michael.ausiello

Greg Kinnear's Shocking New Focus

On paper, the plot of Greg Kinnear's upcoming film Auto Focus is just the kind of bizarre tale you'd see mocked on Talk Soup, the E! show he hosted from 1993-95. The pic chronicles the tragic final years of late Hogan's Heroes thesp Bob Crane, whose kinky sexual exploits are the stuff of Hollywood legend. Despite the sensational subject matter, Kinnear (who stars as Crane) tells TV Guide Online that Auto Focus is slightly more complex than your average installment of Jerry Springer. "If you're looking for a really sexually graphic movie, you'll be wildly disappointed with this," the 38-year-old actor insists. "Yes, those elements are involved in the story [because] you're not talking about

Fri, Feb 15, 2002

Beautiful Mind's Oscar Gaffe!

Jennifer Connelly learned a valuable lesson Tuesday about how not to behave while watching the announcement of the Oscar nominations. Connelly and the rest of the twittering Beautiful bunch  in Germany promoting the film at the Berlin Film Festival  were huddled in front of a TV when the unthinkable occurred. "Two minutes before it came on, I had the bright idea to raise the volume and wound up inadvertently turning the TV off," Connelly explained to Today host Matt Lauer. "We [turned] it back on and it was on the wrong channel. Then we're sort of scrambling around trying to figure out which channel was CNN, and we got something in German." The gang eventually got control of the remote just in time to learn of their eight nom

Wed, Feb 13, 2002

Nicole Kidman: Oscar Can-Candidate

Unlike the cast of A Beautiful Mind, Nicole Kidman did not take a work break to watch the announcement of the Oscar nominations on Tuesday. The actress  in Sweden filming Lars Von Trier's historical drama Dogville  learned of her first-ever Academy Award nomination for Moulin Rouge from a member of the film's crew. "[He] held up a little sign behind the camera right after we'd finished a really intense scene," recalls the two-time Golden Globe winner, adding, "I am just so, so thrilled!" Oscar pundits expressed surprise that Kidman's lead actress nomination came for her fancy footwork in Moulin Rouge and not her haunting, memorable performance in the creepy gho

Wed, Feb 13, 2002

Felicity Shocker: Who Dies?

Talk about college angst: The WB has officially decided not to renew Felicity for a fifth season in the fall. "Felicity has been a signature drama for us and an important part of the WB's growth," network entertainment president Jordan Levin tells TV Guide Online. "With the end of college for Felicity, the series will go out on a high note." Indeed it will. As Felicity co-creator and executive producer J.J. Abrams reveals exclusively to TV Guide Online, Keri Russell and co. are pulling out all the stops for the show's final 11 episodes. (Felicity returns to the WB's schedule on March 20; the two-hour series finale airs May 22.) For starters, the final installment will not revolve around Felicity's college graduation. That episode will air in Ap

Fri, Feb 8, 2002

Can Playmates Make Bowl Viewers Stray?

As any "football widow" can tell you, not much  if anything  can prompt a red-blooded male to lift his remote-controlling thumb to change the channel once a big game is on. Yet this Sunday, as Fox hosts the biggest gridiron clash of them all  Super Bowl XXXVI  NBC has decided to pull out all the stops in an attempt to consume some of the fourth network's eyeballs: A Playboy Playmate-packed edition of its Fear Factor reality series. The first segment of Fear's Playmate-apalooza will air during the typically hit-or-miss Super Bowl halftime show, and a complete, hour-long edition will run once Sunday's game comes to an end. So, what exactly are the glamorous gals going to be asked to do? Fear Factor isn't revealing its playbook ahead of time, yet intrigued viewers can rest assured that it will be "the wildest experience," according to Angel Boris

Fri, Feb 1, 2002

Sesame Street Tackles 9/11

Parents need not worry about next week's special Sept. 11-inspired episodes of Sesame Street frightening the little ones. The installments  which kick off the show's 33rd season and deal with such issues as fire safety, bullying and prejudice  make no mention of the actual attacks. "I know they're getting billed as 9/11-themed shows," laments Rosemarie Truglio, PhD, Sesame Street's vice president of education and research. "They were written in response to 9/11, but through a child's eyes it has no meaning. "Our pre-school audience is too young," adds Truglio of the show's decision not to reference the tragedies. "Some of the kids have never been exposed to Sept. 11. A lot of parents shielded their children from this, so no, there's no mention of that at all. Sesame Street is about empowering children and providing information to help them navigate and cope with their world." For example, Monday's season premiere fea

