NBC’s announced the lineup of hosts and musical guests for the upcoming March 2018 episodes of Saturday Night Live. Season 43 of SNL continues on March 3rd with NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley taking on hosting duties. The March 3rd episode will mark the former NBA superstar’s fourth time as host. Barkley’s currently TNT’s Inside the NBA studio analyst and also acts as a studio analyst during the Turner/CBS NCAA March Madness coverage.
Barkley will be joined on the March 3rd SNL episode by Grammy Award nominees Migos who’ll be making their debut on the SNL stage. Migos just released their Culture II album, debuting in the top spot on the Billboard 200 chart during its first week in release.
First-timer Sterling K. Brown will host the March 10th episode of Saturday Night Live. Brown won a Golden Globe and two Screen Actors Guild awards for his work in NBC’s compelling dramatic series, This Is Us. He also won Emmy Awards in the Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series category for This Is Us and in the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or a Movie category for his performances as Christopher Darden in American Crime Story.
Brown’s currently in theaters playing N’Jobu in Marvel Studios’ Black Panther. He recently wrapped up work on Hotel Artemis with Jodie Foster and on writer/director Shane Black’s The Predator.
The March 10th episode will also mark the first time three-time Grammy nominee James Bay will be the variety show’s musical guest. Bay just released his new single, “Wild Love,” on February 8th.
SNL season 43 tapped Will Ferrell to host the January 27, 2018 episode, bringing back the popular alum for what turned out to be one of the highest rated episodes of the season. (Ferrell appeared in every skit including taking part in the “Weekend Update” segment.) The network’s dipping back into the alumni pool, signing up Bill Hader to host the March 17th episode. The March 17th episode will be Hader’s second time as the show’s host.
Hader’s keeping busy with the upcoming HBO comedy series, Barry. Hader created the series and serves as executive producer, director, and the series’ main star. Barry is set to premiere on March 25th.
Joining Bill Hader on the March 17th episode will be Arcade Fire. The group was the show’s musical guest on three previous occasions.
Netflix describes the new franchise trailer for Marvel’s Jessica Jones as flashbacks from the first season and an exploration of her path to season two. The new trailer has Jessica Jones (played by Krysten Ritter) kicking butt in her take-no-prisoners way of handling things while recalling what happened in her past to make her into the woman she is today.
In addition to the new trailer, Netflix has released new photos from the show’s second season. Season two is set to premiere on International Women’s Day, March 8, 2018.
Season two stars Krysten Ritter, Rachael Taylor as Trish Walker, Carrie-Anne Moss as Jeri Hogarth, Eka Darville as Malcolm Ducasse, Janet McTeer, and J.R. Ramirez. Marvel’s Jessica Jones has executive producer Melissa Rosenberg (Dexter, the Twilight films) on board as showrunner. Raelle Tucker (True Blood), Jim Chory (Marvel’s Daredevil, Marvel’s Luke Cage, Marvel’s Iron Fist) and Marvel’s Head of Television Jeph Loeb also serve as executive producers.
The Marvel’s Jessica Jones Season 2 Plot: New York City private investigator Jessica Jones (Ritter) is beginning to put her life back together after taking down her tormenter, Kilgrave. Now known throughout the city as a super-powered killer, a new case makes her reluctantly confront who she really is while digging deeper into her past to explore the reasons why.
A Look Back at the Season 1 Plot:Jessica Jones is a suspenseful, edgy look into the life of Jessica Jones, one of the most popular new Marvel characters of the last decade, as she faces demons from within and without.
After a tragic ending to her short-lived Super Hero stint, Jessica Jones is rebuilding her personal life and career as a detective who gets pulled into cases in New York City.
Poster for ‘Marvel’s Jessica Jones’ season 2.Krysten Ritter in ‘Marvel’s Jessica Jones’ season 2 (Photo Courtesy of Netflix)Krysten Ritter in ‘Marvel’s Jessica Jones’ season 2.Eka Darville as Malcolm Ducasse (Photo Credit: Netflix)David Tennant in ‘Marvel’s Jessica Jones’ (Photo Credit: Netflix)
Liv Hewson, Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant in ‘Santa Clarita Diet’ Season 2 (Photo Courtesy of Netflix)
Just days after unveiling a batch of photos from the upcoming season, Netflix has announced Santa Clarita Diet season two will premiere on Friday, March 23, 2018. The announcement was accompanied by a meme featuring the series’ stars Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant as Sheila and Joel Hammond doing their best to act like a normal suburban couple.
