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CBS, Time Warner Cable fight escalates; network dark in NY, LA Friday, Aug 02, 2013 06:40 PM PDT | Top |
CBS retaliates, blocks online shows for Time Warner cable customers Friday, Aug 02, 2013 06:34 PM PDT By Lisa Richwine LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - U.S. broadcast network CBS took its dispute with Time Warner Cable to the Internet, blocking access to shows on the CBS.com website for the cable operator's customers in New York and Los Angeles. The move followed Time Warner Cable's decision on Friday to drop CBS from its systems in those markets and some others, an escalation of a weeks-long fight over the fees it pays to carry the network. CBS's retaliation showed the increasingly powerful position content owners enjoy online. ... Full Story | Top |
TV film 'Sharknado' inches to cult status with midnight showings Friday, Aug 02, 2013 05:16 PM PDT By Eric Kelsey LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Three weeks after its premiere, "Sharknado" is still raining down great whites and hammerheads for the U.S. cable television network Syfy - and even splashing them across movie screens. The campy, low-budget TV disaster movie about a hurricane that unleashes an aerial shark attack on Los Angeles has proven that a B-movie can still be a big cult winner, especially when social media acts as its marketing machine. "You can't replicate something like this, you can't force-feed it - it just sort of happens," director Anthony C. ... Full Story | Top |
Exclusive: Christopher Nolan casts 'Game of Thrones' actor in 'Interstellar' Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:48 PM PDT | Top |
Blip CEO Kelly Day: we're talking to a dozen YouTube channels about joining us Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:47 PM PDT By Lucas Shaw NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Blip CEO Kelly Day is wary when it comes to YouTube. She can't risk angering the biggest video site in the world, but she also has to convince its stars to join her operation. That's why Day describes her site as "a complement" to YouTube, a platform they can use to build their own site - and supplement the money they see from Google. Yet this balancing act does not inhibit her from speaking candidly about why she won't be rushing to copy YouTube's recent launch of subscription channels, or why creators could make more money on Blip. ... Full Story | Top |
TCA: 'The Bridge' murder will be solved 'way before the end' of season one Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:46 PM PDT By Tony Maglio LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - FX's "The Bridge" will not be recycling Season 1 plots for its next season, which has yet to be announced by the network but expected as a result of strong critical reviews. The first season brings together a Mexican policeman (Demian Bichir) and an American homicide detective (Diane Kruger) when a body is discovered on the bridge spanning the El Paso-Ciudad Juarez border. The murder will be solved well before the end of Season 1, showrunners Elwood Reid and Meredith Stiehm said Friday at TCAs. Reid added that Season 2 will not focus on one big crime. ... Full Story | Top |
'Orphan Black's' Dylan Bruce to guest star on 'Arrow' Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:45 PM PDT By Jethro Nededog LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Dylan Bruce is coming to The CW's "Arrow," a Warner Bros. Television representative told TheWrap. The "Orphan Black" star will play Adam Donner, Laurel's (Katie Cassidy) new co-worker on the Season 2 premiere episode and the third episode. He is described as "a corn-fed, All-American lawyer who is described as smart and charismatic." On the BBC America sci-fi series, Bruce plays Paul Dierden, who's dating Beth's boyfriend, and later becomes Sarah's lover - both played by Tatiana Maslany. ... Full Story | Top |
'Sharknado' mania hits theaters: midnight screenings sell out, more shows added Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:13 PM PDT By Tony Maglio LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - SyFy's original movie "Sharknado" is in select Regal cinemas Friday for a one-night only screening. So far, ticket sales have been a whirlwind - without sharks. "Advance ticket sales are bloody good," Harry Medved, spokesperson for movie ticketing service Fandango, told TheWrap. "It's unprecedented for a TV movie to be re-released in theaters and do this well in limited engagements - but then again, cult movies are more fun to watch with a packed audience yelling their favorite lines back at the big screen. ... Full Story | Top |
