‘Gotham’ Season 2 Episode 18 Recap and Review: Pinewood

April 19, 2016

Gotham Season 2 David Mazouz — David Mazouz and Sean Pertwee in ‘Gotham’ (Photo Jeff Neumann © 2016 Fox Broadcasting Co)

“I got you the information. Everything I did in there I did for you,” says Barbara (Erin Richards). “This doesn’t change anything,” replies Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie) who’s working freelance to unravel the conspiracy behind the murder of Bruce Wayne’s parents in season two episode 18 of Fox’s gritty comic-book inspired crime thriller series, Gotham.

The episode begins right where the series left off with Barbara standing outside Jim’s door and saying hi. Gordon is shocked to see her released and after checking to make sure she’s not there to try to kill him (or has any friends in the hall), lets her enter and listens to what she has to say. Barbara tries to convince Jim that she’s okay now and the monster who killed her parents and tried to kill him and Lee is gone for good. Jim is extremely doubtful but decides Barbara is telling the truth. Barbara notices the Wayne file opened on the table and recognizes the picture of a woman in the file. She offers to help Jim on his case but he declines and sends her on her way.

As she’s leaving, Harvey Bullock (Donal Logue) is heading toward Jim’s door bringing pizza and beer. He stops, stunned, when he sees Barbara. “Hi Harvey,” Barbara says with a friendly smile as she walks past him. In shock, Harvey is speechless and then fears for his partner’s well-being as he begins to shout Jim’s name and bangs on his door.

Inside the apartment, Harvey still can’t get over Barbara being released so soon by Hugo Strange. Harvey and Jim discover during their investigation that Matches Malone, the man who gunned down Thomas Wayne and his wife, was a regular contractor for “The Lady,” the woman who hired the hit squad to kill Gordon at Galavan’s Penthouse. When Gordon took down most of her best killers she had to go underground. So, Jim plans to start questioning some ex- and current hitmen and Harvey tells him to be careful. Jim responds, “Always.”

After beating some information out of a third-rate scumbag, Gordon learns that “The Lady” spends some time at a bar called Artemis. Unfortunately, it’s a bar for ladies only but Jim is in for another surprise as Barbara has shown up ready to help him. Yes, it seems the lovely ex-fiancé has been following Jim. Gordon asks Barbara why she’s doing this and why she wants to help him so badly. She tells him she was with him when he got assigned the Wayne case and that she knows how much it means to him. Not having any other cards to play, Jim reluctantly accepts Barbara’s help.

Inside the bar Barbara becomes quick pals with The Lady, telling her she’s looking for a new partner to start her own assassination agency with. Barbara tells the Lady she’s got the names and contacts but Barbara has the style, wealth, and reputation to make it a successful business. As a sign of good faith, Barbara gives up Gordon who has found a way to sneak into the bar but got caught by The Lady’s henchwoman. They take Jim to a private room where he’s tied to a chair and Barbara tells him that his obsession with this case is what is going to get him killed.

Barbara asks The Lady to tell him who the man was that hired her group to kill the Waynes so that he can die knowing the answer to the question that has plagued him for so long. The Lady says she didn’t know his real name but that he went by a nickname. (What is it about Gotham that every villain has to have a nickname?) He called himself the Philosopher. With that, Barbara delivers an electric shock to both The Lady and her henchwoman with her little electric prod and knocks them out. “See, I told you I had a plan,” says Barbara to a surprised Jim.

Outside the bar and down an alley, Barbara is searching for some kind of understanding and forgiveness from Jim. She tells Jim that when she woke from her coma the first thing she remembered was his face as he was holding on to her trying to not drop her from the window. “You looked in my eyes and saw me, not the monster I had become,” says Barbara, holding back her tears. She tells him if he could just look at her that way again she really believes she might be able to make it. Gordon responds to Barbara by telling her if she wants to be a good person it’s her choice to make and that he can’t be that for her. He ends their brief conversation by telling Barbara he can’t forgive her for trying to kill Lee.

Meanwhile at Wayne Manor, Bruce (David Mazouz), Alfred (Sean Pertwee), and Lucius Fox (Chris Chalk) are working on the information in Thomas Wayne’s old computer and come across a name in Thomas’ calendar, Karen Jennings. The date on the calendar is the day before the murder. Bruce gets the address and despite Alfred suggesting they try to learn more before going to talk to her, Bruce heads off to find her. Alfred and Bruce drive out to the country and find an old cabin with the matching address. They enter cautiously but are met with a brief attack and Alfred is badly scratched by what looks to be three very sharp blades. Bruce sees a young woman hiding in the shadows and tells her that they’re not going to hurt her and puts down his gun, and Alfred is none too pleased.

“Please, I’m Bruce Wayne. We’ve just come to talk to you and ask you a few questions,” the young man says to the girl who steps out and reveals that one of her hands is a strange bird claw.

As they talk, Bruce and Alfred discover that poor Karen (Julia Taylor Ross) was part of a secret bioengineering project at Wayne Enterprises. She tells them doctors came to her when she was in Blackgate – she killed her abusive father in self-defense but the jury didn’t believe her – and said they could fix her withered arm. She went to Pinewood to have the procedure but instead of fixing her arm, they gave her a claw. Bruce asks her if she remembers any names. She doesn’t, but she does remember the face of the man in charge. Karen also tells Bruce, who has been very soft and sensitive with her – something she’s not used to but appreciates – that his father didn’t know about Pinewood and the insane experiments they were conducting. When he found out, he shut it down and put the patients who survived in hiding.

Bruce realizes his father must have discovered the program was starting up again and tried to stop it. Bruce convinces Karen to take them to the old facility and promises her he won’t let anything happen to her.

Gotham Season 2 — Sean Pertwee, Donal Logue and Ben McKenzie in ‘Gotham’ (Photo by Jeff Neumann © 2016 Fox Broadcasting Co)

When they get to Pinewood it’s clear no one has been there in years and that the project is not happening there. Bruce senses that Karen is hiding something and begins to ask her about it when the three get ambushed by security guards who warn them they’re on private property. They get captured by the police outside after, instead of running with Bruce and Alfred, Karen decides to fight back and kills one of the men causing Bruce to go back which delays their escape. Bruce calls Gordon to get released and good old Bullock makes it happen. Bruce, Alfred, and Jim meet to team up and work the case together, sharing the information they have found on the case with one another.

At Arkham, Dr. Hugo Strange (BD Wong) hears the news about Karen’s recent arrest and decides it would not be good for him or anyone on his staff if she talked or if anyone connected the dots about her claw arm to him. In short, it could ruin everything he’s built so he sends Mr. Freeze out after her in a new special subzero suit.

Bruce, Alfred, and Gordon join forces and together try to spring Karen as she’s being transported in the prison van to Blackgate. During the rescue, Karen reveals the truth to Bruce, that his father Thomas started Pinewood with the best intentions but that the man who ran it took advantage of Thomas and in secret went on with his horrifying experiments. Karen says Thomas did more than just place her in hiding. He took care of her and looked out for her like a real father would. The rescue is almost complete when Mr. Freeze attacks. Gordon and Alfred put up a good fight with Bruce trying to get Karen to safety, but she looks at Bruce and says that his father would be so proud of the man he’s becoming. Karen then sacrifices herself so that Bruce, Jim, and Alfred can escape from Mr. Freeze who they are no match for.

At Wayne Manor, Bruce is very upset about Karen’s death, not just because she was the only person who could identify who the Philosopher is but because he made her a promise to protect her. Lucius Fox comes in with some interesting news. He’s double-checked and cross-referenced the data he found an old photo of Thomas Wayne, his friends, and business associates who had nicknames. (Again with the nicknames!) In the photograph, Hugo Strange is identified as the Philosopher.

As the episode comes to a close the last scene is at Arkham where Patient 44 has successfully undergone the re-animation process a few hours too early. He kills a couple of scientists who are in the room with him. Strange is watching from outside and, finally, it’s shown that patient 44 is Theo Galavan as he shouts the name Azrael!

Gotham Season 2 Episode 18 Review

Dark, action-packed, and stylishly paced, episode 18 titled “Pinewood” finally reveals the secrets as well as the reason behind the murder of Bruce’s parents. It also opens the door to the mysterious past of Dr. Hugo Strange and just how truly evil this mad doctor is.

The stand-out performance in this episode goes to David Mazouz as young Bruce Wayne who, even though he is becoming tough and very smart still, hasn’t lost his humanity or his decency. The scene where he takes charge of talking to Karen and reaches her not by using threats but by appealing to her by treating her with decency, displays just how mature Bruce is becoming. Also, the scene in Wayne Manor after Karen’s death where Bruce is blaming himself for getting her killed and not keeping his word that he would keep her safe is full of sorrow and anger. This has truly been Mazouz’s season to shine.

