Sci-Fi Sunday: Wolverine, Terminator, Transformers, Hobbit + Lost, Heroes, Fringe, Dollhouse + more

With Summer fast approaching, in this week’s genre news roundup, we have lots of news and new images and vids from those other two big May movies, Wolverine and Terminator, and the big June movie Transformers 2, plus updates on projects down the line like Hobbit, Green Hornet, Ghostbusters 3 and more. In TV news we have news that Dollhouse and Terminator: TSCC may not be dead, updates on Fringe, Lost and Heroes, finales and much more.

 

MOVIE NEWS

Despite Internet Leak, Wolverine Still Tracking High + X-Men: First Class
Many assumed that the leak of the DVD-quality work print of "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" would hurt the film’s box office potential, but it may not be as bad as originally feared.  Entertainment Weekly is reporting that interest in the film remains high and that 20th Century Fox may actually have something to be excited about:

A tracking report containing consumer research statistics shows a high "wanna see" rating for the film, which is said to be the No. 1 choice for young men and guys aged 31 and older. Those two demographics are key to boosting the first-weekend numbers for a male-targeted superhero franchise film like Wolverine. (Fox has no comment.)

Meanwhile Deadline Hollywood Daily is reporting that internally the studio is projecting a $70-75M opening weekend, while rival studios are projecting an even bigger $80M opening.  Here’s the breakdown of the other films in the franchise:

• "X-Men" (2000): $54.5M opening — $157.3M domestic/$296.3M worldwide
• "X2: X-Men United" (2003): $85.6M opening — $215M domestic/$407.7M worldwide
• "X-Men: The Last Stand" (2006): $102.8M opening — $234.4M domestic/$459.4M worldwide

And in related news, Lauren Shuler Donner, who produced all three "X-Men" movies as well as ‘Wolverine’ made comments during Fox Movie Channel’s "Life after Film School" program that she hopes to make a franchise out of "X-Men: First Class":

"It is the first class of Xavier’s school, way back when, so it’s young Scott, young Jean, young Beast and that’ll be really fun," Donner said. "I think (the plan) is to follow some of the characters into their own stories, and weave them back into the X-Men world.

"And hopefully First Class will become its own franchise and we can follow them as they grow up."

The latest images and videos for the film follow below

New Images [io9]

Got Milk?  Wolverine does…[via SCI FI Wire]

Extended clip [Papa John’s]

Hugh Jackman on the Spanish TV show "El Hormiguero" [via Filmonic]

Sneak peak at the mutant characters [Run down of all the characters at USA Today]

Character profile: Wolverine

More profiles: Sabretooth || Gambit || Wade || Wraith

McG on Terminator Salvation’s Ending + More on Schwarzenegger and Hamilton
With plans underway for a sequel to "Terminator Salvation", McG says that the ending for the film will leave things open and will almost assuredly divide the audience.  As discussed in the past, McG told MTV Movies Blog that they’ve "planned out two more ‘Terminator’ pictures," and that there’s "an arc of story [in the new sequels]."  That means the arc will be left wide open for "Terminator Salvation":

The ending is indeed elliptical. And it challenges the audience. It’s not a happy little bow of an ending at all. The ending is tough and requires reflection, and in some degrees it bifurcates the audience. You walk back to the car and one person thinks it means this, and the other person thinks it means that.

And yes, no week can safely go by with yet another story on the Arnold T4 cameo.  In a separate interview with MTV, McG shot down Terry Crews’ assertion last week that Arnold is in the film, telling the site that "[t]he jury is still out" on whether he’ll return.  The T-800 plays a heavy focus on the film, with or without Arnold’s cameo: 

"This film is largely about Skynet collecting human tissue in the interest of creating lifelike tissue for the T-800, which is the Schwarzenegger character," McG explained. "And if you think about it, we had to go through a lot of lab rats to get to the polio vaccine. Skynet has to go through a lot of human beings to get to that realistic T-800. Kyle Reese always talks about the T-600 being easy to recognize — a rubber skin, prosthetic look. We’ve got two T-600s in the film, but it’s [about] the coming of the T-800, which represents lifelike human flesh being grown in order to get to that level of proficiency."

