Adam Levine, Gwen Stefani, Jimmy Fallon, Blake Shelton, and Pharrell Williams on ‘The Tonight Show’ (Photo by: Douglas Gorenstein / NBC)
The Voice coaches Blake Shelton, Pharrell Williams, Adam Levine, and Gwen Stefani stopped by The Tonight Show to take part in a brand new game called Spin the Microphone. The rules, according to host Jimmy Fallon: spin the microphone and if it lands on your name, you have to pick a card with a song title. After reading the song title, you can decide whether you’re going to sing the song or have someone else do it.
Among the songs The Voice coaches and Fallon were given to perform were Britney Spears’ “Oops…I Did It Again,” “YMCA” by The Village People, and “It Takes Two” by Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock. Shelton really got into “YMCA,” however his Voice co-star Levine delivered an unenthusiastic “Oops.”
“She’s our Firefly. We don’t know who the other one is,” says Barnes (Michael Chiklis) to Gordon as they watch a video of Bridgit dressed up in her Firefly gear exiting a building with her huge flame thrower. “I do…damn it!” responds Jim (Ben McKenzie) as he realizes that Bridgit’s partner in her latest caper is Selina Kyle (Camren Bicondova) in season two episode six of FOX’s dark comic book-inspired crime series Gotham.
It seems even though Penguin (Robin Lord Taylor) hacked off Butch’s hand the big gorilla is still loyal to him – because in season one he was programmed to be Penguin’s loyal muscle man in a Manchurian Candidate sort of way – and goes to try to infiltrate Theo’s (James Frain) organization. The chopping off of Butch’s hand is to help sell the lie of Butch (Drew Powell) going to work for Theo because Penguin is losing it. Not really believing Butch’s story, Theo asks both Tabitha (Jessica Lucas) and Barbara (Erin Richards) what they think. Tabitha is keen on the idea of having Butch join them, calling him cute, “like a sad teddy bear,” but Barbara recalls how he was once mean to her and isn’t interested in him being there. Theo decides to entertain his sister’s whims and brings Butch on board.
Bruce (David Mazouz) and Alfred (Sean Pertwee) are back down in the secret cave sparring and boxing, with Alfred training Bruce as he promised he would. It’s interesting during the training that Alfred makes a few unconventional fight moves on Bruce telling him to always be ready for the unexpected.
Gordon’s search for Selina keeps hitting dead ends and it falls to his more seasoned partner, Bullock (Donal Logue), to find out where the sly cat is hiding herself these days, discovering the truth by striking a bargain with little Ivy (Clare Foley) while interrogating her. He gives Jim the info so he can go talk to her.
The whole reason Selina and Bridgit (Michelle Veintimilla) robbed an underground sex-slavery ring was to get enough money for Bridgit to get out of Gotham, away from her fire-starting brothers and start over somewhere. It’s clear, however, the more Bridgit dresses up in the firefly outfit and uses the flame thrower to intimidate and steal, the more she enjoys it. Just as Selina and Bridgit are saying their goodbyes, Bridgit’s brother Joe and his friend speed up in a van, grab Bridgit, and pull her inside while Selina fights with one of them and wins by getting his shotgun away from him. The van speeds away with poor Bridgit inside.
Gordon finds Selina where Bullock told him he would but she’s not happy to see him, pointing the shotgun she lifted from one of Bridgit’s brothers right at Jim. Knowing Selina won’t shoot him, Jim holsters his weapon and tells her he wants to find Bridgit before the other cops do so she won’t get killed – remember in last week’s episode Bridgit killed a member of the strike force. Selina, trusting Gordon to help her friend, tells him about the brothers grabbing her and where their loft is. She pleads for him to help Bridgit, saying she’s a victim of her brothers’ violence and abuse. Jim promises Selina he’ll try.
Back at the Pike brothers loft, the two sadistic jerks are threatening to blow up Bridgit if she ever tries to leave them again. After having enough amusement at her fear, order her to go make them dinner. Bridgit comes back from the kitchen with her Firefly outfit on and the flame thrower pointed at them. One of the brothers laughs and asks, “What are you going to do, kill us?!” to which Bridgit replies coldly, “Yes.” Firefly then lets the flame thrower loose on the two men as they scream and burn to death.
