The Guardian's Ben Child feels like we've seen a lot of this year's SF before:

Earlier this year, sci-fi actioner Pandorum proved that you can concoct an entertaining - if rather artistically bankrupt - thriller in space by splicing together bits of other popular genre flicks: in this case, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Alien and Brit horror flick The Descent... [W]ouldn't it be nice if 2010 saw just a little more originality entering the sci-fi arena? So far this year we've had Avatar (supremely entertaining but predicated on every space opera cliche from Star Wars onwards, via a bit of Dances With Wolves, Princess Mononoke and Ferngully), Moon (very much picking up where the likes of Solaris, Dark Star and Silent Runnings left off) and the aforementioned Pandorum. The only truly inventive flick that springs to mind is District 9, Neil Blomkamp's excellent satire of apartheid era South Africa, and even that managed to rock out the exosuit battle scene from James Cameron's Aliens for its barnstorming denouement.

We're tempted to offer up the usual "There is no such thing as a new story" excuse, but it's a good point; even this year's "new" stories have been very familiar. Even with the new voices coming into SF cinema, are we running out of new things for them to say?

Where should sci-fi boldly go in 2010? [Guardian.co.uk]

I am not going to toy with your emotions the way I usually do in reviews like these and give you some long political analysis about class or social anxiety or lesbians. The fact is that this movie was lame, both as a movie and as a cultural symptom. It was dimly lit, filled with boring spaceship corridors and even more boring monsters, and lightly sprinkled with a backstory far more interesting than the front story. Watching Pandorum was like playing a metal album backwards to hear the Satanic messages and getting only some voice saying, "I like balloons" over and over again.

A couple of white dudes wake up covered in slime on a generation ship, and can't remember who they are. The power is running down, but luckily one of them (Ben Foster) remembers he's the ship's Chief Of I Know Stuff About Technology. And the other one (Dennis Quaid, looking snacky) remembers he's the Chief Of Guiding You Around The Ship From Your Comm Thingie. So Ben goes hunting for Energy Source Place Across The Ship and Dennis stays back at the ranch staring at a glowing map and says things like "Are you there? I'm going to route you around that pile of stuff."

It's hard for Ben to get to the Energy Source Place because there are all these zombie mutant things dressed like Savage Natives from some old-school white person's vision of the Old West or maybe Africa. You know, they have spears and wear bone necklaces and scream and drool a lot. But because they live in this lightless spaceship they are white and have no noses. Makes sense, right?

So there's your Mystery, kids. Why are these white savages on the ship? What happened to the crew? Will Dennis Quaid ever get another role where he can be both snacky and get some good lines?

As if those mysteries weren't enough, every once in a while there is a completely random moment where we get the fisheye lens thing on Dennis or Ben and you're supposed to wonder IS THIS ALL JUST SPACE MADNESS? (Yes, the word pandorum means space madness, not some kind of weird sexual secretion related to santorum, though there are a lot of santorum-esque secretions in this movie.)

Meanwhile Ben meets a couple of crew members who are inexplicably awake also and have had to descend to shocking levels of bad hygiene to stay alive. The thing that's a bummer is that when you get the multiple, contradictory Big Reveals at the end of the movie you're like, "What? Why didn't they make a movie about all this cool stuff instead of this dumb movie where they run around a lot and get covered in santorum?"

Another bummer is that even though two of the main characters are scientists, one of whom has a fully-functioning lab, we never actually go into the lab to figure things out. Why isn't there a scene where they, I dunno, put tissue from one of the space zombie savage creatures into a DNA sequencer and figure out what the fuck it is? Seriously, people, this movie had way too little science in it and way too much running around boringly. And the monsters? Not even cool. Just Reavers crossed with those guys from I Am Legend and CHUD (the movie, not the blog).

Oh, also? That cool image of the arm and face with all those tubes and shit poking out of them that you've seen on the posters? NOT EVEN IN THE MOVIE.

Basically the only reason to go see Pandorum this weekend is if you've already seen District 9 twice, Jennifer's Body once, and already watched Fringe, FlashForward, Supernatural, and Glee on your DVR. And you've already watched the entire Sarah Connor Chronicles and Middleman DVD box sets twice through. I'm not trying to be harsh here. I'm just trying to give you some options.

Or maybe I've just got . . . SPACE MADNESS!

Green Lantern

Comic book writer Rob Liefeld, who is close to the Green Lantern production, revealed some over-arching aspects of the setting and plot:

He has seen most of the storyboards for the Green Lantern film and he claims that it looks fantastic. He said that if they could translate what is on the storyboards to film, the movie would be amazing. Over one-third of the movie is set on OA, the home world of the Green Lanterns. The film will have numerous Green Lanterns, including fan favorite Kilowag and Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds) mentor turned archenemy, Sinestro.

[Comic Book Movie]

Pandorum

Heading out to see Pandorum today? Here's a quick clip to tide you over until you get to the theater:

Pandorum Exclusive Clip

The Hobbit

Despite his claim that he doesn't want to play any more Gandalf-like characters, Ian McKellen says he will be returning as Gandalf the Grey, his favorite version of Gandalf and Peter Jackson's as well:

He slept in the hedgerows; he was closer to the earth and not quite so spiritual. He's also funnier — he's got more variety to him. We thought there was more scope in that Gandalf.

[CinemaBlend]

John Carter of Mars

Makeup tests are currently underway for the Edgar Rice Burroughs adaptation, and Lynn Collins, who plays the Martian princess Dejah Thoris says she won't appear in heavy prosthetics, but will instead have more of a "tropical island" look. [MTV Movies Blog]

True Blood

Stephen Moyer says that the third season of the hit series will be heavy on the werewolf action. [ShockTillYouDrop]

Supernatural

CW has a new promo for the post-apocalyptic episode "The End:"

V

Here is the promo that aired during last night's FlashForward:

[Ausiello]

The Sarah Jane Adventures

David Tennant will appear in two episodes of the third season. Here is the official description for the October 15th premiere:

In the first of this two-part adventure, Sarah Jane and the gang face the most dangerous day of their lives, as the rhino-like Judoon return. When prisoner Androvax the Destroyer crash-lands on Earth, a Veil is set free and starts to turn Earth's technology against itself. And his next intended victim is Sarah Jane.

