TGIF (Three Good Interviews Friday)...
I missed Will & Grace last night (yeah, I’m still hanging in there for some reason) and I read that Alec Baldwin and Eric McCormack kissed. When doesn’t Alec Baldwin kiss a man? Pretty much each of his appearances on “Saturday Night Live” had a skit where he made out with a guy. One skit had him sucking on Adam Sandler’s fingers and trying to molest him. That’s not shocking. Now have Will make out actually seriously kissing a guy will be shocking.
Yahoo News has a brief interview with Al Gough talking about how the movie and Smallville connects. Nothing too illuminating. A bit spoilery for those who didn’t see the premiere.
KENT STOP NOW
By DON KAPLAN
Fri Sep 30, 6:04 AM ET
EVEN the Man of Steel himself might get a headache trying to balance the storylines of The WB's "Smallville" and the upcoming film, "Superman Returns."
Since 2001, "Smallville" has told the story of Superman's alter-ego, Clark Kent, as a teen who's coming to terms with his true identity and destiny.
The "Superman" movie, due in theaters next year, follows the adventures of the most iconic superhero of all time after he's been gone from Earth for several years.
"We're all trying to avoid egregious mythology clashes," "Smallville" creator Alfred Gough recently told a reporter - adding that he and the producers of "Smallville" headed down to Australia last spring, where the movie is being filmed, to talk with its producers and writers about their plans for the fifth season of "Smallville."
"Both the show and the movie exist in their own universes," Gough said. "But if you watch 'Smallville,' you can go into 'Superman Returns' and there'll be things that you'll understand better, not directly, but just because you have more of a history of Superman.
"Also, if you're over 25, you watched the Richard Donner movies, and if you're under 25, you watch 'Smallville,' " Gough said.
"So each one gives you kind of an introduction to Superman so that when you go into 'Superman Returns,' you have a deeper appreciation of it."
After about two seasons of complicated, soap opera-like storylines - that ultimately resulted in a shrinking audience - "Smallville" took a hard left turn starting last night, kicking off its fifth season (which, studio sources joke, should be dubbed "Superman in Training.")
In the episode, Clark Kent (Tom Welling) flung an alien artifact into the polar ice near the North Pole and instantly created Superman's refuge, a 40-story igloo known as the Fortress of Solitude.
Inside, Clark began his training to become Superman, but had to cut it short when his friend from Smallville, who had followed him into the arctic, almost froze to death.
By the end of the show, Clark had taken on a pair of baddies from his homeworld of Krypton and lost his super powers along the way - much the same way Superman did in Donner's 1980 film "Superman II."
In the final moments of last night's show, viewers were introduced to one of Superman's arch-enemies, Brainiac (played here by "Buffy" star James Marsters) - and there were even hints about the coming clash between Clark and Lex Luthor, which will turn them from best friends into mortal foes
Then because I'm only on the fringe of "Prison Break" fandom, here's two interviews that I've completely missed.
http://www.tvguide.com/tv/coverstory
The Breakout of Wentworth Miller
by Bruce Fretts
You can't escape Wentworth Miller's face. Suddenly the strikingly handsome actor seems to be everywhere - canoodling with Mariah Carey in her new videos, haunting Jennifer Love Hewitt in the pilot for CBS' drama Ghost Whisperer, and getting himself thrown into jail to try to spring his condemned brother on Fox's new serial thriller Prison Break (Mondays at 9 pm/ET).
Even if you haven't seen Prison Break yet, surely you've seen the ads on buses, billboards and movie screens. They feature Miller's face - really big. "Yes, I saw those pictures," the 33-year-old actor deadpans. "I've got a Tom Cruise-size head. It's phenomenal."
Fox certainly seems to think so. "It's a very smart move to brand the show with his face," says creator Paul Scheuring. "There's no one who looks like him, and there's no one who acts like him. He's an attractive mystery." TV Guide decided to get to the bottom of the mystery by grilling Miller. (This much we know: He was born in London, raised in Brooklyn and earned a degree in English literature from Princeton. Pretty impressive for a TV convict.)
Q: How did you get your big break as Michael Scofield on Prison Break?
Miller: I auditioned for [executive producer] Brett Ratner when he was attached to Superman a few years ago. I think he remembered me. They called me in last. They'd been through all the pretty boys and names, which left guys like me. I guess it worked because here we are, behind bars.
Q:The show received mixed reviews. Did you read any bad ones?
Miller: A few, and those came from people who approached the show as if it were a real-life drama. We do play it real, but it's very much a comic book. On a real-life drama, my character losing his toes would be my theme for the rest of the season. But in the world of Prison Break, you limp for a little while, then it's back to business.
Q: Have you been following the show's ratings?
