Pedro Pascal in ‘Narcos’ season 3 (Photo Credit: Netflix)
Netflix’s third season of the critically acclaimed drama series, Narcos, has unveiled a new official trailer. The series switches focus from Pablo Escobar to the new kings of cocaine, the Cali Cartel, who took over the crown after Escobar’s death. Pedro Pascal reprises his role as DEA agent Javier Peña in the third season set to premiere on September 1, 2017.
Season three’s new key characters include:
• Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela (Damian Alcazar) – leader of Cali Cartel, “boss of bosses”
• Miguel Rodriguez Orejuela (Francisco Denis) – the brains behind the rise of the of Cali Cartel and Gilberto’s brother
• Pacho Herrera (Alberto Ammann) – the on-the-low hitman, runs the Mexican connection and international distribution
• Chepe Santacruz Londono (Pepe Rapazote) – runs the satellite NYC empire of the Colombian drug network
• Jorge Salcedo (Matias Varela) – Cali’s head of security who prioritizes his wife and kids’ protection over his bosses
• DEA agents Chris Feistl (Michael Stahl-David) and Daniel Van Ness (Matt Whelan) who enter the operation with enthusiasm and inexperience
• Franklin Jurado (Miguel Angel Silvestre) – the cartel’s money launderer who unknowingly puts his wife, Christina (Kerry Bishe) in mortal danger
• David Rodriguez (Arturo Castro) – Miguel’s oldest son, who is reluctant at first to take a leading role in the cartel structure
The Plot: Now that the bloody hunt for Pablo Escobar has ended, the DEA turns its attention to the richest drug trafficking organization in the world: the Cali Cartel. Led by four powerful godfathers, this cartel operates much differently than Escobar’s, preferring to bribe government officials and keep its violent actions out of the headlines.
Just as Gilberto announces a bold plan to walk away from the business, DEA agent Javier Peña (Pedro Pascal) enlists the help of American and Colombian law enforcement to take it down. This season opens up a complex and ruthless world of new figures. This time around, all rules have changed for the narcos and their opponents – a fact many won’t realize until it’s too late.
MGM’s released a new trailer and poster for the remake of the ’70s action thriller, Death Wish. The 2017 film’s based on Wendell Mayes’ 1974 classic starring Charles Bronson, subbing in Bruce Willis for Bronson. The cast also includes Vincent D’Onofrio, Elisabeth Shue, Camila Morrone, Dean Norris, and Kimberly Elise. Eli Roth (Hostel, Cabin Fever) directed from a script by Joe Carnahan (The Grey), with Roger Birnbaum producing.
Death Wish will open in theaters on November 22, 2017.
The Plot: Dr. Paul Kersey (Bruce Willis) is a surgeon who only sees the aftermath of Chicago violence when it is rushed into his ER – until his wife (Elisabeth Shue) and college-age daughter (Camila Morrone) are viciously attacked in their suburban home. With the police overloaded with crimes, Paul, burning for revenge, hunts his family’s assailants to deliver justice. As the anonymous slayings of criminals grabs the media’s attention, the city wonders if this deadlyvigilante is a guardian angel or a grim reaper. Fury and fate collide in the intense, action-thriller Death Wish.
Paul Kersey becomes a divided person: A man who saves lives, and a man who takes them; a husband and father trying to take care of his family, and a shadowy figure fighting Chicago crime; a surgeon extracting bullets from suspects’ bodies, and the vigilante called “The Grim Reaper” who detectives are quickly closing in on.
The cast of MTV’s ‘Teen Wolf’ at the 2017 San Diego Comic-Con
MTV’s Teen Wolf said goodbye to their fans with one last trip to the San Diego Comic-Con in support of season 6B, the show’s final season. In addition to taking part in their last Comic-Con panel as a cast, the Teen Wolf stars also sat down for roundtable interviews to discuss the final episodes of the supernatural series. Chatting with Dylan Sprayberry, Teen Wolf‘s Alpha-in-Training Liam Dunbar, we discovered what he thinks Liam will be doing in 10 years and what fans can expect as the series wraps up its six year run.