With the revelation of Dr. Strange behind the murder of the Waynes and Mr. Freeze back on Gotham streets – along with the rebirth of Galavan – the city of Gotham is going to need Jim and its heroes more now than ever before.

GRADE: B

Glen Mazzara Interview: ‘Damien,’ the Dream Episode, and Season One’s Finale

Rebecca Murray

April 19, 2016

Damien Cast with Bradley James — The cast of A&E’s ‘Damien’ (Photo by Art Streiber Copyright 2016)

Damien series creator/executive producer Glen Mazzara isn’t sure when A&E will announce whether the series has been renewed, but he’s got a lot of story left to tell and is hoping for more seasons of being able to delve into Damien Thorn (played by Bradley James). In addition to Bradley James as the Antichrist, the series features Barbara Hershey, Scott Wilson, Omid Abtahi, and Megalyn Echikunwoke. Airing on Mondays at 10pm ET/PT, Damien season one consists of 10 one-hour episodes and Mazzara took time prior to the airing of episode seven to discuss the series which serves as a sequel to The Omen.

Glen Mazzara Interview:

I have really been enjoying this season although I find it really strange to be rooting for Damien still so far into the season.

Glen Mazzara: “You will always root for Damien.”

I was just going to ask that very question.

Glen Mazzara: “What we’ve done is we take the nice guy and we put him in a horrible situation, make him as desperate as possible, so that when he lashes out and he fights back and he starts to commit atrocities and he goes down a path that will hopefully, if we have the chance to tell the whole story, could bring about the end of the world, you’ll be rooting in the front seat the whole way, in the front row. But, let’s not forget that the Antichrist as promised in the Book of Revelation is supposed to be a savior, a messiah, and people will follow him because they love him, so all the ingredients for the entire arc are already there. I think a lot of people just think he’s supposed to be an evil tyrant right off the bat. That is not what’s promised in the Book of Revelation.”

No one would follow him.

Glen Mazzara: “Right. That’s the whole point.”

Bradley James plays the character so well, it would make it difficult to flip and stop rooting for Damien.

Glen Mazzara: “You’ll see, but the point is to make sure that the audience is always rooting for Damien and rooting for all of these characters. I know a lot of people are rooting for Ann Rutledge and John Lyons and they’re considered evil, and it’s interesting because if anything I think some people are rooting against Detective Shay, and Shay is absolutely right as to what’s going on and he’s on the force of good, so everything that you think about morality gets flipped on its head in this show.”

Were you keeping track of how people were reacting to the dream episode on Twitter?

Glen Mazzara: “First of all I want to give a shout out to our writer, Richard Hatem. Richard pitched that episode to me from start to finish in the writer’s room. I was just so confused as to what he was telling me, and then when he explained the revelation. I loved it and I just said, ‘Go write that.’ I think that was really the one script that I, in the four times I’ve been a showrunner, did not polish. I think I just gave notes to him but I did not put any pen to paper. I thought he just did such an outstanding job with that script. It was just terrific.

As far as on Twitter, when I watch the show I do watch the live Twitter feed and I will say people were freaking out, but nobody saw that twist coming as far as I know. There were three consecutive tweets on the Damien feed that people said, ‘Something’s going on, I wonder if this is real,’ but nobody mentioned the word ‘dream’ until afterwards. It was really kind of interesting because I thought there were so many tells along the way. People were really satisfied. They loved it. Sometimes that kind of episode can feel like a cheat, but because it was really an episode about showing Damien’s emotional inner state and his need for wish fulfillment and all those things that he was finally getting because we love him at this point, he was finally getting the things he wants, and then to have that ripped away and to find out that his real life is a living hell and that he’s trapped in hell, which is where we see him at the end, it was an emotional ride. So it didn’t play as just an intellectual game. It played as a real emotional tale.”

How big of a lasting effect is that dream going to have on him? He believes some of what he dreamed is actually the truth.

Glen Mazzara: “Yeah, I think what you see now is Damien realizing he has to trust his gut, that Damien realizes that certain things are a given in the world, in his world, and he can’t run from them anymore. He can’t deny them, so he has to try to take control of them or fight them or push back or what have you, but I think he realizes that he can’t trust anybody except himself. The emotions that he felt in that dream are emotions that he’s now going to take seriously and act upon, and that may or may not be the right thing to do, but that’s where he is now.”

Does that mean Simone and Amani are going to be in more danger now because he’s no longer completely sure of their motivations?

Glen Mazzara: “Yeah, I think it puts them at risk. I think anybody in Damien’s world is at risk, even if you’re on his good side. Because don’t forget, people suffer not necessarily because they are jeopardizing the Devil’s plans for Damien, but a lot of the deaths… I haven’t talked about this. Let me see if I can articulate it. A lot of the deaths are not necessarily simply eliminating threats to the larger plan. A lot of the deaths are there to force Damien to take certain actions. A lot of the deaths are there to box him in. There is a larger plan. Every death makes sense in the larger plan, but they’re not as clean as they were in the original movie. If someone was suspicious of Damien and about to expose him, they were killed and eliminated.”

If this were the movie, Detective Shay would be dead already.

Glen Mazzara: “We go much farther than that. It’s a much more complicated game.”

We haven’t seen much of Veronica (played by Melanie Scrofano), but she seems to have a lot going on behind the scenes. Are we going to find out more about her in the upcoming final season one episodes?

Glen Mazzara: “You will. You will, and that’s a type of storytelling that I’m embracing on this show because I know the audience has a lot of questions about her and about the mythology and the conspiracies and all of that stuff, and a lot of times I would hold back as a writer and as a showrunner because I would say, ‘We don’t have to spoon-feed the audience, the audience will like some mystery. The audience will go along with this as long as we pay things off by the end.’ I feel like that’s what’s important is to pay things off by the finale, that some questions are left but you want to show people that it was a tightly knit season. I think a lot of the questions about Veronica will be answered and going forward a lot of things will be set up in future seasons.”

Is there a supporting character who has become more popular with fans than you anticipated, that maybe will play a larger role in the second season because of the reaction from the audience?

Glen Mazzara: “It’s been interesting to see how people react to characters. Obviously Barbara [Hershey’s] been doing a phenomenal job and Ann is a lot of people’s favorite character. It’s been interesting, but I don’t want to give anything away by saying anything about future characters, but it is funny how people do respond emotionally to the characters. So for example in episode two Amani was talking to Simone at Kelly’s wake and people said, ‘I don’t like Amani. He’s scamming on Simone at the funeral,’ and then two episodes later he is at a job interview for Damien and he stands up for Damien about what a good guy he is and everybody says, ‘I love Amani, he’s the best. He’s the greatest friend ever.’ So it’s really kind of funny to watch how people get so invested in these characters.”

It’s also amazing you have done this whole season one pretty much up to this point with very few CGI effects. Are we going to see that remain the same way throughout the rest of the season one episodes?

Glen Mazzara: “Yes, that’s something that we are very careful to make sure that the show feels grounded in this world. If anything I think it’s like our world punctured by evil. That’s how we’ve described it here at the show. The film was a direct influence on us in that way, so I never wanted to push this into a show that has fiery portals into different layers of hell or something like that. We’ll push it once in a while. You saw the demon at the end of episode four, but then the next time we see a demon it’s a voice possessing seven wounded soldiers in episode five. So, we will push that boundary, but it’s a show that needs to feel, without sounding silly by saying this, it needs to feel realistic. I think the horror needs to feel like it’s in our world, and that’s something that we definitely draw upon the feature film, The Omen.

Do you still believe at this point that 10 episodes was the right amount of episodes for a first season?

Glen Mazzara: “I do. I don’t think we have any filler. I think we took our time introducing the characters and getting everyone on stage and then just as people got comfortable we threw them a couple curve balls with episode five and six, and then I think seven through 10 still introduce new storylines and stuff, but it just races to the finale. I am very confident that the finale will play well. I will put my entire career on that, because that finale just answers the questions. It’s exciting, it’s a thrill ride, and I think it’s one of the most exciting finales I’ve been a part of. I really love that episode. There are four [including episode seven] very good episodes, four great episodes coming on, but that finale will satisfy fans, I think.”

Was that finale exactly what you had in mind when you started working on Damien? Was that what you were shooting towards the whole time?

Glen Mazzara: “Yeah. The climactic moment for the finale was something that I conceived of before we sold the show. Yeah, it was part of my pitch as I went around town.”

So A&E hasn’t dropped any hints as to when the announcement will come?