While all this killing, chasing, stealing, and interrogating is going on, Ed Nygma (Cory Michael Smith) overhears Kristen Kringle (Chelsea Spack) talking to Lee (Morena Baccarin) about her relationship with Ed, saying how sweet and gentlemanly he is but she just wished he would be a little more forceful at times. Not wanting to disappoint his true love, Ed enters and tells her in a take-charge tone of voice they are having dinner together tonight at his place to which Kringle smiles and says okay.
Up on a rooftop somewhere in Gotham City, Selina finds Bridgit and tries to reach out to her friend but realizes all too quickly Bridgit has changed since killing her brothers. She goes into the gory details about which brother burned the fastest and tells Selina that she’s finally free and is ready to go after all the creeps and bullies who hurt people like them. Realizing she won’t be able to talk Bridgit out of whatever she has in mind, Selina tells her to be careful and gives her a hug goodbye. Knowing what Bridgit is going to do and wanting to save her friend from getting killed, Selina reaches out to Gordon and tells him where Bridgit is headed.
Sure enough, Jim, Bullock, and the some of GCPD’s finest find Bridgit aka Firefly freeing all the girls from the underground sex-slave ring while setting a few of its henchmen on fire. Surrounded by the police Firefly gets ready to turn her flame thrower on the cops and set as many of them ablaze as she can when Gordon shouts, “Don’t shoot! Hold your fire,” and holsters his weapon putting his hands in the air and slowly walking toward Bridgit, telling her she doesn’t have to do this and he can help her.
Unfortunately, Firefly doesn’t know Gordon the way Selina does and doesn’t trust him. She has no intention of going quietly and begins to turn her weapon toward Jim which causes one of the officers to shoot and hit her right where the fuel for the flame thrower is on her, causing it to leak. The fire she has created doubles back being drawn to the fuel and Bridgit aka Firefly goes up in flames.
Back at Lee’s place, she’s being held at gunpoint by Selina who’s waiting for Jim to come home. When Jim arrives, Selina asks if Bridgit is okay and did he help her. It seems Selina did hear about the big fireball incident. Jim tells her he tried but it went bad and to be honest he didn’t think Bridgit wanted to be saved. Devastated, Selina refuses to forgive Gordon for not keeping his promise to help Bridgit and lets it slip that the Pike brothers were hired by Penguin to set those fires. She leaves, tears in her eyes, telling Gordon she should never have trusted a cop.
Meanwhile, Penguin finally gets some news about his mother’s whereabouts after Butch escapes from Tabitha’s imprisonment and torture – seems the only reason Theo took in Butch was so his little sister could have a new plaything. Butch tells Penguin he’s figured out where Gertrude is being kept and they have to move now…tonight.
Dinner between Ed and Miss Kringle goes so well that Kringle takes Ed back to his bedroom. Afterward, Kringle begins to tell Ed she’s worried about officer Tom, that if he ever came back to town and found out he might try to kill Ed. Ed tells her he killed him so she doesn’t have to worry. At first, she doesn’t believe Ed, but when she realizes he’s telling her the truth she becomes enraged telling him that he’s some sicko and she’s going to tell the police and make sure he gets what’s coming to him. Trying to calm her down and keep her quiet, Ed grabs her neck and shuts her mouth effectively and accidentally killing poor Miss Kringle. Realizing what he’s just done, Ed holds Kristen’s lifeless body close to him as he sobs from grief.
The last scene in the episode shows Bridgit, extremely badly burned and bandaged, being wheeled on a gurney through a strange corridor by two men in white coats talking about how her suit melded with her skin making her essentially fireproof. She looks to one of the walls that reads: “Indian Hill – A Division of Wayne Enterprises.”
Dark, action-packed, and violent, season two episode six titled “By Fire” shows the birth of a new enemy who will undoubtedly resurface down the line and edges Selina closer to the distrusting, lone Cat Woman burglar/thief she will eventually become. The series is becoming much more brutal and sinister with the deaths becoming much more gruesome, in particular in this episode Firefly setting people on fire. Not that her “brothers” didn’t have it coming but the joy and glee Bridgit took in it was very disturbing, even to Selina.