What’s Liam going to be going through this season?
Dylan Sprayberry: “I don’t know. His girlfriend’s gone – Liam’s girlfriend’s gone – so I think that’s a big issue for him because he’s kind of alone now. He doesn’t have anyone to fall back on. I think he’s getting closer and closer to becoming the leader of the pack, you know, with time. I think he’s kind of stressing out about that because every season Liam takes on more responsibility. I think that that’s always going to be a constant struggle, especially with his anger thing.”
Is this second half of season six something you really look forward to the fans getting to check out?
Dylan Sprayberry: “Yeah. I mean, I look forward to the fans seeing every season but this is the last one and we all put everything into it. We really gave it our all. I’ve seen a lot of the stuff and there’s a lot of really good performances. It’s ending the whole show so it’s a little nerve-wracking because not everyone might like how it ends so you don’t know. But, I think we’ve killed this season so I can’t wait for everyone to see it.”
What was it like to have the gang all back together?
Dylan Sprayberry: “It was great. We all have different storylines so we work at different times. We have different plots and stuff. But, it was great just having them back on set. I worked with Tyler Hoechlin in season four a little bit, and I was there the day he wrapped from the show and then he came back. It’s just good to have the family back together. I’ve met Colton (Haynes) here and there, and I know Max and Charlie (Carver). Max isn’t back but Charlie is. It’s just good to have everyone back. It was like a really full, fun set this last season.”
Does Liam team up with anyone that we might not expect him to?
Dylan Sprayberry: “I mean, he’s with Theo. He’s still teaming up with Theo. They kind of have a really funny relationship. I don’t think we anticipated for people to like it as much as they did in the last part of the season. But everyone does so they just played on that and wrote more stuff for me and Cody to do.
For Liam, it’s Liam and Theo, and Liam and Mason pretty much. And then the rest of the group and everything. But I think probably the only one is Theo.”
Have they been writing more comedy for Liam? Is that something you requested?
Dylan Sprayberry: “I didn’t really request it, I don’t think. But I think kind of as we’ve been doing the show, Jeff will write things here and there and the writers will test stuff out. Like, ‘Let’s give him a funny line and see if it works.’ I think ever since I did that ‘fell in a hole’ thing, that’s kind of when everyone really was like, ‘Okay, he can be funny.’ Since then they’ve been writing more and more funny stuff. I definitely have some really cool comedic moments in the last season that are going to be really funny that I’m excited for everyone to see.”
Looking back over the seasons, is there an episode that’s really Liam’s defining episode?
Dylan Sprayberry: “There’s going to be a lot of stuff this season. This season that we just did is really like the first one I really felt Liam was very adult. The character was a little bit more respectable. You know what I mean? Liam’s always been a good character, but in terms of just the tone – it’s overall a lot more adult. He just seems grown up this season.
I think there’s been all kinds of scenes that define Liam. There’s been a couple things, but he’s always struggled with his anger. He’s not completely there yet, but I feel like this season is setting him up to be (better). What I’m trying to say is this season’s really defining Liam as going forward.”
Did you find it interesting the show’s going full circle in that instead of hunting supernatural creatures, you’re being hunted?
Dylan Sprayberry: “Yeah. I think in terms of the show the way that they mapped it out, that’s really cool. And I also think that just as an actor it was fun to do that. In the season before this, we had the beast which was fun but that’s like a big animated character and you should really act. Whereas we got to work with all real people for the most part and it was a lot easier to play to, a lot closer to home because it’s kind of like if you see a gun in real life that’s scary and then you act that out, it’s also scary. It’s kind of hard to imagine, ‘What would it be like if I see a beast in real life?’ You kind of have to do some tweaking in your brain to make that work for you, whereas running from someone shooting at you is a lot easier and more real to play. So, I think for the actors that was fun going back to that. I remember seeing the hunters in season one and two, and I was like, ‘That would be cool to do.’ The gunfights are fun to film.