In addition to Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant, the season two cast includes Liv Hewson as Abby and Skyler Gisondo as Eric. The second season guest stars include Joel McHale and Maggie Lawson as Chris and Christa, married realtors in Santa Clarita and a more successful, more aggressive version of Sheila and Joel. Gerald McRaney plays Ed Thune, a retired army colonel who Joel finds very intimidating. And Zachary Knighton is featured as Paul, the chill descendant of Serbian ancestors who has been tasked with pursuing the truth of the undead, no matter who or what stands in his way.
The Santa Clarita Diet Season 2 Plot: In Santa Clarita Diet, Joel (Timothy Olyphant) and Sheila (Drew Barrymore) are husband and wife realtors leading vaguely discontented lives in the L.A. suburb of Santa Clarita with their teenaged daughter Abby (Liv Hewson), until Sheila goes through a dramatic change sending their lives down a road of death and destruction…but in a good way.
Picking up right where we left off, season two of Santa Clarita Diet finds the Hammonds trying to adapt to Sheila’s now-advanced undead state — even though she’s desperately working to hold on to her suburban lifestyle and not be defined as just another monster. Unfortunately — while the family has become markedly better at murder — the number of missing people in Santa Clarita is starting to pile up and it’s no longer going unnoticed.
Meanwhile, the Hammonds are chasing the source of the virus so they can stop it from spreading and save humanity — which seems important. Through it all, Sheila and Joel are grounded by their unconditional love for one another. Sure, being undead — or loving someone who is — isn’t always easy, but don’t all relationships have their challenges?
After taking a one month break, The CW’s Riverdale returns with season two episode 14. The new episode is set to air on March 7, 2018 and is titled “The Hills Have Eyes.” David Katzenberg directed and Ross Maxwell wrote what appears to be another very twisted and dark episode. Katzenberg previously directed season one’s eighth episode, “The Outsiders.”
The season two cast includes KJ Apa as Archie Andrews, Lili Reinhart as Betty Cooper, Camila Mendes as Veronica Lodge, Cole Sprouse as Jughead Jones, Madelaine Petsch as Cheryl Blossom, Marisol Nichols as Hermione Lodge, Mӓdchen Amick as Alice Cooper, Luke Perry as Fred Andrews, Casey Cott as Kevin Keller, Ashleigh Murray as Josie McCoy, Mark Consuelos as Hiram Lodge, and Skeet Ulrich as FP Jones.
The “Chapter Twenty-Seven: The Hills Have Eyes” Plot: A WEEKEND ESCAPE AT THE LAKE HOUSE – When Hiram (Mark Consuelos) suggests that Veronica (Camila Mendes) and Archie (KJ Apa) head up to their lake house for the weekend, Veronica decides to invite Betty (Lili Reinhart) and Jughead (Cole Sprouse) to join them. Determined to uncover Hiram’s plans for Riverdale, Jughead uses his time at the lake house to press Veronica about what she may know. Back in Riverdale, Cheryl (Madelaine Petsch) makes a surprising connection with an unlikely friend, while Josie (Ashleigh Murray) lands in hot water after revealing a secret to Kevin (Casey Cott).
When iZombie returns on February 26, 2018, zombies are now known to exist and Seattle has become a walled-in zombie-filled city. Season four will find all of the key characters, played by Rose McIver, Aly Michalka, David Anders, Robert Buckley, Rahul Kohli, and Malcolm Goodwin, dealing with escalating zombies versus humans problems.
During the San Diego Comic Con, Aly Michalka talked about Peyton’s place in this bizarre new world. She also discussed how Peyton will be caught between sympathizing with the zombies (including Liv and Major) and keeping humans safe.
Aly Michalka Interview:
How does this whole new world affect Peyton?
