Julia Louis-Dreyfus in season five of ‘Veep’ (Photo: Lacey Terrell / HBO)
HBO’s Emmy-winning half-hour comedy series VEEP will return for a fifth season beginning on April 24, 2016 at 10:30pm ET/PT with Julia Louis-Dreyfus back as now-President Selina Meyer. The second season of the critically acclaimed series will also feature Tony Hale, Anna Chlumsky, Matt Walsh, Reid Scott, Timothy Simons, Sufe Bradshaw, Kevin Dunn, Gary Cole, and Sam Richardson. Returning as guest stars during the upcoming season are John Slattery, Sarah Sutherland, and Hugh Laurie.
Armando Iannucci created VEEP and David Mandel, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Frank Rich, Chris Godsick, and Lew Morton executive produce.
The Season 5 Plot: President Selina Meyer is in the midst of a virtually unprecedented Electoral College tie, with her future as commander in chief coming down to just a few hundred votes. While Amy and Dan work on a long shot to victory, Selina finds herself spinning her wheels in D.C., as her staff strives to make her seem presidential (even though she actually is President), at the same time fending off the ambitions of Tom James, her charismatic running mate, who in a twist of obscure constitutional procedure could end up becoming president.
VEEP April and May 2016 Episodes:
Episode #39 (season 5, episode 1): “Morning After”
Debut: SUNDAY, APRIL 24 (10:30-11:00 p.m. ET/PT)
Other HBO playdates: April 24 (12:30 a.m., 3:30 a.m.), 26 (4:25 a.m.), 27 (9:30 p.m.), 28 (10:05 p.m., 4:30 a.m.) and 29 (3:25 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: April 25 (8:00 p.m.), 29 (5:30 p.m.) and 30 (4:40 a.m.), and May 15 (9:00 a.m.)
On the night after the election, Selina discovers a possible road to victory. Meanwhile, Amy must figure out if she is back or not; Catherine kicks off a behind-the-scenes documentary project; Mike announces that he and Wendy (Kathy Najimy) are adopting a baby from China; and Dan considers a new career.
Written by David Mandel; directed by Chris Addison.
Episode #40 (season 5, episode 2): “Nev-ah-da”
Debut: SUNDAY, MAY 1 (10:30-11:00 p.m.)
Other HBO playdates: May 1 (12:30 a.m., 3:00 a.m.), 3 (5:00 a.m.), 4 (8:30 p.m.), 5 (11:00 p.m., 5:30 a.m.) and 6 (3:10 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: May 2 (8:00 p.m.), 6 (5:00 p.m.), 7 (1:45 p.m., 1:45 a.m.) and 15 (9:30 a.m.)
Amy, Dan, Jonah and Richard try to win the presidency for Selina. Back in D.C., Selina brings in respected Washington fixture Bob Bradley (Martin Mull), aka “The Eagle,” and, after nudging out Tom James on the newly created banking task force, meets billionaire banker Charlie Baird. Meanwhile, Mike tries to get healthy before his baby arrives; Kent investigates Sue’s age; and Amy and Dan share a charged moment.
Written by Lew Morton; directed by Chris Addison.
Episode #41 (season 5, episode 3): “The Eagle”
Debut: SUNDAY, MAY 8 (10:30-11:00 p.m.)
Other HBO playdates: May 8 (12:30 a.m., 3:30 a.m.), 10 (5:20 a.m.), 11 (8:30 p.m.), 12 (10:00 p.m., 5:30 a.m.) and 13 (4:25 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: May 9 (8:00 p.m.), 13 (5:15 p.m.), 14 (5:45 p.m., 5:20 a.m.) and 15 (10:00 a.m.)
Mike must deal with the consequences of Selina’s tweet. Feeling usurped by Bob, Amy begins to be troubled by his behavior. At a museum gala, Gary finds himself the belle of the ball.
Written by Steve Koren; directed by Chris Addison.
Episode #42 (season 5, episode 4): “Mother”
Debut: SUNDAY, MAY 15 (10:30-11:00 p.m.)
Other HBO playdates: May 15 (12:30 a.m., 3:30 a.m.), 17 (5:25 a.m.), 18 (8:30 p.m.), 19 (10:30 p.m., 5:15 a.m.) and 20 (1:40 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: May 16 (8:00 p.m.), 20 (5:30 p.m.) and 21 (10:50 a.m., 1:50 a.m.)
Selina rushes to the hospital while attempting to win the presidency. Amy and Dan discover the O’Brien camp has staged a fake protest, and task Jonah and Richard with organizing their own pro-POTUS demonstration. Mike and Wendy meet with a potential surrogate.
Written by Alex Gregory & Peter Huyck; directed by Dale Stern.
Kyle Chandler in ‘Bloodline’ season two (Photo by Saeed Adyani/Netflix)
Based solely on the new trailer it appears Netflix’s season two of Bloodline is going to be even better than season one. If you haven’t binged on season one, you still have time to catch up before season two arrives on May 27, 2016. The hour-long drama stars Kyle Chandler, Ben Mendelsohn, Linda Cardellini, Norbert Leo Butz, Jacinda Barrett, Jamie McShane, Enrique Murciano, and Sissy Spacek. The series was created by Todd A. Kessler, Daniel Zelman, and Glenn Kessler.