Fri, Feb 1, 2002

Malcolm Star's Super (Bowl) Stunt

Sunday's star-studded, post-Super Bowl edition of Malcolm in the Middle promises to answer the age-old question: How does a group of girl-crazy guys win an ice hockey tournament when one of their opposing teammates is none other than supermodel Heidi Klum? Well, according to one of the players  series regular Chris Masterson  they, well... don't. "The hard part about it is no one is looking at [the puck] when you go to pass to them," explains the 22-year-old actor, who plays older sib Francis in the Emmy-winning Fox comedy. "Everyone on the ice is looking in the same direction  which is her direction; no matter who you pass to, they're not going to catch it. So that's what sort of screwed us up about Heidi." Well, if the presence of Kl

Fri, Feb 1, 2002

LL Cool J: Size Matters

It's rare that a big deal is made over a movie poster, but if you've seen the one-sheets for John McTiernan's Rollerball remake (in theaters Feb. 8), then, like us, you must have asked yourself, "Is that a baseball bat in LL Cool J's pocket or is he just happy to see co-star Rebecca Romijn-Stamos?" Sheesh! You'd have to be blind not to notice that there's something larger-than-life skating behind the zipper of the actor-musician's leather pants. So, what's the deal? Is it a missile? A zucchini? A submarine? "We took a picture and did nothing to it," an unnamed MGM exec insists to TV Guide On

Wed, Jan 30, 2002

Terminator 3 Casting Scoop!

Now that Arnold Schwarzenegger has agreed to reprise his role as Hollywood's favorite cyborg in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (for a reported $30 million), only one question remains: Will Linda Hamilton be back as Sarah Connor? While out promoting his latest popcorn flick, Collateral Damage (due Feb. 8), Schwarzenegger gave TV Guide Online the scoop on the fate of T3's ass-kicking mom. (Her son John, the role originated by troubled thesp Edward Furlong in T2, reportedly will be recast.) "She is coming back... [but] as a past experience, not driving the current story forward," he says of Hamilton,

Tue, Jan 29, 2002

What a Crime! No Sex Scenes

Maybe they should rename the show CSI: Celibate Scientists Investigating. The brainchild behind CBS's Thursday night smash says he's in no rush to see Catherine (Marg Helgenberger) and Gil (William L. Petersen) throw down their ion detectors and electrothermal atomizers and acknowledge the mountain of evidence piling up right before their eyes: They want each other bad. In fact, creator-executive producer Anthony Zuiker seems content portraying all of CSI's sexy sleuths as poster children for abstinence. "Our show is not about Gil dating Catherine," Zuiker says. "[It's] about science, about process, about teamwork, about solving crime, about intellect." Well, when another powerhouse drama series  NBC's

Mon, Jan 28, 2002

Seth Green: Hare and Now

You can't accuse former Buffy the Vampire Slayer star Seth Green of not having a social conscience. The actor  who played Alyson Hannigan's werewolf beau on the acclaimed vampire saga  is hoping his new Fox comedy, Greg the Bunny, will mark a breakthrough for one of the world's most oppressed and underrepresented minorities: puppets. "I look forward to the opportunity to break the barriers and raise people's awareness to the plight of the fabricated American," jokes Green of Bunny, a midseason sitcom that focuses on the humans and puppets behind a faux children's show called Sweetknuckle Junction. "[Personally], I don't really have a problem with puppets. We get along fine. I don't consider myself a bigoted or racist person." In Bunny, wh

Thu, Jan 24, 2002

ABC Newsman's Anne Heche Connection

What was ABC News correspondent John Miller's reaction when he learned he had been tapped as Barbara Walters's new co-anchor on 20/20 ? Laughs the 43-year-old newsman: "To take a page from Anne Heche, I thought I was from another planet when they told me." Of course, Miller's just being modest. During his four years at ABC, the Emmy-winning broadcaster  who has contributed stories to all of the network's news programs  earned a rep as one of the industry's most distinguished crime and justice reporters. In fact, in 1998, he landed the ultimate coup: a chat with Osama bin Laden. "He's a pain-in-the-ass interview," recalls Miller of his t&ecirc;te-&agrave;-t&ecirc;te with the terror mastermind. "He's very difficult to work with." They'll be no such friction between Miller and his esteemed 20/20 partner, who admits she's been searching for a

Fri, Jan 18, 2002

Angie Harmon Returns!

