‘American Gods’ proves to be mortal after all

by Therese Odell, posted in Uncategorized

It’s Tuesday.

GIRL, I FEEL YOU:

All Other TV News

After three rocky seasons, Starz has canceled American Gods. There is some talk that there might be a movie to wrap the story up down the line, but don’t get your hopes up.

“Everyone at Starz is grateful to the dedicated cast and crew, and our partners at Fremantle who brought author and executive producer Neil Gaiman’s ever-relevant story to life that speaks to the cultural climate of our country,” read a statement put out by the network.

Production on the creative, visually gorgeous show was fraught from almost the beginning: the original showrunners, Bryan Fuller and Michael Green, left after only one season over budget and creative issues, specifically with the author of the source material, Neil Gaiman. When they left, cast members Kristin Chenoweth and Gillian Anderson went with them. Jesse Alexander, the former Heroes showrunner, was brought on to run the show for the second season, but he was removed halfway through the production after clashing with the creative team, leaving a producing director and line producer were to complete the season. Charles “Chic” Eglee, a producer on The Walking Dead, Dexter and The Shield was then brought on, and one of the stars and writers on the show, Orlando Jones, was unceremoniously fired. Jones did not go quietly, claiming that Eglee said his character, the popular Mr. Nancy, sent “the wrong message for Black America.”  Ultimately it was too much trouble for a show that had lost well over half of its viewership between season one and two, and a full three-quarters of it by the end of the third season. 

R.I.P., American Gods. You were beautiful and fun and you were fucked from the get-go.

GODDAMMIT, GEORGE, NO. FINISH. THE. FUCKING. BOOKS.

Mark Hamill and James Mangold have joined a boycott of Georgia in the wake of their egregious and racist voter suppression law. Good.

Netflix is looking to reduce its greenhouse emissions to net-zero by next year. Well, that’s ambitious.

T-Mobile has discontinued their streaming service that I had no idea they had launched five months ago.

The Talk is paying Sharon Osbourne $10 million to go away, please. Good gig if you can get it.

This TikTok user discovered that Gossip Girl spilled its biggest secret in the very first episode:

@yussijuicy2.0

Iykyk #SourPatchPrankFund #GodzillaVsKongRoar #RayBanElevatorDance #fyp #gossipgirl

♬ original sound – yusra ali588

#MeToo

Paramount+ released an interview with Woody Allen on Sunday in which he addresses the accusations against him explored in the recent HBO documentary series Allen v. Farrow, and this will shock you, but he denies that he abused his daughter Dylan when she was seven.

Woody Allen was never tried or convicted for abusing his daughter Dylan, but let me be very clear: I believe Dylan. The HBO documentary Allen v. Farrow clearly had a bias for Dylan and Mia Farrow’s version of events, and the story of how he assaulted Dylan — coming from a seven-year-old Dylan’s mouth — is horrific. But for me what was especially illuminating were  the revelations as to how Allen manipulated institutions, including the government, the media, and the narrative of the entire story in that moment of crisis 30 years ago. And so it was not surprising that an interview with Allen would pop up on the heels of the documentary — Mia Farrow warns at the end of Allen v. Farrow that he will react in some way and that it worries her.

But what is surprising is that this new interview does not appear to have been a planned response on his part. The interview was filmed almost a year ago — back in July — and CBS chose to sit on it until the documentary had aired, and to package it along with Gayle King’s 2018 interview with Dylan Farrow on CBS This Morning. This surprised and angered Allen’s team who called the decision to make the interview about the Dylan Farrow story, “dishonest and scandalous.” OH WELL. TOO BAD, SO SAD.

Deshaun Watson is now being sued by 19 women for sexual assault and harassment.

Ghislaine Maxwell has been charged with sex trafficking conspiracy and sex trafficking of a minor, adding to her previous charges of recruiting underage girls for Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse, and perjury.

Armie Hammer has been removed from the Cold War drama Billion Dollar Spy.

The Washington Post banned one of their reporters, a sexual abuse survivor, from covering any stories related to sexual assault or #MeToo for fear of a conflict of interest. Wow. They have since reversed their position on this and are allowing her to do her damn job.

Milkshake Duck strikes again! Remember the Cinnamon Toast Crunch guy, the one who claimed he found shrimp tails in his cereal, and then it turns out he was married to Topanga from Boy Meets World? Yeah, he’s apparently an emotionally abusive manipulative creep according to multiple women.

The guy put in charge of Operation Warp Speed, Dr. Moncef Slaoui, has been fired by GlaxoSmithKline over sexual harassment allegations.

Oh, hey, another woman has come forward accusing Harvey Weinstein of assaulting her. She claims she managed to pierce his scrotum while defending herself.

NFL player Derrius Guice has been accused of sexually harassing a woman back when he was playing at LSU.

Sun Kil Moon’s lead singer, Mark Kozelek, has been accused by seven more women of sexual misconduct.

Musician Sean Tillman, better known as Har Mar Superstar, has been accused of sexual harassment and assault. He has denied the allegations.

YouTube personality James Charles has been fired from YouTube’s Instant Influencer series after being accused of grooming underage fans.

And YouTube star David Dobrik’s ads are being pulled down after a woman accused a member of his “Vlog Squad” drugged and assaulted her.

Riot Games has closed an investigation into CEO Nicolo Laurent and found no evidence he harassed or discriminated against a female employee.

