Well hello there! After a week in the mountains unsuccessfully trying to break multiple bones, I am back with my usual nonsense.
Unfortunately, I did not see any bears on my recent trip — not even Hank the Tank, though the good people of South Lake Tahoe love them some Hank the Tank.
Interestingly, I did happen to meet a pig. His name was Pepper Murphy.
So imagine my delight at this recent clip of a bear who immediately regrets his decision to climb into a pig pen:
A bear and pigs! Hooray! Also, maybe don’t go into pig pens unless invited.
All Other TV News
So I haven’t watched American Idol regularly in … maybe a decade? But I checked out last night’s audition episode because my son’s classmate, Douglas Mills, Jr., was going to be featured. Apparently, each season, ABC affiliate stations are given one pass that sends a contestant straight to the judges’ table (bypassing the audition in front of producers), and Douglas was the lucky recipient of KTRK’s “silver ticket.” And y’all, he was beyond deserving.
I’ve watched his performance of Billie Holiday’s “Strange Fruit” five or six times now, and it has yet to lose its power. I’m beyond proud and excited to watch Douglas’s journey. Please take the time to watch this HSPVA senior shine — it’ll give you goosebumps, if not bring you to tears.
I MADE IT YALLLLL!!!
Hollywood here I commeeeeeee#americanidol #idoltonight pic.twitter.com/rdSOaJEFGz— Douglas Mills jr. (@_itsdouglasm_) March 21, 2022
Up against tonight’s American Idol will be the American version of Eurovision Song Contest, American Song Contest. Here’s how it’s going to work.
According to Karl Urban, who plays Butcher, The Boys will be filming season four at the end of the year — even though it hasn’t officially been renewed yet. (It will be.) See below for the season three trailer, and click here for questions said trailer raises.
Reportedly, the upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi series was originally so dark it required a complete overhaul and rewrite. And reportedly, Darth Maul, who was set to appear in the series, was one of the casualties of the rewrite. Boo.
The Critics Choice Awards were last week and according to the critics, Succession and Ted Lasso are the best shows on TV right now. The critics ain’t wrong. The big news coming out of the Critics Choice Awards, however, was director Jane Campion’s bizarre choice to call out Serena and Venus Williams, claiming that they don’t have to compete with men the way she does. The fuck?
Jane Campion, daughter of famous New Zealand theatre director Richard Campion & actress Edith Campion MBE, explains the challenges of being a white woman from an established family to Venus and Serena Williams. https://t.co/7IhXlrNIBw
— Megha Mohan (@meghamohan) March 14, 2022
Over at the Directors Guild Awards, Succession also won — but it was a given since they were the only show nominated in their category. Ted Lasso lost to Hacks (which is an excellent series, don’t get me wrong), but that might be because the three Ted Lasso episodes nominated in the comedy category split the vote.
And at the Producers Guild Awards, the big winners were … SURPRISE! … Succession and Ted Lasso.
As for the Writers Guild Awards, the winners were Succession and Hacks. Sorry, Ted.
Despite West Side Story being nominated for seven Oscars, Rachel Zegler, who played Maria, wasn’t given a ticket to the ceremony, which seems … harsh.
On a recent panel, Steven Spielberg acknowledged that Squid Game “changes the math entirely for all of us” in casting, meaning that the success of a Korean series here in the States with no “bankable” domestic names opens up casting possibilities across the board.
As for the sequel to Squid Game, Hwang Dong-hyuk is teasing the possibility of using the old soap opera standby — twins — to bring certain actors back.
Kornbread won’t be in Drag Race Season 15 or All-Stars. BOOOOO. BOOOOO, RUPAUL.
And no I’m not on anybodys all stars.
Wasn’t my decision 🙂
— Kornbread “The Snack” Jeté (@kornbreadTMFS) March 18, 2022
Tom Bergeron is feeling salty:
Karma’s a bitch 😉
— Tom Bergeron (@Tom_Bergeron) March 17, 2022
HBO Max and Discovery are going to merge into one app, which I am thrilled about because I feel stupid for paying extra for the Discovery app just so I can watch my dumb ghost shows. It’s unclear when the new app will be launched, though the Discovery/WarnerMedia merger is hoped to be finalized next month. It’s also unclear how much the app will cost, considering the combined price of the two current apps would be anywhere between $14.98 – $21.98. Whatever the price, let’s hope that the new app isn’t as buggy as the current HBO Max app.
