HBO is rolling out some big hits and big names consistently — some sooner than you’d expect. True Detective Season 2 is on the way and will premiere June 21st. Revving its motors, HBO has posted the first teaser trailer of the new season, giving us a look at the new setting, cast, and well… not much story. I suppose you might be able to infer some story from it, if you’re paying close attention. What kind of performances will we get out of Vince Vaughn and Taylor Kitsch? Will Colin Farrell just be Rust 2.0? Will the series as a whole treat its female characters better this time around? Questions, questions! Yet, I’m excited to check it out and see the completed product. Read more…
George R.R. Martin is certainly keeping himself in the news these days: the author is developing a new TV series at HBO titled Captain Cosmos. He revealed this is a recent interview with EW (in which he also promises The Winds of Winter by 2016 and teases a new twist), and provided a rough description for the show: “At the dawn of the age of TV in 1949, a visionary young writer creates a science fiction series that tells stories no one else will dare to tell.” This definitely has echoes of The Twilight Zone, which is a show that GRRM worked on previously (the 1985 revival, that is). I’m curious whether this’ll be an episodic series or still feature an over-arching plot. Stay tuned!
HBO has released a brand new poster for Game of Thrones season 5, which features a big ol’ dragon on it. Not that surprising! However, the bottom half of the poster (which I’ve placed below the break) features a character encountering the dragon that show fans might not expect (especially if you’re avoiding spoilers). Check it out if you dare! Also included are two new clips, one featuring Jon Snow and the criminally underused Mance Rayder, and another featuring Brienne and Pod reflecting on the failed kings of Westeros. It’s not far away now: season 5 begins April 12th. Read more…
You might recall that there was an Imax showing for Game of Thrones season 4, episodes 9 and 10, the other day. There was a season 5 trailer attached to it, and HBO initially didn’t upload to their YouTube channel, leaving fans to do it on their own. Come on, HBO, don’t you want all those sweet, sweet views for your own channel? Anyway, they have now uploaded it in HD to their Facebook page, so you can check it out there clearly. The trailer is fairly lengthy and definitely gives a good picture of where the season is headed, so as usual, watch at your own risk. And if you’re a book reader, beware the powerful urge to complain about all the changes the showrunners are making to the story! Read more…
Telltale, the folks behind The Walking Dead and The Wolf Among Us series, have a new Game of Thrones game coming out “soon.” They won’t say what date yet, but before the end of the year. So, December sometime. This game will follow House Forrester, a family of loyal bannermen to House Stark, from five different perspectives. It’ll feature characters from the show, too, and Telltale has announced that they’ve gotten several of the actors to reprise their roles as well. Peter Dinklage (Tyrion), Lena Heady (Cersei), Natalie Dormer (Margaery), and Iwan Rheon (Ramsay). Not too shabby! It’ll be out on basically all platforms soon. Steam pre-order page here. Check out the very short teaser below! Read more…
Yes, after a long period of begging, HBO has finally decided to open up HBO Go, its streaming service, to folks other than cable subscribers. Before, you had to have cable service and an HBO subscription before you could stream anything like Game of Thrones or Boardwalk Empire. Now, HBO has announced that in 2015, they’ll have HBO Go head mainstream, allowing anyone to sign up for the monthly service. HBO Go currently costs $15 to $20 for cable subscribers, so I imagine it’ll be a similar price for new customers. Possibly more? Details are scarce, and HBO promises more news in the future. 2015 isn’t too far away! Read more…
One of the most likely candidates for True Detective season 2 has just confirmed his involvement: Colin Farrell will be playing one of the three leads in the series. “I know it will be eight episodes and take around four or five months to shoot,” he said. Right after that he added, “I know very little about it, but we’re shooting in the environs of Los Angeles which is great. It means I get to stay at home and see the kids.” That’s sweet to hear. Sounds like it’s also still early in the whole process if he doesn’t really know anything about it either. The second series “looks set to pick up on the bloody murder of a corrupt city businessman found dead the night before a major transportation deal.” No, not the… Department of Transportation! The horror! (I kid, I kid.) Read more…
Some mild controversy went through the Game of Thrones world yesterday, when Kristian Nairn, the actor for Hodor (and also a world-tour DJ, yes, really) said that he and Bran (played by Isaac Hempstead-Wright) wouldn’t appear in season 5 of the show. An interview with Hempstead-Wright that showed up later in the day featured the actor stating very plainly that he is indeed filming season 5. So what does this say? Quite simply, Hodor is not in season 5, and Bran is. I also would guess that since Bran’s “book content” has nearly been used up, they are instead going to either a) create filler content featuring only Bran or b) used Bran as a vehicle to display flashbacks, giving show viewers a taste of the complex backstory Game of Thrones has. And I really hope it’s the latter. Read more…
