‘Torchwood’ gets new title: ‘The New World’

http://livefeed.hollywoodreporter.com/2010/08/torchwood-gets-title-the-new-world.html

Starz' "Torchwood" reboot will be titled "Torchwood: The New World" and creator Russell T Davies gave some insight into the storyline.

The new story will follow a CIA agent (Rex) and analyst (Ester) who tackle an alien-related global issue. Torchwood, having been destroyed and disbanded, is "like a legend now ... it's like something that's ceased to exist and is now spoken of only in whispers." Soon, Rex and Ester are on the run and are seeking out the help of Captain Jack and Gwen.

"The two teams coming together is a big part of the story -- are they friends or enemies? There's a lot of sparks and excitement."


"We definitely have a really big story to tell," added executive producer Julie Gardner. "It's absolutely rebooted to welcome in a new audience."

(Hear that "reboot" haters? She said "reboot." Reboot! Reboot!).

The ten episodes will be very fast paced, telling a self-contained story with the miniseries "Children of Earth" being used as a template.

Being on Starz, the show could potentially take advantage of looser standards for nudity and violence.

"I've always had loose standards and practices," Davies said. "If the story demands intimacy or savagery, we will go there absolutely ... [but] there's nothing better than a great big global thriller that stops for a sex scene -- it's probably hard to make that happen in a thriller."
 

'Torchwood' lines up U.S. writers for 2011 Starz run

http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2010/08/torchwood-lines-up-us-writers-for-2011-starz-run.html

Season 4 of racy British sci-fi series "Torchwood" looks to be more Americanized than originally thought. Following the BBC's deal to co-produce the 2011 return with U.S. cable network Starz, creator Russell T. Davies is now working with several American TV writers to help script the 10-episode order.

The Chicago Tribune reports that three new writers come from the U.S. and each has an impressive sci-fi pedigree. Doris Egan ("House," "Tru Calling"), Jane Espenson ("Battlestar Galactica," "Buffy," "Caprica") and John Shiban ("Breaking Bad," "Supernatural," "The X-Files") will all write episodes in the coming season, in addition to Davies and "Torchwood" alum John Fay.

And these won't be stand-alone episodes like those from the series' first two seasons. Davies maintains that Season 4 will follow the formula of plot-focused "Torchwood" miniseries "Children of Earth."

As previously reported, the new, bigger-budget "Torchwood" will also film in North America, filling out its whittled-down cast -- only John Barrowman and Eve Myles remain -- with international actors.

Season 4 starts production in January, with an official summer 2011 release date expected to be announced sometime before then.
 

Ask Ausiello 7/14/10

http://ausiellofiles.ew.com/2010/07/14/ask-ausiello-spoilers-office-bones-supernatural/

Question: Though I can’t imagine The Office without Michael Scott, I’m more concerned about Holly and Michael getting their much-needed reunion before he bids adieu. Any chance this will happen? —Meaghan
Ausiello: I’d say there’s a very good chance considering the fact that [exclusive scoop alert!] Amy Ryan (a.k.a. Holly) is not only returning to The Office, but will be playing a sizable role in the show’s upcoming seventh season. “We set her return up in the finale, so it would be the biggest [cop-out] of all time if we didn’t [follow through] on it,” says coexec producer and cast member Mindy Kaling. “She’s definitely coming back.”

Question: How can I get your autograph? —Danny
Ausiello: You can bring a Sharpie to Comic-Con next week and follow the scent of Diet Raspberry Snapple and blue PVC.

Question: I love True Blood. I love Eric. Scoop, please. —Angi
Ausiello: Is it too soon to be talking about the finale? No? Cool. Exec producer Alan Ball tells me that there will be a “lot of Bill-Sookie-Eric stuff” in the season 3 finale. “It involves blood, it involves trust, and it does not go where we expect it to go.”

Question: There’s a hot debate in the Gossip Girl fan community about Dan and Serena. Are they getting back together next season? —Kelly
Ausiello: I’ll say this: They will be spending a LOT of time with each other in the first few episodes back, but I think it would be wrong to suggest they’ll be together. Catch my drift?

