“Mr. Chase said the show has, on occasion, ‘indirectly heard’ from real-life mobsters. ‘After about four episodes,’ Mr. Chase said, ‘we heard, “You’re O.K.” With one caveat: “We got word about those barbecue scenes where Jim would wear shorts. A don does not wear shorts.”‘” On the eve of Sopranos Season 6 (the penultimate season, to be followed with an eight-episode coda), series creator David Chase and star James Gandolfini have a sit-down with the NYT.
Tag: HBO
Bullock Bullish.
August commencement to George Hearst’s time in town: Before Season 3 is even aired (it’ll return in June, with The Sopranos), Deadwood looks to get a fourth time ’round. Huzzah.
Development Arrested.
Bad news for the Bluths: Despite its critical acclaim and multiple Emmy wins, Fox has cut Season 3 of Arrested Development from 22 to 13 episodes. I caught up with the show recently on DVD, and it’s definitely the funniest thing on TV this side of Curb Your Enthusiasm. That being said, it doesn’t exactly reward casual viewing, so I can see why it’s having trouble at its current slot. Well, maybe it’ll find a more suitable home on one of the cable networks.
Vamps of all kinds.
Jonathan Rhys-Meyers has a fatal attraction problem with Scarlett Johansson in the new trailer for Match Point, directed by…well, someone unexpected. (By way of Listen Missy.) Also in the trailer bin are looks at the “remake” of Broadway’s The Producers (What? No Larry David?) and Underworld: Evolution, the unnecessary sequel to a truly terrible film. Seriously, if everyone just sent Bill Nighy $10 rather than seeing this latter flick, the world would be a better place. Catsuit-Kate notwithstanding, he’d be the only reason to sit through this drek.
Gold Stryker.
Will Al Swearingen meet his match in Hannibal Lecter? Proving once again that quality character actors love them some Sioux country, Brian Cox joins Deadwood Season Three as “Jack Langrishe, an eccentric producer and theater owner who strives to introduce a modicum of culture to the mean streets of the South Dakota town.” (He’s likely the earlier rumored openly gay character in love with a male ingenue — Garret Dillahunt, perhaps?) (Also posted at Quiddity.) In other HBO news, memo to myself: The Wire Season 3 hits On Demand on Sept. 12, meaning I should probably pick up the service sometime before then.
Casting Call.
Get your agent on the phone…Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant’s Extras, their six-episode follow-up to The Office, gets picked up by HBO for broadcast Stateside. And there was much rejoicing (at least in these parts.)
Dead Men Tell Some Tales.
Can’t tell a hooplehead from a squarehead? What are you, from Yankton? Well, this establishment here can at least help you separate fact from fiction on HBO’s Deadwood. Some spoilers to be had, if the writers keep following the basic history of the town. (Courtesy of the formidable proprietors of Triptych Cryptic.)
Unscripted K-os?
Max of Lots of Co. points the way to this intriguing article on the pitfalls that have befallen K Street. I finally saw a few episodes at a friend’s house and, while James and Mary came off well, I thought the show suffered from a few strategic errors. For one, as this story points out, the only people who will recognize (or will care about) all the uncredited cameos are the same ones who’ll realize how ultimately fake the show is. For another, the show’s greatest strength was that it seemed news-dependent, but…if you have no news for a few weeks, trouble ensues. (Hence, the not-very-engaging personal subplots that have taken over.) Still, I think there’s definite potential for a show like K St.…perhaps Soderbergh & co. should try a second run a little closer to election time, if HBO wills it.
Alphabet City.
So the big TV story in Blog Nation and elsewhere today is K Street. With this and Carnivale, I now really wish I had HBO, but ah well. At any rate, I for one am rooting for K St., not only ’cause I’m big fans of all involved, but also because there’re many politicians out there (Orrin Hatch, for example) who only recognize the worth of a given position if they hear themselves saying it. (Take, for example, the debate wrought by Soderbergh’s own Traffic.) I do think, however, that the quick turnaround time between episodes will cause problems in the later going…not only is it often hard to get pols to commit their schedules so quickly, but the show is one controversial moment away from being on the butt-end of a freeze-out sponsored by some touchy soul like Tom DeLay. Nevertheless, it sounds like a fascinating show well worth watching, even if the life it depicts is considerably less glamorous and frenetic than it lets on.
Special K.
The NY Times delves into K Street, the new life-meets-art political show brought to you by Clooney, Soderbergh, Carville, and Matalin. Should be interesting, if nothing else.