I like doing the real people. There’s something about it that was a lot easier to do.”
What was the hardest goodbye?
Dylan Sprayberry: “I don’t know. I’m going to miss everybody. I worked with Tyler (Posey) and Khylin (Rhambo) the most, and Cody (Christian), but I live really close to Cody so I see him all the time. I live pretty close to Tyler. I think I’ll probably miss Khylin the most because we have so much fun filming and he lives two hours away. Unless we’re doing this Con stuff, we still talk but we don’t see each other as much because of our physical locations. I think I’ll miss living with him because he lived at my house while we were filming. I’ll miss that roommate/bachelor thing. We were together 24/7 when we were filming. We were always driving to set together, so I think I’ll miss that routine. But, I’m close to everyone on set.”
If we were to catch up with Liam in 10 years, what would he be doing?
Dylan Sprayberry: “I feel like he would get back together with his girlfriend. I think he would. I just really like them – their relationship – so I think that would happen. I don’t know. We didn’t really explore too much what Liam would be doing as a career as an adult because I think his character was still kind of young on the show. But, I think he’s probably still in Beacon Hills. He’s probably either… I don’t know what happens with Scott. I don’t know if he stays the Alpha or what he does so I’d say Liam’s either right there beside him still or Liam’s the new leader. He really cares about the pack and I think he wouldn’t abandon them. I don’t know. Maybe he’s a mechanic. Maybe he works at the grocery store and then he fights crime at night. I like that. He’s the manager in a local Beacon Hills grocery store.”
Watch the full Dylan Sprayberry Teen Wolf interview:
‘The Walking Dead’ Season 8 (Photo Courtesy of AMC)
Andrew Lincoln says although his knees hurt and he’s gone grey, he’s happy to have made it through 100 episodes of AMC’s The Walking Dead. The series released a three-minute video featuring the cast thanking The Walking Dead fans and crediting them with the show’s success. Heroes and villains in the series teamed up to send their love to the show’s passionate fan base whose support allowed the series to make it past the 100 episode milestone.
The Walking Dead season eight is set to premiere on October 22, 2017 at 9pm ET/PT. In addition to Andrew Lincoln, returning (surviving) cast members include Norman Reedus, Melissa McBride, Lauren Cohan, Danai Gurira, Alanna Masteron, Josh McDermitt, Seth Gillaim, Ross Marquand, Khary Payton, Tom Payne, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Austin Amelio, Chandler Riggs, and Lennie James.
Additional proof of how popular the show’s remained came following the season eight trailer debut at the 2017 San Diego Comic Con. After its premiere at Comic Con, the trailer was released online where it was watched more than 31 million times over its first four days, setting a new record for The Walking Dead trailers.
Commenting on the trailer’s popularity, AMC, SundanceTV and AMC Studios President Charlie Collier said, “Thank you to the fans for, once again, filling Hall H at Comic-Con, our lucky seventh year in a row sharing this hallowed, fan-first experience. And, since Friday’s The Walking Dead panel ended, thanks to fans all over the world for watching our season eight trailer more than 31 million times, and counting. To receive this type of record-breaking response heading into the series’ 100th episode is beyond gratifying. We look forward to sharing so much more with you as we count down to an unforgettable season.”
The Teen Choice 2017 awards named Maroon 5 as the recipient of the Decade Award in honor of the “band’s evolution over the past 10 years.” The Grammy Award-winning band will receive the Decade Award during the two-hour Teen Choice 2017 show airing live from the University of Southern California on Sunday, August 13th on Fox. The network also confirmed the list of performers set to take the stage during this year’s awards show.
