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[TheButcher]

John Lithgow on Wearing ‘Blobs’ on His Teeth to Talk Like Winston Churchill

When Netflix and creator Peter Morgan approached veteran stage, film, and TV actor John Lithgow about taking on Sir Winston Churchill for their new series, The Crown, out today on Netflix, Lithgow says he felt nothing but “sheer terror.” But the story of how Queen Elizabeth II unexpectedly came to power at 25, soon after Churchill was elected prime minister for the second time at 78, proved irresistible to the actor, who’s often come close to being an EGOT winner.

“You don’t say no to something like this, even though you’re terrified,” Lithgow told Vulture. “The prospect of being an American playing the ultimate Englishman was very intimidating to me, especially when you consider all of the theater and film actors available in England.”

But playing Churchill in his later years as a non-British actor “shakes people of that mental image we all have of him,” Lithgow said. “What people mostly know about Churchill is that famous figure from history — his speeches. It’s fascinating to look behind that, and it’s the reason I ignored the terror and went for it.”

At a Television Critics Association panel in July, Morgan (Frost/Nixon, Rush, The Queen) credited casting director Nina Gold with the “startling and imaginative” suggestion to hire Lithgow. The producers immediately loved the idea “because it stopped us having one of our own lovies phone it in. It gave us dividends and benefits from minute one. The very first table read, everyone was like, Oh, my God! It was such a relief and a blessing.”

Ahead of The Crown’s premiere, Lithgow spoke with Vulture about his physical transformation, why he’s usually a “lazy” actor, and working for Netflix.

The Crown’s John Lithgow Remembers Making Fun of the Golden Globes. . .at the Golden Globes
Lithgow received his fifth nomination Monday morning, for playing Winston Churchill on Netflix’s The Crown.

THR :
Gary Oldman's Winston Churchill From 'Darkest Hour' Wows CinemaCon

At a lunch for Focus Features at CinemaCon on Wednesday, Gary Oldman took the stage to introduce Joe Wright’s Darkest Hour. He told the audience that he spent hundreds of hours in the makeup chair, and in the footage the audience was shown, he's unrecognizable, taking on the shape and voice of the iconic Winston Churchill.

"Once I started to find out who the man was, I never enjoyed something so much in my life," said Oldman of playing Churchill in the film. The story takes place over five weeks in 1915, the first weeks of Churchill's time as Prime Minister. In the trailer, he's seen giving the "victory at all costs" speech.

"I know you're going to hate when I say this, but that has Oscar written all over it," the event's host told Oldman.

Focus' lunch at CinemaCon, celebrating the company’s 15th anniversary, had an emphasis on seeing movies in theaters, with the topic coming up more than once.

"You should see all movies in a theater," said director Colin Trevorrow, who was at the presentation at CinemaCon to introduce the first trailer for his film The Book of Henry. "Don't get cocky, home video."

[Maui]

I watched the entire season of The Crown on Netflix. This is a top notch series with superb acting by Claire Foy, John Lithgow and Dr. Who (aka Matt Smith). The story line for Princess Margaret and Peter Townsend's ill-fated love affair is heartbreaking to watch. Can't wait for season 2.

The Crown: Did Winston Churchill really burn the Sutherland portrait and hide his stroke?
IN Netflix’s The Crown, John Lithgow plays Winston Churchill as an angry and sickly Prime Minister, but what was he like in real life?

Did Churchill really burn the Sutherland painting?

In episode nine, the Houses of Parliament commission a portrait by British modernist Graham Sutherland to present to Churchill on as an 80th birthday gift.

The beleaguered Prime Minister sits for several sessions with the artist and implores Sutherland to paint a flattering portrait representative of “the Prime Minister and everything that great office represents”.

After the two men bond over the loss of their children, Churchill unveils the portrait at Westminster Abbey. He is shocked by the frail depiction of himself and sarcastically declares it “a remarkable example of modern art”.

The octogenarian tells Sutherland that he will not accept the unflattering painting, which he labels a “betrayal of friendship and an unpatriotic cowardly assault by the individualistic left”.

The episode is mostly based on real events. In 1954, Churchill unveiled the portrait in Westminster Abbey using the exact same words uttered in the show.

In The Crown, Churchill's wife Clementine burned the offending artwork in the couple's garden.

In real life, Clementine originally claimed to have set fire to the massive painting herself. But while writing a biography of the Prime Minister’s wife, Sonia Purell discovered that she had asked secretary Grace Hamblin to do the dirty work for her.

Grace enlisted her “burly” brother to help her sneak the painting out of the Churchills' cellar in the dead of night and burned it on a bonfire several miles away.

The painting was supposed to hang in Westminster Abbey after Churchill’s death.

Sutherland called the Churchills’ actions “without question an act of vandalism” and the portrait has been described as a “lost masterpiece”.

Sketches from Sutherland’s sessions with Churchill are on display at the National Portrait Gallery in London.

Interesting historical tidbits.

I still prefer the mystery of the painting's controversial disappearance.

Why would they hide Churchill's stroke from the Queen in the series if that wasn't the case in real life? I really hate historical inaccuracies.

[TheButcher]

(Leonard Nimoy) In Search Of.. **Bigfoot** (Season 1 Episode 5)

[TheButcher]

[TheButcher]

Gorillaz animated TV series in the works

[Maui]

Bates Motel finished it's five year run this past Monday. My heart is a little broken but I will recover. Not many shows leave me feeling sad once they are done. Superb acting, writing, directing - the show had it all.

I started watching Feud on FX. It's interesting to see Ryan Murphy's take on the notorious feud between Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. So far so good.

Anyone watching Genius on FX?

[Fievel]

I've been watching Taken on NBC. Entertaining. You know what you're getting the minute you turn it on, but it's better than most network crap.
I have Fargo and Better Call Saul building up on my DVR. It's time to get started withthose .

