Archive: May 2010 (271-280 of 596)

May 16 2010 11:00 PM ET

'Celebrity Apprentice': Three celebs are fired! And the final two are...

Donald Trump was clearly fired up to do some firing, saying sayonara to three contestants, and setting the final two off on their final task to determine ultimate Celebrity Apprentice dominance. My full recap will be up at 2am [UPDATE: Dalton's full Celebrity Apprentice recap is now live!], but if you already watched and can’t wait to sound off, then read on after the jump for more. [SPOILER ALERT: Read on only if you have already watched Sunday's episode of Celebrity Apprentice.] READ FULL STORY »

May 16 2010 10:05 PM ET

'Survivor: Heroes vs Villains': And the winner is...

Filed under: Reality TV, Television and tagged: , ,

One of the most gripping and topsy-turvy seasons in Survivor history came to a close this evening with three Tribal Councils and, after 39 days, a winner. My full recap will be up soon, [UPDATE: Dalton's full Survivor recap is now live!] but if you’ve already watched the Heroes vs Villains finale and can’t wait to sound off, then read on after the jump for more. [SPOILER ALERT: Read on only if you have already watched the season finale of Survivor: Heroes vs Villains.] READ FULL STORY »

May 16 2010 07:27 PM ET

'Sex and the City' goes noir ... why not?

Filed under: Movies, Television and tagged: , ,

Ever wonder what would happen if Sex and the City went all Roland Emmerich and cranked out a disaster movie? Or went on a Kubrickian space odyssey? While talking to EW for the current Sex and the City 2 cover story, Cynthia Nixon said she, her costars, and writer-director-producer Michael Patrick King all have. And what do they imagine? “There’s a terrible war and all the men are drafted. We all have to move in and start a victory garden together,” Nixon says. “We do talk about us in the future — Sex and the City in space. At least, we try and imagine. I always think a murder mystery one would be good. Because there are always rumors that someone’s gonna die: Charlotte’s gonna die or Big is gonna die. It’s crazy! It’s a comedy, guys. Nobody’s gonna die.”

Well, maybe not in any real SATC screenplay that will ever make its way to celluloid. But King recently provided EW with three tongue-in-cheek mini-scripts, one of which explores a parallel SATC universe in which Carrie’s biggest source of angst is not a scuff on her new Manolos, but the corpses of all the gals’ murdered husbands. (Another of King’s faux-scripts explores what would happen if the friends were among the last people standing in a post-apocalyptic Herland. It’s in the May 21st issue of EW, on newsstands now.) For fans of the franchise, it’s pretty hilarious. (Click here to read the full script and here to read another one.) Here’s an excerpt:

EXT. CARRIE’S APARTMENT — NIGHT

Carrie is seen looking out of the upstairs window. She is wearing a trench coat and smoking.

CARRIE (VOICE-OVER) It was a rainy New York City night when I got the first call.

INT. CARRIE’S APARTMENT

She picks up her vintage black rotary phone.

CARRIE Carrie Bradshaw.

EXT. NYC STREET — CONTINUOUS

A MAN IN THE SHADOWS — his face obscured.

MAN Someone is killing my friends.

CARRIE Go on.

MAN 782 Park Avenue. Apartment 7B.

The Man hangs up. Carrie looks off — puzzled.

CARRIE (V.O.) 782 Park. It was a familiar address.

INT. PARK AVE. APARTMENT HALLWAY — LATER THAT NIGHT

CARRIE (V.O.) (CONT’D) Too familiar.

The name on the door under the 7B: YORK/GOLDENBLATT.

INT. PARK AVE. APARTMENT BATHROOM

HARRY GOLDENBLATT floats in the tub face up — DEAD. Toy plastic DUCKIES float in the bubbles around him. A Burberry-print belt is pulled around his neck.

CARRIE (V.O.) (CONT’D) Death by a classic Burberry-print trench belt. It could only be one person.

Carrie looks on from the doorway — shakes her head.

CARRIE (V.O.) (CONT’D) It was times like this I wish I hadn’t joined the NYPD in 2011 when the book business went bust.

Oooh … spooky, right? Fun stuff. It’s like stepping into Sex and the City‘s over-the-top version of Lost‘s sideways story lines. If you’re a fan, what other off-the-wall scenarios can your wacky imagination dream up for the fabulous foursome? Sound off in the comment section below. Bonus points if you refrain from facile, misogynistic comments about the actresses’ ages!

