Protag takes 'Sister' privileges

LONDON - The U.K.'s Protagonist Pictures has had on world privileges for helmer-scribe Lynn Shelton's "Your Sister's Sister," among the buzz game titles at Toronto this month, excluding The United States, Blighty, Gaul, New zealand and australia. IFC clicked up domestic privileges after its Toronto preem. Pic has offered to some raft of worldwide areas such as the U.K. (Studiocanal) and France (Le Pacte), plus Oz and New Zealand (Madman). Deals were came to the conclusion by UTA and Submarine Entertainment. Pic stars Emily Blunt and Rosemarie DeWitt and follows the storyline of siblings who compete for the similar guy. Steven Schardt created, while Vallejo Ganter, Jennifer Roth, Mark Duplass and Shelton professional created. Duplass and Shelton first worked with on 2009's "Humpday." Contact Diana Lodderhose at diana.lodderhose@variety.com

Begin To See The Vampire Journals Stars Then and today

Paul Wesley The heavens from the Vampire Journals may play senior high school teens on tv, but what did they seem like once they were barely grown ups? The Vampire Journals Bite: Is Damon a better option for Elena? Within the latest gallery from Snakkle.com, see Paul Wesley give his best student portrait pose and Candice Accola throughout her days like a backup singer for Miley Cyrus. Plus: Katerina Graham is at a Lindsay Lohan movie? See the photos here.

Joe Roth Taking Producer Role In Julia Roberts-Starrer Maleficent For Disney

EXCLUSIVE: If Joe Roth were anymore carefully connected with favorite anecdotes, he’d be among the Grimm Siblings. Roth, who help start Hollywood’s feverish devotion to story book films by creating the $1 billion-grossing Alice's adventures in wonderland, is settling being producer of Maleficent, Disney’s re-telling of their 1959 classic Sleeping Beauty, this time around told in the standpoint from the evil witch. It’s not a secret that Julia Roberts really wants to play that character. The script was compiled by Linda Woolverton, who scripted Alice's adventures in wonderland in addition to Disney’s lately re-launched The Lion King and sweetness and also the Animal. They're searching for a director following a preliminary courtship of Alice helmer Tim Burton didn’t exercise. Apart from Alice's adventures in wonderland, Roth is creating Disney’s Mike Raimi-directed Disney pic Oz: The Truly Amazing and Effective with James Franco, Michelle Williams, Mila Kunis and Rachel Weisz, in addition to Snow Whitened and also the Huntsman, the Universal Pictures epic that's being directed by Rupert Sanders and stars Charlize Theron, Billy Burke and Chris Hemsworth.

Russell Brand to Help Julianne Hough Sin, Find Herself in Diablo Cody's Directorial Debut

Footloose remake co-star and Dancing with the Stars ingnue Julianne Hough has landed the lead in Diablo Cody’s newly untitled feature directorial debut about a conservative young woman who regains her faith after heading to Sin City. And who will play the wild and crazy figure that helps her on her debauched path to redemption? None other than Russell Brand. Perfect casting, no? Mandate Pictures made the announcement today in a press release that curiously referred to the project, previously titled Lamb of God, as Untitled Diablo Cody Project. Maybe the film’s undergoing a title change? Regardless, Brand’s sort of a no-brainer in the way of mentoring anyone in the ways of Vegas-style depravity, and Hough’s acting career is on the rise; she’s certainly got the innocent, All American look down even if her dramatic talents are relatively unproven. With Cody both writing and behind the camera, it’ll be interesting to see how much Hough can stray from her good girl image. Press release follows… =========== Mandate Pictures announced today that Julianne Hough (FOOTLOOSE) and Russell Brand (GET HIM TO THE GREEK) will star in the UNTITLED DIABLO CODY PROJECT. Academy Award winner Diablo Cody will make her feature directorial debut from her original screenplay. Mason Novick (500 DAYS OF SUMMER) will produce. Mandate president Nathan Kahane (50/50) will executive produce alongside Diablo Cody. Nicole Brown, EVP of Production, is overseeing the project on behalf of Mandate Pictures. The project is on a fast track for a spring production start. Lionsgate is handling international sales and will present the film as part of their upcoming American Film Market slate.The comedy follows a sheltered young woman (Hough) who loses her faith after a plane crash and decides to go to Las Vegas to experience the wild side of life. On her journey, she meets an unlikely companion (Brand) who inadvertently helps her find her true self.Julianne Hough is represented by CAA and Azoff, Geary, Paul, Smith Management. Russell Brand is represented by WME and manager Nik Linnen. Diablo Cody is also represented by WME and attorney Jeff Frankel of McKuin Frankel Whitehead LLP. Dan Freedman, SVP of Business & Legal Affairs, and Allison Strina, VP of Business & Legal Affairs, negotiated the deals for Mandate.THE UNTITLED DIABLO CODY PROJECT marks the third collaboration with Cody, Novick and Mandate after their successful partnerships on JUNO and YOUNG ADULT, which will be released by Paramount Pictures this December. JUNO, directed by Reitman and written by Cody, garnered a host of accolades, including an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay (Diablo Cody) and three Academy Award nominations for Best Motion Picture (Lianne Halfon, Mason Novick and Russell Smith, Producers), Best Actress, and Best Director. The $227 million box-office and critical sensation was released by Fox Searchlight in late 2007. ###

