Tag Archives: Arrested Development

‘Arrested Development’ soundtrack coming in November

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Ten years after its debut, composer David Schwartz is finally releasing an Arrested Development soundtrack. The 42-track disc features music heard across all four seasons of the cult comedy, including fan favorites like the Arrested theme, “It Ain’t Easy Being White,” “Mr. F,” “Big Yellow Joint,” “Fantastic 4 (Medley),” and an extended version of “Getaway.” The last track on the collection is the incredibly catchy “Boomerang,” the song that closes out the Netflix season performed by Schwartz’s daughter Lucy. Schwartz says the soundtrack pickings were inspired by fan requests during Arrested‘s recent AMA on Reddit.

The Arrested Development soundtrack comes out November 19 and you can preorder it today at Amazon. Jump after the break for the full tracklist; there you’ll also find a video uploaded by Schwartz teaching you how to play the AD theme on the uke! Continue reading ‘Arrested Development’ soundtrack coming in November →

TV parodies: ‘Breaking Bad’: The Musical, ‘Arrested Development’, the video game, ‘Walking Dead’ bad lip-reading & more!

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There’s TV and then there’s the Internet. The two make quite the couple. Here are some fascinating offspring I’ve hand-picked for your viewing pleasure.

The first two videos come from the world of Breaking Bad. Hanging above is “Breaking Bad: The Middle School Musical” starring kids cooking meth blue rock candy. Yes, it is twisted and it is also brilliant and hilarious. It also does a pretty great job at summing up seasons one through five so spoiler freaks beware.

Click after the break for more. Continue reading TV parodies: ‘Breaking Bad’: The Musical, ‘Arrested Development’, the video game, ‘Walking Dead’ bad lip-reading & more! →

More ‘Arrested Development’ clips: Mitch Hurwitz and the cast on bringing back the show

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It will never get old celebrating the comeback of cult classic comedy Arrested Development. Let the good times ride with these new AD clips featuring creator Mitch Hurwitz,the all-star cast, and some behind-the-scenes footage. Embedded above you’ll hear from the lot of them and get to see just how excited they all were to bring the band back together. After the break catch featurettes on characters like George Michael, Gob, Buster; plus, get an inside look at how the show’s wardrobe department works and the many challenges they faced in making the new season. Continue reading More ‘Arrested Development’ clips: Mitch Hurwitz and the cast on bringing back the show →

Mitch Hurwitz opens up about the future of ‘Arrested Development’ (video inside)

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Warning: Do not proceed if you haven’t finished watching the new season of Arrested Development. Spoilers ahead; you have been warned.

Netflix wants more, Imagine Entertainment wants more, and obviously so does series creator and mastermind Mitch Hurwitz. On May 26 Arrested Development returned after a seven year hiatus with 15 new episodes. The new season ends with without much resolution and this is by design, reveals Hurwitz. In a postmortem interview with Vulture, Hurwitz discusses exactly why so many plot points and character arcs were left up in the air.

The initial idea for these new episodes was to reset things. Let’s show what happens to this family, who were starting to make progress as human beings, when they decide to go it alone. Part of the theme of this thing is that we do need our families. Our families are attached to us whether we like it or not, in all these mysterious, invisible ways. It’s somewhat allegorical but we see that they’ve all affected each other’s lives in really profound ways for the negative because there’s no communication between them to speak of. So in one sense that was the theme, but in another way it really was just setting up the future. If the pilot was about their lives falling apart, then this was designed to be the first act of a larger story about winding everybody up, getting everybody to a point of peril and then having a jumping-off place for the next story where they all come together.

Whether it’s a movie or another season on Netflix, Hurwitz has a plan for what’s to come next. As far as we know, Lucille Austero aka Lucille 2 is dead and the impetus for the next Bluth adventure will be a murder mystery.

That really is the idea. Everybody’s gotten their lives into a state of peril and everybody said, “To hell with this family,” and Michael said “I’m done with all of you,” and then — Buster is arrested for murder! Now what do they do? Now they have to come together or let their baby brother go to the chair. We’re sort of resolving or ending the season with both an emotional story and a plot story. The plot is that Buster’s been arrested for the murder of Lucille 2. And think about it, all the Bluths have a relationship with her. One of the main reasons we were kind of obsessed with telling the story in the right order is because we wanted to slowly reveal not only that Lucille 2 was gone and that she died, but that they all had ways in which they were connected to her that could either look like motives or could exculpate some of them. But they’re all connected to this woman who disappeared … It’s always been a show that dealt with a lot of big plot points, stealing the Queen Mary and all these off-the-wall things. The more important stuff is really what’s going on in their hearts and minds. That’s what the Michael–George Michael thing is about.