Hulu is going to start offering unlimited DVR capacity to its Live TV subscribers.
They caught the folks who robbed the Lupin set and one of the seven robbers was only 13 years old.
If all NCAA basketball games had this much drama and excitement, I might be inclined to watch:
"THE CHEERLEADER SAVES THE DAY!"
When hope was lost, a hero emerged. pic.twitter.com/8fjEydjr2j
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) March 18, 2022
I guess they made their point:
Renewals
- The Patrick Star Show has been renewed for a second season on Nickelodeon.
Cancellations
- Maury is ending after 31 seasons in syndication. Now who’s going to run all those paternity tests?
- The Baby-Sitters Club has been canceled after two seasons on Netflix. Reportedly, it was a fairly popular series amongst its target audience, but it wasn’t being binged quickly enough (probably because its audience are kids who aren’t allowed to watch 10 episodes in a stretch?) and it wasn’t attracting new subscribers.
- New Amsterdam will end its run on NBC after five seasons.
In Development
- Alert, a procedural crime drama, is in the works at Fox.
- A crime drama set in our national parks has been given a pilot order at ABC. If this sounds familiar, they had commissioned a pilot for this same project last year but passed on it.
- The Gentlemen is close to being greenlit at Netflix.
- Sissy has been acquired by Shudder.
- The Wanderer is being adapted into a TV series.
- A Plague Tale: Innocence is being adapted into a series.
- Escape Attempt is being adapted into a TV series.
- Lydia Hampson has signed a first-look deal with Amazon.
- A Clarissa Explains It All reboot has “fizzled” at Nickelodeon.
Casting News
- Amy Sedaris and Neil Flynn are joining Girls5Eva on Peacock.
- Lawrence Kao will co-star in Walker: Independence on The CW. Also joining the cast are Philemon Chambers; Katherine McNamara; and Katie Findlay.
- Nick Jonas is joining Dancing With Myself on NBC.
- Ciarán Hinds has joined the cast of Treason on Netflix.
- Cory Michael Smith, Gillian Jacobs, and Corey Stoll will star in Transatlantic on Netflix.
- Leslie Jones, La La Anthony, Kelly Hu, and Christine Horn have been added to the cast of BMF on Starz.
- Alan Ruck has joined the cast of The Burial on Amazon.
- Adina Porter and Clark Backo have been added to The Changeling on Apple TV+.
- Laysla De Oliveira will co-star in Lioness on Paramount+.
- Ruben Santiago Hudson, Richard Kind, Lavel Schley, and Olivia Luccardi have been added to the cast of the CBS pilot East New York.
- Anna Wood, Olunike Adeliyi, Amanda Payton, and Delon de Metz have been cast in the NBC pilot Unbroken.
- Jill Eikenberry will guest star in the ABC pilot L.A. Law.
- Dann Florek will guest star on Law & Order: Organized Crime on NBC.
- Anjali Bhimani has joined Ms. Marvel on Disney+.
- Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu has been added to the cast of The Crown on Netflix.
- Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster has joined CBS News.
- Sinéad Keenan has been added to the cast of Unforgiven on ITV.
Mark Your Calendar
- The Boys returns on Amazon on June 3.
- Girls5eva returns on Peacock on May 5.
- The Kardashians will debut on Hulu on April 14.
- Gaslit premieres on Starz on April 24.
- Tokyo Vice will debut on HBO Max on April 7.
- Undone returns on Amazon on April 29.
- The Man Who Fell to Earth premieres on Showtime on April 24.
- They Call Me Magic will premiere on Apple TV+ on April 22.
- Sheryl will debut on Showtime on May 7.
- Parallels premieres on Disney+ on March 23.
- How to Survive a Pandemic will debut on HBO on March 29.
- Elite returns on Netflix on April 8.
- The Way Down, Part 2 is coming to HBO Max later this year.
- Starstruck returns on HBO Max on March 24.
- Building Roots premieres on HGTV on April 10.
- The Man of God will debut on Netflix on April 16.
- Wendell & Wild will debut on Netflix in October.
- Tiger & Bunny 2 will debut on Netflix on April 8.
