Showtime is renewing Ray Donovan (78 percent) and Masters of Sex (97 percent Certified Fresh) for third seasons, the network announced on Wednesday. “These acclaimed shows are filled with complex and interesting characters and settings that will no doubt give audiences compelling television to invest in for seasons to come,” Showtime president David Nevins said in a statement. Ray Donovan, starring Liev Schreiber as a high-powered “fixer” lawyer in Los Angeles, draws in about 5 million viewers a week. And Masters of Sex, the dramatization of real-life 1950s sex researchers Masters and Johnson, pulls in about 4 million after tallying up all the forms of watching for the week. Both shows received Emmy nominations this year.
In April, BBC Two announced that Benedict Cumberbatch will play Richard III in their upcoming Shakespeare adaptation, and confirmed this week that Dame Judi Dench will join him, playing the role of Cecily, Duchess of York. Richard III is one installment of a three-film series that also includes Henry VI in two parts. Sophie Okonedo (Doctor Who, The Escape Artist) has also been cast as Queen Margaret across all three films. Sam Mendes’ Neal Street Productions is co-producing the series, along with Downton Abbey‘s Carnival Films/NBCU and Thirteen.
How’s this for a franchise idea? ABC is developing a series based on the books written by the fictitious author Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) on Castle. Derrick Storm, the character featured in Castle’s crime novels on the show, could get his own CIA procedural on ABC. The show will be written by Missing‘s Greg Poirier, who will exec-produce with Andrew Marlowe and Terri Miller of Castle. Derrick Storm has already been featured in a real-life book series by publisher Hyperion Books (Storm Front, A Raging Storm, A Brewing Storm), following the popularity of the show. Art imitating art imitating art?
Entertainment Weekly confirmed this week that actor Greg Finley (Star-Crossed) will have a role on CW’s The Flash this season. Finley is billed in episodes six and seven as Tony Woodward (aka Girder), a villain who can transform his skin into “living metal.” According to EW, “The Flash tries to stop Tony when he goes on a crime spree, but this is not the first time Barry Allen has faced Tony — Tony was the bully who used to torment him as a child.” Season one of The Flash premieres on The CW Tuesday, Oct. 7 at 8:00 pm.
Aaron Paul, who played Jesse Pinkman in Breaking Bad, will put on a scavenger hunt in Los Angeles on Aug. 25 in honor of the last time Breaking Bad is eligible for an Emmy award. Paul hosted a similar scavenger hunt last year, allowing fans to find tickets to the Breaking Bad finale, and promises all kinds of goodies, including posters, dolls, signed scripts, action figures, and Breaking Bad art. According to Paul’s Instagram account, the scavenger hunt will take place sometime “on Monday before the Emmys.”
