006

Richard Burgi Is Desperately Happy

When ABC's Desperate Housewives premiered in 2004, the character of Susan's ex-husband, Karl, was almost a cipher, played here and there by TV vet Richard Burgi, who that mid-season was otherwise committed to Point Pleasant. Well, call it a pleasant surprise when the Fox series' short-lived nature led the actor to a full-time gig on Wisteria Lane for Housewives' sophomore year. And boy, has Karl been mixing things up, having Edie thinking "wedding" while it's Susan that he's bedding! TVGuide.com saw this as a ripe opportunity to chat up the

Fri, Apr 28, 2006

ER Examines South Africa's Ills

Tonight at 10 pm/ET, NBC's ER airs the first of two episodes featuring scenes filmed on location in Cape Town, South Africa, and the Kalahari Desert. The story line: Mekhi Phifer's Dr. Gregory Pratt, making the trek to Darfur to give Carter (Noah Wyle) an assist, finds his eyes opened to the harsh realities, genocide included, that plague the region. The fictional doc, though, was not the only one enlightened by the sobering experience. "Before I read the script, I had no idea of the atrocities that are going on over there and the masses of people t

Thu, Apr 27, 2006

Thief's Daughter Steals the Show

While I really liked the unabashed Ocean's Eleven-ness of NBC's Heist, FX's Thief (Tuesdays at 10 pm/ET) serves up grand larceny with gripping grit and no gloss, as Andre Braugher's Nick Atwater plots out that "one last score" that will lead him and his band of merry bandits out of harm's way. Mucking up the mix is the professional pinch's stepdaughter, Tammi, already disposed to view her father figure through less than rose-colored glasses, then forced to question everything about their familial ties when tragedy robs the teen of her mother, Nick's wife. It's heavy stuff, but

Tue, Apr 25, 2006

Ace Is Low on American Idol

Six weeks ago, if anyone had told you that Ace Young — he of the wavy hair, soulful eyes and "Father Figure" flourishes — wouldn't make the final four of Fox's American Idol (Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 9 pm/ET), you'd have thought them crazy like William Hung. The Denver native, though, confirmed the improbable when he crooned "That's All" for his final performance. What went wrong for the cutie crooner? "I don't think anything went wrong," he says. "I think that on any given night, anything can happen." Anything, indeed, as evidenced by who joined Ace in the bottom two — the competition's other (and

Tue, Apr 25, 2006

Legal Drama for Axed Housewives Star

The big buzz surrounding Desperate Housewives last November sweeps wasn't about anything happening on screen, but about the abrupt dismissal of Page Kennedy from the role of Caleb, the Applewhite family's mysterious cellar-dweller. Despite what's been reported, rumored and simply fabricated, however, Kennedy is back on ABC, facing more "legal drama" as a guest star on Boston Legal (tonight at 10 pm/ET). Have the actor and the network kissed and made up? TVGuide.com: Here you are appearing on another ABC series, so some sort of peace has been made, right? Page Kennedy: Right. Like I have said before, all of

Tue, Apr 25, 2006

Neil Patrick Harris Is One Cool Mother

Nope, not gonna mention the kid doc by name for another 700 words or so. But boy, has Neil Patrick Harris accomplished the almost-impossible, creating a character on CBS' hit freshman laffer How I Met Your Mother (Mondays at 8:30 pm/ET) so fresh and different that we almost forget his original TV incarnation. (Of course, that little escapade with Harold & Kumar helped the cause.) Just how much does the actor love creating Barney trouble? Here's what he had to tell TVGuide.com. TVGuide.com: When I interviewed As the World Turns' Terri Colombino née Conn years ago, she mentioned that you were her prom date. What do you remember about that night?Neil Patrick Harris: She's married now? Oh, I remember lots. That was really fun. We had

Mon, Apr 24, 2006

Has Mrs. Huff Had Enough?

On Showtime's Huff (Sundays at 10 pm/ET), Paget Brewster plays the forlorn and fed-up wife of Hank Azaria's sad-sack psychiatrist. Could she be playing someone more different from the hottie Friends' Chandler stole from Joey? TVGuide.com spoke to the actress about her Huffing and puffing,

Fri, Apr 21, 2006

Power-Shifts Rock Commander in Chief

Sure, all the headlines have been about the backstage power-shifts going on at ABC's Commander in Chief (Thursdays at 10 pm/ET), but there's a whopper of an on-screen power grab on the horizon. (Three words: Templeton in charge!) On the way to work yesterday, Natasha Henstridge, who plays the silver fox's chief of staff, Jayne Murray, spoke with TVGuide.com about Chief's never-boring term. TVGuide.com: The fact that you're on your way to the set kind of answers my first question about whether new show-runner Dee Johnson is working you.Natasha Henstr

Thu, Apr 20, 2006

Will Invasion's Kira Learn Dad's Secret?

