LeVar Burton is now hoping to reach $5M with his “Reading Rainbow” Kickstarter
“Here”s the thing,” he tells EW. “We sat around last night and figured out that if we got to 5 million dollars – yesterday, at about this time, we got to 2.5 million dollars – if we could go twice as high and get to 5 million, that gets us, by anyone”s definition, universal access. Because that means Android, done. Mobile, done. So 5 million gets us all on those platforms, and it gives us the opportunity to give the school product to 7,500 classrooms. Free of charge.”
Is Bryan Cranston ruining “Breaking Bad” by teasing a Walter White comeback?
Cranston is ruining a “perfectly good ending” by starting a “wildfire among fans,” says Ben Travers, who speculates that Cranston may have been trying to build Emmy buzz for the final season – though “Cranston doesn't seem like the type of guy to go trolling for awards.”
NFL is being urged to drop the “L” from “Super Bowl L”
The 50th Super Bowl in 2016 is using the Roman numeral “L,” and the San Francisco host committee would rather call it “Super Bowl 50.” PLUS: NBC is asking a record-breaking $4.5 million for a 30-second Super Bowl spot.
Is “Game of Thrones” important TV?
“The answer is yes,” says Jack Hamilton, “and precisely for its unreality, its joyful hostility toward anything like allegory, commentary, or social relevance. Much like 'Star Wars' and Hogwarts and other great Neverlands, 'Game of Thrones' doesn”t hold a mirror to anything. It is aggressively false, a work of far-fetched imagination so intricate and finely realized it becomes compelling on its own terms, disorienting and dazzling us in the ways that only the best storytelling can.” PLUS: Pedro Pascal previews the fight: “He's 6-foot-9; I'm 5-foot-11,” who are the “GoT”s” counterparts on “The Wire”?, watch a video of “GoT” stars before they were famous, inside the real King”s Landing in Croatia, Sophie Turner didn”t like her Season 2 performance, Maisie Williams gives Vine tips, and why “GoT” needs more mature sex scenes.
Larry Wilmore”s “The Minority Report” will use nightly panels to help find new talent for Comedy Central
The general concept is Larry will be the anchor of the show and the first act will likely be Larry's take on the news of the day or cultural hot topics of the moment,” says Comedy Central president Michele Ganeless. “Then [there will be] a panel. The panel will be the second act, we'll likely have a guest interacting with the panel in the third act.”
Ridley Scott”s “Galyntine” adds Peter Fonda
He”ll play a survivor on the technology-less sci-fi fantasy pilot set in a postapocalyptic future.
Infographic shows that “Doctor Who” has become sexist under Steven Moffat
University students studied every episode of the new “Who” to see if they passed the Bechdel test – Do 2 female characters, with names, talk to each other about something other than men? Under Moffat, only 57% of the “Doctor Who” episodes past the test, compared to 89% under Russell T. Davies.
Will overspeculation hurt “True Detective”s” 2nd season?
Fans speculating on Twitter for big-name actors may be disappointed by a lesser-known casting.
Chelsea Handler is said to want Khloe Kardashian to replace her on E!, or one of her female regulars
“She wants to see a woman remain in late night,” a source close to the “Chelsea Lately” star tell NY Daily News.
Rob Schneider wants his self-made “Real Rob” sitcom to be the “comedy ‘House of Cards””
Schneider is doing standup to pay for the sitcom, an offshoot of the “¡Rob!” sitcom that CBS canceled two years ago.
Emmys shouldn”t pit sketch shows vs. late-night shows, says “Comedy Bang! Bang!” star
“The steamrolling behemoths from late night” have too often dominated the variety series category, says Scott Aukerman, leaving little room for shows like “Portlandia,” “Key and Peele,” “Inside Amy Schumer” and “Kroll Show,” as well as his show. His solution: split the categories.
“Mad Men”s” Matthew Weiner: “Now I have all the anxiety of, is this the right ending?”
Days after the midseason finale, Weiner talks about finally completing the final episode over Memorial Day Weekend, plus he goes into detail of Robert Morse”s musical number and Stanley Kubrick”s influence on him. PLUS: How Don Draper will die, DVR viewers boost midseason finale, the most random old TV stars to appear on “Mad Men,” Jay and Lou talked Shakespeare, and was there an O.J. Simpson reference?
Nathaniel Buzolic returning to “The Originals”
He”ll reprise his role as Kol Mikaelson in a Season 2 flashback.
Tom Bergeron reunites with his FX “Breakfast Time” co-stars
It”s the 20th anniversary of the FX morning show that ran from 1994 to 1996.
The canceled “Enlisted” is being shopped to other networks as it returns to the Fox lineup
The final four episodes of the canceled military comedy begin airing on Sunday. “These are the best four episodes we did,” says creator Kevin Biegel, adding: “If we can get even a slightly decent rating we can show a new home that this show has a real fan base.”
“The Wire”s” Sonja Sohn joins “The Originals”
She”ll play a witch on the CW series.
Bill Hader is back Sunday with more of “TCM Essentials Jr.”
The “SNL” alum will things off with “Bringing Up Baby.”
History channel orders a Knights Templar miniseries
The four-hour project will tell the origins of the mystic medieval Christian order.
BJ Novak unveils his new children”s book
“The Book With No Pictures” has absolutely no pictures.