TV Ratings: 'The Office' Return Dips, 'The Large Bang Theory' Tops Thursday

NBC Your competitors will get fierce on Thursday nights. Fox assigned the evening while using second episode in the X Factor (12.5 million total audiences, 4.3 rating in grownups 18-49 demographic). Simon Cowell's new reality competition series tied its series debut on Wednesday in general audiences and retaining nearly all its demo (4.3 versus. 4.4). Up to now now, the network has notched victories for 3 in the four nights in the fall season. (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday). PHOTOS: Fall TV Dying Pool: Which Show Will Probably Be Axed First? Still, it absolutely was CBS' premiere in the Large Bang Theory (14.millions of, 4.8 and 14.7 million, 5.) -- the show, airing back-to-back episodes and praising Jim Parson's second Emmy win -- that needed the crown since the evening's finest-rated and several-seen program due to its 8:30-9 p.m. telecast. Person of curiosity (13.2 million, 3.1), our prime-concept drama from J.J. Abrams and Jonathan Nolan was lower 9 % compared to CSI's premiere, but ranked since the most-seen program at 9 p.m. At 10 p.m., The Mentalist (13.6 000 0000, 2.8), lower 18 percent in the premiere a year ago, still won the evening in general tune-in. CBS wasn't any. 2 inside the demo, calculating a 3.6, but ongoing to fulfill its title in the "most-seen network," calculating a Thursday high: 13.6 000 0000. PHOTOS: Behind the curtain of THR's 'X Factor' Cover Shoot ABC's Charlie's Angels reboot (8.7 million, 2.1), though undertaking more than the launch of My Generation last September, didn't exactly strike a chord with audiences. The Two-hour premiere of Grey's Anatomy (10.3 million, 4.1) dipped 24 percent and ranks since the veteran medical drama's least expensive-premiere so far. NBC's Thursday evening comedy selection all saw decreases from a year ago, with lots of striking lows due to its season openers: Community (4 million, 1.7) dipped 23 percent, Parks & Entertainment (4.millions of, 2.) was lower 38 percent as well as the Office (7.6 000 0000, 3.9), while using reveal from the new branch manager as well as the first episode of James Spader's just like a regular, saw a 11 percent drop. The eighth season opener in the Office is its least expensive-rated since the first season. PHOTOS: Fall's 12 Most Anticipated Shows Even Whitney (6.millions of, 3.2) didn't boost the debut at work comedy Outsourced, which was canceled after one season, lower 11 percent. The lull affected the launch of latest series Prime Suspect (6 000 0000, 1.8), the U.S. reboot with Maria Bello, which barely contended having its competition (The Mentalist, Grey's Anatomy) at 10 p.m. Facing heavy competition, the CW dramas The Vampire Journals (2.5 million, 1.2) as well as the Secret Circle (2 million, .9) both saw steep drops. TV Ratings

A Gifted Man's Neal Baer States Show Explores the Moments around that Change Everything

Patrick Wilson While A Gifted Guy is rooted in medicine, it's also about twists of fate, executive producer Neal Baer states."Most of us consider people moments inside our lives that stand out where serendipity, synchronicity, fate - anything you like to think of it as - intervened," according to him. "The show really explores people moments inside our lives that could change everything."Fall TV: Have the lowdown relating to this season's must-see new showsIn the premiere, famous neurosurgeon Michael Holt (Patrick Wilson) reunites with ex-wife Anna (Jennifer Ehle). He soon finds out she's dead which he's been interacting with a ghost. Michael is going to be designated with ongoing the task she'd started inside a low-earnings clinic. Holt's practice "has all you need, every test, every tool and each gadget and gadget. The clinic his wife went doesn't have an X-ray machine. You can too supply the same kind of healthcare? No," Baer states.Anna's arrival not only triggers a completely new number of problems as Michael goes back-and-forth involving the two centers, but forces him to look hard into why he's been so closed off around, a sizable reason the pair got divorced. "He has many emotional and issues about why he's built this beautiful wall around themselves that we'll be exploring," Baer adds.CBS' A Gifted Guy will explore the upstairs-downstairs, science versus. belief sides of medicineWhile Baer, who executive-produced ER, values the series certainly gets the "pace and pathos" from the medical series, he thinks the supernatural aspect will draw people in. "It's this twist of searching on the planet diversely, and thinking about our pasts, and turns we now have taken that we hope people will respond to.InchA Gifted Guy premieres Friday on 8/7c on CBS.

Your Best Guide towards the Negative Side of 'The Avengers' Cast

Because it works out, even superheroes possess a negative side. In 'Puncture,' in limited release on Friday, Chris Evans shows a crusading personal injuries lawyer... who also is actually hooked on various drugs. You heard right: Captain America is really a smack mind. What's going to the small Jimmys and Johnnys around the globe think about him?! Fortunately -- or regrettably, based on your view -- Evans is not alone one of the cast of 'The Avengers' if this involves representing figures of questionable conduct in other projects. Ahead, a closer inspection in the all-star cast from the approaching Marvel super hero flick, with particular attention compensated for their more dark roles. The Negative Side of 'The Avengers' Cast Robert Downey Junior, 'Less Than Zero'Chris Evans, 'Puncture'Chris Hemsworth, 'Ollie Klublershturf Versus. the Nazis'Samuel L. Jackson, 'Jungle Fever'Jeremy Renner, 'Dahmer'Mark Ruffalo, 'Reservation Road'Scarlett Johansson, 'The Last Score' See All Moviefone Art galleries » All gallery images thanks to Everett

'Playboy Club' Showrunner: 'There's a concept of the Show That's False'