Speaking of Selina, Camren Bicondova once again delivers the stand-out performance of the episode, capturing perfectly the struggle within herself as she tries to help Bridgit. More than once different characters ask why Selina cares so much about Bridgit and each time she plays it off like she really doesn’t, when the truth is that Selina sees a part of herself in Bridgit and she desperately wants to save her in a weird way, hoping maybe she can save herself too. It’s been a few tough weeks for Selina, being chased off by Alfred when she tried to see Bruce and now losing a friend from when she was younger. The hurt and betrayal Camren displays when Ben McKenzie as Jim tells her he couldn’t save Bridgit is crushing.
With Penguin about to either save his mother or walk into a trap and Theo about to up his game in order to become Mayor of Gotham, the next few episodes should be extremely intense. Can’t wait!
Those are the words actor James Marsters has used when asked about Juliet Landau, his co-star from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. Marsters and Landau played Spike and Drusilla, respectively, whom creator Joss Whedon described as the Sex Pistols’ Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen as vampires.
Today, Landau is fearlessly exploring new frontier with her upcoming documentary, A Place Among the Dead – the definitive, comprehensive documentary about vampires in pop culture – which she is writing, producing, and directing. This is the first time the who’s who of the vampire genre has been seen together in one documentary – something that has never been attempted before.
“I was extremely fortunate to work with the brilliant Joss Whedon and to play Drusilla on Buffy and Angel. It was such an amazing world to play in. Through the years, whenever I’ve hung out with creators, writers, directors, actors who have lived in the vampire universe, I have had the best conversations – interesting, funny, insightful discussions – and I’ve always thought, ‘I wish people could see this!’” explained Landau. “The stuff never shared before, the camaraderie, the insider’s view.”
At first, she and her husband Deverill Weekes self-funded Dead. However, the documentary has grown beyond their wildest expectations. Many creators/writers and actors have approached the couple, expressing their desire to be interviewed for Dead. To able to complete this project, Landau will launch an Indiegogo campaign on Tuesday, Oct. 27, in an effort to raise funds.
“It’s crazy. So many people want to be interviewed. This project has taken on a life of its own!” said Landau.
Juliet Landau and Tim Burton
So far, Landau has interviewed Whedon, novelist Anne Rice (author of the Interview with the Vampire series), actor Gary Oldman (Bram Stoker’s Dracula), actor Willem Dafoe (Shadow of the Vampire), actor Robert Patrick (From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series), filmmaker Tim Burton (2013’s Dark Shadows remake, 1989’s Batman), Charlaine Harris (author of the Southern Vampire Mysteries, which inspired HBO’s True Blood), filmmaker/actor Kevin Grevioux (Raze in the Underworld franchise, which he also created), filmmaker David Greenwalt (Angel and Grimm co-creator), Jim Kouf (Angel consulting producer, Grimm co-creator), filmmaker Tom Holland (Fright Night creator), actress Mariana Klaveno (True Blood), filmmaker Cole Haddon (NBC’s Dracula), filmmaker Steve Niles (30 Days of Night creator), filmmaker E. Elias Merhige (Shadow of the Vampire director), novelist Kim Newman (author of the Anno Dracula series), actress Madeline Smith (Hammer Film Productions’ Taste the Blood of Dracula, The Vampire Lovers), actress Caroline Munro (Hammer’s Dracula AD 1972, Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter), filmmaker Stephen Woolley (producer of 1994’s Interview with the Vampire adaptation), novelist Christopher Golden (author of The Shadow Saga series of vampire novels and various Buffy-verse novels and comics) and musician David J of the gothic rock bands Bauhaus and Love and Rockets.
“(This documentary) provides a rare perspective. It’s an insider’s view into the vampire phenomenon. Every interviewee shares stories that have never been seen before on film. Also, the movie transcends the traditional idea of a documentary. It is a tapestry with beautiful, interlinking narrative films inspired by the conversations. They are set in New Orleans, London, and various locales. No film has ever brought together such a wide, varied, passionate, avid and active super-fan base,” said Landau.
Juliet Landau and Anne Rice
When interviewing Rice, considered by many to be the mother of the vampire fiction genre, Landau attended the Vampire Ball with her in New Orleans.
“She is everything you would imagine: brilliant, articulate, lovely, creative, inspiring, funny, perceptive, and special. Every single interviewee we have interviewed has discussed her influence on them. If Bram Stoker is the father of the vampire tale, Anne is certainly the mother. It was a lot of fun to talk to her about Lestat (the main character of Interview with the Vampire), who has become such an icon, that he feels like he exists,” Landau fondly recalled.