Harry Hamlin: I ended up on TV because I played gay on the big screen
The “Mad Men” star says his 1981 film “Making Love” effectively ended his movie career.
CBS tried out 22 potential “Late Late Show” hosts in 2004 – they should do that again!
Everybody from Rosie Perez to Jason Alexander to David Duchovny hosted for two to three nights at a time, before CBS settled on Craig Ferguson as Craig Kilborn”s replacement.
Jon Lovitz compares “SNL” and “Sing Your Face Off”
Unlike the ABC reality show, Lovitz said he and his castmates felt like every week was an audition on “SNL.”
HBO boss gave up on “Lost” after 1 season, but sought Damon Lindelof for “The Leftovers” anyway
“'Lost” had a big and loyal and robust and smart, passionate audience until the very end,” says Michael Lombardo, HBO”s chief of programming. “I mean, how many serialized shows do that? Most shows peter out, they end with a whimper.”
Ellen DeGeneres urges her UK fans to vote for her fave act on “Britain”s Got Talent”
She”s become obsessed with the rapping children”s duo of Bars and Melody.
“The Wendy Williams Show” will air for the 2nd summer in a row
New episodes will be produced in June and July.
Have TV”s antiheroes become too dark?
There may be an “empathy conflict” with the antiheroes on shows like “The Following” and “Hannibal.”
“My Granny The Escort” airs on British TV
The Channel 4 documentary tells “a frank and intimate portrait of three mature British women who sell sex.”
Tumblr blog tells you which episodes to skip when binging on past shows
For instance, you can easily skip 70 of the 156 “West Wing” episodes.
Ted Kennedy”s U.S. Senate hideaway recreated on “Alpha House”
The hideway was rebuilt on a soundstage in Queens, using an old interview for reference.
Check out images from “The Book of Negroes”
The BET miniseries Aunjanue Ellis, Louis Gossett Jr., Cuba Gooding Jr. and Lyriq Bent.
Here”s ranking every season of “Friends,” “Seinfeld,” “Lost,” “The Sopranos” and more
Here”s the “Correct Ranking of Seasons” also for “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “ER,” “Gilmore Girls,” “The Wire” and “The West Wing.”
American comic Rob Delaney lands a UK sitcom role
He”ll co-star with “Pulling”s” Sharon Horgan on “Catastrophe,” playing an American who falls in love with an Irish woman.
The 25 Most Powerful TV shows of the past 25 years
From “Melrose Place” to “Glee” to “SpongeBob SquarePants.”
Chance the Rapper covers the “Arthur” theme song
Watch his performance at the Sasquatch! Music Festival.
Lacey Chabert stars in “The Color of Rain” on Hallmark Channel
The “Party of Five” alum loses a husband to cancer in this tear-jerker of a movie, airing Saturday.
“Derek” is back: Ricky Gervais” charming and honest endeavor
Season 2 is up on Netflix today.
Edward Snowden should watch “Person of Interest” and “The Good Wife”
They have themes he may like after rejecting Season 2 of “The Wire.”
Blogger creates “Simpsons”-inspired food recipes
Make yourself some Homer”s D”Oh-nuts, or The Flaming Homer.
DIY”s “Renovation Realities”: It”s fun to watch people fail
The long-running home renovation reality show is notable because there”s nothing to reveal, except excuses.
“Chuck”s” Sarah Lancaster joins Kelly McGillis in “Love Finds You In Sugarcreek”
The UP TV movie, airing Sunday, also stars Tom Everett Scott.
“Survivor: Panama” champ Aras Baskauskas becomes a dad
He welcomed a son on Thursday.
John Malkovich is knowingly slumming it on NBC”s “Crossbones”
It is Malkovich”s acting ability that holds the Blackbeard drama up. As Willa Paskin notes, “presumably, John Malkovich could headline a series on HBO. So when you see him in NBC”s ‘Crossbones,' which premieres Friday night, strutting around wearing tropical-weight drop-crotch pantaloons in an allegedly 19th-century cabana that looks like a Club Med-except for the flayed corpse where the coffee table should be-know that he must have really, really wanted to play a pirate.” PLUS: Malkovich explains why he”s not wearing a beard, “Crossbones” is too lifeless to capitalize on Malkovich”s talents, Malkovich is perfectly suited for this role, the cast is mostly British and good, and “CSI” was the only TV job Malkovich would consider before “Crossbones” came along.
AMC”s “Halt and Catch Fire” tries to reverse-engineer “Mad Men,” and appears to succeed
“The pilot moves with a kind of confidence that”s hard to fake,” says By Todd VanDerWerff. “It has a destination in mind, and while it can take its time getting there, every single scene has a purpose and point on its way toward that destination. This is entertaining TV, and it”s made more entertaining by the sense that all involved are going to make this ride as comfortable as possible. Yet the pilot keeps bumping up against those 'Mad Men' comparisons, which extend beyond the period setting or high-pressure business environment.” PLUS: It has a triumphant pilot – but pilots lie and AMC wouldn”t release other episodes to critics, “Halt” shows real spark with a terrific cast, “Halt” is hard to follow and hard to care about, the fresh premise results in a show that is formulaic with stock characters, “Halt” is worth watching thanks to Lee Pace, and Lee Pace talks returning to TV after “Pushing Daisies.”