Glen Mazzara: “I think they want to look at the entire season and I am confident that because the finale ties everything together in a way that will be satisfying to genre fans, that people will talk about the show and will probably get a boost then. And, I think people will then go back and binge watch. I think viewing habits have changed and so some people I know are catching up because they’re hearing good things about the show. But sometimes people say, ‘Well, I want to hear if the whole season comes together before I check it out,’ and I think it will be a very satisfying conclusion. Hopefully we will get a jump in numbers as people stream the show and all that stuff, so they probably want to have all their information before [announcing]. But as of now, I hope they announce soon. We’re dying to get back to work.”

I know you’ve said it before, but do you still think that five seasons is what you’d really like?

Glen Mazzara: “Yeah, I think I could do it in five seasons. I think so. If it was really going well and they wanted more, but yeah, in my mind I have a story that is probably five seasons.”

‘Lucifer’ Season 1 Episode 12 Recap: #TeamLucifer

Rebecca Murray

April 19, 2016

Tom Ellis in Lucifer Season 1 Episode 12 — Tom Ellis in ‘Lucifer’ season 1 (Photo by Michael Courtney © 2016 Fox Broadcasting Co)

The devilishly sexy Fox series Lucifer edges closer to the end of season one with an episode titled #TeamLucifer airing on April 18, 2016. In episode 11 Lucifer (Tom Ellis) finally figured out that Detective Chloe Decker (Lauren German) is the only mortal who can actually physically hurt him. In this episode, Lucifer does his best to stay away from Chloe just in case she decides to turn on him. Episode 12 also finds Lucifer once again having to defend his reputation, this time with a bunch of posers trying to sully his ‘good’ name.

The Recap:

#TeamLucifer kicks off with a woman blindfolded. Is Lucifer ready to play? No, the “virgin” clad in white is also bound at the wrists and surrounded by people cloaked in black, hooded robes. With a cry of “Lucifer,” the leader plunges a knife into the virgin’s heart. Aww, but it’s all a game as she’s not truly dead and instead seems to be taking the ritual as foreplay. Unfortunately, her partner hasn’t let her in on the secret that he’s going to actually offer her up to the real Lucifer (which we know isn’t the real Lucifer). She breaks loose but not in time to stop the knife coming at her chest.

At the real Lucifer’s gorgeous home, Maze (Lesley-Ann Brandt) is throwing knives at her boss but they’re not having any effect. Iron doesn’t cut him so he tells Maze to try the copper, but she’s getting frustrated because she knows he realizes at this point it’s only Chloe who can do any damage. Maze offers to throw knives at Chloe, but Lucifer thinks maybe Chloe’s just a “clog in a bigger machine” and wants to keep testing for vulnerabilities. Maze, increasingly pissed off, throws a demon dagger forged in Hell at Lucifer which he catches before it can cut into his handsome face (those actually would hurt Lucifer, no matter who throws them). He inquires about what’s happening with his brother and Maze says he’s not the one weaponizing Chloe. Lucifer’s done playing around and is ready to send Amenadiel back to Heaven. As he’s leaving the room he stubs his toe and it bleeds, so apparently Italian marble can also injure the ruler of Hell. But, of course, that’s when Chloe walks in so it wasn’t the Italian marble’s fault after all.

Chloe’s mad Lucifer’s been avoiding her and he blows it off, saying, “I can’t play good cop/handsome devil cop all the time.” She’s there about a new case she can’t handle without him.

The good cop/devil cop team head to Hollywood and once there he won’t walk anywhere near her on the sidewalk. Lucifer uses the lame excuse that she sounds sick, but Chloe’s not buying it. They enter an empty theater and the murdered woman in white from the earlier ritual is laid out on the stage inside a pentagram. The officers roll her over and carved into her back are the words “Hail Lucifer.” Now it’s Lucifer’s turn to get upset that misguided cult nobs with “frisbees in their earlobes” would dare to blame this on him. A street preacher who had called Lucifer the devil outside the theater charges in and renews the claim that it’s all Lucifer’s fault, with Lucifer’s former would-be assassin, officer Malcolm (Kevin Rankin), escorting the preacher away from the crime scene. Malcolm gives Lucifer a wink after sending the intruder away, pretending to Chloe they’ve never met. After she leaves, Malcolm says their history didn’t need to be disclosed.

Dan (Kevin Alejandro) arrives at the crime scene and asks Chloe if they can talk sometime, but she gives him the cold shoulder. She’s definitely not putting the ‘break-up by text’ incident behind her anytime soon. Dan volunteers that he and Malcolm will check out who could have done the body modifications on the victim, Rose, after noticing she has some strange implants. Chloe agrees since she and Lucifer have to pay a visit to the victim’s father. Lucifer asks for the address, not wanting to be in the same car with the only human who can kill him.

At Rose’s dad’s house, Lucifer says he can relate to growing up with a single father like Rose did. He asks why she had implants and her dad knows nothing about it. Chloe notices scrapes on the floor and moves a bookshelf to expose a secret room. Lucifer yells, “Hello, bad guys!” and Chloe pushes him out the way. Dubbing it a creepy, evil secret room, Lucifer jokingly says he’ll decline the offering of a cut-up bloody chicken that’s on a nearby altar because of salmonella. Rose’s dad seems to have no idea this room even existed while Lucifer looks around and determines the killer was a large man who wasn’t a fan of bathing. Rose’s dad still can’t believe his daughter would be into this and he doesn’t believe she would ever sacrifice herself, which gives Lucifer the opening to announce that sometimes the people closest to you can turn on you. Meanwhile, dad’s blaming himself while Lucifer continues to throw sideways glances at Chloe as if he doesn’t want to leave his back exposed.

Back at the station, Dan’s figured out where Rose got the implants. She was with a weird guy but the girl who did the implants doesn’t remember his name until Chloe, on the phone with Dan, asks him to ask if it was Corazon. Yeah, that’s it, and the girl describes him. Chloe labels the description a “generic Satanist.” Rose brought in the subdurals to be implanted and no one knows what they mean. After hanging up, Malcolm jokes about how cute it is Dan’s trying to get back together with Chloe and Dan says it would have been easier had Malcolm not sent her a break-up text while he was knocked out.

In the underground parking lot at the police station, Amenadiel (DB Woodside) slams Malcolm against the wall and demands to know why Lucifer’s still alive and kicking. Malcolm tells him Lucifer told him Amenadiel can’t kill a human and plus he has his get out of jail free card anyway. “So, unless you’ve got a better offer, #TeamLucifer,” says Malcolm.

At the station Lucifer’s reading through the Satanists’ book and declares it not half bad even though it’s poorly written. He picks out a passage he likes and then thumbs further to find a whole chapter on sex, which of course piques his interest. Chloe meanwhile is trying to arrange Rose’s subdural implants into a word that makes sense. She comes up with “I hurl feces” but dismisses that, and all this is going on with Lucifer no closer than 10 feet away. She asks him to come closer which he does, reluctantly. Looking over her shoulder he immediately figures out what the implants spell. It’s a Latin word meaning children of the goat. If Lucifer was in a bad mood about Rose’s death in his name, he’s even more upset that Satanists keep using a goat as a symbol for Satan. “Why do they always associate me with goats? I mean, I don’t even like their cheese!” asks Lucifer, exasperated.

Chloe searches the internet for children of the goat and comes up with Church of the Dark Prince, but you have to be a member to get more info. And, of course, there’s a fee ($200!) as well as a lengthy questionnaire. Chloe takes a chance and signs in the member area using the word the implants spelled out as the password. It works and she finds out where the next meeting will be held. Lucifer notes the address and takes off, telling Chloe he’ll see her there.

Lucifer beats Chloe to the building where the meeting will be held and when she arrives she’s clearly over this whole separate cars thing Lucifer’s now into. She asks why he’s avoiding her and he says maybe she’s just not as charming as she thinks she is. [Wasn’t he supposed to be keeping on her good side after discovering she can kill him?] Before he can make it inside the building, Chloe has it figured out. She asks if it’s about that vulnerability thing and he admits it is. “I get the tiniest bit touchy-feely with you and you freak out,” says Chloe, now the exasperated one in this relationship. She only meant she could trust him and Lucifer seems to accept that.

Chloe bangs on the door and whispers Filii Hircus to the doorman, but that’s not good enough to gain entry as today’s event is a private affair. Chloe pushes Lucifer forward, asking if it’s too private for even Lucifer himself. The man guarding the door thought Lucifer was supposed to be blond and Lucifer concedes he gets that a lot. Lucifer sends Chloe back to the car to get his ID and when she turns away he flashes his red eyes at the doorman who freaks out and runs away leaving the door open for Lucifer and Chloe.

