The 21st Annual Critics’ Choice Awards will be held on Sunday, January 17, 2016 with Silicon Valley‘s T.J. Miller handling the hosting duties. This year marks the first time the Critics’ Choice Movie Awards (voted on by the Broadcast Film Critics Association) and the Critics’ Choice Television Awards (selected by the Broadcast Television Journalists Association) are combined into one major awards show, with A&E, Lifetime and LMN broadcasting the ceremony live at 8pm ET/ 5pm PT.
Voting is still underway for The Most Bingeworthy Show, with fans of Empire, Friends, Game of Thrones, Orange Is The New Black, Outlander, and The Walking Dead encouraged to vote for their favorite shows. Votes can be cast via Facebook, Twitter or Instagram by posting #[Show Name]CCA or at A&E TV Bingeworthy Poll. Fans are also able to vote by posting a tweet using the following emojis (along with the @CriticsChoice handle):
• #TheWalkingDeadCCA OR skull emoji @CriticsChoice
• #GameofThronesCCA OR crown emoji @CriticsChoice
• #FRIENDSCCA OR people holding hands emoji @CriticsChoice
• #EmpireCCA OR lion emoji @CriticsChoice
• #OITNBCCA OR orange emoji @CriticsChoice
• #OutlanderCCA OR crossed swords emoji @CriticsChoice
Amy Schumer will be recognized with the Critics’ Choice MVP Award and J.J. Abrams will present Industrial Light & Magic with the Critics’ Choice Genius Award. And the The BFCA and BTJA just announced the list of celebrity presenters set to take the stage during the awards show. In alphabetical order, the presenters are:
Anthony Anderson
Aziz Ansari
Shiri Appleby
Kate Beckinsale
Mary J. Blige
Orlando Bloom
Carrie Brownstein
James Corden
Bryan Cranston
Bryce Dallas Howard
Adam Devine
America Ferrera
Joanne Froggatt
Colin Hanks
Bradley James
Ken Jeong
Khloe Kardashian
Thomas Middleditch
Randall Park
Josh Peck
Fred Savage
John Stamos
Sir Patrick Stewart
Sharon Stone
Justin Theroux
Liv Tyler
Tracee Ellis Ross
Constance Wu
Constance Zimmer
Keke Palmer, Vanessa Hudgens, Carlos PenaVega, Carly Rae Jepsen, Aaron Tveit, David Del Rio, Jordan Fisher, Julianne Hough, Andrew Call and Kether Donohue in ‘GREASE: LIVE’ (Photo Credit: Tommy Garcia/FOX)
Fox’s Grease: Live! musical will air live on January 31, 2016 at 7pm ET (tape-delayed on the West Coast). The three-hour event will feature all of the classic Grease songs, and in the new behind-the-scenes video we get a glimpse at the cast practicing their numbers.
This new live musical has Julianne Hough playing good girl Sandy, taking on the role played by Olivia Newton-John in the feature film. Graceland‘s Aaron Tveit is Danny Zuko, played by John Travolta in the 1978 movie. Vanessa Hudgens is Rizzo, Keke Palmer is Pink Lady Marty Maraschino, Carlos PenaVega is Kenickie, Carly Rae Jepsen is Frenchy, and Kether Donohue is playing Jan. The cast also includes David Del Rio as Putzie, Andrew Call as Sonny, and Jordan Fisher as Doody.
The Plot:
Grease: Live will reintroduce and reimagine some of the show’s most memorable moments, great music and timeless love story to an entirely new generation. In this live television adaptation of the musical classic, the beginning of senior year means the end of Danny and Sandy’s summer romance – until Sandy unexpectedly transfers to Danny’s high school.
Can Danny maintain his bad-boy image as the coolest member of the T-Birds, once he and Sandy start going together, and can Sandy remain a good girl after she joins the Pink Ladies? With their friends Rizzo and Kenickie pulling them in different directions, it’s up to Danny and Sandy to stay hopelessly devoted as they make their way from Rydell High to a new frontier.
The long talked about, much-anticipated Prison Break follow-up series is definitely happening with Wentworth Miller and Dominic Purcell confirmed to reprise their roles as Michael Scofield and Lincoln Burrows. The event series will be based on the critically acclaimed series that premiered in 2005 and ran for four seasons.
Fox did not announce any other casting details, how many episodes the event series will run, or when Prison Break fans can expect the event series to air.
Prison Break‘s Paul T. Scheuring, Neal Moritz, Marty Adelstein, and Dawn Olmstead are back on board as executive producers. Scheuring will also be the event series’ writer and showrunner.