McG also talked about Linda Hamilton’s cameo (which is confirmed): "Everyone knows she instructed her son how to survive and how to fulfill his destiny via audio tapes. There is a great deal of listening done to those audio tapes done in hope of guidance. There’s some scenes with Christian being inspired by the character Linda played."  You can watch some of the interview in the video below.

Transformers 2: Bay Talks Spielberg Reaction and Robot Favorites + Runtime Announced
"Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" director Michael Bay wrote on his message board that he recently screened the movie for producer Steven Spielberg who says he loved it:

"[He] sat next to me in a big 100 person theater at Sony today," Bay wrote. "There were 98 empty seats. The lights came up after we just watched my cut of Revenge of the Fallen. He turned to me and said, ‘It’s awesome.’ He felt this movie was better than the first—and probably my best…"

Bay also added that a new trailer for the film will be attached to the May 1st release of "X-Men Origins: Wolverine".  In related news, Bay chatted it up with MTV about the personalities of the many robots that we’ll see the sequel, telling the site "[t]here’s a lot of great new characters in this movie — some funny ones, some devious ones, there are some little teeny ones that are a little irreverent," adding that the acting of the robots is better in the sequel: It’s just evolved from the last one, and in terms of the animation we are able to put these robots’ [emotions] in." Some of Bay’s favorite Robots include new additions Revenge and the twins Mudflaps and Skids:

"The twins are quite fun," Bay said of the comedy-relief duo, remembering his inspiration for including them. "I just kept thinking, ‘What if we have two dumb Transformers that are young and dumb?’ … They are just irreverent, dumb Transformers."

But perhaps the biggest — figuratively and literally — addition is Devastator:

"It’s the most complicated model that George Lucas’ company has done in 30 years," Bay said. "In all the 30 years of [Industrial Light and Magic] making movies, it’s the most complicated digital model — and it’s tenfold in terms of the most complicated. It’s taken a long time to do."

And as to Bay’s most favorite?  That would be Bumblebee: "Bumblebee is great in this movie," he promised. Watch the video of the interview below.  And finally, Bay told MTV Movies Blog that the film will run 147 minutes, four minutes longer than the original.

Theater Standee [MTV]

Presented at ShoWest 2009: Features a 95-second scene, followed by a montage of clips [MichaelBay.com]

ShoWest 2009 Michael Bay Tribute from Bay Films/Michael Bay Dot Com on Vimeo.

The Hobbit Will Span Two Films
When the "The Hobbit" was announced, the plan was for Guillermo del Toro and Peter Jackson to adapt the novel into one film, and then have a second film that would bridge the gap between it and "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring".  That’s no longer is the case.  Del Toro and Jackson have revealed to Empire that they now intend to do the story of "The Hobbit" over two films:

 “We’ve decided to have The Hobbit span the two movies, including the White Council and the comings and goings of Gandalf to Dol Guldur,” says Del Toro.

“We decided it would be a mistake to try to cram everything into one movie,” adds Jackson. “The essential brief was to do The Hobbit, and it allows us to make The Hobbit in a little more style, if you like, of the [LOTR] trilogy.”

And speaking of "The Lord of The Rings", the complete trilogy looks set to be released on Blu-ray Hi-Def by the end of the year. Unfortunately, only the theatrical versions will be released (via Digital-Bits):

[Editor’s Note: Sources close to director Peter Jackson have informed me that he’s saving the extended editions of the films for an "ultimate" box set release closer to the debut of the new Hobbit films – that’s why these BDs are set to be theatrical only. That’s obviously not going to satisify every fan, but it gives them something in the meantime. As was the case with the original DVD release, at least you’re now aware in advance that a more elaborate release is coming eventually if you’d prefer to wait for it. For Warner’s part, I’ve officially confirmed with the studio that this initial Blu-ray release is real and it’s coming before the end of this year, but I’m told it won’t be officially announced for another few months yet. So you should probably still consider this release to be semi-official and subject to change. Just FYI.]