Another memory of making this documentary is interviewing Whedon when he was finishing up post-production on this year’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, which grossed $1.4 billion at the box office.
“He was very generous with his time,” Landau remembered. “He was two weeks out from delivering his cut of (the Avengers sequel) to Marvel. It was incredible that he took the time at that moment to do the interview. We went into this maze of offices, people hard at work… We set-up and created a little bubble. His interview is out-of-this-world-phenomenal. He speaks with the same intelligence, style, insightfulness, and precision with which he writes. His take on things is completely captivating and fascinating. So much so, that we lost track of time and the interview went much longer than anticipated. Joss emailed afterward to say that he’d really had a great time!”
Having played a vampire – a very insane one at that – and having interviewed all these vampire auteurs, Landau gave her unique perspective on why vampires endure in pop culture ever since Stoker popularized them with his 1897 novel Dracula.
“I think vampires have staying power because vampirism has been used and can be used to explore the human condition in such a wide variety of ways,” she explained. “For Joss Whedon, the metaphor for Buffy was ‘high school is hell.’ For Anne Rice, it was about ‘loss and grief.’ Her daughter (Michele) died of leukemia, so she wrote Interview with the Vampire with a child vampire (Claudia, played by Kirsten Dunst in the movie) who wouldn’t die… For Kevin Grevioux, creator of Underworld, it was ‘interracial dating.’ He created two species, which don’t get along. For Joss again, Angel was about exploring ‘addiction.’ For Tim Burton, Dark Shadows is about dysfunctional families. Vampirism affords a wonderful prism for us to view ourselves through. Plus, who doesn’t dream of staying young and living forever?”
For further information and/or to donate to the Indiegogo fund for Dead, go to http://igg.me/at/Undead.
(This article was updated December 14, 2020 with the confirmed title change to A Place Among the Dead.)
AMA winners and current nominees One Direction will be taking the stage to perform on the 2015 American Music Awards. dick clark productions and ABC confirmed the group will be singing “Perfect” during the awards broadcast on November 22nd at 8pm ET on ABC. Previously announced performers include Selena Gomez, Carrie Underwood, 5 Seconds of Summer, and Jennifer Lopez. Lopez is also tapped to host the AMAs taking place at Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.
This year’s list of nominees is topped by Taylor Swift with six followed by The Weeknd and Ed Sheeran with five. Sam Hunt, Nicki Minaj, Sam Smith, Meghan Trainor and Walk the Moon each picked up three nominations. Winners are determined by fan voting via Amavote.com, Facebook, or Twitter.
Brief Bio of One Direction, Courtesy of the AMAs:
One Direction — composed of Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson — formed in 2010 on the U.K.’s award-winning TV talent show The X Factor. The group’s debut single, “What Makes You Beautiful,” was released in September 2011 and went straight to #1 in the U.K., with their first album, Up All Night, following suit and also topping the Billboard album chart in the U.S.
The release of their second album, Take Me Home, took One Direction to #1 in 37 countries. Their third album, Midnight Memories, was announced as the biggest selling album globally of 2013. One Direction’s fourth #1 studio album, FOUR featured hit singles “Steal My Girl” and “Night Changes.” The album made Billboard history as the only group in the 58-year history of the chart to see their first four albums debut at number one.
The band has sold more than 50 million records worldwide, achieved a total of 91 number ones, and is the recipient of five Billboard Music Awards, four MTV Video Music Awards and five American Music Awards, among others. They have a massive 115 million Twitter followers and 38 million Facebook fans. One Direction surprised fans in July 2015 with the release of their single “Drag Me Down,” breaking the record for the most streams of any one song in a single week at the time. The band’s fifth studio album MADE IN THE A.M. is set to be released on November 13, 2015.
Patrick Wilson as Lou Solverson, Jeffrey Donovan as Dodd Gerhardt, and Keir O’Donnell as Ben Schmidt in ‘Fargo’ (Photo by Chris Large / FX)
FX’s critically acclaimed drama Fargo continues season two with a third episode that finds the Gerhardts, the Kansas City mafia, and the police attempting to track down Rye. There’s also the issue of the KC mafia taking over the Gerhardt family business, plus Peggy and Ed need to deal with the broken windshield on their car before the police put two and two together.
