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Emmy-winning Squid Game actor Lee Jung-jae joins Star Wars: The Acolyte cast. Netflix expands the Gears of War universe with a live-action movie and animated series. Édgar Ramírez will star in season 2 of anthology series Dr. Death. SNL alum Sasheer Zamata has joined WandaVision spinoff Agatha: Coven of Chaos. An Indiana Jones TV show may be in Disney+’s future. Chris Rock will make history at Netflix with first live stand-up comedy event. Stephen King’s It will get the prequel treatment at HBO. Plus, trailers for The Witcher: Blood Origin, FX’s sci-fi drama Kindred, and the second and final season of Carnival Row on Prime Video, and more of the biggest news in TV and streaming from the past week.
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(Photo by Christian Black/Disney+)
Star Wars: The Acolyte, Disney+’s upcoming entry in LucasFilm’s constantly expanding universe, has found its cast. Joining Amandla Stenberg (The Hate U Give), who was previously announced as starring in the series, are Squid Game alum Lee Jung-jae, The Matrix‘s Carrie-Anne Moss, Manny Jacinto (The Good Place), Dafne Keen (His Dark Materials), Jodie Turner-Smith (Queen & Slim), Rebecca Henderson (Inventing Anna), Charlie Barnett (Russian Doll), and Dean-Charles Chapman (1917).
The Acolyte is, per the official press release, being described as “a mystery-thriller that will take viewers into a galaxy of shadowy secrets and emerging dark-side powers in the final days of the High Republic era. A former Padawan reunites with her Jedi Master to investigate a series of crimes, but the forces they confront are more sinister than they ever anticipated.”
Russian Doll‘s Leslye Headland created the series, serves as the showrunner and executive producer, and will direct the pilot episode. The series is currently in production in the U.K.
The Acolyte will stream exclusively on Disney+.
Related: Every Upcoming Star Wars Movie and Series with Key Details and Dates
(Photo by Netflix)
Get your coalition ready, Gears of War is coming to Netflix.
In a bit of news that lines up with the 16th anniversary of the premiere of the first release in the popular video game series (which has sold over 40-million copies), the streamer has announced a new live-action film adaptation and animated television series is in the works. Get ready to go to battle a bunch of mutant monsters.
The monsters we’re referencing, specifically, are known as the Locust Horde, and it is the common enemy the Delta Squad faces in the video games. Disgraced sergeant Marcus Fenix is the leader of this rag-tag crew, and their battles for survival amid the hostile landscape of planet Sera face a constant uphill battle.
Netflix is partnering with The Coalition, the game developer behind Gears of War, on both projects. No further details have been released, thus far.
The Witcher: Blood Origin’s new teaser previews the Elven battle to come and showcases the fight skills of Michelle Yeoh’s stoic sword-elf Scian, who is on a quest for a magical stolen blade. The four-part special event Witcher prequel series also stars Minnie Driver (as Seanchaí), Laurence O’Fuarain (as Fjall), Sophia Brown (as Éile), Mirren Mack (as Merwyn), Lenny Henry (as Balor), Jacob Collins Levy (as Eredin), Lizzie Annis (as Zacaré), Huw Novelli (as Callan “Brother Death”), Francesca Mills (as Meldof), Amy Murray (as Fenrik), Nathaniel Curtis (as Brían), Zach Wyatt (as Syndril), Dylan Moran (as Uthrok One-Nut), and Joey Batey (as Jaskier). The Witcher: Blood Origin launches on December 25 on Netflix.