[TheButcher]

Orson Welles interviews Andy Kaufman (1982)

Orson Welles on Cold Reading

[Maui]

I've been watching The Handmaid's Tale on Hulu. 4 episodes in so far and really enjoying this dystopian nightmare.
I believe I even caught a glimpse of Margaret Atwood in one of the episodes.

[Wolfpack]

I've been watching The Handmaid's Tale on Hulu. 4 episodes in so far and really enjoying this dystopian nightmare.
I believe I even caught a glimpse of Margaret Atwood in one of the episodes.

Yep! She makes a cameo in the pilot episode.

[TheButcher]

Oxygen Teams With Dick Wolf, Nancy Grace, Ice-T for Crime-Centered Slate
The NBCUniversal cable channel has also ordered the first TV series from Buzzfeed Motion Pictures.

[Al Shut]

I've been wathing a French series based on the works of Agatha Christie

Changing the setting and inventing new main characters has me confused enough for most of the time so I don't remember instantly who the murderer is, although I've read most of the stories before.

[Peven]

I've been wathing a French series based on the works of Agatha Christie

Changing the setting and inventing new main characters has me confused enough for most of the time so I don't remember instantly who the murderer is, although I've read most of the stories before.

sounds like cultural appropriation to me

[TheBaxter]

I've been wathing a French series based on the works of Agatha Christie

Changing the setting and inventing new main characters has me confused enough for most of the time so I don't remember instantly who the murderer is, although I've read most of the stories before.

sounds like cultural appropriation to me

how arrogant of them.

[TheBaxter]

'Cobra Kai' series coming to Youtube, starring Ralph Macchio and 'Sweep the Leg' Johnny

The show is about two men addressing past demons and present frustrations the only way they know how: through karate.

with a description like that, who could resist? made by the creators of Hot Tub Time Machine, so i'm going to guess this isn't meant to be a serious take on the material. though, if it had been, it would probably end up being funnier.

also, missed opportunity not calling the show "The Karate Man". oh well.

[Peven]

they have GOT to get Elisabeth Shue to join the cast....as her character from leaving Las Vegas

[caruso_stalker217]

Just don't get it in my hair. I just washed it.

[TheBaxter]

they have GOT to get Elisabeth Shue to join the cast....as her character from leaving Las Vegas

or her character from Hamlet 2... which was her playing herself, which would be superweird in an awesome way.
screw that, have EVERYONE play a dual role as their original characters and also as themselves playing their original characters.

[Cpt Kirks 2pay]

they have GOT to get Elisabeth Shue to join the cast....as her character from leaving Las Vegas

or her character from Hamlet 2... which was her playing herself,

How do you know that was her playing herself? Have you completey 100% SEEEEEEEN her as herself?

This is like you seeing bits of her and calling it who she is 100%. Like you and The Dark Tower! Yes I am gonna follow you around all your life and call you out on your "I can see the future!" buuuullshit. And I will at least admit that I can only THINK that you will go mad like The Crimson King, not state that you WILL with a believing CERTAINTY that you will. Unlike you, you fake Soothsayer.

[TheButcher]

Deadline August 7, 2017:
Amazon Studios Boards ‘Lucy And Desi’; Aaron Sorkin Scripting, Cate Blanchett To Play Lucille Ball

EXCLUSIVE: Amazon Studios has acquired Lucy and Desi, the Aaron Sorkin-scripted drama from Escape Artists that has Cate Blanchett attached to star as TV’s pioneering star Lucille Ball. The feature project has been percolating a couple years. Escape Artists Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal and Steve Tisch will produce.

I’m told that there already is movement toward finding a big star to play Ball’s former husband Desi Arnaz, with names like Javier Bardem in the mix, as well as for Fred and Ethel — originally played by William Frawley and Vivian Vance — who rounded out the quartet behind one of TV’s classic early sitcoms. The subjects’ children, Lucie Luckinbill and Desi Arnaz Jr, are involved in the authorized telling of the tempestuous love/business relationship between Arnaz and Ball, whose production company Desilu launched such series as Star Trek. The rights package empowers the use of memoirs written by both Ball and Arnaz, rights their children have controlled since their parents died.

[TheButcher]

THR AUGUST 07, 2017:
'Reading Rainbow' Owner Accuses LeVar Burton of "Theft and Extortion" in Lawsuit

A public broadcaster in Buffalo demands that Burton be judicially stopped from uttering the show's catchphrase on the actor's new podcast.

Eight years after LeVar Burton tweeted his intention to revive Reading Rainbow, he's now being personally sued for essentially hijacking the long-running PBS show that encourages people to read. On Friday, WNED (a public broadcaster in Buffalo, N.Y.) filed a wide-ranging lawsuit that demands among other things that Burton's company hand over administrative access to various websites and social media accounts. The lawsuit also seeks to enjoin Burton from using the Reading Rainbow catchphrase, "But you don't have to take my word for it," on his podcast, LeVar Burton Reads.

Although this is a new lawsuit, WNED and Burton's RRKidz have been in court with each other for more than a year over a 2011 licensing deal.

According to court papers, RRKidz obtained a license from WNED to use intellectual property related to Reading Rainbow, which ran on PBS between 1983 and 2006 and was hosted by Burton, an actor known for his roles as Kunta Kinte in Roots and as Geordi La Forge on Star Trek: The Next Generation.

WNED's interpretation of the agreement is that the 2011 deal represented a “divide and conquer” approach to the renaissance of Reading Rainbow whereby RRKidz would be allowed to take over digital distribution of the series while the broadcaster would focus on making new episodes. Profits were to be split.

But then in 2014, Burton launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for the show's revival and brought in $6.5 million. WNED was upset at the loss of control and further alleges that its own efforts to develop a new series were undermined when RRKidz along with The Jim Henson Co. began secretly negotiating with Netflix for a new Reading Rainbow series. In response to the allegation, RRKidz said the Netflix discussions pertained to an original concept and not Reading Rainbow.

