day 346

rumer willis goes gay

it looks like bruce and demi's daughter may finally have an acting job that lasts more than a day. rumer willis is being brought back to 90210 for quite the story line: sexual experimentation. what started off as a one-off guest spot has turned into a recurring gig, with rumer's character gia, a reporter for the west beverly blaze, turning one of the shows star characters, adrianna, to the other team. so, if you're keeping track, adrianna has gone through being a drug addict and rehab, becoming a teen mother and giving the baby up for adoption, and taking navid's virginity and then dumping him for her ex. what else can they put this girl through!? originally, 90210's navid was supposed to be a gay character but the network scrapped that idea for fear of turning off viewers. i guess now that the show has an established fan base, and a new showrunner, they're willing to experiment a little. and don't think this is just some ratings stunt (though it does seem to fall during sweeps?). the creative team wants viewers to know that this will be a real relationship, not just a "fling." hmm...sounds a lot like a storyline mischa barton had on the oc, no? at this point, rumer's guest stint is open ended and might even turn into a regular gig. 90210 returns with new episodes this tuesday.

day 267

promo-madness

continuing on the teen band wagon of yesterday - though, with how long it took me, it seems like it was years ago - here are a couple promos from the cw's returning shows, gossip girl and 90210. yeah, those guys. there's not much to talk about - though i will post some little updates on the blog's official twitter - so i figured i'd give you a minute of viewing pleasure. both shows are keeping up the super sexualized ads that have propelled them to mediocre ratings since their humble beginnings on the ceedub. enjoy.

day 246

mischa's not so beautiful life

current psych ward patient mischa barton is screwing up a lot of stuff (aside from her life). amidst rumors that the former oc actress's hospital stay was preceded by a three-day coke binge, the producers of her new fall show, a beautiful life (watch an extended preview above), are taking the show in a separate direction that could exist with or without mischa. plan b would keep mischa's character, sonya, involved in the show - at least in the pilot - while a separate character, jane, with a very similar story line to sonya's, is current being casted. sonya and jane are supposed to be supermodels who are starting to get a little too old and a little too pudgy to compete with the younger models just entering the scene. and they all live together. having two characters who are virtually the same could be a really interesting plot device - competition, scheming, etc - or extremely confusing (as in who is who?). filming on a beautiful life has already been pushed back a week from tomorrow's start date due to sets not being finished on time; though, i feel like they did the push back just to give barton a little extra time to pull it together. the good thing about life is that mischa isn't the only recognizable name attached - sara paxton, corbin bleu, and elle mcpherson all costar on the show. in other cw show news, jennie garth has just inked a deal to return this fall for season 2 of 90210 in the same recurring capacity as the first season. this is really good news after the new show runner said she wasn't all that interested in focusing on the original cast (which is what makes the show!). jennie's kelly will play a big role in the whole annie having (maybe) killed someone. 90210's new partner show, melrose place, also has a semi-famous face coming aboard. well, actually, they have a couple. nip/tuck's kelly carlson (kimber) will be a recurring guest star on the apartment-themed relaunch as a prostitute ring madame who lures at least one of the melrose residents - med student lauren - into working for her. carlson obviously has huge range as an actress as she plays a porn-star/entrepreneur on nip/tuck. the second face you might recognize is brooke burns (known for hosting dog eat dog). the actress will be playing the young wife of original place-er thomas calabro, who returns as michael mancini. she should be playing arm candy as she was once bruce willis' fiance.

vh1 brings divas back...sort of

after a four year hiatus of the concert series divas, which brought together the likes of the most iconic female singers of the 90s and before (like celine dion, whitney houston, and aretha franklin), the mtv-for-older people channel is brining back the special. surprisingly, though, the line-up isn't all that impressive. there hasn't really been a "diva" since the last special, mostly because that style of music has come and gone, replaced by synth beats and autotuned tracks. the 4 confirmed "divas" are leona lewis (known in america as a one-hit-wonder with "bleeding love"), adele ("chasing pavements"), kelly clarkson (the one act with more than one hit stateside), and - most surprisingly - miley cyrus. yes, tween "sensation" miley cyrus is being crowned a "diva" by vh1. the only explanation for this has to be to gain ratings and bring attention to the show that everyone has forgotten about. the cool thing about the choices is that we'll get to see the 4 women perform together multiple times. i cannot wait to see miley try to hold her own against voices like leona and adele. the show will air september 17th on vh1.

