SciFiAndTvTalk

The Umbrella Academy Adds Additional Cast (Netflix)

The Netflix original series The Umbrella Academy is adding more members. Based on the popular, Eisner award-winning comics and graphic novels created and written by Gerard Way (My Chemical Romance), illustrated by Gabriel Bá, and published by Dark Horse Comics, the series is adding cast members Tom Hopper as “Luther,” Emmy Raver-Lampman as “Allison,” David Castañeda as “Diego,” Robert Sheehan as “Klaus,” and Aidan Gallagher as “Number Five.”

The live action series follows the estranged members of a dysfunctional family of superheroes (The Umbrella Academy) - Luther, Diego, Allison, Vanya, Klaus and Number Five - as they work together to solve their father Reginald Hardgraves’ mysterious death, while coming apart at the seams due to their divergent personalities and abilities.

The Umbrella Academy will be produced by Universal Cable Productions. Steve Blackman (Fargo, Altered Carbon) will serve as executive producer and showrunner, with additional executive producers Bluegrass Television and Mike Richardson and Keith Goldberg from Dark Horse Entertainment. Gerard Way will serve as co-executive producer. The pilot script was adapted from the comic book series by Jeremy Slater (The Exorcist) .

Actor Tom Hopper.

Tom Hopper (Luther): Luther was groomed by his father from an early age to be the leader of The Umbrella Academy – a responsibility that has always weighed heavily on him. He is resilient, a workaholic, and possesses the ability of heightened physical strength. Upstanding to a fault, Luther always tries to do the right thing, even if that means putting others before himself.

About Tom Hopper: Hopper just wrapped shooting a starring role opposite Amy Schumer and Michelle Williams in Voltage/STX’s comedy I Feel Pretty, written and directed by Abby Kohn and Marc Silverstein. Most recently, he played “Dickon Tarly” in Season 7 of HBO’s explosive hit series Game Of Thrones.  Hopper also starred as “Billy Bones” in Starz’s Black Sails, produced by Michael Bay, and has appeared in numerous other television series and film projects over his career including Netflix’s Kill Ratio, The History Channel’s event series Barbarians Rising, and the hit TV series Merlin for BBC1/Syfy Channel.

Actress Emmy Raver-Lampman.

Emmy Raver-Lampman (Allison): Allison is beautiful, elegant, and a formerly world-famous movie star who possesses the power of suggestion - anything she says aloud comes to pass. Her life seems perfect from the outside, but her ability has undermined every relationship she’s ever had. With her career on the decline and her marriage in shambles, she refuses to use her power as she seeks a more authentic life.

About Emmy Raver-Lampman: Emmy Raver-Lampman is the breakout star of the 1st National Touring Company of the Tony-winning phenomenon, Hamilton.  After being a part of the original Ensemble on Broadway, Emmy was promoted to the coveted role of “Angelica Schuyler” for the West Coast run.  Previous Broadway credits include Jekyll & Hyde, Hair and the National Touring Company of Wicked.  The Umbrella Academy marks her very first television role.  

Actor David Castaneda.

David Castañeda (Diego): Diego is a skilled, intense vigilante who has a real problem with authority. He isn't as naturally strong or smart as his siblings, so he’s worked three times as hard for everything. Believing he should have been the leader of his family instead of his brother, he carries a massive chip on his shoulder that makes him hostile to just about everyone.

About David Castañeda: David Castañeda is currently shooting the Billy Crystal/Ben Schwartz comedy, We Are Unsatisfied. His recent work includes a lead role in the independent feature El Chicano, opposite Raul Castillo and George Lopez.  He also stars alongside Benicio Del Torro and Josh Brolin in Lionsgate's forthcoming Soldado, the sequel to the smash hit “Sicario.”

Actor Aidan Gallagher.

Aidan Gallagher (Number Five): Number Five appears to be a thirteen year old boy, but in actuality he is a fifty-eight-year-old man trapped in the body of a child. He doesn’t suffer fools and is the smartest person in the room. He’s haunted by the things he’s seen and done, and is on the verge of losing his grip on reality.

About Aidan Gallagher: Aidan Gallagher starred as “Nicky” on Nickelodeon’s Emmy-winning series Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn, which just wrapped shooting a fourth season. For his performance, Aidan was nominated  “Favorite Male TV Star” at the 2017 and 2016 Kids Choice Awards.

Actor Robert Sheehan.

Robert Sheehan (Klaus): Klaus is a drug addict and lovable mess of a human being and yet, if you ask him, any day now his life is going to turn around. He’s a classic “middle child” - a disarming pleaser who is seemingly everyone’s friend, but will rob you blind without thinking twice.

About Robert Sheehan: Robert Sheehan (Misfits) next transforms into an East European, non-gender specific character in Mute on Netflix, the second part of a planned trilogy from writer/director Duncan Jones that began with Moon. Next year, Sheeha also stars opposite David Tennant in Dean Devlin’s thriller Bad Samaritan . In December, he’ll star in Christian Rivers’ Mortal Engines , a sci-fi/fantasy movie co-written and produced by Peter Jackson. For television, Sheehan is currently shooting the second season of Genius (National Geographic), which chronicles the life and work of Picasso.

