Question: Now that Neela's husband has been killed, will Neela and Ray get together on ER?Answer: Not if John Stamos has anything to say about it. In a related scoopbit, I hear one of Deadwood's most notable whores will be joining the cast as a lady friend of Stamos' medic. Any guesses?
Question: It's bad enough the Emmy nominators ignored Lost, but now you're doing the same.Answer: I wish I had something to tell you. Wait — I do have something to tell you. Run out and pick up the new issue of TV Guide, featuring a free Lost CD-ROM of never-before-seen footage and a sneak peak at the new season. Among the scoopbits revealed: One of the three new characters is an Other, and "a major bomb" will be dropped halfway through the season.
Question: Dude, what the heck is up with Brothers & Sisters? Everything I hear about it seems to go from bad to worse. Why is the network so confident in it that it's getting the lucrative post-Housewives slot, when it clearly has a lot of problems? I would put Men in Trees there instead. Answer: Although I haven't seen the B&S pilot yet — I think ABC is (finally) sending it out later this week — I suspect the show will deliver in spite of all its troubles. And Greg Berlanti's stamp of approval doesn't hurt. "I promise you guys, and I can only go on my own emotional gut and my own experience, but it lives up to anything I've ever worked on or been a part of in terms of how emotional it is," he tells me. "And
Question: Everything I'm reading suggests Wayne Palmer will already be president when 24's sixth season begins. But now I'm hearing he gets elected later in the season. Do you know which is true? Answer: Unless Season 6 takes place on Election Day, I think it's safe to assume he'll already be the president. When I ran into exec producer Evan Katz at press tour, he explained his decision to install David's bro in the Oval Office. "It's a great choice. It's RFK. It's the slightly less-polished younger brother who has something to prove and is living in the — 'shadow' is too strong a word. But living with the martyred, heroic older brother is very powerful. What I think we need to remind people is that we're not just [making him the prez] because he's [David's] brother. He was [David's] chief of staff in Season 3. He's a big part of politics."
And the rapid repopulation of 24 continues... Fox is confirming that Michael Angarano — aka Jack's long-lost son on Will & Grace — is joining 24 on a recurring basis. For those keeping track, that brings the number of new 24 characters to, well, a lot. In totally unrelated news, CSI fans, listen up: Got a burning question for William Petersen (Gil Grissom) and Jorja Fox (Sara Sidle)? Well, post them below ASAP! I'm told your question — if posed intelligently and without profanity — stands a good chance of getting answered in an upcoming issue of TV Guide! Just keep it smart and clean. You can do this, people!
Call it music therapy: For its upcoming sixth season, Scrubs is staging a full-blown musical episode. And get this: The powers-that-be have hired the brilliantly warped minds behind Broadway's Avenue Q to help them do it. Series creator Bill Lawrence got on the phone with me yesterday to preview the big event. Ausiello: How'd this come about?Bill Lawrence: We always wanted to do a musical on the show, because you see how we use music and dance and stuff already. We're a bunch of musical-theater nerds, and we all loved not only Team America: World Police and South Park, but especially what those guys did with Avenue Q, which was kind of a traditional Broadway musical that was really funny and edgy. We can obviously help with lyrics, but we needed somebody not only to write, like, incredibly well-produced, musical-quality numbers, but also [to make them] funny. And if you saw Avenue Q, their songs will fit in with us. Ausiello: How does the cast feel about this?Lawrence: The only one ...
Finally, I've got some good news for all you heartsick Everwood fans. The O.C. had the Bright idea (c'mon, I had to!) to cast Chris Pratt — aka Everwood's lovable blockhead Bright — for a multi-episode arc this season. He'll play Che, an environmentalist that Summer (Rachel Bilson) befriends while away at college. Unfortunately, we have to wait a few months before we see Pratt in action. His first air date coincides with the show's fourth-season premiere on Nov. 2. You don't, however, have to wait that long to read my exclusive Q&A with him, since Mr. Pratt just called me while driving around in New Mexico to discuss The O.C., adjusting to life after Everwood and the perils of dating your TV sibling. Ausiello: How's everything?Chris Pratt: Everything is very well, thank you. I'm out in New Mexico of all places.Ausiello: What are you doing in New Mexico?Pratt: Visiting my lady. She's out here working on a movie, so I just came out to give my moral support and play some...
Ah, just one more reason I worship the ground Tina Fey walks on: The ex-SNL scribe/anchor/star has tapped the inimitable Jane Krakowski to join the cast of 30 Rock for at least 10 of the first 13 episodes, sources say. This marks a most welcome return to full-time series TV for the former Ally McBeal sidekick, who, since the show's death in 2002, has kept busy with numerous MOWs as well as a Tony-winning gig in the Broadway revival of Nine. I'm still trying to nail down the specifics of Krakowski's role, but given the announcement on Monday that costar Rachel Dratch would no longer be playing one of the stars of Rock's sketch-show-within-a-show, "The Girlie Show," it's possible she's being brought in to fill that void. UPDATE: My insider confirms that Krakowski's character will, in fact, be headlining "The Girlie Show." Mystery solved!