Here’s a recap of what went down on “The Myth of Sisyphus” episode airing on October 26, 2015:
Floyd (Jean Smart) meets with associates of the Gerhardts to let them in on the news that the Kansas City mafia wants to buy out their operation. Dodd (Jeffrey Donovan) is still against any kind of deal with the outsiders while Bear (Angus Sampson) is willing to go along with whatever his mother believes is best, now that she’s temporarily in charge of the family’s business. “We’re talking about the Kansas City mafia. They’re like all the sharks in the sea. And we’re – let’s be honest – we’re small-time,” says Floyd. She concedes that maybe one day they will have to fight, but it will be on her terms. She asks the three business associates if they’re with her and they agree they won’t make the first move but if the KC people are looking to rumble, they’re ready to fight back with guns blazing.
Joe Bulo (Brad Garrett) and Mike Milligan (Bokeem Woodbine) sit down for breakfast and after discussing the North’s soft water and what it does to your hair, they get down to the business of talking about the Gerhardt deal. Joe thinks they’ll stall and then pass, so Mike wonders if that means they’ll have to kill them. Joe says it really depends on what the market dictates – either kill them or offer them more money. He’s all about the bottom line. Mike says he’s learned the missing Gerhardt son, Rye (Kieran Culkin), gunned down a judge and split. Joe tells him to find Rye and use him for leverage.
Hank Larsson (Ted Danson) lets Lou Solverson (Patrick Wilson) know that a fingerprint on the gun at the Waffle Hut killing matches Rye. Neither knows Rye but Hank says he’s learned Rye’s the youngest heir to the Gerhardt syndicate out of Fargo. Lou says he’ll pass that info on to the Fargo police.
At the Fargo PD headquarters (or maybe it’s city hall?), Lou meets up with Fargo Detective Ben Schmidt (Keir O’Donnell) who’ll be helping him follow up leads on the case. They discuss the crime scene and Ben knows who the Gerhardts are. “I’m not saying your life would be easier if it was your own prints on the gun, but that’s what you should be thinking,” says Ben. He gives Lou a brief rundown on the family. Lou asks if he’s familiar with KC mob guys Mike Milligan or the Kitchen brothers, but Ben doesn’t recognize those names. After comparing their military service, Ben thinks the whole Waffle Hut thing is FUBAR.
Peggy’s cutting hair and Lou’s wife, Betsy (Cristin Milioti), is talking about how she’ll be losing her hair soon, thanks to the chemo. Peggy’s decided she’s going to the Lifespring seminar because she wants to be the “best me” she can be. In comes Hank delivering the message that Lou will be late and posting flyers in the window alerted everyone to be on the lookout for Rye Gerhardt. Hank says he must have been raised without the proper moral fiber or else he couldn’t have killed the three out at the Waffle Hut. And then Betsy shocks everyone by suggesting that the shoe in the tree has something to do with the murders. She thinks Rye was hit while walking out on the road and that’s why his car is still in the parking lot. She actually nails it, but Peggy immediately attempts to shoot her theory down, wondering why someone would hit the guy and not stop. And if he was hit, did the person just drive off with him in the car? (Yes, Peggy, you know that’s exactly what the driver did.) Hank agrees with Peggy but Betsy says, “Maybe rather than looking for a man, you should be looking for a car.”
Peggy zooms over to the butcher shop and tells her hubby, Ed (Jesse Plemons), that the police are looking for the car that hit Rye. Peggy says they absolutely have to deal with the car today.
Lou and Ben follow the typewriter store owner, Skip Spring (Mike Bradecich), out of the station because he’s acting really sketchy. Outside the station, he’s sitting in his car and they knock on the window, asking for his ID. He tells them about his store and how it’ll soon have new models that will be in any day. “They’re not just for women anymore, you know?” He tells them he’s there for a hearing but nothing scandalous, but it is time-sensitive. They want to know why he was by the dead judge’s office, and he offers condolences but insists he needs to get the money to get the new typewriters – and then he says, “Spaceships, really” for no reason.
Keir O’Donnell as Ben Schmidt, Mike Bradecich as Skip Sprang, and Patrick Wilson as Lou Solverson in ‘Fargo’ (Photo by Chris Large / FX)
Lou and Ben turn their backs and discuss Skip, who Lou calls a squirrelly fellow. They don’t think they need to bring him in and ultimately decide to let him go. “Spaceships? Really?” says Ben, and now they’re off to the Gerhardts.