True Detective season 2 is continuing to move forward, and HBO is beginning to court directors to tackle the various episodes in the season. The first name that’s risen to the surface might surprise you: Justin Lin. Yes, the Fast and Furious director. The details aren’t all set in stone yet, but Lin is currently set to direct the first and second episode of the season, with possibly a few later as well. This will definitely give a different feel overall to this second season! Previously, we heard that Colin Ferrell, Taylor Kitsch, Elisabeth Moss, Michelle Forbes, and Vince Vaughn were all up for the show, with the first three playing the law enforcement leads, and Vaughn being the antagonist. I’m very curious to see how this season will play out! Read more…
Shutter Island was enjoyable for what it was, a trippy, semi-horror suspense film from master director Martin Scorsese. Now, HBO is working out a deal with Paramount to adapt the movie into a TV series. Unlike recent films-turned-TV-series like Fargo, this one’s likely to get a name change; Ashecliffe is the tentative title, named after the mental hospital where the movie was set. If things go smoothly, Martin Scorsese will direct the pilot episode (as he did for Boardwalk Empire) and Dennis Lehane (the original novel’s author) will write the pilot’s script. One thing is likely a safe bet: I doubt Leonardo DiCaprio will be part of the show. Read more…
True Detective was one of my favorite new shows to come out of HBO. It surprised a lot of people with an oppressive, moody atmosphere and some creepy vibes strewn throughout. Now, with all the hype of the first season behind it, season two is starting to roll forward. Nic Pizzolatto’s script isn’t yet finished, but casting seems to already be starting, and Colin Farrell is the name Deadline and Variety are whispering. The Wrap also mentions that Taylor Kitsch is among the candidates for a leading role, but that one is a little more uncertain. Pizzolatto mentioned that there are four leading roles in season two, so this is only half of what we might get. Read more…
Yup: no one can stop the Game of Thrones train. The fantasy series has beaten the previous record-holder at HBO, The Sopranos, to become the company’s most popular show ever averaging a gross audience of 18.4 million viewers. That’s a lot of fans. The previous record was 18.2 million, by HBO’s iconic Sopranos, but it seems that dragons, swords, and magic were able to win more people over than a classic crime drama. And that’s saying something, I think! Just don’t expect anyone to make it out alive of this next season, you know? Read more…
HBO has been ramping up for the April 6th premiere of Game of Thrones season 4, and what better way to excite people than to remind them of all the tragedy so far?! Yes, they’ve released their season 3 recap, which covers almost everything that happened last year (and has some actor interviews as well), including the infamous Red Wedding. If you haven’t watched the show thus far, it might not make the most sense, and obviously I want to recommend that you watch it all anyway, but not everyone has time to watch 3 seasons of a TV show before April 6th. Either way, it’s a great refresher! Check it out below. Read more…
Now that True Detective is finished, it’s time to start getting excited for the next big show: Game of Thrones, season four! After the tragedy and incredible breakdowns by fans last season, I can’t wait to see the reactions people have this time around. Granted, I’m sitting up on my “I read the books” platform, but it’s still incredibly enjoyable to watch it all play out. This latest trailer teases a bunch of big storylines, namely Dany’s ever-growing dragons and the new threats from Dorne. Avoid the internet if you don’t want anything spoiled, because this is going to be an intense season. Read more…
True Detective finishes tonight, and I think it’s a safe bet to say that it’ll be great. One thing HBO’s show does, though, is feature the wonderful low, gravelly-voiced detective archetype — yes, both of the main characters. At first it might be difficult to decipher their southern mutterings, but soon you fit right into the groove. But it looks like the crew at The Soup along with Joel McHale haven’t exactly figured it out yet in their latest parody video, in which they lampoon Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey’s performances. Not all the jokes hit, but the reactions are pretty entertaining. Read more…