Tom Ellis Lauren German in Lucifer — Tom Ellis and Lauren German in ‘Lucifer’ (Photo by Michael Courtney © 2016 Fox Broadcasting Co)

Lucifer regrets forgetting his sexy mask once inside, and then they figure out they’re witnessing a memorial. They sort of feel bad until the knives come out and the leader begins the ceremony. Once again Lucifer takes exception with these Satanists when they call out more than one devil – there’s only one Lucifer, after all. After a goofy fake Lucifer in a goat costume with horns hits his head on the wall entering the room, the real Lucifer can’t stand it any longer and walks into the room. “I’m the real Lucifer and I insist that you stop this nonsense immediately. I mean, have you heard yourselves? It’s embarrassing,” says Lucifer. He calls them misguided sheep – and goat – and asks where is the real defiance. They applaud him and he tells them they’re doing it again. They are not rebelling; they’re being sheep. They start chanting Lucifer and he smashes an alien/demon baby thing in a glass jar on the floor. He wants to know who murdered the girl. No one speaks up, but one man (the high priest) leaves the room and Chloe follows him out.

After putting down the ceremonial knife, Lucifer gets him to reveal what it is he really wants which is he wants to kill the person who killed Rose – not quite the answer Lucifer or Chloe were expecting. And after he’s done that, he wants out of this Satanist business. Now Lucifer’s a little disappointed this guy doesn’t actually believe in the devil. The high priest says all hardcore members have the implants and he didn’t want Rose to get them but she became obsessed. He also reveals it was Corazon, her boyfriend, who brought her into the group in the first place. Corazon talked about doing actual sacrifices on animals and the real knife, not the fake one they normally use in the rituals, is missing. Lucifer looks at a painting of ‘Satan’ on the wall and is disgusted while Chloe jokes that it looks just like him. “I manscape,” says Lucifer, clearly not appreciating the group’s taste in art. Chloe believes she knows why he chose the Lucifer persona: it’s all-powerful and invincible. “Not exactly,” says Lucifer. He says he didn’t choose to be the devil and she makes a comment about the devil being immortal. And then something clicks when he tells her one angel can hurt another. He grabs her back (where her wing scars would be if she had them) and she looks at him like he’s completely lost his mind.

The high priest returns with Corazon’s application for the group but it doesn’t have anything useful other than that he used PayPal to pay the dues.

Back to the angel/demon relationship, Maze brings Amenadiel some take-out after he stood her up. He says he only had one task which was to get his brother back to Hell and he’s failed. And, he’s actually made things worse because now he’s sleeping with a demon. Maze reminds him it’s the only sex he’s ever had while she’s had a lot with men and women, but with him it’s different. They kiss and Maze breaks away to tell him if he’s not happy, he should go home. Amenadiel says he can’t because he can’t face his father as a failure. And, they get back to kissing.

Back at her place, Chloe learns Corazon’s real name and tells Lucifer he can go home. He won’t leave which has her completely confused because earlier he couldn’t stand to be near her. Warning him not to wake up Trixie, he does just that when Chloe heads to the shower. He starts peppering her with questions including whether she’s adopted or if her mom has special powers, markings, scars, etc. She doesn’t answer so he bribes her by promising chocolate cake. Trixie, ever the smart girl, demands cash instead. He hands over money and Trixie tells him her mom has a scar on her butt from being bit by the Kraken. Chloe arrives back in the room just then and reveals the Kraken in question is a Chihuahua. She sends Trixie back to bed and tells Lucifer she’s done with his freaky behavior. He asks her to remove her shirt so he can see her back. When she asks why he tells the truth. “Because I want to know if you’re an angel sent to destroy me.” Incredibly, she complies and her skin is completely smooth. She wonders if it’s about his scars and tells him not everyone is out to get him. Chloe then gets a text saying they found Corazon’s car.

Dan and Malcolm are there when Lucifer and Chloe arrive, and Lucifer greets them with a “Detective Douche, Detective Stache, what a pleasant surprise.” They find Corazon strung up from the rafters, blood still dripping with writing in red paint all over the warehouse. The paint on multiple crates spells out Morningstar and now Dan thinks Lucifer’s somehow involved because not everyone associates Morningstar with the devil. Dan tells Lucifer people might be getting killed because of his devil shtick. “Do you really think I would do these vile things? These kids were pretending to be bad but they weren’t – they were innocent,” says Lucifer. “I would never hurt them. I am not a monster.” Chloe separates them before it comes to blows, suggesting Lucifer should go home. She’s trying to protect him but he takes it the wrong way.

He wakes up his therapist Dr. Linda Martin (Rachael Harris) for a session at her office, completely flabbergasted that Chloe did this to him and that she would actually believe he could have done something as disturbing as killing those people. “I thought she knew me,” he says, obviously upset at this turn of events. He tells Dr. Linda that Chloe is the only one who makes him vulnerable, and, of course, the therapist turns it into a relationship issue. Lucifer just wants to know who’s really behind the killings, wondering if it’s his dad or his brother. He also wonders if Chloe’s part of the plan to kill him. Lucifer doesn’t want to be at anyone else’s mercy and the doctor suggests he stay away from Chloe. Lucifer realizes he doesn’t want to.

Amenadiel and Maze are in bed and she pulls out the demon blade, thinking he’s asleep. He’s not and he catches her, appearing devastated she wanted to kill him.

On the street, the preacher who recognized Lucifer as the devil confronts him again. Lucifer’s patience for his nonsense quickly wears thin, and he’s in no mood for mercy. As he grips the preacher by the throat and holds him up against a pole, Malcolm appears to calm the situation down. Who knew this Malcolm dude would turn out to be so necessary to keeping Lucifer out of trouble?

Dan and Chloe finally have it out, and Dan tells her he’ll fix things. As they’re talking Chloe sees a cufflink with a monogrammed M on the ground. After it’s checked out, there’s no DNA or fingerprints anywhere to be found on it. And to make matters worse, the video of Lucifer attacking the preacher is all over the news. That’s when Chloe notices the preacher is wearing just one cufflink and the M is actually a W for Williams. Two and two add up to Williams as the one who’s been killing the Satanists.

Meanwhile Malcolm tries to party with Lucifer but Lucifer’s in no mood. Malcolm tells him he has his back and knows he didn’t kill anyone. Malcolm admits he’s been seeing things in his head since he went to Hell and no one but Lucifer would understand. Malcolm wants a high five from his new best buddy, but Lucifer notices there’s red paint – just like from the crime scene – on his fingers. Malcolm’s been dying to tell Lucifer he did it because he’s now insane and thinks Lucifer would be impressed with the killing of the frauds. He even set it up to pin on the street preacher. It’s all for Lucifer but Lucifer says, “I’m not evil – I punish evil!” Malcolm reminds him he’s got the get out of Hell free token, but Lucifer’s now ready to play. He’s bringing Hell to Malcolm and then he’ll turn him over to Chloe. Malcolm pulls a gun but Lucifer disarms him. Just then Amenadiel barges in, yelling, “Why don’t you pick on someone your own size?!”

Amenadiel knows Maze was there to kill him on Lucifer’s orders. They argue over who caused all this chaos and then they set to work beating the crap out of each other, all while throwing their father’s name around. Amenadiel actually liked Maze and is more upset about that betrayal than anything else. During all the punching and yelling, Lucifer accuses him of using Chloe to get to him, but Amenadiel honestly has no idea what he’s talking about. Then Maze appears and tells them they both used her. She leaves two demon blades and tells them to kill each other. They don’t.

Chloe and Dan search for Lucifer, with Chloe finding him drinking at the bar. She tells him about the video that made the news and he adds that to the list of horrible things that happened today. He admits he wanted people to suffer and only wanted to be his own man on Earth. He only trusted Chloe and she can actually hurt him. As he’s talking, Chloe walks to the end of the bar and spots the dead preacher on the ground with a bullet hole in his forehead. She tells Lucifer to put his hands up as a bunch of officers arrive as her backup. Lucifer is under arrest.

‘Containment’: Kristen Gutoskie Interview on the Appeal of The CW’s New Drama

Rebecca Murray

April 18, 2016

Kristen Gutoskie Containment — Kristen Gutoskie as Katie in ‘Containment’ (Photo: Bob Mahoney © 2015 The CW Network, LLC)

The CW’s new dramatic series Containment premieres on April 19, 2016 and in support of the show’s debut, the cast participated in a panel and interviews at the 2016 WonderCon in Los Angeles. Set in Atlanta, Containment finds the city quarantined after a deadly epidemic breaks out. Among the series’ stars is Kristen Gutoskie (Beaver Falls) who plays Katie Frank, a mom and teacher Gutoskie describes as amazing, compassionate, and strong. “She’s complex. She’s a real woman. She’s strong but she’s vulnerable. She’s broken, she’s been screwed up but she’s also really loving and nurturing,” explained Gutoskie.

Kristen Gutoskie Interview:

What can viewers expect?