Britney Spears has filed court documents to remove her father as her conservator. Good luck, B!

Apparently, Patty Jenkins changed the Amazons’ origin story in the original script for Wonder Woman. In an interview, Connie Nielsen explains: “She was very clear about what the Amazons were supposed to be. And I think that there had originally been some idea that the Amazons had been deeply traumatized by some kind of horrible event that involved mass rape. And Patty just said, ‘Hm, no. No, no, we’re not gonna put that on those Amazons. We don’t want to start out seeing them as victims, and why would we.’” IS THAT SO HARD, GUYS? Get this through your hacky writers’ heads: Female characters are not inherently empowered by trauma. They can just be powerful in their own right, kinda like male characters.

This testimony from a Christian Missouri father who did not understand trans issues, until he did, is moving and beautiful.

And J.K. Rowling and Voldemort still don’t get it.

Amazon will no longer be selling a book that framed LGBTQ identities as mental illness, despite Senator Marco Rubio, Josh Hawley, Mike Lee, and Mike Braun’s whining about it being pulled.

Again, and we can’t say this enough: fuck off, Wife Beater.

Going Viral

We are now in a race to get the vaccine into as many Americans as possible before we hit a fourth wave. Cases are rising at an alarming rate — we’ve had a nearly 20% increase in cases over the past two weeks, and while deaths and hospitalizations are still down, they do go upwards when cases increase. While 30% of our population is vaccinated — which is an amazing feat in just a couple of months — that still means 70% isn’t. While we are averaging 2.75 million doses a day — again, tremendous! — it’s going to take more than that at the rate the virus is spreading again. Please, continue wearing your masks, get the vaccine, and don’t let down your guard just yet.

But here is some terrific news: it looks like the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines not just protect you from becoming sick with the virus, studies are suggesting they prevent you from getting infected at all. Meaning, while it’s nice that the vaccine will keep you safe, it is fantastic news that it will also keep others safe, as you will no longer be a vector for transmission. GET THE SHOTS.

Chiwetel Ejiofor and Thandie Newton are among a number of Black British personalities urging the United Kingdom’s Black population to get the vaccine:

So, you’ve been vaccinated and you’re ready to take that summer vacation you missed out on last year … what happens if you have kids who aren’t eligible for the vaccine?

Sony Pictures Entertainment will have employees begin returning to the office on June 1.

The First Wave, a documentary about a New York hospital during the COVID-19 crisis, will be released later this year.

The Year Earth Changed will premiere on Apple TV+ on April 16.

Prime Minister Imran Khan and President Arif Alvi of Pakistan have contracted the virus.

Aruká Juma, the last man of his Amazon tribe, was killed by COVID-19.

Renewals

  • Unforgotten has been renewed at ITV for a fifth season.
  • USA has signed a multi-year deal with WWE to keep NXT.

In Development

  • Steps, an animated musical comedy from Amy Poehler’s production company, is in development at Netflix.
  • Wrecked, a comedy-horror series, is in development at BBC.
  • Bo & Cheyenne, the Superstore spinoff, is no longer going forward at NBC.

Casting News

Mark Your Calendars

  • Rick and Morty will return on Adult Swim on June 20.
  • Shadow and Bone will premiere on Netflix on April 23.
  • Star Wars: The Bad Batch will debut on Disney+ on May 4.
  • The Swim will premiere on Discovery+ on April 15.
  • My Pursuit: Life, Legacy & Jordan Burroughs will debut on Peacock on April 1.
  • Sky Rojo will return on Netflix on July 23.

R.I.P.

Robert Rodan, Actor known for his work on Dark Shadows

Nickole Jones, Emmy-nominated hairstylist

Petr Kellner, Czech Republic’s richest man who owned 30 television stations (don’t ride in helicopters, kids)

Sarah Ogwel Onyango Obama, President Obama’s grandmother

WATCH THIS

The Last Cruise: This documentary explores the COVID-19 outbreak on the Carnival cruise ship, Diamond Princess, and how it served as a harbinger of the end of normalcy for all of us. Premiere. 8 p.m., HBO

Pooch Perfect: Rebel Wilson hosts this new dog grooming competition. Series premiere. 7 p.m., ABC

Supergirl: Supergirl engages in an epic battle with Gamenmae in the season premiere. 8 p.m., The CW

Late Night:

  • Jimmy Kimmel Live: Bob Odenkirk, Nicole Byer, Tate McRae

TUES. 7:00 7:30 8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30
ABC Pooch Perfect

(new)		 black-ish

(new)		 mixed-ish

(new)		 Soul of a Nation
(new)
CBS NCIS
(repeat)		 FBI
(repeat)		 FBI: Most Wanted
(repeat)
CW The Flash
(new)		 Supergirl
(new)		 Local
FOX The Resident
(repeat)		 Prodigal Son
(repeat)		 News/Local
NBC Young Rock
(new)		 Kenan
(new)		 This Is Us
(repeat)		 New Amsterdam
(new)

One thought on “‘American Gods’ proves to be mortal after all”

  1. Sadly, I’m okay with American Gods being cancelled. S1 was amazing. S2 had flashes of brilliance. S3 felt like it was retreading ground from S1 while also chucking the book out the window. And was there really any reason to keep watching after Mad Sweeney died?

    Reply

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