Counterpart - New Key Art and Video! (STARZ)

STARZ released today the key art (above) and series overview video (see below) for new original series Counterpart, starring Academy Award-winner J.K. Simmons that is set to premiere on Sunday, January 21st, 2018 at 8PM ET/PT. STARZ also announced an early sneak peek of the pilot episode to be aired after the Outlander season three finale on December 10th, 2017 at 9 pm ET/PT. 

Counterpart, from creator Justin Marks, MRC, Gilbert Films, and Anonymous Content, is about a mysterious world hidden beneath the surface of our everyday existence. Howard Silk (J.K. Simmons) is a lowly cog in the bureaucratic machinery of a Berlin-based United Nations spy agency. When Howard discovers that his organization safeguards the secret of a crossing into a parallel dimension, he is thrust into a shadow world of intrigue, danger, and double cross… where the only man he can trust is his near-identical counterpart from this parallel world. The show explores themes of identity, fate and lost love, posing the eternal question, “what if our lives could have been different?"

Counterpart also features Olivia Williams (The Sixth Sense, Hyde Park on Hudson, Manhattan) as ‘Emily Burton Silk,’ Harry Lloyd (The Theory of Everything, Jane Eyre, Manhattan) as ‘Peter Quayle,’ Nicholas Pinnock (Captain America: The First Avenger, Marcella) as ‘Ian Shaw,’ Nazanin Boniadi (Homeland, Ben-Hur, Hotel Mumbai) as ‘Clare,’ Sara Serraiocco (Salvo, Cloro, Worldly Girl) as ‘Baldwin,’ and Ulrich Thomsen (The Blacklist, Banshee) as ‘Aldrich.’ Academy Award nominee Morten Tyldum (The Imitation Game) directed the first episode.

Created, written, and executive produced by Marks (The Jungle Book), Counterpart is also executive produced by Amy Berg (Da Vinci’s Demons), Gary Gilbert (La La Land) with Gilbert Films, Jordan Horowitz (La La Land), Morten Tyldum (The Imitation Game), as well as Keith Redmon (The Revenant), and Bard Dorros (Spotlight) with Anonymous Content. Check out the series overview trailer below!

Production on the first season began in Los Angeles in 2016, and wrapped in Berlin earlier this year. Visit the official Counterpart Facebook Page , and follow @Counterpart_STZ on Twitter and @counterpart_stz on Instagram. Join the conversation with #Counterpart and #STARZ.

Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams - New Trailer! (AMAZON)

Silas Herrick (Bryan Cranston) in "Human Is." Photo copyright of Amazon Prime.

Amazon today announced that its new sci-fi anthology series Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams will premiere on Friday, January 12 exclusively on Prime Video. Based on various writings from author Philip K. Dick, each of the ten standalone episodes are set in a different and unique world–some which lay in the far reaches of the universe, and others which are much closer to home. While the stories may be worlds apart, central to each is the poignant and warm exploration of the importance and significance of humanity. From five to 5000 years in the future, each compelling tale will both illustrate Philip K. Dick's prophetic vision and celebrate the enduring appeal of the prized sci-fi novelist’s work. Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams will be available as a Prime Exclusive Series in the U.S., as well as in select territories globally, including Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Latin America, Spain and Turkey, among others. Dick’s Emmy award-winning The Man in the High Castle, the most-watched scripted series in the history of Prime Video, will begin its third season in 2018. Check out the Electric Dreams trailer:

Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams features an all-star cast, including Steve Buscemi (Boardwalk Empire), Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Greg Kinnear (Heaven is For Real), Maura Tierney (The Affair), Janelle Monae (Moonlight), Mirelle Enos (The Catch), Anna Paquin (Ture Blood), Terrence Howard (Empire), Timothy Spall (Mr. Turner), Liam Cunningham (Game of Thrones), Richard Madden (Game of Thrones), Holliday Grainger (The Finest Hours), Mel Rodriguez (Last Man on Earth), Vera Farmiga (Bates Motel), Jack Reynor (Macbeth), Essie Davis (The Babadook), Benedict Wong (Doctor Strange), Geraldine Chaplin (A Monster Calls), Juno Temple (Vinyl), and David Lyons (Revolution), among many others. 

Each episode is inspired by one of Philip K. Dick’s renowned short stories and has been adapted by leading American and British writers and directors, including Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica, Outlander), Michael Dinner (Justified, Sneaky Pete), Tony Grisoni (Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas), Jack Thorne (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child), Matthew Graham (Doctor Who), David Farr (The Night Manager), Dee Rees (Bessie), Travis Beacham (Pacific Rim), Jessica Mecklenburg (Stranger Things), Francesca Gregorini (Humans), Alan Taylor (Game of Thrones, Mad Men), and Peter Horton (Grey's Anatomy, The Shield).

Alexis (Janelle Monae) in "Autofac." Photo copyright of Amazon Prime.

