I'm Out Tonight and Can't Decide Between Soviet Hip or British Pride: Five Things You May Not Have Heard About This Week

By Cindy Davis | Lists | November 18, 2012 |

By Cindy Davis | Lists | November 18, 2012 |

I find the Important Stuff so you don’t have to.

5. Eddie Izzard Joined NBC’s “Hannibal.”

Before now, the best reason to give “Hannibal” a try has been this man:

Hellooo, my pretty. Er, sorry…got a little lost for a second there. The delightfully Danish Mads Mikkelsen (The Hunt, Casino Royale [2006]) is set to play Dr. Lecter in Bryan Fuller’s new series, which focusses on the relationship between (pre-incarceration) Lecter and Special Agent Will Graham (Hugh Dancy). Hot off Fuller’s one-off special, Mockingbird Lane, Grandpa Eddie will guest star as a Baltimore State Hospital for the Criminally Insane inmate who believes he is the Chesapeake Ripper. Izzard brings a special kind of madness to everything he does, so I expect he’ll be no less than brilliant here. (Somebody get this guy on “American Horror Story.”) “Hannibal” has been picked up for thirteen episodes and is expected to premiere midseason, 2013.

4. New Thor: The Dark World Photos Revealed Eccleston’s Malekith the Accursed.

Some Spoilerish Set Video:

Here’s your first look at the Ninth Doctor, aka Christopher Eccleston as Malekith the Accursed, ruler of the Dark Elves of Svartalfheim. It seems as if everyone is spying on the next Thor film, because there are quite a few amateur videos out there already. The question is, how much do we really want to know?

3. Cruise Put on His Platforms and Tough Guy Face for the New Jack Reacher Television Spots.

But, oh the cheese…it smells funny. Between the voiceover guy telling us how tough he is, the onscreen warnings (“If he’s coming for you, you deserve it.”), and the Schwarzenegger-style one liners, I’m pegging this as one of those so-bad-it’s-good, late night TBS films, rather than anything that would lure us to a theater.

2. The Now You See Me Trailer Featured Woody Harrelson and Jesse Eisenberg Performing a Little Magic.

The two head up a team of magicians who call themselves “The Four Horsemen,” and give their audience a lovely Robin Hood-ish reward. Mark Ruffalo plays the FBI agent who remains a step behind and, unable to figure out how the Horsemen are doing what they do, enlists Morgan Freeman, a well-known magic debunker. This twist on the crime thriller is directed by Louis Leterrier (Clash of the Titans, The Incredible Hulk) also stars Melanie Laurent as an Interpol agent, and Michael Caine, Isla Fisher and Dave Franco.

1. The “Doctor Who” Christmas Special Trailer and Minisode Finally Arrived.

Now that our last tears have been shed and our sniffles have finally dried up, we are free to delight in the adorable companion that is Jenna Louise Coleman’s Clara. Like a breath of delightfully frank fresh air, she’s already mastered the art of disarming Eleven. I have a feeling Coleman is about to become one of my all time favorites.

Lastly, a Cool Story About a Girl Who Found a “Doctor Who” script in the Back of a Taxi.

And it wasn’t just any old script, it was Neil Gaiman’s “The Last Cyberman” script. In an unheard of exercise in self-restraint (or incredibly, disinterest?), student Hannah Durham didn’t even look at it—just got hold of producers and returned it, with nary a spoiler leaked. Good on you, Miss!

Cindy Davis would have quietly returned the script too, but not without reading every last word.