TV Squad

Survivor: New cast announced - VIDEO

Posted Aug 27th 2008 11:23AM by Jackie Schnoop
Filed under: OpEd, Video, Survivor, Casting

Originally, the new season of Survivor had an announced premiere date of September 18. We can scratch that now. It's been changed to two back-to-back episodes on September 25. Don't tell me they're actually thinking ahead and realize that football or something else would preempt the season premiere. It's not like CBS to realize such things!

Jeff Probst will be the host, asking his Probsting questions at Tribal Council. Read on past the jump to check out the new castaways!

Continue reading Survivor: New cast announced - VIDEO

Will ESPN enter the late night talk show game?

Posted Aug 27th 2008 8:23AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Sports, Late Night, Talk Show, Casting, Reality-Free

This is an interesting notion -- ESPN is looking to launch a late night TV show. The sports network has reportedly approached three prominent sports journalists to anchor the show, but not one of them has shown any interest. The names are Dan LeBatard, Miami Herald columnist and local sports radio host; Colin Cowherd, ESPN national radio voice; and Jason Whitlock, Kansas City Star sports writer.

While I believe that ESPN has real interest in a late night sports show -- maybe a talk format about sports and entertainment -- I have real questions about the validity of the names floated in this report, especially with regard to Whitlock.

Jason was once a regular fill-in on Pardon The Interruption. He is very smart and funny and opinionated. Apparently he was too opinionated for some at the Disney-owned network. When he refused to pull his punches in his criticism, he was dropped by ESPN. Are we to think that now ESPN has asked him to not only come back, but possibly host a show for them?

Continue reading Will ESPN enter the late night talk show game?

American Idol's new voice speaks out

Posted Aug 25th 2008 4:43PM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: American Idol, Judges, News and Gossip, Casting

Even though she just got the call about the gig a few days ago, new American Idol judge Kara DioGuardi took some time this afternoon to sit down and chat with the media via a massive conference call. As we were going along, I found myself listening as much to how she carried herself conversationally as I was to what she had to say. After all, this is going to be one of the four most listened to voices in America come January when American Idol's eighth season kicks off.

She came across as smart, knowledgeable, a bit funny and clearly overwhelmed by the enormity of the situation into which she's been thrust. She spoke about how for most of her career she's been being the scenes, as a songwriter and producer. I would say that you may have seen her on ABC's The One: Making a Music Star, but then nobody saw that. But it means she's been called to judge a singing competition before, and even saw last season's Syesha Mercado there. Hell, she's practicaly a veteran at this now.

Continue reading American Idol's new voice speaks out

She's baaaack: Michelle Rodriguez returns to Lost

Posted Aug 25th 2008 4:38PM by Kona Gallagher
Filed under: Lost, Casting, Reality-Free

Lost may be the twistiest-turniest show on TV, but there is still one thing you can always depend on: death is never the end. Producers have proven this once again by announcing the return of the late LAPD officer, Ana Lucia. Michelle Rodriguez, who played Ana Lucia during Lost's second season, wasn't exactly the most popular character the drama has ever had, so I doubt her resurrection was the result of a rabid fan uprising.

Rodriguez, of course, isn't the first deceased "Tailie" Lost has brought back. Cynthia Watros, who played Libby, appeared in one of Michael's visions last season. Rodriguez's return is fueling speculation that Mr. Eko, who met his untimely demise at the (hands?) of the smoke monster, may also return in some form.

Since we're talking about Lost here, there isn't exactly a wealth of details available about Ana Lucia's reappearance. However, there is a little bit of interesting information, which I've put after the jump for all of you spoilerphobes.

Continue reading She's baaaack: Michelle Rodriguez returns to Lost

ABC announces new cast of Dancing With the Stars

Posted Aug 25th 2008 12:02PM by Kona Gallagher
Filed under: Programming, Celebrities, Dancing With The Stars, Casting

Dancing With the Stars is a show that makes no sense to me. I understand the appeal of it; I'm usually very interested in any program that involves celebrities doing ridiculous things on national television and I know that people love bright shiny costumes, but it still somehow manages to hold no interest for me whatsoever.

With that said, I know that the announcement of each season's DWTS cast is heavily anticipated and rumored for months before the actual announcement. We heard that Dan Marino may be a contestant; a claim that was soon denied. 82-year-old Cloris Leachman was another name floated, as was Magnum, P.I. himself, Tom Selleck. Kim Kardashian and Kathy Griffin were also said to have been approached.

As with most rumors, some of these turned out to be false, but others had some truth to them. Follow me after the jump for the official (and completely insane) cast of Dancing With the Stars' seventh season, along with some twists the producers have cooked up for this go-around.