NBC's newcomer drama "The Playboy Club" has already established a bumpy road in dealing with the screen.The project has already established the mother and father Television Council up in arms two times before the very first episode unspooled. First, the PTC required problem with nudity clauses incorporated in the actors' contracts and, more lately, over co-star Laura Benanti occupying a retro cover of "Playboy" magazine they stated "mainstreamed pornography."Additionally, women's privileges activist Gloria Steinem, who went undercover that the gym has the series is dependant on, stated the series "normalizes a passive dominant concept of gender" and known as for any boycott."The Hollywood Reporter" swept up with showrunner Chad Hodge to go over set up series really enables women, just how much Hugh Hefner is going to be involved and set up debate all around the series which was NBC's first drama pilot order from the 2011-12 season can help or hurt the show. THR: The large story being released from the Television Critics' Association's press tour was that "The Playboy Club" is strengthening for ladies. Could it be a reveal that enables women? How? Hodge: (Laughs.) I believe that story would be a little overblown. Everything I meant after i stated that could be that the Rabbits in those days were not the same as nearly all women for the reason that they provided more income, which if you have more income, you are able to perform more things particularly if it is your own money. Exactly what the show is really, is really a sexy, fun cleaning soap that's really shimmering and fabulous and it has a tone into it a small small pop tone, that is very intentional.After I set to create this show, the very first word from my mouth was "entertaining." I would like it to be entertaining, I wish to function as the first demonstrate watch when you are getting home and switch on your Digital recording device since it is that fun demonstrate search for. What arrived on the scene of TCA, because of the character from the questions that people were getting and also the debate which was swirling in those days, people believed that the show had high intellectual ambitions in some manner. Yes, the figures are deep and also the tales are intricate and it is about real people, however the goals of the show aren't political by any means. It isn't said to be a brief history lesson.After I spoken about this being strengthening to women, it's strengthening to women who wish to apply it themselves, in the event that's the things they choose. Since the type of questioning got so serious, I believe there is a notion that people were trying to behave politically ambitious or create a statement or get this to a show about strengthening women, which sounds super boring in my experience. That seems like a documentary, which this is really not. This really is a lot more like "Chicago," "Moulin Rouge" and "Everything Jazz," "Desperate Average women." This can be a fun, sexy cleaning soap.THR: Gloria Steinem has known as for any boycott, calling the show a "passive, dominant concept of gender." Thinking about her experience working in the Playboy Club does press like this help or hurt a newcomer show? Hodge: I suppose we'll see. I believe there's a concept of the show that's false. The debate that's originate from both Left and also the Right is originating from those who have accepted they haven't seen the show. They are leaving comments on "Playboy" [playboy] instead of us. It may only help whenever your show is spoken about. What's great is the fact that individuals have each one of these varying opinions and perspectives on "Playboy" and when it is a good or bad factor, that's naturally dramatized within our show. They discuss these things, these figures. And they've lives outdoors the club. The show isn't nearly them as Rabbits, though I'd reason that there is nothing wrong having a lady using her sexuality to obtain what she would like if she would like to. That's her choice. You will find different brands of feminism and that i don't believe it ought to be boxed into anyone version. They, particularly when I spoke to former Rabbits, most of them say, "I've all of the respect on the planet for Gloria Steinem and she's among my heroes and did more for ladies than anybody else, but she got this wrong." I heard that from the 3 former Rabbits.THR: Perhaps you have had any connection with Steinem? Hodge: No. I'd love to speak to her once she's seen the show. I have read her account to be a Playboy Bunny, it had been among the first a few things i read [after signing onto perform the show]. Oddly enough enough, it's pretty tame. It's known as "I Had Been a Playboy Bunny" and from what I'd learned about her experience and take, I had been ready for something so scathing so when I just read it so their ft hurt, large deal.THR: There is a nudity clause within the agreement for the cast. Is the fact that rare for any network show? Hodge: I'm not sure the other shows have and do not have if this involves nudity clauses. It had been something which was definitely not asked for through the network. The show completely adheres to any or all FCC broadcast standards and that we certainly do not have time for you to shoot two versions from the show: one with breasts and something without, and so i don't believe you will be seeing any nudity on the program.THR: So speculation the DVD includes nudity is incorrect? Hodge: Tonally, it isn't really on the planet from the show. If the would be a show about "Playboy" magazine -- and also the tales were driven with that -- you'd have moments at centerfold shoots. If the happened in the "Playboy" magazine offices, for instance, that might be an entire different show that needs to be on cable there would need to be nudity or else you would not be telling the best story. This is one of the Playboy Rabbits in the club, that was associated with "Playboy" magazine since it ended underneath the umbrella of the identical company, but apart from that the guidelines that been around and exactly how of live like a Playboy Bunny had really nothing related to nudity actually it clearly did not have anything related to nudity. THR: The Mother And Father Television Council's complaints and NBC's Salt Lake City affiliate declining to air the series Hodge: I am sure they are likely to beg to air it soon (laughs). I believe after they begin to see the show and where future episodes will go, there's really absolutely nothing to stress about.THR: Hugh Hefner's voice was featured within the pilot, the way he be engaged moving forward? Hodge: His voice won't continue being area of the show, it's only within the pilot introducing and kick-off the world. He's area of the show moving forward, we do not use his voice but we still might find him every occasionally in the manner that you simply do in the finish from the pilot: the thing is his back in the desk.THR: He's Charlie from "Charlie's Angels." Hodge: Basically, yes. But he isn't always at this desk like Charlie is he moves around. Sometimes we'll see him that the gym has in the back and he's spoken about. You may never tell the storyline of anything related to Playboy without acknowledging Hef in some manner. He's a name within the show, largely off-screen. When he's on-screen, it's in the back, side, a silhouette, since it does not tell his specific story. He isn't a personality together with his own narrative.THR: Will that ever change? Called the decision not have Hef be considered a regular character intentional? Hodge: Your decision was intentional for the time being. I'm able to never say never. You never know in which the series may go, particularly if it continues for any very long time. For the time being, the tales are centered on the Rabbits and Nick Dalton (Eddie Cibrian). If the involved playboy, Hef could be your No. 1 character.THR: The amount of a job is he going to have using the series? Hodge: He's certainly involved. Alta Loma Entertainment is Playboy's production arm and they are executive producers around. We visit them for production design questions, precision and historic questions. They get all of our outlines and scripts, however i can't recall the last time they gave an email. They are very hands-off they are not attempting to steer story or make Playboy look great. It isn't handled for the reason that way by "Playboy."THR: Did Alta Loma possess a submit your decision to not feature Hef like a character? Hodge: He did not need to make it his story. There wasn't any argument against not getting him and i believe he was happy about this. He really loves how he's utilized in the series and explained that. He likes the total amount he's inside and exactly how he's portrayed.THR: You've already drawn on "Voice" champion Javier Colon, Colbie Caillat and Raphael Saadiq to guest star. Any extra musical entertainers you have your skills on? Hodge: Moving forward, we'll be representing differing people: Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Junior., Dusty Springfield. They are not occur stone however i anticipate getting more and more people like Raphael, Colbie and Javier on the program. We now have differing people in your mind but we actually want to get Bruno Mars on the program and that he desires to get it done.THR: With "Playboy Club" and ABC's "Pan Am" both occur the sixties, any possibility of a crossover? Hodge: I wouldn't be in opposition to it. That might be amusing, however i doubt our galleries would agree. (Laughing) That might be so funny: the Rabbits all board the Pan Am flight or even the stewardesses all arrived at the "Playboy Club." That's advisable and that i love The new sony. I ought to contact them!InchThe Playboy Club" premieres Monday on NBC. The Hollywood Reporter