When can fans expect the next chapter in the story? It’s all up to the talent and their inherently conflicting schedules.

Whatever the next step is, I will say that by design the Bluths will come together. They’re all going to be together. Now it’s a question of what’s the most efficient way to do that, how do we make that happen and when do we make that happen? It certainly won’t be another seven years. If we do it, we’re going to do it soon while we’re all still alive. While we’re all still sensate. A lot of it has to be worked around John Beard’s schedule.

I highly recommend you jump over to Vulture to read the Hurwitz interview in full; in addition to talking about the future of the show, he also discusses the intensive creative process behind making the new season, Franklin’s absence, the return of Ben Stiller as Tony Wonder, making Ann Veal a more substantial character, the idea behind the Fantastic Four musical, the many easter eggs, George Michael’s almost chicken dance, and why ostriches.

Also this week, Hurwitz spoke to the press at large about making more Arrested, responding to reviews, finally revealing Michael’s late wife Tracey Bluth in a flashback, going back on his idea of watching the new episodes out of order, the inspiration behind Terry Crews’ Herbert Love, and he shares a scene that didn’t make the final cut involving Mitt Romney and George Clooney. In fact, he also blurted out that there are tons of extra footage that he hopes will eventually see the light of day. “We have a lot of material that we’re planning on putting out on Netflix at a later time, probably, to tie in there.” Consume all the juicy quotes at Entertainment Weekly.

Bonus! Pop after the break to watch behind-the-scenes featurettes with Hurtwitz, Portia de Rossi (Lindsay Bluth), David Cross (Tobias Fünke), Jessica Walter (Lucille Bluth), and Henry Winkler (Barry Zuckerkorn). Also there you’ll find a Q&A clip with some of the cast and a look at the walk-on contest winners. Continue reading Mitch Hurwitz opens up about the future of ‘Arrested Development’ (video inside) →

Discover new music: Lucy Schwartz closes new “Arrested Development” with infectious “Boomerang”

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As the final episode of the new season of Arrested Development fades to white and then black with credits a memorable track pops onto the scene. As you sit there stunned that all 15 are complete you find yourself bouncing to the infectious track but you’re stiff in contemplation unable to reach for Shazam wishing there were more episodes to satiate your need for, well, more. Let me help you…

The track is called “Boomerang” and it’s by singer-songwriter Lucy Schwartz. For you AD fans, if that last name rings a bell you’re not mistaken. Lucy’s father David Schwartz is the series’ composer and therein lies the connection. During the series’ initial three season run, David pushed for her daughter–a self-proclaimed big fan of the show–to contribute in some capacity. Creator Mitch Hurwitz allowed it and Lucy would be the one who sang the “For British Eyes Only” theme and the staple “Mr. F” line that still continues to pop up in the new episodes. In addition to landing the prime final credits sequence slot with “Boomerang,” Lucy for the first time was featured in an episode this season–she makes a quick cameo as the girl in the glasses in George Michael’s band in college.

If you like what you hear in “Boomerang,” you can support Lucy by anticipating her upcoming full-length album Timekeeper out August 6. “Boomerang” is the lead single and is currently available to purchase on iTunes along with another new track “Time Will Tell.” (For a limited time you can download “Boomerang” for free at her website.) She’s been making music for some time now; you can preview her previous full-length releases Winter In June (2007) and Life In Letters (2010) on her iTunes page; there you’ll also find other singles and EPs. Her YouTube channel is also packed with soulful material from over the years. “”Boomerang” doesn’t really fit into my genre, though,” Schwartz admits to Mother Jones. “If you listen to my new album, it’s very eclectic; there’s a banjo song, another one with soul singers.” That can only be a good thing in my book; in addition to the catchy “Boomerang” listeners will experience other sounds from the uniquely talented Lucy Schwartz.