Aly Michalka: “I mean, it greatly affects all of our characters because now we’re living in a different society than it was three or four months ago. The secret is totally out. It’s now a known thing that zombies are among us. And, now I think it very much is zombies versus humans. There are going to be some humans who sympathize with the zombie movement, but I think most of them are going to be against it just because of the fear of being eaten alive.
You know, you’re going to have good zombies that are like Liv that are out there and eating brains ethically. And then you are going to have a large group that are just out there for themselves and they’re just causing chaos in the city.”
How does it affect Peyton’s job?
Aly Michalka: “So many people have now fled the city at this point that there’s really no one there to prosecute some of these criminals. So, she gets thrown into the mix as a prosecutor. Obviously, she’s now skipped some steps. She was just an assistant district attorney. Obviously, she took the job working for Baracus and she will still be juggling that but also at the same time dealing with these cases that are zombie versus human crimes.
I think that’s going to really weigh on her because she, I think, can sympathize with both. She’ll sympathize with the human world because she is, of course, a human. But she can sympathize with her friends like Major and Liv – possibly Ravi – who are now having to deal with being this freak of nature, this monster out in society. I think she’s going to have to figure out really who she’s going to stand up for, whose side is she going to be for. And I don’t know where the writers are necessarily going to go with this season for Peyton, but I hope that she continues to defend her friends.”
Is there something you like to see happen with Peyton this season?
Aly Michalka: “I would love to see her in her workplace more, just dealing with the week-to-week cases and also getting roped into some with Liv. I know that they were saying that Ravi and I are going to be involved in a little bit more of the brains that she’s eating than normal, so you’ll see us out on rendezvous with her which should be really interesting because you don’t really see Peyton out with Liv that much when Liv is trying to investigate a crime and solve a murder. You’ve seen her in the stripper episode which I thought was really funny and fantastic, but it’s still a little bit new for Peyton to be fully brought into the fold on, ‘Okay, this is what I’m dealing with this week. This is the brain.’ Only really season three did we start to really delve into that. And now I think in season four you’re going to see that more in depth.”
Do you think there’s anything that could happen that would make her not want to support Liv at this point?
Aly Michalka: “I think that Chase Graves beliefs that he is pushing is the only negative factor in the scenario. And that’s because he’s so enthusiastic about protecting the zombie race that it might not be for the right reasons. There’s a downside to his enthusiasm, to his crazy, insane beliefs. I think that’s the only thing that makes Peyton kind of go, ‘Wait a minute. This guy might be using this for the wrong reasons – this zombie power.'”
Does Peyton worry about Liv losing herself when she changes into these different personalities?
Aly Michalka: “I think she’s now so used to seeing the change. It’s almost like a hormonal moment. It happens every time she eats a new brain. It’s like, ‘Well, okay. Wonder what this is going to be.’ But she’s kind of braced herself for those moments.
I think the first initial impact of, ‘Okay, my friend’s a zombie. I’ve got to wrap my head around this,’ I think that that was the hardest blow for her to take. I think now she knows what she’s up against. She’s like, ‘Okay, this is who my friend is now.’ At the end of the day, her heart is never going to change. Maybe her personality changes, but I still know her heart.”
The Office‘s Jenna Fischer and Scream Queens‘ Oliver Hudson team up for ABC’s new comedy series, Splitting Up Together. The dysfunctional relationship comedy is based on the Danish series of the same name created by Mette Heeno, with Heeno serving as an executive producer on the American version. Ellen DeGeneres, Emily Kapnek, Jeff Kleeman, and Dean Holland also executive produce the half-hour comedy which will debut on March 27, 2018.
In addition to Jenna Fischer and Oliver Hudson, season one of Splitting Up Together stars Bobby Lee, Lindsay Price, Olivia Keville, Van Crosby, and Sander Thomas.
The Plot: Lena and Martin were once madly in love. But, like many marriages, time and circumstance eventually took their toll. Lena, the perfectionist, fell into the role of caretaker for everyone, including Martin. Martin felt he could never do anything right and gave up making the effort. This created a romantic rift between them. Finding themselves in a platonic marriage and acting more like a pair of camp counselors wrangling their kids than a couple hopelessly in love, they decide that everyone’s lives would be better served if they got a divorce.
