Hulkamania Runs Wild Again As Hulk Hogan Returns To WWE

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After months and months of speculations and rumors, the WWE have finally come out clean and announced that Hulk Hogan will be returning to the WWE on the February 24th edition of Monday Night RAW, which coincidentally is the same date that the coveted WWE Network launches. Hulk Hogan has also been announced as the "guest host" of WrestleMania XXX, similar to how The Rock previously "hosted" a WrestleMania (which eventually set up his two-year feud with John Cena.)

A picture of Hulk Hogan in full ring gear at the newly created WWE Performance Center was sent to TMZ (most likely by WWE) earlier this morning with an indication that Hogan would be on Monday's RAW as well as WrestleMania. WWE sent out a press release confirming the news and also announced that Hogan would appear on "RAW Backstage Pass", the post-show to RAW airing exclusively on the WWE Network.

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In regards to returning to WWE, Hogan says in the press release “Words cannot express how excited I am to be back in the WWE family, I only have one question for the WWE Universe: Whatcha you gonna do when Hulkamania runs wild as the host of WrestleMania 30?”. The WWE Network launches this Monday at 9AM EST, and starts live programming at 11:15PM EST after Monday Night RAW with "Backstage Pass" featuring Hulk Hogan. Expect many more surprises on Monday, as well.

First Look At The Suicide Squad On "Arrow" Puts Marvel To Shame

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The first look at television's Suicide Squad on CW's Arrow has been provided via ComicBookResources. The photo shows Amanda Waller (Cynthia Addai Robinson) at the forefront leading her squad of supervillains featuring Bronze Tiger (Michael Jai White), Shrapnel (Sean Maher), Deadshot (Michael Rowe), Lyla Michaels (Audrey Marie Anderson) and John Diggle (David Ramsey).

The most surprising additions to this photograph is Lyla and Diggle, who are the good guys. Why exactly are they on a team of supervillains? Well, it's clear that Arrow isn't rushing into things like Marvel has been doing on Agents of SHIELD. However, aside from Lyla and Diggle, the Suicide Squad lineup features of a mix of characters who have been in the comic lineup before. In the Arrow universe, we've seen Deadshot and Bronze Tiger twice now, and Shrapnel only once. Amanda Waller has been hiding in the shadows and setting up the pieces of the puzzle.

I can't wait to see this formidable team in action and the sheer diversity of this team is pretty awesome. The episode of Arrow titled "Suicide Squad" airs March 19th on The CW.

First Full Trailer for Showtime's 'Penny Dreadful'

The first full-length trailer has been released for Showtime's upcoming summer horror-thriller series, Penny Dreadful.

Starring Josh Hartnett, Eva Green, Timothy Dalton, and Billie Piper, the show is set in Victorian London as some of literature's most terrifying characters - including Dr. Frankenstein and his creature, Dorian Gray, and, of course, Dracula - are brilliantly reimagined in a whole new light..

The series premeires Sunday, May 11th at 10pm ET.

"Star Wars: The Clone Wars" Headed To Netflix With Unseen Episodes

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In the small chance that you've been living under a rock for the past few years and haven't seen the amazing Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Netflix will be adding the full series, as well as the unseen, final 13-episode season that was produced after Cartoon Network axed the show. Netflix will also be adding director's cuts of previous episodes, as well.

This is the first time that Star Wars content has been added to the internet streaming service. Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos said by press release “’Stars Wars’ is one of the most iconic franchises of all time and this series joins a long line of Disney content that Netflix members are and will continue to enjoy for years to come, The Clone Wars’ marks an important moment as Netflix welcomes more and more first-run content from The Walt Disney Company and its subsidiaries.”

In these eagerly anticipated episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, some of the deepest mysteries of the conflict between the light and the dark sides of the Force are revealed. An intrepid clone trooper discovers a shocking secret, Anakin Skywalker’s closest relationship is tested to its limits and what Master Yoda discovers while investigating the disappearance of a Jedi could forever change the balance of power in the galaxy. Fans will not only be able to watch the thrilling finale, they’ll be able to see more of The Clone Wars than ever before as Netflix will also stream the director’s cut of seasons 1 – 5.

The final season will be added on March 7th.

PREACHER Officially Heading to AMC

 

For fans of Vertigo's critically acclaimed dark comic which ran from '95-2000 by Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon, AMC has officially announced after months of rumor, that PREACHER will be heading to the network.
The series will be run by Sam Catlin who served as writer and producer on AMC's critical darling Breaking Bad which ended just last year, and written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg of This is the End fame.

Here's AMC's official announcement, via Indiewire:

"Preacher" follows Reverend Jesse Custer, a tough Texas preacher who has lost his faith [and] has learned that God has left Heaven and abandoned His responsibilities. He finds himself the only person capable of tracking God down, demanding answers, and making Him answer for His dereliction of duty. Accompanying Jesse on his journey [are] his former girlfriend and a friendly vampire who seems to prefer a pint in the pub to the blood of the innocent. On his tail is one of the most iconic bad guys in print – an immortal, unstoppable killing machine named the Saint of Killers – a western lone gunman archetype whose sole purpose is to hunt and kill Jesse.

"This is amazing!" said Rogen and Goldberg. "We've tried for seven years to work on 'Preacher,' and we're so psyched AMC is finally letting us. It is our favorite comic of all time, and we're going to do everything we can to do it right. Humperdoo!"

"Steve Dillon and I are very happy to see 'Preacher' being developed for TV, which seems a much more natural home for the story than a two-hour movie," added Ennis. "Between them, Sony TV and AMC have brought viewers two of my favorite shows with 'Breaking Bad' and 'Mad Men,' and it's exactly that kind of creative commitment and courage that 'Preacher' needs. Obviously it’s taken a while, but Ken Levin, along with Neal Moritz and his team, refused to give up, long after the point when I myself grew skeptical, and their unrelenting enthusiasm for the project has gotten us where we need to be."