And for the second part, airing October 16th:

As the Judoon fleet approaches Earth, it's a race against time to stop Androvax. But with Genetech's technology on the rampage, and Rani's parents taken prisoner, can anything stop the Army of the Infinitesimal?

The BBC also lists off some of the other oddities Sarah Jane and the crew will encounter:

The series also features an extraterrestrial girl who can make people play games against their will; a living painting; the inhabitants of a supposedly haunted house; and monsters who want to infect Earth with a strangely aggressive weed. Finally, there is a chance for Sarah Jane to find personal happiness with someone who could be the perfect person to complete her family.

[Blogtor Who]

Doctor Who

Darren Garrett shows off some of the character design for the animated Doctor Who: Dreamland:

[Blogtor Who]

Heroes

NBC has released an extended preview for the next episode, "Ink:"

Ice queen Tracy warms up to a powerful new man in the fourth episode, "Acceptance:"

[Heroes France]

FlashForward

Some very funereal photos from episode three, "137 Sekunden:"

[Spoiler TV]

And here is an interview with Sonya Walger and Joseph Fiennes:

And another with John Cho and Courtney B. Vance talking spoilers:

[Zap2it]

In an interview with Digital Spy, Sonya Walger says that FlashForward doesn't have the mythology of a show like Lost, instead focusing on the fallout from that single event. [Digital Spy]

Smallville

Here is the Canadian promo for tonight's season premiere:

[Spoiler TV]

Vampire Diaries

It's party drama on next week's episode, "Family Ties:"

Elena (Nina Dobrev) asks Stefan (Paul Wesley) to escort her to the town's annual Founder's Party. Vicki (Kayla Ewell) gets Tyler (Michael Trevino) to ask her to the party, then accuses him of trying to hide their relationship from his family. Zach (guest star Chris William Martin) reveals a useful family secret to Stefan. At the party, Damon (Ian Somerhalder) tells Elena a story about the Salvatore family's past, leaving Elena with questions that Stefan refuses to answer. Finally, Stefan takes action to get Damon out of his life for good. Steven R. McQueen, Sara Canning, Katerina Graham, Candice Accola and Zach Roerig also star.

[ShockTillYouDrop]

At least one casually dressed vamp hangs out in the sunny woodlands in the sixth episode, "The Lost Girls:"

[Spoiler TV]

Iron Man 2:

Entertainment Tonight debuts some new footage from their Iron Man 2 set visit on Thursday, and they put out this brief teaser video, in which you can just glimpse the racetrack scene we've heard so much about — including a few split-second glimpses of Whiplash, and some flames.

Toy Story 3

We won't see the full Toy Story 3 trailer until the release of the Toy Story double feature, but GeekTyrant has snagged a description of what we can expect from the third film:

[The new trailer shows] Woody and the gang at Sunnyside Daycare. Where life among the toddlers looks like something out of "Lord of the Flies." … Buzz and Co. get absolutely brutalized by these 3-year-olds. Which is why they decide that "We're busting out of here." The only problem is – during their initial escape attempt – the Space Ranger gets severely damaged. To the point that Woody & friends are forced to hit Lightyear's reset button. Which then puts Buzz into Spanish-speaking mode. … When Buzz is in Spanish-speaking mode – he then becomes this hot-blooded, flamenco-dancing romantic figure prone to grand gestures. Which Jessie winds up being quite taken with.

[GeekTyrant]

Zombieland

Writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick say we'll be dropped into the middle of the zombie apocalypse, without seeing how it all began. [ShockTillYouDrop]

Supernatural

Here are some promo images for the season's fourth episode, "The End," in which Dean finds himself five years in the future during a zombie apocalypse:

[SF Universe]

The ninth episode, "The Real Ghostbusters," will featur Demian, a short, chubby copier repairman who's nerdy on the outside, but sensitive and heroic on the inside. We'll also meet Demian's friend Barnes, a gawky stereo salesman who also has heroic aspirations and a surprisingly courageous side. [Spoiler TV]

Doctor Who

Presumably, neither the robe nor the gigantic North Face jacket are part of the new wardrobe:

[Digital Spy]

Dollhouse

Here is the description for the third episode, "Belle Chose:"

Echo and Victor's imprints collide when Echo is sent on an assignment as a fun-loving, seductive college student and Victor is imprinted as the psychotic nephew of a Dollhouse shareholder (guest star Michael Hogan).

[Spoiler TV]

And below are images from the episode, complete with croquet mallet-wielding Echo:

[Spoiler TV]

Episode seven, "Meet Jane Doe," will include a sheriff by the name of Rand, a Texas good ol' boy. [Spoiler TV]

Lost

Another filming location was spotted, this time at St. Francis West in Hawaii. [LOST Spoilers]

The title of the fourth episode will be "The Substitute." Rumor has it the episode will focus on Locke. There is some speculation that we will be seeing a false Locke who will be revealed to be a shapeshifter. [Ausiello]

Pandorum

In an interview with MTV, Cam Gigandet offers more details about the space madness thriller:

It's basically a deep-space syndrome that people get, a type of psychosis. There's all sorts of symptoms, whether it's paranoia, you're seeing things, hallucinating, dreaming up all sorts of weird scenarios. It's something that, when you have it, you aren't aware that you have it... Yeah, and they all have no memories. This crew, this capsule or sleeping pod that they're in ... when you're in there for long enough and it preserves your life, you end up losing your memory. While they're trying to figure out all this stuff, they don't know what happened in the past, where they've been, what they've done. Any of that stuff. So you're always suspicious of everyone ... that's one of the cool things about this movie. They're always suspicious, and slowly their memory starts coming back. It's like this puzzle that they put together.