Question: I’m just going to keeping asking for some Leverage scoop until you answer me. Every week. For eternity. —Matt
Ausiello: We have a strict policy against negotiating with terrorists, but I’ll look the other way this week and ONLY this week. This Sunday’s Leverage finds the gang heading to Nashville to take down a corrupt record producer. Eliot is forced to play the role of a country-music singer-songwriter — and surprise, the big lug can actually sing!

Question: It’s my birthday! Bones scoop would be a fantastic gift. —Talitha
Ausiello: So much for that one-year jump forward. I hear the gang will have been gone for just seven months when Caroline summons Booth and Brennan back to the Jeffersonian in the Sept. 23 season premiere to help Cam solve a controversial case — and save her job in the process. “The first episode begins with Brennan and Booth reuniting with the squints to save the career of one of their own,” confirms exec producer Stephen Nathan. “They each bring a new past with them as they forge their old alliances in new ways.” Bonus scoop: We may get to see Booth play hero in Afghanistan!

Question: Any Chuck scoop? Maybe some intel on who Dolph Lundgren and Harry Dean Stanton are playing in the premiere? —Dave
Ausiello: “Dolph Lundgren plays Marko,” explains Chuck co-creator Chris Fedak. “Is he Russian? Yes. Is he a terrifying bad guy? Yes. Will he say, ‘I must break you’? You’ll have to wait for the return of Chuck.” I’m counting the days! Now, what about Stanton? “Harry will play Harry Dean, the man who comes between Chuck and his search for Mom. Who is he exactly? Well, we’ll say this: Only Harry Dean Stanton could play this part.” Okay, now I’m counting the minutes!

Question: I’m so psyched about Jim Parsons’ Emmy nod. Any idea which episode he’ll submit? —Jason
Ausiello: “I am submitting the episode where Sheldon is accepting an award and he gets advice from everybody and then ends up on stage drunk and loses his pants,” Parsons tells me, before adding with a laugh, “Sex sells, and I drop my pants, so I really think this could be my year.”

Question: Supernatural spoilers seem to be few and far between. Any chance you have any new ones to share with us? —Judy
Ausiello: Season 6 will revolve around Dean’s new life as loving husband to Lisa and doting father to Ben. I keed, I keed. Despite the domestic situation Dean found himself in at the end of last season, exec producer Eric Kripke assures me that Supernatural will continue to be about the Winchester brothers “on the road together.” That said, Kripke confirms that “Dean’s situation creates all sorts of angst and conflict. The question [we'll be] exploring is, How can you be a hunter when there are actually people that you care about? I think we will mine it for all of the emotional angst and conflict that we can. But [Lisa] is not — nor is anyone — going to be riding in the backseat of the Apollo with Sam or Dean.”

Question: Thanks for all the Good Wife spoilers earlier this week. Got anything else about my fave character Kalinda? —Joel
Ausiello: Major drama! “Kalinda [Emmy nominee Archie Panjabi] always seems to be on top of her game,” says exec producer Robert King. “We are going to throw [her] off her game a little bit in the second season. Her past comes back to haunt her, and she also finds some competition.”

Question: I will draw you a Smurf picture if you let me know whether or not Kenneth is returning to 30 Rock. —Veronica
Ausiello: Yes, he is, although exec producer Robert Carlock says, “We haven’t cracked HOW he is getting [his job] back, but of course he will get back somehow. We just wanted a fun thing to shuffle the deck a little bit and send him off into the world. Of course, he will miss it and he will be missed. Events will bring him back.”

Question: I know last season stunk, but I’m still looking forward to Big Love returning. Any new news on season 5? —Joanne
Ausiello: You betcha! The show is currently casting three new recurring characters: John Ivey, a thirtysomething high school math teacher, straightlaced and disarmingly charming; Midge Buckley, another thirtysomething, this one blonde, Republican, Mormon, and a member of the Utah House of Representatives from the same district as Bill; and finally, Midge’s mom, an antiporn activist whose worldview is so conservative, she makes Sarah Palin look liberal by comparison.