More trailers and teasers released this week:
• Carnival Row season 2 finds Orlando Bloom and Cara Delivigne returning to the series, after a 3-year wait, in the show’s second and final season. Get ready for more gritty fae-folk action. Premieres February 17. (Prime Video)
• George & Tammy stars Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain as country music legends George Jones and Tammy Wynette. What more do you need to know? Premieres December 4. (Showtime, Paramount+)
• The Noel Diary follows novelist Jacob Turner (Justin Hartley) who returns home to settle his mother’s estate at Christmastime, only to discover a diary that holds secrets to his own past. Premieres November 24. (Netflix)
• Idina Menzel: Which Way to the Stage documents the life of the Broadway icon, through all her artistic ups and downs, and the journey that led to her fulfilling a lifelong dream: playing Madison Square Garden. Premieres December 9. (Disney+)
• Kindred is based on Octavia Butler’s seminal sci-fi novel of the same name and tells the story of Dana, a young Black woman who finds herself jumping back and forth in time, from a slave plantation to present day. She struggles to fit in with her new enslavement, until she returns to life in L.A. where she lives with her husband Kevin, a white man. Created by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins (Watchmen) and starring Mallori Johnson, Micah Stock, Ryan Kwanten, and Gayle Rankin, the series premieres December 13. (FX on Hulu)
• Best in Snow is a festive competition series hosted by Tituss Burgess, that will find contestants to recreate Disney’s most iconic characters, using nothing but snow. Premieres November 18. (Disney+)
• Hip Hop Nutcracker is a hip hop reimagining of the classic ballet tale hosted by Run DMC’s own Rev Run. The special stars Caché Melvin, Allison Holker Boss and Stephen “tWitch” Boss, Comfort Fedoke, Du-Shant “Fik-shun” Stegall, Viktor White, BDash, and Kevin “Konkrete” Davis. Iconic dance talent Mikhail Baryshnikov guest stars along with the Jabbawockees and more. Premieres November 25. (Disney+)
• Lady Chatterley’s Lover is an updated adaptation of the classic erotic drama starring Emma Corrin, Jack O’Connell, Ella Hunt, and Joely Richardson. Premieres December 2. (Netflix)
• Dragon Age: Absolution is an original animated series inspired by the popular video game series. The series is set in the games’ Tevinter and features an ensemble of new characters inspired by Dragon Age lore, including elves, mages, knights, Qunari, Red Templars, demons, and other special surprises. Premieres December 9. (Netflix)
For all the latest TV and streaming trailers subscribe to the Rotten Tomatoes TV YouTube channel.
(Photo by Joe Maher/Getty Images)
Two-time Emmy nominee Édgar Ramírez (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, The Undoing) will star in the next installment of Peacock’s anthology series, Dr. Death. He will play visionary surgeon Paolo Macchiarini whose innovative organ transplants have seduced the global medical community. Following the “Miracle Man” storyline from the most recent third season of Wondery’s Dr. Death podcast, Paolo’s charming persona begins to develop cracks after investigative journalist Benita Alexander (who is also his fiance) approaches him for a story. The line between personal and professional begins to blur, as a group of doctors halfway across the world make some shocking discoveries of their own, calling everything about the “Miracle Man” into question.
Sasheer Zamata, best known for her work on Saturday Night Live, has joined the cast of Disney+’s highly-anticipated WandaVision spinoff series, Agatha: Coven of Chaos. The character details are being kept close to the vest by Marvel. Her addition to the program is the show’s latest casting news, with Aubrey Plaza, Heartstopper‘s Joe Locke, Ali Ahn, and Maria Dizzia having previously been reported. Kathryn Hahn will reprise her WandaVision role as villainous witch Agatha Harkness. (Deadline)
Norman Reedus’ Daryl Dixon–centered Walking Dead spinoff series has added Clémence Poésy and Adam Nagaitis to the cast. Poésy will play Isabelle, the member of a progressive religious group who joins forces with Daryl on his trek across France. Nagaitis steps into the role of Quinn, a British black marketeer and nightclub owner in post-apocalyptic Paris. (Variety)
Guy Ritchie’s The Gentlemen Netflix series (which will take place in the same universe as his movie of the same name) has cemented its main cast: Theo James, Kaya Scodelario, Daniel Ings, Joely Richardson, Giancarlo Esposito, Peter Serafinowicz, and Vinnie Jones. (Variety)
Vikings and Raised by Wolves star Travis Fimmel will join the cast of HBO Max’s Dune: The Sisterhood prequel series as Desmond Hart, a charismatic soldier with an enigmatic past. (Variety)
Killing Eve alum Sandra Oh has joined the cast of HBO’s drama series The Sympathizer, opposite Robert Downey Jr. Kieu Chinh and Nguyen Cao Ky Duyen have also been added to the series and all three will appear in recurring roles. (THR)
Lin-Manuel Miranda will play the Greek god Hermes in Disney+’s upcoming Percy Jackson and the Olympians series.