Here’s the cover art that Amazon.com has put up for the pre-order:

Green Lantern To Shoot in Sydney; Budget Revealed
Warner Bros. has chosen Fox Studios Australia in Sydney as the location to shoot the upcoming big-budget film "Green Lantern", based on the DC Comics character.  THR also reports that the budget for the film is $150 million.  "Green Lantern" is scheduled to hit theaters December 17, 2010 with pre-production set for July of this year, followed by the start of principal photography in November.  Martin Campbell is directing.

Michel Gondry On Green Hornet
"Green Hornet" director Michel Gondry told SCI FI Wire that he’s looking forward to working on the upcoming (June 25, 2010) big-budget action film:

"It’s all going to be something different, but that’s successful, so I guess there is no problem now," Gondry said in an exclusive interview Monday. "We have a producer, Neal Moritz, who’s pretty damn successful; he released Fast and Furious, which had [one of] the biggest openings of all time, so he’s going to guide us in our differences, and so far all of my ideas, he loves them and says ‘I like the ideas, and I’m open to them.’"

Head on over to SCI FI Wire to read the rest of the interview.

Remake of Little Shop of Horrors Planned
Director Declan O’Brien ("Wrong Turn 3") tells ShockTillYouDrop that he’s "just optioned the remake rights" to Roger Corman’s "Little Shop of Horrors" and will work under the guidance of Corman and producer Andrew Tennenbaum ("The Bourne Identity").  In terms of what he has planned for the film, O’Brien will only say that he has "a take on it you’re not going to expect. I’m taking it in a different direction, let’s put it that way.”

Dan Aykroyd on Ghostbusters 3 and Video Game
Dan Aykroyd spoke with both CHUD and Go Nintendo about the upcoming "Ghostbusters" video game as well as the planned film.  Aykroyd talked a bit about Sigourney Weaver’s non-participation in the video game (she’s replaced by Alyssa Milano in the game) and her possible involvement in the film, telling CHUD the following:

"When we do the Ghostbusters 3 movie, hopefully, Sigourney will be in, I know. We’ll make that happen. There’ll be a whole new generation that has to be trained. And that whole new generation will be led by an individual that you’ll all love when you hear who it is, but I’m not going to tell you now. There will be lots of cadets, boys and girls, who’ll be learning how to use the cyclotron, the accelerators, and the new stuff. The nuon splitter, the inter-planary interceptor, all these great tools they’re going to have to flip from dimension to dimension. Anyway. Game number two, maybe."

Meanwhile Aykroyd told Go Nintendo that he looks at the video game as the third movie:

“I’d want to see the third movie made. I think (the video game) is the third movie and if everything is creative and right, and this game helps get the third movie made… We have a good concept there; (we have) the young writers from The Office. I’ve worked with Harold (Ramis)on Year One, which is coming out. The Book of Genesis adapted into a comedy? Who but Harold Ramis could pull that off! So these two writers – (Lee) Eisenberg and (Gene) Stupnitsky – they sound like a vaudeville team or a law firm – are brilliant young guys. And they come up with a good story.”

Head on over to Go Nintendo and CHUD to read more of Aykroyd’s thoughts on the video game and film. [via ScreenRant]  And lastly, here’s how Aykroyd explained "Ghostbusters 3" to MTV:

“There will be a whole new generation that has to be trained, and that whole new generation will be led by an individual who you’ll all love when you meet him but I’m not going to tell you anything yet,” teased Aykroyd. “They’ll be lots of cadets, boys and girls, who’ll be learning how to use the psychotron, the accelerators and all the new stuff, the neuron splitter, which is going to be the interplaner, interceptor and all these great tools that they’re going to have, to flip from dimension to dimension.”