California rapper Kyle will open the show performing his hit single, “iSpy,” with Lil Yachty. Lil Yachty’s also set to perform his single, “Forever Young.” Rita Ora’s confirmed to perform “Your Song” and Rae Sremmurd’s performing “Black Beatles.” French Montana and Swae Lee will take the stage for a performance of the single, “Unforgettable.” Teen Choice 2017 will also feature Louis Tomlinson performing with Bebe Rexha, and Clean Bandit performing with Zara Larsson.
The list of celebrities scheduled to appear on the awards show includes Chris Pratt, Janel Parrish, Lucy Hale, Tyler Posey, The Dolan Twins, Hudson Yang, Yara Shahidi, and Victoria Justice. Ed Sheeran, Zendaya, Millie Bobby Brown, Gal Gadot, Tyler Hoechlin, Grant Gustin, Melissa Benoist, Olivia Munn, Bella Thorne, Katherine Langford, Maddie Ziegler, Grace Vanderwaal, and the cast of Riverdale will also be a part of this year’s awards show.
Dwayne Johnson and Steve Guttenberg in ‘Ballers’ season 3 (Photo by Jeff Daly / HBO)
HBO’s Ballers continues its third season with four new half-hour episodes in August 2017. The adult comedy was created by Stephen Levinson, with Levinson, Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson, Dany Garcia, Peter Berg, Evan Reilly, Rob Weiss, Julian Farino, Denis Biggs, and Karyn McCarthy executive producing. The cast is led by Dwayne Johnson and includes Rob Corddry, Troy Garity, John David Washington, Omar Benson Miller, and Dule Hill.
The Season 3 Plot: After baring his soul at the rookie symposium and undergoing hip surgery, Spencer Strasmore returns with a new outlook and fresh goals, hoping to forge bonds with new players across the country while improving his relationships with existing clients. With league certification in hand, Joe Krutel and Spencer go after a jackpot deal. Ricky Jerret’s newfound discoveries affect his personal and professional life; Vernon Littlefield and Reggie accept a risky endorsement deal; ex-player Charles Greane learns that working in the front office is as rough as playing on the gridiron; and Jason Antolotti continues to orchestrate deals to satisfy both players’ bank accounts and their oversized egos.
In an ever-changing business where the shelf life for stardom and multi-million-dollar contracts are short, Spencer is intent on proving that the key to successful sports management isn’t just about making money and having fun – it’s about delivering on the promises you make. Looking at the whirlwind lifestyles and real-life problems of former and current football players, Ballers stars Dwayne Johnson as ex-superstar Spencer Strasmore, who has reinvented himself as a financial manager for today’s players in sun-soaked Miami.
Ballers August 2017 Episodes:
Episode #23 (season 3, episode 3): “In the Teeth”
Debut date: SUNDAY, AUG. 6 (10:00-10:30 p.m. ET/PT)
Spencer (Dwayne Johnson) encounters resistance to his Vegas expansion initiative in LA and Oakland. Joe (Rob Corddry) takes a detour with Reggie (London Brown); Jason (Troy Garity) blasts Kisan (Kris Lofton) for his lack of transparency; Charles (Omar Benson Miller) bristles over Larry’s (Dulé Hill) failure to give him credit for a lineman he landed; Ricky (John David Washington) jumps to conclusions.
Written by Carter Harris; directed by David Katzenberg.
Episode #24 (season 3, episode 4): “Ride and Die”
Debut date: SUNDAY, AUG. 13 (10:00-10:30 p.m.)
Desperate to score a key owner’s blessing to bring pro football to Vegas, Spencer (Dwayne Johnson) and Joe (Rob Corddry) find themselves in a race against the clock involving a pair of equally critical meetings. Spurned by his new teammates, Ricky (John David Washington) stages his own private workout, and finds roses aren’t enough to appease an angry Amber (Brittany S. Hall). Vernon (Donovan Carter) looks for a second chance; tensions between Charles (Omar Benson Miller) and Larry (Dulé Hill) escalate after a tryout for Kisan (Kris Lofton).
Written by Rob Weiss; directed by David Katzenberg.
Episode #25 (season 3, episode 5): “Make Believe”
Debut date: SUNDAY, AUG. 20 (10:15-10:45 p.m.)