He also mentions the movie's monsters and says that the reason for the monsters' existence is more interesting than the actual monsters. [MTV Movie News]

Stargate Universe

Meet Eli in Sky1's promo:

Fringe

We'll get another dose of Leonard Nimoy and more on Olivia's past in the fourth episode, "Momentum Deferred:"

Recuperating from the traumatic and alarming meeting with Massive Dynamic founder William Bell (guest star Nimoy), Agent Dunham consumes a powerful "fringe" concoction that Dr. Bishop prescribes to stimulate her memory. Meanwhile, the Fringe Division investigates a series of robbery cases that are tied to shape-shifting. As clues are tracked and memories are jogged, another woman experimented on by Dr. Bishop is introduced and a flashback reveals more about Olivia's visit to the alternate reality.

[Fringe Spoilers]

Plus, stills from the episode with Nimoy and Charlie-who-isn't-Charlie:

[Spoiler TV]

Heroes

NBC delivers a new promo for next week's episode "Ink:"

Chuck

The fifth episode of the season will be called "Chuck vs. First Class." [ChuckTV]

New Moon

Taylor Lautner has his shirt off yet again, while Robert Pattinson is fully clothed with shining eyes:

[MTV Movies Blog]

Priest

Cam Gigandet also talks a bit about Priest, in which he plays a part-vampire sheriff:

It's like a Western set in this alternate reality where you have these creatures, these vampire-like people. It's like The Searchers. It's a journey movie. You can look at it from a horror point of view, but we've always thought of it as a story of these people on a journey, coming into their own. That's what my character does. He starts off as someone who's scarified so much and been thrown into this world that he didn't choose. And he grows into a man who can take care of himself and is confident in his choices.

[IGN]

Additional reporting by Alexis Brown.

Pandorum:

Excited about Dennis Quaid and Ben Foster's space horror romp yet? How about after you see this German trailer? It's Teutonic!

And here's a new featurette where the stars actually explain a bit more about the movie:

Zombieland:

A couple TV spots I don't think we've featured before:

The Fourth Kind:

Here's a new poster for this alien abduction/Blair Witch mashup. [IGN]

Twilight: New Moon:

The L.A. Times has a ton of set photos and promo photos from this film. More at the link. [L.A. Times]

Doctor Who:

There's a new Q&A with Russell T. Davies and Julie Gardner about the new animated adventure "Dreamland." (It's the third part of three, and the other two parts are here and here.)

Lost:

One new set pic shows Matthew Fox at the airport, dressed in his suit from Flight 815. And there are other set photos showing a new structure being built, which appears to have some ancient walls, and could be a new entrance to that temple. More pics at the first link. [The ODI and The ODI]

FlashForward:

And here's a new description for episode three, "137 Sekunden":

MARK AND JANIS MEET WITH AN IMPRISONED NAZI WHO CLAIMS TO HAVE KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE BLACKOUTS, DEMETRI RECEIVES A TIP ABOUT HIS FUTURE, AND AARON WANTS TO EXHUME HIS DAUGHTER'S BODY TO RE-TEST HER DNA AND CONFIRM HER IDENTITY, ON ABC'S "FLASHFORWARD"
Gabrielle Union Guest Stars as Zoey

"137 Sekunden" - Mark and Janis travel to Germany to speak with an imprisoned Nazi who claims to have knowledge about the blackouts, and an anonymous tip leads Demetri to believe his deepest fears about his future. Meanwhile, Aaron pleads with Mark to help him get the approval to have his daughter's body exhumed in order to re-test her DNA and confirm the identity of the remains.

[SpoilerTV]

Smallville:

Here's a new sneak peek from Friday's season opener.

Batman: The Brave And The Bold:

Henry Rollins will guest star as Robotman, the cyborg member of the Doom Patrol, in an upcoming episode. [MTV]

Sanctuary:

Some new promo pics from the season two premiere. [SpoilerTV]

Eastwick:

Here's the official synopsis for episode three, "Madams And Madames":

Haunted by the ghost of her daughter's ex-boyfriend, Roxie questions her sanity and turns to a local psychic for help. Declining Darryl's offer of a high-powered - and high-priced - divorce attorney, Kat decides to give Raymond another chance, but is she only delaying the inevitable? Joanna's quest to find the truth about Darryl leads her to a new and different scandal, and then she realizes her discovery was no accident. Meanwhile, Roxie's daughter, Mia, reluctantly attends her boyfriend's memorial, and though Bun has lost her memory, her mind is consumed with a mysterious symbol.

[SpoilerTV]

Additional reporting by Alexis Brown.

In Pandorum, opening this Friday, Quaid plays Payton, one of two space travelers who awake from hypersleep aboard a massive spaceship. (The other one is Bower, played by Ben Foster.) Hypersleep always leaves travelers with total amnesia, so Payton and Bower don't know who they are. Normally, there's supposed to be someone there to help reorient you when you reawaken from hypersleep, but they're on their own. And they're locked in the tiny room they wake up in. The first part of the movie is about their struggle to escape from this room — but once they finally get out, "that's when all hell breaks loose," says Quaid.

Are we ready for the return of space horror? "I sure enough do hope so," says Quaid. "If you have a good story — and this is a great story — a good movie, a fun, exciting movie, the audience will show up." He says Pandorum is "pretty amazing, in that it's part thriller, part horror movie, I guess... it's a myth, asking who are we? Are we who we think we are?"

And even though you've seen weird white creatures attacking our heroes out of the bowels of the spaceship in the trailers and clips, there aren't any aliens in this movie, says Quaid. "The aliens are us."

In the clips we've seen so far, Quaid's character seems like the steady voice of reason, compared with Foster's jumpy, paranoid character. But "that's only what it seems like," says Quaid. "My character is hiding something that even he himself doesn't know." Besides that, all Quaid will say about Payton is, "He's not who he thinks he is, let's put it that way."