“We’re excited to share the fantastical world of Philip K. Dick as it’s never been experienced before,” said Brad Beale, Vice President, Worldwide TV Content Acquisition, Amazon Prime Video. “With the combined creative genius behind this series, as well as the stellar cast and visually compelling locations, every episode of this sci-fi anthology is sure to be an entertaining experience for our Prime members.” 

Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams is executive produced by Ronald D. Moore and Maril Davis of Tall Ship Productions (Outlander) and Michael Dinner of Rooney McP Productions (Justified, Sneaky Pete), alongside Bryan Cranston and James Degus of Moonshot Entertainment (Sneaky Pete), Isa Dick Hackett, Kalen Egan and Christopher Tricarico of Electric Shepherd Productions (The Man in the High Castle), David Kanter and Matt DeRoss of Anonymous Content Entertainment (13 Reasons Why), Lila Rawlings and Marigo Kehos of Left Bank Pictures (The Crown) and Don Kurt (Justified) and Kate DiMento (Justified), in association with Sony Pictures Television.

Agent Ross (Richard Madden) and (Mary) Anneika Rose in "The Hoodmaker." Photo copyright of Amazon Prime.

The entire first season of Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams will be available to stream and members can also download the series to mobile devices for offline viewing at no additional cost to their membership. The series will be available exclusively on Amazon Prime Video for members to watch via the Prime Video app for popular smart TVs, Fire TV, Fire Tablets and Android and iOS phones and tablets. Customers who are not already Prime members can sign up for a free 30-day trial at amazon.com/prime .  For a list of all Amazon Video compatible devices, visit www.amazon.com/howtostream

As noted above, all photos copyright of Amazon Prime, so please no unauthorized copying or duplicating of any kind. Thanks!

Midsomer Murders: John Barnaby's First Cases Coming to U.S. DVD in December (Acorn)

Inventive crimes, charming scenery, and notable guest stars have set Midsomer Murders apart from the crowd and won it legions of fans. Returning with another collection of mysteries from the fan favorite series, Midsomer Murders: John Barnaby’s First Cases makes its DVD debut on December 5, 2017 from Acorn, an RLJ Entertainment, Inc. brand. Series 14 marks the first complete series starring Neil Dudgeon as DCI John Barnaby, and Series 15 marks the last season with Jason Hughes as DS Ben Jones. The DVD 7-Disc set features 14 feature-length mysteries and bonus behind-the-scenes and commentary ($79.99, Amazon.com).

The cozy villages of Midsomer County reveal their most sinister secrets in this hit British mystery series that has earned a worldwide following. In this collection of Series 14 and 15, John Barnaby (Neil Dudgeon, Life of Riley) takes over as Midsomer County’s new Detective Chief Inspector, solving macabre crimes with the help of DS Ben Jones (Jason Hughes, This Life) in his last cases as Barnaby’s assistant.

Guest stars include Samantha Bond (Downton Abbey), Edward Fox (Gandhi), Pam Ferris (Call the Midwife, Rosemary & Thyme), Warren Clarke (Poldark), James Callis (Battlestar Galactica), Julie Graham (The Bletchley Circle), Sinéad Cusack (Marcella), Hattie Morahan (Beauty and the Beast), Martine McCutcheon (Love Actually, EastEnders), Kate Ashfield (Shaun of the Dead), Charity Wakefield (Close to the Enemy, Wolf Hall), Kevin Doyle (Downton Abbey), and Harriet Walter (The Crown).

The Mysteries: Death in the Slow Lane; Dark Secrets; Echoes of the Dead; The Oblong Murders; The Sleeper Under the Hill; The Night of the Stag; A Sacred Trust; A Rare Bird; The Dark Rider; Murder of Innocence; Death and the Divas; Written in the Stars; The Sicilian Defence; Schooled in Murder

BONUS: Midsomer Murders in Conversation (34 min.), The Dark Rider audio commentary with star Neil Dudgeon and director Alex Pillai, behind the scenes of Death and the Divas (15 min.), and a biography of Sykes the dog.

Street Date: December 5, 2017; SRP: $79.99; DVD 7-Disc Set: 14 feature-length episodes – Approx. 21.5 hours – SDH Subtitles – UPC 054961262694; Contains nudity, sexual situations, and disturbing images.

Fear The Walking Dead - First Look At Lennie James On-Set (AMC)

  Lennie James (third from left) at a table read with “Fear” co-stars (l-r) Colman Domingo, Frank Dillane and Alycia Debnam-Carey. Photo by Richard Foreman and copyright of AMC.

AMC released today video and photos of Lennie James on the set of Fear the Walking Dead, which is currently shooting its fourth season in Austin, TX. It was announced last night on Talking Dead that James, who plays fan favorite character Morgan Jones on The Walking Dead, will star in Fear the Walking Dead Season 4 as part of a previously announced series crossover. Check out the official Fear the Walking Dead Facebook page for the video.

The crossover between The Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead was announced last month at New York Comic Con by executive producer Robert Kirkman. James will star in Fear the Walking Dead as a series regular along with returning cast members Kim Dickens, Frank Dillane, Alycia Debnam-Carey, Colman Domingo and Danay Garcia, and new series regulars Garret Dillahunt and Jenna Elfman.