Nevertheless, WNED informed RRKidz that the licensing agreement had been breached. After RRKidz received a formal notice of termination, Burton's company asked a New York federal judge to declare that it had fully performed under the agreement and that the licensing deal couldn't be ended. WNED submitted counterclaims including the allegation that RRKidz had tortiously interfered with its own Netflix series.

As the parties continue to wage war over the 2011 agreement, WNED has now filed a second lawsuit against Burton and his company.

This one discusses how in June, Burton launched a new podcast, Levar Burton Reads, where the actor narrates short stories. The complaint quotes what happened 48 seconds into the first episode:

Female Voice: Let's talk about...

Burton: Why I want to do a podcast?

Female Voice: Yeah, let's talk about that.

Burton: Yeah, yeah. Well here's the thing: People have asked me, um, for years and years and years, when are you going to do a Reading Rainbow for adults? And it's always been something that's on my mind so I wanted to address that, I wanted to address a Reading Rainbow for adults.

The complaint goes on to address how the media has latched on to the phrase "Reading Rainbow for adults" as the de facto slogan for the podcast and how Burton told WNYC's Brian Lehrer, "People are calling it Reading Rainbow for adults, and I can't stop them from that."

On Aug. 1, the Reading Rainbow website featured a prominent new notice, "As of August 1st, 2017 RRKidz will no longer license the Reading Rainbow brand. ReadingRainbow.com is owned and operated by WNED-Buffalo."

On the upper right-hand corner was a logo for "LeVar Burton Kids" with a link that took readers to levarburtonkids.com. WNED alleges that RRKidz was responsible for this change as well as how the "Reading Rainbow Skybrary" app on iTunes was replaced with the "LeVar Burton Kids Skybrary" app. Additionally, content on the Reading Rainbow YouTube page was removed.

"As evidenced by Mr. Burton’s conduct since he began 'teasing' the public about the return of Reading Rainbow years before his company acquired any rights to do so, Mr. Burton’s goal is to control and reap the benefits of Reading Rainbow’s substantial goodwill — goodwill that unquestionably belongs to WNED," states the complaint. "First, defendants tried to assert control over the brand through deception: secret negotiations with Netflix, false assertions of ownership of the RR Intellectual Property, and misleading efforts to persuade WNED’s business associates to make Mr. Burton the host of any new series. Then, defendants tried brute force: the RRKIDZ Action, through which they tied up the RR Intellectual Property while waging a war of attrition intended to extract a settlement that would loosen restrictions of their ability to exploit the RR Intellectual Property. Now that WNED has called their bluff and is prepared to take the RRKIDZ Action to trial, defendants have resorted to theft and extortion. As the RRKIDZ Action moved closer to trial, RRKidz began working with Mr. Burton’s longtime friend, John Raymonds, to secretly encumber the RR Intellectual Property as collateral for $2.5 million in loans from Raymonds Capital."

WNED is alleging that Burton's company pledged its rights under the licensing agreement to Raymonds Capital in return for money and then attempted to terminate its deal with the broadcaster. WNED, however, insists that RRKidz' rights were already lost more than a year ago.

Burton and RRKidz are now being sued for copyright infringement, conversion, cybersquatting, violations of the Lanham Act, breach of contract and interference with customer relations.

But you don't have to take my word for it. Here's the complaint, which is notable for many reasons including an attempt to stop an actor from uttering the catchphrase he used for more than two decades. WNED argues that the slogan has become "immutably associated with Reading Rainbow" and that Burton's use in a manner not authorized by WNED causes confusion, mistake or deception as to the origins. WNED not only wants an injunction, but also profits from Burton's podcast.

[TheButcher]

THR AUGUST 07, 2017:
Claire Foy Talks Moving on From 'The Crown': "It'll Go On and Have Another Life"

The actress chats with THR about parting ways with the role of Queen Elizabeth, which the Netflix drama will recast next season.

When Claire Foy signed up to star in The Crown, she knew she'd only be playing Queen Elizabeth for two seasons. But the news may have come as a shock to many viewers of the Netflix drama who came to love the breakout actress' portrayal of the young Royal.

"I’m quite philosophical about these things and I think the amazing thing about the show is the fact that it will go on and that it hasn’t ended badly. It'll go on and have another life," Foy tells The Hollywood Reporter. "I can’t wait to watch it and I just think whoever they get to play that part, they’ll be extraordinary. I will never watch it with any sense of bitterness or regret. I will feel what I will feel now, which is so happy and lucky for the experience."

Foy hopped on the phone with THR to further discuss what it feels like to leave the character behind as the drama looks to recast an older actress, her upcoming film with Damien Chazelle and how she's adjusting to her newfound fame.

Since you wrapped shooting on the second season, do you get a bit of break now?

Well, we didn’t have much of a break because we went and did reshoots. So I went to New York for a bit and came back and did reshoots. But then now it’s officially done and so I’m just at home being mom and getting my washing done and seeing some plays. It’s amazing suddenly having that because it’s been two years of my life. I’m now catching up, which sounds dull but actually it’s really exciting. (Laughs.)

You had your first child right before the first season of The Crown. What was it like diving into motherhood and the show at the same time?

Yeah, I never would’ve planned it that way, but then I suppose that’s life. I had no idea it was going to pan out like that. But I think becoming a mother for the first time is a whirlwind in any situation that you’re in. I think mine was just slightly more mental in a sense that I was working long hours and my baby came with me to work, and not everybody has that luxury. So it was such a different way of working. I had been working for about 10 years before I had a child, so I knew the parameters as far as that was concerned, but I suppose this was the biggest job I had done up until that point. So I was aware going into it that it was quite a lot to take on and I think I’m only realizing now coming out of it just how much pressure I put myself under unnecessarily. (Laughs.) But I think all mothers at a certain point look back and go, "God, I was mad. Why did I stay up until 4 o’clock in the morning making puréed food? What was I doing?" I buy it. They have a packet. But that’s just what you do because this is the guilt, the amazing guilt. The amazing, amazing mother’s guilt.