"I’m particularly impressed that Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, and Sam Catlin understand 'Preacher' fully -- meaning they get it for what it is, not some vague approximation. All in all, it looks like 'Preacher' can now be brought to TV in a way that I'd previously not have thought possible, and I very much appreciate that Steve and I have been included in the conversation in the way that we have."

AMC has taken some bold interests and it has paid off, with The Walking Dead becoming an enormous success for the network, PREACHER could very well follow as the next big thing.

Candice Patton To Play Iris West In CW's The Flash

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The CW's The Flash pilot has just found it's Iris West in Candice Patton (via Deadline) who portrayed Tori on The Game. Patton has also appeared on shows such as One Tree Hill and Heroes. Jesse L. Martin will play Detective West, father to Iris, while Candice Patton's Iris is "As smart as she is beautiful, Iris is in grad school studying psychology. She's also Barry's mile a minute, fast-talking, quick-witted best friend."
In The Flash comic books, Iris West has always been a reporter. However, it seems The CW showrunners want to mix it up a bit with her backstory.

Previous casting for The Flash included Danielle Panabaker (Caitlin Snow) and Rick Gosnett (Det. Eddie Thawne)

Seinfeld Returns in Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee Super Bowl Special

Curb Your Enthusiasm did a sort-of Seinfeld reunion showcasing a fictionalized special a few years back.

The episode of the Larry David show-within-a-show went as far to play whole scenes featuring Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jason Alexander and Michael Richards back in character. Wayne Knight, Estelle Harris and Kenny Bania even showed up to play themselves doing block and table reads. They never confirmed this. But Pete and I always maintained being the sticklers for details they are, they legitimately wrote and shot the entire TV special and have it sitting in the Castle Rock vaults.

Since it didn't air in its entirety (assuming there was an entire show), that doesn't technically count as the real deal reunion for the legendary 90s sitcom. This episode of Jerry Seinfeld's Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee web-series, on the other hand, does.

From Crackle: George Costanza: The Over-Cheer

Michael Pitt Joins NBC's HANNIBAL Season 2

 

For fans of Bryan Fuller's take on Thomas Harris' Hannibal novels and HBO's Boardwalk Empire (which will now be going into it's final season), the news that 'Empire' star Michael Pitt has joined Hannibal as the wealthy Mason Verger should come as pleasant news, especially given Verger's importance in the Hannibal universe.

Entertainment Weekly got the exclusive:

Pitt is playing the character of Mason Verger, an unstable wealthy patient of Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Mads Mikkelsen) who begins a dangerous cat-and-mouse game with the deadly serial killer.

The Mason Verger role will be introduced late in the upcoming second season, which finds FBI profiler Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) in prison, falsely convicted for Lecter’s crimes, while the doctor advises the agency on cases.

Verger was the lead antagonist in 2001's Silence of the Lambs sequel, HANNIBAL, directed by Ridley Scott and portrayed by Gary Oldman who absolutely is hidden in the role.

In the novels, Verger is Hannibal Lecter's only surviving victim, a sadistic pedophile who tries to seduce Hannibal, only to be drugged and convinced into cutting off his own face, feeding it to his dogs, and hanging himself, although this Verger is obviously much younger, possibly setting him up as a season-wide threat.

Katharine Isabelle (Freddy Vs. Jason, American Mary) was also cast as Verger's sister, Margo, a character who appears in the novel; but not the 2001 film. 

Hannibal returns Friday, Feb. 28. 

That's gold Jerry! GOLD! Seinfeld Reunion in the Works

Earlier today, Jerry Seinfeld confirmed he and Larry David are working on a "Seinfeld reunion of sorts" that will be released very soon.

Rumors started spreading earlier this month that the cast may be reuniting for a Super Bowl commercial, when Seinfeld was spotted outside Tom's Resturant in New York City (which doubled as Monk's on the show) with Jason Alexander.  Jerry laid that rumor to rest this morning as a guest on the Boomer & Carton show on WFAN.

On the show to promote his web series, Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee, Seinfeld fielded a number of questions regarding the "super-secret project" he and David have been working on. Seinfeld first dropped the news that he was working with David on Jan. 6, during a Reddit “Ask Me Anything” session. “We wrote this script for this thing that you will eventually see but I can’t reveal what it is at this time,” Seinfeld said.  “All I can do is tell you is that it’s big, huge, gigantic.”  

Jason Alexander will reprise his role of George Costanza for the project, and Seinfeld hinted that other characters from the long running sitcom will be involved as well.  

As a huge fan of the show, I couldn't be more excited.  With Larry David involved, there's no telling what this could be.  Seinfeld was the biggest comedy of it's time, and it'll be an absolute joy to see these characters brought together once again.

Click here to hear Jerry answer some questions about the project.

Jonathan Banks Joins 'Breaking Bad' Spin-off, 'Better Call Saul'

Jonathan Banks will indeed be back as Mike Ehrmantraut in the Breaking Bad spin-off, Better Call Saul.

Though Vince Gilligan had teased it, the fan favorite character will be returning as a series regular for the prequel show which will follow the exploits of Saul Goodman and his career as a criminal lawyer before Walter White came walking through his door.

Vince Gilligan has described this show as '70% comedy, 30% drama' whereas Breaking Bad was the other way around.

I'm still not sure about this one.  As a die hard Breaking Bad fan, I feel they should just leave it alone and let live on in television history.  Yeah, Saul Goodman was a great character for jokes here and there, but can Bob Odenkirk really carry on the legacy of Bryan Cranston for one-hour at a time as the series lead?

We shall see.

The series is expected to debut this November.

Source:  Deadline