Hurwitz has publicly shared that he’s a big fan of Lucy’s. Obviously he must be for incorporating her sound into his grand experiment that is Arrested Development over all these years. Hurwitz had been following Lucy’s work during AD‘s downtime between ’06-’13 but had only discovered “Boomerang” and its potential to serve as the new season’s outro days before he had to hand in the final edit to Netflix. “This is perfect!” Hurwitz told Schwartz, “Exactly the way I want to end it!” “He got it in [in the episode] just in the nick of time,” Lucy says. Hurwitz gushed to Entertainment Weekly his excitement about Lucy’s upcoming release. “Lucy’s latest album is her Sgt. Pepper,” he says. “Unbelievable. I can’t stop playing it or thinking about it. So brilliant and amazing.”

You want to know what’s really funny about all this? As great and animated a track “Boomerang” is, it also manages to encapsulate a feeling of dread and longing–all AD fans will associate it with the new season coming to a punchy close.

‘Arrested Development’: the aftermath

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In case you’re putting off watching all 15 episodes of the new season of Arrested Development, I’ll be careful not to spoil things here.

And so it came and went. On May 26 Netflix released an entirely new batch of Arrested Development episodes that played out quite brilliantly; I consider them to be some of the most complex, layered & brilliantly designed episodes ever produced for any series spanning the drama and comedy genres. Even more so than the original three seasons, these new installments beg to be rewatched again and again.

The consensus is like this: the majority of long-time AD fans absolutely loved the new episodes while critics gave mixed reviews. The New York Times bashed the whole experiment starting with the line, “Chalk one up for the Internet: It has killed Arrested Development.” But in my opinion, the NYT review must be taken with a grain of salt since the piece’s writer had only watched the first 8 of 15 episodes before “deadline” arrived. Fans would ferociously argue that all 15 must be screened before an appropriate review could be conjured; jokes set up in episode 1 are not unlocked until the final episode, in fact. A more delicate review can be found over at The Atlantic; “Hurwitz et al. have bequeathed to us something that doesn’t really have a name, or a meaningful precedent: not a series, or a movie, or even a mini-series, but rather a single, eight-hour work of dada televisual art,” writes Christoper Orr. It’s true–what creator Mitch Hurwitz did here is something so unusual and unique that it’s hard to categorize it into a single genre or type.

No matter which way you see it, Netflix has confirmed that the May 26 launch Arrested Development was a great success. “It’s been huge, just as we had hoped,” Netflix CEO Reed Hastings told CNBC in a televised interview. When pressed about sharing numerical results, Hastings held back. “Netflix is about being able to watch when you want, not having to watch at a certain time like linear TV is. So we’re really not focused on the day one ratings, it’s really over the first year.” So perhaps by next May we will have a better idea as to how the new episodes performed for the streaming service in terms of how many people watched and how many new subscribers the company picked up along the way.

This brings us to the big question fans ’round the world are wondering: is there more where this came from? AD season 4 ends with many plot points still up in the air, but this shouldn’t have come as a huge surprise for most. Leading up to the launch star Jason Bateman spilled that these new installments serve as “simply just the first act of what we hope to continue and complete in a movie, which would [serve as] Act 2 and 3. These episodes set that up. One does not work without the other.” He added, “There is certainly a satisfying conclusion to these episodes, if for some unfortunate reason the movie does not happen. But [the episodes and the movie] are all meant to work within each other as a hybrid package of Arrested Development stuff.”

Since the new season launched, Netflix’s Hastings and someone high up in the AD camp commented on the series’ future. “Arrested is unique, because that’s really up to the talent. If the talent were willing to do more, and interested in that, I’m sure we would be willing,” said Hastings to CNBC. And then in an interview with Deadline, Imagine Entertainment co-founder Brian Grazer said, “It’s up to [Netflix Chief Content Officier] Ted [Sarandos]. If Ted is into it, we would be very excited to pursue it.” Added Imagine TV president Francie Calfo, “It’s also up to Mitch, who is probably resting right now as he put everything he had into these episodes and hasn’t had a chance to think beyond that.” When asked about the potential of the long-imagined AD movie Grazer simply stated, “We’re hoping that we could do that; the popularity of the series will inform that decision.” So in sum, Imagine (the producers) and Netflix (the content distributor) are certainly interested in bring the gang back together to make more Arrested whether it’s another season or a movie. First, Mitch must do what he does best and come up with more character arcs and interweaving plots to continue the story; and second, the actors must make time in their busy schedules to reunite again.

As we wait (again) to learn the fate of Arrested Development, don’t lose sight of what’s right in front of you and available now.