“You can expect a whole lot of things. You can expect drama. It’s crisis-driven. You have a virus that breaks out in Atlanta and it’s not just any virus show. It’s a real virus; it’s something that could actually happen. You have the entire city quarantined so that people who were healthy and going to work for the day and made it outside of the quarantine area, they can’t go home – or vice versa. So, it’s humans in crisis but you have these loving relationships that are ripped apart and actually relationships that start in quarantine. You wouldn’t think at a time like this, but people’s truest colors come out. You’ll get a lot of gore. It’s horrific. It’s scary and it’ll make you a hypochondriac, but it will also make your heart beat and feel you all warm and tingly.”

Did it make you a hypochondriac?

“I already was one. I admit to that. I think it made you kind of notice things more. Like when I go to the grocery store, I have wash for my fruit now, a special wash and I wash it thoroughly. And when people sneeze you realize how easily things can travel. You definitely become a little bit more aware of things, for sure.”

There have been lots of pandemic shows. What do you think it is that appeals to people about that theme?

“I think the overarching theme of all these virus shows is really seeing humanity breakdown at the most basically animal place. You lose all of your etiquette in these crisis so to just watch how people would react…and I think we all have this fear of like, ‘When is the end coming? What’s going to happen? If it’s not going to be global warming or terrorism, is it going to be a virus?’ I think along with the virus shows you’ve seen all types of apocalyptic shows. I think it’s this fear of could it really happen and watching how humanity reacts to these situations because we all have these faces we put on. We have social constructs and you really get to see the true humanity of people whether it’s really raw and it could be hateful. I think we just want to see each other in a real place.”

Has it made you question how you would react?

“Definitely. You really can’t predict how you would react. I’d like to think I’d be this heroic, amazing person who would risk my life but you really don’t know until you’re in it. It makes you look at yourself and go, ‘Would I do what my character did? Would I be as courageous as this character? Would I be as fragile as this character?’ Some people in the show will risk other people’s lives to save their own lives. You definitely question your own humanity and your own integrity. I’d like to think I’d be a heroic person in a situation like that, but panic is a thing. When you panic you lose a lot of rational thinking and you act on impulse and on instinct. When that happens you don’t always have the control you’d like to have. So, yeah, I don’t know what I’d be like. Hopefully, I’d be strong.”

Watch the full interview with Kristen Gutoskie on Containment:

‘Lights Out’: Lawrence Grey Interview on Horror Films, Revealing the Monster, and the Cast

Rebecca Murray

April 18, 2016

David Sandberg burst onto the scene with the critically acclaimed short film Lights Out starring his wife, Lotta Losten. The short was so effective it left viewers with the desire to sleep with the lights on. The short was a viral hit and has spawned a feature film directed by first-time helmer Sandberg and produced by Lawrence Grey and James Wan. Warner Bros Pictures will launch Lights Out in theaters on July 22, 2016, putting the horror film up against big budget summer releases.

Lights Out was one of the upcoming releases Warner Bros spotlighted during its 2016 CinemaCon presentation in Las Vegas and following the studio’s screening of the film’s trailer – which was met by enthusiastic applause – I had the opportunity to interview producer Lawrence Grey to find out more about the horror film starring Teresa Palmer and Maria Bello.

The Plot: When Rebecca (Palmer) left home, she thought she left her childhood fears behind. Growing up, she was never really sure of what was and wasn’t real when the lights went out…and now her little brother, Martin (Gabriel Bateman), is experiencing the same unexplained and terrifying events that had once tested her sanity and threatened her safety. A frightening entity with a mysterious attachment to their mother, Sophie (Bello), has reemerged. But this time, as Rebecca gets closer to unlocking the truth, there is no denying that all their lives are in danger… once the lights go out.

Lawrence Grey Lights Out Interview:

The trailer is ridiculously scary.

Lawrence Grey: “What’s awesome about this movie is that true horror fans are going to love this movie, but it’s also going to play to people that would never go see a horror film because one of the things you can tell from the tone a little bit is just how fun and playful and what a roller coaster ride it is. It’s super scary in a way that has a lot of integrity. There’s no cheap scares. Everything is very earned but there’s also this really great, real family drama in the center of it and the movie is just so much fun.”

Why did you believe David Sandberg could direct a feature film based on his short film?

Lawrence Grey: “I saw the short before it blew up to the 150 million views. It was really early and it had just kind of debuted on Reddit and was starting to get some traction. The brand of my company is very commercial movies done in an interesting, artistic way. That was exactly how that short hit me. It’s this big genius universal idea. We all know it. We’re all afraid of the dark. We all know that feeling of, ‘I saw that thing out of the corner of my eye. Is that a tree? Is that my laundry? Or is it something more sinister than that?’ There was real craft to how he did it.

The truth is I didn’t know from just the short. I reached out to him. I started talking to him. I could see that there was a real vision and a deep intelligence in that guy. Then really, the step is, we said, ‘Let’s just try to create something.’ We started putting our thoughts together for an outline. It started to really come to life in an amazing way. It started to feel like it was about someone I really knew. David felt the same thing. It was really close to our lives. We were also able to create this iconic horror monster, which is something that we haven’t seen since movies in the ’70s and ’80s. That was a really fun challenge to jump into.”

You decided to keep the monster from being seen right away, so how do you keep the audience involved when they don’t see what’s really going on? Obviously there are some moviegoers who really like to see the monster right away and others who don’t want it fed to them so quickly. How did you know when was the perfect time to show what the monster actually looks like?

Lawrence Grey: “That’s a great question. I think what you do is, what we did in the film anyway, was we decided to tease a little bit of the monster out in the opening of the film to give the audience a little bit of a taste of it to build some anticipation. Then we just had these great roles for these actors and you could feel the effect that the monster had had on them so you were almost experiencing it through that lens so it was in your consciousness as you’re watching the movie. Then, once you can feel their fear, it’s already more horrifying than this expectation. Then when she comes in, we brought the shark out later in the story and it was very effective.”

Your production company has done a psychological thriller but not a straight-out horror film. Why did you decide to delve into the genre with Lights Out?

Lawrence Grey: “My things has always been supporting great film making. It doesn’t matter about the genre. I, as an executive, I worked on 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later, Drag Me To Hell, The Hills Have Eyes. Every one of those films was really a bet on Sam Raimi, on Danny Boyle. I felt very similarly with David, that he was someone who had that big world view, had this talent, but needed the support to be able to help him make a great movie. But as I was saying earlier, the idea, the brand of the company is big commercial movies done in the most artistic way and that’s exactly what we look for across genres. For example, we’re doing a spy movie. From 50,000 feet it’s like a Kingsman kind of film, but it’s about the true origin story of MI6. It’s the most interesting, historical, artistic version about the birth of the modern spy.”

Has that ever been done?

Lawrence Grey: “It’s never been done.

I didn’t think so. Why has it taken so long to do that story?

Lawrence Grey: “I think part of it is that around the time that we were building this, MI6 declassified a bunch of documents so we were able to get some of the true historical data that wasn’t available before. Lights Out is very much in keeping with that sort of brand.”

How big was the budget on Lights Out, if you don’t mind saying a ballpark figure?

Lawrence Grey: “It was around $5 million. To put that in context, Lights Out is the only original, non-branded, non-sequel movie of the entire film slate of the summer. Of every single studio. This is a $5 million movie going up against Star Trek and Ice Age on that date, but all the behemoths of the summer.”

How does that feel as a producer to have your film released among the summer’s big tentpoles?

Lawrence Grey: “It’s kind of staggering. It’s really a testament to how good the film is. This movie would not be where it was if it wasn’t all in execution. We have nothing else other than that the movie is great.”

You’ve got a terrific cast led by Teresa Palmer and Maria Bello. Can you talk about having them o board?

Lawrence Grey: “Sure. This is one of those projects where we got our first choice for everything. When I first saw the short, my idea for a writer was this guy Eric Heisserer. I was on the phone with David and he’s like, ‘You’re not going to believe this. I live in Sweden. I don’t know anybody, but I read the Hollywood scripts and that guy’s my favorite writer. Could we really get him?’ Then I went to Eric and Eric’s like, ‘You don’t even need to pitch it to me. I’ve already sent the short to all of my friends. I’m in.’

Then it was the same thing with James [Wan] who gets hit on every day to do this kind of thing. It was the same thing with Teresa and Maria. James was the first one that brought up, ‘What do you think of Teresa Palmer for this?’ They’re both Australian. I was like, ‘God, you think we could get her?’ He’s like, ‘Who knows? She’s never done something like this.’ It was important for us to have actors that you normally see in dramatic films and they’re virgin to the genre. Teresa fell in love, Maria fell in love. This was just as a producer, you just feel blessed.”

It really gives the film some weight. Even if you didn’t know the short or anything else about it, you’d see those two names and be intrigued.