A Look Back at Prison Break, Courtesy of Fox:
The original action drama Prison Break centered on a young man (Miller) determined to prove his convicted brother’s (Purcell) innocence and save him from death row by hatching an elaborate plan to escape from prison. A breakout success in its premiere season, garnering Golden Globe Award nominations for Best Television Series – Drama and Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama (Miller), as well as winning the People’s Choice Award for Favorite New TV Drama, Prison Break thrilled audiences for four heart-pounding seasons, ending its run in May 2009.
Season three of HBO’s half-hour weekly news show Last Week Tonight with John Oliver will premiere on February 14, 2016 because who doesn’t love a romantic date night at home that includes John Oliver wickedly poking fun at current events? HBO’s just debuted a new poster for the upcoming season as well as a teaser video of Oliver spinning at an increasing rate of speed while seated behind a desk.
Season three will consist of 35 episodes airing on Sunday nights at 11pm ET/PT. The series has already been renewed for a fourth season which will air in 2017. Last Week Tonight with John Oliver earned four Emmy nominations, including Outstanding Variety Talk Series and Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series, winning in the Outstanding Interactive Program category. The series also received a Writers Guild Award in the Comedy/Variety (Including Talk) – Series category.
Ariana Grande, Emma Roberts, Abigail Breslin and Billie Lourd in ‘Scream Queens’ (Photo by Steve Dietl / FOX)
Fox announced they’ve renewed Scream Queens for a second season and Empire for a third season. Scream Queens‘ first season finished as the number one new comedy among 18-34 year-olds. It was also the number one new series on VOD. Season two of Empire has scored 35 awards nominations, and series star Taraji P. Henson just won the Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama. Coming off a critically acclaimed season one, season two has averaged 21.2 million viewers across multiple platforms.
Scream Queens comes from writers/directors/executive producers Ryan Murphy (Glee, American Horror Story), Brad Falchuk (Glee, American Horror Story), and Ian Brennan (Glee). Per Fox’s official announcement, here’s the basic plot for season two: “Season two of Scream Queens graduates from the college campus and into an all-new location, as a terrifyingly funny murder mystery will begin once again. This time, the show will be set in a hospital, where some of the most fascinating and bizarre medical cases are under observation.”
Season two of Empire will return on March 30, 2016 at 9pm ET/PT with new episodes. Empire was created by Oscar nominee Lee Daniels (Precious) and Emmy-winner Danny Strong (Game Change). The cast is led by Taraji P. Henson and Terrence Howard, and includes Jussie Smollett, Bryshere “Yazz” Gray, Trai Byers, Grace Gealey, Kaitlin Doubleday, Gabourey Sidibe, Ta’Rhonda Jones, and Serayah McNeill.
The season two plot: Lucious Lyons (Howard) is the king of hip-hop. An immensely talented artist, the CEO of Empire Entertainment and a former street thug, his reign has been unchallenged for years. But, after battling what he believed to be a terminal disease, Lucious challenged his sons (Jussie Smollett as JAMAL, Bryshere “Yazz” Gray as HAKEEM and Trai Byers as ANDRE) to compete for his throne, a task made all the more complicated by the return of their mother and Lucious’ ex-wife, COOKIE (Henson), who was released from prison.
Season two picks up three months after Lucious’ shocking arrest and incarceration at the end of last season. Knowing Lucious won’t be held much longer in prison, Cookie and her allies within the Lyon family make a desperate attempt to seize control of the company. But as the Lyons continue to battle each other, a bigger external threat emerges that could force them to unite.
The anticipation level for Fox’s reimagined The Rocky Horror Picture Show has just increased significantly. Tim Curry isn’t reprising his role as Dr. Frank-N-Furter in Fox’s musical event The Rocky Horror Picture Show, however he will be returning to the world of Rocky Horror as the narrator. Curry has been confirmed to play the Criminologist Narrator, the role played by Charles Gray in the 1975 feature film.
Curry first originated the role of Dr. Frank-N-Furter on stage in 1973 and then reprised the role for the now cult classic film. The new Rocky Horror finds Orange is the New Black‘s Laverne Cox taking on that role.
Commenting on his involvement, Curry said, “I am very happy and excited to be a part of this new event.”
The cast of Fox’s 2016 musical includes Victoria Justice (Janet), Ryan McCartan (Brad), Adam Lambert (Eddie), Reeve Carney (Riff Raff) and Staz Nair (Rocky). Lou Adler, Gail Berman, and Kenny Ortega are executive producing, and Ortega is also set to direct and choreograph.