You were able to bring her to set with you most of the time, yes?

Yeah, I mean, especially because I fed her for a good year, so she sort of had to be. But to be honest, film sets are not particularly interesting places for anyone other than the people who are making the film to be. My sister once came on set and she will never come again. She was like, "This is the most boring thing I’ve ever done." (Laughs.) And I’m like, "Yeah, see. See. We’re in a car park in London." So I think it’s only fun for a certain amount of time.

When you first signed onto The Crown, did you think it would catch on the way it appears to have?

No, not a clue. I knew it was very, very special. I knew that the people who were making it were people I really looked up to and respected and admired. So, I knew that I was very, very lucky to be doing it, but you never know the outcome of something. You never know how it’s going to turn out. It’s kind of a chemical reaction when you get all of those people together and see what comes out of the other end. I don’t think we can ever really judge what’s going to happen. So I’ve been continually surprised and overwhelmed and amazed and proud and just feel ultimately really, incredibly lucky that I have been part of something that people have appreciated.

Along with that, you've seen your career suddenly blow up, too. Have have you been handling your newfound fame?

Well, I’m one step removed from it, in a way, because I’ve seen it with friends and I’ve seen it from the outside and I’ve seen people suddenly be in something that gets them an overwhelmingly positive response. So I’ve seen that. And, in reality, not a lot changes. I’ve seen it from the outside enough to not be overwhelmed too much by it, I suppose. And also, my life has stayed very, very much the same. I think it’s more of the fact that you notice the difference in people you’re talking to and the roles you’re going up for. That’s the real difference. I’m like, "Oh, this is nice that I’ve been suddenly allowed to talk to you." (Laughs.) It’s a funny thing. But also, I’m well-aware that it’s not something that you can keep up for a long time. I’m not taking it all too terribly seriously.

Speaking of the roles coming to you, you landed a part in Damien Chazelle's Neil Armstrong biopic, First Man. And there are reports that you're starring in The Girl in the Spider’s Web as well. Is that true?

Possibly. (Laughs.)

Any other projects you'd like to share?

God, no. That’s enough. That’s quite enough for me. I’ve done a couple of things that will come out, but that was a while ago. But I’m so, so, so excited about First Man. I just think she [Armstrong's wife Janet Shearon] is amazing and she’s just an absolute cracker, so I feel very, very lucky and I can’t wait to start doing it. But yeah, I’ve got quite enough on my plate. (Laughs.) I’ve got an awful lot of work to do.

Are you looking to do more film than television now?

No. I’ve never in my entire career thought, "This is what I will do now and this is what I will do..." because I just don’t think life works like that. I don’t think you can predict anything. So I’m much more of, if I can see it, then I will make a decision about it. Also, my gut is my guide in the sense that if it doesn’t feel right, regardless of whether it makes a lot of sense, then I just can’t do it. But luckily with Janet Armstrong, I thought it was right. On paper, I’m not the prime candidate. I’m an English woman. (Laughs.) But I just thought that it was right. Thank God Damien did as well.

What's the process like of having to say goodbye to your character and then see someone else take her on?

I don’t really feel like I have yet because there’s so much post-production to do and publicity. I think once the show's on and once I start First Man, I’ll really be like, "OK, it’s over. It’s over." I’m quite philosophical about these things and I think the amazing thing about the show is the fact that it will go on and that it hasn’t ended badly. It’s not like we’ve done two seasons and they said, "No, we’re pulling the plug." It'll go on and have another life. Someone else will take on this amazing role and I’m not the first person to play that part. I have taken that role on from other people who’ve played it before. So it’s in the nature of the role that it will keep reincarnating and that that story will keep being told. I can’t wait to watch it and I just think whoever they get to play that part, they’ll be extraordinary because they’re an extraordinary team. I will never watch it with any sense of bitterness or regret. I will feel what I will feel now, which is so happy and lucky and thankful and grateful for the opportunity I had with that role. It’s been amazing for my life.

If you could cast the role in the next iteration, who would you want to play her?

I can’t possibly do that. That’s so unfair. No way. I can’t. (Laughs.)

How have you seen your character evolve over the course of the two season you've played her?

God, if I think about, she was a child when she got married. In a way, when you look at her life, she was so young when she came to the throne. And then you watch her be stranded and confused and feel inadequate, and then find her strengths. It’s one step forward and nine steps back in that early part of her reign. And then you see her come into her own, really, and realize the limitations and realize her role and duty. Then it’s another set of challenges. She realizes that but then the world is changing around her and she can’t keep up really — and the monarchy can’t keep up. Also, she’s in a different part of her life. She’s moving into middle age and her marriage is changing. So you do follow someone from infancy to adulthood in that way. She was so naïve and sheltered to get to a point where she sees the world more clearly — and that can be quite a humbling experience. I feel like I’ve lived with her through that.

There’s been a lot of speculation over whether the Queen has watched the show or not. What do you think?

Well, we definitely know that some people [close to her] have watched. They definitely have. I’m sure that Netflix in some way would be able to find out if they were under some massive breach of security, and they could see if the Queen has a Netflix account and that she was active at 11:00 p.m. on the Thursday night. But I don’t know what to believe more than anyone else. In my head as me, I like to believe that she hasn’t watched it because it makes my life easier and it makes me not have to consider that aspect of it. There’s also the likelihood that she has — but I’m living in the world of ignorance where I think that she hasn’t watched it. It’s a nice place to be and I shall stay here living in the idea that maybe she hasn’t watched it. (Laughs.)

What’s the biggest misconception about your character?

That she doesn’t feel. That she’s a distant, unfeeling person. I think she feels everything — she just doesn’t express it. That’s my idea.

If you could switch roles with any other Emmy nominee in any category, who would it be and why?

