5 Delicious Teasers, 4 News Tidbits...and a Ho-Hum Celebrity Engagement

By Cindy Davis | Lists | January 19, 2014 |

By Cindy Davis | Lists | January 19, 2014 |

All the news you might have missed this week…

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard Went Public with Their Engagement.

Several days after Heard was photographed trying to hide a giant ring, the couple officially announced their engagement. Though there was once a day when we’d all have shared a sniffle, I think we can agree we’re ready to let Johnny go. Between the bleached out hair, goofy glasses and hats and his lackluster Golden Globes appearance, Johnny’s sparkle has dulled. Congrats to the happy couple, though!

Warner Bros. Pushed Batman vs Superman ‘s Release Date to May 16, 2016.

Citing a desire to allow “the filmmakers time to realize fully their vision, given the complex visual nature of the story,” the studio announced a release date bump (May 6th, 2016) of nearly a year. Additionally, Warner Bros. moved Joe Wright’s Untitled Peter Pan film into Batman vs. Superman’s old slot—July 17, 2015.

Kyle Chandler Signed on to a Netflix Drama Series.

After Showtime recently passed on Ridley Scott’s The Vatican pilot (in which Chandler was set to play a Cardinal), the Friday Night Lights actor was quickly snatched up for an as yet untitled Netflix series. The drama about a family dealing with the return of a “black sheep brother” will star Chandler as the “opposite” brother, a good guy/family man (possibly in law enforcement), and will be written by the former Damages writing team of Todd A. Kessler, Daniel Zelman and Glenn Kessler.

FX Announced Mary Steenburgen Joined Justified’s Fifth Season.

The Oscar winning actress will show up this season—in episode ten—as Wynn Duffy’s (Jere Burns) mentor’s wife and “southern belle,” Katherine Hale. Steenburgen joins Season 5’s current crowd of guest stars: Michael Rapaport, Amy Smart, Alicia Witt, Steve and Wood Harris, Damon Herriman, AJ Buckley, and James LeGros.

Showtime Ordered Up The Affair and Happyish.

Okay people, I just want you to take a minute to ponder the idea of seeing these two people—Joshua Jackson and Ruth Wilson—on your television screens every week. I mean, nobody loves Luther and Alice more than me, but you know how infrequently that BBC crowd runs; three episodes and we’ll see you in a year. That’s just not enough Ruth Wilson and hey, a little Joshua Jackson never hurt anybody. The Affair also stars The Wire’s Dominic West and Maura Tierney; the four leads play two married couples who…well, I think you can guess.

Showtime also picked up Happyish, a dark comedy starring Philip Seymour Hoffman as a middle-aged ad executive whose company is taken over by a younger crew. Rhys Ifans (Elementary, Neverland) plays Hoffman’s boss, and Kathryn Hahn (Parks & Rec, Chozen) is Hoffman’s wife.

NBC Teased Hannibal’s Second Season.

Short, sweet, and features feet (well, really a foot…but hey, rhymes matter!). Hannibal returns Friday, February 28th.

And Released a Full Trailer Today.

I am without words, except: Brilliant.

AMC Gave Us a Peek at The Walking Dead’s Back Half.

Looks like Rick is back in charge; is that good or bad? The Walking Dead returns Sunday, February 9th.

Jason Schwartzman Gets Quite a Talking To in This Listen Up Philip Trailer.

The delightful Elizabeth Moss stars as self-centered author, Philip’s (Schwartzman) girlfriend in “a story about a girl going through a breakup.” The two are joined by Krysten Ritter, Josephine de La Baume, Jess Weixler, Dree Hemingway, Keith Poulson, and Eric Bogiosan, all of whom seem pretty fed up with Philip’s narcism. Listen Up Philip is directed by Alex Ross Perry (The Color Wheel), and is premiering at the Sundance Film Festival this week.

Blue Ruin Cut a Path to Terror.

This revenge thriller starring Macon Blair and Jan Brady herself (Eve Plumb) won a FIPRESCI prize and rave reviews at Cannes. All I can say after watching the trailer is: It’s going on my list. Jeremy Saulnier (I Used to Be Darker, See Girl Run) wrote and directed Blue Ruin; it’ll hit Sundance before its April 25th general release.

We Finally Got a Frank Clip.

Frank, aka Big Head Fassbender and the Musicians, has been a long time coming. I first heard and wrote about this film (already in production) nearly a year ago…and was promptly advised by our own longtime Pajiba commenter Frank247 that Michael Fassbender’s character is based on musician Chris Sievy, aka Frank Sidebottom. This fictional tale follows Jon (Domhnall Gleeson) after he meets up with and joins Frank’s “eccentric” band. Frank also stars Maggie Gyllenhaal and Scoot McNairy, is directed by Lenny Abrahamson (What Richard Did), and is currently screening at Sundance.

Cindy Davis, (Twitter)