Joss Whedon Talks Cabin in the Woods
Joss Whedon, producer and co-writer of the upcoming horror film "The Cabin in the Woods", told a group of reporters at the Paley Fest that the film is "going to be gorgeous," adding "I think it’s going to be quite a movie, but it’s also a little out of control. We’re not quite halfway through filming, and it’s utter chaos, but mostly the good kind. Apparently, as producer, I’m the guy who’s supposed to be controlling it, so I have to figure out how to do that."  The project is still cloaked under secrecy, but Whedon promises it won’t be your run of the mill horror picture: "It is not just a slasher in the woods," he said. "It’s a little more complicated than that."  In related news, Fran Kranz, who plays the character Marty in the film offered some hints about what to expect in a Q&A during the Paley Festival.

NEW IMAGES

H2 [Rob Zombie]

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

High-Res screens from the new trailer [more at SCI FI Wire]

Character banners [more at Yahoo]

Tintin

First set image [Empire]

NEW VIDEOS

9

Two-minute clip [HD Version]

Angels & Demons

New clip: "Hunt Them Down"

H2

Entertainment Tonight’s First look

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Trailer #3

HD Version: 480p || 720p || 1080p

Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World

Second video blog with director Edgar Wright: First day of principal photography

S. Darko

New viral video

Up

New featurette

MOVIE BITES

• Universal Pictures has hired Evan Spiliotopoulos (co writer of "Pooh’s Heffalump Movie" and its DVD Halloween spinoff) to write "Wanted 2", based on a story by Chris Morgan. [THR]
• Michael Chabon has been hired by Disney to do some revisions to Andrew Stanton and Mark Andrews’ script for "John Carter of Mars". [The Amazing Website Of Kavalier & Clay via io9]
• Warner Bros. has announced that it’s moving up the release of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" by two days: from Friday, July 17, 2009 to Wednesday, July 15th. [erc Box Office]
• Check out parts 1 and 2 of SCI FI Wire’s three-part set report on Sam Raimi’s "Drag Me to Hell" here and here.
• …Also, the film has been rated PG-13 by the MPAA for "sequences of horror violence, terror, disturbing images and language." [Rope of Silicon]
• Principal photography has begun on Summit Entertainment’s "The Twilight Saga: New Moon".  The film, which hits theaters on November 20, 2009, is shooting on locations in Vancouver, BC and Tuscany, Italy. [Summit Entertainment]
• "Watchmen" co-writer Alex Tse has been hired by Paramount Pictures to adapt the supernatural graphic novel "Battling Boy". [THR]
• Kevin Grevioux, the creator and co-star of the "Underworld" films says that he’ll continue to develop the series regardless of the medium: "I want to continue to be involved," Grevioux said. "I’ve been writing the comic books, I did the miniseries for IDW. But, you know, there are a lot of ideas that I still have that I would like to explore." [SCI FI Wire]
• Eli Roth ("Hostel") says that he’s developing a new epic sci-fi film: "I don’t want to give away the title yet, because I have to make sure I own it 100 percent, but it’s going to be something that is really fun, with lots of mass destruction," he said. "I wanted to do something along the lines of Transformers or Cloverfield that was a little more science fiction-based, and with lots of chaos and mass destruction." [MTV Movies Blog]

CASTING BITES

• Michael Sheen (who played the vampire Lucian in the three "Underworld" films) has been cast as the vampire Aro in the "Twilight" follow-up "The Twilight Saga: New Moon". Director Chris Weitz confirmed the news. [The Daily Mail]
• Rumored for months, Zac Efron has now been confirmed as being signed on to play the lead role in a big-screen live-action adaptation of "Jonny Quest", but Warner Bros. is reportedly considering dropping the title from the film in favor of something else. [Hero Complex]
• Thomas Dekker ("Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles") has been cast as Jesse in the new "Nightmare on Elm Street" reboot. [Shock Till You Drop]

 

 

 