Seth Rogen named James Franco's Comedy Central roast master Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:12 PM PDT By Tim Kenneally LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Seth Rogen and James Franco got blazed together plenty in "Pineapple Express." And now Rogen is going to help roast Franco on Comedy Central. Rogen will serve as the roast master at Franco's Comedy Central roast, the network said Friday. The pair have a long-running working relationship, stemming from the 1999 cult TV series "Freaks and Geeks" and extending to the upcoming film "The Interview." "Comedy Central Roast of James Franco" will tape August 18 at Culver Studios, and will premiere on September 2 at 10 p.m. on Comedy Central. Full Story | Top |
Al Jazeera to shutter English-language livestream when news channel launches Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:11 PM PDT By Sara Morrison LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The August 20 premiere of Al Jazeera America will give an estimated 50 million American homes access to a brand-new news channel - and cut off many more from Al Jazeera English's Internet livestream. An Al Jazeera America spokesperson confirmed on Friday that the outlet will discontinue its livestream of Al Jazeera English to American online audiences, reportedly due to cable provider-imposed restrictions. ... Full Story | Top |
Fifth 'Bourne' movie in the works with Jeremy Renner, 'Sherlock Holmes' writer Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:10 PM PDT By Jeff Sneider LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Universal Pictures is gearing up for another entry in its blockbuster "Bourne" series, setting Anthony Peckham ("Sherlock Holmes") to write the script for a fifth film in the franchise. Jeremy Renner will reprise his role as Aaron Cross from last year's "The Bourne Legacy," which was directed by original "Bourne" screenwriter Tony Gilroy. Gilroy is not involved with the latest installment, nor is Matt Damon at the moment. While Universal would love for Damon to reprise his signature action role, it'll all depend on who the studio hires to direct. ... Full Story | Top |
TCA: 'Sons of Anarchy' premiere will genuinely shock people Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:10 PM PDT By Tim Molloy NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - "Sons of Anarchy" returns with a Season 6 premiere next month that is going to shock people. We won't say what it is, but will say this: We're very surprised the show goes where it goes. Speaking at a Television Critics Association panel Friday, creator Kurt Sutter said he talked with FX CEO John Landgraf about the storyline, which draws from hotly debated recent events. (And that's all the description we'll give.) Landgraf is know for giving his showrunners more creative freedom than they would likely get elsewhere. ... Full Story | Top |
TCA: W. Kamau Bell on what white people can bring to race discussions Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:09 PM PDT By Tim Kenneally LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - How can the discussion about racism in America be enriched? According to "Totally Biased" host W. Kamau Bell, the answer is a little less conversation. The comedian, who's show returns in a new nightly format to FX offshoot network FXX on September 4, offered his thoughts on the topic when asked at the Television Critics Association on Friday. "I think what's missing from the dialog on race is white people doing this," Bell offered, before nodding silently. "I feel like every white person should practice that. that's your 'listening to racism' face. ... Full Story | Top |
'Passion' review: De Palma regurgitates everything in his bag of tricks Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:08 PM PDT By Alonso Duralde LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - There's a great vintage "Saturday Night Live" sketch where host Kirk Douglas does a fake ad for the album "Kirk's Greatest Kirks," featuring the actor impersonating Kirk Douglas impersonators (Rich Little, Frank Gorshin, etc.). Doing so requires the actor to repeat his most famous movie lines in the hammiest and most overdone way possible. "Passion" - now on-demand and hitting theaters August 30 - is "De Palma's Greatest De Palmas," as director Brian De Palma regurgitates seemingly everything in his legendary bag of tricks. ... Full Story | Top |