The Plot:
The Rocky Horror Picture Show follows sweethearts Janet and Brad, who stumble upon Dr. Frank-N-Furter’s bizarre abode. Frank-N-Furter, a sexually ambiguous, flirtatious alien mad-scientist – with the help of his faithful servants Riff Raff and Magenta – is holding an annual, Transylvanian science convention to showcase the birth of “Rocky Horror” – a fit, attractive man created solely to fulfill Frank’s desires.
A Brief Bio on Tim Curry, Courtesy of Fox:
Tim Curry is an English actor and singer known for his diverse work in Hollywood. In addition to his role on “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” Curry acted in a handful of English productions, such as “Threepenny Opera,” “Love For Love” and “Rivals.” Curry later starred in “Pirates of Penzance,” earning him enthusiastic reviews and paving his way to Broadway. There, he starred in “Travesties,” gaining huge popularity with the American audience. Curry was then nominated for his first Tony Award for his role as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in “Amadeus.” In the Broadway production of “My Favorite Year,” he earned his second Tony Award nomination for playing “Alan Swann.” Following that, Curry acted in both “Me and My Girl” and “The Wall: Live in Berlin.”
He began his momentous role of “King Arthur” in “Spamalot” in Chicago in 2004. This show eventually made its way to Broadway, which earned Curry his third Tony Award nomination, specifically for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical. He also received the Outer Critics Circle Award nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Musical for this role.
Curry also has had a major presence in television, guest-starring in popular shows such as “Hot in Cleveland,” “Criminal Minds,” “Psych,” “Will & Grace,” “Roseanne” and “Monk.” In addition to theater and television, Curry has dominated the big screen as well. On film, Curry appeared in “Annie,” “Clue,” “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York,” “Charlie’s Angels” and “Scary Movie 2.”
In 2015, Curry was honored by The Actors Fund with an Artistic Achievement Award and later that year, as part of the 40th anniversary celebration of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” film, was named West Hollywood’s Honorary Mayor.
David Lyons as Jackson Brooks, Michael Raymond-James as Gil Harris and Larenz Tate as Shawn Polk in ‘Game of Silence’ (Photo by: Bob Mahoney / NBC)
Game of Silence is not a George R. R. Martin spinoff. It’s based on the Turkish series Suskunlar. On the American version, David Lyons stars as Jackson, a successful lawyer whose life is turned upside down when three friends from his childhood show up. Flashbacks show us the secret the children kept and now it’s threatening to boil over in the present.
The cast and creators of Game of Silence were on a panel for the Television Critics Association on Wednesday, January 13, 2016. After the panel, Showbiz Junkies joined reporters asking Lyons follow-up questions about the show. Game of Silence is coming this year to NBC.
David Lyons Interview:
You had a short break in-between Revolution and Game of Silence. Why did you decide it was time to return to series television?
David Lyons: “I did a film in between and I went home for a bit. I kind of just wanted a break and went home and I wasn’t actually going to do the pilot season. I came across this script and I really loved it. I put my hand up for it; this is the only one I chose to go in for…maybe there was two other ones. But when I read it I knew I wanted to play that guy.”
Have you seen the Turkish version?
David Lyons: “I haven’t. I still haven’t.”
Was that a deliberate choice?
David Lyons: “It was a deliberate choice. I find that if there’s a character out there that I’m taking any leap from, I don’t want to see what they’ve done because I will have that in my mind the entire time. Maybe that’s to my lacking. Maybe I should have.”
Have people from your past tried to get back in touch with you since you became successful as an actor?
David Lyons: “Yes, in a way, but I’m not on any social media at the moment so it’s a little harder for them to find me. Like, anyone who’s come back into my life that I’ve willfully accepted is because I love them and I miss them. But that’s the only problem with social media is now is that those people that you don’t necessarily want back in your life do.
But in reference to Game of Silence, this is a meeting that was always going to happen. There’s no way that you could hold this secret down long enough in his life. It was always going to come out either in therapy or because they turn up on his doorstep.”
Do you see any similarities between your characters in Revolution and Game of Silence?
David Lyons: “Well, I think that Monroe was more emotionally available. He was certainly all over the place when it comes to those emotions. But he was probably, even though he was kind of psychotic, he was probably a little bit more emotionally acute. He understands his emotions. Jackson Brooks is man who has spent so much time pushing them down, that when they come up he doesn’t quite know what to do with them. So unfortunately when these guys come to him, his world starts to turn on its axis a bit. He negotiates that fairly well up until a point. I think there was a similarity in that they’re both emotional, but Jackson compartmentalizes better than anyone that I’ve ever played.”
Do we ever see your character in the courtroom?
