Sci-Fi TV Saturday: Stargate, Doctor Who, Torchwood, Heroes, Lost, Warehouse 13 + more

For genre news this week we can reveal the new gate for Stargate Universe. We also have news on a new character for Heroes, a guy claiming he came up with the idea for Lost, news of Tom Baker’s return to Doctor Who, plus the latest previews and promos from Torchwood, Doctor Who, Warehouse 13 and more.

GENRE TV NEWS FOR THE WEEK

Stargate Universe Cast Addition + First Look at Gate
“SGU: Stargate Universe” producers are looking for a “star name” actress to play the late wife of Robert Caryle’s character Dr. Nicholas Rush. Gloria Rush would be seen through a flashback in episode 14 “Lucid”. Meanwhile, MGM has opened up a new website for the property at Stargate.MGM.com and the site features a 3-D virtual tour of the Destiny’s Gate Room. Click here to check out the virtual tour. I’ve included a few images from the tour (via GateWorld.net) below. “SGU: Stargate Universe” premieres on Syfy this fall.

Strong ratings for Warehouse 13 & Eureka + SGA’s Flanigan to guest star on W13
After a successful debut which saw 3.5 million viewers tune in for the two-hour series premiere, the second week/third episode of the new Syfy original series "Warehouse 13" drew a strong a 2.4 household rating and 3.4 million viewers. That near 100% retention from the two-hour premiere is a very noteworthy indicator that audiences liked what they saw. The show also held steady among the key Adults 18-49 and Adults 25-54 demos with 1.6 (1.7) and 1.2 (1.3) million, respectively (numbers in parenthesis are from the week prior). For the second week in the row, it was the number one cable show in prime time among Adults 25-54. In other Syfy ratings news, the season 3.5 premiere of "Eureka" made a successful transition to Friday night, scoring 2.6 million viewers. While the show was down from the season 3 premiere (2.81 million viewers, 1.3 million Adults 18-49 and 1.4 Million Adults 25-54), it was up 23% among Adults 18-49 (1.1 million) and more than 19% among Adults 25-54 (1.3 million) versus the midseason finale on Tuesday, September 23, 2008. It also won its time slot among Adults 25-54.

Regarding Warehouse 13, this week BSG’s Tricia Helfer had a guest spot on the new SyFy’s show, and for the fifth episode "Elements" they have another SciFi Channel show guest spot with Stargate Atlantis star Joe Flanigan. Promotional images for the episode show Flanigan in action [more at SpoilerTV]

What to look forward to on Syfy this Summer + Comic-Con iPhone App
Syfy has released a complete list – title and synopsis – for all the upcoming episodes of its original series “Warehouse 13” (6 more episodes), “Eureka” (6 more), “Ghost Hunters International” (4 more) and “Ghost Hunters” (2 more). The network has also released a new Comic-Con app for the iPhone. The app will allow you to access all of Syfy.com and SCI FI Wire’s Comic-Con coverage including images, videos and content. You can download the app, for free, at this link

New Heroes Character Lydia Revealed + Episode Four Title Revealed and more
New information has emerged on the new “Heroes” character Lydia, or the tattooed lady, played by Dawn Olivieri. Here’s what “Heroes” executive producer/writer Adam Armus told IGN:

"Lydia is the beautiful, charming, soul of the Sullivan Brothers Carnival. This carnival is a roving band of people blessed with special abilities. They are powerful, but they hide in the shadows, performing on the outskirts of towns and cities. But all of that is about to change.

Lydia has been part of this carnival for a number of years. She is the exotic tattoo lady, but she is also a powerful empath of sorts. She has the ability to ‘sense’ the images on her body and provide valuable information about them. This ability is of great value to Samuel (Robert Knepper), the leader of the carnival. He uses Lydia’s ability to locate other ‘specials’ in the world and uses the information she provides to woo them to his side.

Lydia is compassionate towards Samuel. She understands the grief that has fueled his ambition. But will she support his ultimate destructive goals? Will she be loyal or does Lydia have her own agenda?"

In related news, SpoilerTV reports that the fourth episode of the season will be called “Ink”, while TV Guide reports on the possibility of Matt Parkman’s ex wife Janice (played by Lisa Lackey) having powers: "That would be fantastic," she says, "because, I’ve got to say, it’s a little boring being the only one who doesn’t have a power. It would be very interesting if she knew more than she was letting on."

In other Heroes news, here are some set pics of Hayden Panettiere [more at SpoilerTV]

Producer Claims He Wrote Lost Over 30 Years Ago
Producer Anthony Spinner (“Baretta”) says that he was paid $30,000 in 1977 to write a pilot that later became a 121-page script called “Lost”. Spinner is suing both ABC and Touchstone claiming that that ABC passed on his script in 1977, 1991 and 1994 before ultimately creating “Lost” at Touchstone in 2004. Normally this would be tossed off to the side, but the similarities between the two projects are hard to ignore (you can read the PDF at this link). In the suit, Spinner lists similarities not only in the plot: “airplane headed to Los Angeles [that] crashes into a tropical jungle-like environment,” but also alleges that the backgrounds and details of the “Lost” characters Jack, Locke, Sayid, Kate and Sawyer are all rip-offs of the characters featured in his script. At the same time, however, some are treating this story as just another bit of viral marketing, pointing in particular to date of 1977. If it is indeed some ARG, that’s mighty clever. In other news, Titus Welliver, who played Jacob’s counterpart on the beach, talked to TV Guide about his mysterious character:

TVGuide.com: The funny thing is they can only refer to you as "you," because they didn’t give your character a name. By what name did you know him?
Welliver: He has no name. He’s just "the man," because they don’t want to give anything away. I know that this character has a name and I know the importance of it; that’s all that I know.