A message from the messenger god himself: @Lin_Manuel Miranda is Hermes in #PercyJackson and the Olympians, an Original series coming to #DisneyPlus! pic.twitter.com/ncXp0Rl8Un
— Disney+ (@DisneyPlus) November 7, 2022
FX’s Fargo has cast Dave Foley (The Kids in the Hall) as a series regular in season 5. He’ll be playing Danish Graves, the in-house counsel and prime adviser to self-made billionaire Lorraine Lyon (Jennifer Jason Leigh). (Deadline)
Gotham Knights has added Lauren Stamile and Damon Davoub in heavily recurring roles, playing Lincoln and Rebecca March, in the CW’s DC comics-inspired series that transpires after Bruce Wayne’s parents are murdered. (Deadline)
The Wonder Years will feature guest stars Wayne Brady (who will play Melvin, Bill’s insufferable older brother), Tituss Burgess (who will play a drag performer named Lonnie), Donald Faison (who will play Terrence, Cliff’s gregarious frat brother and realtor), Phoebe Robinson (who will play Lillian’s younger sister Jackie) and Bradley Whitford (who will play Alan, Dean’s music teacher), among others, in season 2 of the ABC comedy. (Variety)
The Spiderwick Chronicles has added Momona Tamada and Alyvia Alyn Lind as recurring characters in Disney+’s live-action adaptation of the popular book series. (Deadline)
(Photo by © Lucasfilm)
An Indiana Jones TV show reportedly may be in Disney+’s future. Disney and Lucasfilm have discussed a variety of options regarding a small-screen series that follows everyone’s favorite whip-wielding archaeologist, sources close to the matter have told Variety. The entertainment trade publication also reports that writer has yet to be tapped for the project, meaning there are no further details regarding where and when this project would fall on the Indiana Jones timeline, or if it would be a prequel, sequel, or spinoff. The project wouldn’t be the first TV show about Dr. Jones to hit the air. From 1992-1993, The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles (which starred Sean Patrick Flanery and Cory Carrier as the hero during different times in his life) aired on ABC, with four TV specials airing between 1994-1996 on The Family Channel, the network now known as Freeform.
Chris Rock is about to make history as the first artist to perform LIVE on Netflix!
The legendary comedian, writer, director, and actor’s newest comedy special will premiere live — globally — in early 2023 on Netflix! pic.twitter.com/U8ozz2BLV1
— Netflix (@netflix) November 10, 2022
Chris Rock will make history as the first artist to perform live on Netflix. The actor, writer, director, and comedian will take the stage in the company’s first-ever live, global streaming event. It is scheduled to stream in early 2023. This will be Rock’s second stand-up special at Netflix. The first of which, Chris Rock: Tamborine, hit the streamer in February 2018. The company’s 2022 Netflix Is a Joke festival was the streamer’s biggest live, in-person event, selling more than 260,000 tickets, featuring over 330 comedians performing 295 shows across Los Angeles.
Production has begun on HBO’s True Detective: Night Country, starring Jodie Foster who also executive produces the latest installment in the anthology series. The series also stars Kali Reis, John Hawkes, Christopher Eccleston, Fiona Shaw, Finn Bennett, Anna Lambe, Aka Niviâna, Isabella Star Lablanc, and Joel D. Montgrand. Issa López (Tigers Are Not Afraid) serves as showrunner, writer, director (all episodes), executive producer. Logline: “When the long winter night falls in Ennis, Alaska, the eight men who operate the Tsalal Arctic Research Station vanish without a trace. To solve the case, detectives Liz Danvers (Foster) and Evangeline Navarro (Reis) must confront their pasts and the dark truths lying underneath the Arctic ice.”
A TV series adaptation of Good Night, And Good Luck, the 2005 movie directed by and starring George Clooney opposite David Strathairn, who played newsman Edward R. Murrow, is currently in development at AMC Networks. Jonathan Glatzer will executive produce and show-run the six-episode series, with Clooney taking an executive producer role. While it’ll be inspired by newsman Murrow’s story, Glatzer said in a statement, they’ve “expanded the world to show how the division and hysteria of the times seeped into every aspect of daily life.” According to the press release, the series “follows Sy Steingartner, a young cameraman for [Edward R.] Murrow’s ‘See It Now,’ who is forced to juggle his admiration for Murrow with his own ambition. With the CBS brass pushing an anti-Communist Loyalty Oath on Murrow and his staff, Sy has an opportunity to rise straight to the top, but only by betraying his mentor in the process. With wit and keen observation, the series confronts how we respond to chaos and the values that pull us through.”