John Lithgow. (Laughs.) I’d like to play Winston Churchill. Why not let a woman have a crack at it?

If your character in The Crown had to join another show or film, which one do you think it would be and why?

Big Little Lies just because she’d be part of the sisterhood and she would be great in that group of women.

If your character was male, how would she look different?

It would just be same old, same old. Wouldn’t it? It would just be a story of a man in a powerful position of his country. Nobody wants to watch that. (Laughs.) Christ. History is full of that. We could do without that.

What’s the strangest fan interaction you’ve had?

I’ve got two actually. I had one the other day. I went to a fish and chips shop — the most English thing you could ever possibly do — and a woman had been out on a Tinder date and she was quite drunk and we were talking about her Tinder date. And then I got a Facetime call from my mom halfway through, and for some reason me talking to my mother made her realize that she’d watched me on TV and she started crying. I was like, "Why are you crying?" That’s really a peculiar reaction, for me anyway. I’ve never had anyone just cry at me unless they’ve been really upset because I’d done something. It was an odd experience but lovely. I think it was because she was a bit drunk. She was not really expecting to see me in a fish and chips shop. It was the date, it was the fish and chips, it was the alcohol and it all got a bit much. It was the only one I’ve ever had weirdly, but it was a special one.

[TheButcher]

THR AUGUST 08, 2017:
David Letterman Returning to TV With Netflix Talk Show

The six-episode untitled series will feature in-depth interviews as well as topics outside of the studio.

Letterman hosted more than 6,000 episodes of late-night talk shows during his time on NBC's Late Night as well as CBS' The Late Show over 33 years.

THR AUGUST 08, 2017:
David Letterman Wants to Interview Kim Jong-un on New Netflix Show

After two years in retirement, the former late-night staple will return to TV in 2018 with a show more in line with National Geographic's 'Years of Living Dangerously.'

David Letterman is returning to the small screen, but his forthcoming Netflix talk show will be more in line with National Geographic docuseries Years of Living Dangerously — in which he traveled to India — than The Late Show.

Two years after he retired from the broadcast late-night space after more than 6,000 episodes on CBS' Late Show and NBC's Late Night, Letterman is looking for something more serious. That includes dream interviews with Kim Jong-un and President Donald Trump and a field visit to Selma, Ala.

"About six months ago I was polishing my collection of buffalo head nickels and I thought, 'Geez, there must be something else I can do with my life,'" Letterman told The Hollywood Reporter on Tuesday afternoon, hours after Netflix announced his return to the small screen after two years in retirement.

Each of the six hourlong episodes, which will be prerecorded, will feature Letterman conducting longform conversations with a singular guest taped before a live studio audience as well as solo field segments exploring topics on his own.

Below, Letterman talks with The Hollywood Reporter about what drew him out of his (brief) retirement, why Netflix was appealing and what to expect from the show when it launches in 2018.

What made the time right to return to TV?

About six months ago I was polishing my collection of buffalo head nickels and I thought, "Geez, there must be something else I can do with my life." I spent a lot of time with Al Franken and I had seen and admired how his life has unfolded in clearly two different parts and two different areas and been beneficial to the culture in both incarnations. I'd done a few things with Al and so enjoyed them that I thought I wanted to do something else like this. A couple years ago, I went to India for National Geographic, and the two influences made me think that perhaps there was more to television than what I had done for the last 30 years. The people at Netflix and Radical Media, we started chatting and I was very impressed by both organizations. The idea that it's a just a commitment for six shows — it's going to take up some time but it's not going to be 10 hours a day, five days a week. The need to pursue something else and the way that this was made available as a possibility was irresistible, honestly.

Have you started looking at a guest list?

I want to talk to this [North Korea leader] Kim Jong-un because I see now where he's just miniaturized a nuclear weapon that he's going to put on his rockets. I'd like to talk to this guy because, OK, the haircut. We get all of that. But honestly, what does he want? They have a missile they think can hit Chicago — what's he pissed off at Chicago about? Are we at war with this guy? We put sanctions on him, he gets more pissed off. If Dennis Rodman goes over there, I ought to be over there. … I wouldn’t want to make it worse, but on the other hand, I don't know that you can make it worse. OK, you're building rockets, you've got nuclear capabilities, OK, great. What, really, does that help?!

Is he in line with the type of guests you're aiming for all six episodes?

I don't know that he'd be the prototypical guest but, by God, wouldn't you like an hour to just look at this guy and talk to him and listen to him? Does he have kids? Does he have pets? Why does he want to behave like this? If he wants to be a hero, why not start trying to reunite the peninsula? Why not do something that has some humanity to it? I don't get this.

You've interviewed Donald Trump a number of times over the years. Is he someone you'd like to speak with on this show?

Yes, I really would love to talk to him. That would be great because I think I have insight now that heretofore I did not have. I'm tired of people saying, "Can you believe he…" and "Oh, my God, what has he done… ." I want to put an end to that. We all know that there's something unique here. We don't need to keep examining it day after day after day. What we need now is somebody like myself to sit down with him and calmly get him to sign some papers and then have him leave the White House.

How competitive was it to get you back on TV? And how will Years of Living Dangerously influence the Netflix show?

People were phoning night and day! Years of Living Dangerously was great because I got to talk to people who lived in India, the local people, government officials, to Prime Minister Narenda Modi and it was great. I just thought, what a luxury. This is fantastic; nobody gets to do this. And I loved everything about it and went to India with a certain level of trepidation not having been there before and it turned out to be a great experience, in terms of a learning experience. Anytime one learns something, one would hope that it's passed on and the culture can be advanced in some tiny way. So yes, that was a big influence in looking for some other project. When I was looking at Radical Media and the stuff they've done and the idea that it could be on Netflix, it was like somebody gave me a brand-new car.

Tonally speaking, it sounds like the Netflix show will be much more serious than what viewers have seen over the past 30 years. Is that fair to say?