day 226

lizzie mcguire meets the upper east side

nbc is probably kicking themselves right now. the peacock net passed on hilary duff's pilot, barely legal, after shelling out millions to add the star to their roster and now another net - the cw - has picked up the former disney star. how crappy was legal that nbc was willing to lose that much money on duff? hilary has been added to the gossip girl young hollywood roster as a heavily recurring character who has potential to become a series regular. duff will play olivia burke, a famous teen actress who decides to take a shot at having a normal life by enrolling in college. olivia enrolls at nyu (where most of the gossip characters are headed) and is roomed with jessica szhor's vanessa. placing a famous actress with a budding film maker? sounds like drama is definitely ahead. there's no word as to how many episodes duff will stick around for as of yet, but she'll make her debut in the season's fourth episode, premiering october 5th. if we don't meet roomies until then, and the show premieres early on in september, then i think it's safe to say there's going to be at least 2 episodes focused on summer drama. i think this is a really good nab for the gossip net. the ceedub reportedly offered duff the lead role of annie in the relaunch of 90210, but she passed, not wanting to return to teen tv. it appears her opinions have changed, huh? i bet hilary wished she had taken that role now that she's kind of job-less, minus the guest stint here and there. hopefully she'll get a lot of screen time on the upcoming season. duff will be joined by michelle trachtenberg, who is returning as bitch in hells georgina sparks. trachtenberg's nbc pilot - mercy - was actually picked up by the peacock net, but won't launch until midseason and probably won't take off. it looks like some weird combo between grey's anatomy and showtime's nurse jackie. hopefully that means georgina will be able to come back full time.

day 225

casting craze

as a lot of your favorite fall tv series head back into production, some crazy casting news is making its way out. desperate housewives hasn't started back up on production yet, but they are just about ready to roll. to fill the shoes of a now-dead edie (nicolette sheridan), sopranos star drea de matteo has landed the role of a feisty italian who moves to wisteria lane - with husband and kid in toe - to stir up trouble. with at least one of the housewives (either susan or catherine) getting married to mike delfino, producers wanted to add in a young, hot wife. plus, whenever a new cast member comes in, they usually bring a new mystery ... now that chris meloni and mariska hargitay are officially back on board for 11th season of their (and nbc's only) hit show, law and order: svu - they'll both be making about $400,000 an episode, making mariska the highest paid actress on tv - more casting is underway for the new season. the show has turned to a revolving door of sorts for the assistant district attorney spot. stephanie march, who was with the show from 2000-2003, is returning to ada alexandra cabot's suits later in the season, but christine lahti, who is known for chicago hope and was most recently seen in the beyonce thriller obsessed, will appear in at least 4 episodes as a fill in ada. sounds like quite the casting coup ... in more legal show news, lifetime's new original series, drop dead diva, which premieres this weekend and follows the trials (no pun intended) and tribulations of a supermodel who dies and wakes up in the body of a plus-sized lawyer, has nabbed liza minelli and designing women's delta burke to play dueling psychic sisters who take each other to court for opening competing shops across the street from one another. rosie o'donnel will appear in the episode with the actresses in a recurring role as the local judge ... the bitch is back on one tree hill. while she's been absent for the past 2 seasons, and thus about 7 years, daneel harris is returning to tree hill as her character rachel gatina. the show will take another time jump this upcoming season, jumping one year to better help explain the absences of chad michael murray and hilarie burton and the introduction of new characters, like nathan's sports agent played by lipstick jungle star robert buckley (who won the role out over brian austin green) and one of haley's older sisters who returns home. no word on how rachel will stir up some shit, but she is sure to due so. she'll make her first return appearance in the season's 2nd episode and stick around for at least 7 eps ... in more cw show news, 90210 has found their answer to the now fired dustin milligan's ethan. i think it's pretty safe to assume ethan is the kid who annie hit in the first season finale, as dustin was not invited back to the show for a second season and reportedly won't be making any story line wrap up appearances. to fill the golden boy role, the zip code serial has cast former soap star and abercrombie model trevor donovan. google him and you'll probably come to the same conclusion i did - he's just too old. but, oh well. it's tv and it's not like any of the other actors look like high school sophomores anyway. trevor will be a "heavily recurring" jfk jr type who works his way into the world of the characters we've come to know. the cw's biggest series, gossip girl, has cast former privileged (and reba) star joanna garcia to play a new love interest for nate (aka chace crawford). she'll be a southern charmer who has a history in beauty pageants. i guess that means joanna will be going back to her old, blonde look. i hope she is supposed to be an older character. again, she's a little older looking than the rest of the upper east siders ... and, finally, rapper/tv star/designer eve has taken on the role of a rival choir director on fox's new series, glee. the role was reportedly originally offered to whitney houston, but she turned it down to focus on her forthcoming album.