Continue reading ABC announces new cast of Dancing With the Stars

Randy, Paula, Simon ... and Kara? Idol adds judge

Posted Aug 25th 2008 10:42AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: American Idol, Judges, News and Gossip, Casting

Maybe they got tired of the criticism the current panel has been getting for their devolving into piles of cliche-ridden goo. Maybe it's a test run to see if they can find someone the audience can embrace so they can get rid of one of the other three judges. Maybe it's just because they wanted to have four judges from the beginning and it just took them a long time to get there.

Kara DioGuardi joining American Idol as a fourth judge is an interesting choice. As an award-winning songwriter and producer she definitely has the credentials to be involved as a judge on a singing competition. but the show almost never features original songs. You'd think that having a great songwriter on the panel would inspire the addition of a songwriting aspect to the show. I'd love to see the contestants challenged to write their own music, or in some cases bring some of the original music they've already created to the stage.

Continue reading Randy, Paula, Simon ... and Kara? Idol adds judge

And the newest cast member of SNL is ...

Posted Aug 21st 2008 11:02AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Saturday Night Live, Celebrities, Casting, Reality-Free

Have you been watching The Line, the online summer series from Saturday Night Live cast members Seth Meyers, Bill Hader, and Jason Sudeikis? Well, then you might already be familiar with the newest addition to the NBC late night show.

The new guy is Bobby Moynihan, who costars in the online series (about two obsessed science fiction fans waiting in line to see a popular space movie). Others might know Moynihan from his years with the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater, including his improv work on ASSSSCAT (recently with this guy).

Continue reading And the newest cast member of SNL is ...

Courtney B. Vance joins his wife on ER

Posted Aug 20th 2008 12:28PM by Kona Gallagher
Filed under: ER, Casting, Reality-Free

Okay, I'm not a doctor (surprising, I know), so maybe if you are a doctor, and your most recent medical experience is tsunami relief in Indonesia, maybe moving to County General doesn't seem so bad. Sure, it gets blown up occasionally, gunfire breaks out often, and maybe you may get taken hostage and/or stabbed by a crazy patient or two. But here's my question: Would you tell your spouse to work there too?

Apparently Angela Bassett would. Bassett, who is joining the cast of ER as a "troubled" new attending, is bringing her husband along with her. Courtney B. Vance, who spent five seasons on NBC's Law & Order: Criminal Intent as ADA Ron Carver, is also joining the cast. Vance will be playing another attending physician an the on-screen husband of his real-life wife on a recurring basis. While I'm sure that the set of ER is a perfectly safe place for Vance, I'm highly worried about the fate of his character.

Continue reading Courtney B. Vance joins his wife on ER

The immortal Valerie Bertinelli signs on for TBS sitcom

Posted Aug 20th 2008 11:05AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Pickups and Renewals, Casting

Personally, I don't think it's fair that some of these Hollywood folks get to just keep on making television shows. Especially the ones who don't age like the rest of us. I mean, what if I was waiting for Valerie Bertinelli to get too old for television? Or John Stamos, or Michael J. Fox? These people never look any older. I think they've found the Tuck's secret spring and have been sipping it for decades. In the end, there can be only one and my money's on Dick Clark. I think he is one of the Tucks.

Bertinelli has just been signed to star in a TBS sitcom as a mother of two. Good lord, One Day at a Time was more than thirty years ago! By my estimations that would make her ... let's see, she was a teenager then ... yes I know you can find her birthday easy enough online ... cross-reference how much hotter she was than Mackenzie Phillips ... then carry Schneider's creepy factor of 9.5 and you get ... one hundred and thirty two years old! Amazing! She doesn't look a day over forty-eight. I've gotta find that spring.

The Amazing Race: New teams announced

Posted Aug 20th 2008 8:02AM by Jackie Schnoop
Filed under: OpEd, The Amazing Race, Casting

The fall season of The Amazing Race is set to premiere on Sunday, September 28, at 8 PM ET/PT. Although it seems to be a bit early, CBS has already announced the teams. Looking at them, it seems my pre-season spoilers were indeed spot on. The aged hippies exist!

Phil Keoghan returns as the host of this Emmy-winning race around the world and I'm looking forward to another season of whirlwind excitement. You can check out the new teams in the gallery below and read on past the jump for more about them.

Gallery: The Amazing Race 13 teams

Continue reading The Amazing Race: New teams announced

TV Squad Soap Report: All My Children's looking for a real Iraq vet

Posted Aug 19th 2008 2:43PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: OpEd, Casting, Reality-Free

When All My Children snared veteran head writer Chuck Pratt Jr. to take the reins and "write" the S.S. Pine Valley, the scribe promised swift action. With a look toward kicking up the soap's ratings more than a notch or two. Pratt, whose credits include Desperate Housewives, Ugly Betty, Melrose Place, Life Goes On and Santa Barbara, among others is certainly capable.