“Lennie James’ brilliance and humanity in his portrayal of Morgan Jones has been part of the DNA of what makes The Walking Dead so fantastic since the very beginning,” said Scott M. Gimple, executive producer for both series.  “Morgan's story will continue in this season of ‘The Walking Dead,’ and then, it begins again in the upcoming season of Fear the Walking Dead, pushing the series -- and the ‘Walking Dead’ universe itself -- into new directions and possibilities.”

 Lennie James on set with “Fear” showrunners Andrew Chambliss and Ian Goldberg. Photo by Richard Foreman and copyright of AMC.

Said Andrew Chambliss and Ian Goldberg, showrunners and executive producers for “Fear the Walking Dead.”  “As longtime fans of Lennie James and his portrayal of Morgan Jones, we are thrilled to have him join the cast of Fear the Walking Dead. We look forward to working with Lennie to continue the journey Morgan began on ‘The Walking Dead.”

Said Lennie James, “To take Morgan into this new realm and landscape, to see who he could now be, to see where his story could go in the world of Fear the Walking Dead is wonderfully exciting and I am really looking forward to the challenge. My time on The Walking Dead has been a blessing and one of the top working and personal experiences of my life. That cast and crew will have my love, my respect and my deep gratitude until the end of my days.” 

Produced by AMC Studios, The Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead are the #1 and #4 dramas on cable, respectively, among adults 18-49 and adults 25-54 in Nielson live+3 ratings. Fear the Walking Dead  is executive produced by Scott M. Gimple, showrunners Andrew Chambliss and Ian Goldberg, as well as Robert Kirkman, David Alpert, Gale Anne Hurd and Greg Nicotero. 

As noted above, photos by Richard Foreman and copyright of AMC, so please no unauthorized copying or duplicating of any kind. Thanks!

Catching Up With Skyscraper's Jason William Day

"The Rock" versus "Bad Guy" Jason William Day in Skyscraper. Photo courtesy/copyright of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

All hell recently broke loose during shooting of the upcoming feature film action-thriller Skyscraper, but, happily, in a good way. For one particular scene, veteran actor/stuntman Jason William Day had to put the movie’s leading man, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson,” in what is known as a rear naked choke (hold). A former member of the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) and an ex-MMA fighter, Day has the necessary skills as well as experience to bring a real sense of authenticity to such a shot, and The Rock wanted him to do just that. In fact, he was so pleased with Day’s professionalism and dedication to his craft, that The Rock posted the above photo to Instagram together with the following blow-by-blow (no pun intended) account of his experiences shooting the scene.

“The glaze you see over my eyes as I’m about to pass out is real. As is how deep this rear naked choke is sunk in by @UFCveteran turned actor/stuntman @Jasonwilliamday In our action thriller #SkyscraperMovie. I barely survive everything that’s thrown my way, including this fight. First take when Jason slapped this rear naked on me, I knew right away, holy s**t, this brother is sinking it in.

“I thought f**k it, the more real, the better - it’ll be great for the movie. After every take Jason would always ask if everything was ok with the choke. I said everything was great. Our director, Rawson Thurber called me and Jason over to the monitor to watch playback of the scene. Rawson and Jason were happy and felt we got it, but I said, let’s take one more crack at this. Before I walked away I whispered to Rawson, I’m gonna let him hold the choke longer, just keep shooting. After the take was done and I got my senses back and SLOWLY got up, me and Jason hugged like grateful gentlemen. He’s a real class act and bad ass. A pleasure getting my hands dirty with a real fighter."

Actor/stuntman Jason William Day. Photo courtesy/copyright of Natalia Anja.

Day is equally complimentary towards Johnson when it comes to filming this particular stunt sequence. “I have to give a tremendous amount of credit to Dwayne for things turning out so well,” he says. “He knew I had fought in the UFC as well as had a long history with the MMA, and before we even walked in front of the cameras, he asked me, ‘What does it feel like to get choked out? What do I look like? Do my eyes roll back in my head?’ I explained that your eyes don’t roll back, but instead the world around you just kind of fades out. Dwayne took that to heart and ran with it. Like he said in his Instagram post, he wanted it to look realistic, so he gave me the go-ahead to squeeze a little harder with each take, and it was probably during one of the last takes that they took the photo of the two of us that Dwayne posted. I think they got a pretty good shot, and hopefully it looks good in the movie.

“It’s kind of obvious from The Rock’s picture that I’m one of the bad guys in the film, and that’s about all I can say without getting into spoilers. However, I will also tell you that the camaraderie on-set was amazing. Everyone clicked at once, especially the stunt team. We had a group of guys from New Zealand as well as Australia, and Allan Poppleton, who does a lot of The Rock’s movies, was our supervising stunt/fight coordinator. So working with all of them was fantastic, and that’s also true of the director, Rawson Thurber [who also wrote Skyscraper]. One of the biggest surprises for me, and something I really enjoyed, was getting to meet Rolland Mollar, who played the bad guy in Atomic Blonde. I didn’t know much about him at first, but as shooting went on, I saw that Rolland is just one of the boys. He likes to hang out with everyone and tell stories. That’s one interesting dude, and it’s definitely an inspiration to look at what he’s done over the past 10 years and where he’s at now.”