Lawrence Grey: “There’s a scene early on in the film where Teresa and Maria have a fight. The movie’s terrific until that point. At that moment, there’s this incredible, real, dramatic scene that feels like it could be in an Oscar Film. Then all of a sudden the audience just settles in and they’re like, ‘Oh, we’re in for that kind of movie.’ One of the incredible things was we had our preview and there were 26 people in the focus group. They said, ‘How many people thought the movie was excellent?’ Every hand went up. The guy says, ‘What was it? It’s so scary, right?’ They were like, ‘Yeah, but that isn’t the main thing. It’s the performances. It’s the characters.’ They like took a double take and they were like, ‘There probably isn’t a horror film made in 30 years where a test audience would say that.’ We knew something was right about all that.”

How closely did you work with James Wan?

Lawrence Grey: “James is amazing because he thinks about the big picture stuff very early. He got us into design of the monster very early because he knows how hard that is to get right. He was already thinking about mythology in a really deep way early on. It’s also one of those movies where if you don’t lock arms and all get together and work as a team, you’re never going to win with something like this. He’s really good because he was a young filmmaker not so long ago. He’s really good at saying, ‘Here’s what I would do. Here’s some things to think about, but I know this isn’t my film I’m directing. This is your film and, David, you should do it in your own way.'”

With a $5 million budget, was it all practical effects?

Lawrence Grey: “This was one of the big decisions early on. We’re all lovers of authentic horror films. You’re seeing a lot today of things done with a lot of CG. It just feels false to us. Even though it was a much riskier, more herculean task to do it, we all decided to keep the movie completely practical from a monster standpoint. Remember, our director, his background is visual effects, and he’s saying this.

We took real pain-staking effort to get that right, to do it authentic. It takes more time, but we ended up casting this amazing woman who is a professional dancer, contortionist, moves and has a physical appearance like no one you’ve seen, so that already made it seem surreal. Then we created a suit for her with Matthew Mungle, who doesn’t mostly do horror films. He mostly does dramatic films like Mrs. Doubtfire; he created that suit. He made it feel incredibly real. Then we decided to use a lot of tricks of light and dark and to stay in the real world.”

Did it scare you when you saw the actress in the suit on the set?

Lawrence Grey: “It’s so scary every time I would see her on set. It took a couple weeks till you start to feel, ‘Okay, I know that’s not real.'”

And this is going to launch a franchise?

Lawrence Grey: “The audience decides that. We hope we’ve made a really good film and we hope that the audience responds to it. It really is a film for them. We’ve just got our fingers crossed.”

There’s more story to be told, isn’t there?

Lawrence Grey: “Oh yeah. The film, we went very deep into these characters in the mythology so we know them in a pretty profound way, honestly. I think all of us, if we were afforded the opportunity, we could probably tell quite a few stories about them.”

Naomi Watts Will Star in Netflix’s ‘Gypsy’

Rebecca Murray

April 18, 2016

Naomi Watts Smiling in Gold Dress — Naomi Watts (Photo by Richard Chavez)

Oscar nominee Naomi Watts (The Impossible, 21 Grams) has signed on to star in Netflix’s Gypsy. Gypsy is described as a psychological thriller and Watts will take on the lead role in the 10 one-hour episodes that will make up season one. Per the network’s official announcement, Gypsy will premiere in 2017.

The original series comes from executive producers Liza Chasin (The Theory of Everything) and Lisa Rubin (I Was Here). Rubin is also writing the series which is produced by Universal Television and Working Title. Watts, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, and Andrew Stearn are on board as executive producers, with Fifty Shades of Grey‘s Sam Taylor-Johnson directing episodes one and two.

Gypsy will follow Jean Holloway, played by Watts. Holloway is a “therapist who begins to develop dangerous and intimate relationships with the people in her patients’ lives.”

Watts can currently be seen in the dramatic film Demolition opposite Jake Gyllenhaal. She also recently finished work on The Book of Henry with Sarah Silverman and Room‘s Jacob Tremblay, and is now shooting the new Twin Peaks series. Watts is also committed to starring in The Glass Castle for Short Term 12 filmmaker Destin Daniel Cretton. Cretton’s reuniting with his Short Term 12 star Brie Larson for the dramatic film based on Jeannette Walls’ memoir.

Gwen Stefani Announces Her 2016 North American Tour

Rebecca Murray

April 18, 2016

Occasional The Voice coach and Grammy winner Gwen Stefani will be embarking on a lengthy tour this summer. The This is What the Truth Feels Like tour will launch on July 12, 2016 in Boston, Massachusetts with stops in cities including Tampa, Detroit, Chicago, and Vegas before finishing up on October 14th at The Forum in Los Angeles. Tickets will go on sale April 22nd via LiveNation.

Grammy winner Eve will be joining Stefani on the This is What the Truth Feels Like tour. The two artists collaborated on “Rich Girl” and “Let Me Blow Ya Mind.”

Stefani’s This is What the Truth Feels Like, her third album without No Doubt, debuted at #1 on Billboard’s Top 200 chart when it dropped on March 18th. The single “Used to Love You” attained Gold status and the video for the emotionally heart-wrenching song has been watched almost 15 million times.

This Is What the Truth Feels Like 2016 Tour Dates

Tuesday, July 12, 2016 Mansfield, MA Xfinity Center

Saturday, July 16, 2016 Virginia Beach, VA Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater

Sunday, July 17, 2016 Bristow, VA Jiffy Lube Live

Tuesday, July 19, 2016 Camden, NJ BB&T Pavilion

Thursday, July 21, 2016 Wantagh, NY Nikon at Jones Beach Theater

Saturday, July 23, 2016 Charlotte, NC PNC Music Pavilion

Sunday, July 24, 2016 Raleigh, NC Walnut Creek Amphitheatre

Tuesday, July 26, 2016 Tampa, FL MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre

Wednesday, July 27, 2016 West Palm Beach, FL Perfect Vodka Amphitheatre

Friday, July 29, 2016 Alpharetta, GA Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre

Sunday, July 31, 2016 Noblesville, IN Klipsch Music Center

Tuesday, August 02, 2016 Detroit, MI DTE Energy Music Theatre

Thursday, August 04, 2016 Toronto, ON Molson Canadian Amphitheatre

Saturday, August 06, 2016 Chicago, IL Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre

Sunday, August 07, 2016 Saint Paul, MN Xcel Energy Center

Tuesday, August 09, 2016 Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Music Center

Wednesday, August 10, 2016 St. Louis, MO Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre

Friday, August 12, 2016 Kansas City, MO Sprint Center

Saturday, August 13, 2016 Dallas, TX Gexa Energy Pavilion

Sunday, August 14, 2016 Houston, TX Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion

Tuesday, August 16, 2016 Austin, TX Austin360 Amphitheater

Friday, August 19, 2016 Las Vegas, NV T-Mobile Arena

Saturday, August 20, 2016 Fresno, CA Save Mart Center

Wednesday, August 24, 2016 Seattle, WA KeyArena

Thursday, August 25, 2016 Vancouver, BC Pepsi Live @ Rogers Arena

Saturday, October 8, 2016 Mountain View, CA Shoreline Amphitheatre

Saturday, October 15, 2016 Los Angeles, CA The Forum

‘Pete’s Dragon’: Bryce Dallas Howard Interview

Rebecca Murray

April 18, 2016

Bryce Dallas Howard and Oakes Fegley in Pete's Dragon — Bryce Dallas Howard and Oakes Fegley in ‘Pete’s Dragon’ (Photo by Matt Klitscher © 2015 Disney Enterprises, Inc)

The majority of Disney Studios’ time slot at the 2016 CinemaCon was taken up with 27 minutes of Finding Dory footage no one is allowed to write about yet followed by the full screening of Captain America: Civil War. However, before the studio introduced the footage from the much-anticipated Finding Nemo spin-off, other films on the Mouse House’s slate were discussed including Pete’s Dragon. The 2016 version of the 1977 family friendly adventure film is directed by David Lowery (Ain’t Them Bodies Saints) and stars Bryce Dallas Howard, Robert Redford, Karl Urban, Wes Bentley, and Oakes Fegley, with Disney aiming for an August 12th theatrical release.

Bryce Dallas Howard plays a forest ranger in the new Pete’s Dragon and at CinemaCon where she was honored with the Award for Excellence in Acting, Dallas Howard discussed the appeal of starring in Disney’s new take on the story of a boy and his best friend, Elliott the dragon. She also talked about her father, Ron Howard, and her career.

Watch the Bryce Dallas Howard interview:

The Plot: For years, old wood carver Mr. Meacham (Redford) has delighted local children with his tales of the fierce dragon that resides deep in the woods of the Pacific Northwest. To his daughter, Grace (Howard), who works as a forest ranger, these stories are little more than tall tales…until she meets Pete (Fegley). Pete is a mysterious 10-year-old with no family and no home who claims to live in the woods with a giant, green dragon named Elliott. And from Pete’s descriptions, Elliott seems remarkably similar to the dragon from Mr. Meacham’s stories. With the help of Natalie (Oona Laurence), an 11-year-old girl whose father Jack (Bentley) owns the local lumber mill, Grace sets out to determine where Pete came from, where he belongs, and the truth about this dragon.