Season one of Bloodline set the bar high, earning Golden Globe, Emmy, and Critics’ Choice nominations, along with a nomination from the Writers Guild of America.
The Plot: Set in the Florida Keys, Bloodline centers on a close-knit family of four adult siblings whose secrets and scars are revealed when their black sheep brother returns home. For season two, the tagline reads “You can’t escape the past.” The Rayburns struggle to conceal an unthinkable crime and begin to unravel in the midst of mounting lies, betrayal, and paranoia.”
The CW’s new dramatic series Containment is set to debut on April 19, 2016 with Chris Wood, Christina Moses, Trevor St. John, Kristen Gutoskie, David Gyasi, Hanna Mangan Lawrence, George Young, and Claudia Black in starring roles. Created by The Vampire Diaries‘ Julie Plec, Containment‘s set in Atlanta and takes place immediately after a deadly epidemic breaks out that forces the authorities to quarantine the city. Teaming up to discuss the series during the 2016 WonderCon, Chris Wood and Christina Moses talked about their characters and explained why they were drawn to the project. Wood told us he likes to describe Containment by saying viewers will come for the horror and the situation and the landscape and they’ll stay for the relationshps. “It’s really a story of humanity. That’s the beauty of it,” said Wood.
Chris Wood and Christina Moses Interview:
How much has this changed the way you think about touching people?
Chris Wood: “For me, it’s more in public places where it’s very crowded or if I go to a doctor’s office or a hospital. I just don’t want to be around it. I was in a hospital a few weeks ago and when I walked in there, it was the first time I’d been in one in real life since doing the show and it just sort of freaked me out differently. Probably because that’s one of the sets on the show that my character lives in. I actually sleep in the hospital in Containment all the time, so I actually had a reaction, a physical reaction, when I walked in.”
Why does your character sleep in a hospital?
Chris Wood: “It’s where I get stuck. It’s just where I happen to be when it starts. You have to make headquarters. If your house isn’t within the radius, you have to find a place to stay and it seemed like the safest place, I guess.”
Christina Moses: “And a lot of people get stuck there, so once you’re in they won’t let you out. Wherever you kind of end up, unless you happen to live inside the quarantined area, you stay where they tell you.”
What do you think would be the hardest thing about being quarantined?
Christina Moses: “I would be trapped and not have freedom, and fearing for my life. Not having good food, access to good food…everything I take for granted just taken away.”
Would you be someone who panics or would you be able to rationally decide what to do next?
Chris Wood: “I think I’d be calm, sort of that eerie calm you get in chaos sometimes where all of a sudden your overdrive kicks in and it’s like, ‘We have to make decisions to stay alive.’ I feel like I would do that, but maybe it’s just wishful thinking. [Laughing] Maybe I’d just panic and then run into someone with the virus.”
Christina Moses: “I would think that I would panic, but I’ve obviously never been in anything that horrendous and life-threatening. But there’s times where I’ve been surprisingly calm, clear-headed, and can handle what needs to be handled in the moment. But, I wouldn’t be able to maintain that. Maybe I’d do both. I think that’s actually what’s great about our show is you don’t know that about yourself. You think you know that about yourself. You think you know who you are.”
Chris Wood: “You can’t even imagine how you would react because it’s all so instinctual. It’s instincts kicking in to protect yourself and the people with you. It changes based on what’s happening. It’s hard to know what you would do, and it’s terrifying.”
Christina Moses: “And you get to discover it with us.”
How do you develop your character when you have such a short time to introduce them before you get trapped and they change their personalities?
Chris Wood: “That’s something that I think’s the strength of the first episode alone in telling us who these people are, how they tick, what you can assume they’re going to be like once they’re trapped or once they’re trying to help from the outside. You can see who they are in the form of the person as they arrive in the situation and then it leaves us the room to watch these characters evolve. Through the reactions and the relationships they forge you see how they change. I think that’s the strength of the first episode. The writing and the structure of it, you really do actually meet the truth of each character and then you get to carry that forward to watch them change because it will change. It wouldn’t have been a truthful story if the characters didn’t change.”
Christina Moses: “No one would be interested. That’s what we watch TV and films for is to go on these journeys, to watch them discover things about themselves and also as the viewer to discover it before they do. I think that’s the best when you discover what they haven’t yet about themselves. That’s good writing and good acting, and good storytelling.”
Was there one thing about your character you latched onto, that no matter how they changed remains the same?
Christina Moses: “Yes, her strength and her ability to survive. Even though she wants to keep people [away], she can’t. Her heart won’t let her when it comes down to it. That’s something that becomes a lot stronger for her as the season goes on.”