Question: Hi, please let me know if you are in the dog-product business! — AJ
Ausiello: Not since I licked that case of fleas that had been bugging me, no. But hey, thanks for asking!

Question: I love ya, Ausiello, but you apparently got it wrong about Javier Bardem being on Glee. It was denied by his people, and you should take this down from your site and print a retraction. What ever happened to journalistic integrity? — Andrea
Ausiello: First of all, what gave you the impression that I had integrity, much less the journalistic kind? Second of all, when I’m wrong, I’ll let you know, not the other way around. Now then, let me let Glee mastermind Ryan Murphy explain to you exactly what happened, how about that? At the press junket for Eat Pray Love, Murphy tells me, “the first thing [Bardem] said was ‘Oh my God, I just watched the whole first season on DVD. It was like crack, and I could not get enough. I want to play a Spanish rock star.’ And I was like, ‘Okay.’ I mean, how to say no to Javier Bardem?” So, in other words, Andrea, yes, it IS happening. “It won’t be in the first 13 [episodes of season 2],” Murphy clarifies, “but I do want to do it. I think you have to come back and remeet the characters [first].” So there.

Question: Any more scoop on Charice’s role on Glee? —Kelly
Ausiello: Why, yes, as a matter of fact. Though Ryan Murphy says the hitmaker “comes on in a very sort of minor part,” it obviously grows, and fast, because, notes Lea Michele, while “the rivalry [between our characters] is going to be what everyone will pin it as, you know Ryan — it’s never going to be what you think it’s going to be.”

Question: Any whisperings on the new Torchwood you’d care to share? — Nicky
Ausiello: Whisperings? More like shoutings. Among the casting intel I’ve gathered on the new season (airing on my new favorite cable network, Starz), the show is out to cast a new series regular — Rex Matheson, a wickedly funny (operative word: wicked) CIA agent born to make waves. Almost as key to the new season are recurring characters Esther Katusi, a CIA grunt in her early 20s who learns what she’s really made of only when she’s forced to, and Oswald Jones, a convicted murderer and pedophile who will be as shocked as anyone to learn how easily infamy and fame can be exchanged for one another.

Question: You were the second person I thought of after my mom that would be bursting with excitement over Kyle Chandler’s and Connie Britton’s Emmy nominations. I’m also thrilled! — Tiffany
Ausiello: What a coinkydink. The second person I thought of was me, too. And the first. And somewhere in between, I thought of Kyle and Connie. They were probably happy-ish too.

Question: I am looking to make a one-time cash donation to support a nonprofit charity or rescue group. I would love to know more about your work and why you think this donation would be beneficial to your work. —John Hamilton
Ausiello: Um, because one never knows when their fleas might recur?

Question: Scoop on The Closer will earn you my eternal thanks. —Sasha
Ausiello: FYI: Cold hard cash is the new eternal thanks. Just something to think about moving forward. Regarding The Closer, in the second episode, airing July 19, Captain Raydor (Mary McDonnell) returns and is initially thought to be doing a background check on Chief Pope. But there’s more to the story. And apparently it’s VERY top secret because the screener TNT sent us left out the final scene. Bastards. It’s not like I was going to spoil it or anything.

Question: Have you seen the Mad Men premiere? Thoughts? —Theresa
Ausiello: I have seen it and it’s fantastic. In many ways, it feels like an entirely new show. My fave line of the episode? “I won’t even tell people after it airs.” Who says it and what does it mean? Hit the comments!