In just its first four weeks, 2002 has given us a great deal for which we can be thankful. Those pesky Taliban forces have been defeated. More than ever, it seems like someone is going to pay for that Enron debacle. And, right up there with the greatest of our blessings, Angie Harmon  once Sam Waterston's most beloved Law &amp; Order sidekick, ball-buster Abbie Carmichael  is back on television, appearing as an unsuspecting home-movie star in Lifetime's fact-based drama, Video Voyeur: The Susan Wilson Story (premiering Monday at 9 pm/ET). What on God's green Earth took the actress eight long months to return to work? "I got married and went on my honeymoon, and I wanted to give those events the amount of time they [deserve]," the bride of New York Giants heartthrob Jas

Fri, Jan 18, 2002

Legend Star Avoids Hits

Having played deputy Doug on Dawson's Creek for years without ever having cause to rough up a suspect, Dylan Neal is ready to kick some butt in the spacey saga Babylon 5: The Legend Of The Rangers (airing Saturday at 9 pm/ET on the Sci Fi Channel). Just don't expect him to put up his dukes once the director yells, "Cut!" "I try to keep in shape so I can at least look the part of a tough guy," the actor tells TV Guide Online. "But if someone throws a punch at me, I'm the first one on the ground, crying like a baby." And that, friends, is why stunt doubles exist. "These guys are such finely-tuned athletes," shares the grateful would-be warrior. "They know exactly how to make you look great, because that's their job: making the actor look like a badass!" Should the Babylon 5 spinoff go from pilot-movie to series, there will be plenty to keep the actor and his double busy. "Joe

Thu, Jan 17, 2002

John McEnroe's Image Makeover

Viewers tuning into the premiere of ABC's pulse-pounding new game show The Chair last night witnessed the shock of their lives: A kinder, gentler John McEnroe. But the potty-mouthed tennis legend-turned-sports pundit-turned-game show host insists it's not his job to antagonize Chair's occupants  whose goal it is to answer a series of questions while keeping their heart rate below a certain level. "I prefer to see my role as being more supportive and actually hoping they win," confesses the 42-year-old, who adds that future episodes may showcase his trademark temperament. "That option is always available. I still have enough energy to get under [their] skin if necessary, but I'd like to see people win." And to that, we have only this to say: "Johnny, we don't even know you anymore." But as McEnroe points out, one of the reasons he jumped on The Chair was to show people he's more than just a hot-headed jock. "I've had a sec

Wed, Jan 16, 2002

Alias Star's Fighting Spirit

Think you've got a tough job? Try playing an action hero every week on TV. But you won't catch Alias badass Jennifer Garner complaining about her heavy workload. "It's not like I'm the only person in the country working 16- or 17-hour days," she tells TV Guide Online of her physically demanding role as double agent Sydney Bristow. "Yeah, it's exhausting, but it's also exhilarating. "The physicality of the role actually gets me pumped up," continues the 29-year-old Golden Globe nominee, who's married in real life to Felicity dreamboat Scott Foley. "It just seems to happen that the big fight scenes are shot in the middle of the night, a

Mon, Jan 14, 2002

Hedwig Star's Next Gig

John Cameron Mitchell has settled on the perfect follow-up to Hedwig and the Angry Inch, his acclaimed directorial debut in which he stars as an East German transsexual rock singer. "I'm writing a children's film now," the 38-year-old actor-filmmaker tells TV Guide Online. "It's my version of a Willy Wonka-type story." Titled Grandmaphone, the project  which Mitchell says will be live action with some computer animation  centers on the relationship between a little boy and his grandmother. Although the theater-trained performer hasn't even started casting the pic, he originally envisioned the late Madeline Kahn playing the grandma role. Given all of the accolades being heaped on Mitchell for his work in front of and