TV reminder: ‘Arrested Development’ premieres this Sunday with 15 new episodes on Netflix

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We made it. Seven years after it was cancelled and banished from network TV, cult comedy Arrested Development is not making a huge mistake by coming back for another season consisting of 15 brand new episodes. All of them will be made available for streaming on Netflix at once when the clock strikes midnight (PT) / 3AM (ET) on Sunday, May 26. Creator Mitch Hurwitz recommends you watch the episodes in order, at least during your initial binge marathon. Each installment intentionally follows a single member of the Bluth clan but don’t fret–characters will weave in and out of other characters’ storylines and the entire bunch will congregate at least twice over the course of the season. Other things to look out for: you will witness the same scenes multiple times but they will play out differently and you will learn more context each time because they will be told from different character perspectives; also, these episodes serve as one giant setup for more AD in the future, whether it’s another season or the long dreamed about feature film.

Relive the journey of Arrested‘s anticipated comeback here. After the break, watch four teaser clips taken from the new batch; G.O.B., Lucille, Maeby, Lindsay, bees and an ostrich are all involved.

Ladies and gentleman, it’s the final countdown. Grab some bananas and blue paint and let’s (almost) break Netflix!

Update: AD creator Mitch Hurwitz (a man who obviously knows to always leave a note) posted to Facebook a picture of a handwritten letter made out to “friends, fans, supporters, detractors, haters, enemies, and arch enemies.” In it he acknowledges everyone who supports the show and he is thankful for the opportunity to bring these characters back to life. The note is posted in full after the break. Continue reading TV reminder: ‘Arrested Development’ premieres this Sunday with 15 new episodes on Netflix →

The ‘Arrested Development’ trailer has arrived

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Whatever you’re doing right now, STOP IT. Stop it at once and click play to catch your very first glimpse into the new batch of Arrested Development episodes coming to Netflix just two weeks from today. The Bluths are back, and it is so guaranteed their long-awaited return will put the biggest smile on your face.

Arrested Development premires on Netflix with 15 brand new installments all at once on May 26. It’s the final countdown.

‘Arrested Development’ ad campaign is a must-see for fans (plus: new clip inside!)

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It’s officially May which means we can now say this: Arrested Development returns this month! In anticipation of the return of the short-lived cult comedy, Netflix is going all out with an attractive ad campaign featuring images and taglines that evoke some of the most memorable bits from the series’ original run. You can sort through it all below; gallery #1 includes some laugh-out-loud promo posters while gallery #2 contains character portraits. Also, the storage container has sprung open (see above!).

Once you’re done there, you’re going to want to hop after the break to watch a BRAND NEW CLIP starring the dynamic duo Buster and his overbearing mother Lucille.

Arrested Development launches on Netflix with 15 new episodes all at once on May 24.

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Continue reading ‘Arrested Development’ ad campaign is a must-see for fans (plus: new clip inside!) →

The new season of ‘Arrested Development’ gets its spring release date

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Arrested Development returns with all-new episodes on (drum-roll please) May 26, 2013.

Netflix issued a press release on Thursday expressing the long-awaited news. In addition to announcing the release date, the streaming company increased the episode order to a grand total of 15, way up from the originally planned 10 installments. Just like it did with its last premiere of original programming in House of Cards, Netflix will make all 15 episodes of Arrested Development available at the same time precisely at 12:01AM PDT on Sunday, May 26. Take note: the new season premieres Memorial Day weekend so fans will have plenty of time to marathon it all before the work week/school resumes on Tuesday.

Ted Sarandos, Chief Content Officer for Netflix: “Arrested Development is now widely viewed as one of the top TV comedies of all time and Mitch Hurwitz is bringing it to Netflix in a brand new way, crafted for the on-demand generation that has come to discover the show in the years since it last appeared on TV. The highly anticipated return of this show is sure to make history all over again.”

Series creator and executive producer Mitch Hurwitz: “Ted said that? Wow. Well don’t print this obviously, but he’s going to be immensely disappointed. In truth we are doing something very ambitious that can only be done with Netflix as partners and on their platform. Finally my simple wish for the show is coming true: that it be broadcast every second around the clock to every television, computer or mobile device in existence.”