Spencer (Dwayne Johnson) faces new challenges getting Wayne (Steve Guttenberg) to finance his Vegas initiative, and ponders his place in the big picture. Looking to mend a long-festering feud between Larry (Dulé Hill) and Coach Berg (Peter Berg), Julie (Jazmyn Simon) persuades Charles (Omar Benson Miller) to invite both men over for a home-cooked meal. Vernon (Donovan W. Carter ) is surprised by an unscheduled visit from a league official; Joe (Rob Corddry) becomes obsessed with virtual reality; Ricky (John David Washington) loses focus and pays the price.
Written by Evan Reilly; directed by Chloe Domont.
Episode #26 (season 3, episode 6): “I Hate New York”
Debut date: SUNDAY, AUG. 27 (10:25-10:55 p.m.)
With the owners’ meeting a week away, Spencer (Dwayne Johnson), Joe (Rob Corddry) and Mr. Anderson (Richard Schiff) head north in search of financing for a Vegas stadium. Larry (Dulé Hill) tests the limits of Charles’ (Omar Benson Miller) loyalty and patience; Ricky (John David Washington) gets a sobering diagnosis, and presses Jason (Troy Garity) to close a deal.
Written by Steve Sharlet; directed by Millicent Shelton.
Patricia Heaton, Charlie McDermott, Atticus Shaffer, Eden Sher and Neil Flynn star in ‘The Middle’ (Photo by Craig Sjodin / ABC)
ABC announced the ninth season of the comedy series The Middle will be the show’s final season. Season nine starring Patricia Heaton, Neil Flynn, Charlie McDermott, Eden Sher, and Atticus Shaffer will premiere on Tuesday, October 3, 2017 at 8pm ET/PT. The half-hour family comedy was created by Eileen Heisler and DeAnn Heline.
“The Heck family has been part of the ABC family for almost a decade. It’s rare for a series to have this type of longevity, and we are proud to have been its home. We’ve watched Axl, Sue and Brick grow up right before our eyes under Frankie and Mike’s unique parenting style,” stated Channing Dungey, president, ABC Entertainment while announcing the show’s finale season. “I’m looking forward to the fitting and happy ending the producers will give the Hecks and our viewers.”
Warner Bros. Television Group President and Chief Content Officer Peter Roth added, “For eight remarkable seasons, Eileen Heisler and DeAnn Heline have crafted a wonderfully relatable, honest, funny and authentic world of middle class life in the heartland of America. The writing, acting and craftsmanship have been superb, and the show has been vividly brought to life each week by the incomparable Patricia Heaton, Neil Flynn, Charlie McDermott, Eden Sher, Atticus Shaffer and a creative team that has poured its heart and soul into each and every episode. We look forward to a memorable final season for The Middle, and we thank our passionate and loyal fans!”
“Last year we sat down with our cast and made the bittersweet decision together that in this ninth season it is time to bring the Hecks’ story to a close. It’s been an amazing run, a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and we’re looking forward to having an entire year to say goodbye,” said creators/executive producers Eileen Heisler and DeAnn Heline. “Plus, we wanted to go out before too many people knew we were on the air.”
Kelly Lynch and Harry Treadaway star in ‘Mr. Mercedes.’ (Photo Credit: AT&T AUDIENCE Network)
AT&T Audience Network’s Mr. Mercedes had a huge presence at the 2017 Comic Con where Mr. Mercedes‘ crazy yellow smile face logo was spotted all around downtown San Diego. The cast including Harry Treadaway, Kelly Lynch, Holland Taylor, Jharrel Jerome, and Breeda Wool were also present at the sold-out convention, participating in a panel with fans and in roundtable interviews where they discussed the dramatic thriller based on the first novel in Stephen King’s book series. In our interview with Kelly Lynch, she shared how she approached the role of Deb Hartsfield (mom to the titular character), working with Harry Treadaway, and her admiration for Stephen King’s work.