TCA: 'The League' no longer begging for NFL player cameos Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:07 PM PDT By Tony Maglio LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - "The League" doesn't need to chase down NFL stars for cameo appearances anymore. The players - more specifically their agents - are now reaching out to the show, according to executive producer Jeff Schaffer. That said, they're being mindful not oversaturate the program with cameos - a la "Entourage." And it's not just limited to football anymore. Baseball player Kevin Youkilis, currently of the New York Yankees, approached the cast and producers recently to talk about what a fan he is. ... Full Story | Top |
'2 Guns' director Baltasar Kormakur: Mark Wahlberg is not a ladies man; he's a man's man Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:06 PM PDT (Strong language in paragraph 12) By Lucas Shaw NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Mark Wahlberg is not a ladies man. "He's a man's man who feels best with his buddies and having fun," '2 Guns' director Baltasar Kormakur teased. "He's sometimes awkward when it comes to women." Kormakur would know. He's worked with the former Calvin Klein model on two movies, and directed a pilot of a TV show that Wahlberg is producing. Skyping with TheWrap from New York, Kormakur's publicist jumped in to disagree - "completely." Yet Kormakur stuck to his guns. ... Full Story | Top |
TCA: 'Always Sunny' to address Emmys snubs in new season Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:05 PM PDT By Tim Kenneally LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Watch out, Television Academy; the "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia gang has noticed the lack of Emmy love you've sent their way, and they're going to allude to the chilly relationship in an upcoming episode. During the Television Critics Association press tour on Friday, series star Charlie Day revealed details of an episode called "The Gang Desperately Tries to Win an Award," during which Day and his cohorts realize that their bar, Paddy's Pub, has never won an award. ... Full Story | Top |
TCA: FX boss John Landgraf on becoming a heayweight, 'Louie' and Netflix Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:05 PM PDT By Tim Molloy NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - FX CEO John Landgraf likens his networks expansion to FXX to a boxer moving up in weight class. At a Television Critics Association panel Friday, he said the network is expanding partly because it needs more space for its shows. He also talked about the creative freedom FX gives shows like "Louie" and about competing with Netflix, a rival that doesn't release ratings data. ... Full Story | Top |
'Sharknado' director dishes on the sequel, death-defying stunts - and casting David Bowie Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:04 PM PDT (Note: The story has strong language in 7th answer) By Jordan Riefe LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - So you've only made one movie - a cheapo "B" (or less) thriller for the Syfy network called "Boo." And they like it so much they ask you if you'd like to do another, about a freak tornado that hits Los Angeles, raining down thousands of killer fish. You say yes, and the next thing you know, your cheapo thriller - starring "Dancing With the Stars" types like Ian Zeiring and Tara Reid - is a social-media sensation, drawing only 1. ... Full Story | Top |
TCA: Billy Bob Thornton joins FX's 'Fargo' as a new character Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:02 PM PDT By Tim Molloy NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Billy Bob Thornton has signed on to FX's new "Fargo" adaptation, which will feature all new characters, network CEO John Landgraf announced Friday. Landgraf said at the Television Critics Association summer press tour that the new, 10-episode limited series won't feature any characters derived from the film. In place of Frances McDormand's pregnant sheriff, the show will feature a young female deputy in her 20s. Still, he said, the new film is "remarkably true" to Joel and Ethan Coen's 1996 film. ... Full Story | Top |