TV NEWS

Dollhouse Second Season Still Possible
Speaking at the Paley Festival Wednesday night, "Dollhouse" creator Joss Whedon revealed that hopes for a second-season are still alive, despite the announcement last week that Fox would not be airing the show’s 13th episode.  Joss told the crowd that he’s optimistic because the network bosses love the show and will be looking at the full picture — including iTunes purchases, DVR playback, etc. where the show does better — before coming to a conclusion.  Whedon also reassured fans that the people who were responsible for the demise of "Firefly" are not part of the team that will decide the fate of "Dollhouse".  Joss also told Zap2It that Fox may end up airing the 13th episode after all:

“I’ve been in contact with the network and the studio making a great big push for them to [air that last hour],” Joss said. “The problem isn’t just with the network though, the studio also looks at it and goes, DVD goodness! So, [my goal] is getting them both excited about putting it on the air. They’re looking in to it, I haven’t gotten an answer yet, but I know that they are honestly discussing it, the same way they are obviously discussing a second season…”

The night before at the panel for "Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog", Whedon elaborated on the story behind the 13th episode, "Epitaph One":

"The decision had to do with the studio saying, ‘We need another episode for our package, and we can’t afford one,’" Whedon said. "’Can you do a clip show? Can we show the unaired pilot?’ I’m like, ‘No, you can’t. It wouldn’t make any sense. Besides, we cannibalized it for parts. Most of it’s in other episodes.’ And they were like, ‘Well, we really have to have 13 for foreign.’ And I said, ‘I’ll tell you what. I’ll shoot a post-apocalyptic thriller that’s all on our sets in six days with a cast of four other people, then we’ll pepper it with different bits from our regular cast, and we can do it all during the schedule. It’ll cost you half. I can do this.’ And I was so in love with the idea that I just came up with off the top of my head, and that’s what it turned into. It’s one of the best episodes we’ve ever made."

In a separate interview with Wizard Magazine, Whedon revealed that he pitched a six-year plan for the show to Fox, but what he "really mapped out was the first 13, and even though we start in a different place than I had originally intended, we end up exactly where I’d intended in the 12th episode. Then, in the 13th episode, things just get stranger. There’s some twisted sh– coming." In related news, Eliza Dushku thinks that it may actually be a good thing that the 13th episode doesn’t air, telling SCI FI Wire that it’s "complicated because episode 13 sort of, in a way, could be seen as the ending of something, and episode 12 could be seen as taking the show into another year."  Dushku also sounded optimistic about the possibility of the show returning next season:

"It’s not just a Nielsen world anymore. They factor in DVR. They factor in iTunes and Hulu, and we seem to have a pretty rich, pretty strong fan base. People are really getting into the show and [creating good] word of mouth, and the shows are getting more and more complicated and twisted. I feel like people are talking about it even more, and hopefully that gets back to the folks at Fox."

Dr. Horrible The Movie?
Joss Whedon, co-creator/writer and director of the Web musical "Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog" told reporters gathered at the Paley Fest panel on the show that sequel could be another Web series, or it could even be a feature film.  It’ll all be dependent on how the script turns out:

"We want to do the product the same way we did the first one, which is out of our hearts, and then go to people [and say], ‘OK, if you’re interested in this, this is what it is.’ Besides, it could be something theatrical. It could be something on the Internet again, where it’s done on the fly and it all comes from us…The best thing to do is to write it. Then we can start deciding a business model based on the script."

Co-writer and composer Jed Whedon (Joss’ brother) stroke a similar tone, saying that the sequel’s length would be determined by the medium: "It depends on what form it takes," Jed said in an exclusive interview on the red carpet. "The story that we’re talking about is pretty big, so it might end up being longer."  And in related news, Mauirssa Tancharoen, co-writer and Jed’s fiancé, added that the writers may look into [SPOILERS] bringing back Felicia Day’s character Penny for a sequel:

"Penny is definitely dead, but there are ways," Tancharoen said. "We love Felicia so much. Maybe she’ll do catering while we shoot the movie."  With Jed adding: "It’s movie magic, so there are a lot of different things we can do. We just want to hang out with her."