AT&T Audience Network is set to debut Mr. Mercedes on August 9, 2017.
She’s a really interesting character in the book.
Kelly Lynch: “Deb Hartsfield, those were big, alcoholic, crazy, agoraphobic shoes to fill.”
How difficult was that and what did you do to kind of get into her?
Kelly Lynch: “First of all, just the source material, like with Harry (Treadaway), that was it. That was amazing. And David Kelley just made sure the essence of what we needed was all there in those scripts. I felt like I don’t know why but it was weirdly organic for me. I just felt like I understood her. I’m a mother, I don’t have a son – I have a daughter the age of the Brady Hartsfield character – and I just understood this girl.
I talk about it as an actor that luck is almost more important than anything in a person’s life. I believe this. I believe that bad people aren’t born, for the most part. There might be some bad seeds but I feel like bad people are made and they’re victims of circumstance. And they’re human, you know? I never thought of Deb as a bad mother even. I felt like her son suffers from crippling migraines and who knows how they found their way to this place, but she takes care of him a little bit sexually and that takes his mind off of things. And, also, the fact that he has nobody who cares for him – no girl. At one point in the episodes I say, ‘You’re so handsome. You’re so smart. You’re so resourceful. You’re so incredible. I would think that girls would be dripping off of you.’ She really sees Brady as this. She’s so proud of him. He holds two jobs for them. He takes care of everything for her. She can’t leave the house. She does not leave the house until she does…which is a really amazing situation for her. She tries to pull herself back into the world. And, by the way, you will root for her. You’ll see her as a human being and you’ll see her want to make it.
I didn’t prepare anything but let the material tell me who she was. And then Harry and I immediately felt like we were working together. We just clicked. The first day we worked together it was like, ‘You’re in my tribe.’”
That’s different from the book then because you really do not root for her in the book.
Kelly Lynch: “Yeah, I know. We all felt like her part… I told this to Stephen, she felt more like a device in some regard giving an excuse for the boy to be who he is. I said I felt like she contributes to it because he feels like, ‘Okay, I don’t have a girlfriend. I have my mother.’ You love and hate someone for that, especially hate them because, ‘Why are you pretending like you like me because you have to, because you’re my mother.’ Whatever it is, that inner dialogue that would go on.
But, you know, to me it wasn’t that she did those things. It’s this is the weird co-dependent world that they live in. This is how it works for them and this is where they found themselves. This is what dysfunction creates over the years they’ve been together, just the two of them. And how it metabolizes in Brady, what contributes to that? Certainly, his mother’s part of that but not the full (push) I felt in the book more strongly, for sure.”
Do you think she senses there’s evil within him?
Kelly Lynch: “There’s a point where she starts to see there’s another side to him that she hasn’t been focusing on. […] You know when a child is caught for murder, when there’s evidence, you’ll see parents going, ‘No. There’s no way. There’s absolutely no way my son shot that person.’ You’ll say, ‘There’s video of it.’ ‘But that’s not him.’ I think that’s one of the weird, crazy things about being a parent, the way you see your kids. Who they really are is not always available to a parent.”
How much do we get into her backstory when Brady was young?
Kelly Lynch: “A lot, and it comes throughout the 10 episodes. The first time you meet Deb, the first couple of episodes, it’s like, ‘Oh my god!’ The squalor that she lives in and everything. My mom always goes, ‘How’s your hair going to be for this job? How’s your wardrobe?’ I said, ‘Mom, I’m just going to tell you right away…’ And then she read the three books and then she’s like, ‘This is an amazing part!’
You start to find out who she was and I think then the humanity of the whole situation is helped a lot. You start to feel like, ‘Oh my god, this poor woman,’ as opposed to, ‘She’s a monster.’”
How are you describing Mr. Mercedes?