I'm of the opinion that irrespective of the topic and regardless of who you're talking with — I just think if you go to dinner with Person A or Person B, sooner or later there's going to be something funny that happens or is said that is either in context of a greater topic or adjunct to a greater topic. I don't have a news background or a journalism background, but I have to believe there will be some silliness regardless. Maybe I'm wrong, but that's the nice thing — we'll find out.

What are you envisioning for your field pieces?

In 1965, when they went down to Selma, Alabama — the Freedom Riders — it was voter registration rights and they were going to march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge — I was 18. That happened in March. In April 1965, I went to the Bahamas on spring break and when I started looking at what the people were doing in Selma in 1965 a month earlier when I was in the Bahamas, I started to think: "Wait a minute, why didn't I know about that? Why was I ignorant about that?" I was in the Bahamas because you could get drunk and these people are down there, fighting for voter registration rights — like it was 10 percent of the black population were allowed to register to vote and mayhem and violence and injuries took place. And me and my buddies are drinking Tom Collins. It really haunted me. I would like to go — and I know people go and they memorialize that. I would like to go there and see what it feels like. I would like to see what it looks like. I would like to go there with somebody who was there. I would like to fill in … how did this get by me? I'm not a dumb guy, but I could have been one of those people. Why wasn't I? If I had done that, I would feel like my life really has made a contribution. Maybe not as great as I would hope, but how did that get by me?! I would like to go there.

[TheBaxter]

that's great, now who do i have to blow to get Jon Stewart to come back?

[Ribbons]

that's great, now who do i have to blow to get Jon Stewart to come back?

Jon Stewart?

[Peven]

fuck him. he bailed out of the fight so he could spend more time rescuing homeless cows. no really, he did. not to mention that he wasn't as great as people seem to remember him, he pussied out on various interviews with people on the right when they came on his show. he was cute, but he didn't change dick because he was too concerned with being liked than calling out "middle America" for their ignorance and bigotry. he is one of those soft-spined, "I know you're all good people, it is just those few big bad guys who trick you into believing them that are a problem" commentators. it is wimpy people like him on the left that have helped give the Trump voters a sense that their opinions are valid and righteous. Stewart never had the stones to really take the idiots who keep putting republicans into power to task for their choices, bending over backwards to be conciliatory and rationalizing away their votes. he hasn't changed, he talks about the "good people" in his neighborhood who voted for Trump and how he can't judge them for that. WTF?? so no thanks to more of a suburban pussy who is more concerned with offending his white republican neighbors than addressing the reality of how Trump was elected truthfully.

[caruso_stalker217]

So, did anyone watch "Ozark"? I'm three episodes in and enjoying it as some sort of "Arrested Development" side mission.

[TheBaxter]

that's great, now who do i have to blow to get Jon Stewart to come back?

Jon Stewart?

dammit! i was really hoping you were gonna say 'Eva Green'... but ok...

Jon Stewart, here i come! or... here you come.... or something....

[TheButcher]

THR AUGUST 17, 2017:
Amazon's 'Galaxy Quest' TV Revival Back on Track With New Writer (Exclusive)

Paul Scheer will take over penning the script from the film's original writer Robert Gordon.

Writer-actor-comedian Paul Scheer (The League, How Did This Get Made?) has been tapped to pen the script for the Paramount Television-produced series. Scheer takes over for the feature film's original scribe, Robert Gordon, who was on board to pen the script for the Amazon reboot.

The Amazon series is described as a new take on the cult movie that starred Tim Allen, the late Alan Rickman as well as Sigourney Weaver. It remains unclear if any of the original stars, which also included Tony Shalhoub, Sam Rockwell, Daryl Mitchell and Enrico Colantoni will return. The original 1999 movie centered on the cast of a since-canceled beloved sci-fi show that was forced to reunite to save the planet after aliens believe their show was real.

Mark Johnson, who produced the movie, is still attached to exec produce via his Gran Via Productions banner partner Melissa Bernstein. It's unclear if Galaxy Quest director Dean Parisot is still attached. Gordon is still attached to exec produce.

Plans for the Amazon series were put on hold after Rickman's passing. "We were ready to sign up, and [then] Alan Rickman passed away and Tim Allen wasn’t available — he ha[d] [Last Man Standing] — and everybody’s schedule was all weird. It was going to shoot, like, right now. And how do you fill that void of Alan Rickman? That’s a hard void to fill," Rockwell said in April 2016.

Rickman died of cancer in January 2016 at 69. Shortly after his co-star's passing, Allen talked with The Hollywood Reporter about the revival: "Galaxy Quest is really close to being resurrected in a very creative way. It’s closer than I can tell you, but I can’t say more than that. The real kicker is that Alan now has to be left out. It’s been a big shock on many levels."

For his part, Allen is now available for the Galaxy Quest project after ABC canceled Last Man Standing.

Scheer, repped by UTA and Schreck Rose, counts acting credits including Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later, Childrens Hospital, Veep and Fresh Off the Boat. On the writing side, his work includes NTSF:SD:SUV, Childrens Hospital and The League, among others.

[TheButcher]

[Fievel]

Godless (on Netflix)

[TheButcher]

THR OCTOBER 26, 2017:

The Crown has found its new Queen Elizabeth.

Netflix has cast Olivia Colman to replace Claire Foy as Her Royal Highness in the drama series from Peter Morgan. Colman will take over the lead role for the show's (not yet ordered but expected) third and fourth seasons. Foy was only set to play the young Queen for two seasons.

According to Netflix chief Ted Sarandos, the plan is to have the period drama run for six seasons follow the Queen's story throughout her whole life. "This is going to take Queen Elizabeth from age 29 to, presumably, the current day. We'll see it lay out over decades," he said last year. "The idea is to do this over six decades, in six seasons presumably, and make the whole show over eight to 10 years." Every two seasons, new castmembers are expected to be cast in the major roles to account for the years that have passed.