Chris Wood: “His heroism. His ability to step up. This is someone who could have been a leader but chose to be a follower and is more comfortable in that position. I think that’s a beautiful story to tell is one of someone who takes the second position, who doesn’t want the spotlight, who would rather just sort of coast through and not have to deal with the highs and the lows that come with leading. He’d rather just coast and that’s how that person protects himself. That’s how Jake prevents the hurt is that he passes by maintaining this sort of boring equilibrium and he’s sort of closed off. For me that’s what resonated just reading the first episode when I wanted to go into the project. You can see through the cracks that he’s really there, and I think that’s the beauty of the whole show is that every character’s story is one of who they are through the cracks. They have to break through that and the containment situation actually forces it out of them. That’s sort of why we love disaster stories, I think, is extreme circumstances bring out the best and worst. It brings out the truth; it brings out who someone is. I think that’s why people will respond to the show is because that is true. The writing really explores that.”
Does the fact the show’s about a deadly disease make you nervous your character could get killed off?
Chris Wood: “Zero job security! It’s like, ‘Hmmm, let me pick a show where people have to die.’ People will die and that’s definitely a factor.”
Christina Moses: “But that’s the fun of it, too. But the thing is it’s the heart of the story – the humanity, the love stories, who we become and who we discover ourselves to be, the truth that’s revealed – that’s the juice. That’s what’s fun to play.”
Chris Wood: “And if we get to do that for one season or whether we get to do it for six, whether the show goes that long or whether we’re in the show ourselves, that’s the kind of storytelling that as actors I think we’re all hungry to do. It’s the kind of story that maybe doesn’t end the way you want it to, you know? Sometimes those are the best. Game of Thrones has sort of proven that. I’m a firm believer that as long as it’s got the meat and the heart, it doesn’t matter about the duration.”
Christina Moses: “It’s all about the story.”
The series is described as dark. Are there any lighter moments?
Chris Wood: “Oh yeah. It actually lives more in the light.”
Christina Moses: “There’s so many beautiful, touching moments. Oh yeah, it wouldn’t work otherwise. You have to have those redeeming qualities otherwise it just is too heavy.”
Chris Wood: “The writers had a big mantra written on their board which was for the season as a general theme and also for each episode. The three crucial ingredients were the ‘Three Hs’ which were horror, heart, and holy shit. So, every part of our show contains that.”
Watch the full Chris Wood and Christina Moses interview:
Emilie de Ravin and Wes Brown in ‘Once Upon a Time’ (Photo by Jack Rowand / ABC)
Gaston flashes a gorgeous smile, we find out if ogres are evil, Hades plays Let’s Make a Deal with Belle, and Emma’s nightmare springs to life in Once Upon a Time‘s season five episode 17 titled ‘Her Handsome Hero.’ Airing on April 10, 2016, ‘Her Handsome Hero’ also revealed Hades hates flowers and the Regina and Hook show is just as entertaining in the Underworld as it was in Storybrooke. It’s good to have Hook back getting on Regina’s nerves and vice versa, and it was also good to see another familiar face show up at the very end of the episode.
The Recap:
Belle (Emilie de Ravin) is deeply unimpressed when her father sets up a date with Gaston (Wes Brown). Although she doesn’t want to be wooed by him, her father says a war is brewing and they’ll need Gaston’s family’s support. In walks Gaston – handsome and charming – and he wins her over by asking if she hates meeting potential suitors as much as he does. He even offers to head back home if she doesn’t want him to stick around. Belle falls for his charm, and they head out on a walk.
In the Underworld, Belle tells Rumple (Robert Carlyle) she’s not about to give up her baby and he better fix the whole ‘Hades has rights to her child’ situation. But, he can’t use dark magic to fix it. She still thinks he can be good and not use dark magic. Belle basically says it’s her way or the highway.
In the graveyard, Emma (Jennifer Morrison) tries to use magic to wipe their names off the headstones. Before they can see if it’s actually going to work, Hook (Colin O’Donoghue) figures out (by the whipping winds and approaching funnel cloud) that a storm is coming. Hook, Emma, and Snow (Ginnifer Goodwin) run for safety. Just as quickly as it approached, the storm is gone but in its place is a beast who snatches Snow!
Fortunately, it’s all a dream and Emma wakes up calling her mother’s name. In reality, she’s actually on the roof of the library with Hook who reminds her it’s the first time she’s slept in days. They see the signal and head inside, joining up with Snow, Regina (Lana Parrilla), Henry (Jared Gilmore), and David (Josh Dallas). Hook asks if the squiggly lines Regina’s working on on the wall is her plan to get them home. [It’s great to have Hook and his dark wit back!] Regina explains the squiggly lines are the only way to break the protection spell Hades put on the elevator. Emma and Regina work their magic together and the elevator opens, only to reveal a break wall. Emma then asks Regina if burning the names off the gravestones would work and Regina confirms it would but that the spell to do that doesn’t exist. Emma lets her know it does – she saw it in a dream. Hook’s learned not to question her, delivering his first huge smile of the episode. Snow wants in on the adventure and Regina heads out to find Zelena (Rebecca Mader) to learn Hades’ weakness.
Colin O’Donoghue, Ginnifer Goodwin, Josh Dallas, Jennifer Morrison, Jared Gilmore and Lana Parrilla in ‘Once Upon a Time’ (Photo by Jack Rowand / ABC)
Zelena walks through the street, with Hades moping around a corner watching her walk away. Then he notices a flower sprouting through the destruction of the pavement, plucks it, and walks away.