Kelly Lynch: “Well, in a time where we’re like us and them, red and blue, this and that, I feel like it’s us. It’s us. We’re us and this is a show about how us becomes that – whether it’s a Tim McVeigh or Dylann Roof. We’re talking about building walls and shutting airports down and this and that, and this kind of terror that we’re living with, this kind of disenfranchisement where people don’t feel part of the status quo and they don’t feel like they have an opportunity, where they’ve fallen off the ledge of the world, you know? Some of those people get really angry about it and react in a way like a Dylann Roof or a Tim McVeigh or a Brady Hartsfield. It’s the reality that we’re living with.
And, we’ve also lost our manners. I feel like we wouldn’t have been those people. I remember as a kid hearing about the guy in the bell tower the first time this happened, like a person shooting people from a bell tower in Texas. I was a little kid going, ‘What?!’ I was trying to think about a person killing people with a rifle in a university. For hours, they couldn’t get him from the bell tower. You know, Stephen King is interested in the monster in all of us, what ignites that. Is that possible in me? We are ‘it.’”
Kelly Lynch: “Huge. I mean, when he came on the set to do that little cameo I almost couldn’t handle myself. And I agree with him – I love The Shining but I thought the book was so much better. First thing I was like, ‘Deb Hartsfield, am I okay? Is that okay?’ And he’s like, ‘Yes!’”
Netflix has released a new trailer and poster for the dramatic film First They Killed My Father, based on Loung Ung’s memoir. Angelina Jolie directed and produced the Netflix film, with The Missing Picture‘s director Rithy Panh producing. Author Loung Ung, Maddox Jolie-Pitt, Adam Somner (Bridge of Spies), Michael Vieira (By the Sea), and Charles Schissel (The Prestige) served as executive producers.
Netflix has set a Friday, September 15, 2017 theatrical release and debut on Netflix.
Angelina Jolie’s directing credits include 2015’s By the Sea with Brad Pitt, Unbroken starring Jack O’Connell, In the Land of Blood and Honey with Zana Marjanovic, and the 2007 documentary, A Place in Time. Jolie will next be seen in front of the camera in Maleficent 2 which has been announced but has not yet begun filming.
The Plot:First They Killed My Father is the adaptation of Cambodian author and human rights activist Loung Ung’s gripping memoir of surviving the deadly Khmer Rouge regime from 1975 to 1978. The story is told through her eyes, from the age of five, when the Khmer Rouge came to power, to nine years old. The film depicts the indomitable spirit and devotion of Loung and her family as they struggle to stay together during the Khmer Rouge years.
Hulu’s new sci-fi comedy series Future Man stars Josh Hutcherson (The Hunger Games franchise) as a janitor named Josh who’s an expert gamer. Josh’s video game skills earn him the job of preventing the extinction of mankind, and his mission to save the world involves jumping to different time periods. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg direct and executive produce the series which was created by writers Kyle Hunter and Ariel Shaffir. Future Man is set to debut on November 14, 2017.
Hutcherson was among the Future Man cast that made the trek to the 2017 San Diego Comic Con to promote the half-hour series. In addition to taking part in a panel, Hutcherson sat down for roundtable interviews to delve into what viewers can expect when they tune in to check out Hulu’s Future Man.
What are you excited for the viewers to see in Future Man?
Josh Hutcherson: “Honestly, just the journey that we go on is so nuts. And one moment you’ll think, ‘That’s a weird joke,’ and that becomes an entire plot point. So, just kind of the ridiculous vibe of it. What’s crazy about the show is it walks such a line of genres and of tones. We have real life or death situations where people are very serious about saving the world. It’s like the fate of humanity is on the line, while you’re also doing something absurd involving dead possums … or maybe not.”
It goes off on funny tangents?
Josh Hutcherson: “Exactly. The roundabout way that we end up trying to save the world is the funny journey that we go on.”
You play a gamer so does the show explore a broad range of video game styles or include lots of video game references?