Skip goes to Rye’s apartment and of course, he’s not there. Rye’s niece Simone (Rachel Keller) is, and she doesn’t know who Skip is. Dodd’s right-hand man, Hanzee Dent (Zahn McClarnon), is there but Skip doesn’t see him until it’s too late. Simone thinks Skip’s the guy Rye was working with on a side deal before he disappeared, but Skip says he was actually just looking for Rye to tell him he’d have the money soon. Simone uses Skip’s tie as a leash and pulls him out of the apartment.
In the middle of nowhere, Ed and Peggy have set their plan to drive their car into a tree in motion. They figure this way the insurance agency will pay for the damage and the police won’t see the damage Rye did to their car. “Once the car’s fixed, we’re free,” says Peggy.
Peggy leaves Ed alone in the car to slide on the black ice into a tree. It’s snowing and his first attempt at crashing the car results in it spinning around and hitting the car’s back bumper. He gets it right the second time and damages the front end, giving himself whiplash in the process. A tow truck hauls the car away.
Ben and Lou visit the Gerhardt property where armed guards allow them through the gates to the house. Lou won’t give up his gun so he’s not allowed inside, which prompts him to ask, “Am I the only one here who’s clear on the concept of law enforcement?” Floyd comes out to meet with them on the porch and she immediately recognizes Ben, who expresses his sympathy for her husband. Lou tells her about the three dead, including a state judge, at the Waffle Hut, but she has no idea what that has to do with her family. Lou tells her about the murder weapon and the prints belonging to Rye. She won’t let them talk to Rye, and her men come closer to Lou and Ben in a threatening manner. Lou tells her Rye’s wanted for three murders and she needs to handle it now or it will get handled for her. Up drives Dodd, just to make the situation even worse. Dodd says they own the judges, why would they kill one? Dodd threatens them and instantly gets on Lou’s wrong side. Lou apologizes that he’s not terrified by meeting Dodd if he should be, but he wants answers. He asks about Mike Milligan and the Kitchen brothers but they don’t know where they are. Floyd won’t say any more and tells them to leave.
On the drive back Lou and Ben discuss getting a warrant but that won’t work because the Gerhardts own the town. Ben pulls over and leaves Lou at the typewriter place because Lou still wants to check on the squirrelly dude. Lou goes to the door and finds the lock’s been broken. He hears people going through drawers and out come the Kitchen brothers and Mike Milligan. One Kitchen draws on Lou so he draws back. Lou wants to know what they’re doing there and he knows Mike definitely isn’t the owner. Speaking of the owner, that’s who Mike and the Kitchens are trying to find. Lou asks if they are Mike Milligan and the Kitchen brothers, and Mike jokes that makes them sound like a rock band. Mike wants to know what a Minnesota cop is doing in North Dakota and he wants to know where Lou saw Skip. Cheekily, Lou answers, “At your mother’s house…I think going in the back door.” With guns drawn, the ‘rock band’ leaves the store.
Lou pulls up to wait in line at a gas station, gets out to stretch his legs, and the guy in the car in front of him starts discussing UFOs. He says the visitors always come in sets of threes and, “Such a night was two nights past.” They’re visitors from above and they take you up in their ships. How random.
Peggy and Ed head home on the bus, and Ed has a neck brace. Peggy thinks their plan worked.
Lou makes it home and Hank’s there visiting with Betsy. Lou tells Hank about his encounter with Mike Milligan and the Kitchen brothers.
Dodd shows up at the quarry to meet with his daughter Simone and immediately treats her like trash, even though she’s the one who captured Skip. He questions Skip about where Rye is and asks if he talked to the cops. Dodd and Hanzee make him get in the hole they’ve dug, and Skip begs for a few more days to find Rye. Instead, they back up a truck and are about to dump a load to cover him when he says Milligan must have Rye. They don’t believe he knows anything and so they finish burying him alive. Bye-bye Skip.
Walt Disney Animation Studios previously announced Once Upon a Time‘s Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, and Shakira would be voicing characters in the animated movie Zootopia and now the full voice cast has been revealed. The studio’s also released details on the animated animal characters that will be populating the film.
“We had so much fun casting this film,” stated director Byron Howard. “Zootopia features such a large and diverse range of characters—one of our biggest casts ever for a Disney Animation film. We needed talented actors who could help bring these animals to life.”