Hades goes to visit Gaston at Storybrooke’s Pet Shelter and reveals Belle and Rumplestiltskin – the man who killed Gaston and sent him to the Underworld – are now in town. Hades offers Gaston a chance at revenge and Gaston wants to know why Hades would help him. Hades says it’s because he’s been finding flowers all over town and things aren’t supposed to be growing there. Thanks to the Storybrooke folks “hope has taken root” and Hades can’t have that. He needs Gaston to kill the Dark One by using special arrows.
Back in time, Gaston and Belle flirt during their walk, with Gaston saying none of the stories she’s heard about him are true. He says his love life has been empty and he’s spent his life looking for someone like her. Just then he hears something in the woods and takes off, bow ready, to shoot it. Belle runs after him and finds him at the edge of deep pit. Gaston sees an ogre in the pit and tells Belle that means war is closer than anyone thought. Ogres aren’t ever found this close to the castle. The ogre, on the floor of the pit, comes into the sunlight and Belle sees he’s just a child. She thinks he might have just wandered off from his home, but Gaston thinks he might just be a scout. If they bring him back to the castle, Belle says the soldiers will torture him and she can’t let that happen. Gaston trusts her – even though they’ve just met – and off they go to find a different way of getting the info from the ogre.
Back in the Underworld, Rumple’s getting frustrated trying to find white magic to defeat Hades. “To be able to turn darkness to light is a fool’s errand,” says Rumple. “To use darkness for light, that may be possible.” Belle refuses to let him use darkness and storms out of the shop. Rumple chases after her and just then an arrow flies by. They spot Gaston across the street taking aim. Belle can’t believe he’s there and Gaston explains he’s there to kill Rumple because Rumple killed him. He fires an arrow and Rumple catches it, quickly realizing the arrows where created by Hades. Belle pleads with Gaston that there must be another way, but Gaston says he can’t let the Beast go free. He shoots again and Rumple uses magic to move he and Belle to the docks out of harm’s way. There, Belle yells at Rumple for never telling her he killed her fiancee. Rumple says one scratch from the arrow and he’ll be trapped there forever, and that means he can’t help their child. He wants to use dark magic to defeat Gaston and Belle says nope, they’ll help Gaston move on and that might actually help them defeat Hades.
Emma tries to work the spell at the cemetery and has a severe case of deja vu when Hook warns of a fast-approaching storm. Emma’s freaked out, they run for shelter, and it’s just like her dream. Snow wants to take a look but Emma stops her, telling Hook and Snow they have to make a run for it.
Regina finds Zelena at the diner and tells her her daughter’s safely hidden in the woods with Robin. Zelena says if Hades wants something, he’ll never give up which makes Regina curious as to how she knows that. Regina wants them to try and act like sisters, asking what happened between her and Hades. Zelena reveals Hades fell in love with her. Regina figures out Zelena, who’s crying, loves Hades, but needs her to tell them how to get out of the Underworld. Regina needs to know his weakness and Zelena says as far as she knows, she’s his only weakness.
Emma, Hook, and Snow hide in Regina’s vault, with Emma finally letting them in on the scoop that in her dream Snow died.
Belle’s looking through drawers at the pet shelter and wants Rumple to use his magic to open Gaston’s locker. That prompts a discussion about Belle being a hypocrite and deciding when it’s okay for Rumple to use dark magic. Looking through his locker, Belle finds a book titled Her Handsome Hero and figures out she’s his unfinished business. She sends Rumple off, saying she can get through to Gaston.
Back in time, Belle and Gaston are in the library and she shows him a book that should tell them what the ogre is after. Gaston compliments her and tells Belle her mother must have been special to raise a daughter with so much fire. Belle hands him Her Handsome Hero, the first book her mother gave her and the one that made her fall in love with reading. Belle says it’s not a cheap romance but is about compassion and forgiveness – the things that make a hero. She offers it to him and he says he’ll read every word, twice. Calling her a woman of substance, they lean in for a kiss which is interrupted when she spots the answer to how to find out what the ogre wants. They need to use the Mirror of Souls and if there’s evil in their soul, their eyes will glow with fire. If not, then the ogre means them no harm. Belle heads out to get the mirror and Gaston makes her promise that if the creature is evil, she’ll tell her father.
In the Underworld, Hades shows up at the pet shelter and tells Belle he wants to help. He offers her a deal: she can keep her baby if she lets Rumple face Gaston. If one throws the other into the River of Souls, she can keep her baby. She turns down the offer and Hades leaves, telling her to let him know if she changes her mind.
Back in Regina’s vault, Hook thinks the monster’s gone when they hear something. He picks up a knife and stops just short of stabbing Regina. “I’m glad your reflexes are better than your sense of style,” says Regina. [It’s so good to have them back together trading quips.] Snow explains why they’re hiding and Emma tells them it’s because she saw her mother die in the dream, and Regina says maybe the dream is actually about Emma working out some issues. Hook, reluctantly, agrees. He wants to know what’s going on and Emma says she feels like she failed everyone. He reminds her she saved him, and she reminds him they’re all still trapped in the Underworld and she’s the one who brought them there. Emma thinks she should have done this alone and she’s always scared now someone will die. Snow says no one was forced to go there, and love is worth it – even though it’s hard. Snow says, “If you want to get home, let’s do what works. Let’s face this monster together.” That actually makes Emma smile – sure it’s a little smile but it counts.