Still wanting the best for their three kids and facing a daunting real estate market, the couple decide not to sell their house and to “Bird Nest” instead. One parent will live in the house as the “on-duty” parent taking care of the kids, while the “off-duty” parent will live in the detached garage, doing whatever he or she pleases. They will switch off every other week.
Their kids, 7-year-old Milo (Sander Thomas), 14-year-old pre-pubescent Mason (Van Crosby) and 15-year-old feminist Mae (Olivia Keville), seem to be taking the divorce in stride. While Lena, the consummate caretaker, has to learn to loosen her reigns, Martin, who has always taken a backseat when it comes to parenting, needs to learn how to step up his game.
Then there are Lena and Martin’s married friends, Camille (Lindsay Price) and Arthur (Bobby Lee). Camille, stunning and way out of Arthur’s league, is sad to lose their best couple friends. Arthur, aware he married up, begins to question the stability of his own marriage when his friends’ falls apart. And Lena’s sister, Maya (Diane Farr), a serial dater who often gets in her own way due to her terrible taste in men, thinks that her sister is too rigid and needs to chill out if she’s ever going start dating again.
As Lena begins to dip her toes into the dating waters, Martin begins to see his own culpability in his marriage falling apart. When Martin realizes that it all began when he refused to dance with Lena at their wedding, he wants to atone for it. He secretly takes dance lessons to surprise Lena by dancing with her on what would be their upcoming wedding anniversary. Could being apart ultimately lead to them getting back together?
Jenna Fischer and Oliver Hudson star in ‘Splitting Up Together’ (ABC/Eric McCandless)Bobby Lee and Lindsay Price in ‘Splitting Up Together (ABC/Eric McCandless)Diane Farr in ‘Splitting Up Together’ (ABC/Eric McCandless)Jenna Fischer and Oliver Hudson (ABC/Eric McCandless)Diane Farr, Geoff Pierson, Bobby Lee, and Lindsay Price (ABC/Eric McCandless)Van Crosby and Olivia Keville in ‘Splitting Up Together’ (ABC/Ron Tom)
Asher Angel, Sofia Wylie, Joshua Rush, Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Lilan Bowden, Lauren Tom, and Stoney Westmoreland in ‘Andi Mack’ (Disney Channel / Craig Sjodin)
Disney Channel has renewed the coming of age series Andi Mack for a third season. The show debuted on Disney Channel in April 2017 and has reached more than 40 million total viewers. It also ranks in the top 10 among shows for kids, according to Disney Channel.
The cast features Peyton Elizabeth Lee as Andi Mack, Lilan Bowden as Bex Mack, Lauren Tom as Celia Mack, Joshua Rush as Cyrus Goodman, Sofia Wylie as Buffy Driscoll and Asher Angel as Jonah Beck. Guest stars include Trent Garrett as Bowie Quinn, Stoney Westmoreland as Henry “HAM” Mack, Emily Skinner as Amber, Luke Mullen as T.J., and Darius Marcell as Walker.
Terri Minsky (Lizzie McGuire) created Andi Mack and executive produces. Michelle Manning (The Breakfast Club, Disney Channel’s Adventures in Babysitting) also serves as an executive producer.
“A series about a girl discovering that her sister is really her mother was new territory for Disney Channel, but Terri’s honest, authentic storytelling allowed our audience to connect deeply to these characters and their journeys of self-discovery,” said Gary Marsh, president and chief creative officer, Disney Channels Worldwide. “What she has crafted stands as a high-water benchmark for kids and family storytelling around the world.”
Filming on season three will take place in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The Plot: In season one, Andi and her loving yet overprotective parents (now known to be her grandparents), Celia and “HAM,” must learn to adjust to having Bex home. Andi, with Bex’s encouragement, begins to step outside her comfort zone, particularly when it comes to approaching the most intriguing guy at Jefferson Middle School – Jonah Beck, whom she quickly realizes is dating a high school girl, Amber. Then Andi’s father Bowie arrives to meet the daughter he never knew existed, and Andi dives headfirst into pursuing her picture-perfect happy ending.