“Everyone in this incredible cast is bringing something special, something unexpected to their characters, which really takes our story to a whole new level,” said director Rich Moore.
Zootopia opens in theaters March 4, 2016.
The just announced cast members are:
· Idris Elba (Netflix’s “Beasts of No Nation,” BBC’s “Luther”) provides the voice of CHIEF BOGO, head of the Zootopia Police Department. A tough cape buffalo with 2,000 lbs of attitude, Bogo is reluctant to add Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin), Zootopia’s first bunny cop, to his squad of hardened rhinos, elephants and hippos.
· J.K. Simmons (“Juno,” Oscar® winner for “Whiplash”) lends his voice to MAYOR LEODORE LIONHEART, the noble leader of Zootopia, who coined the city’s mantra that Judy Hopps lives by: “In Zootopia, anyone can be anything.”
· Nate Torrence (HBO’s “Hello Ladies,” Fox’s “Weird Loners”) lends his voice to the Zootopia Police Department’s most charming cheetah, BENJAMIN CLAWHAUSER. Clawhauser loves two things: pop star Gazelle and donuts. From his reception desk, he greets everyone with a warm smile and a helpful paw—covered in sprinkles.
· Jenny Slate (“Obvious Child,” “Marcel the Shell”) provides the voice of ASSISTANT MAYOR BELLWETHER, a sweet sheep with a little voice and a lot of wool, who constantly finds herself under foot of the larger-than-life Mayor Lionheart.
· Tommy Chong (“Up in Smoke,” “That ’70s Show”) lends his iconic voice to YAX THE YAK, the most enlightened, laid-back bovine in Zootopia. When Judy Hopps is on a case, Yax is full of revealing insights.
· Octavia Spencer (“Insurgent,” Oscar® winner for “The Help”) voices MRS. OTTERTON, a desperate otter who turns to Officer Judy Hopps for help in solving her husband’s mysterious disappearance.
· Bonnie Hunt (“Return to Me,” “Jerry Maguire”) provides the voice of BONNIE HOPPS, mother of Judy—and her 275 brothers and sisters. Mrs. Hopps loves and supports her daughter, but is a hare nervous about Judy moving to Zootopia to become a big-city police officer.
· Don Lake (“Dumb and Dumber To,” “The Bonnie Hunt Show”) voices Judy’s father, STU HOPPS, a carrot farmer from Bunnyburrow. Along with Mrs. Hopps, he is worried about Judy moving to Zootopia and the untrustworthy big-city mammals who live there—especially foxes.
· Alan Tudyk (“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” “Trumbo”) returns to Disney Animation’s recording studio for his fourth feature in a row as the voice of DUKE WEASELTON, a small-time weasel crook with a big-time weasel mouth, who tries to give Judy the slip during a police chase.
· Tommy “Tiny” Lister (“Friday,” “The Fifth Element”) voices FINNICK, a fennec fox with a big chip on his adorable shoulder.
· Raymond Persi (“Wreck-It Ralph,” WDAS story artist) voices FLASH, the fastest sloth working at the DMV—the Department of Mammal Vehicles.
· Katie Lowes (ABC’s “Scandal,” “Big Hero 6”) lends her voice to DR. MADGE HONEY BADGER, who heads up all of City Hall’s most pressing medical cases.
· Jesse Corti (“Frozen,” “Beauty and the Beast”) is the voice of the jaguar MANCHAS, a highly regarded chauffeur who works for the biggest—and shadiest—limo company in town.
· John DiMaggio (Fox’s “Futurama,” Cartoon Network’s “Adventure Time”) voices JERRY JUMBEAUX JR., the easily annoyed owner of Jumbeaux’s Café, his elephant ice cream parlor.
The Plot:
The modern mammal metropolis of Zootopia is a city like no other. Comprised of habitat neighborhoods like ritzy Sahara Square and frigid Tundratown, it’s a melting pot where animals from every environment live together—a place where no matter what you are, from the biggest elephant to the smallest shrew, you can be anything. But when rookie Officer Judy Hopps arrives, she discovers that being the first bunny on a police force of big, tough animals isn’t so easy. Determined to prove herself, she jumps at the opportunity to crack a case, even if it means partnering with a fast-talking, scam-artist fox, Nick Wilde (Bateman), to solve the mystery.