TVGuide.com: So you don’t know his actual name?
Welliver: No — and I think they deliberately withheld that.

TVGuide.com: Were you only given the script pages for your scene?
Welliver: No, I got a whole script. But the thing is, unless you’re watching the show weekly, you’ve no bloody idea what’s going on. It’s not a show that you can just drop into the middle of. I had watched Lost during the first season, but then life and children sort of prevent one from being able to consistently stay with something.

Read the rest of the interview at TV Guide. And finally, executive producer Damon Lindelof told fans during a Q&A session at Curzon Cinema that Brian K. Vaughn has left the writing staff: "Unfortunately he has left for greener pastures," Lindelof said. ABC has confirmed the news.

Tom Baker Returning to Doctor Who in new Audio Series
After a 28-year absence, Tom Baker is returning to “Doctor Who” via a new audio book series. Baker has recorded five audio dramas that will be released starting in September as part of a new series called “Doctor Who: Hornets’ Nest”. The first audio play is titled "The Stuff of Nightmares" and will be released on September 3rd. It’ll be followed by "The Dead Shoes" on October 8th, "The Circus of Doom" on November 8th and both "A Sting in the Tale" and "Hive of Horror" on December 3rd. Here’s the description for the first audio plays: [via io9]

‘Wanted: retired army Captain for light household duties and fireside companionship. Must tolerate mild eccentricity and strong scientific advice. Knowledge of Giant Maggots, Super Intelligent Spiders and Prehistoric Monsters a positive boon.’ Responding to an advert apparently worded for him alone, Captain Mike Yates (retired) is reunited with a ghost from the past. But why has the Doctor, that mysterious traveller in Time and Space, sent for his former UNIT acquaintance? Trapped by a horde of vicious creatures in an apparently innocuous English country cottage, the two old friends are on the brink of an enormous adventure. As the Doctor relates his recent escapades, it becomes clear to Mike that they – and the Earth at large – are facing an enemy of unimaginable power and horrific intent. The nightmare is only just beginning… With Tom Baker as the Doctor, Richard Franklin as Mike Yates, Susan Jameson as Mrs Wibbsey and Daniel Hill as Percy Noggins, The Stuff of Nightmares is the first of five linked stories written by the acclaimed Paul Magrs.

Head on over to Once Upon a Geek to read descriptions for the other five audio plays.

New Doctor Who and Torchwood Images
In other Who-verse news, there is a new preview and images for the upcoming Doctor Who movie "The Waters of Mars" [more at The Bad Wolf TV]

And here are the latest promotional images from "Torchwood" [more at SpoilerTV: here and here]

Dominic Monaghan Confirmed for FlashForward
For several weeks now there have been rumors that Dominic Monaghan (“Lost”) would be joining the cast of ABC’s “FlashForward”. Well SpoilerTV is now confirming the rumors, reporting that the actor has “definitely joined the cast”. He’ll be playing a character named Theo. In related news, SpoilerTV has more casting call’s for episode three (see here) and episode four (see here) of the series. In all, the casting calls cover 30 characters.

Title Card Logos for FlashForward and V
Speaking of FlashForward, the title card logos for that show along with ABC’s other fall sci-fi show "V" was just revealed.

Battlestar Galactica, Lost, Pushing Daisies Receive Emmy Nominations
Nominations for the 61st annual Emmy Awards were released Thursday morning. Among SF&F programs, ABC’s "Lost" and the canceled "Pushing Daisies" each received five nominations, along with Syfy’s "Battlestar Galactica" which also received five nominations for its final year (although all were for technical categories). Also receiving nominations were HBO’s "True Blood" (3), CBS’s "Ghost Whisperer" (2), NBC’s "Heroes" (2), Syfy’s "Sanctuary" (1), ABC’s "Life on Mars" (1), The CW’s "Smallville" (1), Fox’s "Fringe" (1), Fox’s "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" (1) and the syndicated "Legend of the Seeker" (1). Also, a new category was created this year for outstanding special class – short-format live-action entertainment programs, where Ron Moore’s "Battlestar Galactica: The Face of the Enemy" and Joss Whedon’s "Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog" each received a nomination. In related news, Joss Whedon talked about the show’s nomination and the future of the project in an interview with SCI FI Wire. Full breakdowns for "Lost", "Pushing Daisies" and "Battlestar Galactica" follow below–click here to see the rest.

