Sci-Fi Saturday (TV): Flash Forward, Lost, Heroes, Smallville, Star Wars, Warehouse 13, Eureka + more

After a week off, Sci-Fi Saturday has some catching up to do with lots of on Fall genre TV shows, including new details and previews for Flash Forward, Lost, Heroes and more. Plus previews and details on Summer shows, including Warehouse 13, Torchwood and Eureka. There is is also an update on the Star Wars live action show. All that and a new Cylon toaster and more.   

GENRE TV NEWS OF THE WEEK

David Goyer Says FlashForward Isn’t Really Sci-Fi
"FlashForward" executive producer David Goyer told E! Online that we shouldn’t be so quick to judge the new series as being sci-fi:

"It’s been interesting to see this show classified as a sci-fi show, and we keep saying, ‘Is it? Really?’ At one point I read someone’s blog who said, ‘Well, obviously aliens are the ones that caused the flash forward.’ And I said, ‘Really?’ It’s not necessarily even a sci-fi show." 

Well…that’s…interesting.  Continuing on, SpoilerTV has a casting call for episode two of the season containing 11 characters, one of which could be a potential recurring character.  SpoilerTV also got their hands on the show’s "Sell Sheet", which is what ABC uses to promote the show to various media outlets.  It includes a new synopsis which I’ve posted below:

When an unexplained, cataclysmic event knocks out the entire population of the world at the exact same moment, for two minutes and 17 seconds, everyone glimpses their own future. Then they wake up to chaos. From his fash forward, LA FBI Agent MARK BENFORD is desperate to stop what’s coming – because it’s a future he doesn’t want to see. Before long, everyone starts asking themselves and each other, “What did you see?” As Mark and his team struggle to fgure out what caused this bizarre event, the only thing they have to go on is a huge mosaic of people’s fash forwards

Promotional images [more at SpoilerTV]

New Promo

Lost Adds Extra Hour; Producers Promise Closure and No Movies
The sixth and final season of "Lost" will now run 18 hours, one hour longer than originally announced.  An official reason for the extra hour hasn’t been given, but an inside source tells THR’s The Live Feed blog that "the producers felt they had some extra story to tell in the final season."  Meanwhile, speaking at a BAFTA event in London, "Lost" producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse promised closure for the show’s fans and they don’t intend on extending the show via movie, comics, or anything else [via Zap2It]:

"We won’t be vague and ambiguous –- there will be a lot of answers," Lindelof said, according to the U.K.’s Broadcast magazine. "We feel that if we hold anything back in the final season, it would be bad. Everyone’s come this far, and they want a conclusion to the story. We have no plans to continue the story of ‘Lost’ beyond [season] six. My wife says ‘never say never.’ I say ‘never.’"

Even with that promise, Lindelof acknowledged that not everyone will be pleased with the finale: "Bittersweet comes with the territory," he said. "The ending we’re aspiring to is fair."  Michael Emerson (Ben) also used the word bittersweet in describing the finale which he doesn’t believe will have a happy ending:

"It’s the end and I think we are going to start seeing more casualties. I would put money on major characters being killed. I believe it will be a sad ending to the show — or at least bittersweet. I think it will definitely be a series finale for grown-ups."

Here are some "Lost" bites:

• Co-creator J.J. Abrams will not be directing the series finale: "I would selfishly love it," he says, "but director Jack Bender has been living in Hawaii for years and doing amazing work. For me to come in and direct the finale would be cruel and unusual." [TV Guide Magazine]
• The filming schedule for ABC’s "V" runs from August 12th to January 14th, which means Elizabeth Mitchell (Juliet) could be available to shoot before "Lost" wraps. [SpoilersLost]
• Michael Emerson on what’s the come in season six. [SCI FI Wire]
• Think you have what it takes to create the perfect "Lost" theme song?  Then get busy and send your creations to ABC for their "Mock Theme Contest".
• Mathew Fox (Jack) gave an interview to a French magazine about his thoughts on season five and what’s to come in season six, which he says will prove they’ve known how it’ll end since the beginning. He also echoed other sentiments in that it’ll be sad, but also beautiful. [via Lyly Ford]