Terminator: TSCC Also Not Dead Yet + Plans for Season 3 Revealed
Fans of "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles", don’t give up hope just yet.  Despite poor ratings, that fantastic season finale may not be the last we see of the show.  Both writer Ashley Edward Miller and creator/executive producer Friedman twittered that we shouldn’t take Michael Ausiello’s EW article that the show has already been canceled too seriously:

Miller: "Time for Ausiello’s semi-annual SCC termination report. False again. (Remember "sets were destroyed" report? Now you know context, people). 

Friedman: Waiting for Michael Åusiello to tell me what I’m supposed to do now with my career.

Meanwhile, Brian Austin Green provided some details to Comic Book Resources about what they have planned for the show’s third season if it gets renewed.  Here’s a bit of what he said [SPOILERS]:

The third season is going to be incredible, if it happens. There were no intentions of this being a series finale. It was absolutely a season finale. There’s a plan where this can go and it’s so good…. You have this episode where John Connor travels to a future where John Connor never existed. I don’t know if people completely get it because we work on a string theory, which we’ve dealt with during the season. We dealt with that with Jessie, in the future that she came from there was Charles Fisher, who tortured everyone. In the future I came from, he never existed. I don’t remember him. We were still together within these parallel futures but they were still different and they still had their own paths. This is the same concept. For John Connor to travel to a future where he never existed, where Kyle Reese never left, where Derek and Kyle are still fighting side by side, where Allison (the human Cameron was based on) is still very much present, what becomes of John? What better situation for somebody to grow up in and become the future leader than that? Than to be fighting in what he’s been trying to prevent? Not just being the top dog, being listened to for everything, but having to actually listen and follow.

Green has much more to say about the series, including a clarification on whether or not Sarah made it to the future, and his thoughts on Catherine Weaver, so be sure to head on over to Comic Book Resources to read the rest of the interview.

Fuller: Writer’s Strike and Time Slot to Blame for ‘Daisies’ Cancellation + Story May Continue via Comic Series
Bryan Fuller, the creator of the canceled ABC series "Pushing Daisies" previewed the final three episodes of the series to SCI FI Wire and also revealed that the story may continue in a comic book series from Marvel.  Fuller also talked a bit about the demise of the show, placing most of the blame on the writer’s strike and the show’s poor time slot and promotion:

"[O]ur timeslot wasn’t good, since we didn’t have a lead-in. When we aired at 9 p.m., we went up by 3 million viewers, which was really dramatic. ABC refused to move us from the 8:00 timeslot, which had worked previously the season before, but after the writers’ strike and the erosion of the audience, it wasn’t sustainable, so we asked them to move us repeatedly. We would have even taken Friday night at 9 p.m., because people don’t watch TV earlier. All the Nielsen ratings indicate people start watching TV at 8:30. That was a big indication, but I certainly don’t think the quality of the show went down. If anything, it got stronger and clearer."

Speaking about the comic, Fuller says that it’ll be more like a season three and not a season 2.5:

"We’re going to see a lot of exploration with Ned and his father, which we teased but were never able to make good on…Dwight will be making a return, and we’ll be seeing the adult Eugene Mulchandani and Danny that involves helium smuggling…The fans of the show will see a lot of stuff come to fruition, but new fans will have a greater appreciation, too. Since it’s Marvel, I would also love for the Pie Maker to touch Captain America." 

For more, including Fuller’s rundown of the final three episodes, head on over to SCI FI Wire.

More on Leonard Nimoy’s Fringe Appearance
Those hoping for a Walter and William Bell (Leonard Nimoy) encounter will have to wait.  According to Kirk Acevedo, who plays FBI agent Charlie Francis on the Fox series "Fringe", the only person who will meet the character in the finale is Olivia.  Acevedo also revealed that although no official renewal announcement has been made by Fox, the cast and crew are already working on season two and that Leonard Nimoy will be a heavy focus in it:

Well, I’m sure you heard about who might be playing William Bell. Leonard Nimoy, so we pretty much meet William Bell in the finale, which is really cool. Just, you learn a lot more about Massive Dynamic and what’s going on with the whole mythology of the show, so it’s pretty much more cemented in the final two episodes. Then the stand-alone episode is pretty much a stand-alone episode. It doesn’t delve into the mythology of the show or anything.