Married to his wife Jenna and the father of twin boys born this October, Day was born in Lethbridge, Albert, Canada. A longtime fan of action movies starring such icons as Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger, he longed to emulate their onscreen heroics ever since he was a kid. “I grew up on a farm, and my brother and I would always act out different scenarios from these types of films,” recalls the actor/stuntman. “So I always wanted to be an action hero, but when I got older, I didn’t really know how to pursue a career in the movies. I did apply to a school here in Vancouver, but it was more of a pipe dream at the time and I didn’t seriously pursue it.

UFC competitor Jason "Dooms" Day circa 2007 & 2008. Photo courtesy/copyright of the UFC.

“I was still lost when I got to college, and explored a few career options - business, carpentry and some physical education courses with the idea of becoming a personal trainer.  I then went on to build houses with my parents, before my fight career took off. It was around the same time that I saw an opportunity to start training as an actor and perhaps eventually make the transition into film and TV.  It was a hard pill to swallow when I finally finished my fight career and I struggled with what to do next. My wife and I moved back to Vancouver, where a friend of mine, [actor/stuntman] Dan Rizzuto, suggested I should give the stunt world a try. In fact, Dan actually got me my first break in the business and my first stunt credit.

“From then on, that’s what I wanted to do. It takes a lot of hard work as well as discipline, and I have a great deal of respect for the stunt community. It’s so much fun and exactly like the fight world. You have a group of men and women who trust each other and bust their butts every day training and working hard to create the best possible shots for the movie or TV show they’re working on. Again, you have to have so much trust in one another because you’re swinging objects at each other, driving cars at one another, or throwing punches at one another, and that creates a special bond.”

Fifty Shades Darker, Deadpool, Okja, Dead Rising: Endgame and Kindergarten Cop 2 are among the actor/stuntman’s other big screen credits. On TV, he has worked on such series as When Calls the Heart, Mistresses, Fargo, Lucifer, Timeless, The 100, The Crossing and Ghost Wars. Just recently, Day bared all (well, perhaps, not all, because he was dressed in a loincloth) playing the DC Comics superhero character B’Wana Beast in the DC’s Legends of Tomorrow episode Freakshow. His other small screen genre work includes multiple episodes of Arrow as well as Van Helsing.

(L-R): B'Wana Beast (Jason Day) and P.T. Barnum (Billy Zane) in DC's Legends of Tomorrow. Photo courtesy/copyright of The CW.

“Van Helsing was a neat experience for me,” enthuses Day. “Again, my involvement in that show was through the help of its stunt coordinator, Kimani Ray Smith, who knew I wanted to break into acting. It wasn’t a huge role, but the character I played was seen throughout a few episodes of the show’s first season. It was very cool to be part of a Canadian project that’s written as well as produced here in Vancouver and has become quite successful.”

Although Day may have initially been unsure of where his future lay when he decided to leave the fighting world, he has undeniably found his niche, and a fulfilling one at that, in the entertainment industry. “The biggest gift for me has been the people,” he says. “The stunt community is a family, and as I mentioned earlier, we have so much trust in each other. So the friends and relationships I’ve made so far have definitely been the most rewarding for me. Second to that are some of the wicked roles I get to play. This latest one, Skyscraper, is the highlight of my career to date. It’s put me on the path to being an action actor and, who knows, maybe one day I’ll get to be an action hero with my own movie wherein some bad guy is strangling me!”

Steve Eramo

Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams Coming To Amazon Prime In January 2018

Amazon has announced that its new sci-fi anthology series Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams will premiere on Friday, January 12, exclusively on Prime Video. Based on various writings from author Philip K. Dick, each of the ten standalone episodes are set in a different and unique world - some which lay in the far reaches of the universe, and others which are much closer to home. While the stories may be worlds apart, central to each is the poignant and warm exploration of the importance and significance of humanity. From five to 5000 years in the future, each compelling tale will both illustrate Philip K. Dick's prophetic vision and celebrate the enduring appeal of the prized sci-fi novelist's work. Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams will be available as a Prime Exclusive Series in the U.S., as well as in select territories globally, including Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Latin America, Spain and Turkey, among others. Dick's Emmy award-winning The Man in the High Castle, the most-watched scripted series in the history of Prime Video, will begin its third season in 2018.

Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams features an all-star cast, including Steve Buscemi (Boardwalk Empire), Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Greg Kinnear (Heaven is For Real), Maura Tierney (The Affair0, Janelle Monae (Moonlight), Mireille Enos (The Catch), Anna Paquin (True Blood), Terrence Howard (Empire), Timothy Spall (Mr. Turner), Liam Cunningham (Game of Thrones), Richard Madden (Game of Thrones), Holliday Grainger (The Finest Hours), Mel Rodriquez (last Man on Earth), Vera Farmiga (Bates Motel), Jack Reynor (Macbeth), Essie Davis (The Badadook), Benedict Wong (Doctor Strange), Geraldine Chaplin (A Monster Calls), Juno Temple (Vinyl) and David Lyons (Revolution), among many others.