He had fun playing off of Foster's jumpy, paranoid character, but also has some "pretty interesting" repartee with Cam Gigandet, who plays Gallo.

Quaid has heard the inevitable comparisons with District 9, what with humans peeling off their own skin and slowly turning into some kind of inhuman creature, but "this is a very different type of story." The film's title, Pandorum, "actually refers to a syndrome that occurs with prolonged space flight, where one begins to lose their grip on reality."

Quaid also appears in the upcoming Biblical horror film Legion, in which people have boils bursting out of their skin, among other things. We asked him which movie was grosser to film, and he said "I think they're about even." He says special effects are much easier to shoot than they used to be — in the old days, they were all mechanical, and now "they basically just build the whole thing around you."

Enemy Mine is one of our favorite films, so we had to ask Quaid about it — many accounts say the space epic was filmed twice, in its entirety. The studio fired original director Richard Loncraine, and director Wolfgang Petersen started over from scratch. But Quaid tells us they didn't quite get to film the entire movie before Loncraine was fired:

We didn't film it completely twice. We shot in Iceland with another director, for about four to six weeks, something like that. [It was] a very different concept of the film, and then the director was fired. And we shot in Germany with Wolfgang Petersen.

Nobody's ever seen the footage that Loncraine shot, and it's rumored to have been junked. But Quaid says it still exists somewhere, "but I'd like to see it myself." Quaid Loncraine's original version of Mine was "grittier," at least partly because it was filmed on location, with real weather, and Petersen shot his version on a soundstage. "It had a grittiness to it." But it was still the same basic story of a human and an alien, enemies in a bitter war, learning to become friends.

And finally, we asked Quaid if he's still on board for G.I. Joe 2. And he says, "Yeah if they do one, i'm there."

"The Last Man On The Planet Moon"
Will Eisner, Jules Feiffer and Wally Wood's August 31st 1952 episode of The Spirit was right in the middle of the Outer Space sequence of stories, but that didn't mean it lost its focus on small vignettes about the common man - In this particular case, about a man whose space madness meant that he hallucinated a world where he was the only man left from his mission, trapped all alone on the Moon. Forward thinking stuff from a period when Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon made space safe for newspaper comics readers.

Solaris
Stanisław Lem's original 1961 novel, that is, not the George Clooney movie. Lem imagined an alien being that prompted psychological responses in humans who tried to contact it, producing a particular strain of space madness - Trauma As Particularly Awkward First Contact. While Lem's novel depicts an unknowable and somewhat disturbing idea of such event, it was soon co-opted into cuddlier forms by...

Countless Star Trek Episodes
The various interstellar folk of Gene Roddenberry's future had a tendency to go insane every now and again, but there was always a comfortable external explanation for it all - An alien virus, mind-control of some sort, or Vulcans getting horny. Anything that could allow the Enterprise and her fine crew to leave after an hour, secure in the ultimate safety and pride of being outer space frontiersmen and insanity just being something that's akin to drunkenness:

Dark Star
Suicidal astronauts on a long-term mission who have to talk an intelligent bomb out of exploding, resorting to explaining philosophy because their cryogenically-frozen commander tells them to? No wonder that Lt. Doolittle (spoiler) surrenders to his dream of surfing to oblivion at the end of the movie. Never mind 2001, this was the movie that made a generation realize what space travel could do to your mind.

The Black Hole
...And for the kids that were too young to see Dark Star, there was always Disney's The Black Hole, in which mad Maximilian Schell (who had killed his own crew, turned them into robots, become obsessed with the black hole of the title and ends up melded to a killer robot and in Hell or something) managed to put another generation off the idea of going off into space. Those who weren't confused about the whole thing and/or distracted by the cuteness of VINCENT, that is.

Red Dwarf
1992's "Quarantine" demonstrated that it wasn't just humans who came down with space madness, when hologram Arnold Rimmer caught a virus that not only drove him quite mad, but finally introduced his latent crossdressing and puppetry tendencies. If only all other space madnesses came with their own Mr. Flibbles.

Event Horizon
Some have called Event Horizon the Pandorum or Sunshine of its 1997 day, but we prefer to think of this Sam Neill-starring SF-horror movie as The Black Hole for people who are afraid of robots. Again proving that hanging around cosmic events can lead to hallucinations and psychosis, Paul WS Anderson's thriller brought a spooky atmosphere, love of Latin and very little originality to the space madness genre, but we love it nonetheless.

Sunshine
Talking of unoriginal SF-horror movies, Danny Boyle's 2007 worst-case-scenario-fest (In turn, shamelessly ripped off by Ron Moore's failed pilot Virtuality) demonstrates yet again that, when your spaceship discovers a seemingly-abandoned spaceship floating in the void, the sensible thing to do is always to ignore it and carry on your mission. Points are subtracted for the unexpected and somewhat disappointing devolution into a generic slasher movie towards the end, but any movie where space + isolation + the sun = space madness can never be all bad.

Moon
Taking the traditional space madness ingredients (Namely loneliness, existential angst and improbable situations that can't be easily explained by what we know as science), Duncan Jones' debut movie comes up with something that, unusually, pays off without devolving into cliche or an "enigmatic" lack of answers. For that alone - as well as not succumbing to either space madness or movie hero syndrome - Sam Rockwell's Sam Bell takes the win.

The Ren and Stimpy Show
Surely the greatest example ever made of what space madness truly is. Oh my God, an ice cream bar!
See if you don't agree for yourself.