In season two, Andi is anchored by her loving albeit complicated family. She’s also in a trio with Cyrus and Buffy – her smart, supportive friends who are figuring out the most useful “hacks” to their young teen lives, too. Then suddenly, there’s all-new territory for Andi to navigate – the possibility that Jonah Beck might like her, too. Andi proves her greatest strength may lie in her ability to approach life’s unpredictability with optimism. She also finds solace by tapping into her creativity in her backyard hideaway, the Andi Shack.
Jasmine Mathews, Brendan Scannell, Melanie Field, Grace Victoria Cox, and James Scully star in ‘Heathers’ (Photo Credit: Paramount Network)
1989’s Heathers earned three Independent Spirit Awards nominations (winning one) and a Sundance Film Festival nomination, but it didn’t exactly set the box office on fire when it debuted on March 31, 1989. A very limited theatrical release raked in $1.1 million domestically before the film exited theaters. However thanks to home video, Heathers has reached cult classic status.
Heathers was directed by Michael Lehman from a script by Daniel Waters and starred Winona Ryder and Christian Slater. The dark comedy’s set in an Ohio high school and follows the Heathers – the most popular girls in school – as one of their own begins to realize she no longer wants to be part of this exclusive clique.
Paramount Network’s set to launch a new version of Heathers with the March 7, 2018 premiere of a series inspired by the ’80s comedy. Season one of Heathers stars Grace Victoria Cox (Under the Dome) as Veronica Sawyer, James Scully as JD, Melanie Field (Wicked) as Heather Chandler, Brendan Scannell as Heather Duke, and Jasmine Mathews as Heather McNamara.
Heathers fans can expect to see one of the stars of the original film, Shannen Doherty, show up as a guest star in a few episodes.
The series comes from writer, executive producer, and showrunner Jason Micallef (Butter), with Lesley Headland executive producing and directing multiple episodes. Gary Lucchesi and Brad Gardener also serve as executive producers.
The Plot: Set in the present day, “good girl” Veronica Sawyer (Cox) deals with a very different but equally vicious group of ‘Heathers.’ Heather Chandler (Field) is the unconventional leader of this popular high school clique and rules Westerburg High through fear, intimidation and amazing fashion sense.
Heather Duke (Scannell) is Heather C’s #1 sidekick and harnesses the Heather’s power to destroy whoever he views as a total discount hobgoblin. Heather McNamara (Mathews) is considered the nicest Heather in the group who lives in the shadow of the others. She’s hiding a dark secret that she doesn’t want to be exposed. JD Dean (Scully) is the new boy in town with a dark side and sets out on a reckless path of destruction proving that no one, even his girlfriend Veronica is safe.
Edited on February 28, 2018. Statement by Paramount Network: “Paramount Network’s original series Heathers is a satirical comedy that takes creative risks in dealing with many of society’s most challenging subjects ranging from personal identity to race and socio-economic status to gun violence. While we stand firmly behind the show, in light of the recent tragic events in Florida and out of respect for the victims, their families and loved ones, we feel the right thing to do is delay the premiere until later this year.”
Edited on June 1, 2018: Paramount Network has decided not to move forward with Heathers. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter Paramount Network’s President of Development and Production Keith Cox said, “This is a high school show, we’re blowing up the school, there are guns in the school, it’s a satire and there are moments of teachers having guns. It’s hitting on so many hot topics. This company can’t be speaking out of both sides of its mouth, saying the youth movement is important for us and we’ve done all these wonderful things to support that and at the same time, we’re putting on a show that we’re not comfortable with.”