Each episode is inspired by one of Philip K. Dick's renowned short stories and has been adapted by leading American and British writers and directors, including Ronald Moore (Battlestar Galactica, Outlander), Michael Dinner (Justified, Sneaky Pete), Tony Grisoni (Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas), Jack Thorne (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child), Matthew Graham (Doctor Who), David Farr (The Night Manager), Dee Rees (Bessie), Travis Beacham (Pacific Rim), Jessica Mecklenburg (Stranger Things), Francesca Gregorini (Humans), Alan Taylor (Game of Thrones, Mad Men) and Peter Horton (Grey's Anatomy, The Shield).

"We're excited to share the fantastical world of Philip K. Dick as it's never been experienced before," said Brad Beale, Vice President, Worldwide TV Content Acquisition, Amazon Prime Video. "With the combined creative genius behind this series, as well as the stellar cast and visually compelling locations, every episode of this sci-fi anthology is sure to be an entertaining experience for our Prime members."

Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams is executive produced by Ronald D. Moore and Maril Davis of Tall Ship Productions (Outlander) and Michael Dinner of Rooney McP Productions (Justified, Sneaky Pete), alongside Bryan Cranston and James Degus of Moonshot Entertainment (Sneaky Pete), Isa Dick Hackett, Kalen Egan, and Christoper Tricarico of Electric Shepherd Productions (The Man in the High Castle), David Kanter and Matt DeRoss of Anonymous Content Entertainment (13 Reasons Why), Lila Rawlings and Marigo Kehos of Left Bank Pictures (The Crown) and Don Kurt (Justified) and Kate DiMento (Justified), in association with Sony Pictures Television.

The entire first season of Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams will be available to stream and members can also download the series to mobile devices for offline viewing at no additional cost to their membership. The series will be available exclusively on Amazon Prime Video for members to watch via the Prime Video app for popular smart TVs, Fire TV, Fire Tablets and Android and iOS phones and tablets. Customers who are not already Prime members can sign up for a free 30-day trial at amazon.com/prime. For a list of all Amazon Video compatible devices, visit www.amazon.com/howtostream

Stephen King's Castle Rock Coming To Hulu

Hulu is taking viewers into the chilling world of acclaimed, best-selling author Stephen King in the new Hulu Original drama series Castle Rock, from J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot Productions, Warner Bros. Television and executive producers/writers Sam Shaw & Dustin Thomason. Hulu has ordered a 10 episode first season of the on-going series, with production set to begin this year. A teaser trailer for Castle Rock has been viewed more than one million times since it was released on Friday, Feb. 17, and can be viewed at https://youtu.be/UGHupqE1LCI.

 

A psychological-horror series set in the Stephen King multiverse, Castle Rock combines the mythological scale and intimate character storytelling of King’s best-loved works, weaving an epic saga of darkness and light, played out on a few square miles of Maine woodland. The fictional Maine town of Castle Rock has figured prominently in King’s literary career: Cujo, The Dark Half, IT and Needful Things, as well as novella The Body and numerous short stories such as Rita Hayworth and The Shawshank Redemption are either set there or contain references to Castle Rock. Castle Rock is an original suspense/thriller — a first-of-its-kind reimagining that explores the themes and worlds uniting the entire King canon, while brushing up against some of his most iconic and beloved stories.

 

Castle Rock is based on characters and situations created by Stephen King. Sam Shaw & Dustin Thomason developed the project for television and serve as executive producers along with J.J. Abrams, Ben Stephenson and Liz Glotzer. The series is from Bad Robot Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television. Sam Shaw and Dustin Thomason recently worked together on the critically acclaimed drama series Manhattan, which ran for two seasons on WGN America. Shaw created the show and served as an executive producer/writer; Thomason also served as an executive producer/writer.

 

Stephen King is one of the world’s most successful writers, having published more than 50 books in an illustrious career spanning more than 40 years. His works have been adapted for theatrical motion pictures and television more than 50 times. Two feature films based on King’s books are scheduled to be released in 2017, The Dark Tower and IT.

J.J. Abrams co-wrote, produced and directed the blockbuster hit film Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and he is also producing the next chapters of the Mission: Impossible and Star Trek film franchises. Ben Stephenson serves as head of television at Abrams’ Bad Robot Productions. In addition to Castle Rock, Bad Robot produces Warner Bros. Television’s acclaimed hit drama series Westworld (created for television by Jonathan Nolan & Lisa Joy) for HBO as well as 11.22.63 for Hulu and many other series.

Shoot The Messenger Premieres in February 2018 (WGN America)

Lyriq Bent and Elyse Levesque in Shoot the Messenger. Photo copyright of WGN America.

WGN America announced today that its recently acquired, thrilling new series, Shoot the Messenger, is slated to premiere on Monday February 26, 2018 at 10:00 p.m. ET / 9:00 p.m. CT. The network also released today a new teaser trailer for the eight-part event series starring Elyse Levesque (Orphan Black), Lyriq Bent (She’s Gotta Have It, The Book of Negroes), Lucas Bryant (Haven) and Alex Kingston (Doctor Who, ER).

