stars on screen
hollywood q&a By Adam Thomlison TV Media
By Andrew Warren TV Media
Q: Will Ashley Judd’s show “Missing” ever be back? It ended with the audience assuming that she had been captured and/or killed. Not a very good way to end a show, in my opinion. A: It was not a great way to end a show, but the producers of “Missing” didn’t know it would be the end. The news broke on May 11 that ABC would not renew the midseason series, a week before its season finale aired — that meant, of course, that the finale had been filmed and finished long before. Cliffhanger season finales are pretty well a must for serial-type dramas these days, and they’re a great way to make sure people come back for the next season after a months-long break. However, they’re not so great for fans if the show doesn’t get a next season. And that’s very often the case: ABC announced the show’s cancellation at the same time as two other rookie serial dramas, “The River” and “Pan Am.” “Missing’s” cliffhanger end was particularly intriguing — the entire first season is devoted to former CIA agent Becca Winstone (Ashley Judd) on the trail of her missing son and (as we learn later — spoiler alert) missing husband. At the end of the series (bigger spoiler alert, though we’re safe given your question), it is Becca who goes missing. Fans were left wondering if the tables would be turned: Will the next season see her son and husband carry out a similar action- and intrigue-filled hunt, becoming the stars of the show in the process, and putting Judd in a supporting-actress role? It could have been an interesting way to keep the show fresh. Instead, Judd’s character will remain missing forever. Judd, however, certainly has not. Less than a year after her series ended, Judd appeared on the big screen this past weekend in the secret-service action film “Olympus Has Fallen.” An intrigue-filled spy show, followed by a presidential-kidnapping film, may in fact be a strange sort of resume-building activity on her part for a big career change — to U.S. senator.
Hollywood glee: An actress who’s best known these days for always throwing a wrench at the aspirations of a melodious high school club is going to be taking a different tack this summer. Jane Lynch, whose role as the villainous cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester in Fox’s hit show “Glee” has won critical acclaim — not to mention a bucketful of acting awards — has climbed on board to host an upcoming game show on NBC that will pit some of Tinseltown’s biggest stars against everyday folks. Set to air eight episodes sometime this summer, “Hollywood Game Night” is based on actor Sean Hayes’ (“Will & Grace”) own cocktail partystyle game nights. “I’m so thrilled to let the world in on the fun with Sean at ‘Game night,’ “ said Lynch. Hayes’ game nights have become something of a go-to event among Hollywood’s elite, and “Game Night” will let the rest of us join in on the fun. Each of the hourlong episodes will bring the players into the behind-the-scenes world of celebrity parties as the stars and everyday people alike come together for an evening of fun. “Game Night” is yet another item being packed into Lynch’s already busy schedule. Besides her role in “Glee,” which has netted her both an Emmy and Golden Globe award, she’s also been both seen and heard on the big screen a whole lot. Recently, she’s lent her voice talents to the animated films “Wreck-It Ralph” (2012), “Rio,” (2011) and “Escape From Planet Earth” (2013). Holy television: Sometimes
Q: Why did Vanessa Ferlito leave after the second season of “CSI: NY,” and what is she doing now? A: Ironically, Vanessa Ferlito left “CSI: NY” because she wanted to go home ... to New York. The series is actually shot in Los Angeles, and while the Brooklynborn Ferlito told TVGuide.com that she originally signed on “you don’t say no to” a high-profile show like the “CSI” spinoff, she eventually got homesick, as well as hungry for a little variety. “I really wanted to be home in New York. I wanted to still do movies and theater.” The risky move of dropping a regular, high-profile gig paid off — she has appeared in several high-profile films, such as the 2007 Quentin Tarantino picture “Grindhouse” and the long-awaited “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps” (2010), the sequel to the classic 1987 drama “Wall Street.” That said, however, she’s now back in California for another weekly series — USA Network’s “Graceland,” about a group of officers from different law-enforcement agencies sharing the same undercover beach house. In the time since leaving “CSI: NY,” she has also done some work on her role as the star of her own life — she gave birth to a son in 2007.
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MARCH 24 - 30, 2013
the timing of real life events can be so fortuitous that they almost seem divinely inspired. With the retirement of Pope Benedict XVI and the excitement and drama surrounding the choice of his successor, the producers of an upcoming pilot are surely rejoicing. “The Vatican,” a drama that begins production later this year, was already generating industry buzz before the events in the real-life Holy See began. Thanks largely to the high level of acting talent attached to it, this fictional, behind-thescenes look at the Catholic Church is one to keep an eye on. Headlining the cast is Emmy award winner Kyle Chandler. Stepping into the role of Cardinal Thomas Duffy, the progressive Archbishop of New York,
“Glee” star Jane Lynch will host “Hollywood Game Night.”
Chandler’s award-winning acting chops will be put to the test. Best known for his five seasons as high school football coach Eric Taylor in NBC’s “Friday Night Lights,” a role that netted him a Lead Actor Emmy, Chandler’s career hasn’t stopped at the TV screen. On the big screen, he’s starred in such films as “The Day the Earth Stood Still” (2008), “Super 8” (2011) and 2012’s Oscarwinning best picture “Argo.” Chandler isn’t the only high-profile actor who’s signed on for this spiritual thriller, either. Joining him is one of Germany’s best-known actors, Sebastian Koch, who’s best known to American audiences for “A Good Day to Die Hard” (2013); and Matthew Goode, who’s currently starring in the BBC’s “Dancing on the Edge,” which is due to cross the pond later this year.
CW’s flagship shows, the teen drama “90210” will be wrapping up for good with its series finale on Monday, May 13, and the West Beverly High kids will be paid a special visit in the finale by pop music royalty. In what will be his acting debut, Prince Michael Jackson, late singer Michael Jackson’s oldest son, will be making an appearance as a trauma victim. The news dropped just a week after it was also announced that the 16-year-old would also be joining “Entertainment Tonight” in the role of an on-air correspondent. In an interview with “Entertainment Tonight’s” Brooke Anderson, Jackson explained that he was hoping “to become well rounded as a producer, director, screenwriter and actor,” and it would seem that he’s making some quick moves to get his Hollywood career kick-started. Death begets life: It’s “90210,” the third spinoff been said that endings ofof the ‘90s hit “Beverly Hills, ten spark new beginnings, 90210,” has for five seasons and it’s looking like the sefollowed the lives of a group of ries finale of a muchteenagers living in the affluent loved TV show Beverly Hills neighborhood in may be just sunny California. In a statethe start of ment announcing that the fifth an exciting season would be the series’ new acting last, The CW’s president, Mark career. Perowitz, called attention to all One of the devoted people who’ve of The worked on making the show a success.
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