ABC recently announced an order for a new one-hour pilot based on Beauty and the Beast – about a week after The CW announced their own pilot for the same kind of show (though they claim theirs is a crime drama). Add to this the successful 3D re-release of the 1991 Disney animated film and it seems like it’s shaping up to be a great year for Belle and all her talking-furniture friends.
We’ve already revisited some other Beauty and the Beast-like girl-loves-ugly-boy couples – now let’s look at the many interpretations of the original French fairy tale that have surfaced throughout pop culture.
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1. During last night’s State of the Union address, President Obama decided to top that awkward salmon joke from last year with a bit about spilled milk that was just as groan-worthy; as to be expected, political observers’ immediate response to the cringe-inducing moment on Twitter wasn’t exactly kind. [via Daily Intel]
2. Steven Soderbergh’s upcoming film project Side Effects has lost its financing — apparently the director’s rumored casting of Blake Lively is part of the reason why, but Haywire’s weak box office performance might also be a factor. [via The Huffington Post]
3. Vanessa Paradis insists that rumors that her 14-year marriage to Johnny Depp is over are totally false: “All this is, I don’t know, because the Queen of England didn’t lose her teeth this week and there’s nothing happening.” [via People]
4. There are now two Beauty and the Beast-related TV projects in the works for next season. The CW is moving forward on an update of the 1980s CBS drama that starred Linda Hamilton; meanwhile ABC just announced a version that will go the classic fairytale route. [via THR]
5. “I’ve been talking to [Dave] Chappelle a lot. Been trying to get Chappelle to go on tour. You know I’m not the hard one, but I’m trying to make that happen. After seeing Kanye and Jay-Z, I was like, ‘Me and Dave should do this.’” — Chris Rock gets our collective hopes up during a conversation with Vulture at Sundance.
Bonus Buzz: If the GOP Debate Was a Rave
The nominations for this year’s GLAAD Media Awards — which honor outstanding images of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community — have just been announced, and despite really stepping in things with that misguided, and thankfully short-lived, cross-dressing comedy Work It, ABC managed to secure eight nods. Surprisingly, that’s five more nominations than any other network. On the film side of things, we are glad to see two of our favorite flicks from 2011, Beginners and Weekend, both get a mention. While significantly less fun (at least from a category names perspective) than the campy Dorian Awards that we recently told you about, GLAAD’s picks are obviously way more influential within the industry. Click through to see which of your favorite films and TV shows made the cut.
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1. Cory Smoot aka Flattus Maximus, the lead guitarist for the heavy metal band GWAR, was found dead on their tour bus yesterday following a concert in Minneapolis. The cause of death is currently unknown, and according to a statement from GWAR, “at this point we are just dealing with the loss of our dear friend and brother.” [via AP]
2. Here’s your first look at Helena Bonham Carter as Miss Havisham in Mike Newell’s adaptation of Great Expectations and Bill Murray as Franklin D. Roosevelt in Roger Michell’s Hyde Park on Hudson.
3. David Simon has announced that Treme will end after its fourth season; considering that shooting is currently underway on Season 3, at least this gives fans plenty of time to prepare themselves, right? [via Variety]
4. Jennifer Lopez plans to produce — not star in — a live action film version of Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? According to Slashfilm, “The hope is that the film… turns into a family adventure along the lines of National Treasure.” All we’ve got to say is Rockapella better be doing the soundtrack.
5. ABC has announced that it will air A Very Gaga Thanksgiving, a TV special that was conceived and directed by Lady Gaga, on Thanksgiving day. The show will feature eight performances by the singer, as well as a sit-down interview with Katie Couric. [via THR]
Bonus Buzz: 3D Mapping On Steroids
1. Twilight actress Ashley Greene has landed the starring role in Olivia Twisted, a modern-day take on the Charles Dickens classic, Oliver Twist. [via Variety]
2. ABC has scooped up Walk of Shame, a single-camera from producer Will Gluck (Friends With Benefits, Easy A) and co-written by SNL alum Casey Wilson that’s about “a group of 20-something friends in New York and features an opening scene about an embarrassing situation followed by flashbacks of the events that led to it.” [via Deadline]
3. A theme song for your morning: Florence Welch has released “Shake It Off,” another track from her upcoming sophomore album, Ceremonies, which is due out November 7. Pretty, no? [via The Hairpin]
4. Vulture reports that J.J. Abrams has officially signed on to direct Star Trek 2; pre-production is already underway, and the plan is to begin shooting this winter.