“Shoot the Messenger is a great fit for our powerful line-up of crime programming,” said Gavin Harvey, President, WGN America. “It’s a high-quality, edge-of-your-seat drama that addresses topical issues and will resonate with not only our core viewers, but also a new audience of crime enthusiasts.”

Centering on the complex relationships between crime reporters and the police, Shoot the Messenger follows Daisy Channing (Elyse Levesque), a young reporter trying to balance a messy personal life with a burgeoning career.  Things begin to go sideways for Daisy when she witnesses a murder she thinks is gang related, only to find herself slowly drawn into an interconnected web of criminal and illicit sexual activity that reaches into the corridors of corporate and political power. It’s the kind of news story that will destroy lives, including those of her own family.  With help from her editor Mary Foster (Alex Kingston), co-worker Simon Olenski (Lucas Bryant), and lead homicide detective Kevin Lutz (Lyriq Bent), Daisy uncovers a cover-up so scandalous it could bring down the government. 

Shoot the Messenger is produced by Jennifer Holness and Victoria Woods for Hungry Eyes Film & Television Inc. in association with CBC Television and ITV Studios Global Entertainment. The eight-episode series is co-created by Jennifer Holness and Sudz Sutherland who also serves as lead director on the series. Check out the teaser trailer below.

Catching Up With Ghost Wars' Tammy Gillis

Actress Tammy Gillis. Photo copyright of Torquille de Jonge.

In SYFY’s Ghost Wars, the island town of Port Moore, Alaska is home to a small and tightknit community of people, many of whom are hiding a deep dark secret or two. In recent weeks, some of those secrets have surfaced, causing townsfolk to behave oddly and/or die under bizarre circumstances. As the casualty count continues to tick upwards, ghostly apparitions by the dozens look on, preying on the living by exploiting their fears and doing whatever else necessary in order to advance their ethereal agenda. Despite the sinister locale, actress Tammy Gillis, who plays Jane, could not resist temporarily setting up roots in this fictional town to help tell this chillingly compelling story. Of course, another big draw was that so many of Port Moore’s “residents” were already familiar faces to her.

“I absolutely loved working on Ghost Wars just because I‘m friends with so many of the people involved in it,” says Gillis. “I’ve known creator, showrunner, writer and director Simon Barry for a number of years, and had worked with him on his last show, Continuum. I also worked with another of the show’s executive producers and main writers, Dennis Heaton, on two other TV series, Motive and jPod. Dennis is a really funny person and tries to infuse comedy in everything he does, which I totally appreciate, and it makes Ghost Wars a little bit campy and even ‘fun’ at times. I auditioned for a couple of different roles on the show, but they didn’t end up happening, and then the Jane character sort of popped up and proved to be the right fit.

“Initially Jane wasn’t supposed to be in as many episodes as she ended up being in, but they kept writing more for me, which was amazing. Thanks to Simon and Dennis, it was one of most fun sets to be on, and because I knew so many people, it felt like getting paid to come to work and play with your friends. On top of that, I had the opportunity to work with amazingly talented actors like Vincent D’Onofrio, Meatloaf and Kim Coates. I had a couple of great scenes with Kim, whose work I loved on Sons of Anarchy, and I have a huge amount of respect for him.”

As the situation in Port Moore grows increasingly dangerous, the people there have no choice but to try to defend themselves. Their first line of defense is Roman Mercer (Avan Jogia), a young man who had more than his fair share of bizarre and unexplainable experiences while growing up in town. Most of those occurrences were directly related to his ability to see and communicate with the dead. Unfortunately for Roman, his gifts were considered by many of his fellow locals to be a curse, but recent events have changed their minds. As helpful as Roman is, especially when it comes to evading these decidedly unrestful spirits, the town’s mayor, Val (Luvia Petersen), also looks to those with more conventional methods to try to thwart the ghosts’ unwanted advances. Jane is among those who step up to the plate, and Gillis delighted in being thrown right into the fray when starting out on Ghost Wars.

“It’s always a bit unusual starting work on a new show because you’re like the new kid in school,” notes the actress. “Everyone has developed relationships with each other and they’ve all been working together, so sometimes you have to figure out how to fit in. That wasn’t true with Ghost Wars. From day one on-set, I felt nothing but welcomed. In fact, Dennis Heaton asked [consulting producer] Rachel Langer, who wrote the first episode I’m in and who I hadn’t met before, came up to me and extended a special welcome from Dennis, which I thought was quite lovely.

“As for my character of Jane, she’s a highly-skilled, mercenary/operative, which is something I’d never played before. There were definitely times when I thought, ‘Are they sure I can do this, because I’m going up against some pretty heavy hitters.’ A lot of it was about becoming familiar with how to use and handle weapons as well as how to secure and clear areas. It was a big learning curve for me, but I was super into it, so much so that I wound up taking a gun safety training course to make sure I was totally clear, again, not only on how to handle the weapons, but also be safe about it.

