ABC Dumps Plan to Spinoff 'Agents of SHIELD'

Adrianne Palicky was reportedly set to star in the "Agents of SHIELD" spinoff "Marvel's Most Wanted" before ABC decided not to move forward with the project (Photo by American Broadcasting Companies).

LOS ANGELES - ABC has decided not to move forward with “Agents of SHIELD” spinoff series “Marvel’s Most Wanted,” according to TheWrap.

Adrianne Palicki and Nick Blood would have starred in the show. The two actors have played recurring characters on the two most recent seasons of “Agents of SHIELD,” which was renewed for a fourth season by ABC.

Palicki played Bobbi Morse, also known as Mockingbird and Blood played Lance Hunter, her ex-husband. The new series would have followed their characters on the run as they were pursued by a enemies seeking the large bounty on them.

The decision to cancel plans for “Marvel’s Most Wanted” came as the network began to announce its plans for the 2016-17 season. ABC's other Marvel series, “Agent Carter,” was also canceled after its second season.

Rodrigo Obregon Returns to Acting in Bob Yari's 'Papa Hemingway in Cuba'

Rodrigo Obregon returns to acting after a 12-year break in Bob Yari's biopic 'Papa Hemingway in Cuba' (Publicity photo).

LOS ANGELES, Calif.  – After taking a 12-year break following a career that spanned nearly two decades and led him to work with such stars as Arnold Schwarzengger, Benicio del Toro and others, actor Rodrigo Obregon has returned to acting in the new film “Papa Hemingway in Cuba.”

Produced by Bob Yari (“Crash,” “Agent Cody Banks”), the movie is the first American film to be shot in Cuba in more than 50 years, starring Minka Kelly (“The Butler”), Giovanni Ribisi (“Avatar”) and Adrian Sparks (“Insidious: Chapter 3) as Hemingway.

“I’m very pleased to work with such a talented director like Bob and an amazing cast,” Obregon said. “It was truly a great experience to film in Cuba and see his home and the places Hemingway visited and frequented while living there.”

In the film, Obregon portrays Lucas, a brooding but honorable Hemingway confidante who fought against fascism when the author met him while serving as a war correspondent in the Spanish Civil War in 1936. “Papa Hemingway in Cuba” tells the story of a young American reporter’s friendship with Hemingway in during the island’s revolution in the late 1950s. 

“The movie gloriously captured dictator Fulgencio Batista’s Cuba and the tremors of revolution and insurrection while showing Hemingway as a complex man who never left his humanity,” said Obregon. “It’s a credit to Bob Yari’s vision and steady hand that allowed him to create a movie that brings Hemingway to life in such an amazing way.”

With a successful career that spanned two decades, Obregon is long known for his action roles in films such as “Collateral Damage,” with Arnold Schwarzenegger, and “Django 2” with Franco Nero, and many others featuring such stars as Benicio del Toro and Peter Fonda.

As the son of legendary Colombian painter Alejandro Obregon and famed Colombian ballet empresaria Sonia Osorio, Rodrigo Obregon was destined to be an artist in his own right as he began a career in acting as a teenager. But Obregon soon realized he needed to come to the U.S. where he wouldn’t need to the strength of his family name to develop his career.

But after much success in the 1980s and 90s, it became clear that Obregon had to return to his native Colombia to take care of his family legacy that included the Obregon Museum, established by his father who had passed away in 1992, as well as the Obregon Foundation, the Colombian National Ballet, led by his aging mother and other business interests.

So in 2002, Obregon returned home and took on the role of restoring and reorganizing the museum, its charitable foundation as well as his mother’s beloved ballet company which is world renowned for its artistry. As he struggled to restore and rebuild his family’s legacy, Obregon also went after those who falsified paintings of his late father by helping legislators draft laws to prosecute art counterfeiters.

While there, Obregon saw the struggle between the Colombian government and the drug cartels and their guerrilla allies, and he joined the army and become involved in many army operations to uproot illegal cocaine and drug manufacturing camps in the Colombian jungle.