3.5M viewers for Warehouse 13 Premiere
Syfy’s new original series "Warehouse 13" drew 3.5 million viewers on Tuesday night, making it the most-watched ad-supported show on cable for the evening.  In terms of past original series premieres, it ranks 3rd all-time for the network among viewers behind "Stargate Atlantis" (4.2 million) and "Eureka" (4.1 million).  According to Syfy the demo breakdown was 1.7 million Adults 25-54 and 1.3 million Adults 18-49.  Those numbers are above what the network’s last original series debut drew (1.4M and 1.1M, respectively for "Sanctuary") but fell short of both "Stargate Atlantis" (2.5M and 2.1M, respectively) and "Eureka" (1.9M and 1.7M, respectively).  As to the show itself, executive producers David Simkins and Jack Kenny took part in a conference call with reporters and here’s what Simkins had to say about the show’s mythology (via SCI FI Wire):

"We just finished a document that sort of tracks the chronology of the warehouses," executive producer David Simkins revealed. "In our mythology, the first warehouse was created by Alexander [the Great] in an effort to keep hold of the artifacts that he collected on his wars. And it didn’t last long, because Alexander died young, but then the library at Alexandria was a warehouse, too, where research and development and things were stored, and books. And so we’ve tracked the chronology of empires, and our feeling is that the warehouse has moved from empire to empire throughout the ages, moving to the country that was best able to protect it. It was in the Western [Roman] Empire, the Hunnic Empire, the Byzantine Empire, all the way up through the Russian Empire, the British Empire and then, finally, the United States."

Meanwhile fellow executive producer Jack Kenny said fans will be happy to see several familiar faces show up, including ‘BSG’ alums Michael Hogan and Tricia Helfer, "Eureka" stars Niall Matter, Erica Cerra and Joe Morton plus "Stargate Atlantis’" Joe Flanigan:

"Joe Flanigan [Stargate Atlantis] is going to join us, and he is going to be—sorry, I have to do math in my head as I talk, because, like I said, sometimes not knowing what the artifact is is part of the fun of the episode, and sometimes you know right up front, so I want to make sure," executive producer Jack Kenny said. "It’s an episode where we’re chasing these four sculptures that create something, and we don’t know what they create until the end. And Joe is one of the guys chasing it, and James Naughton [Ally McBeal] is kind of his nemesis, also chasing them. Pete and Myka are trying to figure out … what they’re after and why they’re after them."

If you missed it, the two-hour pilot episode is available for Free on iTunes in both SD and HD.

Promotional images from episode four, "Claudia" [more at SpoilerTV]

Dollhouse S2 Will Premiere September 26th + Whedon Talks "Epitaph One"
Fox has confirmed that the second season premiere of "Dollhouse", written and directed by series creator Joss Whedon, has been pushed back a week to September 25th. THR’s The Live Feed blog reports that the decision was made so the network could ensure that episodes would run consecutively.  Also of note, Tim Minear has been bumped up from consulting producer to executive producer.  Meanwhile, EW talked with Whedon about the unaired episode, "Epitaph One", which he says was designed to either close out the series or to lead into the second season:

"So you will find out snippets of everything and all of nothing," Whedon tells EW. "Every flashback answers something about where people are heading but brings up a lot more questions about where they end up or how they got there." (Whedon says the season 2 opener he’s writing and directing won’t pick up right where the May season 1 finale left off, with "We’ve got to find Alpha!", but a little bit later.)

Whedon says that although he would have liked to see the episode air on television, he understands why Fox held it for DVD:

"It has a very different structure and feel from what we do on Dollhouse, so it would have been ridiculously startling to have aired it the week after the season finale as just this insane coda," he says. "And it is a little bit insane, except that we sort of follow everything through to its logical conclusion. As always, it’s logical to conclude that people are terrible and will try to destroy each other."

Two images and a clip from the episode are included below.  We’ll close out this week’s "Dollhouse" news with a small spoiler [Highlight to view]: Speaking with the Baltimore Sun, Miracle Laurie revealed that her character will be back next season, although she says she doesn’t "actually know in what form" she’ll be back, adding "The writers are kind of teasing me, everybody knows but me."

"Epitaph One" clip

Torchwood Strong Ratings; John Barrowman Talks More Episodes
"Torchwood: Children of Earth" opened on Monday night on BBC One with an impressive 5.94 million viewers. That’s more than double the series premiere (2.4 million on BBC Three in 2006) and nearly 60% above the season two premiere (3.72M on BBC Two in 2008).  Better yet, the show held steady for episode two with 5.58M, grew to 5.87M for episode three and notched a new series high with episode four (6.24M).  The fifth, and final, episode aired Friday night but ratings aren’t available yet. Star John Barrowman recently told SCI FI Wire that so long as ratings were strong, he’s hopeful about a fourth season:

…I had a discussion the other day with Russell. We were doing a panel, … showed the first episode at the National Film Theater here in London with an audience of viewers and what we call punters, and we did a panel question thing afterwards. One of the things we came up with, we said, "If this does well, we could come back for [season] four," which I would love and hope that we do. I said—and as Russell said—it could be two events, three events, but done in what we find the stories work over this five-day period as a one-off thing, but we could do maybe two events or three. So then you would get the full amount of episodes.