“Like all the characters in Ghost Wars, there’s no need to give a big introduction using other peoples’ dialogue and/or exposition when it comes to who this person is, which I really like about the show. All of a sudden Jane is just there, and it kind of gives you a chance to come up with your own ideas as to what she’s all about. I’ve seen the first three episodes of the show so far, and I feel on-edge and scared when I’m watching the show, but also excited. I wish I could do into detail about Jane, but what I can tell you that like everyone who shows up in Port Moore, she has secrets and they’re slowly revealed.”

Under the Apple Box, Thirty-Seventeen and Menorca are among Gillis’ feature film credits. Along with a variety of made-for-TV movies, the actress has also appeared in several other series including The Chris Isaac Show, The L Word, Less than Kind, Motive, Shattered, The Arrangement and Freeform TV’s upcoming Siren, playing Deputy Marissa Staub. Genre fans will recognize her from roles in such shows as Battlestar Galactica, Supernatural and Lost Girl.

“I auditioned numerous times for Battlestar Galactica before I was finally just offered the part of a Marine in the fourth season,” says Gillis. “I’ll never forget showing up for a wardrobe fitting and the costume people saying to me, ‘Wait a minute. You’re playing this military person who needs to hold back a crowd of 100 people?’ It was my introduction to playing a military/authoritative character, and I should have believed earlier in myself that I could do something like that. Funnily enough it’s come around full circle for me with my roles on Ghost Wars as well as Siren. My time on Battlestar went by very quickly, and I only wish I could have done more on that show.

“Supernatural was also a great deal of fun, and, again, I auditioned for that probably five or six times consecutively, to the point where I’d walk into the audition room and the producers would be like, ‘Hey, Tammy, how are you?’ For some reason I carried a tremendous weight of really having to deliver during my auditions, and each time I felt like I was genuinely knocking it out of the park. I always did my best to be super-creative in my auditions, and I feel like everyone in the room looked forward to me coming in and seeing what I’d do next. For this particular role, I was actually in Toronto and ended up booking the job from a taped audition I sent it. I have to say that I really enjoyed acting alongside Jensen Ackles [Dean Winchester] and I learned a great deal watching the way he worked I front of the camera.

“With Lost Girl, that was another fortunate situation for me where I was offered the part. Potentially it was supposed to end up being more episodes, but then I started working on another show and the schedules conflicted. In this episode I had the pleasure of working with Anthony Lemke, who I’d worked with before on Blue Mountain State. He and I played husband and wife on that show, which was awesome because we were already comfortable with each other when it came time to do Lost Girl. So that was a blast, and Anna Silk, who was the lead on Lost Girl, is an absolute gem. The first day I walked on-set, she came over to me and said, ‘We’re all family here. If there’s anything you need, please just let me know.’ I thought that was so awesome and it was another great show to work on.”

Having grown up in a very small Manitoba town with a population of 800, the actress was about as far removed from the feature film and TV industry as a person could get. Nonetheless, Gillis still managed to occasionally feed her interest in the performing arts. “Once a year this travelling theatre show would visit our town, and my friends and I would line up hours beforehand so we could sit in the front row of the audience and be transported into this different world,” she recalls. “In high school, a new teacher came to town and started a theatre group, so I got involved in putting on plays, but at that time, the idea of one day becoming an actor never really crossed my mind. It wasn’t until I went to university, and one night when I was out with some friends, a modelling agency talent scout approached me. I was, of course, skeptical, but I decided to go to the meeting and the agency signed me on.

“I had some early success on the commercial side of things and found I really enjoyed acting. So I began taking theatre classes at university, and things slowly started shifting for me. I became involved in Winnipeg’s independent film scene, and from there started booking jobs. I was fortunate enough to be part of a short movie [the award-winning The Heart of the World], which was directed by Guy Maddin for the Toronto Film Festival. Not long after, I auditioned for and managed to book a role in a TV movie of the week that was filming in Winnipeg. The rest as they say is history. I was bitten by the acting bug, and people told me I could do this [acting], so here I am,” she enthuses.

“One of the things that continues to keep me excited and motivated as an actress is playing characters that are outside my comfort zone and ‘scare’ me,” muses Gillis. “I’d be on the Ghost Wars set, totally terrified, and think, ‘Can I pull this off?’ Then they’d throw this stuff at me, I’d do it, and it was the most fun in the world. As a creative artist, you’re simply looking to come up with something that works, and trying different ways to achieve that. It doesn’t have to be perfect, either. There just needs to be a couple of really interesting, honest, and surprising moments. So that’s what fuels me, and also the people I work with. I wasn’t in a lot of scenes with Vincent D’Onofrio in Ghost Wars, but the scenes I did have with him, and with Kim Coates, they were so passionate about making sure the dialogue sounded right and came across as honest and genuine. If you have that with your fellow actors, it makes the experience all the more incredible.”

Steve Eramo

Ghost Wars airs Thursdays @ !0:00 p.m. EST on SYFY (US). As noted above, photo courtesy/copyright of Torquille de Jonge, so please no unauthorized copying or duplicating of any kind. Thank you!