Matt's Self-help guide to Monday Evening TV: New and Returning Shows

two and a half Males This being this type of epic week inside the TV business, with almost all new and returning shows premiering inside the kickoff for the official TV season, I'm modifying my "self-help guide to a couple of daysInch format all week to target individually on each evening generally: analyzing the programming techniques and showdowns while previewing the aircraft aircraft pilots and season openers I've observed ahead of time.Monday the end result is: ABC and CBS should still dominate. Dwts has once again cast a buzz-worthy group - though some are pondering should they have overstepped and alienated their more mainstream fans with lightning-fly fishing rod participants like Chaz Bono and Nancy Sophistication. (Overcome it, folks. It's a dancing show, all for entertainment.) And Castle produces a great nightcap. CBS' popular comedy selection includes one new champion (Two Broke Women) then one show in transition (two and a half Males) that's more discussed than nearly any new fall series, while Hawaii Five- greater than holds its own. Fox is shaking some misunderstanding having its large-budget fantasy spectacular Terra Nova (which bows inside a couple of days), which will open large at least. We'll discover if it is family-friendly tone allures a bigger-than-recognition. A Cuddy-free House (premiering March. 3) may be on its last legs, though. NBC will most likely struggle again, beginning while using odd decision to pair The Sing-Off against Dancing. It completed well throughout holiday days, but will vid cappella competition be described as a match for ballroom shenanigans? As Well As The Playboy Club hasn't created as much debate as NBC probably wanted, and could are afflicted by the established procedurals - in addition to a large amount of the presumed male audience being distracted by Monday Evening Football inside the fall. The CW barely registers having its extended-in-the-tooth Gossip Girl as well as the insufferably precious Hart of Dixie (premiering inside a couple of days).Want more fall TV news? Subscribe to TV Guide Magazine now!To the shows, beginning while using new:2 Broke Women (CBS, special amount of 9:30/8:30c will regularly air at 8:30/7:30c) After I written inside the Fall Preview problem: "This is a tip: Don't wager against these hands on funny Women. What this odd couple is serving - a tasty if frequently crude confection of barbed one-card inserts, while using tart Kat Dennings slinging a side of attitude - is unquestionably worth ordering seconds." To elaborate: Dennings can be a riot just like a brash Brooklyn waitress, yoked by sitcom fate with a spoiled Barbie dolls dolls toy (bubbly Jesse Behrs), a dethroned society heiress whose family went belly-up. From Sex as well as the City's Michael Patrick King by getting an assist from comedian-author Whitney Cummings (who is cheaper well in their eponymous NBC sitcom), this show is applicable to Broke having its snappy dialogue, every once in awhile crossing the flavors barrier having its grotesque ethnic caricatures (the girls' Asian boss particularly). Nevertheless the for women who live great chemistry, and we'll be rooting on the account simply because they to enhance one 4th-million making it on their own inside the cupcake business. The completely new Laverne & Shirley? We could hope.The Playboy Club (NBC, 10/9c) After I written for Fall Preview: "More tepid than titillating, which probably isn't what Hef been in mind. So dark and claustrophobic you may need a torch along with your Club membership, this dreary '60s pastiche of empty suits, mob clichés and pre-feminist posturing is a lot more from the bunny shrug when compared to a hug." To elaborate: That is much the lesser in the fall's two '60s shows (these guys ABC's peppier Pan Am), an insipid and unconvincing try to put bunnies the primary factor on the social and sexual revolution. Besides, charge character can be a guy: awesome mob lawyer Nick Dalton, carried out by pretty boy Eddie Cibrian in the callow try to emulate Mad Men's Don Draper (no such luck). He's an ordinary that the gym has, and also the pre-credits encounter having a completely new cigarette bunny who clashes bloodily getting a mob thug is simply laughable. Come in the event you must for your music, as well as the stunning Laura Benanti (a Tony champion who warrants better) since the "bunny mother." This is an indication from the show's cluelessness that people are asked for to consider this knockout is in some manner inside the hill. My hope happens when Playboy can be a fast fade, NBC will hustle to put Benanti to use on its midseason musical series Smash, where she'd be smashing. Here, she's just wasted.Moving to the night's primary occasions, and you'll find several to choose from. Beginning while using opener of ABC's Dwts (8/7c), having its crazy new cast (and the way do they really reference Ron "Metta World Peace" Artest?). An hour or so approximately later, rubber-neckers might wish to make use of the ninth-season opener of two and a half Males (9/8c) to cover their respects for the late and possibly unlamented Charlie Harper, while welcoming Ashton Kutcher aboard as broken-hearted billionaire Walden Schmidt. An hour or so approximately next, Comedy Central seeks to upstage everyone while using Roast of Charlie Sheen (10/9c), the excerpts from which have been correctly filthy. Sheen remains producing points throughout the final week by turning up sane and relatively contrite within the mea-culpa publicity tour. This, however, can be a evening where everyone, like the target, is applicable towards the jugular. Among the roastees: Seth MacFarlane as emcee, plus Mike Tyson, William Shatner, Jon Lovitz, Jeffrey Ross, Anthony Jeselnik as well as the inexplicable Kate Walsh.Wonderful this chaos, it's almost refreshing to find out a show just get lower to business and supply the products. Therefore it is while using fourth-season premiere of ABC's Castle (10/9c), a effective episode for Nathan Fillion and Stana Katic as Castle and Beckett exercise their issues inside the wake of her shooting, his commitment of love (did she hear him?) plus much more turmoil inside the workplace, elevated with a brand new dragon-lady boss (Cent Manley Jerald) which has no tolerance for Castle's antics and demands being referred to as "mister."The tease proceeds the seventh-season opener of CBS' Generate An Earnings Met Your Mother (8/7c), after we stay at night time over who Barney will marry - there's a "did I choose the very best tie" metaphor for your Suited One - ultimately costly to Punchy's wedding, where Marshall and Lily continue being trying to have their pregnancy a secret, that's nothing compared to Robin's denial that she's still moving a torch for Barney. Numerous that is sweet, though just as much is irritating. And so are we stated to become amused by narrator Bob Saget's voice-over, ensuring his captive kids that "I swear we're totally almost not always everything near the finish?" Because I'm virtually regarding this. (Another episode, featuring Martin Short as Marshall's new boss, airs at 8:30/7:30c.)Just what else is on? ... Turner Classic Movies salutes the late High high cliff Robertson by getting an eclectic daylong marathon beginning at 6 a.m/5c, along with his first speaking role inside the romantic Possess a have a picnic, peaking at 3:30 pm/2:30c while using political drama The Most Effective Guy, co-starring Henry Fonda. ... 30 Rock begins a syndicated work on Comedy Central, with back-to-back episodes beginning at 7/6c. ... Syfy's enjoyable Eureka (8/7c) airs its season 4.5 finale, with Sheriff Carter and Jo fighting black holes while final formulations get started ahead for your Astraeus pursuit to Titan. Expect something existence-altering to happen, because that's the actual way it is available in Eureka. ... Fox's Hell's Kitchen christens its top chef in the two-hour finale (8/7c), the champion moving onto a mind chef position at NY's BLT Steak. ... Terry O'Quinn cheers prospects for your Hawaii Five- crew, in the recurring role as McGarrett's former SEAL instructor. McGarrett begins the second season (10/9c) in jail, billed using the governor's murder, while Kono finds herself suspended. ... Cinemax recounts The Strange Good status for Don't Request, Don't Tell in the documentary that tracks the questionable anti-gay military policy in the implementation to its repeal. The special premieres within the stroke of evening time ET, when the repeal switches into effect. It'll be repeated Tuesday at 8/7c.Subscribe to TV Guide Magazine now!