Foy herself spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about exiting the series, for which she won a Golden Globe earlier this year. "I'm quite philosophical about these things, and I think the amazing thing about the show is the fact that it will go on and that it hasn't ended badly. It'll go on and have another life," she said. "I can't wait to watch it, and I just think whoever they get to play that part, they'll be extraordinary. I will never watch it with any sense of bitterness or regret. I will feel what I will feel now, which is so happy and lucky for the experience."

Colman, who had roles in feature films The Lobster and Hot Fuzz, will be seen next on the big screen in Murder on the Orient Express. Her television credits include Broadchurch, Fleabag and The Night Manager, the latter of which also won her a Golden Globe earlier this year.

The second season of The Crown will debut on the streaming service on Dec. 8. Season one castmembers Matt Smith (Prince Philip), Vanessa Kirby (Princess Margaret), Victoria Hamilton (Queen Mother) and Jeremy Northam (Antony Eden) will return. The series will also welcome newcomers Matthew Goode (Lord Snowdon) and Michael C. Hall (John F. Kennedy).

EW first reported the news of Colman's casting.

[Peven]

hey, how about a human post.....


....has anyone checked out the Spielberg documentary on HBO that has been running this month? it is obviously meant as a tribute much more than any truly objective documentary but it still made for an interesting couple hours.

[Ribbons]

Hey, I was actually going to say that I'm excited about Olivia Colman's casting. I thought the first season of The Crown was excellent.

[TheButcher]

John Lithgow as Winston Churchill is perfect casting.
Pip Torrens as Tommy Lascelles is a close second.

[TheButcher]

Deadline November 3, 2017:
‘Lord Of The Rings’ TV Series Shopped With Huge Rights Payment Attached

In a deal that is expected to dwarf any TV series to date, I hear the J.R.R. Tolkien estate has been shopping a possible series based on the late author’s The Lord of the Rings novels with a whopping price tag attached.

I hear Amazon, Netflix and HBO had been approached about the project, which comes with an upfront rights payment said to be in the $200 – $250 million range. That is just for the rights, before any costs for development, talent and production. It is a payment that has to be made sight unseen as there is no concept, and there are no creative auspices attached to the possible series. (I hear the pitch at HBO involved producer Jane Tranter whose company is partially owned by HBO and Sky but the general package has no talent attached.) On top of that, the budget for a fantasy series of that magnitude is likely to be $100-$150 a season.

I hear that Amazon and Netflix are still in the running while HBO, home of blockbuster fantasy series Game Of Thrones, passed awhile back because of the the finances of the deal that many industry observes call “insane.” Additionally, industry sources note that there are already three great Lord Of the Rings movies and a total of six movies in the world made, along with the Hobbit films. Plus, I hear that the rights for a TV series in the Lord of the Rights do not encompass all characters and are limited.

Given Amazon’s mandate to launch a big fantasy series of the scope of Game Of Thrones, which comes directly from honcho Jeff Bezos, and Amazon’s deep coffers, the company is considered a leading contender for a Lord Of the Rings series. (For context, the price tag for the rights to Lord Of the Rings is what Bezos payed for Washington Post.) Bezos has been hands-on involved in the matters of entertainment division Amazon Studios following the purge of its top executives, led by Roy Price, and has been taking meetings and making calls to agents over the past two weeks. Amazon’s talks for a Lord of the Rings TV series were first reported by Variety.

The Lord of the Rings deal would dwarf some big-ticket series commitments Amazon has made over the last couple of years — $80 million for the six-episode Woody Allen show Crisis in Six Scenes, $70+ million for Matt Weiner’s eight-episode The Romanoffs, and $160 for two seasons of David O. Russell’s series, which now has been axed after about $40 million spent. (The last two series originally came from The Weinstein Co., which no longer has involvement in The Romanoffs)

The possible Lord of the Rings TV series is done in conjunction with Warner Bros. TV, whose film studio counterpart produced the feature trilogy in the 2000s. The TV studio would not comment on the talks, which are preliminary.

The TV series pitch comes on the heels of Warner Bros. and the Tolkien estate in July settling an $80 million rights dispute over The Hobbit and The Lord of The Rings after a grueling five-year court battle.

The Tolkien estate and publisher HarperCollins filed the massive lawsuit in November 2012 against Warner Bros., its subsidiary New Line and Middle-earth Enterprises — a division of Rings’ Hobbit rightsholder the Saul Zaentz Co. — claiming copyright infringement and breach of contract over video games, online slot machines and other digital merchandising.

Launched at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival with The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Peter Jackson’s LOTR trilogy was a global phenomenon. Starring Elijah Wood, In McKellen, Liv Tyler, Sean Bean, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, Orlando Bloom and others, the three films combined to gross more than $2.9 billion worldwide. LOTR: The Two Towers was released in 2002, and The Return of the King arrived the following year, becoming only the second film to top $1 billion worldwide. That third installment won 11 Oscars, including Best Picture, Director and Adapted Screenplay. The previous two combined to win six Academy Awards in crafts categories.

Erik Pedersen contributed to this report.

[Peven]

how about a comedy set in a Hobbit pub run by Merry and Pippen's grandsons?

or an hour long procedural crime drama set in Minis Tirith with a human and reformed Orc as a detective team that breaks all the rules on their way to solving crimes?

[TheBaxter]

i love the shade being thrown at the Hobbit films...

Additionally, industry sources note that there are already three great Lord Of the Rings movies and a total of six movies in the world made, along with the Hobbit films.

yeah, that sounds about right.

[TheBaxter]

how about a comedy set in a Hobbit pub run by Merry and Pippen's grandsons?

or an hour long procedural crime drama set in Minis Tirith with a human and reformed Orc as a detective team that breaks all the rules on their way to solving crimes?