Question: I’m so incredibly proud of you for finally getting acquainted with Spartacus: Blood & Sand and acknowledging Andy Whitfield’s awesomeness. Now how about you throw us a couple of season 2 spoilers? —Alex
Ausiello: Given the events of the mind-blowing season 1 finale, it’s not much of a spoiler to say the show will undergo a huge transformation in season 2. “It’s a testament to Starz that they allowed us to do that,” says showrunner Steven S. DeKnight of the big changes in store. “The bigger broadcast networks [would be too concerned with] protecting the franchise. It’s a huge risk. But at the end of the day we ARE telling the story of Spartacus, which is largely the slave rebellion. Those first 13 episodes were literally two paragraphs in the history books. Most of what’s known about him is after the break-out.”

Question: What’s going on with Heroes—are they going to make a movie or not? —Ana
Ausiello: My money continues to be on not, especially since NBC’s contractual hold on the cast expired on June 30. It’s going to be tough to make a movie when you don’t have anyone to star in it. Unless they go the CGI route. Or use puppets.

Question: Any juicy spoilers on which hottie is coming out of the closet on 90210? I need more hints then just Liam, Navid, or Teddy! —Jacob
Ausiello: How about this: This person’s last name is Court, Shirazu, or Montgomery.
 

Ask Ausiello - 6/16/10

http://ausiellofiles.ew.com/2010/06/16/ask-ausiello-supernatural-parenthood/

Question: Can you tell me anything about Supernatural‘s new season? —Bryan
Ausiello: I can’t be certain, but I think I just uncovered a significant clue about the overriding plot of season 6: Sources confirm to me exclusively that X-Files vet Mitch Pileggi is in talks to reprise his role as Sam and Dean’s presumed-dead grandpa on a potentially recurring basis.

Question: Any scoop on the new season of Torchwood? —Craig
Ausiello: Starz wasn’t kidding when it said the new season would be more global in scope. I’m hearing the show will shoot a chunk of the season on location in Los Angeles. Captain Jack’s going Hollywood!

Question: Word on the street is that House started filming its seventh season on June 14. Other word on the street is you want to be voted Sexiest Celeb Vegetarian of 2010. If you can give me some scoop about the former, I might just help you out with the latter. —Janine
Ausiello: You’ve got yourself a deal. Unconfirmed buzz suggests that Huddy fans will be in a state of continuous orgasm throughout House‘s season premiere this fall.


Question: Please give me a scoop on the new season of Chuck! —Joy
Ausiello: And the title of the season 4 premiere is…”Chuck vs. the Anniversary”! What does it mean? Hit the comments with your theories!

Question: I’m so excited that Life Unexpected got renewed for a second season! Can you give us any good scoop? —CC
Ausiello: The show is casting Baze’s rebound girl. Actually, make that girls. Potential Love Interest No. 1, Kelly, is a perky and uptight conservative author who joins Ryan’s radio show. Potential Love Interest No. 2, Emma, is a high-powered exec in her early 40s who works with Baze’s dad, Jack.

Question: I love Life Unexpected. Any hints or news you can give me? —Ann
Ausiello: More season 2 casting intel: The show is adding the recurring roles of Eric, a slightly rugged new young teacher at Westmonte High, and Paige, Ryan’s sassy, flirty, and free-spirited younger sister recently back from her Eat, Pray, Love tour. Hey, there’s a movie about that opening soon!

Question: What’s in store on 90210 in season 3? —Ken
Ausiello: Johnny Depp’s making a zip stop! Kind of but not really. The show is adding a major new recurring character who’s “one part Talented Mr. Ripley, one part young Johnny Depp, and all parts sexy.” The 18-year-old Brit is a childhood chum of Ivy’s, which raises the question: Where did Ivy grow up, Cambridge?

Question: Please give us something about the upcoming fifth season of the perennially Emmy-snubbed Friday Night Lights. —Lindsay
Ausiello: It wasn’t enough that I told you that Taylor Kitsch, Adrianne Palicki, and Zach Gilford were returning? Hmm…what other scoops do I have up my sleeve…oh, here’s something: A shocking spoiler about the final two episodes of season 5 appears in the pages of the new issue of Entertainment Weekly (on sale tomorrow). Hint: It’s romance-related and I’m fairly certain Jaws. Will. Drop.