Saiorse Ronan and Alexis Bledel Are Just As Confused by Their New Film as You Are

The synopsis of Precious screenwriter Geoffrey Fletcher’s feature directing debut Violet and Daisy sounds straightforward enough: “A brutal fable about a pair of teenage assassins, played by Saoirse Ronan and Alexis Bledel, who believe they’ve landed a straightforward assignment but soon find themselves thrown off their game when their latest target isn’t who they expected.” Evidently, however, that’s not quite what its audience — or even its stars themselves, for that matter — seemed to take away from its Toronto Film Festival premiere. According to the LAT’s Steve Zeitchik, who caught the confounding screening, it went a little like this: Overflowing with whimsical dream sequences, cryptic symbolism and surrealist touches (the main characters tool around on a tricycle), Violet & Daisy features flavors that won’t be to everyone’s taste, and it’s hard to imagine a major distributor taking a flier on it. But even its detractors will concede the film has a degree of style and ambition. […] So bizarre are some of the scenes in Violet & Daisy that at the post-screening Q&A Thursday night, even the actors there to support the film said they found themselves experiencing moments of confusion. “I came in with lots of questions,” Bledel said, “and I still haven’t gotten any answers.” To a query from one member in the audience, Ronan jumped in with: “There are so many bizarre things in this film, so many things left open, it might be better off not to ask questions.” (Her remark prompted Cameron Bailey, the festival co-director who was moderating the session, to quip, “That kind of ruins the Q&A.”) Don’t feel bad, ladies! That’s TIFF for you. I’m still waiting for people to come around on What’s Wrong With Virginia? Give it a couple years, something will work out. · Toronto 2011: An Oscar winner takes an un-Precious turn [LAT] [Photo: Getty Images]