Zombieland

A new series of stills give us a closer look at our survivalist heroes and adds a new dimension to your killer clown nightmares:

[ShockTillYouDrop]

Where the Wild Things Are

Here are a few more monstrous images from Spike Jonze's adaptation:

[/Film]

Surrogates

In an interview with SciFi Scanner, director Jonathan Mostow talks a bit about what he's trying to say about technology in Surrogates and how it's different from his work on Terminator:

Whenever there's a new gadget I'm typically the guy that will go out and buy it. Terminator is a movie that said, "Be afraid of technology because it can take over our lives." This is a movie that says, "Technology is great, it makes our lives better, but at what price?" I think a thousand years from now, historians will look back on this time as a time just as seminal as when mankind first discovered fire or invented the printing press.

[AMC]

Pandorum

The latest round of stills show off the ship and plenty of space grime:

[IGN]

Dollhouse

We mentioned earlier that Mellie/November would be making a return, and in images from the third episode "Instinct," we see her not only back inside the Dollhouse, but face-to-face with Paul:

[Spoiler TV]

Ray Wise, whom you may remember as the smooth-talking Devil on Reaper has been cast as Howard, the previously-mentioned higher-up in the Dollhouse. [EW]

And, for good measure, here's a trio of promo images featuring Echo with a gun:

[Spoiler TV]

Lost

Another detail has emerged from the LAX set. An extra claims that it looks like Charlie has an overdose in the bathroom during what appears to be a pre-crash Flight 815. [Spoiler TV]

Katey Sagal is returning as Helen Norwood, Locke's one time girlfriend who supposedly died in 2006 of a brain aneurysm. Executive producer Carlton Cuse said he would like to find a way to bring back Julie Bowen as well, who played Jack's ex-wife Sarah. [TV Guide]

Reports from Hawaii indicate that the crew has been filming at the Dharma submarine dock, and many of the island's old sets are being set up again, including the Jughead tower, so we will be seeing a lot more old familiar places in addition to LAX. [The ODI]

From another set, one fan saw Michael Emerson, who plays Ben Linus, wearing a long gray trenchcoat and black pants, watching someone in the distance who is exiting a medical building. Eventually, it's clear the person leaving the building is non other than John Locke in his wheelchair. Locke appears very sad, keeping his head down as he wheels toward the street. Locke appears to be waiting for a ride, and sorrowfully watches a little boy playing with a red ball. The boy's ball rolls into the street and the boy runs after it, forcing an oncoming car to screech to a halt. Locke throws himself out of his chair and crawls toward the boy as if to save him, but the boy is fine and simply picks up his ball again and heads to the sidewalk. Ben watches the scene, then runs over to an angry Locke to help him back into his chair. [Lyly Ford]

Ian Somerhalder headed to Hawaii yesterday to film Boone's return. The only thing he could say is that he'll appear in several of the season's episodes. [EW]

True Blood

Chances are we'll see the Newlins in the third season (and they'll be pissed). Also Alan Ball softened Eric's image a bit in Season Two to make him seem viable as a love interest for Sookie. [Televisionary]

Stargate Universe

The producers are looking to cast an actress for the role of Kiva for a three-episode arc. Kiva will be the strong-willed commander of the Lucian Alliance, and will do whatever it takes to ensure her people's safety, even at the expense of the Destiny crew. [Spoiler TV]

Heroes

NBC has released the official synopsis for the season premiere:

Claire (Hayden Panettiere) struggles with adjusting to her new life in college when a mysterious death thrusts her into the spotlight once again. Elsewhere, Hiro (Masi Oka) and Ando (James Kyson Lee) continue their noble quest to help people by promoting their abilities. Angela (Cristine Rose) fears Nathan (Adrian Pasdar) will soon discover his true identity; while Matt (Greg Grunberg) is haunted by an unexpected visitor seeking something he has lost. Tracy Strauss (Ali Larter) and H.R.G. (Jack Coleman) join forces, looking for the key to unlock the motive behind a horrific crime. Meanwhile, Peter (Milo Ventimiglia) uses his abilities for good, but he is soon called upon to aid an old friend. While the heroes adjust to their new surroundings, a mysterious carnival clan, led by ringleader Samuel (Robert Knepper), sets their sights on familiar faces.

And Comic Book Resources has six video previews from the two-hour premiere:

[Comic Book Resources]

In the third episode, "Acceptance," Hiro will focus his attention on saving others' lives, while Angela helps Nathan try to remember his past and Tracy tries to get her job back. [Spoiler TV]

Fringe

Expect Leonard Nimoy's William Bell back on October 8th, but not in the flesh. Olivia will undergo an eerie procedure to flashback to her encounter with Bell in the alternate reality and try to understand the experiments Walter and Bell performed on her as a child. Also, we'll meet another one of Walter's guinea pigs, a young woman played by Theresa Russell. We'll also encounter actor Thomas Kretschmann, who plays a "cold-blooded antagonist" with a secret, which, once revealed, we won't soon forget. [TV Guide Magazine]

In the third episode "Fracture," the team surveys a messy crime scene and Olivia visits a bowling alley:

[Fringe Spoilers]

Eclipse

Taylor Lautner claims that Eclipse, which is being helmed by 30 Days of Night director David Slade, will be darker than the first two Twilight films, and will appeal more to male audiences. [MTV Movies Blog]

Smallville

In an interview with IESB, Callum Blue talks a little bit about his role as Zod. He mostly rehashes what he's said in previous interviews, but says that in the episodes he's filmed so far, he's cut off a person's head, but has yet to fly. [IESB]

Paranormal Activity

The Paranormal Activity poster promises the film will be the scariest viewing experience of your life:

[IGN]

FlashForward

The producers are looking to cast a bevy of actors for the ninth episode, mostly Japanese actors who can speak fluent Japanese. They're also looking to cast the recurring role of Gordon, a spineless but well-spoken supervisor, and the possibly recurring role of Frank, a former soldier from Ghana with a shady military past who now works at an LA branch of Home Depot. [Spoiler TV]

And two more TV promos for the series:

Eastwick

In the seventh episode, we'll meet Greta Noa, a Soho art dealer and close personal friend of the mephistophelean Darryl Van Horne. Darryl has asked Greta to come Eastwick to view Roxie's artwork, and Greta may have the power to change her life. [Spoiler TV]

The Vampire Diaries

Two clips have surfaced from tomorrow night's episode "The Night of the Comet:"

I'm still on the "Will Pandorum actually be as scary as Event Horizon" band wagon and so far the plot continues to be too dark to tell. But in these new clips we meet the rest of the rarely seen crew. What the hell is going on up there? And where did Ben get that delightful gun? Pandorum will be out September 25th.