Ricky Gervais will return to hosting duty with the 2016 Golden Globes. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association officially announced Gervais’ return which should mean the Globes will once again be fun to watch as Gervais doesn’t pull any punches and even skewered the HFPA during his previous Globes hosting gigs. The BAFTA, Golden Globes, and Emmy Awards winner/animal lover previously hosted the telecast in 2010, 2011, and 2012, with ratings increasing over previous broadcasts during the years Gervais hosted.
The 73rd Annual Golden Globe Awards will be broadcast live on January 10, 2016 on NBC.
“We’re excited to have Ricky Gervais back to host the most enjoyable awards show of the season in his own inimitable way,” stated NBC Entertainment Chairman Robert Greenblatt. “Disarming and surprising, Ricky is ready to honor — and send up — the best work of the year in film and television. Fasten your seats belts.”
“Ricky Gervais left us with a lasting impression and we are thrilled to have him back in our show as we honor the best in film and television,” added Lorenzo Soria, President of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. “His off-the-cuff wit and quirky charm will surely have the room and audiences around the world at the edge of their seats.”
“What will he say? What will he do? We can’t wait to find out, and we are so happy that he’s back!,” said Barry Adelman, EVP, Television for dick clark productions and executive producer.
The lineup of performers set for the 49th Annual CMA Awards has just expanded by five acts. Florida Georgia Line, Zac Brown Band, Little Big Town, Dierks Bentley and Lindsey Stirling are confirmed to take the stage on Country music’s biggest night. This year’s CMA Awards will take place on November 4th in Nashville with Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood once again set to host. The awards show will air live on ABC at 8pm ET (taped delayed on the West Coast).
The list of performers previously announced for the 2015 CMA Awards includes the show’s hosts as well as Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Blake Shelton, Sam Hunt, Kelsea Ballerini, Miranda Lambert, Maddie & Tae, and Kacey Musgraves. Eric Church will dueting with Hank Williams Jr while Thomas Rhett will team up with Fall Out Boy. Keith Urban and John Mellencamp will also perform together during this year’s big Country music awards show.
Florida Georgia Line’s Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley are the current CMA Vocal Duo of the Year and will be competing in that category once again. Three-time CMA Vocal Group of the Year winners Little Big Town (Karen Fairchild, Kimberly Schlapman, Phillip Sweet, and Jimi Westbrook) are also nominated again in that category, scoring a nomination every year since 2006. Zac Brown Band (Coy Bowles, Zac Brown, Clay Cook, Daniel de los Reyes, Jimmy De Martini, Chris Fryar, John Driskell Hopkins, and Matt Mangano) will be competing in the Vocal Group of the Year category after appearing on that category’s list of nominees in 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014.
The 90 minute special Sherlock: The Abominable Bride has landed a January 1, 2016 premiere date. The upcoming special will be the first Sherlock to premiere in the US and the UK on the same day, according to Masterpiece and PBS. Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman reprise their roles as Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, and Amanda Abbington will be back as Mary Morstan. Una Stubbs also returns as Mrs. Hudson and Rupert Graves is back as Inspector Lestrade.
The Sherlock special will air at 9pm ET on PBS and will also simultaneously on pbs.org/masterpiece.
Season four of the popular series created by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss will film next spring. Moffat and Gatiss co-wrote Sherlock: The Abominable Bride and executive produce along with Beryl Vertue, Sue Vertue, and Rebecca Eaton.
The Plot: “Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman return as Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson in the acclaimed modern retelling of Arthur Conan Doyle’s classic stories. But now our heroes find themselves in 1890s London.”
Jimmy Fallon and Matthew McConaughey on ‘The Tonight Show’ (Photo by: Douglas Gorenstein / NBC)
Oscar winner Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club) has been tapped to host NBC’s Saturday Night Live on November 21, 2015. The upcoming hosting gig will mark McConaughey’s first time back on the SNL stage in more than a decade, according to NBC. McConaughey recently finished up work on Gold with Bryce Dallas Howard and The Free State of Jones with Keri Russell.
Joining McConaughey on the November 21st episode will be musical guest Adele. Adele’s new album, 25, comes out on November 20th. The multiple Grammy Award winning singer recently released the first single, “Hello,” off her upcoming album, with the music video already garnering more than 71.6 million views since its release on October 22nd.
Donald Trump will be hosting the November 7th episode with musical guest Sia. Elizabeth Banks is set to host the November 14th episode and she’ll be joined by Disclosure.