Wade Mainer dies at 104

Banjoist Wade Mainer, a rustic music pioneer who got his begin in North Carolina's mountain tops and discovered music among Michigan's industry died Monday at his home in Genesee County's Flint Township, about 60 miles northwest of Detroit. He was 104. Mainer is credited with inventing the 2-finger banjo picking style that paved the way in which for that bluegrass era. Mainer recorded for many labels and together with through the South within the nineteen thirties. Within the nineteen fifties he gone to live in the Flint area, where he place the banjo under his mattress. He labored for Vehicle in the region for 18 years. Mainer came back to music to another music performer convinced the born-again Christian he can use his talents to recognition God. A memorial is placed for Friday in Michigan. Contact the range newsroom at news@variety.com

Cliff Robertson RIP

Oscar-winning actor dead at 88With sad news comes great responsibility: Oscar-winning actor Cliff Robertson died on Saturday, one day after turning 88, in Long Island New York. While he might be best known to today's audiences as Uncle Ben Parker in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy, he enjoyed a long, successful career capped by several notable roles and an Academy Award for 1968's Charly. Born in California in 1923, Robertson flirted with acting early on, joining the La Jolla High School Dramatic Club, while also harbouring dreams of becoming a pilot (he'd go on to indulge that ambition, earning his private flying licence and owning several classic aircraft). While he appeared on stage in San Diego in 1940, World War Two interrupted his thespian ambitions and he served his country in the Merchant Navy. After the war, he worked several odd jobs before returning to acting, appearing in touring and stock productions. More solid stage work soon came his way and he ended up on New York's Broadway, appearing in The Wisteria Trees among many other plays. Spotted while performing, he scored his first credited film role in 1956's Picnic alongside Kim Nova, though he'd already begun to forge a successful career in TV, with work on shows such as The Twilight Zone and Playhouse 90. During the 1950s, he became a contract player for Columbia Studios, largely preferring character work because of its variety. Among his films were The Naked and the Dead, Gidget, 633 Squadron, Three Days of the Condor and Midway. He became famous for playing a young John F Kennedy in 1963's PT 109, winning praise from the President himself, who had suggested Robertson's name to the filmmakers when Warren Beatty turned the role down. But he scored the most acclaim for Charly, adapted from Daniel Keyes' sci-fi novel Flowers for Algernon. Robertson took the title role of the mentally handicapped janitor who is treated with a revolutionary new drug that boosts his brain power - if only for a tragically short time. When asked about winning his Oscar, his reply was typically pragmatic and funny: "The year you win an Oscar is the fastest year in a Hollywood actor's life. Twelve months later they ask, 'Who won the Oscar last year?'"In addition to acting, Robertson also bought the rights to rodeo radio drama JW Coop, and wrote, directed and produced the film version in 1971. His career was also touched by scandal - albeit one that saw him emerge a hero for going up against Columbia studio boss David Begelman, who had been misappropriating company funds and had forged a hefty cheque in Robertson's name. Though some tried to blacklist him for helping to expose the fraud, Robertson's career continued on a strong footing. Playing Uncle Ben to Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man was his final role, appearing in all three movies, ending with a flashback in Spider-Man 3. He's survived by one daughter.

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Toronto: Fox Searchlight Acquires Shame

UPDATE: Fox Searchlight toppers Nancy Utley and Stephen Gilula have confirmed the acquisition ofShame at Toronto. Searchlight’s official release is after the jump. EXCLUSIVE: In the first major deal of the Toronto Film Festival, Fox Searchlight has acquiredShame, the Steve McQueen-directed NC-17 drama that was the talk of Telluride. Bidding came down to Searchlight and The Weinstein Company. The film is said to showcase a tour de force performance by Michael Fassbender, who plays a New Yorker unable to manage his sex life when his wayward younger sister (Carey Mulligan) moves into his apartment, and his world spirals out of control. Searchlight had been the frontrunner in the bidding. The film is a provocative purchase for a number of reasons: It is unabashedly NC-17, features graphic sex scenes and nudity — one source said “think dungeon sex” — and McQueen has final cut and will not change a frame. It will be a controversial release for Searchlight, whose parent company has already weathered plenty of scandal lately. Also, the deal calls for a late-year release and Best Actor campaign for Fassbender; Searchlight will already be waging a campaign in the same category for George Clooney in the Alexander Payne-directed The Descendants. Hanway brokered the Shame deal. Here’s Searchlight’s release: TORONTO, Ontario, Canada September 9, 2011 Fox Searchlight Pictures Presidents Nancy Utley and Stephen Gilula announced today that the company has acquired U. S. rights to the intimate and provocative drama SHAME. The film is directed by Steve McQueen, written by McQueen and Abi Morgan and stars Michael Fassbender and Carey Mulligan. SHAME is a See-Saw Films production for Film4 and U.K. Film Council and produced by Iain Canning and Emile Sherman. Tessa Ross, Robert Walak, Peter Hampden and Tim Haslam are executive producers with Bergen Swanson as co-producer. HanWay Films is handling international sales. The film is scheduled to be released in 2011. Steve McQueens courageous exploration of modern lifes extremes is breathtaking. He has crafted an extraordinary film that probes some of the deepest and darkest issues ever portrayed on screen with amazingly gifted performances by Michael Fassbender and Carey Mulligan, said Gilula and Utley. Fox Searchlight contacted us immediately after the screening in Telluride to tell us how much they loved the film. Their approach to marketing and distributing the film this year was incredibly detailed and impressive. We are excited to be working with them on a film that is sparking debate and a strong emotional reaction from audiences, said Canning and Sherman. This is a brave statement and an important move by Fox Searchlight. I am very happy they came on board to release Shame in the U.S. It’s great to be working with a team that is so passionate about cinema, said McQueen. Brandon (Michael Fassbender) is a New Yorker who shuns intimacy with women but feeds his desires with a compulsive addiction to sex. When his wayward younger sister (Carey Mulligan) moves into his apartment stirring memories of their shared painful past, Brandons insular life spirals out of control. The deal was brokered by Fox Searchlights Executive Vice President of Worldwide Acquisitions Tony Safford, Senior Vice President of Business Affairs Megan OBrien, Vice President of Acquisitions Ray Strache with Thorsten Schumacher and Claire Taylor of HanWay Films on behalf of the filmmakers. Fox Searchlight Pictures is a specialty film company that both finances and acquires motion pictures. It has its own marketing and distribution operations, and its films are distributed internationally by Twentieth Century Fox. Fox Searchlight Pictures is a unit of Fox Filmed Entertainment, a unit of Fox Entertainment Group.