"Torchwood: Children of Earth" airs over five consecutive nights starting Monday, July 20th on BBC America.  Watch a new 2-minute clip below.

Euros Lyn To Direct Doctor Who Feature Film for 2011?
Meanwhile, Euros Lyn, who directed "Torchwood: Children of Earth", has reportedly been approached by BBC to direct the previously announced feature film.  Bleeding Cool reports that BBC will make the announcement at this year’s Comic-Con in San Diego.  According to the report former "Doctor Who" showrunner Russell T. Davies will write the script, while David Tennant will star as the Doctor.

Preview clip from the next special, "The Waters of Mars"

A Moonlight Movie?
Harry Werksman, executive producer of the canceled CBS series "Moonlight", told SCI FI Wire that a movie version of the show could offer some closure for fans:

"Well, we were setting up in the end of our first season that there was a coming war," Werksman said in an exclusive interview at the awards ceremony in Burbank, Calif. "There was the family from which Coraline came, and it was a royal bloodline of vampires that Mick had been brought into, very much unwanted on his part. I think what we were going to try and do is to have the movie encapsulate the entire second season of the coming war."

Although they could always explore other avenues such as comic books or graphic novels, Werksman says that he has recently spoken with series star Alex O’Loughlin who remains interested in doing a movie: "I know I talked to Alex just a couple weeks ago, after Three Rivers got picked up, and I was congratulating him," he said. "He’s like, ‘When are we going to do the movie?’ I said, ‘I don’t know, man. Any time you’re ready.’"

Heroes Bites: Swoosie Kurtz Returns, New Relationship for Claire + more
Here are few news bites for the upcoming season of NBC’s "Heroes":

• Swoosie Kurtz ("Pushing Daisies") will return as Angela Petrelli’s old friend, Millie.  She’ll be involved in a plot that will introduce her daughter and reveal a long-bured Petrelli family secret. [TV Guide Magazine]
• Hayden Panettiere (Claire) revealed that the next season will introduce "…The Carnival… which is kind of the opposite of what The Company was. There’s a lot of new, cool characters."… [MTV]
• …It’s also true, sort of, that Claire will have a relationship with her college roomate Annie (played by Rachel Melvin).  Via Michael Ausiello: "I’m not sure about a full-blown relationship, but I can confirm that the college roomies will engage in a little sapphic experimentation. At least that’s the plan." [EW]
• Casting call went out for a Doctor Cambridge.  Possible recurring role. [SpoilerTV]
• Digital Spy has a rundown of what we know so far about the fourth season.

Set images of Ali Larter (Tracy) [more at SpoilerTV]

Pre-Production on Live-Action Star Wars Underway?
There’s a rumor that pre-production has gotten underway in Australia for George Lucas’ proposed live-action "Star Wars" series.  SCI FI TV reports:

The quality and style of writing that will be used will be of the highest quality, and local, and writers will be sourced from outside traditional Science Fiction shows. Several big names within the Australian industry (including writers from the Award-winning Love My Way and the Award-winning Secret Life of Us) have been approached by Star Wars uber-producer, Rick McCallum.

Love My Way and Secret Life of Us can be characterised by the focus on relationships and emotional landscapes (traditional ‘chick shows’, if you will). Bringing this element into the world of Star Wars sees a marked departure of the final three films and animated Clone Wars, where the primary audience was children.

Smallville’s Ninth Season May Not Be Its Last
Justin Hartley, who plays Oliver Queen/Green Arrow, told SCI FI Wire that it’s too early to say that the upcoming ninth season of "Smallville" will be the show’s last:

"Look, they’re so busy right now, they don’t know if they’re doing one more season or eight more seasons or two more seasons," Hartley said last week at the Saturn Awards in Burbank, Calif. "They have no idea. So we’ll see. I’ve spoken to them a couple weeks ago and had kind of a vague conversation with them about concept and stuff."