(Additional reporting by Tim Stack)

May 16 2010 07:15 PM ET

Weekend Doc Jensen: The Redemption Gospel According To Jacob

Filed under: Lost and tagged: ,

across-the-seaImage Credit: Mario Perez/ABC For an episode that many fans allegedly disliked, “Across The Sea” has inspired some of the most spirited and thought-provoking commentary I’ve ever seen from Lost fandom. I’m not the first to make this observation. Myles McNutt has posted a directory of “Across The Sea” blogging on his (highly recommended) Cultural Learnings website, and I encourage you to click over there and check it out after I’m done talking your ear off about all things Jacob. (To the mix of voices, I would also add our own Ken Tucker, who deemed “Across The Sea” a “stinker.”) One of the more contentious reviews I read came from Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune. She was troubled by the depiction of Mother and how Lost in her view has become “the epic, heroic or anti-heroic journeys of a bunch of white men.” As a white, anti-heroic man myself, I can’t quite relate to her critique — which I confess might be something of a problem on my part. Regardless, Maureen is a smart critic and has been a fan of Lost and her review is a credible, challenging (in a good way) read.

READ FULL STORY »

May 16 2010 12:43 PM ET

'Doctor Who' recap: All in all it's just another crack in the wall

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t slightly underwhelmed by “Flesh and Stone,” last night’s conclusion to the superior (and scarier) “The Time of Angels.” As is often the case with Doctor Who, I preferred the intimate storyline of last week’s episode — which focused more narrowly on the pure stone-faced terror of the Weeping Angels — to the Big Mythological Sweep (TM) of the conclusion, in which said Angels became secondary players to the overarching “crack in time” arc being plotted this season by Steven Moffat. To put it another way, something’s not quite working when you’ve got the Angels fleeing en masse from an eerie light source, but I’m not feeling remotely scared.

Things kicked off with the Doctor temporarily fending off the Angels with a little shift in gravity, until, of course, that tense standoff in a narrow passageway where he had to (gulp) turn off the lights in order to release the airlock and get back into the main deck of the crashed spacecraft. READ FULL STORY »

May 16 2010 12:31 PM ET

Jane Lynch on 'Newsweek'/'Glee' controversy: Murphy and Chenoweth 'heroic'

jane-lynchImage Credit: Michael Yarish/FOXGlee creator Ryan Murphy and occasional guest-star Kristin Chenoweth both released statements last week condemning the Newsweek article “Straight Jacket,” which claimed gay actors could not convincingly play straight characters. Murphy then announced that the article’s writer, Ramin Setoodeh, had agreed to visit with Murphy and his Glee writers.

EW spoke with Glee star (and out lesbian) Jane Lynch, who applauded Murphy and Chenoweth’s statements but also believes that Setoodeh is allowed to have his own opinions. “The thing is, actors are actors: You can’t play gay anymore than you can play somebody who’s Catholic,” says Lynch. “Aaron Sorkin wrote a wonderful thing in the Huffington Post. I don’t think you have to slap somebody down for making an opinion that you don’t agree with. But I do think what Kristin and Ryan did was so important, and I’m glad that they said it. It doesn’t mean, ‘Off with [Setoodeh's] head.’ But I’m very glad, and I thought it was very heroic what the two of them did.”

What do you think of Lynch’s take, PopWatchers? Is Setoodeh entitled to his opinion?

More Glee coverage on EW.com:
Read our Glee recaps

Gallery: 11 laws of the Glee universe

Gallery: 20 outrageous Sue Sylvester quips
Gallery: Sue Sylvester’s Glee style

May 16 2010 08:00 AM ET

'Survivor': Get ready for tonight's 'Heroes vs Villains' finale with the Ultimate 'Survivor' Quiz

Tonight, a 20th Survivor champion will be crowned, and — fun fact! — if that champion is Sandra or Parvati, we will have our first repeat winner. You probably knew that already. But how well do you know Survivor? As a little pre-game exercise for the finale, take our Ultimate Survivor Quiz, with questions and answers presented by Jeff Probst and the cast of Heroes vs Villains! (Well, 19 of them, at least. Can you tell who is missing?) See if Parvati, Boston Rob, Cirie, and others can stump you with questions based on the first 19 seasons of the show (this quiz was comprised before season 20 began, so don’t factor Heroes vs Villains in as you come up with your answers). Probst and each contestant will ask a question and you’ll be given four possible answers. You’ll then be given a few seconds to choose, but don’t worry, you can pause the video if you need more time. (Also note that you’ll have to keep score yourself: No cheating!) Just click on the video after the jump to take the 3-part quiz. READ FULL STORY »

