Mission: Impossible 5

Iron Man 3 co-writer Drew Pearce discusses the particular challenges of writing the latest Mission: Impossible film, which is set to be directed by The Usual Suspects writer Christopher McQuarrie:

"Well, the challenge is pretty clear, which is that you have to be better than the four which came before you and they've already used a bunch of ideas that are probably really good for a Mission Impossible movie. I think that's also kind of exciting because you learn from those four. Definitely, as far as I'm concerned and Chris McQuarrie who's directing it and Tom who's very involved as is J.J. (there's a big brain trust on this), and I think elements of the first Mission, we loved the actual gang in first Mission. If you look back now, it's an incredible array of actors and the way it refreshed was really good, and I think Ghost Protocol just nailed tone. Brad's a kind of genius of action, and I think the Bhurja sequence is a modern classic."

[IGN via Comic Book Movie]

Foundation

Roland Emmerich says he’s still trying to make an adaptation of Isaac Asimov’s iconic novel, but he now thinks a miniseries is the more likely bet than a movie:

"We're trying to do it as a big mini-series, but even there you would have to change the story itself and set it in a time when the galaxy has fallen apart - and then you're pretty much making a TV show with all these characters and playing all the scenes out. You can [do that] and we'll see what happens. We tried so hard [to make it into a movie], honestly, because it's one of my most favorite books. I just love it."

I don’t know whether I’ve ever mentioned that I’m a bit of an Asimov fan, but I do feel compelled to point out that if Emmerich does love the book as much as he says, he’d leave the damn thing in peace he’d perhaps recognize that the book really can’t be faithfully adapted into any sort of conventional movie, what with it being less a true novel than a connected series of short stories spanning roughly two centuries. If anything, Foundation actually would work better as a miniseries, but I’m totally fine if this thing just continues to baffle and stymie those who seek to adapt it. [Empire Online]

Sleepy Hollow

Here’s a promo for next week’s episode, “Blue Moon.” [SpoilerTV]

Here’s an official synopsis for the third episode, “For the Triumph of Evil.” I don’t often say this about the teaser lines of network plot descriptions, but the teaser line of this particular network plot description is a damn masterpiece. To wit:

MISTER SANDMAN, GIVE ME A….NIGHTMARE? ON “SLEEPY HOLLOW”

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 4, ON FOX

Another soldier in the army of evil, the Sandman, seeps into the dreams of the residents of Sleepy Hollow. By infiltrating their minds at night, he tortures them to the brink – all because they, at one time, turned a blind eye to justice. When the Sandman seemingly sets his sights on Abbie, she is forced to begin to face her past – and her institutionalized sister, JENNY (guest star Lyndie Greenwood). With Ichabod by her side, and her life at stake, the duo must try to defeat the Sandman and continue their fight against evil in the “For the Triumph of Evil” episode of SLEEPY HOLLOW airing Friday, Oct. 4 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. (SLH-103) (TV-14 L, V)

Cast: Tom Mison as Ichabod Crane; Nicole Beharie as Lt. Abbie Mills; Orlando Jones as Captain Frank Irving; Katia Winter as Katrina Crane. Guest Cast: Lyndie Greenwood as Jenny Mills

[SpoilerTV]

Once Upon a Time

Here’s a sneak peek at season three. [TV Line]

Under the Dome

Showrunner Brian K. Vaughan discusses how the second season will be different from the first:

This first season is based on the framework of the novel. Next season is what always excited King most about the possibility of doing this as an ongoing series. If you've read [Stephen] King's novel, it takes place over the course of a couple of weeks. King's dream was always how will things change when we go beyond that, when we talk about people who aren't trapped together for days or weeks on end but potentially years on end. That's the biggest change that will happen next season: we're no longer dealing with immediate aftermath of the dome. This season the challenge was to establish the tone of the town, and you're dealing so much with the town coming to terms with if they're really trapped and if there's a chance they're going to get out. Next season is exciting for us because it's a season where everybody knows they're not getting out and they're clearly trapped and this is the new normal. We'll get to go to some places that the book never got to go to.

Will there be a time jump?
I don't want to spoil too much because King will saw off my head if I ruin anything, but there will definitely be answers to the cliffhanger that we left. We will give you some immediate answers to that as well. But there is a possibility that there's a bit of a time jump as well.