check the twitter for even more tv news.

day 133

90210 cast shake up?

it looks like season 2 of the cw's flagship show 90210 is going to look a little different.  reports are surfacing that current season regular dustin milligan, who plays ethan ward, has been dropped as a series regular and will return in a recurring capacity.  the show recently switched hands in the form of showrunner - former series writer rebecca rand kirschner just inked a deal to run the show for 2 seasons after gabe sachs and jeff judah recently stepped down from the network after a number of disputes over the show's direction.  kirschner apparently wants to take the show in its originally proposed direction, doing what gossip girl did for kids in new york to the youth in lalaland.  basically, the show will be more edgy.  kirschner also wants to stop the "casting people for stunt value" aspect of the show, which i can only interpret as a dig to original series returners jennie garth, shannen doherty, and tori spelling.  all in all, kirschner seems like a grade a beyotch.  but, most people in hollywood are strong minded.  so what will become of dustin/ethan?  the character will reportedly have "run his course" and be back to tie up some loose ends.  to take the "bad boy" place that was originally intended to be ethan's (remember the bj sequence in the first ep?), recent recurring star matt lanter - the tough bartender who naomi is trying to impress - has been bumped up to full time cast member for the next season. milligan really doesn't have the best of luck with the ceedub; his show runaway was supposed to be the star series of the new network in its first year but was quickly dropped by the net after it failed to garner "big ratings."  turns out the show did just about as well as 90210 is doing.  however, no official word has been put out by the network yet.  this should be interesting.  

britney won't leave herself alone

i just don't understand why ms. spears doesn't seem to have her best interest in mind.  or, at least, that's what some people want us to believe.  gossip site jfxonline (yeah, i hadn't heard of it either) got hold of the recording above.  it was allegedly left on britney's lawyer's voice mail.  here's the transcript of the call. 

"hi my name’s britney spears. i called you earlier. i’m calling again because i just wanted to make sure that during the process of eliminating the conservatorship that my father has threatened me several times, you know, he’ll take my children away.

i just want to be guaranteed that everything will be fine with the process of you guys taking care of everything–that things will stay the same as far as my custodial time. that’s it, bye."

now, because it is a voicemail, we can't be 100% sure it is brit brit, but it sure does sound like here.  though, i'm sure there's a person or two out there who has perfected her accent.  the call came in late january, so this kind of action could be taking place right now.  but why?  i don't understand what's so bad about the conservatorship - she's doing what she (allegedly) loves, making a lot of money, and gets more time with her kids than ever! oh well, it is britney.  

just 2 stories again today. 

day 132

this might be...

my favorite picture ever. 90210 star annaylnne mccord left the season 1 wrap party for the cw series at an la nightclub looking completely and utterly throwed! i bet she hurled like no other when she got in the car.  the one plus was that the actress attended the event with a designated driver in toe.  i want to frame this picture, it's so entertaining.  it may even become my computer background.  just wanted to share the loveliness that is miss mccord with everyone.  i don't know if this is the best image to be sending out to people when you play a 16 year old on tv - viewers might get confused. at least annalynne has job security throught 2010 - 90210 has been confirmed a sophmore season on the ceedub. if you want to see some more effed up stars, click here. 

kids choice awards - who the hell won?