Pandorum will be out September 25th.

Jennifer's Body

A new TV spot shows a little bit of the murder that gets this demonic party started:

[via ShockTillYouDrop]

Lost

Honolulu International Airport was dressed up as LAX for Lost filming, with Matthew Fox (Jack), Evangeline Lilly (Kate), Josh Holloway (Sawyer), and Naveen Andrews (Sayid) expected on set. Visitors spotted the Oceanic Airlines logo as well as Daniel Roebuck, who played the late (exploded) Dr. Leslie Arzt, leading some to speculate that we will see another timeline showing the safe landing of Oceanic Flight 815. [Hawaii Blog]

Another set report comes from the site of the now-demolished Swan Station, and appears to be set after Juliet detonated the bomb. Jack, Kate, Miles, and Jin were all on set, and Sawyer was visibly upset over Juliet's actions. He runs toward the hole, which is now filled with metal from the site. The set reporter also saw stunt doubles climb out of the hole using vines. They also saw Hurley and Sayid on set, but not filming, and Sayid's Dharma uniform was still covered in blood. [KryptonSite]

At Seattle's Bumbershoot festival, a panel of writers and producers claimed that, while the creative team does have a roadmap for mysteries that have to be explained, not every single detail will be made clear. They also said we'll be seeing Charlie and possibly the flight attendant Cindy as well, that season six will have a significant spiritual bent, and that the final shot of the show is already planned. [Pop Distillery]

Starting in the fourth episode of the sixth season, Lost will feature a recurring character, a teenage boy who has dealt with a horrible family accident and has been put in charge of something important, something that weighs heavily on him. He's also described as "wise beyond his years." Could this be the younger version of a character we've already met? An older version of Aaron? [Dark UFO]

Fringe

Photos from the second episode "Night of Desirable Objects" suggest that Charlie is still with us after the season premiere:

[Spoiler TV]

At Dragon*Con, Leonard Nimoy reiterated that he will appear in multiple episodes this season, including one that will air next month set around the alternate universe. [Trek Web]

Supernatural

In the images for the season's third episode "Free to be You and Me," Dean and Castiel pose as FBI agents, and we get our first look at Mark Pellegrino as Lucifer. Evidently, it was Casual Friday in Hell:

[J-Squared]

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Here are four clips from the computer-animated food fest:

[via CinemaBlend]

True Blood

HBO has put together a teaser trailer for Sunday's season finale:

[via Spoiler TV]

Heroes

The new promo pledges our heroes (and presumably the writers) will be "back at their best:"

[NBC]

The Box

Here's the French poster for Richard Kelly's adaptation of Richard Matheson's short story, "Button, Button:"

[ShockTillYouDrop]

Pandorum

The Brazilian one-sheet for Pandorum features what appears to be a countdown clock:

[ShockTillYouDrop]

New Moon

The latest still shows Edward in a bedroom with Bella, although it's not clear if he's the real Edward, or just a figment of her imagination:

[MTV Movies Blog]

Smallville

In the sixth episode, "Crossfire," Lois and Clark kiss, which is the first time that their attraction is mutually acknowledged without any external forces or time alterations. This episode sets up Lois's departure in the seventh episode "Kandor" and her return in the eighth episode "Idol." Also, there will be an ominous revelation about Lois's futuristic time flashes. [KryptonSite]

And here are a few more images from the season opener, "Savior:"

[KryptonSite]

FlashForward

Below is a UK promo, slightly different from the promos airing in the US:

[via FlashForward.pl]

Eastwick

ABC describes the characters in a press release for the pilot. Roxie is an extroverted artist, Kat an overworked wife and mother, and Joanna a wallflower local reporter, and the three didn't get along for many years because of their preconceived notions about one another. But a strange encounter in the park prompts them to bond over martinis and wish for change in their lives. This unlocks a power within each of them and brings the wealthy, mysterious Darryl Van Horne into town, who will help them discover their powers. We'll also meet Penny, Joanna's co-worker and best friend, Bun, the fun and kooky head of the Eastwick Historical Society (who may have the key to Darryl's true identity), and Mia, Roxie's teenaged daughter. Certain men in Eastwick, including Joanna's crush Will and Kat's layabout husband Raymond become unintentional targets of the women's powers. [Spoiler TV]

The titles of the first four episodes will be "Pilot," "Reaping and Sewing," "Madams and Madames," and "Fleas and Casserole." [Eastwick-Fans.net]

Additional reporting by Alexis Brown and Charlie Jane Anders.

September 4th
Gamer
...this one, which Annalee loved. Even if you've not seen the movie, you'll have seen the trailers enough to be familiar with the idea behind it: In the not-too-distant future, mad scientist Michael C. Hall has invented a way to remote control people, which allows gamers to live out their fantasies in reality... which makes us wonder if Bruce Willis' Surrogates should be a little worried about this coming out first. Gerard Butler makes with the explodo, and if you liked the Crank movies - made by the same people - consider this right up your inevitably aflame, full of over the top action, alley.

September 9th
9
For those who won't be spending Wednesday in a Beatles Rock Band-induced musical coma, consider Shane Acker's CG-animated post-apocalyptic movie (with voices from Elijah Wood, John C. Reilly and Jennifer Connelly, amongst others) that tries to make "stitchpunk" into a real genre. Existential angst meets the Island of Misfit Toys, as creatures made up of the remnants of a destroyed society try to discover the truth behind their origins. As you might expect, Tim Burton is executive producer on this one.