Miller: Someone explained the numbers to me, and it was a little like when you're house-sitting for someone and they're explaining the alarm code. You're nodding your head like, "Uh-huh, uh-huh," but it's going in one ear and out the other. I got the gist that we did well and we still had our jobs.
Q: From The Shawshank Redemption to Oz, why do people find prison stories so fascinating?
Miller: It speaks to one of our deepest fears. I liken my character's journey to a man waking up in the lion's den at the zoo and having to a) figure a way out, and b) keep his eye on the lions so he's not mauled in the meantime. He's a stand-in for your average audience member who would never want to go on this journey themselves. But tagging along for the ride will be a hell of a good time....
Fox Attempts a Risky Prison Break
by Tracy Phillips
Fans of 24 who anticipate going through withdrawal this fall (it's not back until January, after all) may find a worthy distraction in Prison Break, which will be renting out Jack Bauer's Mondays-at- 9 pm/ET home beginning Aug. 29. TVGuide.com spoke with stars Wentworth Miller (The Human Stain) and Dominic Purcell (John Doe), two guys whose biggest challenge - besides pulling off an elaborate escape - may be trying to make buzz cuts cool.
First up, Wentworth Miller: TVGuide.com: You play Michael, a guy who goes to prison on purpose, to bust out his bro. Why not just hire a really, really good lawyer?
Wentworth Miller: Yeah, I probably would have just signed a few petitions, said a few prayers. But I think the psychology of my character is such that everyone in his life has left him - his mother is gone and the father abandoned them - so his brother is all that he has left. And there are certain things in the story you find out as we go along, which unfortunately I can't reveal to you, that kind of make me complicit in his being behind bars, so I feel a degree of responsibility there. I also think a part of my character enjoys the challenge.
TVGuide.com: What makes him think he can even do it?
Miller: He's clever and ruthless and obsessed. And I think my character is influenced - as is Paul Scheuring, who created the series - by Steve McQueen in The Great Escape and Paul Newman in Cool Hand Luke, so hopefully some of those characters' DNA will show up in mine.
TVGuide.com: And how many days in before Michael regrets his decision?
Miller: I'm sure there'll be moments of doubt, moments of "What have I gotten myself into?" He's in a situation where his brains and his degree are no guarantee that he won't end up with a shiv between his ribs. But he's a good man with a noble cause, and that requires him to get his hands dirty.
TVGuide.com: A lot of shows on TV now are about dysfunctional families hating on each other. This one is about a strong family bond and some serious loyalty.
Miller: This is not just an action thriller, it's really a story about family: How far would one go to save a loved one? In Michael's case, it's all the way to the wall. And it's a great show in that we get a lot of exploration into family, into what it means to be committed to something... into what it means to be a man.
TVGuide.com: Michael is more brains than brawn. How will he protect himself inside?
Miller: I made a conscious choice not to become superbuff. My character is a little bit smarter than your average joe, but in all other senses I wanted to make it quite clear that he is vulnerable. He is at the mercy of the other inmates in this deadly environment, and I think a lot of the tension of the show deals with him being in jeopardy and having to use his wits to elude the predators and antagonists.
TVGuide.com: Yeah, he is so going to get hurt.
Miller: In the first two hours, I get threatened, punched, shoved, thrown off a balcony, someone comes after me with some very sharp gardening shears . My character risks literally life and limb to achieve his goal and will leave the prison - hopefully with his brother - having paid a price to save him.
Now, let's see what Dominic Purcell has to say:
TVGuide.com: Your character, Lincoln, is sitting on death row, claiming to have been framed for murder. Is he a good guy or a bad guy?
Dominic Purcell: He's a good guy who has done bad things.
TVGuide.com: How did you prep for the role?
Purcell: I'm doing a lot of sit-ups and push-ups, but I don't want that sculpted gym physique. A good template for me, regarding physicality, is Robert De Niro in Cape Fear - that mean, hungry kind of look.
TV Guide.com: You're shooting at a former prison in Joliet, Ill. What's that like?
Purcell: Well, it helps to stay in character! It is fundamentally dark and intense there. Obviously, prison life is very serious, but we do throw in some elements of humor.
TVGuide: How so?
Purcell: Just through the ridiculousness of some of the situations that occur in prison. It's a device to not hit the audience as hard.
TVGuide.com: How can Lincoln ever repay his brother for this grand gesture?
Purcell: Haven't worked that out yet. Don't know. I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. But I know there's something else he's going to do for me - he's gonna hook me up with some babes when we get out of prison!
[WARNING: SPOILER AHEAD]
TVGuide.com: Do you guys succeed in breaking out?
Purcell: Well . um, uh, sure. Then it becomes all about trying to uncover the conspiracy that put Lincoln in jail in the first place. And we're trying to do that while on the run, so then it kind of takes on the essence of The Fugitive.