after a lot of dramz (the lesbian themed anthem "i kissed a girl" was nominated and chris brown withdrew his name from consideration after that whole rihanna thing), the nickelodeon kids choice awards took place saturday night.  here's the winners from the biggest categories: high school musical 3 took home the best movie blimp, while will smith (hancock) and vanessa hudgens (hsm 3) won for favorite tv actor and actress respectively.  i carly was the kids' choice for fave tv show, while disney stars selena gomez and dylan sprouse took home the top acting honors.  don't worry, folks, miley wasn't completely shut out.  the disney diva was named fave female singer alongside male choice jesse mccartney.  fellow disney stars the jonas brothers were the choice for favorite groups and katy perry's bisexual hit was beat out by beyonce's "single ladies." miley was even moved to tears by her award.  wow. well it seems no matter how hard the orange splatted network tries, they still are beat out by the mouse house - on their own awards show, no less! 

2 stories is better than none, right? 

day 78

lutfi lashes back

osama "sam" lutfi, britney's former "manager" and cohort, has decided to file suit against britney's parental units for defamation.  the creepy mycreeperson claims that the spears clan went on a campaign of slander, physically and emotionally intimidating lutfi to drive him out of their daughter's life.  brit's parents aren't alone in suit either; lutfi is suing britney, herself, for unpaid management fees.  he also claims that lynne spears, not lutfi and his pill-pushing management, drove britney to her most recent meltdown and that they are unfit parents.  he blames the twosome for causing britney to feel threatened by him and that he was the reason for her comeback, not them.  now, if sam were to really look at the situation, he would see that he was around when britney's life was in shambles and her parents were around when her life was (and is) running smoothly.  it might just be coincidence, but i would say that he is the common thread between all the bad times in brit's life.  and, as for his allegations that lynne spears's book, through the storm, is libel, i would just say that anytime someone writes a memoir, someone is probably not going to be happy - but there's no reason to sue them.  lutfi is seeking 15% of brit's money for each of her earnings during his "management," and inordinate sum that he probably won't receive.  

hilary duff and faye dunaway: catfight

it looks like new hollywood and old hollywood are about to start a battle royale.  with news breaking that hilary duff will be taking the role that made faye famous, bonnie of bonnie and clyde, in an all new biopic, faye did not seem all that happy.  the oscar winning (yet hollywood shunned) actress posed the question "couldn't they have cast a real actress?"  last week after news broke, which didn't sit well with the former disney darling.  now hilary is lashing back, telling e! news that "i think that my fans that are going to see the movie don't even know who she [faye] is, so you know...i think it was a little unnecessary but i might be mad if i looked like that now too."  well, the truth hurts - on both accounts.  the film is not a remake of faye's iconic film and, therefore, the whole fight is really stupid.  plenty of actresses play the same roles and no one gets angry.  but a good fight is always fun to hear about.  and faye really shouldn't be too angry - hilary paid homage to work in bonnie and clyde last summer in allure.   

cw show news

paparazzi are never the friend on tv sets, where plots should be kept under wraps.  two cw shows recently fell victim to the lens of the constant snappers, revealing some upcoming twists to the show.  first up is gossip girl.  the monday night teen drama was filming on location in nyc when the paps snapped two costars stealing a kiss on camera.  it looks like blair (leighton meester) and nate (chace crawford) will be getting back together, ending the relationships between blair and chuck and nate and vanessa.  but, it could also just be a flashback.  either way, we'll get to see in the next couple of weeks.  and tori spelling made her first appearance on the 90210 set, sharing a scene with former cast mate jennie garth and her character's half sister (and tori's character's sister-in-law), played by jessica stroup.  it looks like tori was channeling the 70s (maybe paying tribute to her father's charlie's angels?) with her hair while the threesome filmed a car scene on the streets of la.  after a lot of issues (tori had quite a few demands), donna martin finally will be appearing on the relaunch of the show that made her famous somewhere around episode 16 and will probably be a recurring star, trying to launch a hip boutique for the kids of west bev.  