(Photo by Warner Bros. Pictures)
Get ready for more Pennywise the Clown. A prequel series to Stephen King’s It, is now in development at HBO Max. Welcome to Derry, the working title for the project, is set to take place in the 1960s and explore the timeline leading up to Andy Muschietti’s 2017 adaptation, IT: Part One. After years of speculation regarding the origin of King’s iconic monster, it is said that the prequel series will delve into the origin story of everyone’s favorite demonic, child-eating clown. Muschietti will executive produce the series, along with Barbara Muschietti and Jason Fuchs. Fuchs and Brad Caleb Kane will serve as co-showrunners. And, if the project moves forward to a series order, Andy will step in to direct the first episode. (Variety)
Forever, based on Judy Blume’s groundbreaking 1975 novel, will be reimagined by executive producer Mara Brock Akil (Girlfriends, Black Lightning) for Netflix. The updated project will explore “an epic love story of two Black teens exploring romance and their identities through the awkward journey of being each other’s firsts.”
Netflix is bringing reggaeton to the platform in the form of Neon, a new eight-episode comedy series from creator Shea Serrano, with Max Searle serving as showrunner. The series will star Tyler Dean Flores, Emma Ferreira, Jordan Mendoza and Courtney Taylor will star. Neon will follow three friends who move from small town Florida to Miami to follow their music industry dreams of making it in the world of reggaeton.
Fox has ordered Universal Basic Guys/The Hoagie Bros. (wt), an all-new animated series from Adam and Craig Malamut (Sports Friends, Game of Zones, The Champions). In the program, brothers Mark and Hank Hoagies suddenly find themselves unemployed when the Glantontown Hot Dog factory switches over to automation. Thankfully, their hometown put a Universal Basic Income program in place, granting everyone in Glantontown $3,000 a month, no questions asked. Now, Mark, Hank and the rest of their pals have once again found themselves living as kids in the summertime, chock full of free time and stupid ideas. As the press release states, “this is a show about men trying to find purpose in a world where they’re no longer needed.
This Is Us alum Mandy Moore will star in and executive produce Hulu’s Twin Flames which tells the true story of two women seduced by the online teachings of a couple who preach that everyone has a soul mate called a “Twin Flame” and must do whatever it takes to be with that person. (Deadline)
Queen of the Jungle is a Latinx family drama currently in development at AMC. It centers on the estranged granddaughter of the Cortez family, which owns the largest eco-luxury hotel real estate empire in Costa Rica. After her grandfather dies, she unravels her family’s dark past. (Deadline)
Social media star Benito Skinner is developing Overcompensating, a comedy series inspired by his 2018 comedy stage show, at Amazon. Singer-songwriter Charli XCX will provide music and executive produce. (Variety)
Subscribers of Peacock’s Premium Plus service will soon have 24/7 access to their local affiliate NBC station through the streamer’s homepage. Officially launching on November 30, the livestream channel will be available across all 210 affiliate markets, and will present NBC’s full lineup (all in real-time), including local news, sports, and weather, along with favorites like TODAY, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, and NBC primetime programming. Customers looking to upgrade can learn more at http://peacocktv.com/Local.
A 24-foot piece of the 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger was discovered in the waters off the coast of Florida during production of History Channel’s new series The Bermuda Triangle: Into Cursed Waters. This marks the first major find of the shuttle’s wreckage in more than 25 years.
“The significance of this large section of Challenger’s structure was readily apparent,” said underwater explorer Mike Barnette, who led the team that made the discovery. “We recognized the necessity of bringing this find to the immediate attention of NASA. The site, which is outside of the Bermuda Triangle off the Florida coast, marks the loss of seven brave astronauts — fellow explorers — and the Challenger disaster was a tragic setback for America’s space program. But from this horrific event, important lessons were learned that have ultimately led to remarkable advances in space exploration.”
The full exploration will include expert commentary from Mike Ciannilli with NASA’s Office of Safety and Mission Assurance, and will be chronicled as part of the six-part series, which will premiere on Tuesday, November 22 at 10 p.m. on The History Channel.