Young Sauron... a sitcom exploring the early life and formative years of Middle Earth's most menacing figure. follow the antics of this precocious child with an abnormal interest in jewelry-making as he grows up in Mordor, getting into trouble to the hilarious exasperation of his long-suffering parents, Ned and Judy, as they try to rein in the little monster.

hey, it worked for CBS with Young Sheldon...

[Maui]

It’s been a while guys, I’ve watched a shitload of shows:

Dark - think of Stranger Things in German, only not funny and extemely dark with time travel. Superb!

Mind hunter - Investigating the psychology of serial killers. Solid viewing on Netflix.

Manhunt - Who knew profiling the unibomber would be so interesting. Loved it.

The Crown, season 2 - the empathy I feel for princess Margaret! Only on episode 5. Awesome show.

Worm wood - I’ve only seen the first episode but so far intriguing. See Rockefeller Comission report.

[Ribbons]

Manhunt - Who knew profiling the unibomber would be so interesting. Loved it.

I watched Manhunt also. There were times where I found the cliches obvious and groan-inducing -- the sudden game-changing flashes of inspiration Fitz would have based on random comments by strangers, the Hannibal Lecter-ish confrontations between Fitz and Kaczynski that never happened, the "misdirect" chase scene where it turns out they were going after the wrong man, etc. etc. -- BUT I found the exploration of the emerging science of forensic linguistics (like in Mindhunter, bearing witness to the birth of a kind of criminal profiling) that ultimately brought Kaczynski down to be fascinating. I was a little shocked that it took the FBI decades to find the right man in part because their profile of the Unabomber was so woefully off the mark.

The Crown, season 2 - the empathy I feel for princess Margaret! Only on episode 5. Awesome show.

What did you think of Matt Smith's Big Fake Beard in the first couple episodes?

[Maui]

I was a little shocked that it took the FBI decades to find the right man in part because their profile of the Unabomber was so woefully off the mark.

This was the FBI's longest and costliest investigation. They really seemed incompetent. Paul Bettany was so good in this.

did you think of Matt Smith's Big Fake Beard in the first couple episodes?

I think his beard outperformed him. On another note, I was surprised at all the hints of his infidelities.
I do find Princess Margaret's story extremely interesting. I could watch a series just on her.

[TheBaxter]

i watched Manhunt and i liked it, but i also felt they tried too hard to make it like Red Dragon/Silence of the Lambs. they made Fitz out to be way too much like Will Graham, and gave him way more credit for solving the case practically singlehandedly than he deserved. i made the 'mistake' i often make with these 'based on a true story' stories and read up on the real story, and a lot of that stuff apparently was made up or way exaggerated. probably made for a more dramatic series, but not quite the most truthful depiction.

[Ribbons]

i watched Manhunt and i liked it, but i also felt they tried too hard to make it like Red Dragon/Silence of the Lambs. they made Fitz out to be way too much like Will Graham, and gave him way more credit for solving the case practically singlehandedly than he deserved. i made the 'mistake' i often make with these 'based on a true story' stories and read up on the real story, and a lot of that stuff apparently was made up or way exaggerated. probably made for a more dramatic series, but not quite the most truthful depiction.

And like... what was all that stuff in the beginning, about how Fitz went all survivalist and off the reservation and the FBI had to go track him down for One Last Job. What happened there? Why did he start living like the Unabomber? They never mentioned it again.

[TheBaxter]

i think the show tried to insinuate that Fitz was becoming sympathetic to Kaczynski's ideas, although not his methods. that's what the whole "red light" bit is about, how Ted wrote and talked to him about stopping at a red light even when there's no traffic like it's some kind of slavery to technology creating social tyranny. and then in the final episode, he's sitting there at a red light and you see the thoughts crossing his mind. it's also part of the demonstration of FItz's obsessive tendencies, and his social awkwardness, again traits that seemed to borrow liberally from the whole Red Dragon/Will Graham story.

[so sorry]

Lost in Space on Netflix trailer.


That spaceship takes a serious beating.

[Peven]

I love it love it LOVE it.

some of my earliest tv watching memories are of watching the original series while visiting my grandparents' house, since they lived in the suburbs and had money and all sorts of channels on a big color console tv, and we lived in the boonies and watched the one channel we could pull in on a 12" black and white. Speed Racer is another show from those times, but that is for another thread, a thread about a criminally underappreciated W bros movie .....


anyway, Lost in Space was a great show to watch with one's brothers, because just like with Gilligan's Island everyone had their favorite characters, some people couldn't stand Will/Gilligan though almost everyone loved Robot/Skipper, and there was a similar binary choice of females to fixate upon. in lost in Space they had an evil doctor and on Gilligan's Island they had a rich guy and his wife, an apt parallel.

the first movie version had all sorts of spoiled promise and is best left forgotten.

THIS movie.....I have a good feeling about

[so sorry]

ITHIS movie.....I have a good feeling about

I don't have any love (or hate) for the original, although I did get a kick out of the totally 90s movie version.

Looks like they are taking a decidedly different approach to the robot... he's just found on this planet vs. being with them the whole time? I'm going to venture a guess and say that Will builds him in an alternate dimension/future and plants him on the planet for his younger self to find and guide them blah blah blah.

Parker Posey can definetly pull off the bad guy role.

[TheBaxter]

ITHIS movie.....I have a good feeling about

I don't have any love (or hate) for the original, although I did get a kick out of the totally 90s movie version.

Looks like they are taking a decidedly different approach to the robot... he's just found on this planet vs. being with them the whole time? I'm going to venture a guess and say that Will builds him in an alternate dimension/future and plants him on the planet for his younger self to find and guide them blah blah blah.

Parker Posey can definetly pull off the bad guy role.

my prediction is, the robot is actually a cylon

... and so is parker posey.

[Peven]

you know, a cool cheesy idea for a series would be to use old 70's/80's science fiction movies/shows as templates for the worlds the family lands on, like a Planet of the Apes world, Land of the Lost world, Krypton, etc.