September 18th
Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs
AKA the film that Meredith is trying to convince me I must see as soon as possible. Adapted from the 1982 classic children's book by the writers of television's How I Met Your Mother, the CG-animated Cloudy lets the voices of Bill Hader, Neil Patrick Harris (of course), Andy Samberg and more explore why science can be trouble when it means that foodstuffs replace raindrops.

Jennifer's Body
You know all about this one by now: Juno's Diablo Cody writes a horror movie in which everyone's worst fears about Megan Fox come true - as long as your worst fears involve her turning into a literally-maneating she-demon dispatching various unfortunate boys in high school. Director Karyn Kusama directed the bigscreen version of Aeon Flux, so maybe this is a chance for her to earn back some movie karma.

Pandorum
Spacemen Dennis Quaid and Ben Foster wake up without their memories and adrift in space in director Christian Alvart (who also co-wrote the movie with Travis Milloy)'s mysterious space horror. What has happened to the crew, and what does it have to do with the future of the human race? And, more importantly, how excited should we be about Resident Evil director Paul W.S. Anderson being attached as producer for the movie?

September 21st
The Age Of Stupid
A "crowd-funded" movie about the dangers of climate change? This drama-documentary-animation hybrid offers up Pete Postlethwaite as a man in the year 2055, looking back at "archival footage" (ie, documentary material) from our time and wondering why more wasn't done to stop the environmental damage that humanity was causing. Animators on the project include Gorillaz' Passion Pictures, and music comes from Radiohead, amongst others.

September 25th
The Invention of Lying
Ricky Gervais continues his attempt to break into movies (And the less said about Ghost Town, the better) with this movie set on an alternate Earth where Gervais' character invents the entire concept of lying in order to win the heart - or, at least, the body - of Jennifer Garner's character Jennifer. As long as it stays away from a sentimental ending, we've got high hopes for this... but maybe that's just because we're swayed by Tina Fey being amongst the cast.

Surrogates
Bruce Willis rues Gamer in this adaptation of the Top Shelf comic wherein humanity have retreated to better living through robotics, only for someone - or something - to abruptly put an end to that happy shared delusion. Go for Bruce's wig, stay for the fact that, if it's anything like the original, it'll end up being a taut and exciting thriller that doesn't go for the easy answers.

With September already underway, we're a little late in providing this guide, but try not to hold it too far against us. We've split everything up month-by-month, to help you fill your calendar without too much worry - Just click on the links below.

September
October
November
December

Surrogates

Below are the first official TV spots for Surrogates:

Dollhouse

When the season premieres, the Dollhouse is still reeling from Alpha's attack, and the idea that he's still out there and has access to Dollhouse technology is very present in everyone's minds. The administration will be trying to balance finding Alpha with the daily business of the Dollhouse.

Sierra is still, um, servicing clients, and the first time we see her during the season, she will be coming back from an engagement. Then we will see her a couple of episodes later, when she will have a moment with Victor that hints at their continuing relationship. Dichen Lachman, who plays Sierra, says we'll see more stories focusing on her this season.

Meanwhile, as you'd expect, newly promoted security chief Boyd will be making sure that the Dollhouse functions smoothly, that the Actives are kept safe, and that the handlers have enough information to protect them. [Sci Fi Wire]

The Road

The first reviews of the film adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's The Road are emerging, including one from Variety and another from The Hollywood Reporter. Both reviews discuss the film's heavy emphasis on flashbacks, the departure of Charlize Theron's character, and the central relationship between the father and son. As the father and son try to reach the warmer south where life may still be possible, the film's horrors are kept in the background, except for one scene where they find a house with a dozen naked, writhing men and women missing some limbs — stock for cannibals.

Supernatural

Here's the official description for the season's third episode, "Free to Be You and Me:"

Not sure he trusts himself anymore, Sam (Jared Padalecki) decides to give up hunting, but a late-night visitor (guest star Adrianne Palicki) won't let him off the hook that easily. Dean (Jensen Ackles), intent on stopping the Apocalypse, continues hunting on his own and teams up with Castiel (Misha Collins) to find the Archangel Raphael, as Castiel believes Raphael knows God's location.

[SPNsite]

Zombieland

A reader at /Film caught a screener of the film. He enjoyed the film overall, and his review only contained one particular spoiler: towards the end, Emma Stone's character Wichita and Abigail Breslin's character Little Rock end up calling for help from the top of an amusement park ride, after being far more capable than the male characters for the earlier portion of the movie. [/Film]

Pandorum

A few creepy new images from the space-horror thriller:

More at the links. [Fantasy.fr and UGO]

And here is a foreign one-sheet:

[Sci Fi Scoop]

The Green Hornet

Seth Rogen gets a few more guest stars, in the form of Tom Wilkinson (who played the memory-wiping doctor in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) and David Harbour (who played Bond villain Gregg Beam in Quantum of Solace). [IGN]

Fringe

The eighth episode will feature a character named Christine Hollis, an attractive and feisty art student. [Spoiler TV]

Heroes

Elisabeth Rohm, who played prosecutor Serena Southerlyn on Law & Order, will play a character named Lauren Gilmore in the eighth episode. [Zap2it]

And here is the Season 4 sneak peek from the Season 3 Blu Ray set:

[Spoiler TV]

Smallville

Here's the official description for the Season Nine premiere, "Savior:"

Clark (Tom Welling) tells Jor-El he's ready to start his training, but Jor-El sends him back to Metropolis to cut ties with Lois before he can begin. Chloe (Allison Mack) is shocked when Lois (Erica Durance) suddenly reappears after having been missing for weeks, but Lois has no recollection of vanishing into thin air with the Legion ring. While investigating a monorail crash, Lois meets John Corben (guest star Brian Austin Green), a new reporter at The Daily Planet, with a negative attitude toward the Red-Blue Blur. Chloe begs Clark to use the Legion ring to go back in time to save Jimmy, but he refuses, driving a wedge into their friendship. Meanwhile, Oliver (Justin Hartley) continues down a dark road, and Zod (Callum Blue) arrives at the Luthor mansion.