Hartley also revealed that his character "might be drinking again".  Meanwhile, TV Guide reports that shortly after John Corben (Metallo) begins his job at The Daily Planet: "his fate takes a horrific twist that will change his destiny forever."  Brian Austin Green, who will play the character, is signed on for two episodes.  And rounding out this week’s "Smallville" news:

• The iconic "S" symbol will play heavily throughout the season, including on Clark’s chest. [EW]
• There’s no truth to the rumor of a spin-off series called "Metropolis". [EW]
• "Savior" is the title of the season premiere. [KryptonSite]
• The big romance arc this season will be Lois and Clark. [E! Online]
• Monique Ganderton has been cast in the role of Alia.  She’s described as a "beautiful, sexy femme fatale assassin with mysteriously intimate ties to Clark and Krypton." [KryptonSite]

Syfy Comic-Con Panels
Syfy won’t have a booth at this year’s Comic-Con, but they will have several panels.  Here are the details [Comic-Con.org]:

FRIDAY

10:30-11:30 Stargate Universe— A new chapter of the Stargate saga begins with the Syfy original series Stargate Universe. Stars Robert Carlyle (Dr. Nicholas Rush), Brian J. Smith (1st Lt. Matthew Scott), Elyse Levesque (Chloe Armstrong), David Blue (Eli Wallace), Alaina Huffman (1st Lt. Tamara Johansen), Jamil Walker Smith (Master Sergeant Ronald Greer), and Ming-Na (Camile Wray) join series co-creators Brad Wright and Robert Cooper to take you through a gate you’ve never seen before. Ballroom 20

11:45-12:45 Caprica/Battlestar Galactica: The Plan— The present meets the past as the makers of Battlestar Galactica deliver the highly anticipated Syfy original series, Caprica and the 2-hour event, Battlestar Galactica: The Plan, directed by Edward James Olmos. This is your chance to get the inside scoop on these exciting projects and see two generations of Adamas on stage together for the first time. Executive producers Ronald D. Moore, David Eick, and Jane Espenson sit down with Caprica star Esai Morales (Joseph Adama) and Battlestar Galactica’s Edward James Olmos (Admiral William Adama), director of The Plan, to reveal the truth about these two new chapters in the mythology of BSG. Ballroom 20

3:15-4:15 Eureka— Eureka is back this summer with all new episodes, and Salli Richardson-Whitfield (Allison Blake), Erica Cerra (Jo Lupo), Neil Grayston (Douglas Fargo), and Jaime Paglia (executive producer/co-creator) are stopping by to let you in on the fun. Moderated by Josh Gates (Destination Truth). Room 6BCF

SATURDAY

12:30-1:30 Sanctuary— Before Sanctuary returns for an all-new season, don’t miss your chance to go inside the action and behind the scenes. Join stars Amanda Tapping (Dr. Helen Magnus) and Robin Dunne (Dr. Will Zimmerman) as well as executive producers Martin Wood and Damian Kindler for an exclusive conversation about one of television’s most innovative shows. Moderated by Michael Logan, TV Guide. Indigo Ballroom / Hilton Bayfront

2:15-3:15 Warehouse 13— This summer, the unknown has an address in the new Syfy Original Series, Warehouse 13. Stars Eddie McClintock (Pete Lattimer), Joanne Kelly (Myka Bering), Saul Rubinek (Artie Nielsen), Allison Scagliotti (Claudia Donovan), Jack Kenny (executive producer/showrunner) and David Simkins (executive producer) reveal confidential information. Room 6A

Schedules for the Wednesday preview night (7/22), Thursday (7/23), Friday (7/24) and Saturday (7/25) have been posted over at Comic-Con.org.  Head on over there to check them out.  And watch a video clip below featuring stars from "Warehouse 13", "Eureka", "Ghost Hunters", "Caprica", "Sanctuary", "Stargate Universe", "Destination Truth" and "ECW".

Syfy promo clip: House of Imagination

NEW IMAGES

Wolverine and the X-Men [one more at io9]

Battlestar Galactica

Special Edition Comic-Con Cylon Toaster [NBC Universal Store]

Fringe

Set images [more at SpoilerTV]

More set images at SpoilerTV

SGU: Stargate Universe

Promo image of Robert Carlyle (Dr. Nicholas Rush) [Wired]

True Blood

Season two promo images [True-Blood.net]

Vampire Diaries

Promotional posters [more at Vampire Diaries Web]

NEW VIDEOS

Defying Gravity

Trailer

Day One

First trailer

Eureka

Actress Salli Richardson-Whitfield (Allison) and series co-creator Jaime Paglia answer fan questions

SGU: Stargate Universe

Character profile: Ming-Na (Camille Wray)