Vaughn also discusses the show’s aliens, or whatever it is they are:

We've met the otherworldly beings — I'll leave it up to you to decide whether they're aliens or something else. We'll continue to get more answers as the dome reaches out and learns to talk to us. For us, the focus is on the people. We always knew our show isn't The Walking Dead; it's never going to be us vs. zombies; or Falling Skies, us vs. aliens. It's always going to be about us vs. ourselves. Even though we've introduced these people behind the dome, we don't want it to become a show about us vs. aliens. The dome is only there to pit us against each other and challenge our characters. We hope that will keep it a grounded human drama. We've always described the dome as a baby from another world and it's still learning to talk with us.

There’s still a ton more at the link. [Live Feed]

Arrow

Executive producer Andrew Kreisberg discusses this season’s new addition Black Canary, plus the main character who may or may not have something to do with said new addition, Laurel Lance:

"She’s a new player in town, a vigilante who avenges wronged women and seems to have a fixation on the Arrow and our team is trying to figure out why… Both Laurel and Oliver are dealing with the death of Tommy. Even though Tommy had broken up with her, she really feels like she betrayed Tommy by sleeping with Oliver — and certainly after Tommy died trying to save her. So Laurel’s energy this season early on is to try to make amends for that. Unfortunately for Oliver, that means she wants to catch the vigilante in her new job as the District Attorney. So as she and Oliver are trying to deal with their respective grief at having betrayed and lost Tommy, their hunting each other at night. It’s a new and fun dynamic for us to put them in.”

He also discusses what Oliver, Diggle, and Felicity’s evolving relationship adds to the show:

”One of the crew members actually pointed this out to us. He said, ‘The scripts are really funny this year.’ It’s not just Felicity. It’s having Felicity and Dig and Oliver together. Having that triumvirate. All three of the actors are pretty light on their feet. The characters have survived the Undertaking, and they’ve gotten into a bit of a rhythm. One of the things we’re really exploring is that they’ve really become friends. And they really have become family. There’s an easygoing camaraderie about them that allows them to enjoy what they’re doing a little bit more.”

[EW]

Supernatural

Osric Chau, who plays Kevin Tran, discusses what’s in store for his character this season:

I think one of the biggest things is, instead of spending time on the houseboat, now he can spend time in the Men of Letters. We should expect him to actually get to interact with people. That’s definitely something that he needed more of last season. So, I hope he’ll definitely have more time with the Winchester brothers — he will get to spend more time with them, because he’s not isolated, he’s not in the desert anymore. Kevin definitely spends time with people this season. He does spend more time with the Winchester brothers, and he gets to spend some time with Crowley (Mark Sheppard). But apart from that, I still don’t really know, because we haven’t shot that much into it. I’m on my second episode right now.

On another Kevin note, a big part of his character is his mom. Now, it’s been said Kevin’s mom (Lauren Tom) is dead, but we never actually saw her death. So, is she really dead?
I wish I knew. That’s the nature of the show, right? Supernatural. Even if we did see her dead and [her] body, I think we would have her back. But, because the angels are expelled from heaven, and hell doesn’t really have a king anymore … the deathly realms [and] the doors are wide open. I feel like that’s a very strong possibility (laughs).

[TV Rage]

And here’s a promo for season nine. [SpoilerTV]

American Horror Story: Coven

Series stalwart Sarah Paulson discusses the upcoming, witch-focused season:

"I definitely feel that this season has a lighter tone. There is some humor there. Jessica [Lange]'s got some real zingers this year. Last year, to me, was really extraordinary because it was really about something and that time period in our country's history. But I sort of feel like this year Ryan [Murphy] finds a way to tell the story of the forgotten and left behind and that's what he does so brilliantly and this will be some of that as well. But there are a lot of powerful women and there are some extraordinary actresses on the show and some real powerhouses, so the fireworks are liable to fly!"

[E! Online]

Atlantis

Here’s the description for the series premiere of the new BBC show:

When Jason (Jack Donnelly) goes in search of his father he finds himself washed up on the shores of a mysterious land - a world of mythical creatures, soothsaying oracles and palaces so vast it is said they were built by giants: this is the city of Atlantis. But it seems the newcomer has chosen the wrong time to arrive in the fabled realm and Jason soon finds himself at the mercy of a deadly ritual, from which there can be no escape...

[SpoilerTV]

Additional reporting by Katharine Trendacosta.