May 15 2010 09:15 AM ET

This Week on Stage: Theater world abuzz over 'Newsweek' piece on gay actors in straight roles

Filed under: News and tagged: ,

Sean-HayesImage Credit: Andrew H. Walker/Getty ImagesWith Tony nominations doled out last week and relatively few new productions opening, this week the theater world was dominated by discussion of a controversial Newsweek article titled “Straight Jacket,” penned by Ramin Setoodeh, who used Promises, Promises star Sean Hayes as an example of gay actors whom he found to be unconvincing playing straight characters. The commentary led to a storm of responses from Hayes’ Promises costar Kristen Chenoweth and Glee creator Ryan Murphy, who was enraged since the article also criticized Jonathan Groff, the former Spring Awakening star who plays Jesse on his show. Both demanded an apology, as did EW’s Jeff Labrecque, in a post here on PopWatch.

Outside of the Newsweek controversy, a couple shows did open Off Broadway. First, sex columnist Dan Savage’s The Kid—a musical based off his 2000 memoir The Kid: What Happened After My Boyfriend and I Decided to Go Get Pregnant—opened to a middling review from EW’s Adam Markovitz, who noted that the production’s “easy punchlines and bland songs…cling to the cheesy, cymbal-riding vernacular of the modern soft-rock show tune.” He gave it a B–. The Passion Play, a three-act, three-and-a-half-hour religious-themed drama from Tony-nominated playwright Sarah Ruhl, fared better with reviewer Melissa Rose Bernardo, who gave the production a B and concluded, “Sarah Ruhl continues her streak as one of the most surprising, enigmatic, and curiously fascinating playwrights working today.” Additionally, I reviewed the new cast of Broadway’s Tony-winning musical revival Hair, which now features American Idol alums Diana DeGarmo and Ace Young, as well as Canadian pop star Kyle Riabko. The cast easily stepped into their roles, I wrote, which is a testament to a strong production that handily earns a B+.

If you’re looking for some live theater, check out the EW.com Stage hub for up-to-date news and reviews; or consult EW’s handy theater listings, which includes links to all of our stage reviews of current shows as well as ticket information. (Note: The reviews are typically of performances with the show’s original cast.)

More Stage coverage from EW.com:
‘Spider-Man’ musical might see the light of day after all
Please apologize, ‘Newsweek.’ Quickly.
‘Newsweek’ and Sean Hayes: You say too gay? No frickin’ way!
‘Newsweek’ travels back to 1952 to argue against gay actors in straight roles; Kristin Chenoweth is not happy
‘Milk’ screenwriter Dustin Lance Black criticizes ‘Newsweek’
Lena Horne dies at 92
‘La Cage aux Folles’ to hit the road
The argument against waiting for a ‘Gay George Clooney’
‘Glee’ creator Ryan Murphy pens another open letter; says he’s spoken to the author of ‘Newsweek’ article
‘Glee’ creator Ryan Murphy pushes for ‘Newsweek’ boycott

May 15 2010 12:01 AM ET

'Idolatry': Aaron Kelly on abandoning Usher's advice, and dismissing comparisons to past Idols

Filed under: American Idol and tagged: ,

Idolatry_Aaron-KellyAaron Kelly made it all the way to fifth place on American Idol‘s ninth season, but he says he was satisfied the moment he cracked the top 10. I sat down with the high school student to discuss his run on the show, including the real story behind his “botched” lyrics in Hollywood Week, the reason you should “never throw the band under the bus,” and the hidden talent the show’s producers never revealed he possessed. Press play below to get that scoop and more, and for all my Idol news and commentary, follow me on Twitter @EWMichaelSlezak. READ FULL STORY »

May 14 2010 06:42 PM ET

Lady Gaga, Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, Sting sing 'Don't Stop Believin'

We have an unofficial moratorium on “Don’t Stop Believin’” covers here at PopWatch (oh, who are we kidding, no we don’t), but I’m now prepared to break it for this shaky, out-of-focus, but still strangely awesome video from last night’s star-studded fund-raising concert at Carnegie Hall. (Check it out after the jump.) READ FULL STORY »

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