More character profiles: Robert Carlyle (Nicholas Rush) |

David Blue (Eli Wallace) | Brian J. Smith (Matthew Fox) and at stargate.mgm.com

Promo

True Blood

Sneak peek at episode four, "Shake and Fingerpop"

More sneak peeks: 1 | 2

Promo for the episode

Vampire Chronicles

Promo

TV BITES

• Previously on TrekMovie: SyFy Wants A New Space Opera – Should It Be A New Star Trek TV Series?
• "The Middleman" creator Javier Grillo-Marxuach says that the romance between the Middleman and Lacey almost didn’t happen. [io9]
• Craig Ferguson (Sheriff Carter) talked about what it was like going behind the camera for the first time on Syfy’s "Eureka"… [SCI FI Wire]
• …Here are the titles for episodes 10-12: "Your Face or Mine" (7/17/2009), "Insane in the P-Brane" (7/24) and "It’s Not Easy Being Green" (7/31).  Descriptions for each episode can be found at TV Guide.
• Syfy Creative Director of Original Programming Mark Stern talked about the Tim Menear reboot of "Alien Nation" and also revealed that the network is looking into rebooting "Quantum Leap" in a new interview with io9.
• The producers of ABC’s "Eastwick" have put out a casting call for nine characters.  Details at SpoilerTV…
• …Also, here’s how actress Lindsay Price describes her character: "[Joanna’s] very awkward and shy. She’s like the Susan Sarandon [character in the movie], very bookish, but she works for the paper, like the Michelle Pfeiffer character." [E! Online]
• Edward James Olmos, who directed the upcoming TV movie/DVD "Battlestar Galactica: The Plan" told SCI FI Wire that what the "[Cylons’] plan was, I think that’s a big surprise," adding "Finding out what the plan was and how it was structured and how close they were to completing it."
• Sticking in the ‘BSG’ universe, a casting call has gone out for the spinoff "Caprica".  Producers are looking for someone to play Baxter Sarno, a 25-year-old talk show host.  The part is recurring. [SpoilerTV]
• "Day One" producer Javier Grillo-Marxuach says that some of the optimism displayed in "The Middleman", which he created for ABC Family, will show up in "Day One". [io9]
• Zachary Levi of "Chuck" says "[the] new intersect is not perfect.  It has some hiccups and glitches."… [E! Online]
• …Plus, "Chuck" producer Ali Adler has announced that, “Carina the super sexy superagent will be making an appearance in Season 3!”  The character was played by Mini Anden. [ChuckTV.net]
• Lucifer on "Supernatural" will be entirely Pellegrino-shaped next season and will be recurring throughout.  Castiel will also have a major individual arc that will coincide with the major arc of the season. [E! Online]

• A&E has picked up the DVD rights to "Farscape" and will release The Complete Series Megaset this November in time for the show’s 10th anniversary.  The set will contain all four seasons and hours of extras.  Additionally, executive producer Brian Henson, creator Rockne O’Bannon and stars Ben Browder and Claudia Black will all be on hand at this year’s Comic-Con International in San Diego to discuss the DVD and series. [TV Shows on DVD]

• Luke Goss will be a guest star in the second season premiere of "Fringe"… [Luke Goss Forum via SpoilerTV]
• …And a casting call has gone out for "Father Kenzie", possibly recurring… [SpoilerTV]
• …Speaking of the premiere EW’s Michael Ausiello reports that the opening sequence "is going to be killer — and I mean that literally and figuratively."…
• …He then goes on to [SPOILERS–highlight to view] say that Charlie (exiting Kirk Acevedo) will appear in the premiere and "that what happens to him will blow your frakkin’ mind."  Hmm, I wonder what that means… [EW]
• "True Blood: The Complete First Season" continues its solid sales run.  The DVD set has sold over 1 million copies since its release on May 19th (through June 28th) and sales revenue stands at $35.6 million, more than double the next-closest TV show on the list ("24: Season Seven": 508,281 copies/$16.7 million). [The-Numbers]
• 2009 Pilot Reviews:
• "Eastwick" — TV Barn and The Futon Critic
• "Past Life" — io9

• "Vampire Diaries" — MTV, TV Overmind and VampireSite

• "Human Target" — Sci-Fi Scoop and Target411
• Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson, the stars of Syfy’s "Ghost Hunters", debunked a video taken at Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch purportedly showing a ghost. You can watch the video for yourself below. [NY Post]

SCI FI RATINGS

CHART (6/22/2009 to 6/28/2009)

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Follow Russ on his blog: Your Entertainment Now and on Twitter: Twitter.com/YourEntNow.