Lebanon picks Labaki pic for Academy awards

'Where Will We Go Ahead Now?'TORONTO -- Nadine Labaki's ''Where Will We Go Ahead Now?,'' receiving its United States preem Saturday in the Toronto film festival, continues to be selected as Lebanon's 2011 entry for top Language Academy Award. ''Where,'' which follows several ladies who unite to safeguard their isolated mining community from outdoors conflict, world-preemed at Cannes' Not Certain Regard program captured. Pathe Worldwide is selling the pic in Toronto. Labaki's feature bow ''Carmel'' tested in the 2007 Toronto fest. Contact the range newsroom at news@variety.com

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'Pure cinema' at Venice?

In Amir Naderi's "Cut," one of the more divisive entries at the 68th annual Venice Film Festival, a Japanese cinephile subjects himself to a steady stream of physical abuse in the name of "pure cinema." Praised by estimable tastemakers like Positif's Michel Ciment and dismissed by my Variety colleague Leslie Felperin as "overweeningly pretentious," Naderi's picture -- surely the first movie to include the dramatic unveiling of the protagonist's list of the 50 greatest films of all time -- was a serving of high-end critical catnip, catering presumably to the most stringent and rarefied notions of what a film should be.I will leave it to Naderi and his self-flagellating alter ego to figure out exactly what is meant by "pure cinema," a concept much loved by Hitchcock but never an easy one to parse. Still, I suspect the "Cut" contingent would have disapproved of much of this year's Venice lineup, given the selection of such mainstream-contaminated specimens as Steven Soderbergh's "Contagion," from that impure well known as Hollywood, and the Wallis Simpson romance "W.E.," from that impure well known as Madonna. (I'm genuinely sad to have missed "W.E.," which seems to have been a hugely enjoyable experience for fans and detractors alike.)Of course, if pure cinema is defined as filmmaking liberated from the classical influences of literature or theater, one would automatically have to rule out some of the highest-profile titles in competition. Countering the conventional wisdom that Hollywood rarely looks to the theater for dramatic inspiration anymore, the play was very much the thing at Venice this year.The first three titles to screen in competition were all drawn from legit sources: George Clooney's political drama "The Ides of March," greatly expanded from Beau Willimon's play "Farragut North"; Roman Polanski's four-way snipefest "Carnage," faithfully adapted from Yasmina Reza's "God of Carnage"; and David Cronenberg's period piece "A Dangerous Method," largely drawn from Christopher Hampton's "The Talking Picture." (Incidentally, it was Hampton who translated "God of Carnage" from French into English, though Polanski's film uses a different interpretation.)Continuing the theater trend was one of the later competition entries, "Killer Joe," William Friedkin's second Tracy Letts adaptation following his cultish "Bug." Out of competition, festival honoree Al Pacino unveiled his "Wilde Salome," a documentary tribute to a play for which he has long nursed a personal passion.These various stage-to-screen adaptations all had their merits, though even the best of them revealed a perhaps inevitable formal tension. If Cronenberg's Jung-vs.-Freud psychodrama struck me as the most successful of the lot, it's largely because the helmer and Hampton have chosen to embrace rather than downplay the talkiness of the material, honing its ideas into a razor-sharp, intellectually bracing text that turns argumentation into potent drama.Novel adaptations, too, had a formidable competition presence, and far from despoiling the Lido's cinematic Eden, most of them found inventive movie solutions to tough literary problems. Tomas Alfredson's "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy," which managed the unenviable task of compressing John Le Carre's modern spy classic into just over two hours, surprised everyone by not making a mad dash through the material, but instead moving with the same hypnotic grace and ease of the director's earlier "Let the Right One In."Working further outside the safety net, Andrea Arnold fashioned something raw and vital with her revisionist, racially charged "Wuthering Heights." Though the film could be about 15 or 20 minutes shorter and is marred by some inexpert performances from its largely non-pro cast, its real star, d.p. Robbie Ryan, captures images of such wild, untamed beauty as to justify this umpteenth stab at Emily Bronte's novel. (It was certainly scheduled on the right day, as those of us rushing to see it found ourselves caught up in a brief but decidedly Bronte-esque windstorm.)But no literary reinvention proved more experimental or challenging than Alexander Sokurov's nearly 2 1/2-hour "Faust," an uncategorizable oddity that served as this year's designated high-art endurance test (every fest needs one). A willfully eccentric reading of the Goethe text, the Russian auteur's latest opus was by turns tedious and transporting, alternating passages of exquisite beauty with spasms of grotesque imagery that seemed closer to old-school Cronenberg than the actual Cronenberg film in competition. Pure cinema? Not exactly; there wasn't a wordier, more exhaustingly subtitle-heavy film in competition.At the risk of being called a cinema purist myself, my own personal favorites happened to have no associations with preexisting texts, and indeed played outstandingly to their directors' visual strengths. The strongest film I saw in Venice, "Shame," is a wrenching drama of sexual addiction in which the bold, muscular compositions are as powerfully expressive as the kudo-worthy performances of Michael Fassbender and Carey Mulligan. And Greek helmer Yorgos Lanthimos didn't disappoint me or other "Dogtooth" admirers with "Alps," a bizarre, disquieting tale of deceit and psychological transference that feels less shocking and out-there than its Oscar-nominated predecessor but demonstrates even more formal command.A mastery of mise-en-scene also distinguished "People Mountain People Sea," a strikingly composed second feature from Chinese helmer Cai Shangjun, who took this year's surprise-film slot. Good as the movie was, "surprise" took on a new and unwelcome meaning after the film's first screening was canceled due to subtitling issues and the second screening was interrupted for a full 30 minutes after a false fire alarm sent viewers running for the exits. Of the numerous technical glitches that plagued Venice this year, from the frequent schedule changes and screening delays to the improper 3D projection at Shimizu Takashi's "Tormented," the "People Wait People Worry" incident was by far the most embarrassing; that it befell a talented new director making his debut on a prestigious international stage merely compounded the indignity."People Mountain People Sea" served to point up the unevenness of this year's Asian selection, usually one of Venice's strong suits. Ann Hui's tender, moving "A Simple Life" was a lovely choice for the competition; rather less so were Wei Te-sheng's bombastic "Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale," a sort of Taiwanese "Apocalypto" crippled by sprawling overlength (and that was the short version), and Sion Sono's "Himizu," one of the busy Japanese maverick's less enthusiastically received entries. Elsewhere in the program, the practice of slotting Asian films simply for the sake of slotting Asian films reached an arguable nadir with "The Sorcerer and the White Snake," a CGI-clogged bore that had no real business premiering at a major festival.Still, as of this writing, we have yet to see "Life Without Principle," the anticipated new film from Hong Kong genre master Johnnie To. Will it make the "Cut" cut? Who knows, but my own personal pick in that department would be "Inni," the latest concert film from the popular Icelandic group Sigur Ros. Shot in black-and-white and running a haunting, emotion-drenched 75 minutes, it's as pure an experience of the cinema as I've had, and one of many reasons for Venice audiences to be grateful. Contact Justin Chang at justin.chang@variety.com