‘Once Upon a Time’ Season 5 Episode 18 Recap: Ruby Slippers

Rebecca Murray

April 18, 2016

Once Upon a Time Season 5 episode 18 — Teri Reeves, Meghan Ory, and Jamie Chung in ‘Once Upon a Time’ (Photo by Jack Rowand / ABC)

Wolves and witches and flying monkeys, oh my! Once Upon a Time season five episode 18 had a little bit of everything, including a happy ending for Ruby and the return to Storybrooke by one of the gang who had been trapped in the Underworld. Toto’s dognapping, deals for magical slippers, and romance filled the episode titled ‘Ruby Slippers’ and airing on April 17, 2016. One of the better season five episodes, ‘Ruby Slippers’ threw in a few twists fans didn’t see coming.

The Recap:

The gang tries to revive Ruby after zapping her believing she was a creature out to kill Snow. Gathered around a bed in the Charming house, they try to figure out what she was doing in the Underworld and the only clue is a strip of material she had with her.

Back in Oz some time ago, Ruby (Meghan Ory) and Mulan (Jamie Chung) run through the forest. Ruby sniffs for the scent of her pack but can’t find it. Ruby tells Mulan everything she knows about Oz, which is basically that there’s a lot of singing. They decide they’re going to head back to the Enchanted Forest when suddenly an adorable little dog approaches. It’s Toto, followed close behind by Dorothy (Teri Reeves) who thinks Ruby or Mulan is a witch. Ruby explains Toto barked because he knows she’s a wolf. Unfortunately, Toto picks just then to run off through the woods and Ruby stops Dorothy from chasing after him, telling her Toto’s heading a different direction. That wolf sense of smell definitely comes in handy for hunting down lost dogs, among other things. The threesome are headed off to find Toto when the Wicked Witch’s green tornado is spotted and they run for cover.

Back in the Underworld, Zelena (Rebecca Mader) holds the note from Hades (Greg Germann) and suddenly he appears. He’s actually there to warn her Ruby has arrived, and Zelena knows that means Ruby’s there to get revenge after what she did to her friend in Oz. Zelena says she’s going to leave the Underworld (she’s alive and has her own transportation) because if she stays, she’ll do something she regrets – something that will make Regina (Lana Parrilla) keep her daughter from her. Hades tries to talk her into staying, but Zelena won’t give in. Hades promises that even if she leaves, he’ll take care of Ruby.

At Gold’s Pawnshop, Belle (Emilie de Ravin) is still upset she sent Gaston to a fate worse than death instead of showing him mercy. Rumple (Robert Carlyle) reminds her he was trying to protect their child and Belle reminds him that it didn’t work because Hades found a loophole and didn’t destroy the contract. Now, she’s more determined than ever to make things right on her own without Rumple’s help.

At the Charming place, Ruby comes to and doesn’t understand how using a tracking spell to find Zelena made her wind up in the Underworld. The gang lets her know it’s because Zelena is there, too. She’s hunting her down because Zelena wanted Dorothy’s silver slippers and did something horrible to her, but Ruby doesn’t know exactly what. Ruby’s been tracking her to find out what she did to Dorothy who has disappeared without a trace. Snow (Ginnifer Goodwin) promises they’ll find out what happened. Everyone heads off to get the answers from Zelena except for David (Josh Dallas) and Hook (Colin O’Donoghue) who go make a call to Neal to let them know they’re okay.

Unfortunately, when David, Hook, and Henry (Jared Gilmore) get to the phone booth the line is long and Cruella’s at the front of it. She’s the Mayor and orders her goons to rip out the phone. David tries to convince her to stop but she replies, “Looks like chisel-chin junior will just have to go to bed without what I can imagine are terribly dull bedtime stories.” Henry wants to know if she’s doing it because he won’t write her back to life, but Cruella says Hades ordered the phones removed. There’s too much hope in the realm and Hades can’t have that.

Rebecca Mader in 'Once Upon a Time' (Photo by Jack Rowand / ABC) — Rebecca Mader in ‘Once Upon a Time’ (Photo by Jack Rowand / ABC)

Zelena prepares to leave, tapping her slippers together. She’s stopped by Emma (Jennifer Morrison), Regina, Ruby, and Snow who tell her she can’t go anywhere until she tells them what she did to Dorothy.

Flashback once again to Oz, and the threesome’s still searching for Toto. Zelena is suddenly there on the path and she tells them she doesn’t want to be in Oz but was banished there by Ruby’s Storybrooke friends to keep her from her baby. She needs the slippers she gave to Dorothy, but Dorothy won’t give them up. Zelena has Toto and won’t give him back unless Dorothy gives her the slippers.

In the Underworld, Regina and the gang tell Zelena they won’t let her see her baby again unless she tells them what happened to Dorothy. Zelena says even she can’t help Dorothy now because she used a sleeping curse on her, taking a page from Regina’s book. Only true love’s kiss can wake her up and Dorothy doesn’t have a true love.

Zelena and Regina are alone when Zelena offers up a deal: the silver slippers in exchange for her daughter. Regina reminds her about Dorothy’s unbreakable curse, but also tells her it’s possible for her to do a good deed now. Zelena’s not sure and Regina tells her to try. Zelena actually does try, handing over the slippers and telling Regina she hopes they’re able to wake Dorothy (but she’s not actually holding out much hope that can happen). Regina walks outside with the slippers and hands them over to Ruby, but Ruby’s still confused as to how they will help. There’s still no one to give Dorothy true love’s kiss. The only person Dorothy ever loved was her dead Aunt Em.

Back in Oz, Mulan, Ruby, and Dorothy work on a sleeping potion they can use on Zelena to free Toto. They need poppies to finish the spell, and Dorothy and Ruby set out to find them. Dorothy’s still angry and barely speaks to Ruby, but finally opens up and tells her her family tried to have her committed when she returned to Kansas after visiting Oz. Only Aunt Em believed her and shortly after that, she died but not before giving Toto to Dorothy to keep. Toto’s the only one who understands Dorothy, and Ruby tells her she also doesn’t feel like she belongs anywhere either. Ruby confesses to Dorothy that she accidentally killed her boyfriend and the town ran her out, but she’s finally made friends after ending up in Storybrooke. The only reason she’s in Oz is because she’s searching for her pack; they may be the thing that’s still missing from her life. But now she’s not sure they’re really the answer.

Back in the Underworld they find Aunt Em’s grave and it’s intact which means she’s still in the Underworld. But, that still leaves the problem of getting Aunt Em to Dorothy to give her a kiss. Snow comes up with a solution: get the blind witch to bottle a kiss from Aunt Em and Ruby will use the slippers to deliver the kiss to Dorothy in Oz. Just then Hook, David, and Henry race up and tell Snow that Hades had the phones removed. Snow gets upset and worries Hades is making a move on Storybrooke, but David says giving up hope is exactly what Hades wants to have happen. Emma wants them to go home now because Neal – and maybe Storybrooke – need them. Emma says their part of the mission in the Underworld is complete. Hook assures David and Snow the remaining members of the Storybrooke gang will find a way to defeat Hades. Then David reminds them even if that’s so, he and Snow can’t just walk out of the Underworld. Emma says they can go to Oz with Ruby using the slippers, and then when they find Dorothy they can click their way back to Storybrooke. There’s one big problem that only Regina brings up: Snow’s name is on a tombstone so she can’t leave. But…David can. He’ll have to represent the Charmings in this little side adventure.

Belle goes to Zelena and begs for help. She knows Hades loves Zelena and wants her to ask him to rip up their contract. Zelena wonders why she doesn’t ask Rumple for help, and Belle says she doesn’t trust him. Zelena says Belle’s finally seen the beast for what he is, which is similar to her situation with Hades. Zelena says, “I’m never going to get my happy ending. Not with Hades, not with my daughter, not with anyone.” Belle then has a bout of morning sickness, asking Zelena if she remembers the feeling. Zelena doesn’t because the Dark Swan sped up her pregnancy so she never experienced it, and Belle realizes she doesn’t have months to work on a solution to her Hades problem because he can speed up her pregnancy, too. Zelena, actually being kind, says there might be a way to stop him from doing that.

At the Charming house, Hook tries to find answers in the storybook but can’t. Aunt Em died in Kansas and that’s all it says. David comes in and is pissed Snow can’t go home and says they should both be home with their son and shouldn’t be there. Hook thanks David for coming to save him, and David says they did it for Emma but then adds, “I guess you’ve grown on me a bit.” Hook smiles, saying, “I tend to have that effect on people.” Hook tells him to use the slippers, go with Ruby, and go home.