Question: I know that the creators of Spartacus are working on a prequel to give Andy Whitfield time to recover. Is there any other news about him or the show? —Kat
Ausiello: Good news: Reports that Whitfield is cancer-free were all but confirmed yesterday when Starz announced that the actor would be attending Comic-Con next month. As far as the show itself, the untitled prequel — which will focus on John Hannah’s Batiatus and Lucy Lawless’ Lucretia — is slated to go into production this fall ahead of a January ’11 premiere. Season 2, meanwhile, will likely debut in fall ’11.

Question: I’m totally brokenhearted that A.J. Cook’s contract with Criminal Minds is not being renewed. Please tell me that they’re going to have her come back long enough to explain JJ’s departure and give her a proper send-off! –Hazel
Ausiello: Per a Minds insider, “Details about the character’s exit are still being worked out.” In related news, if signing petitions is your thing, here’s one aimed at getting Cook her job back.

Question: This is my first time writing to you and, from what I understand, I’m supposed to offer to name my firstborn child after you or at least send you a case of Snapple in order to get my question answered. Greeting rituals aside, what ever happened to the Kurt’s-boyfriend story line on Glee? I was exceptionally psyched about them ruling the school. —Jessica
Ausiello: You forgot the most important rule of Ask Ausiello: Send me $50 per question-via PayPal. Double-check your facts before asking a question. The Glee-boyfriend story line kicks off next season.

Question: Parenthood scoop for next season…please? —Jennifer
Ausiello: Exec producer Jason Katims is cooking up another juicy mother-daughter story line for Lauren Graham and Mae Whitman. “Amber’s going to make a new friend and she comes from an upper-crust kind of background,” Katims explains. “It becomes complicated for Sarah because Amber’s suddenly being taken into this world that’s out of her grasp.”

Question: The True Blood premiere was awesome. What’s coming up, ahem, necks? —Tyler
Ausiello: Tee-hee. You swapped next for necks in a question about True Blood. Tee-hee. Here’s some prattle for you, straight from series creator Alan Ball: In the second half of the season, “all hell breaks loose,” he tells my colleague Tim Stack. “Certainly, everybody finds themselves in danger. Loyalties are tested. There’s a lot of deceit.” And though the lies will be spread around, the dots will connect in the end. The stories “do converge,” Ball confirms, culminating in a season finale that he calls “very big. [But] it doesn’t center around one particular event the way the first one did. The first one was all about Rene chasing Sookie. The second one was all about Maryann’s ritual. This is a lot of big events” leading up to “definitely more than one cliff-hanger.” I’m on the edge of my seat already!

Question: I saw pictures of Allan Hyde at the True Blood premiere. Any chance Godric’s going to return this season (yeah, he died, but you know what I mean)? —Maiyer
Ausiello: I think there’s a very good chance of him returning. And soon. Know what I mean?

Question: I don’t care what you have to do, just give me some sort of Fringe scoop to chew on so I don’t kill myself this summer! —Duncan
Ausiello: The suicide-hotline operator in me wants to get at the real reason you’re feeling so withdrawn and irritable. However, the TV newshound in me wants to bypass that crap and cut straight to the scoop: Fringe is getting ready to introduce a powerful female agent aged 35-55 who becomes an adversary for the Fringe team.

Question: Psych news. Please. (Brief and to the point.) —M Horton
Ausiello: I’m head over heels in love with this scoop: The show has tapped Curt Smith of Tears for Fears fame to rerecord the theme song, “I Know, You Know,” for an upcoming season 5 episode. I’m told Smith will also make a guest appearance in the ep as himself.
 

Starz picks up 'Torchwood'

http://livefeed.hollywoodreporter.com/2010/06/starz-picks-up-torchwood-.html

"Torchwood" is coming to Starz!


Starz Entertainment has acquired U.S. television rights to the next installment of the BBC’s audience sensation “Torchwood,” developed and produced by BBC Worldwide Productions.


Starz will debut the 10-episode series exclusively in the U.S., and BBC One will debut it in the U.K., both in summer, 2011.