HBO Picks Up Aaron Sorkins Pilot To Series

It’s official: HBO has picked up Aaron Sorkin’s hourlong cable news network pilot to series. The now untitled drama (formerly More As This Story Develops), which has been a virtual lock for a series order, centers on a cable news anchor (Jeff Daniels), his new executive producer (Emily Mortimer), his newsroom staff (Alison Pill, John Gallagher, Jr., Olivia Munn, Dev Patel, Thomas Sadoski) and their boss (Sam Waterston). Together they set out on a patriotic and quixotic mission to do the news well in the face of corporate and commercial obstacles and their own personal entanglements. Sorkin wrote the pilot after lengthy research during which he spent time at Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews MSNBC shows as well as behind-the-scenes of Fox News Channel and CNN programs. Sorkin executive produced the pilot, which was directed by Greg Mottola, with Scott Rudin and Alan Poul. This is Sorkin’s fourth series after Sports Night, the Emmy-winning The West Wing and Studio 60 On the Sunset Strip and the first one on cable. Sorkin, who won an Academy Award in March for penning The Social Network, is now the second writer-creator to do an HBO series right after winning an Oscar. Alan Ball followed his Academy Award for American Beauty with HBO’s Six Feet Under.

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Kolirin asks big questions

For Eran Kolirin, helmer of "The Exchange" (HaHithalfut), which preems in competition at Venice today, filmmaking of late is a case of art imitating life.Kolirin's sophomore effort follows 2007's "The Band's Visit" (Bikur ha-tizmoret), which won eight Ophir awards from the Israeli Film and Television Academy and widespread critical acclaim, thrusting the helmer-scribe into the international spotlight.In the publicity whirlwind that followed, Kolirin found himself often alone on the road, spending weeks at time in indistinguishable hotel rooms, away from home and the people and things he was used to."You start to lead this kind of life where you're mostly in transition," Kolirin said. "You're staying in hotels and landing at big airports. You have all the time in the world and nothing really to do."In the midst of that vacuum, Kolirin put his life under a microscope. From the ensuing big questions -- of the "what-does-this-all-mean?" variety -- "The Exchange" was born.Pic traces the existential crisis of an ordinary man, Oded (newcomer Rotem Keinan), who arrives home early one day to find that the banalities of his life look entirely unfamiliar."This is a horror movie without the horror," said Kolirin with a chuckle. "In a very strict, boring movie, a man comes home one day to find his wife having an affair with another man. Which for some people may be horrifying, but it's much more horrifying to find that you are living in an apartment, and you have a wife, and you go to work every day, and you have a refrigerator, and you have a TV, and this is the way you live and this is the way you're going to die."Kolirin cast another unknown, Sharon Tal, as Oded's wife Tami. Tal trained as a stage actor and was new to the Tel Aviv film scene when she met Kolirin. "I am from Jerusalem," she said by way of explanation. "I was not used to going on auditions."Filming, she said, which took place in central Israel with studio shoots in Germany, often felt like making music. "The scenes, and the movie itself, are built like movements," she said. "The beginning is very much like an overture."Kolirin's first film, of course, was all about music, and he hopes auds will keep their comparisons at bay. "In many ways I can see the connection, but on the other hand I would like to put up a big sign saying This Is Not 'The Band's Visit!' " Kolirin said.The movie draws its strength from its unconventionality, Kolirin said, and even though some viewers may struggle with its style, he is immensely proud of what he has created."People have unfortunately been trained by cinema that there has to be a body, there has to be a bad guy. In this movie, it's not the way it is. The absence of the reason is the reason," he said. Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com