But as his family’s legacy appears secure and his work in the army was completed, Obregon realized he wanted to resume his acting career with his new family that had grown two-fold when his wife gave birth to quadruplets in 2011.

Syfy Orders 'Superman' Prequel to Pilot

The Superman franchise is getting a prequel after Syfy announced that it has ordered "Krypton" to series (Syfy photo).

LOS ANGELES - Syfy today announced it has greenlit to pilot KRYPTON, the much-anticipated Superman prequel set two generations before the destruction of the legendary Man of Steel’s home planet.  KRYPTON will follow Superman’s grandfather — whose House of El was ostracized and shamed — as he fights to redeem his family’s honor and save his beloved world from chaos.

KRYPTON will be executive produced by David S. Goyer (“Man of Steel,” “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” “The Dark Knight” trilogy) through his Phantom Four banner. Damian Kindler (“Sleepy Hollow”) will serve as executive producer/showrunner; Colm McCarthy (“She Who Brings Gifts,” “Peaky Blinders”) is set to direct and co-executive produce the pilot. The pilot teleplay and story is written by David S. Goyer & Ian Goldberg (“Once Upon a Time,” “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles”). KRYPTON will be produced by Warner Horizon Television and is based on characters created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, published by DC Comics.

“KRYPTON is one of the most iconic stories in the comic book universe,” said Bill McGoldrick, Executive Vice President, Scripted Content, NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. “In the talented hands of David S. Goyer and the DC Entertainment/Warner Horizon Television team, this exciting Syfy project will take viewers back to Superman’s home to show how the timeless legend began.”

KRYPTON comes on the heels of the pilot greenlight for PROTOTYPE, written by Tony Basgallop (“24: Live Another Day”) and currently in production. Additional high-profile scripted projects in development at Syfy include an adaptation of Aldous Huxley’s classic novel BRAVE NEW WORLD from Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Television, and HYPERION, with executive producers Bradley Cooper, Graham King and Todd Phillips.

In 2016, Syfy’s powerhouse lineup includes HUNTERS, from “The Walking Dead” executive producer Gale Anne Hurd; the second season of the thriller series 12 MONKEYS; INCORPORATED, from Matt Damon, Ben Affleck & Jennifer Todd’s Pearl Street Films; the Halloween anthology series CHANNEL ZERO: CANDLE COVE; and critically-acclaimed first seasons of THE EXPANSE and THE MAGICIANS (both set for second seasons in 2017).

'Captain America: Civl War' Takes top Spot at Weekend Box Office

The Chris Evans starrer "Captain America: Civil War" crushed the opposition at the weekend box office with $181.8 million (Photo by Warner Bros.).

"Captain America: Civil War" won the weekend with an big $181.8 million, according to  estimates from ComScore The tally gave the movie the fifth-biggest opening weekend ever, just behind "Avengers: Age of Ultron" which took in $191.3 million in 2015, "The Avengers" with an estimated $207.4 million; "Jurassic World," $208.8 million; and Disney's space juggernaut, "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," with $248 million.

In second place, Disney's "The Jungle Book" which took in $24.49 million in its fourth weekend, with a huge $285 million total  for a worldwide total of $776.2 million. The romantic comedy "Mother's Day" was in third place, bringing in $9 million after an $8.4 million opening last week.

In fourth place was "The Huntsman: Winter's War" with an disappointing $3.94 million for a three-week total of $40.73 million, while the raunchy comedy "Keanu" took fifth place with $3.29 million, for a two-week total of 15.31 million.