Acevedo also did an interview with the LA Times that you can read here.

Smallville: Why Clark Can’t Fly Yet
"Smallville" executive producer Kelly Souders answered some questions from fans at TV Guide about the show’s remaining four episodes of the season, including why Clark can’t fly:

"Clark Kent won’t really become Superman until he takes to the skies. We all have our stumbling blocks; his are just airborne. Until he can fully embrace his double-life, he’ll have a hard time getting off the ground. But, we will say, his "leaps" are getting closer and closer to the real thing."

Here’s are some more highlights from the Q&A session:

• We’ll be seeing more of Lois, and perhaps more of Chole at Watchtower in the future
• Green Arrow and RBB will be teaming up, but "the outcome may surprise"
• They’re content with the way they provided closure to the Clark/Lana relationship: "they weren’t destined for each other"
• They’re still in contact with co-creators Al Gough and Miles Millar

Stills from episode 20, "The Beast" [more at OSCK]

TV IMAGES

Chuck

Promotional episodes from the season finale, "Chuck Vs. The Ring" [more at Spoiler-TV]

Doctor Who

Set images [more at Planet Gallifrey]

Lost

Promotional images from episode 14, "The Variable" [more at SpoilersLost]

True Blood

Teaser poster for season two [THR]

 

TV VIDEOS

Caprica

New clip featuring Esai Morales and Eric Stolz [UGO]

New Video Blog

Watch another video blog at this link

Chuck

Promo from episode 21, "Chuck Versus the Colonel"

Doctor Who

Set video [more at Planet Gallifrey]

G.I. Joe: Resolute

Watch the first two parts of the new series

Note: Parts 3 and 4 will be released on Monday

Fringe

Promo for episode 17, "Bad Dreams"

Heroes

Promo for episode 24, "I Am Sylar"

Promo for the final three episodes

Legend of the Seeker

Promo for episode 18, "Mirror"

Lost

Promo for the new special, airing this Wednesday + promo for episode 14, "The Variable"

Interview with Michael Emerson (Ben) discussing the season finale

Reaper

Promo for episode eight, "The Home Stretch

TV BITES

• Ed Quinn ("Eureka") has been added to the cast of HBO’s "True Blood" as a recurring character.  Quinn will play Stan, a powerful vampire from Texas. [THR]
• According to unofficial figures, last week’s "Doctor Who" special "Planet of the Dead" was watched by 8.41 million viewers (a 39.6% share).  An additional 184,000 watched the episode on BBC HD, the channel’s highest rating so far. [Gallifrey One]
• Sticking with "Doctor Who", June Whitfield and Bernard Cribbins have been cast in the 2009 Christmas special. [WalesOnline.co.uk]
• Heroes star Greg Grunberg says that his "baby and his family is the reason Parkman is going to do something in the last episode that he may regret for the rest of his life," adding, "It’s a huge story that we play out — something that only a guy who’s been pushed and is desperate to save his family would ever do." [TV Guide]
• According to data released by Nielsen Video Census, "Lost" accounted for 35.8 million video streams of full-length episodes, clips and other content watched by 1.4 million unique viewers last month (the most for the month). [Variety]
• More on "Lost": In the next episode, called "The Variable" (airing April 29th), we’ll get an explanation by Mrs. Hawking about her relationship with Charles Widmore and some characters will make some bad decisions that will lead to the major death. [E! Online]
• ….Also, Eric Lange, who plays Radzinsky, says that he’ll be in every episode from now until the finale. [Doc Arzt]
• SCI FI has put up the video from last month’s "Battlestar Galactica" United Nations panel.  In case you missed it, check out the first part below.