Back in Oz, Dorothy, and Ruby make it to the poppy field. Dorothy apologizes for calling her Wolfie and Ruby says in return she’s going to call her Kansas. There’s definitely something going on beneath the surface here, but it’s interrupted by flying monkeys sent by Zelena. Ruby changes into a wolf and Dorothy rides her to safety. They return to Mulan with the poppies and Dorothy pretends to be tired, excusing herself.

In the Underworld, Ruby, Regina, and Emma visit the blind witch to find out where Emily Brown is. She hates Auntie Em because she’s the competition as she’s running her own diner. The gang heads over there and finds Auntie Em behind the counter. They tell her they’re trying to help Dorothy and she needs to blow a kiss into the bottle to wake her up. Snow says maybe that’s Aunt Em’s unfinished business and why she’s in the Underworld. Aunt Em opens the bottle and all of a sudden she fades away, dissolving into a puddle on the floor. Of course it’s Hades’ fault and he gladly takes credit, standing up from the booth where he’s been eating lunch. He hurt her because they’re trying to help her and help Dorothy who is Zelena’s sworn enemy. “Let’s call it a teachable moment,” says Hades. Emma thinks this all means he’s afraid they’ll actually win this battle. He threatens the Underworld inhabitants that if they help the savior, they’ll wind up like Aunt Em.

Back in the not so wonderful land of Oz, Mulan says they’ll be ready to attack when the sun comes up. Ruby tells her Dorothy wanted to know what she’s been looking for, and now she thinks she’s been looking for someone like Dorothy this whole time. “I know we just met but I have never felt like this about anyone before,” says Ruby, but she’s sad because of how Dorothy looked at her when she transformed. Mulan says Dorothy might have been feeling the same thing Ruby was feeling but couldn’t put it into words. Ruby goes to tell Dorothy how she feels and finds just a scrap of material from her dress in the bed.

In the Underworld, Snow tells Ruby that she’s the one who can give Dorothy true love’s kiss. Ruby is surprised, but Snow says she can tell exactly how worried she is about Dorothy. Ruby says she’s right but she doesn’t think Dorothy feels the same way because she bailed on her in Oz. Snow says love is a funny thing and people in love hurt each other all the time. Ruby admits she’s scared and Snow says that’s a great sign. Ruby agrees to try to wake up Dorothy.

In the cemetery, Regina tells Ruby to click her heels three times while thinking about where she wants to go. Snow and David share one final hug, but then a twist is revealed. Hook crossed out Snow’s name and put David’s on the headstone which worked because it’s a life for a life. It also worked because Hades enchanted Hook’s hand to carve the markers in the first place. Hook can’t erase the names but he can change them. Snow protests, but David won’t change it back. He tells her if one of them goes home it should be her. “Go to our son. Go home. I’ll be back before you know it.” Snow and David kiss – a long, lingering kiss – and then Ruby and Snow join hands. She clicks her heels and off they go.

Zelena visits Hades and tells him she hasn’t given him a fair chance, and Hades says melted Auntie Em only because Zelena hates Dorothy. He did it just for her happiness, but Zelena has a hard time believing it. But, she decides to take that chance and they toast to Dorothy’s eternal slumber, unaware of Ruby’s trip to Oz.

In Oz, the munchkins, Mulan, and Toto are watching over Dorothy when Snow and Ruby appear. Mulan’s been waiting for Ruby to get back and Snow tells Ruby, “You can do this.” Ruby approaches Dorothy, bends over her sleeping body, and caresses her hand and hair. She then leans in for the kiss and it works! Dorothy awakens and they call each other by their nicknames. Even Toto barks his approval. Dorothy reveals she only left because she couldn’t lose Ruby to Zelena. Dorothy’s amazed Ruby came back for her and Ruby says she will always be there for her. They kiss again and there’s more than one munchkin shedding tears of joy. And in the Underworld, Henry holds the page showing the kiss and smiles. He turns the page over and writes the end of their story. Then he rushes downstairs and shows David pages of Snow back in Storybrooke holding Neal.

In Gold’s shop, Belle tells Rumple she’s found a way to stop Hades from taking her baby. She can use the sleeping curse she got from Zelena, prick her finger, and pause her pregnancy. If she’s asleep, Hades can’t take the baby and Rumple will have more time to work on destroying the contract. Rumple thinks it will make things worse because the only way for her to wake up is true love’s kiss, which means she’s forcing him to become the man she wants him to be. He says he’s not that man and Belle agrees. She says her father will wake her up and Rumple will have to do whatever it takes to get her back to her dad. She pricks her finger and falls fast asleep.

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‘Containment’: George Young and Trevor St. John Interviews

Rebecca Murray

April 18, 2016

Trevor St John in Containment — Trevor St. John as Leo in ‘Containment’ (Photo: Justin Stephens © 2016 The CW Network, LLC)

The CW’s Containment is set to premiere on April 19, 2016 at 9pm ET/PT with George Young playing CDC researcher Dr. Victor Cannerts and Trevor St. John playing an Atlanta journalist named Leo Greene. The series is executive produced by Julie Plec (The Vampire Diaries, The Originals) and David Nutter (The Flash, Arrow) and takes place during an outbreak of a deadly epidemic in Atlanta that causes the city to be put in quarantine to hopefully stop the spread of the mysterious virus.

Speaking with George Young during the 2016 WonderCon in Los Angeles, Young said he’s definitely a germaphobe now after working on Containment. “I am now, like most of the cast, like most of the people on the set. Like most of the camera crew, the lighting crew, the directors, we’ll all germaphobes,” said Young. “We were filming the pilot and we’re doing this scene with someone behind the glass and we’re in front of the glass. It’s in a hospital and one of the lighting guys sneezes. Normally, it’s okay. Normally it’s all right but because we’ve all just been introduced to our characters, just the scenario of something that could actually happen, we all freaked out. We all looked at the guy like, ‘Okay, I’m not going anywhere near this person anymore.’ So we became germaphobes.”

“Just think about the everyday things we do, shaking people’s hands – not just strangers but family,” said Young. “What happens if a virus happens and you’re not allowed to do that? Or, if you do that there are consequences – real consequences. That’s what we ask in the show and that’s why I’m curious to see what the audience answers.”

However, being a part of Containment didn’t have the same effect on Trevor St. John. St. John isn’t any more cautious or fearful about the spread of a virus than he was before taking on the role in the new The CW series. “I know it’s fiction, even though it could very well happen. They took great pains to make it realistic and considering what’s happening now, it’s an intrinsic topic,” said St. John. “Other actors are talking about becoming germaphobes but I’ve never been a germaphobe. In fact, they say now that if you want to be healthy not that you shouldn’t wash your hands but you should be exposed to the good bacteria because we’re all suffering from that lack of that microbiome, the good microbiome, so there’s actually some evidence that we shouldn’t be germaphobes.”

Young describes his character, Dr. Victor Cannerts, as the doctor caught at the Ground Zero/Patient Zero area of the virus outbreak. “He makes, very early on in the pilot, the initial call for the containment, for the quarantine. It’s all this stress of whether he’s doing the right thing. He’s the most qualified person within the contained area to do the right thing. People are looking to him and Claudia Black’s character is looking to me, she’s outside the containment area. Other people are looking for answers and I’m the one who has to come up with it. It’s a question of I have to sound like I know what I’m doing but at the same time I’m panicking. I’ve studied it; I’ve maybe experienced it to smaller degrees in my training as a doctor. But to be faced with this in the U.S. or at your doorstep is something terrifying. But, I can’t share it because you don’t want one of the leaders or somebody in there you’re depending on to suddenly freak out.”

Young added, “There’s a lot of stress and I think you’ll see that with each character, what happens to them when you put them in this pressure cooker. Whether they’re in the literal pressure cooker that is the contained area or they’re outside, it’s still stressful. What happens to them? Where does your character go? What colors do you show? What do you let slip through that in normal situations you don’t? I think that’s the unpredictability about it. You can’t bet on anything, like, ‘This character will do that. I know that this guy – I can put my finger on him.’ Really, you can’t, and you shouldn’t because you’ll get infected. [Laughing] But you can’t anyway. It’s interesting.”

St. John says his character is suffering the consequences of a previous fact-checking error when we meet him in Containment. “He’s been disgraced in the world of journalism and the blogosphere and is trying to claw his way back to the mainstream popularity. This story kind of falls in my life and I assume that it’s going to be the thing, my golden ticket back into the mainstream and so I dig deep and I befriend Lex [played by David Gyasi] and I try to get to the heart of the story and the truth.”

Watch the full interviews with George Young and Trevor St. John on Containment:

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