Jasmine Mathews and Brendan Scannell fashionably mourn the loss of their best friend Heather Chandler in ‘Heathers’ (Photo Credit: Paramount Network)Veronica (Grace Victoria Cox) and JD (James Scully) think they’ve killed the lead Heather (Photo Credit: Paramount Network)Jasmine Mathews as Heather McNamara, the Heather who is keeping a big secret she’s terrified of getting out (Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures)James Scully portrays JD, the new boy in town with a twisted past. (Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures)Grace Victoria Cox stars as Veronica Sawyer. (Photo Credit: Paramount Network)Brendan Scannell portrays Heather Duke in ‘Heathers’ (Photo Credit: Paramount Network)Melanie Field portrays Heather Chandler, the leader of the the Heathers (Photo Credit: Paramount Network)
The CW’s iZombie season four takes place in a world in which Seattle’s been walled off and is a zombie haven. At the end of season three, Major Lilywhite (Robert Buckley) transformed into a zombie again to help out Fillmore-Graves. In season four, Major will be mentoring young zombies as Seattle settles into this new reality.
Season four will premiere on February 26, 2018 with Buckley, Rose McIver, Rahul Kohli, Aly Michalka, and David Anders back in starring roles.
During the 2017 San Diego Comic Con, Robert Buckley provided a brief sneak peek at what’s going on with Major as season four begins. The world has changed forever with the reveal of zombies, so how will that affect Major moving forward? “That’s a tough question to answer because they have really sort of hit reset,” explained Buckley. “It’s a whole new world we’re going into in season four. I mean, it’s three months after we left season three and now the zombies are out. That’s well known. Seattle is now walled off. There was a mass exodus of people out. There’s not enough brains for the zombies there so they’re very tense, pissed off, and hungry. The humans aren’t trusting the zombies and the zombies aren’t trusting the humans. I think it’s a very volatile situation.”
Buckley added, “I think we’re going to find Major firmly committed to Fillmore-Graves and their cause, but how that would affect his relationship with Liv and the others – or people in general – is not certain yet.”
Given the fact Major’s so committed to the company at this point, Buckley’s not sure what Major’s reaction would be if he was offered a cure and had the ability to be human again. ““Boy, I don’t know. It depends. I don’t know what’s left for him there,” said Buckley.
“My gut would be, ‘Yeah, of course.’ I feel like he’s always wanted to be a human but, in this case, it was sort of like I think it was such an awful thing to happen and I think to Major, he is someone who has such a strong moral compass. I think he just realized what happened was absolutely awful and wrong. ‘What can I do to fix it besides forfeit my humanity, my self to this cause?’ So, I think until at least he feels like he’s kind of completed that mission or provided some justice for those people, I don’t think so.”
The CW’s Supernatural season 13 episode 14 welcomes back a beloved character from the Supernatural world. Jim Beaver will be guest starring, reprising his role as Bobby Singer. Episode 14 is titled “Good Intentions” and is set to air on March 1, 2018. PJ Pesce directs from a script by Meredith Glynn.
Episode 14 will mark Jim Beaver’s first appearance in season 13. His character (a fan favorite) was killed off in season seven’s 10th episode (“Death’s Door”), but returned in later seasons to help out the Winchesters.
The season 13 cast includes Jensen Ackles as Dean, Jared Padalecki as Sam, Misha Collins as Castiel, Mark Pellegrino as Lucifer, Alexander Calvert as Jack, and Samantha Smith as Mary Winchester.
The “Good Intentions” Plot: JIM BEAVER GUEST STARS AS BOBBY SINGER – Jack (Calvert) and Mary (Smith) manage to escape Michael’s (guest star Christian Keyes) clutches and end up finding an ally in “apocalyptic world” Bobby Singer (guest star Jim Beaver). Meanwhile, Sam (Padalecki), Dean (Ackles) and Castiel (Collins) continue to search for a way to open a breach, not realizing that one of their own may be working against them and costing them precious time.
The Season 13 Plot: The exciting journey of the Winchester brothers continues as Supernatural enters its thirteenth season. Sam and Dean have encountered every kind of supernatural threat, facing down monsters, demons, and gods. Saving people, hunting things, and keeping the world safe. In the show’s twelfth season, the Winchesters were reunited with their long-dead mother, and joined forces with the British arm of the Men of Letters. But things turned from bad to worse, with the return of Lucifer and the surprising revelation that the Devil is expecting a child. Now, Sam and Dean find themselves facing a creature of almost unimaginable power… one that could save the world… or destroy it.