day 51

lautner lands moon

looks like michael copon is going to have to look for work somewhere else.  taylor lautner will keep the part of jacob black in new moon, the sequel to megahit twilight, scheduled for release later this year.  after speculation that the babyfaced 16 year old wouldn't be able to handle the "new-and-improved" jacob of the second book (in which the character grows to giant heights and has the appearance of a 25 year old), new moon director chris weitz and series auther stephanie meyer each released statements today that they believed the original cast would be the best choice for continuing the series.  lautner, in an attempt to keep the role that is sure to make him famous, has packed on 19 pounds of muscle and is willing to put on 10+ more lbs before filming of the next installment begins.  fans had also been campaigning to keep the original actor and they are sure to be happy with the choice.  this casting seems to make the most sense - why change something that's not broken? 

donna martin graduates...to 90210 

tori spelling is finally headed back to the zip-code that made her famous.  reprising the role of donna martin, spelling will begin filming in late january for an episode to air later in the season.  spelling had not been willing to return to the show when it was first launched when she learned that returning cast members shannen doherty and jennie garth were getting paid nearly double the salary spelling was offered. jason priestly, the original 90210's brendan, is set to direct the ep.  this should be interesting. as far as i know, only jennie garth will be on the episode alongside spelling. what will donna martin be up to? when the series was first in development, donna was supposed to be owning a "kitson-like" boutique that all the 90210-ers frequent.  oh well, it will be interesting to see what her nose job and boob job will be able to pull off in 2009. 

just a thought...

who is writing magazine headlines these days? ok magazine's latest cover has quite the incoherent title for an article all about britney: "what price fame?" um...it seems like they're missing a word there, like "what price for fame?" you'd think that before a major publication went to shelves and subscribers someone would be "that doesn't look right." maybe i'm missing something, but it just seems like something should be said about this.  

day 28

new moon, new stars

it looks like new twilight series director chris weitz may have found his perfect cast. while keeping the majority of the major players around, the character of jacob has been up for grabs.  taylor lautner, who plays the role in the first movie, is apparently not wanted back for the second - he's too "baby faced" for the leading man/werewolf role in the second installment.  the actor apparently very close to stealing the role is michael copon, known for his work on one tree hill, power rangers, and but can they sing?  the actor has nearly 10 years on lautner, coming in at 26.  but, is he too old to play the role? lautner is almost 17, the age the character is supposed to be in real life.  kristin stewart (bella) is only 19 and robert pattinson is 22.  to me, this seems like hollywood's unrealistic portrayal of teenagers.  a teenager can't play a teenager, but someone old enough to have a wife and kids can.  so what if lautner is so young.  it seems like copon and stewart would be too creepy together. the other role up for grabs is that of mind reading vampire aro.  narnia: prince caspian star ben barnes is apparently going after the role.  he seems to fit into the mix, but i'm not sold on copon.  with only 12 weeks until filming on the next movie begins, these decisions better be made fast.  

shenae grimes, headed for mental breakdown?

what is wrong with shenae grimes, former star of degrassi and current star of 90210.  click here to watch the chain-smoking starlet's recent appearance at canadian television awards show, the geminis.  it seems like shenae is either drunk or cracked out - she uses a variety of voices in the interview, appears to have lipstick on her teeth and smudged makeup, and slurs her words.  we do not need an amy winehouse meets lindsay lohan meets shannen doherty circa '94 breakdown with shenae.  i don't get it with these young stars - you're living "the dream," why ruin it? go to work, go home.  no need to go out partying and doing drugs.  i won't be surprised if shenae makes a "post-glitter mariah carey with an ice cream cart on trl" sometime in the near future...hopefully the canadimess won't ruin the newly restarted franchise and will get her act together.  

will smith, forever coming to a theater near you

even with the recent us economic woes, big hollywood studios aren't cutting back on big hollywood blockbusters.  2 will smith sequel vehicles have been green lighted.  first up is the i am legend prequel, which will follow the destruction of america due to the spread of the fatal disease that smith's character dies of in the fist film.  second is the hancock sequel, which is just waiting on charlize theron's signature on the contracts.  smith is known to be bankable on holiday weekends, so these films will probably be out in time for 4th of july of '09 or '10.  