The rest of the top 10 stacked up this way:

6. Zootopia (Disney) $3.21 million for a 10-week total of $328.16 million
7. Barbershop: The Next Cut (Warner Bros.) $2.80 million for a 10-week total of $48.87 million
8. The Boss (Universal) $1.91 million for a five-week total of $59.26 million
9. Ratchet & Clank (Focus Pictures) $1.46 million for a two-week total of $7.10 million
10. Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice (Warner Bros.) $1.05 million for a seven-week total of $327.25 million

Ellen DeGeneres launches the Ellen Digital Network wity New Content

Talk show host and media mogul Ellen DeGeneres is launching the Ellen Digital Network (Photo by Warner Bros.).

LOS ANGELES - Emmy-winning talk show host, producer and social media powerhouse Ellen DeGeneres is continuing her expansion into the original digital content business in a significant way with the announcement of the creation of the Ellen Digital Network and the unveiling of its first-ever programming slate today at the 2016 Digital Content NewFronts.

An Ellen Digital Ventures initiative launched in partnership with the Warner Bros. Television Group, the Ellen Digital Network will build upon the success of Ellen’s digital destination Ellentube and The Ellen DeGeneres Show website EllenTV.com as well as her official YouTube channel, wildly popular social media following and popular game Heads Up! to create a robust, premium cross-platform advertising and integration opportunity for brands to associate with the compelling and engaging original content Ellen produces and distributes, in a positive, high-quality environment.

The Ellen Digital Network will curate all aspects of the Ellen brand combined with original programming and user-generated content. The Ellen Digital Network has signed a content development deal with social media superstar Tyler Oakley, with Ellen and Tyler set to collaborate on a range of original digital projects with an aim toward developing projects for television as well.

In addition to the content partnership with Oakley, the inaugural Ellen Digital Network programming slate will feature an original Damn, Daniel series for Snapchat; Ellen’s Pet Dish, an animated series featuring Ellen’s pets from Warner Bros.’ digital production studio Blue Ribbon Content; the return of 4-year-old viral sensation Brielle; new episodes of Dance Challenge; #MadeByYou, featuring the best user-generated content from ellentube; and popular Ellen Show game Epic or Fail; and more.

Ellen DeGeneres said: “I’m so excited for the Ellen Digital Network. I’ll get to showcase amazing talents like Tyler Oakley and tWitch. Plus, I’ll finally prove to the world that my pets can speak in human voices.”

USA's 'Suits' to Return for Season 6 on July 13

Gabriel Macht, left, and Patrick J. Adams star in "Suits," set to return on July 13 on USA Network (Photo by USA Network Media LLC).

LOS ANGELES - USA Network announced today that the critically acclaimed drama SUITS is set to return for its sixth season on Wednesday, July 13 at 9/8c. The Universal Cable Productions series will be the lead-in to the previously announced second season of the Golden Globe® award-winning series MR. ROBOT on Wednesdays at 10/9c.

For the past five seasons, SUITS has centered on the fast-paced Manhattan corporate law firm, Pearson Specter Litt, led by legendary lawyer Harvey Specter (Gabriel Macht) and his not-so-legitimate associate Mike Ross (Patrick J. Adams), but after last season’s dramatic turn of events, everything has changed.

Season 6 begins immediately following the events of the shocking Season 5 cliffhanger that left Mike behind bars.  After signing a plea deal to spare his colleagues at Pearson Specter Litt, Mike will be confronted with the harsh realities of prison life as he starts his two-year sentence. Meanwhile, the once bustling Pearson Specter Litt offices are a ghost town – the partners have defected, leaving Harvey, Jessica (Gina Torres), Louis (Rick Hoffman), Donna (Sarah Rafferty) and Rachel (Meghan Markle) to pick up the pieces. But the firm’s troubles are far from over and they will have to deal with the fallout from Mike's crime before they can even begin to rebuild.

This season, SUITS will welcome previously announced new recurring stars including Erik Palladino (“ER,” “666 Park Avenue”), Paul Schulze (“Nurse Jackie”) and Malcolm Jamal Warner (“American Crime: The People vs. OJ Simpson,” “House of Lies”).