CNN's Jake Tapper to make acting debut on 'All My Children' Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:02 PM PDT By Sara Morrison LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - It's been a good week for CNN's "The Lead" host Jake Tapper. First, he was voted one of TheHill.com's 50 Most Beautiful People in Washington, D.C. (he came in an #11), and now he's set to make his acting debut on online soap opera "All My Children." Tapper was on the set to film a segment for "The Lead" about the soap's return in online format. Apparently, they liked him so much they convinced him to stick around Pine Valley as "Spencer Phillips," a reporter from the fictional show "Business News Update. ... Full Story | Top |
Rolling Stone reporter: Boston bomber cover was about 'realizing he was normal' Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:01 PM PDT By Greg Gilman LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Rolling Stone has already defended its controversial decision to put Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on the cover of its July issue, and now the reporter who wrote the cover story, "Jahar's World," is defending Rolling Stone. Janet Reitman spoke about the issue while appearing on The Longform Podcast posted Friday. While she emphasized that neither she, nor any journalist writing for the publication, has control over whether the story becomes a cover story or what picture accompanies it, she was "very satisfied" with the final product. ... Full Story | Top |
'2 Guns' reviews: did critics like Denzel Washington's action flick? Friday, Aug 02, 2013 04:00 PM PDT By Brent Lang LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Critics are divided over whether or "2 Guns" is a shot of summer adrenaline or a twisty thriller that takes one too many turns. The action thriller stars Mark Wahlberg and Denzel Washington as two undercover agents with motivations as shaky as their conflicted loyalties. Directed by Baltasar Kormákur, the Icelandic action master who previously teamed with Wahlberg on "Contraband," the film overflows with double and triple crosses interspersed with flurries of gunplay. It opens Friday. ... Full Story | Top |
'2 Guns' banks $1.3 million Thursday night for Universal Friday, Aug 02, 2013 03:59 PM PDT By Lucas Shaw NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Universal's "2 Guns" grossed $1.28 million from late-night shows on Thursday, initiating Mark Wahlberg and Denzel Washington's quest to crush the Smurfs at the weekend box office. Advanced studio tracking projected the film would cross $30 million for the weekend, more than Sony's "The Smurfs 2" is expected to gross over the three-day weekend but less than the $35 million projected for its five-day weekend. "Smurfs" opened Wednesday to $5.2 million. ... Full Story | Top |
Comedian Ellen DeGeneres picked to host 2014 Oscars Friday, Aug 02, 2013 03:44 PM PDT | Top |
George Clooney takes aim at Sony investor Loeb over spin-off plan Friday, Aug 02, 2013 03:39 PM PDT | Top |
CBS goes dark in NY, LA as Time Warner Cable talks collapse Friday, Aug 02, 2013 03:22 PM PDT | Top |
'NBC Nightly News' anchor Brian Williams to take hiatus for knee surgery Friday, Aug 02, 2013 01:57 PM PDT By Sara Morrison LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - A high school football injury is going to take Brian Williams off the air - temporarily. Williams announced on Thursday that he's having total knee replacement surgery and will be out while he recovers. "I've paid a very high price for what's been confirmed to be the single worst New Jersey High School Catholic League football career in history," he said. "I reached a point recently in the last 12 months where I decided this has to happen," he said. "If this doesn't go perfectly well, which it will, it can't hurt more than it hurts now. ... Full Story | Top |
TCA: Gordon Ramsay swore around little kids only twice while filming 'MasterChef Junior' Friday, Aug 02, 2013 01:57 PM PDT | Top |
TCA: Is Seth MacFarlane's 'Dads' racist or calling out racism? Friday, Aug 02, 2013 01:55 PM PDT By Tim Molloy NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Seth MacFarlane's upcoming Fox show "Dads" is filled with racial jokes - but the butt of all of them is a white male, the show's cast and producers said Thursday. Stereotypes abound on "Dads," and come from the old-school-in-a-bad-way, socially out-of-step dads. One mistakes a woman of color for the maid. There's a joke likening a boxing match to a game of "punch the Puerto Rican." A young Asian woman dresses up as an anime character. ... Full Story | Top |