TVGuide.com: OK, so just when do you guys break on through to the other side?
Purcell: Now that I won't tell you . Check out video previews, photos, premiere dates and more from fall's new and returning shows right here.
Yahoo News has a brief interview with Al Gough talking about how the movie and Smallville connects. Nothing too illuminating. A bit spoilery for those who didn’t see the premiere.
KENT STOP NOW
By DON KAPLAN
Fri Sep 30, 6:04 AM ET
EVEN the Man of Steel himself might get a headache trying to balance the storylines of The WB's "Smallville" and the upcoming film, "Superman Returns."
Since 2001, "Smallville" has told the story of Superman's alter-ego, Clark Kent, as a teen who's coming to terms with his true identity and destiny.
The "Superman" movie, due in theaters next year, follows the adventures of the most iconic superhero of all time after he's been gone from Earth for several years.
"We're all trying to avoid egregious mythology clashes," "Smallville" creator Alfred Gough recently told a reporter - adding that he and the producers of "Smallville" headed down to Australia last spring, where the movie is being filmed, to talk with its producers and writers about their plans for the fifth season of "Smallville."
"Both the show and the movie exist in their own universes," Gough said. "But if you watch 'Smallville,' you can go into 'Superman Returns' and there'll be things that you'll understand better, not directly, but just because you have more of a history of Superman.
"Also, if you're over 25, you watched the Richard Donner movies, and if you're under 25, you watch 'Smallville,' " Gough said.
"So each one gives you kind of an introduction to Superman so that when you go into 'Superman Returns,' you have a deeper appreciation of it."
After about two seasons of complicated, soap opera-like storylines - that ultimately resulted in a shrinking audience - "Smallville" took a hard left turn starting last night, kicking off its fifth season (which, studio sources joke, should be dubbed "Superman in Training.")
In the episode, Clark Kent (Tom Welling) flung an alien artifact into the polar ice near the North Pole and instantly created Superman's refuge, a 40-story igloo known as the Fortress of Solitude.
Inside, Clark began his training to become Superman, but had to cut it short when his friend from Smallville, who had followed him into the arctic, almost froze to death.
By the end of the show, Clark had taken on a pair of baddies from his homeworld of Krypton and lost his super powers along the way - much the same way Superman did in Donner's 1980 film "Superman II."
In the final moments of last night's show, viewers were introduced to one of Superman's arch-enemies, Brainiac (played here by "Buffy" star James Marsters) - and there were even hints about the coming clash between Clark and Lex Luthor, which will turn them from best friends into mortal foes
Then because I'm only on the fringe of "Prison Break" fandom, here's two interviews that I've completely missed.
http://www.tvguide.com/tv/coverstory
The Breakout of Wentworth Miller
by Bruce Fretts
You can't escape Wentworth Miller's face. Suddenly the strikingly handsome actor seems to be everywhere - canoodling with Mariah Carey in her new videos, haunting Jennifer Love Hewitt in the pilot for CBS' drama Ghost Whisperer, and getting himself thrown into jail to try to spring his condemned brother on Fox's new serial thriller Prison Break (Mondays at 9 pm/ET).
Even if you haven't seen Prison Break yet, surely you've seen the ads on buses, billboards and movie screens. They feature Miller's face - really big. "Yes, I saw those pictures," the 33-year-old actor deadpans. "I've got a Tom Cruise-size head. It's phenomenal."
Fox certainly seems to think so. "It's a very smart move to brand the show with his face," says creator Paul Scheuring. "There's no one who looks like him, and there's no one who acts like him. He's an attractive mystery." TV Guide decided to get to the bottom of the mystery by grilling Miller. (This much we know: He was born in London, raised in Brooklyn and earned a degree in English literature from Princeton. Pretty impressive for a TV convict.)
Q: How did you get your big break as Michael Scofield on Prison Break?
Miller: I auditioned for [executive producer] Brett Ratner when he was attached to Superman a few years ago. I think he remembered me. They called me in last. They'd been through all the pretty boys and names, which left guys like me. I guess it worked because here we are, behind bars.
Q:The show received mixed reviews. Did you read any bad ones?
Miller: A few, and those came from people who approached the show as if it were a real-life drama. We do play it real, but it's very much a comic book. On a real-life drama, my character losing his toes would be my theme for the rest of the season. But in the world of Prison Break, you limp for a little while, then it's back to business.
Q: Have you been following the show's ratings?
Miller: Someone explained the numbers to me, and it was a little like when you're house-sitting for someone and they're explaining the alarm code. You're nodding your head like, "Uh-huh, uh-huh," but it's going in one ear and out the other. I got the gist that we did well and we still had our jobs.