True Detective is my new Breaking Bad, in that it’s an intense, thoughtful, well-written, deliberately-paced show with outstanding production values that I can’t stop thinking about all week. Even now, I’m mulling stuff over for this Sunday’s final episode. (Each season will have its own characters and story arc, so everything is wrapping up in episode eight.) The guys at Dorkly had some different detectives on their mind, however, and decided to mash up True Detective‘s distinctive, amazing opening sequence with LucasArts’ classic adventure game Sam & Max Hit the Road. The game, which stars an anthropomorphic dog and rabbit (er, lagomorph) as freelance detectives, fits surprisingly well with the creepy opening. They only do about half, but they make up for it by mocking up one of Rust’s more notable diatribes using the in-game graphics. I love the interaction between Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey, so I’d totally be down for a game featuring the two of them. Read more…
In an interesting team-up, Pacific Rim director Guillermo del Toro has teamed up with Doctor Who and Sherlock writer Steven Thompson to adapt Naoki Urasawa’s critically-acclaimed manga Monster. It apparently took a while for del Toro to convince Urasawa, but he eventually accepted the proposal, and now Monster will be entering production on HBO. Urasawa’s original manga tells the story of a doctor who saves a child who grows up to be a sociopath, and the journey the doctor takes to right his wrongs. Read more…
With the third season of Game of Thrones ramping up for arrival on the 31st this month, HBO has been turning the cogs of marketing, shuttling out trailers and clips galore. Thankfully, none of them are very spoiler-filled, so you can get a quick peek at Jaime and Brienne trekking across the countryside, or Tyrion and Cersei having a verbal battle. The latest trailers also begin to show more of the new additions to the cast, so eagle-eyed readers might catch a glimpse of Daario or other characters. So here’s all the clips combined into one big post! Check out the videos below! Read more…
Can’t take the agonizing wait for Game of Thrones season 3? Maybe you missed out on season 2 and want to be caught up without having to marathon all the episodes? Or maybe you’re just looking for a quick recap to refresh your memory of all 200 characters? HBO has you covered. They’ve released an almost 15-minute recap of season 2, mixed in with some interviews and staff discussions. This will hopefully keep you occupied for a short while. But thankfully the wait is almost over, as the third season will start March 31st. It’s sure to be the most exciting season yet, and I say that as someone who has read the books. So I’ll stop taunting you – watch the video after the break. Read more…
Are you ready for season 3 of Game of Thrones? I’ve been waiting for this season for what seems like ages, but it’s almost here. HBO has finally released the first real trailer for it, and let’s just say it looks fantastic. I definitely can see the effect of the increased budget, because it looks much more polished than even (the already excellent) season 2. There’s a few new characters here, as well as all your favorites – you can even catch a quick look at Dany’s dragons… they’re a bit bigger now. Watch the trailer below and see if you can make it until March 31st. It’s going be an incredible season. Read more…
Oh look, a three-eyed raver flying through the sky! Oh wait, that’s our world! Maybe this new season of Game of Thrones is going to be way different from what we expected. Or perhaps HBO is just creating a long and needless metaphor for their tagline. But maybe you’re sitting there thinking, “man I wish March 31st would be here sooner.” It’s what we’re all thinking, my friend. Certain events that will transpire in the third season are going to be so earth-shattering that even George R.R. Martin is considering going on a vacation around that time, without internet or phone. That’s how you know this is going to be good. Read more…
Hype for Season 3 of Game of Thrones has been building slowly but surely, and one of the most-awaited casting announcements was who would play Mance Rayder, the King Beyond the Wall. Well the news finally broke: Ciarán Hinds will be tackling the role! He’s probably most well known for his work in the excellent TV series Rome, but he’s also been in films like Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and Munich, to name a few. I imagined Mance a bit younger, perhaps, but I have no doubt of Hinds’ talent – I think he’s an excellent choice. May 31st, 2013 can’t come soon enough. Read more…
Because the new cast members for the upcoming season 3 of the wildly popular HBO fantasy TV series are pretty much perfect (especially Paul Kane as Thoros of Myr and Dianna Rigg as Olenna Tyrell). SDCC also brought us news of the date for the start of the new season, which will be on March 31st. It seems so far away, but I’m sure it’ll be here before you know it.
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Mar 26, 2012 in Television
HBO has thrown together a twenty two minute special summarizing the entire first season of Game of Thrones. If you’ve already seen the series or read the book, the video provides a decent refresher course, but otherwise, there’s quite a few spoilers. If you plan on watching the series in its entirety, or reading the book instead, you’ll want to steer clear. For me, it’s the first time I’ve had a chance to catch Emilia Clarke sporting her natural brown hair. It’s a real shame she has to dye it blonde or wear a wig for her role of Daenerys, she’s quite stunning as a brunette. Season two premieres April 1st on HBO. Read more…