Gaston goes to Rumple’s shop, arrow ready to shoot him. He thinks he sees Rumple but it’s a dummy that he shoots. In walks Belle who says now she knows for sure Gaston would kill Rumple if he had the chance. “Seeing him dead is the only thing I care about anymore,” says Gaston. Belle answers by throwing the book on the table and asking if he’s sure that’s all he wants. She tells him she wants to help him move on, asking why he still has the book. Gaston says he has the book because no matter how many times he throws it out, it always reappears. The book is a constant reminder of why he died, saying she made him weak. Gaston says being a hero isn’t about compassion; being a hero is only about strength. He’s angry when she defends Rumple, reminding her Rumple kidnapped her. She then confesses that Rumple’s her husband. Gaston can’t believe it. “Good old Belle, you always did have a soft spot for a monster.”
Back in time, Belle and her dad have the mirror and are going to hold it up to the ogre when they come across Gaston knocked out and laying by the tree. He was supposed to be watching the ogre but it escaped. He apologizes for letting the ogre escape and Belle’s dad says he’ll hunt the ogre down, but Gaston wants to do it himself. Belle wants to go with him because she still wants to use the mirror to check his ogre.
In the Underworld, Rumple wants to know the deal Hades offered Belle and she makes him promise he won’t hurt Gaston before telling him. She tells him and Rumple is surprised she turned Hades down. Rumple breaks his promise and takes off to find Gaston.
Back in time, the ogre is being chased by Gaston and his men on horseback. Belle’s following behind and isn’t there when they catch up to him with Gaston shooting him with an arrow as he hides up in a tree. The ogre falls to the ground and hides behind a rock. Gaston’s about to shoot again when Belle races up with the mirror. She stands in between Gaston and the ogre, and Gaston shoots anyway shattering the mirror but not completely. There’s a shard left which is enough for Belle to see Gaston’s eyes are glowing red. Belle confronts Gaston, telling him he tortured the ogre while she was gone and that’s why it attacked him. Gaston says he’s only trying to protect the kingdom, but Belle says he’ll have to shoot her first if he wants to kill the ogre.
In the Underworld, Rumple’s at the docks holding Gaston up by the neck using magic. Rumple lefts him higher and Belle races in and asks if she can say one thing before he throws Gaston in the river. “I have always known who you really are. That’s why I love you,” says Belle, kissing him. Then she pulls out the Dark One dagger and commands him to not hurt Gaston. Released, Gaston picks up his bow and arrow and is about to shoot Rumple when Belle pushes him into the river.
Back in time, Belle’s father tells her ogres have breached the eastern region. He blames her and says they’re now at war. He tells Belle they have to do what it takes to save the kingdom. They need Gaston’s family’s army but they won’t help unless she marries Gaston. Belle would be a hero if she marries him. In walks Gaston and he tells her they’ll rule side by side. He kneels before her and asks her to be his queen. Belle, taking a deep breath, agrees.
In the Underworld, Belle can’t believe she killed Gaston. Rumple comforts her, telling her at least their baby is safe and in pops Hades who says that wasn’t the deal. The deal was for Rumple or Gaston to throw the other into the river, and Belle calls him a monster and says she’ll have her baby freed from the deal. She killed Gaston because Hades forced her into it. Bending down, Hades watches as a flower shrivels and dies. He picks it, saying, “This is a beautiful flower imbued with my favorite scent – hopelessness.”
At the diner the shriveled flower is delivered to Zelena, complete with a pretty bow. She smiles as she picks it up.
Out in the woods, Hook, Snow, Regina, and Emma track the creature Emma dreamed would kill her mom. They spot it and Emma zaps it with magic. Snow gets there first and stops them before they can harm the creature again. It turns out to be Red! Welcome back again, Meghan Ory.
The cast of ‘Pitch Perfect 2’ at the 2016 MTV Movie Awards (Photo by Getty Images for MTV)
The 2016 MTV Movie Awards hosted by Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart took place on April 9, 2016 at Warner Bros. studio, with Star Wars: The Force Awakens going into the awards show with the most nominations with 11. The latest Star Wars film emerged the big winner, earning awards in the Movie of the Year, Breakthrough Performance, and Best Villain categories. The R-rated comic book-inspired Deadpool also turned out to be popular with MTV voters. Ryan Reynolds took home the Best Comedic Performance award and shared the Best Fight trophy with Ed Skrein for the battle between Deadpool and Ajax.
Pitch Perfect 2 earned two MTV Movie Awards including the Best Kiss award for Rebel Wilson and Adam DeVine’s liplock. Other films earning awards at the annual MTV event were Straight Outta Compton, Mad Max: Fury Road, Jurassic World, Amy, The Revenant, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2, and Inside Out.
