The summer months are upon us and though many of your favorites series are taking a break until September there are quite a few new and returning ones that premiere in June. See what’s coming up and worth checking out after the break! Continue reading TV reminder: 6 premieres to look out for in June
The Keri Russell/Matthew Rhys Cold War KGB spy drama The Americans will live to see a third season.
“The Americans continues be one of the best shows on television,” said Eric Schrier, President of Original Programming for FX Networks. Executive Producers Joe Weisberg, Joel Fields and Graham Yost have done a wonderful job delivering two seasons, and the performances from Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys and Noah Emmerich are stellar. Fans will be blown away by the rest of this season, and we can’t wait to see what they come up with next year.”
Elsewhere, HBO picked up the award-wining Julia Louis-Dreyfus comedy Veep for a fourth season and Mike Judge’s new tech-infused sitcom Silicon Valley for a second season.
This week HBO renewed its hit fantasy series Game of Thrones for fifth and sixth seasons. A two-season pickup is nice, but it shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. First, logistically, the sprawling drama is based on George R.R. Martin’s books which will span across seven thick novels when all is said and done; so there is much story that needs to be adapted for the small screen. Second, of course, is the show’s monster ratings. Last Sunday’s season 4 premiere drew in a record-breaking 6.6 million viewers making it the pay cabler’s most watched program since The Sopranos‘ series finale in 2007.
“Game of Thrones is a phenomenon like no other,” said president of HBO Programming Michael Lombardo. “David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, along with their talented collaborators, continue to surpass themselves, and we look forward to more of their dazzling storytelling.”
Also renewed this week is A&E’s Psycho prequel series Bates Motel. The Freddy Highmore & Vera Farmiga show will return for a 10-episode third season in 2015. Season 2 is really starting to unravel Norman’s psychosis and another season of the thriller is going to bring viewers even closer to the serial killer we know he is destined to be.
“The incredible writing team and talented Bates Motel cast has made this series one of the most compelling original dramas on television,” said A&E EVP and GM David McKillop. “The brilliant twists and turns of the past two seasons keep its loyal fan base coming back for more. We are so proud of the show.”
Game of Thrones airs Sunday nights at 9PM on HBO and Bates Motel airs Mondays at 10PM on A&E.
January, February, March… April! Let’s take a look at five premieres airing this month. Jump after the break. Continue reading TV reminder: 5 premieres to look out for in April
HBO sure knows how to churn out anticipation for Game of Thrones. Embedded above is the third trailer for the upcoming fourth season. View the first trailer here and the second one here. It debuts April 6 at 9PM.
We are less than two months out from the season 4 premiere of Game of Thrones. To help pass the time between now and then, watch this nearly 15-minute featurette that is a behind-the-scenes preview of the upcoming season. You’ll hear from EPs David Benioff and D. B. Weiss as well as the majority of the expansive cast. The stars answer fan questions and a new character, Oberyn Martell, is discussed. You’ll also get an inside look at King Joffrey’s wedding to Margaery Tyrell. A few choice quotes follow.
Fans of Tyrion, beware: “This is definitely the most dangerous season for Tyrion. It seems like almost every episode he’s in jeopardy of getting his head removed from his shoulders,” warns Benioff.
Benioff on Danyrs’ dragons: “With each season they grow and become more dangerous,” he says. And now? “They’re not babies anymore.”
How does season 4 compare to previous ones? “It’s more thrilling throughout than season 3 was,” says Jon Snow’s portrayer Kit Harington. “There are more climactic events in season 4 than there ever have been before,” shares Weiss. And Benioff adds, “Some of the most shocking and mindblowing scenes of the entire series come at the end of this coming season.”
Game of Thrones returns to HBO on April 6.
Of course HBO’s The Newsroom starring Jeff Daniels and Emily Mortimer is returning for another season. Unfortunately, however, the third season of Aaron Sorkin’s fast-talking cable news drama will be its last. Sorkin, a filmmaker who’s ready to focus on his next big movie based on Steve Jobs’ life, will give the series a proper ending.