When ABC's Invasion returns tonight at 10 pm/ET with its first new episode in five weeks, it will seem more and more unlikely that Sheriff Underlay will be able to keep the hybrids' secret under wraps much longer. Once Dad is "outed," how will his daughter, Kira, take the news? TVGuide.com phoned Alexis Dziena — who has had experience battling other kinds of creepy-crawlies in Mimic 3 — to talk about her role on one of TV's most intense, if unsung, new series.

Wed, Apr 19, 2006

Will Invasion's Kira Learn Dad's Secret?

Cooking Showdown's Secrets Revealed!

Each night this week at 8 pm/ET, NBC is offering viewers a taste — an amuse-bouche, if you will — of a brand-new reality competition. Celebrity Cooking Showdown finds all-star chefs Wolfgang Puck, Cat Cora and Govind Armstrong tutoring such famous faces as Patti LaBelle, Alison Sweeney (

Tue, Apr 18, 2006

Idol's Bucky: Simon Says... Nothing Helpful

Despite some rockin' country (or is it countrified rock?) performances, North Carolinian Bucky Covington bottomed out last week on Fox's American Idol (Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 9 pm/ET) despite serving up a solid spin on Queen's "Fat Bottomed Girls." "I'd rather leave on a high note than a low note," Bucky shared the day after his swan song. "If I'm not going to win it, eighth is just as good as fourth to me, do you know what I mean?" One of the many ladies surely sad to see Bucky say goodbye is none other than Paula Abdul, who was often spied boogying and b

Tue, Apr 18, 2006

Idol's Bucky: Simon Says... Nothing Helpful

WHAT'S IN A NAME?

According to the Sunday Times of South Africa, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie informed a government official that they plan to have their baby in Namibia — as speculated weeks ago, when the couple first holed up in a heavily guarded resort — and as such are considering giving the tot a Namibian name. This is all because "Moses" was taken, isn't it?

Mon, Apr 17, 2006

Apprentice's Leslie Gets Birthday Boot

Leslie Bourgeois so did not get a P'EatZZa party for her birthday. Instead, her present was a big ol' Cobra — and it wasn't even wrapped in pretty paper! — from Donald Trump on last week's The Apprentice (Mondays at 9 pm/ET on NBC). Did Gold Rush's project manager pay the price for setting too high a price for a pizza sandwich? Or was 7-Eleven simply her unlucky number? Here's what the Louisiana Realtor had to say about being let go. (Our Q&A with Lenny Veltman, last week's other canned candidate, can be found here.) TVGuide.com: So you were fired on your birthday....Leslie Bourgeois: I said there was a better chance o

Mon, Apr 17, 2006

Apprentice Says Nyet to "the Russian"

Gold Rush project manager Lenny Veltman received quite a Boys & Girls Clubbing on last week's The Apprentice (Mondays at 9 pm/ET on NBC) when his music, more music and nothing... but... music-themed rec-room makeover hit a sour note with execs. TVGuide.com spoke to "the Russian" about his failure to Ace Donald Trump's contest. (Our Q&A with Leslie Bourgeois, last week's other canned candidate, can be found here.) TVGuide.com: I feel like I should be interviewing Lee on your behalf.Lenny Veltman: Can you find him? I've been trying to find him for two days and I can't reach him. TVGuide.com: Yikes, your personal sp

Mon, Apr 17, 2006

AGENT 86'D?

Season 3 of HBO's Entourage, premiering in June, may find Ari out in the cold. The New York Post hears that Jeremy Piven's abrasive agent may have client and "Aquaman" star Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier) stolen out from under him by a sexy rival to be played by Threshold babe Carla Gugino

Fri, Apr 14, 2006

CRUISE DENIES FAMILY FRICTION

In an interview airing Friday on ABC's Primetime, Tom Cruise shrugged off talk of a rift between him and pregnant fiancée Katie Holmes' devout parents, claiming he's close with "the whole family" and that they "absolutely" are OK with his Scientology faith. Speaking of which, Cruise confirmed that his and Holmes' baby will not have a Catholic baptism. "You can be Catholic and be a Scientologist. But we're just Scientologists," he pointed out. First things

Fri, Apr 14, 2006

EMINEM HAILS SLAIN "BEST FRIEND"

In a posting on his website, Eminem says Deshaun "Proof" Holton, the fellow rapper killed by gunfire early Tuesday, "pushed me to become who I am. Without Proof's guidance and encouragement, there would... probably not [have been] an Eminem and certainly never a Slim Shady. He was and always will be my best friend." A police investigation says that Proof fired first inside the Detroit nightclub CCC, staring the shootout that took his life.

Fri, Apr 14, 2006