MOVIE OF THE YEAR Star Wars: The Force Awakens
TRUE STORY Straight Outta Compton
DOCUMENTARY Amy
BEST FEMALE PERFORMANCE
Charlize Theron – Mad Max: Fury Road
BEST MALE PERFORMANCE
Leonard DiCaprio – The Revenant
BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE
Daisy Ridley – Star Wars: The Force Awakens
BEST COMEDIC PERFORMANCE
Ryan Reynolds – Deadpool
BEST ACTION PERFORMANCE
Chris Pratt – Jurassic World
BEST HERO
Jennifer Lawrence – The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2
BEST VILLAIN
Adam Driver – Star Wars: The Force Awakens
BEST VIRTUAL PERFORMANCE
Amy Poehler – Inside Out
ENSEMBLE CAST Pitch Perfect 2
BEST KISS
Rebel Wilson & Adam DeVine – Pitch Perfect 2
BEST FIGHT
Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) vs. Ajax (Ed Skrein) – Deadpool
The MTV Movie Awards premiered the full trailer for Warner Bros Pictures’ Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, the first feature film with J.K. Rowling as screenwriter. Directed by Harry Potter veteran David Yates, the cast is led by Eddie Redmayne and features Katherine Waterston, Colin Farrell, Jon Voight, Ron Perlman, Carmen Ejogo, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Ezra Miller, Samantha Morton, Jenn Murray, and Faith Wood-Blagrove. Warner Bros is releasing Fantastic Beasts in theaters on November 18, 2016.
The Plot:Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is an all-new adventure returning us to the wizarding world created by J.K. Rowling. Academy Award winner Eddie Redmayne stars in the central role of wizarding world magizoologist Newt Scamander, under the direction of David Yates, who helmed the last four Harry Potter blockbusters. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them opens in 1926 as Newt Scamander has just completed a global excursion to find and document an extraordinary array of magical creatures. Arriving in New York for a brief stopover, he might have come and gone without incident…were it not for a NoMaj (American for Muggle) named Jacob, a misplaced magical case, and the escape of some of Newt’s fantastic beasts, which could spell trouble for both the wizarding and No-Maj worlds.
Waatch the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them trailer:
Chris Evans took the stage at the 2016 MTV Movie Awards to premiere a new clip from Captain America: Civil War. The comic book-inspired film started screening for critics last week and has been earning overwhelmingly positive tweets from those who caught the early screenings. The new clip shows Captain America, Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), and Falcon (Anthony Mackie) taking on bad guys (who use poisonous gas) in order to, apparently, rescue Bucky (Sebastian Stan). Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, the cast includes Robert Downey Jr as Iron Man, Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, Paul Rudd as Ant-Man, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, Don Cheadle as War Machine, Paul Bettany as Vision, Chadwick Boseman as Black Panther, and Tom Holland as Spider-Man. Captain America: Civil War opens in theaters on May 6, 2016.
The Plot: Marvel’s Captain America: Civil War finds Steve Rogers leading the newly formed team of Avengers in their continued efforts to safeguard humanity. But after another incident involving the Avengers results in collateral damage, political pressure mounts to install a system of accountability, headed by a governing body to oversee and direct the team. The new status quo fractures the Avengers, resulting in two camps—one led by Steve Rogers and his desire for the Avengers to remain free to defend humanity without government interference, and the other following Tony Stark’s surprising decision to support government oversight and accountability.
Je Suis Prete, I am ready, DROUGHTLANDER IS OVER!!! Vive Les Frasers!! Yes, there is a decidedly strong French beginning to this Outlander recap, and for good reason. Even the incredible theme song has some French lines. Season 2 of Starz’s Outlander begins on the shores of France, about halfway through the episode. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves…
The premiere episode starts with the dashing, and powerfully strong-willed, Claire Beauchamp Randall Fraser (Caitriona Balfe) lying on the ground in the standing stone circle of Craig Nah Dun. This is NOT how the second book begins the process. The only similarity between the book and the show is that it does begin with her back in her own timeline. If I dwell on the book differences I will invariably give out spoilers, so I will just leave it there for book-to-show comparison for this first part of the episode. They are far too different, but don’t let that dissuade you from watching the episode if you are a dedicated book fan. The episode really does a wonderful job of moving the story forward in its own right. And the second half converges with the book again.
As I said, at the stones, Claire is lying on the ground. To me, it looks almost like she is surprised by this fact, but we will have to wait and see if my impression is correct (maybe in the finale when they close the circle?). You book fans know where I’m going with that {wink}. She kneels in front of that evil center stone and wails at it, hence my impression of surprise on her part. All of those she had just seen are GONE! She is utterly devastated and begins to walk down the road she drove up only a few years before. A man comes around the road behind her and tries to help her. She is completely disoriented and is extremely surprised to hear a car horn behind her. The gentleman is shocked to hear her ask what year it is. He responds that it is 1948. She lashes out at him after he hesitates to answer another odd question about who won the Battle of Culloden. He tells her that the British won. She crumples to the street in tears.