In case you didn’t know… Arrested Development centers around Michael Bluth (Jason Bateman) and his eccentric family comprised of his son George Michael (Michael Cera), his father George Bluth Sr. (Jeffrey Tambor), his mother Lucille (Jessica Walter), his brothers George Oscar Bluth II (Will Arnett), Buster Bluth (Tony Hale) and sister Lindsay Funke (Portia de Rossi), and Lindsay’s husband Tobias (David Cross) and their daughter Maeby (Alia Shawkat). With the new episodes, each installment is dedicated to a different character’s point of view. And all of it is a major set up for a feature length film which is still in the works.

I don’t have a trailer for you yet (there may never be one since Hurwitz is keeping such a tight lid on the plotlines), but you can eye the first promotional poster above. I imagine the entire Bluth clan locked inside that bright orange shipping container with Gob trying his mightiest to bust them all out. It reads, “The Final Countdown Begins.” Celebrate with an appropriate scene after the break. Continue reading The new season of ‘Arrested Development’ gets its spring release date →

TCA 13: Mitch Hurwitz reveals new storytelling format for ‘Arrested Development’ revival

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Now this is what you’ve been waiting for: more details to come out of the Arrested Development revival. Today at the TCAs series creator Mitch Hurwitz led a panel that included most of the brilliant ensemble cast–namely, Jason Bateman, Will Arnett, Portia de Rossi, Michael Cera, Jessica Walter, Alia Shawkat, and Jeffrey Tambor. David Cross and Tony Hale, unfortunately, were not present. Hurwitz is still keeping a heavy veil of secrecy on top of the plot, but he did manage  to shed some light on what viewers can expect in the new batch of episodes in terms of how they will play out.

Before we get to that, though, the most important news to come out of the panel: Arrested Development premieres on Netflix this May and all 14 episodes (the original order was 10, so this is a more-than-welcome surprise) will go live and be available on Netflix Instant streaming at once. Like installments from its original run, episodes will come in at just under 30 minutes and even though it wasn’t a requirement, curse words will be silenced with the famous Development bleep. So, still no hard date, but May is the month.

It leaked months ago that the new episodes would feature a new storytelling format, and today Hurwitz confirmed and explained the changes. “The only way we could get everyone together for what we’ll call, loosely, an anthology series, was to dedicate each episode to a different character’s point of view,” he said. “That became a fun, entertaining challenge, because we started finding out that the stories would intersect. It’s kind of an evolution of the storytelling that was necessary.” Essentially, viewers should not expect scenes that include all of the Bluths interacting with each other at once. In the old days, such scenes were typically the best ones; stuffing all the Bluths under the same roof made for some classic moments. But Hurwitz is quite confident that the new format will provide equally hilarious moments for fans to discover. “So, you’ll see a scene in one [episode], and then you’ll see a scene again from the other perspective [in another episode] where you’ll get all this new information,” he explained further. De Rossi shared an example without giving too much away. In her character Lindsay’s episode, “We had a great scene where I interpreted my mother’s tone as sarcasm,” she said. “But [we later see in someone else’s episode] she intended something entirely different.” Bateman chimed in as well. “Everybody sort of intermingles throughout each individual person’s episode. There’s plenty of the regular cast that filters through there. But it is a ‘Lindsay’ episode or a ‘Gob’ episode that we guest star in.

So much more after the break. Continue reading TCA 13: Mitch Hurwitz reveals new storytelling format for ‘Arrested Development’ revival →

Co-ca-co-ca! ‘Arrested Development’ episode order grows

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It’s been awhile since we heard anything out of the Arrested Development camp. But today brings the legions of fans of the cult comedy some really great news. Netflix, the streaming service that agreed to help resurrect and eventually air new episodes of Arrested, originally commissioned creator Mitch Hurwitz to produce 10 new installments to comprise a fourth season. That number, it turns out, wasn’t enough. Deadline reports “Hurwitz shot more material than planned and also came up with ideas for additional scenes and storylines.” What this means, eager fans, is that the new season of Arrested will definitely consist of more than 10 episodes; Deadline estimates 12-15 total.

A Netflix spokesperson released the following statement surrounding the news: “We are thrilled with the direction of the show, with the footage we have seen and with the relationship between Mitch, Imagine, 20th and Netflix. At this time, we are not confirming or announcing the final episode count but we are sure fans will be thrilled when we do.”

Break out your favorite chicken dance and look forward to the return of an expanded Arrested Development this spring. And remember, all the new episodes are releasing at once, so if you haven’t planned a marathon with friends it’s about that time.

[Via Deadline]