“The Newsroom is classic Aaron Sorkin – smart, riveting and thought-provoking,” said HBO programming president Michael Lombardo. “I’m sure this farewell season will be one to remember.”
As a staunch supporter of the show, I’m equally surprised and saddened to hear it’s coming to an end. I always imagined that The Newsroom could go on for awhile, picking apart real-life news along with fictional tales for years. But this is Sorkin’s baby and if he’s saying this is it then that’s reason enough to pull the plug while it’s on top. (Still, another season or two would’ve been welcomed with open arms, but oh well.)
The Newsroom returns for its final hurrah later this year.
We’ve hit the midseason mark and with it comes a handful of series premieres worth getting excited about, along with the return of some of your favorite shows. Full speed ahead, after the break! Continue reading TV reminder: 9 premieres to look out for in January
Black is back. Orphan Black, that is. The Tatiana Maslany Show returns April 19 on BBC America and even though this teaser doesn’t feature new footage in does not fail in ramping up anticipation for what’s to come, not in the slightest. The latest season 2 logline hints at more clone mysteries and some long-anticipated answers
Season 2 hits the ground running with Sarah in a desperate race to find her missing daughter Kira. Her scorched earth tactics spark a war with pro-clone Rachel, dividing and imperiling all the clones. As Sarah discovers more about her past, mysterious newcomers appear, but can they be trusted?
Jump after the break to watch teasers for Sherlock and Girls. Continue reading TV teasers: BBC’s ‘Orphan Black’, ‘Sherlock’ & HBO’s ‘Girls’
Following in the footsteps of his former Lost collaborator Carlton Cuse, Damon Lindelof is trekking to the land of cable to produce his next TV series. Also like Cuse (who went on to make A&E’s Bates Motel, based on Alfred Hitchcock’s classic Psycho), Lindelof is basing his next project on already existing material, in this case a novel. The Leftovers is a book published in 2011 and authored by Tom Perrotta that chronicles life on earth after the Rapture takes place. Like the book, Lindelof’s adaptation “takes place after the Rapture happens, but not quite like it’s supposed to. It is the story of the people who didn’t make the cut — and a world that never will be the same.”
HBO picked up the series for 10 episodes to air sometime next year. Many well-known actors are attached to the project, namely: Justin Theroux, Amy Brenneman, Christopher Eccleston, Liv Tyler, Chris Zylka, Brad Leland, Max and Charlie Carver, and Emily Meade. Peter Berg (Friday Night Lights) directs the pilot and executive produces alongside Lindelof, Perrotta, Sarah Aubrey, Ron Yerxa, and Albert Berger.
More as this project develops.
Here is a TV project to keep a very close eye on. J.J. Abrams and Jonathan Nolan (the auspices behind CBS’ Person of Interest) are adapting Michael Crichton’s 1973 sci-fi thriller Westworld into a TV series for HBO. This marks the first foray into pay cable TV for Abrams’ Bad Robot production company. And like all things Bad Robot, the project is shrouded in mystery; this official logline will have to do for now: “Set in the amazing world dreamt up by Michael Crichton, Westworld is a dark odyssey about the dawn of artificial consciousness and the future of sin.” The movie, which starred Yul Brynner, Richard Benjamin, and James Brolin, took place at a Western-themed amusement park rampant with androids who appeared nearly indistinguishable from humans. Watch the trailer here. Westworld went on to spawn a sequel Futureworld (1976) and even a short-lived TV series Beyond Westworld.
Nolan is set to direct the pilot (HBO has already agreed to a pilot production commitment!) and he will pen the script with writer Lisa Joy (Burn Notice). Abrams, Nolan, Joy, Bryan Burk, and Jerry Weintraub will executive produce.
[Via Deadline]
HBO’s Lena Dunham show Girls doesn’t come back for its third season until some time in 2014 but that doesn’t mean fans can’t get a slice of what’s in store for Hannah Horvath & friends. Check out this “in production tease” for the show that includes many Instagram-like stills from upcoming scenes. In additional to the four leading ladies, Adam, Ray, and Elijah are also accounted for.