I liked ABC drafting Chuck for All My Children, but I'm thinking that the announcement yesterday, an open casting call for an Iraq war veteran to play an Iraq war veteran, is a publicity stunt. The executive producer, Julie Hanan Carruthers, said in a press release that casting a real life soldier will heighten the experience for viewers. Excuse me, but I think that's utter hogwash. All My Children doesn't need an actual veteran of the war in Iraq to create a great soap opera storyline. That's why they brought in Chuck Pratt, Jr.

Continue reading TV Squad Soap Report: All My Children's looking for a real Iraq vet

Jenna Fischer wasn't sexy enough to play Sydney Bristow

Posted Aug 18th 2008 3:04PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Programming, Celebrities, Casting, Reality-Free

One of the fun games to play when it comes to TV shows is "What If." What if Mickey Rooney had been cast as Archie Bunker on All in the Family? What would have happened to the show (and to Rooney)?

That's one of interesting revelations (though that one has been known for quite some time) in the new book Mickey Rooney as Archie Bunker and Other TV Almosts by Eila Mell. It lists a bunch of actors and actresses who almost got roles we know and love. For example, Jenna Fischer (The Office) tried out for the role of Sydney Bristow on Alias, but was deemed not sexy enough for the part (as we told you about before). Whitney Houston didn't want the role of Bill Cosby's daughter on The Cosby Show so the role went to Lisa Bonet. And Leonardo DiCaprio almost played David Hasselhoff's son on Baywatch (the role went to Brandon Call and later Jeremy Jackson). That one isn't surprising at all, considering DiCaprio did work on Growing Pains and other shows.

Continue reading Jenna Fischer wasn't sexy enough to play Sydney Bristow

CSI lands Laurence Fishburne

Posted Aug 18th 2008 2:29PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: CSI, Casting, Reality-Free

As Jane wrote a couple of weeks ago, CBS was hot on the heels of landing a big name star to fill the void when William Petersen leaves CSI later this year. The names bandied about included Kurt Russell and John Malkovich, and one other major motion picture star, Laurence Fishburne. Today, the network announced Laurence Fishburne will indeed be the new addition to CSI.

His character is a forensic scientist, like Grissom, but don't expect him to have Gil's fascination with insects. No, Fishburne's man has other bugs: he's a former pathologist and college lecturer who's focused on why people commit acts of violence. It should be interesting to see how his preoccupation with the why integrates with the other CSI gang who are all Grissom-trained and generally obsessed with how a crime is done and who done it.

Fishburne will be introduced in the ninth episode when his character meets members of the CSI team during a murder investigation and ends up joining them.

Continue reading CSI lands Laurence Fishburne

Can Sigourney Weaver figure out Eli Stone?

Posted Aug 15th 2008 2:23PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Casting, Eli Stone, Reality-Free

There will be some major star power in the new season of Eli Stone. No, I'm not referring to Katie Holmes' stunt casting. I'm talking big-time star wattage. Sigourney Weaver will guest on Eli Stone as a psychologist. Eli, who is in desperate need of figuring out what he's been experiencing is the result of the brain ailment he's suffering from or something else.

Since he had brain surgery -- or so we think -- at season's end, will Eli still have the visions? Will he fulfill the imperative to Live Brave and become a leader -- prophet -- or was that not a look at the future but something else?

It's all very mysterious, and just the fact that he's going to see a shrink is positive development. Casting Sigourney Weaver is a positive as well. She's a three-time Oscar nominee and carries with her innate integrity and class.

Continue reading Can Sigourney Weaver figure out Eli Stone?

Mädchen Amick joins My Own Worst Enemy - VIDEO

Posted Aug 15th 2008 8:38AM by Brett Love
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Video, Casting, Reality-Free

Mädchen Amick - My Own Worst Enemy Some day I should probably type up an official list of the actresses who, by their mere presence, will guarantee I'll watch a series. The fact that I saw every episode of Freddie should serve as proof that Mädchen Amick is on that list. After following that up with Viva Laughlin, I think we can all agree that this latest role has her career moving in the generally upwards direction.

My Own Worst Enemy was already on my short list of new shows to keep an eye on in the fall. It's an interesting premise, has Christian Slater, and the previews look great. The addition of Amick just makes it that much more intriguing. She'll be taking over the role of Henry's wife that was originally played by Yara Martinez (The Unit). It's a bit of rough luck for Martinez. Before this she was set to appear in that ill-fated Spaced remake.

Continue reading Mädchen Amick joins My Own Worst Enemy - VIDEO

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