The scene transitions to Frank Randall (Tobias Menzies) charging down the hospital hall after receiving a call from the doctor (Sandy Welch) that Claire had been placed in a room there. Frank enters the room and the first thing Claire mentions is the noise as she looks out the window at the cars and buses passing by. Then she sees the reflection in the window of Frank and it startles her. She can’t hardly look directly at him. He voices his delight at her being back and approaches her. She jumps back because she sees, NOT Frank, but Black Jack Randall (also Tobias Menzies). It is but a flash, but enough that Frank apologies, unknowing what he is apologizing for. Of course, he could have no idea about BJR at this point, much less anything else other than Claire is back and in front of him. Then, a kind and gentle newsman {said in all sarcasm} pops in the room and snaps a photo. That gets into the papers along with the headline that she has been returned from the Fairies.
Frank mentions that they can stay with the Reverend Wakefield (James Fleet) while she recovers. An event that never happened in the books is that Claire is able to speak with Mrs. Graham (Tracey Wilkinson), the Reverend’s housekeeper. In the book, Claire laments that she wished she had the opportunity to speak with her, so I found this a great addition to the show. It also is consistent given the fact that Mrs. Graham told Frank about the stones in episode 8, ‘Both Sides Now,’ in the last season. Also something that never happened in the books.
Frank notices the clothes that she wore lying on a chair in the room. It actually helps to prove things. Frank got an opinion on the clothes from a colleague while they are having Claire recover at the Reverend’s house. He finds that the outfit is incredibly valuable and rare in their current 1948 timeframe; not something that can simply be purchased. During the week of Claire’s recovery up to this point, she is combing through the Reverend’s archives of information on the Battle of Culloden. Mrs. Graham and Claire start discussing Jamie, and it is the first smile we see from Claire. As they are talking, it hits Claire afresh that he is dead. All of them are dead. She is now 200 years in the future again. Mrs. Graham tries to help Claire cope and also says she needs to move forward, that she cannot live the rest of her days searching for ghosts.
Later that night, around bedtime, Claire asks Frank to step into her room so they can talk. They do have separate rooms. Claire has decided to tell Frank about what happened to her, so she imparts the story of the journey she took. She includes Jamie, all of it. But like Jamie, Frank believes her. Frank also relays to her his pain at losing her and what he has gone through. Tobias does an incredible job helping us to feel Frank’s situation. How would any of us react to such a tale? Frank accepts everything in such an unconditional way. Then she drops the other shoe. She is pregnant. Initially Frank is overjoyed, then the realization hits him that it could not possibly be his. This is the one moment of rage we see in Frank, and it scares Claire profoundly; as if she were facing Black Jack again. Frank runs out the door and outside. He stumbles into a workshop of the Reverend’s. He starts destroying things; breaking, beating, throwing anything he can get his hands on. Then he finally dissolves into tears on the floor.
Frank and the Reverend have a chat and Frank offers to pay for the damages, but the Reverend pushes that to the side. He asks Frank about how he would handle the child. Frank revealed that he discovered he is sterile and cannot produce a child of his own. He and the Reverend continue to talk out the situation and Frank comes to the understanding that Jamie’s child through Claire is his only chance to have offspring. During this chat, we get to see wee Roger (Rory Burns) again. Such a precious little boy. It does help Frank to hear Roger call the Reverend father. The Reverend points out that blood is not the only thing that makes a father and child relationship. Frank goes to Claire and tells her that he is willing to raise the child together, with no mention of Jamie. Jamie could be nothing but a ghost to the child and Frank is flesh. He also says that she must let Jamie go as long as he draws breath. Claire says that she knows she has to do that already, she promised Jamie she would do that much. She takes his hand and they embark on their new life together; marriage reset and heading for Boston. That blasted newspaper article about the fairies forced the decision of Frank taking an offered position at a university there.
At the bottom of the stairs of the plane into Boston, Frank reaches for Claire’s hand. As she takes it the scene resolves to show Claire taking Jamie’s (Sam Heughan) hand instead, off the boat from Scotland into France. They head for an Inn nearby. Jamie is still incredibly wounded and nursing serious injuries. We see him trying to get comfortable on a bed, but you can tell he is still dealing with physical and psychological impacts of what was done to him in Hell’s doorway as I like to call it, the Wentworth Prison. He reveals to Claire that he does feel BJRs touch still. Claire says that she is there and he is not.
Jamie jokes, always with that excellent sense of humor, that she is a tough one to get rid of. She says that she is stubborn, just like her husband. They both share a smile, but you can sure tell his healing has a very long way to go; it has only been a week in his time period. So Claire changes the subject to the path before them. The goal is to change the future. They have to stop the uprising from happening. Jamie asks if they should not try to win it instead of stopping it. Claire does not know enough to help win the battles, she only knows it happens and what the end result is. They discuss the challenge before them and determine the only path they can take is to try to stop it.