Josh Hutcherson: “As far as references and kind of what it pays homage to, it’s more in the world of sci-fi films especially the ‘80s stuff. A lot of Back to the Future, Terminator, Last Starfighter, Quantum Leap, a lot of stuff in that world. But the video game element, Josh is a hardcore gamer so the game world that we live within is a game we created for the show which is Biotic Wars. So, most references and stuff, we live within that world and don’t break out of that too much.”
How much of a gamer are you?
Josh Hutcherson: “I’m not a huge gamer. I used to have internet in my house and it stopped working two years ago and I still can’t get it to work. It’s the bane of my existence. It’s a trigger for me to get very angry. So, I can’t play video games online or stream anything.”
Of all the different time periods your character goes to, which is the biggest surprise for your character?
Josh Hutcherson: “The ‘80s. What happens during that time is a real mindf*ck for him. It gets dark; it gets crazy. He’s at his wit’s end. It’s crazy.”
Did you get nostalgic for all the different eras you go through?
Josh Hutcherson: “Oh, yeah. It’s awesome. Our sets and wardrobes and the worlds that they create in each of these eras is so spot-on, it’s amazing. You really feel like it seems you’re going to a house party in the 1980s. I wasn’t alive then, but from what I imagine it feels like the ‘80s.”
Is this first season a self-contained story or does it lead into a second story?
Josh Hutcherson: “It has a full arc. It’s not a, ‘Oh! What happens?’ But there’s a lot of places (it could go). That’s what’s fun about the show. We’re not beholden to any material. We have complete freedom to go anywhere with it. So knock on wood for the second, third, fourth, fifth, six seasons, however many seasons there could be, you can take it so many directions. But, yeah, it is a contained story with a very strong possibility of further (seasons).”
We know you go to the ‘40s, ‘60s, and ‘80s. Is there anywhere else you go that you can talk about?
Josh Hutcherson: “Not really. We go to the future a little bit. We dabble in the future some, not a whole lot. That pretty much covers the run for this first season.”
How does this future compare to the one Peeta was in in The Hunger Games?
Josh Hutcherson: “Well, they’re dystopic and both have evil governing forces. So, I see a theme here with where our general sentiment is for the direction that we’re heading as a whole.”
Was there anything you found challenging about the show’s comedic elements?
Josh Hutcherson: “I mean the thing is this show really pushed its every corner of comedy. We have some very high-brow, satirical type stuff social commentary which was fun and witty and great. The physical slapstick-y type stuff, we had like ‘80s comedy references type episodes where the whole episode is like a farce kind of and that was really fun to play. None of it was really too difficult to pull off. Per se it was comedy, just because it was comedy but it was real for us in the characters. We’re not making jokes. We’re living this as a real situation. It was just great writing and the dynamic between the characters that makes it funny.”
What do you think is your character’s best trait?
Josh Hutcherson: “I think his greatest trait is probably his empathy. He’s a super empathetic and caring guy, and he’s trying to be a part of this team – this ruthless, killing team – to save the future without killing anybody and without causing too much damage to people in the world. And in a weird way that empathy is what they’ve lost in their future, and so bringing that in fills a hole. It’s like we demonize each other so much, whatever wars we’re fighting, and they come from a future that is the most extreme version of that, where they’ve lost all sense of humanity. Josh brings a lot of humanity to the mission and that ends up being the saving grace that allows them to get to where they need to be.”
Was it fun to show off your dance moves in the series?
Josh Hutcherson: “Yes. It was really fun. Love dancing. Big fan of it. I enjoy it thoroughly, and I got to really do some crazy dancing in this show. And actually what you see, there’s a lot more that we shot.”
For those who haven’t seen the pilot, are you doing a dance-off to save the world?
Josh Hutcherson: (Laughing) “You’re not that far off. I’m in a moon suit from the 1960s and in order to save all mankind I must basically win a form of a dance battle, more or less. It’s complicated.”
Are those moves all yours in the moon suit?
Josh Hutcherson: “Except for one moment…the Marty McFly moon walk. That’s not me. That’s the only thing I couldn’t do.”