Q: From The Shawshank Redemption to Oz, why do people find prison stories so fascinating?
Miller: It speaks to one of our deepest fears. I liken my character's journey to a man waking up in the lion's den at the zoo and having to a) figure a way out, and b) keep his eye on the lions so he's not mauled in the meantime. He's a stand-in for your average audience member who would never want to go on this journey themselves. But tagging along for the ride will be a hell of a good time....
Fox Attempts a Risky Prison Break
by Tracy Phillips
Fans of 24 who anticipate going through withdrawal this fall (it's not back until January, after all) may find a worthy distraction in Prison Break, which will be renting out Jack Bauer's Mondays-at- 9 pm/ET home beginning Aug. 29. TVGuide.com spoke with stars Wentworth Miller (The Human Stain) and Dominic Purcell (John Doe), two guys whose biggest challenge - besides pulling off an elaborate escape - may be trying to make buzz cuts cool.
First up, Wentworth Miller: TVGuide.com: You play Michael, a guy who goes to prison on purpose, to bust out his bro. Why not just hire a really, really good lawyer?
Wentworth Miller: Yeah, I probably would have just signed a few petitions, said a few prayers. But I think the psychology of my character is such that everyone in his life has left him - his mother is gone and the father abandoned them - so his brother is all that he has left. And there are certain things in the story you find out as we go along, which unfortunately I can't reveal to you, that kind of make me complicit in his being behind bars, so I feel a degree of responsibility there. I also think a part of my character enjoys the challenge.
TVGuide.com: What makes him think he can even do it?
Miller: He's clever and ruthless and obsessed. And I think my character is influenced - as is Paul Scheuring, who created the series - by Steve McQueen in The Great Escape and Paul Newman in Cool Hand Luke, so hopefully some of those characters' DNA will show up in mine.
TVGuide.com: And how many days in before Michael regrets his decision?
Miller: I'm sure there'll be moments of doubt, moments of "What have I gotten myself into?" He's in a situation where his brains and his degree are no guarantee that he won't end up with a shiv between his ribs. But he's a good man with a noble cause, and that requires him to get his hands dirty.
TVGuide.com: A lot of shows on TV now are about dysfunctional families hating on each other. This one is about a strong family bond and some serious loyalty.
Miller: This is not just an action thriller, it's really a story about family: How far would one go to save a loved one? In Michael's case, it's all the way to the wall. And it's a great show in that we get a lot of exploration into family, into what it means to be committed to something... into what it means to be a man.
TVGuide.com: Michael is more brains than brawn. How will he protect himself inside?
Miller: I made a conscious choice not to become superbuff. My character is a little bit smarter than your average joe, but in all other senses I wanted to make it quite clear that he is vulnerable. He is at the mercy of the other inmates in this deadly environment, and I think a lot of the tension of the show deals with him being in jeopardy and having to use his wits to elude the predators and antagonists.
TVGuide.com: Yeah, he is so going to get hurt.
Miller: In the first two hours, I get threatened, punched, shoved, thrown off a balcony, someone comes after me with some very sharp gardening shears . My character risks literally life and limb to achieve his goal and will leave the prison - hopefully with his brother - having paid a price to save him.
Now, let's see what Dominic Purcell has to say:
TVGuide.com: Your character, Lincoln, is sitting on death row, claiming to have been framed for murder. Is he a good guy or a bad guy?
Dominic Purcell: He's a good guy who has done bad things.
TVGuide.com: How did you prep for the role?
Purcell: I'm doing a lot of sit-ups and push-ups, but I don't want that sculpted gym physique. A good template for me, regarding physicality, is Robert De Niro in Cape Fear - that mean, hungry kind of look.
TV Guide.com: You're shooting at a former prison in Joliet, Ill. What's that like?
Purcell: Well, it helps to stay in character! It is fundamentally dark and intense there. Obviously, prison life is very serious, but we do throw in some elements of humor.
TVGuide: How so?
Purcell: Just through the ridiculousness of some of the situations that occur in prison. It's a device to not hit the audience as hard.
TVGuide.com: How can Lincoln ever repay his brother for this grand gesture?
Purcell: Haven't worked that out yet. Don't know. I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. But I know there's something else he's going to do for me - he's gonna hook me up with some babes when we get out of prison!
[WARNING: SPOILER AHEAD]
TVGuide.com: Do you guys succeed in breaking out?
Purcell: Well . um, uh, sure. Then it becomes all about trying to uncover the conspiracy that put Lincoln in jail in the first place. And we're trying to do that while on the run, so then it kind of takes on the essence of The Fugitive.
TVGuide.com: OK, so just when do you guys break on through to the other side?
Purcell: Now that I won't tell you . Check out video previews, photos, premiere dates and more from fall's new and returning shows right here.