Over the past year, SUITS has ranked as USA Network’s #1 returning original series and the #2 cable entertainment program on Wednesday nights across all key demos. Season 5 averaged 3.7MM total viewers P2+, 1.7MM P25-54 and 1.5MM P18-49 on a L7 basis, and had its best season ever in video streams, up +39% over the previous season.

The fifth season of SUITS is available on Video on Demand and fans can catch up on previous seasons via Amazon Prime.  To delve deeper into the world of SUITS, fans can visit www.usanetwork.com/SUITS.

From Universal Cable Productions (UCP), SUITS was created and is executive produced by Aaron Korsh (“The Deep End”). Doug Liman (“Covert Affairs,” ”The Bourne Trilogy,” “Mr. & Mrs. Smith”), David Bartis (“Covert Affairs,” “The O.C.”) and Gene Klein (“Covert Affairs”) of Hypnotic serve as executive producers. Daniel Arkin (“90210”) and Rick Muirragui (“Men of a Certain Age,” “The Good Guys”) also serve as executive producers.

 

USA Network announced today that the critically acclaimed drama SUITS is set to return for its sixth season on Wednesday, July 13 at 9/8c. The Universal Cable Productions series will be the lead-in to the previously announced second season of the Golden Globe® award-winning series MR. ROBOT on Wednesdays at 10/9c.

For the past five seasons, SUITS has centered on the fast-paced Manhattan corporate law firm, Pearson Specter Litt, led by legendary lawyer Harvey Specter (Gabriel Macht) and his not-so-legitimate associate Mike Ross (Patrick J. Adams), but after last season’s dramatic turn of events, everything has changed.

Season 6 begins immediately following the events of the shocking Season 5 cliffhanger that left Mike behind bars.  After signing a plea deal to spare his colleagues at Pearson Specter Litt, Mike will be confronted with the harsh realities of prison life as he starts his two-year sentence. Meanwhile, the once bustling Pearson Specter Litt offices are a ghost town – the partners have defected, leaving Harvey, Jessica (Gina Torres), Louis (Rick Hoffman), Donna (Sarah Rafferty) and Rachel (Meghan Markle) to pick up the pieces. But the firm’s troubles are far from over and they will have to deal with the fallout from Mike's crime before they can even begin to rebuild.

- See more at: http://www.nbcuniversal.com/press-release/usa-network%E2%80%99s-hit-drama-%E2%80%98suits%E2%80%99-returns-season-6-wednesday-july-13%C2%A0-98c#sthash.p1RFZPLN.dpuf

USA Network announced today that the critically acclaimed drama SUITS is set to return for its sixth season on Wednesday, July 13 at 9/8c. The Universal Cable Productions series will be the lead-in to the previously announced second season of the Golden Globe® award-winning series MR. ROBOT on Wednesdays at 10/9c.

For the past five seasons, SUITS has centered on the fast-paced Manhattan corporate law firm, Pearson Specter Litt, led by legendary lawyer Harvey Specter (Gabriel Macht) and his not-so-legitimate associate Mike Ross (Patrick J. Adams), but after last season’s dramatic turn of events, everything has changed.

Season 6 begins immediately following the events of the shocking Season 5 cliffhanger that left Mike behind bars.  After signing a plea deal to spare his colleagues at Pearson Specter Litt, Mike will be confronted with the harsh realities of prison life as he starts his two-year sentence. Meanwhile, the once bustling Pearson Specter Litt offices are a ghost town – the partners have defected, leaving Harvey, Jessica (Gina Torres), Louis (Rick Hoffman), Donna (Sarah Rafferty) and Rachel (Meghan Markle) to pick up the pieces. But the firm’s troubles are far from over and they will have to deal with the fallout from Mike's crime before they can even begin to rebuild.

- See more at: http://www.nbcuniversal.com/press-release/usa-network%E2%80%99s-hit-drama-%E2%80%98suits%E2%80%99-returns-season-6-wednesday-july-13%C2%A0-98c#sthash.p1RFZPLN.dpuf