Click here to see the other four videos

MISC IMAGES

Battlestar Galactica: The Final Five (Comic Book)

"Battlestar Galactica: The Final Five #1" Preview [more images at i09]

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Video Game)

Concept art [more at Transformers Movie Chronicles]

New screenshots [more at Kotaku]

360/PS3/PC

Wii

DS

MISC VIDEOS

Batman: Arkham Asylum (Video Game)

Bane Reveal Trailer

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation

Clip from last Thursday’s episode, which featured Trek and BSG connections (including cameos from Ron Moore and Grace Park)

MISC BITES

• The widow of sci-fi writer Philip K. Dick is suing, among others, the author’s daughters, alleging her rights to proceeds from "Ubik" and "A Scanner Darkly" were violated.  Details of the lawsuit can be read at Variety.
• And in other lawsuit news, a settlement has been reached in Moritz Borman’s suit against two of his fellow "Terminator Salvation" producers and Halcyon Co.  The parties released a joint statement saying they reached an "amicable" resolution to the dismissed suit. [Variety]
• Sales to retailers for "Buck Rogers" #0, the original 12-page comic book adventure "The Death of Buck Rogers", have reached nearly 75,000, resulting in Dynamite planning a 20% overprint to meet retailer demand for re-orders. As a result of the better than expected sales, the issue will ship to retailers from Dynamite early and be in stores by April 22nd, in time for free Comic Book Day on May 2nd. Issue #1 will be released in June. [Newsarama]
• The Art of Avatar: James Cameron’s Epic Adventure, a new novel about the making of Cameron’s 3-D sci-fi epic "Avatar", has been dated for a November 1, 2009 release.  "Avatar" hits theaters on December 18, 2009. [Amazon.com]
• The Profiles in History auction (taking place April 30th and May 1st) will feature the blaster used by Harrison Ford’s Rick Deckard in "Blade Runner", as well as an original "Frankeinstein" one-sheet, Ray Park’s Darth Maul light saber from "Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace" and more. [via SCI FI Wire]
• Here’s your first look at "Wednesday Comics", DC Comics’ upcoming 16-page broadsheet-size newsprint weekly series.  The two images below are from writer John Arcuidi and artist Lee Bermejo’s "Superman" strip and the "Batman" strip from Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso. [DC Universe]

OBIT

• After a long battle with prostate cancer, author J.G. Ballard has passed away.  He was 78. [The Guardian via io9]

SCI FI RATINGS
Mcauley Culkin couldn’t help "Kings" in its new day (and time) last night.  According to preliminary data, the episode drew just 2.41M viewers and a 0.6 A18-49 rating.  That was down a 33% among viewers and 45% among adults 18-49 from the show’s most recent episode (Sunday, April 5th — 3.62M viewers and a 1.1 A18-49 rating).  In other genre ratings news from the past week (all based on final national data):

• On Monday, "Chuck" held steady, improving slightly among both viewers (6.21M/+2%) and adults 18-49 (2.3 rating/+10%).
• "Heroes" bounced up 12% among viewers (6.83M) and 27% among adults 18-49 (3.3 rating) from its prior episode’s series lows.
• "Medium" had a strong week-to-week jump, especially among adults 18-49 where it was up by 23% to a 2.7 rating.  It was up 7% among viewers (7.65M).
• On Tuesday, Fox’s "Fringe" held steady among adults 18-49 with a 4.0 rating and drew 10.15M viewers (up a slight 3%), while The CW’s, "Reaper" was down slightly among viewers with 2.05M viewers (-3%), but flat among adults 18-49 with a 0.9 A18-49 rating.
• Rounding out the week’s SF programming, "Lost" on Wednesday grew to 9.23M viewers (+8%) and a 4.0 A18-49 rating (+5%).

CHART (3/23/2009 to 3/29/2009)

CHART (3/30/2009 to 4/5/2009)