- Tekken: Bloodline will debut on Netflix on 2022.
- The Thaw will premiere on HBO Max on April 1.
- Tomorrow will premiere on April 1.
- The Pentaverate will debut on Netflix soon.
Mike Myers will play seven brand new characters in The Pentaverate, a limited series he created about a secret society who have been working to influence world events since 1347.
Ken Jeong, Keegan-Michael Key, Debi Mazar, Richard McCabe, Jennifer Saunders, & Lydia West co-star pic.twitter.com/u8LrcXkEv3
— Netflix (@netflix) June 8, 2021
- The Umbrella Academy returns on Netflix on June 22.
- Symone will debut on MSNBC on May 7.
- Fire Island will premiere on Hulu on June 3; Good Luck to You, Leo Grande on June 17; Not Okay on August 5.
- TallBoyz will premiere on Fuse TV on March 23.
- The Valet will debut on Hulu in the spring.
- The Dress will stream on HBO Max this month.
R.I.P.
William Hurt, Legendary actor and four-time Oscar nominee.
William Hurt has passed. On Robin Hood, I was aware of his reputation for asking character based questions, so I had compiled a file on the life of William Marshall. He sought me out when he arrived on set. I handed him the stack. Not sure if I’ve ever seen a bigger smile. RIP.
— Russell Crowe (@russellcrowe) March 13, 2022
R.I.P. William Hurt. So sad to hear this news. Working with him on Broadcast News was amazing. He will be greatly missed.
— Albert Brooks (@AlbertBrooks) March 13, 2022
I had the great pleasure of working beside William Hurt in Too Big To Fail. Bill was a consummate professional. Continually searching for greater truth and human understanding. Blessings to his family and friends. RIP. pic.twitter.com/hOJPtPbVf9
— Matthew Modine (@MatthewModine) March 13, 2022
I’m so sad to hear of the passing of William Hurt. I had the privilege of directing him in The Village. He was a master of his acting craft. Every take was new and revealing. #rip
— M. Night Shyamalan ⌛ (@MNightShyamalan) March 13, 2022
Rest In Peace to an amazing talent William Hurt, beloved Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross in our Marvel Cinematic Universe. pic.twitter.com/jH1JegmqEP
— Marvel Entertainment (@Marvel) March 14, 2022
Traci Braxton, Singer, co-star of Braxton Family Values
Tova Borgnine, QVC star and widow of Ernest Borgnine
Peter Bowles, British star of To the Manor Born
John Clayton, ESPN broadcaster
Av Westin, Emmy-award-winning newsman who created 20/20
Rustam Ibragimbekov, Russian screenwriter
WATCH THIS
American Song Contest: Based on Eurovision Song Contest, this competition hosted by Kelly Clarkson and Snoop, pits the states against one another. Here are your competitors, America — among them, Michael Bolton, Jewel, and Sisqo. Series premiere. 7 p.m., NBC
9-1-1: They steal the plot of Speed in the spring premiere. 7 p.m., Fox
The Gilded Age: Marian prepares for a new adventure in the season finale. 8 p.m., HBO
Late Night:
- Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Leslie Mann, Mikey Day, Kae Tempest
- The Late Late Show with James Corden: Lizzo, Gabrielle Union, Pillow Queens
- Jimmy Kimmel Live: Wanda Sykes, Michael Cera, Weezer
- Watch What Happens Live: Paige DeSorbo, Craig Conover
MON. | 7:00 | 7:30 | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 |
ABC | American Idol (new) |
The Good Doctor (new) |
CBS | The Neighborhood (new) |
Bob ♥ Abishola (new) |
NCIS (new) |
NCIS: Hawai’i (new) |
CW | All American (new) |
All American: Homecoming (new) |
Local |
FOX | 9-1-1 (new) |
9-1-1: Lone Star (new) |
News/Local |
NBC | American Song Contest (new) |
The Endgame (new) |
If I remember right wasn’t The Pentaverate part of the Scottish fathers ramblings in So I Married an Axe Murderer? HEAD!!! PANTS!!!!!
I thought I read somewhere that they had renewed The Boys for a Season 4 already? Maybe it was just wishful thinking
It was rumored that they had, but it wasn’t made official. It sounds like it’s happening, though.
-T