David Lyons: “Yes, a little bit. Now, we don’t see it a lot. We found that the courtroom stuff, while it’s interesting, we want to drive the story. The courtroom thing for Jackson Brooks is an act. It’s all an act, and I’m not sure that that’s the most interesting side of his character. Thankfully, they kept him out of the courtroom unless they really needed him in there.”
As a culture we don’t really talk about male friendships in the way that we talk about female friendships. There are a million Sex and the City-type shows, but not many focusing on male friendships.
David Lyons: “I think that’s an interesting point and I’m glad you raised it. I think that that’s one thing that this show really does. It explores men dealing with grief from the past and they also have to fight the culture norm to keep that suppressed. So, one of the hardest things about men grieving or men who’ve suffered from abuse is that they’re not allowed the outlet. And I think that what’s really fascinating is that we see these guys in public and we see them in private, and I think it’s really beautiful that we do get to see that. I think that it’s important that they’re telling this story and I think, yes, it does represent something that has been underrepresented in television and film.”
There are multiple secrets being dealt with in the series. How much of each do we get to learn about and do you know everything?
David Lyons: “I know everything up until episode 10. What David Hudgins has done is create a bit of a Danish pastry of these secrets. We will learn about everyone in due course. As it stands in the pilot, there is one major secret that they’re all keeping, and then there’s something that Jackson holds very close to his guard.”
What does it mean to be back in the NBC family?
David Lyons: “I was waiting for that question because I have done a lot of NBC stuff. I have to say that NBC’s been very good to me but this was not a point of, ‘Oh, it’s an NBC show. I’ve got to do it.’ I saw the script; this was very much about the writer. It was about David Hudgins. It was about Carol Mendelsohn. And because NBC has been so gracious to me, it was an easy sell for me. So, it feels good.”
How does David Hudgins make this world feel authentic to you?
David Lyons: “When I read the pilot, the world was so nuanced in itself that it was easy to see. He’s always there on the end of the phone to answer any questions that we have, but I guess when you come from the stable of Friday Night Lights and Parenthood…the first thing that I thought when he was on it, I thought, ‘They’re two of the best network shows for the last 10 years.’ I would put West Wing, Friday Night Lights, and a few others in that vein. And so to know he was on board was a no-brainer for me.
He’s a very personable guy. If you shove a couple of martinis under his nose, he tends to open up.”
Eva Longoria as Ana Sofia Calderon, Jencarlos Canela as Xavier Castillo, Carlos Ponce as Diego Dominguez, and Kate del Castillo as Kate Dominguez in ‘Telenovela’ (Photo by Ben Cohen/NBC)
Eva Longoria returns to primetime network TV with NBC’s Telenovela, a half-hour comedy she stars in and executive produces. The series is set in the world of Spanish language soap operas and features Longoria playing Ana Sofia, a telenovela star who can’t really speak Spanish. Airing on Monday nights at 8:30pm ET/PT, Telenovela also features Jencarlos Canela, Diana Maria Riva, Jose Moreno Brooks, Alex Meneses, Amaury Nolasco, Jadyn Douglas, and Izzy Diaz.
Longoria joined her co-stars and fellow executive producers Jessica Goldstein and Chrissy Pietrosh at the Television Critics Association’s 2016 winter press event in Los Angeles where she talked to reporters at a press conference (and in a smaller group after the big Q&A) about the show’s premise, physical comedy, and diversity in television and films.
What are some of the crazy things you’ve gotten to do in recent episodes?
Eva Longoria: “Well, I directed one called ‘The Hurricane’ which is next week. [There’s a] bucket and we’re throwing water on each other; that was so much fun because we just got to cut loose. […]The musical episode and singing with Zachary Levi. Just acting with Zachary Levi has been a dream and a gift, and amazing and fun. I had never sung before on TV and there’s a reason. But to be able to do it badly, that makes it fun.”
Can you say anything about what happens with Zachary Levi’s character?
Eva Longoria: “The season finale is a huge cliffhanger. It’s a huge cliffhanger with me, Zachary Levi, and Jencarlos Canela, so you’ve got to see it. I would love for him to be a series regular on the show. We have so much fun with him.”
What are some of your favorite telenovela and soap opera tropes of all time and how do you take those one step further to spoof them?
Eva Longoria: “One of the things is we are barely in the telenovela because our show is about the people who make the telenovela so we’re not in the telenovela as much as our lives. The evil twin episode was so much fun because they made Isabela so, so evil to us. They go, ‘Wouldn’t it be funny if there was somebody more evil?’ […]Most of the things that have come out in episodes have been ideas from our lives.”