YouTube to open production studio in New York next year Friday, Aug 02, 2013 01:54 PM PDT By Lucas Shaw NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - YouTube will open a production studio in New York next year, the company announced at VidCon on Thursday. The company complements similar facilities in London, Tokyo and Playa Vista, where YouTube opened a 41,000-square foot production, post-production and community event space last November. YouTube conceived the spaces as production hubs for its creators to use state of the art equipment at little cost. This applies to creators big and small. Freddie Wong, who spent 1. ... Full Story | Top |
How 'Spectacular Now's' James Ponsoldt, Shailene Woodley and Miles Teller saved the teen movie Friday, Aug 02, 2013 01:53 PM PDT By Steve Pond LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - In preparation for the Friday debut of "The Spectacular Now," Landmark Theaters around the country curated a selection of notable coming-of-age movies: Cameron Crowe's "Say Anything" and "Almost Famous," John Hughes' "The Breakfast Club," and Richard Linklater's "Dazed and Confused." The message was simple: "The Spectacular Now" is not just another teen movie. ... Full Story | Top |
TCA: 'Enlisted' producer explains what's funny about war Friday, Aug 02, 2013 01:39 PM PDT By Jethro Nededog LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Fox's new military comedy, "Enlisted," found itself having to explain how it manages to make light of the often harsh realities of war and a soldier's life at Thursday's Television Critics Association press tour. "It's really, really important to me and to and the entire cast that we never appeared to be mocking or disrespectful," series creator Kevin Biegel said. "That's not what this show is," he continued, pointing out that he sees only two ways the military is portrayed in pop culture: the super soldier or the one "wrecked by PTSD. ... Full Story | Top |
TCA: Fox's 'Almost Human' panel talks robot ethics, android sex Friday, Aug 02, 2013 01:37 PM PDT By Tim Kenneally LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The panel for Fox's upcoming futuristic cop drama "Almost Human" took on a number of topics at the Television Critics Association press tour on Thursday. Such as what sort of ethical dilemmas an increasingly robotic future will present. And whether Dorian, the android lead played by Michael Ealy, will have intimate relations. The series, which comes from executive producer J.J. Abrams and creator J.H. Wyman, envisions a not-so-distant future (35 years from now, to be precise) where police are partnered with highly evolved, human-like androids. ... Full Story | Top |
Coen brothers to adapt 'Fargo' into FX TV miniseries Friday, Aug 02, 2013 01:12 PM PDT | Top |
Wagner set designer Denic courted reaction and got a revolt Friday, Aug 02, 2013 11:01 AM PDT By Michael Roddy LONDON (Reuters) - The reviews are in for the scandal-tinged staging of Richard Wagner's "Ring" for his 200th birthday at Bayreuth, and while Serbian set designer Aleksandar Denic doesn't confirm he and German director Frank Castorf intended to provoke, he doesn't deny it either. ... Full Story | Top |
Shining sun welcomes wacky and wonderful to Edinburgh Fringe Friday, Aug 02, 2013 08:48 AM PDT By Ian McKenzie EDINBURGH (Reuters) - Sunshine welcomed in the Edinburgh Festival Fringe on Friday with more than 2,800 shows from comedians to ballet vying for audiences as the world's biggest annual arts festival opened its doors for another record year. Buskers, comics, acrobats and actors turn Edinburgh's famous Royal Mile, into a vast open-air theatre, as crowds in their thousands flock to a record number of shows through to August 26. ... Full Story | Top |
Business empire under pressure as Berlusconi influence wanes Friday, Aug 02, 2013 08:30 AM PDT | Top |
Viacom doubles buyback plan, posts 14 percent revenue jump Friday, Aug 02, 2013 07:48 AM PDT By Jennifer Saba and Liana B. Baker (Reuters) - Viacom Inc reported a 14 percent rise in third-quarter revenue on Friday as the media company posted strong advertising and affiliate fees for its television shows and doubled its share repurchase program. Shares of Viacom jumped 6.3 percent to $79.05. The company, which owns cable networks MTV, Comedy Central and movie studio Paramount Pictures, expanded its share buyback program to $20 billion from $10 billion. "The stock is up on the buyback, and their domestic ad growth was very strong," said Brett Harriss, an analyst with Gabelli & Co. ... Full Story | Top |
'The Spectacular Now' spotlights young love like it used to be Friday, Aug 02, 2013 07:18 AM PDT | Top |
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