Thu, Jan 10, 2002

Wayne Brady: Still Keepin' It Real

Whose Line Is It Anyway? joker Wayne Brady is on a roll: His ABC variety series, The Wayne Brady Show  which debuted last summer to solid reviews and respectable ratings  is expected back on the network's schedule later this season. And next fall, the funnyman will be launching his own syndicated talk-variety show. Surely, it's right about time for Brady to morph into a hotshot showbiz prima donna, right? Not a chance. "I always told myself that if I ever achieved a certain modicum of success, I was going to treat everyone the way that I wanted to be treated," the 29-year-old entertainer tells TV Guide Online. "The person that is your [production assistant] or even your co-star today could tomorrow be one of the most powerful people in Hollywood. So, you treat people with a certain dignity." As Brady recalls, it wasn't too long ago when he was at the bottom of the Hollywood food chai

Wed, Jan 9, 2002

Meet Girls' New Boy

How are viewers taking to Gilmore Girls's new rebel without an apparent cause, Jess? "Some girl on the street actually told me she hates me," laments the character's 24-year-old portrayer Milo Ventimiglia, who's being groomed as a spoiler in the Rory-Dean romance. "I've never been put in this position before  playing a character that people just don't like." While Ventimiglia insists he's not sure if the show's writers plan on pairing him with do-gooder Rory (Alexis Bledel), the grad of the late Fox teen drama Opposite Sex has already begun to size up his formidable competition. "Jess definitely brings things out of Rory that Dean (Jared Padalecki) can't," he winks, citing Jess's "carefree attitude" as a major plus. "He really doesn't give a s---. He's going to do what he wants to do and not pay attention to any authority

Tue, Jan 8, 2002

Queer Execs to Critics: Folk Off!

When Showtime's Queer as Folk launches its second season Sunday night (10 pm/ET), fans of the same-sex soap opera can rest assured that the randy regulars will continue to go above and beyond... and below the belt. In fact, executive producers Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman hint at carnal delights so scandalous, they may make Melrose Place look like Walton's Mountain. QAF will be as "outrageous and controversial and politically incorrect" as ever, they promise. Adds Lipman: "We felt very strongly that when a show is successful and people really like it, [it shouldn't be screwed around with]." Ah, but while the series inarguably is a ratings smash  it's the cable network's most popular program  not every critic is convinced that it doesn't engage in its own form of backhanded gay-bashing. How do the partners respond to such a suggestion

Fri, Jan 4, 2002

New Folk Fracas

When Showtime's addictive gay soap Queer as Folk kicks off its second season Sunday (10 pm/ET), don't expect a resolution to what has become one of the show's most disorienting plot inconsistencies: How could Hal Sparks's Michael character have been reared by such a liberal, pro-gay mother (Sharon Gless), and yet still remain closeted at work? Turns out, it's a question Queer producers apparently asked themselves, as an episode from last season was to have featured the thirtysomething department-store manager coming out to his colleagues. But a funny thing happened on Michael's way to full disclosure  his portrayer slammed the closet door shut. "I refused to do it," Sparks tells TV Guide Online. "I didn't think seeing all seven of us on a pride march every week woul

Thu, Jan 3, 2002

Ally Jerk's Big Stretch

Don't tell Greg Germann that the corporate weasel he portrays in the current Tim Allen comedy Joe Somebody is basically a clone of Richard Fish, the, um, corporate weasel he portrays every week on Fox's Ally McBeal. "Oh no he's not," the actor mock-protests to TV Guide Online. "That's not true!" Alright, we'll bite: How are the two characters different? "Jeremy in [Joe Somebody] is a slimeball with no ethics at all. Richard Fish — for all of his opportunism — is a pretty straight-up guy," Germann argues. "He's not going to screw you over for the sake of screwing you over. Jeremy is a little bit more pathetic. He's much more of a loser than Richard Fish." Pausing, he adds with a wink: "And they walk differently." All joking a

Wed, Jan 2, 2002