John Travolta Is Going to Rub You Out
He's gonna do it. Maybe quickly, maybe slowly. Depends how he feels. But watch out, he's coming. Also today: lots of news about television, casting and pilots and stuff, as well as an update on that Will Smith Annie thing.
Totally normal heterosexual man who probably never has parties on his private plane, "the FlyTwink Express," John Travolta is said to be in talks to play notorious mobster John Gotti in a new biopic about the Dapper Don and his son. The film is being produced by a company called Fiore Films, which bought the rights to John Gotti Jr.'s story from Junior himself, who also apparently helped out with the script. Fiore Films appears to be this company, but I really wish it was this company. Or maybe they're the same Fiore family? Music does play on both sites... Anyway, seems on the up and up! [EW]
Hey, look who's back! No, not Wayne Knight. Although he is back, having just been cast in a new TV Land pilot about three divorced guys who live in an apartment owned by their divorce attorney (Kristen Johnson). Sounds hilarious! Oh, TV Land. But no, just this one time I'm not actually talking about Wayne Knight, which I know is weird for me, seeing as I'm almost always talking about Wayne Knight. Today I am talking about Lolita Davidovich, the actress from the 1990s who sorta disappeared there for a while. Well she's back in a TBS pilot from her Play It to the Bone director Ron Shelton about a Nashville minor league baseball team and all the whatnot that goes on with them. Davidovich will play the owner of the team. She's joined by Broadway lady turned country singer turned internet comedienne Laura Bell Bundy and Tom Verica. OK, let's go back to talking about Wayne Knight now. [Deadline]
Hey, look who's headed to Broadway! Uh, it's, uh... it's Jim Belushi. Yup, the avant garde genius from the experimental comedic series According to Jim is going to star in a revival of Born Yesterday, about a corrupt business mogul who, embarrassed by his ditzy showgirl girlfriend, hires a reporter to teach her how to be savvy. Previews begin March 31st. Obviously Belushi will be playing the ditzy showgirl. [NYT]
Speaking of brilliant comedians, NBC has ordered a pilot for a series based on Are You There Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea, a book written by Chelsea Handler. In the spirit of Ms. Handler's comedy style, every episode will just be a repackaged old sitcom episode from 2002, tweaked only to be more vaguely racist. [Deadline]
More shows getting picked up! More more more! NBC has ordered a pilot for S.I.L.A., a sprawling series from Traffic writer (and Syriana writer/director) Stephen Gaghan, about the law enforcement and politics scene in Los Angeles. At present, my pilot pitch S.I.L.O., about a farm run by robots, has not yet been picked up. Fingers crossed, though. [THR] Meanwhile, over at ABC, they've ordered pilots for Pan-Am, about the swinging aviation industry (Mad Men on a plane), a show called Poe about Edgar Allen Poe solving crimes in 1840s Boston (are you fucking kidding me? that will either be great and weird or absolutely horrifying), Lost and Found about a guy reconnecting with his conservative teenage son (Family Ties 2: Come Back to the Living Room, Tina Yothers, Tina Yothers), and Work It, a comedy about two guys who disguise themselves as women to become pharmaceutical reps. So it's Bosom Buddies made contemporary. Who will they cast in that? Two lithe and girlish men, no doubt! Eddie Redmayne! Anyway, interesting mix, ABC. Can I write for Poe please? [The Wrap]
Naomi Watts has signed on to Clint Eastwood's J. Edgar Hoover biopic. She'll play Helen Gandy, Hoover's longtime secretary who became influential in a behind-the-scenes way at the FBI. That's good. I like her. I wish someone else was directing this. That's all. [Deadline]
Oh dear. Will Smith's production company has confirmed that it will be producing an Annie remake, with Jay-Z as a co-producer. Because he did that "Hard Knock Life" sample, maybe? I don't know. I don't really want to think about this at all. [WSJ]
The news keeps getting better! CBS has renewed their ladyfritz kaffeeklatsch The Talk (the one with Leah Remini and Julie Chen) for another season. So we get a whole 'nother year of... all of that. All of that ladymuck and ladysoup and ladyguddle. I don't know what "guddle" is, but it is the word that sprang to mind as I thought of this show. Guddle, noun: what happens on the television series The Talk. [THR]
Ahhhhh. Here's one last bit of news, good news, to cleanse the palate. Director Gary Ross says that the movie version of The Hunger Games will come out on March 12th, 2012. Are we almost there yet? Also, WHO IS PLAYING GALE AND PEETA AND KATNISS AND FINNICK AND EVERYONE???? WHOOOO??? AND DON'T SAY ANNE HATHAWAY OR CHELSEA HANDLER!! [EW]