Press release:

STARZ FIRED UP FOR A NEW SERIES OF THE BBC’S HIT FRANCHISE ‘TORCHWOOD’

New Installment From BBC Worldwide Productions to Add To Starz’ Premium Programming Lineup in Summer of 2011

Key Cast - John Barrowman (Capt. Jack), Eve Myles (Gwen) – To Return for the Next Installment, Along With New Faces

Los Angeles, CA – June 7, 2010 – Starz Entertainment has acquired U.S. television rights to the next installment of the BBC’s audience sensation “Torchwood,” developed and produced by BBC Worldwide Productions. Starz will debut the 10-episode series exclusively in the U.S., and BBC One will debut it in the U.K., both in summer, 2011. This is a co-production between Starz, BBC Cymru Wales and BBC Worldwide, and BBC Worldwide will distribute the show outside the U.S. The deal was jointly announced today by Starz, LLC, President and CEO Chris Albrecht and BBC Worldwide Productions EVP Jane Tranter.

The stars of the previous versions of “Torchwood,” notably John Barrowman (Capt. Jack Harkness) and Eve Myles (Gwen Cooper), will return for the new version. Additional key cast, reflecting the more international scope of the series, will be announced soon.

“'Torchwood” is a drama that puts extraterrestrial threats into a very real world, and asks how humanity deals with the danger - while fighting mankind’s darkest instincts. The series’ previous three seasons aired on BBC America in the U.S. and garnered record-breaking ratings for the network. Created by visionary writer/producer Russell T Davies, “Torchwood” has to date been located primarily in Cardiff, Wales. The new series will allow Davies and his writing team to tell a more explosive and global story, one that takes advantage of the unlimited narrative opportunities of a premium television service like Starz.

Davies and BBC Worldwide Productions’ SVP Scripted Julie Gardner return as executive producers, with Davies also serving as show-runner for the new “Torchwood.”

“We’re committed to programming exceptional television that is entertaining, imaginative and provides a premium TV experience, and by any measure the new concept for ‘Torchwood’ fits that mandate,” Starz, LLC, President and CEO Chris Albrecht said. “I’ve been part of successful partnerships with Jane Tranter and the BBC previously, and I’m very much looking forward to working with them again.”

“‘Torchwood’ has attracted remarkable attention and loyalty in both the UK and U.S., and in this new partnership with Starz, the next chapter will not only reward our current fans, but also introduce new viewers to the most impressive installment yet,” said Jane Tranter, EVP, BBC Worldwide Productions. “Chris Albrecht and his team are committed to delivering quality premium programming to their subscribers, also a core attribute of the BBC, and we are excited to be working with them as the ‘Torchwood’ adventure continues.”

“Russell, Jane and Julie came to us with a compelling vision for the evolution of the ‘Torchwood’ saga that really takes the story into whole new areas,” added Carmi Zlotnik, Managing Director of Starz Media – the production and development division of Starz. “The compelling story and characters this trio created provide a strong template for driving this narrative in exciting ways.”

Ben Stephenson, Controller, BBC Drama Commissioning said: "We have a long history of working with many U.S. networks, but it is incredibly exciting to be working with Starz for the first time, as well as to be reunited with the best of British in Russell, Jane and Julie. ‘Torchwood’ will burst back onto the screen with a shocking and moving story with global stakes and locations that will make it feel bigger and bolder than ever."

“Torchwood” is the latest piece of notable programming from Starz. It follows on the heels of the recently concluded first season of the epic “Spartacus: Blood and Sand,” this summer’s highly anticipated event series “The Pillars of the Earth,” based on author Ken Follett’s international bestseller, and the recently announced series “Camelot,” which Starz is co-producing with GK-TV and will air early in 2011.

“Torchwood” originally debuted in the UK on BBC One in 2006. All five episodes of “Torchwood: Children of Earth” reached the Top 10 list in TV Episodes across the entire iTunes TV Store, with episode 1 of the series reaching the top spot the week of launch in August, 2009.