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Question: Do you have any news on NCIS? Is Gibbs (Mark Harmon) coming back? He has to. Answer: Well, look at that — you just answered your own question! Loyalty to a former team member in distress will pry Gibbs out of his self-imposed retirement. In the season-opener, Ziva (Cote de Pablo) is accused of being a spy. Apparently, the evidence is so compelling, even her fellow special agents waffle. The only one who believes her — unconditionally — is Gibbs, who owes his life to her. (You'll recall that Ziva shot and killed her brother only seconds before he was going to off Gibbs.)
Question: Any truth to the rumor on perezhilton.com about the Grey's Anatomy cast being upset at Shonda Rhimes over her alleged unwillingness to let them tackle other projects? Answer: I honestly have no idea. I do, however, find it curious that the "story" came out just hours before it was announced that Kate Walsh had to drop out of the Stephen King thriller 1408 due to "scheduling conflicts" with Grey's. Hmmm….
Question: Anything on the Grey's premiere? Answer: How about the third episode? I received a tip that there will be scenes shot in a bed-and-breakfast. Might one of Grey's couples be enjoying a little rendezvous?
Question: Do you have any burning CSI scoop you need to tell us? Answer: Major-ass prattle poop! Facing the looming clash from Grey's Anatomy, I hear producers will be going way, way, way out on the story lines this coming season. Buffy the Vampire Slayer alum Douglas Petrie has been brought onto the writing staff and given what my source calls "a very free hand" to bring a wilder take to the storytelling. Grissom, for example, will talk to the dead in at least one episode. (Speaking of Buffy, you have to check out th
Question: I have a feeling this question may well bring your ridicule raining down on me. Any Kyle XY scoop? Answer: Ridicule? Pshaw. No need to be ashamed. Kyle XY is a fun show. (Or so I hear.) To answer your question, yes, I have some scoop for you. The Aug. 28 season finale will answer a "number of questions," series creator David Himelfarb tells my colleague Ileane Rudolph. Among them: How did Kyle come to be in the woods in the show’s opening scene? Who killed Professor Kern? Are there others like Kyle? And what is Amanda's boyfriend, Charlie, hiding? "As the show goes on,” Himelfarb says, “the mythology aspect will grow. We started out more like Starman; we end up more like Lost. It was a softer, sweeter show, and now we're much more about the mystery and the jeopardy."
Question: Wait a second. If Matt Czuchry is jumping to Veronica Mars (Ausiello Report 8/2), does that mean he won't be on Gilmore Girls anymore? Answer: Not to worry. He's only doing one episode of Veronica Mars.
Question: I haven't heard a lot about the upcoming premiere of Prison Break. Any spoilers you can toss our way? (BTW, I just caught your role as "Blushing Guy" in Veronica Mars. Fabulous work, my friend.) Answer: Thanks for that, Chad! Regarding Monday's PB premiere, brace yourself for a doozy of a twist in the final five minutes. And Episode 2 revolves around Michael and Lincoln masterminding yet another impossible escape, only this time they're trying to break someone else out. But the big news is that Michael finally ditches his boring prison duds and disguises himself as a J.Crew model. Big improvement, if you ask me.
Question: Any Rescue Me scoop? Answer: That big death I've been hinting at is right around the corner. (Last night's episode significantly narrowed the field of contenders.)
Question: I am completely confused. In the Aug. 2 Ask Ausiello, Evan Katz told you that the new season of 24 would begin 18 months to two years after the end of Season 5. However, in this week's TV Guide, it says the season opens two months into Jack's Chinese incarceration. Which one is correct? Answer: Eighteen months to two years is correct.
Question: Is there any way to find out which episodes were submitted for each Emmy nomination? Answer: The most comprehensive list can be found on Tom O'Neil's Gold Derby's blog.
Question: No Smallville scoop last week? What's up with that? Answer: I haven't had anything to spill — until now, that is. My "Super" spy says Lex and Lana continue to get closer this season and, as a result, the gloves will be off with Lex and Clark. Also, we'll learn that Oliver Queen (aka Green Arrow) and Lex went to boarding school together, and OQ was somewhat of a bully to him. And Lex, of course, isn't the kind of guy to forgive and forget. Jimmy and Chloe will meanwhile reconnect for the first time since they hooked up during their summer working together at the "Planet."
Question: You still haven't said anything about the Everwood Ferris-wheel event! I know you were there! How was it? Answer: So sorry! I posted a mini-recap of the big event on michaelausiello.com and totally forgot to fill in my AA peeps! Put simply, it was amazing. I showed up very early to ensure that I'd get the full rock-star treatment, and I was not disappointed. I was signing autographs, posing for pictures, doing interviews and, yes, riding the Ferris wheel. Click here to view some highlights. (There's also shocking stalkerazzi footage available on YouTube.) But let's face it, the event wasn't all about me. Some of it was about t
Question: Any word on the proposed Commander in Chief movie? Answer: In this instance, no news is bad news.