Lost

• Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Drama Series: "The Incident"
• Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series: Michael Emerson as Ben Linus
• Outstanding Drama Series
• Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Comedy or Drama Series (One Hour): "The Incident"
• Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series: "The Incident"

Pushing Daisies

• Outstanding Art Direction for a Single-Camera Series: "Dim Sum Lose Some"
• Outstanding Costumes for a Series: "Bzzzzzzzzz!"
• Outstanding Hairstyling for a Single-Camera Series: "Dim Sum Lose Some"
• Outstanding Makeup for a Single-Camera Series (Non-Prosthetic): "Dim Sum Lose Some"
• Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series: Kristin Chenoweth as Olive Snook

Battlestar Galactica

• Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series: "Daybreak (Part 2)"
• Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Drama Series: "Daybreak (Part 2)"
• Outstanding Sound Editing for a Series: "Daybreak (Part 2)"
• Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Comedy or Drama Series (One Hour): "Daybreak (Part 2)"
• Outstanding Special Visual Effects for a Series: "Daybreak (Part 2)"

NEW IMAGES

True Blood

Set images [more at True Blood-Online]

NEW VIDEOS

Dollhouse

Clip – labeled “Like the Sound of Our Voices” – from the episode "Epitaph One"

One more clip at this link

True Blood

Behind-the-scenes footage

One more video at this link

Vampire Diaries

Promo

Clip: "Diary"

One more clip at this link

TV BITES

• John Harrison is writing a four-hour TV miniseries based on Stephen King’s 2006 novel “CELL”, about Americans being transformed into killers by a signal sent through their cell phones. [Fangoria]
• Sci Fi, the UK counterpart to Syfy, has picked up the first-run TV rights to “Warehouse 13”. The series joins “Knight Rider”, “Dollhouse” and “Legend of the Seeker” which were previously picked up by the channel. [Digital Spy]
• Jonas Armstrong, star of the BBC series “Robin Hood”, says that the network was wrong in canceling the show insisting that it had much to offer. [Digital Spy]
• This isn’t a very substantial update, but Rose Byrne (Dormé, one of Amidala’s handmaidens, in “Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones”) tells Movieline that one of her friends is writing for the upcoming live-action “Star Wars” series and that the show will be a family drama. She also says that she hasn’t been contacted to appear on the show. [via SCI FI Wire]
• “Caprica” writer Jane Espenson tweeted that “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” writer Drew Z. Greenburg is joining the writing staff of the upcoming ‘BSG’ prequel series. [Jane Espenson]
• For an update to last week’s numbers, “Torchwood: Children of Earth” finished out its five-day run on BBC with 5.81 million viewers for its fifth episode. Overall, the miniseries averaged 5.89 million viewers (Episodes 1-5 viewers: 5.94M, 5.58M, 5.87M, 6.24M, 5.81M). [Digital Spy]
• In the fifth episode of season two of the syndicated sci-fi series “Legend of the Seeker” we’ll meet a young (20s-30s) version of Zedd. [EW]
• One word review of the un-aired “Dollhouse” episode “Epitaph One”? How about “confusing”?… [SpoilerTV and EW]
• …Meanwhile the show’s second season premiere is called “Vows”. [E! Online]
• The CW series “Supernatural” is adding a recurring character, the archangel Raphael: “a mechanic who becomes possessed by one of the most powerful beings in the universe.”… [EW]
• …More on the addition: Raphael’s specialty is healing. Also, Rob Benedict will be back in season five playing the prophet Chuck. [E! Online]
• “Sanctuary” star Christopher Heyerdahl (Johm Druitt) previews the second season of the Syfy series including what role Michael Shanks will play in an upcoming episode in which he guest-stars on. [SCI FI Wire]
• Matt Dallas, who played Kyle on the canceled ABC Family series “Kyle XY”, will play a love interest for Rebecca Romijn’s character on ABC’s “Eastwick”. [E! Online]
• 20th Century Fox has put out a casting notice to replace “Futurama” actors John DiMaggio [Bender], Maurice LaMarche, Billy West [Fry] and Katy Sagal [Leela]. It may just be a negotiating tactic on Fox’s part, who produces the show which returns in 2010 with 26 brand new episodes on Comedy Central. [Forces of Geeks via SCI FI Wire]
• Universal Studios has set an October 27th release date for “Battlestar Galactica: The Plan” on DVD and Blu-ray. The uncensored 90-minute movie will be presented along with several extras including a filmmaker commentary track, deleted scenes and featurettes. The Blu-ray version will have exclusive BD-Live content. A edited TV version will air on Syfy on November 1st. [DVD Active]

OBITS

• Canadian sci-fi author Phyllis Gotlieb passed away Tuesday, July 14th at the age of 83. Her work included 1964’s “Sunburst” and 2007’s “Birthstones”, her last novel. [SCI FI Wire]
• Charles N. Brown, co-founder, publisher and editor of the sci-fi journal “Locus” died in his sleep Sunday, July 12th. He was 72. [SCI FI Wire]

SCI FI RATINGS

CHART (7/6/2009 to 7/12/2009)

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