small bits

none of these stories were really big enough to write whole pieces on so here's a few small bites - tom cruise apologized for his matt lauer-scientology rant from a few years ago today, on the exact location of the original confrontation, the today show...it looks like a lot of the tv and music rumors we've heard recently are completely fabricated - nicole richie is not recording an album or working with rihanna...mischa barton will not be guesting on ugly betty...the cw is not working on a gossip girl spinoff focusing on lily and rufus, but will be working on one (yay! georgina still has a chance!)...michelle williams is not planning on accepting any awards on behalf of her late baby daddy heath ledger this season...it looks like tr knight (george) will be let out of his grey's anatomy contract, though he is the third actor in the history of the show asked to be let out (any guesses to the other two? catherine heigl and sandra oh are my guesses - sandra close to the show's commencement - she was a burgeoning indie movie star [sideways] - and katherine last season - she is a "movie star"...in her head)...mark schwann, the big boss over at one tree hill, is in talks to helm the relaunch of melrose place for the ceedub (cw)

day 17

tv blast

gossip girl - the bitch is back. no, not blair. michelle trachtenberg's georgina sparks should be back on your screens at the end of the current season of the cw hit.  no deal has been made yet, but the producers and creative forces behind the show are actively working on getting both the star and character back on screen. of course, georgina will be back to stir up some dramz...but what will it be? let's hope it has something to do with little j, since she's gotten the bulk of this season's crazy story lines.  

the rachel zoe project - you haven't seen the last of the fashion stylist with the melting face. the "37" year old will be back on bravo for a second season sometime in the new year.  will we see nicole riche, zoe's former star client, since the two have reconciled? whatever happens, it's sure to be "bananas." click here to watch bonnie hunt's hilarious impression of rachel - just scroll down on the side bar, it's near the bottom. 

bromance - are we really ready to see brody jenner in his own starring project? the son of one-time-too-many face operation wonder bruce jenner and that blonde chick whose laid everyone from elvis to david foster is getting his own paris hilton's my new bff.  the show will feature 9 contestants in 6 episodes, with jenner eliminating them in a hot tub.  i don't know, but this sounds like the biggest sausage fest ever known to man. 

lily allen, not a crack whore

the struggling british singer lily allen looks to be on the comeback trail.  allen released her new video for the single "the fear." click here to check out the video, which has a very tongue-in-cheek vibe.  her last album was so good and, by the looks and sounds of this track, her sophmore effort will be just as good.  it's very chill, talking about a superficial life.  it's sure to be the theme for something or be featured on a tv promo, minus the not safe for work language. looks like lily isn't going down the amy winehouse path, which is where she appeared to be headed.  it wasn't that long ago that the singer was seen with pink hair exposing her lady business...

heidi and spencer...i just threw up a little

the most unnatural, disturbing couple probably in the history of the world (minus liza minelli and david gest), speidi of the hills, are on their honeymoon in "exotic" mexico.  so, they got married in mexico, came back to america to show off the tackiest wedding jewelry ever, and then back to mexico? and, of course, the couple was shot by paparazzi in some very "natural" poses. spencer also released a statement in response to heidi's mom's comments from the other day, saying he and heidi will be together for the rest of their lives and that he believes her mom is just jealous that she wasn't in attendance at the wedding. 

you can go home again...you just might not like it 

90210 and former degrassi star shenae grimes gave her hometown toronto a glimpse of her diva treatment when she came back for the holidays and gemini awards, america's hat's equivalent of the emmys.  grimes wouldn't be interviewed by any media outlets, as she saw none up to her "starlet standards," and even avoided the media room backstage, saying "i try to avoid all that shit." such a pretty little mouth she has. did she learn nothing from shannen doherty? shenae plays generally the same character as doherty did on the original zip code hit, and was removed from the show after four seasons because of her inability to get along with cast members.  since this is one of many news breaks about degrassi's darcy's behavior, i'm taking it as fact. 

the princess diaries, oscar contender? 

well, not exactly.  but, the disney franchise's star, anne hathaway, is well on her way to grabbing that little gold man. just nominated for an independent spirit award for rachel getting married, anne was named the recipient of the national board of review's best actress award for the same role.  these two award nods are usually pretty on the dot of predicting who wins what at the big show.  after being snubbed for her work in brokeback mountain, hathaway deserves this award, especially after her tumultuous year dealing with her con of an ex...hathaway's next major project is bride wars opposite kate hudson, slated for early 2009. click on the film titles to look at their trailers.