5. Before he begins filming on Les Miserables next year, Hugh Jackman is returning to Broadway this fall for 10 weeks in a one-man show that will feature a selection of his favorite musical numbers. [via ArtsBeat]
Bonus Buzz: Jon Hamm Is Basically Fabio
Today at Flavorpill, we wished that the world had more adorable skydiving grannies like 82-year-old birthday girl/lifelong daredevil Judy Wade. We discovered that Mad Men screenshots and Arrested Development dialogue go surprisingly well together. We couldn’t believe that ABC thinks that they can replace Roseanne Barr with the likes of Kirstie Alley. We supported public broadcasting by downloading a free mixtape of Anti- artists including Wilco, Tom Waits, Neko Case, Mavis Staples, and Dr. Dog. We liked Andy Rash’s 8-bit take on the cast of Breaking Bad. We wondered how long it took Bronx Zoo staffers to assemble these life-sized LEGO versions of various wild animals. We decided that Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark” definitely needs the gyrating Courtney Cox after watching the original video. We were excited to read that Norman Mailer’s son wants to direct Joan Didion and John Gregory Dunne’s screenplay adaptation of his father’s novel The Deer Park. We found out which New York City kitchens are literally the hottest. And finally, we got a good chuckle out of this flowchart that details the do’s and don’ts of being mad on the Internet.
1. According to Nielsen SoundScan’s midyear sales report, music sales are actually up for the first time since 2004. [via ArtsBeat]
2. It’s a cruel, cruel world: The producers of Modern Family are reportedly looking to recast the role of Lily. “Lily will definitely be more prominent in season three,” explains series star Jesse Tyler Ferguson. “It’s interesting with children because we can’t force this 2 and a half-year-old child to start speaking, and we don’t know if the twins who play Lily are inclined toward acting, so maybe we’ll cast another older child who can talk and who wants to be an actress to play Lily.” [via Aol TV]
3. If you need a distraction from counting down the days until July 15th and you don’t mind spoilers, you can watch eight new clips from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 here.
4. ABC has sold the online rights to its canceled soaps All My Children and One Life to Live, and the shows are now expected to live on with the same casts and crews on a currently unnamed, Hulu-like site. We’re wondering if this could be the start of a new trend. [via Vulture]
5. This first teaser for The Iron Lady makes us wonder if Meryl Streep made the right choice in taking on the role of Margaret Thatcher — but maybe it’s just the prosthetic teeth that are throwing us off. What do you think? [via The Playlist]
Bonus link: How 8 Acquitted Defendants Spent the Rest of Their Lives
As you already know, we were once huge fans of ABC’s TGIF programming block, so you can only imagine our excitement at stumbling upon this hand-drawn lineup for all 11 years. Depending on whether you’re a child of the ’80s or the ’90s, you’ll probably connect with a different part of the chart; we were definitely there every Friday night from the beginning until they moved Step By Step into the dreaded 9:30pm time slot. In other words, we have no idea what Odd Man Out even is. How about you? [via When The What?]
1. Joss Whedon had the first crack at the Buffy reboot, but turned it down to work on other projects. [via Vulture]
2. Despite mixed critical reviews and tons of technical complications, producers announced yesterday that Julie Taymor’s Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark has already sold more than $1 million worth of advance tickets. [via EW]
3. ABC has plans for a new show starring Tony winner Idina Menzel that will be “a mother-daughter relationship drama in the vein of Gilmore Girls.” But with singing. [via Deadline]
4. Frank Darabont writer/director of AMC’s newbie hit Walking Dead has reportedly let go of all the show’s writers and is looking to assign future scripts to freelancers. This is allegedly not unheard of in the biz, but wouldn’t you be so pissed off? [via Deadline]
5. Speaking of pissed, we hear that Ryan Seacrest just signed a three-year, $60 million deal to continue on the radio with Clear Channel. He’ll also help them create new on-air and digital content and launch a new record label. [via NYND]
Bonus link: Katy Perry’s Boobs Perform at the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show
Alas, it’s April 1st — the day where we have to discern whether what we read, hear, and see on the Internet is true or a damn April Fool’s joke. We hand out awards for the funniest and meanest pranks we’ve come across today after the jump. Let us know what hilarity we’ve missed out on in comments.
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