Jamie decides to write a letter to his cousin, Jared Fraser (Robert Cavanagh). They speak with Jared and have to convince him that they are on his side in the cause. To convince him they end up showing Jared the scars on Jamie’s back. That was all it took. Jared will help them to get involved with the Jacobite cause in France. Jared needs to make a trip so he allows Jamie to live in his house in Paris and requires him to help with his business. The bargain is struck between the pair. As the men sorted the details, Claire goes outside for a little walk in the fresh air. A terrible ruckus goes up across the docks. Claire sees a man being taken off one of the newly arrived ships. She recognizes the illness right away…Smallpox.
The man is taken into a nearby warehouse. Claire pushes her way in, professing to be a healer (in French). This is a new element to the show, subtitles. Claire knows French so we get to see the words this time around. She didn’t know Gaelic so we didn’t get subtitles when those words are spoken, still don’t when Jamie spouts them off. *snort*
The Harbor Master (Christian Perez) enters the area, as does Le Comte St. Germain (Stanley Weber). Claire goes to the Harbor Master and tells him it is the pox. The ship’s captain (Fabien Lucciarini) knows what this will mean, so he grabs Claire in a panic. Of course, Jamie doesn’t take kindly to this man rudely and roughly handling his pregnant wife. A second sick man is brought in just then and is already dead. The Harbor Master has no choice but to order the destruction of the ship and all the cargo. Le Comte St. Germain does not like this idea, even though he knows it is the law. He will lose a fortune in cargo. Since Claire said it so loudly, and in French so all could hear, there is no way to save the ship nor keep the story from spreading like wildfire. There is no way to conceal the issue now. The ship and cargo must be destroyed.
Le Comte stops Claire, asking who she is. After a pleasant exchange, with energy so thick you could cut it with a knife, Le Comte St. Germain threatens her for this disaster. If Claire hadn’t shouted out what was going on it could have been concealed, so he directly blames her for the loss of the ship and cargo. The Le Comte is a major competitor of Jared’s in the wine business. When Claire steps in it, she REALLY does it up right. He is a noble man of France, he is a competitor in the business that Jamie is about to steward for Jared, and she thoroughly set his anger level into wrath of the highest order. Watch your back, Sassenach. This just complicated an already highly complicated mission.
The Jungle Book voice cast members Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong’o, Scarlett Johansson, Giancarlo Esposito, and Christopher Walken talk briefly about their characters in this new featurette from Disney. Director Jon Favreau also discusses the action adventure film based on Rudyard Kipling’s stories. Opening in theaters on April 15, 2016, The Jungle Book‘s currently sitting at 100% fresh on RottenTomatoes, with critics calling it “a beauty to behold” and “visually breaktaking.”
The Jungle Book Plot:The Jungle Book is an all-new live-action epic adventure about Mowgli (newcomer Neel Sethi), a man-cub who’s been raised by a family of wolves. But Mowgli finds he is no longer welcome in the jungle when fearsome tiger Shere Khan (voice of Idris Elba), who bears the scars of Man, promises to eliminate what he sees as a threat. Urged to abandon the only home he’s ever known, Mowgli embarks on a captivating journey of self-discovery, guided by panther-turned-stern mentor Bagheera (voice of Ben Kingsley), and the free-spirited bear Baloo (voice of Bill Murray).
Along the way, Mowgli encounters jungle creatures who don’t exactly have his best interests at heart, including Kaa (voice of Scarlett Johansson), a python whose seductive voice and gaze hypnotizes the man-cub, and the smooth-talking King Louie (voice of Christopher Walken), who tries to coerce Mowgli into giving up the secret to the elusive and deadly red flower: fire. The all-star cast also includes Lupita Nyong’o as the voice of the fiercely protective mother wolf Raksha, and Giancarlo Esposito as the voice of wolf pack’s alpha male Akela.
Jeff Goldblum, Liam Hemsworth, Bill Pullman, Maika Monroe, Jessie Usher, Sela Ward, Vivica A. Fox and Brent Spiner have been tapped to receive CinemaCon’s Ensemble of the Universe Award for the upcoming film Independence Day: Resurgence. CinemaCon, the annual gathering of National Association of Theatre Owners, will be taking place April 11-14, 2016 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas with the Big Screen Achievement Awards set for the convention’s final night.
“With a talented cast of familiar faces and exciting newcomers Independence Day: Resurgence is sure to thrill audiences around the world when the next chapter of this blockbuster film hits movie theaters this summer,” stated Mitch Neuhauser, Managing Director of CinemaCon. “We could not be more excited than to honor the cast with this year’s ‘CinemaCon Ensemble of the Universe Award.’”
The Independence Day: Resurgence Plot: After Independence Day redefined the event movie genre, the next epic chapter delivers global spectacle on an unimaginable scale. Using recovered alien technology, the nations of Earth have collaborated on an immense defense program to protect the planet. But nothing can prepare us for the aliens’ advanced and unprecedented force. Only the ingenuity of a few brave men and women can bring our world back from the brink of extinction.
In addition to the Independence Day: Resurgence cast, other celebrities picking up awards at CinemaCon include Jason Blum, Dave Franco, Arnon Milchan, Zac Efron, Anna Kendrick, Adam DeVine, Keanu Reeves, Gina Rodriguez, Jack Huston, Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell, Christina Applegate, Kathryn Hahn and Annie Mumolo.