Can you talk about tackling the physical comedy in this?
Eva Longoria: “The minute I read the script, because I developed it in my production slate and I wasn’t going to be in it, and the minute these two women came with the script, she was very physical. She was already physical in the pilot and I loved it because I’ve always wanted to do physical comedy. When I was on Housewives, because we were a hybrid, when Gabby was funny people loved it and so it’s been so nice to spread my wings and just do solely comedy. And, then, for it to be physical was just a bonus because I’ve always loved it. I’ve always liked it. But, yeah, every episode I went home with, like, a tweaked shoulder and a tweaked knee. But these girls are great because I’m like, ‘Wouldn’t it be funny if I fall off the piano?’ We did that the day before.”
Where have you been when Telenovela airs? Are you watching it live?
Eva Longoria: “I’ve been different places. The first Monday I was in New York because I was doing press. And then last Monday I was in my house with the cats and we were live tweeting. We live-tweet every episode which really makes a huge difference. Fans love it when we’re all together and we live tweet. There’s so many things; there’s so much work now. Oh my gosh, it’s so different from when I was on Dangerous Housewives!”
Is Twitter a full-time job?
Eva Longoria: “Digital media is because I have to Twitter and then I have to Snapchat and then I have to Instagram and then I have to Facebook, and so it is a full-time job. And you have to do all of this now because each platform has a different audience. It’s really been working for us because you can see it directly correlate with viewers.”
Have you heard anything yet about a pickup for a second season?
Eva Longoria: “No. I don’t think we’ll hear about that until like March, maybe.”
As a producer do you feel like you can play more of a role in helping to increase the number of Latinos in front of and behind the camera?
Eva Longoria: “I think there’s a lot to be done to have more diversity in front of the camera, but it starts behind the camera. I think our show is a great example of it because we’ve done such a great job obviously in front of the camera, but the writers’ room is very diverse. Our crew is very diverse. Our directors who we use are very diverse. But as far as why did I intently start producing to help Latinos? I actually started producing because I like bossing people around, and I’m really good at it. ”
Do you initiate your own projects or do people bring them to you?
Eva Longoria: “Both. We option IP, writers come and pitch us things, we go and seek out writers. There’s many ways in which we develop new shows. it just depends on how it comes to us.”
Surprise! J.J. Abrams’ new secret film has a title – 10 Cloverfield Lane – release date, poster, and trailer. There was speculation as to if and when a Cloverfield sequel would ever hit theaters, and producer Abrams, director Dan Trachtenberg, and Paramount Pictures are doing a pretty amazing job of making us guess whether the monster referred to on the poster is from Cloverfield and this can be considered a sequel or if the monster is actually a human character.
The one minute 43 second trailer, which was released in front of Michael Bay’s 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi, finds three characters played by John Goodman, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and John Gallagher Jr. living together. It seems fairly peaceful at first, but then slowly it’s revealed they’re living underground and that Winstead’s character wants to escape. The poster’s also been released featuring a tunnel under a house.
“The idea came up a long time ago during production,” stated Abrams. “We wanted to make it a blood relative of Cloverfield. The idea was developed over time. We wanted to hold back the title for as long as possible.”
10 Cloverfield Lane opens in theaters on March 11, 2016.
The Secret Life of Pets‘ Snowball looks like a cute little fluffy bunny, but looks can be deceiving. In the new video from the animated comedy, Snowball proves he’s more like one of those ferocious rabbits Monty Python warned everyone to stay away from than he is the adorable bunnies featured in Beatrix Potter stories. Snowball (voiced by Kevin Hart) is a real wild hare, beating up dog catchers, and leading a breakout at the pound. Plus, he’s apparently good friends with a snake.
Directed by Chris Renaud (Despicable Me 1 & 2) and Yarrow Cheney, Hart’s joined in the voice cast by Louis C.K., Eric Stonestreet, Ellie Kemper, Lake Bell, Jenny Slate, Bobby Moynihan, Hannibal Buress and Albert Brooks. Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures are releasing The Secret Life of Pets in theaters on July 8, 2016.
The Plot: A comedy about the lives our pets lead after we leave for work or school each day.
The 21st Annual Critics’ Choice Awards will be held on Sunday, January 17, 2016 with Silicon Valley‘s T.J. Miller handling the hosting duties. This year marks the first time the Critics’ Choice Movie Awards (voted on by the Broadcast Film Critics Association) and the Critics’ Choice Television Awards (selected by the Broadcast Television Journalists Association) are combined into one major awards show, with A&E, Lifetime and LMN broadcasting the ceremony live at 8pm ET/ 5pm PT. 