[KryptonSite]

Warehouse 13

It looks like the Warehouse is going nuclear in next week's episode "Breakdown:"

[Movieweb]

Eureka

There's a lot of fur coming up in the season's 17th episode, "Have an Ice Day:"

[Pizquita]

FlashForward

The eighth episode will apparently feature a game of Texas Hold 'Em. [Spoiler TV]

Eastwick

The producers are looking for a Bradley Whitford or Jon Stewart type for Max, a recurring role as a charming, intelligent, and witty journalist who has come to Eastwick to steal Joanna's heart, and may end up being a love interest as well. [Spoiler TV]

The casting slides for Max depict a scene in which Max catches Joanna in a bar talking to herself, willing a glass of beer to move. Her mocks her for a bit, and she tells him that she is trying to recreate an experience she had. Max tries to prod details of the experience out of her, but she's pretty mum on the subject. He advises her that, if she wants to replicate the experience, she should try to replicate the feelings she had leading up to it, like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day. [Spoiler TV]

Another journalistic position has been filled, with Martin Mull cast as Milton, a retired reporter who's got dirt on the devilish Daryl Van Home.

[Spoiler TV]

And here are three new posters of the witchy women:

[Eastwick Fans]

Vampire Diaries

CW has released the official description for the third episode "Friday Night Bites:"

Elena (Nina Dobrev) tries to ignore Bonnie's (Katerina Graham) warnings about the disturbing vibes she got from Stefan (Paul Wesley). Tyler (Michael Trevino) tries to embarrass Stefan by throwing a football at him, but Stefan effortlessly catches and passes the ball back, impressing everyone with his skill. Mr. Tanner (guest star Benjamin Ayres) reluctantly lets Stefan join the football team. Elena invites Stefan and Bonnie to dinner, hoping that the two will bond, but the evening is disrupted by the unexpected and unwelcome arrival of Damon (Ian Somerhalder) and Caroline (Candice Accola). Finally, the town is shocked by an act of violence.

[VampireSite.net]

In the sixth episode, we'll meet Alaric, who may become a regular character. Alaric is Mystic Falls' hot new history teacher. His charming, nerdy qualities will win over the the girls, but he has a dark, malicious side, and when his deadly agenda is revealed, all hell will break loose. [Spoiler TV]

And here are promo images from the second episode, "Night of the Comet:"

[Spoiler TV]

And still more from the third episode:

[VampireSite.net]

Additional reporting by Alexis Brown and Charlie Jane Anders.

Pandorum:

Here are a couple of new TV spots for this space-horror epic:

Jennifer's Body:

A new behind-the-scenes featurette takes you behind the sexy horror of the horrific sexiness.

And Entertainment Tonight actually featured a clip of the Amanda Seyfried/Megan Fox kiss, plus Megan Fox talking about her character:

Surrogates:

More details on the footage that director Jonathan Mostow showed reporters: Bruce Willis and other surrogate cops are chasing a suspect in a helicopter, and the suspect is on a motorcycle. The suspect weaves in and out of Boston traffic, then abandons his motorcycle. He takes out some cops with his pulse gun, then shoots at the helicopter. Willis disconnects from his surrogate just before the blast hits, waking up in his apartment. Then he reconnects to his robotic surrogate and continues the chase, following the suspect into the surrogate-phobic reservation, showing how badass his robot body can be, jumping over shit and taking lots of damage.

And Mostow says Willis has "existential ennui" because the only crime that's left — crimes against people's robot surrogates — is a property crime rather than murder or whatever. (So why don't criminals just break into your house and stab your real body while you're controlling your robot body?) This makes Willis feel his job as a cop is meaningless, and he can't connect with his wife. Once Willis has to operate as his real self, he realizes just how hollow his robot-body-driven life was. [IGN]

9:

Star Elijah Wood was on Conan O'Brien the other night, and he talked about the numerology of this movie as well as Comic Con:


There's also this somewhat weird disturbing clip from his children's TV appearance, which has nothing to do with this movie, but it's too weird not to share:

Also, Wood and director Shane Acker talked to Sci Fi Wire, and explained a bit more about the film — we start out seeing through 9's eyes, and he knows as little about this world as we do. We follow him on his journey of discovery, and he convinces the other ragdolls to try and figure out more about who they are and what the machines are. They can't physically fight the machines because they're too fragile. So gathering knowledge is the only way they can win. Also, 7 (Jennifer Connelly) is a fiercly independent warrior who pushes everyone else away. She's a maverick. [Sci Fi Wire]

And here are a couple new featurettes, from what appears to be the film's official Youtube channel:

Gamer:

So we talked to Amber Valletta yesterday about being a sex-puppet in this sex-and-violence games movie. Apparently, the guy who controls her is sort of a disgusting slug, and he licks his lips in every single scene he's in. The two of them never appear together, though, because he's controlling her remotely. [UGO]

Dark Shadows:

One of the biggest challenges with this film is to recapture the weird tone of the original, says director Tim Burton, who certainly seems to think Johnny Depp will star in it, judging from the way he namedrops Depp. [MTV]

[Rec] 2:

Some new images from this sick-building-syndrome movie. More at the link. [Aullidos via ShockTillYouDrop]

Twilight:

The third movie, Eclipse, will feature Jasper doing a lot of fighting, says Jackson Rathbone. And there'll be some Civil War scenes giving his character's origin. [MTV]

Doctor Who:

A couple of tidbits from the forums over at Gallifrey Base. For one thing, IMDB is now claiming that Bruno Langley, who played Adam back in season one, will appear in David Tennant's final episode. Is Adam coming back to cause trouble again? Or is this another instance of the Doctor traveling back into his own past, like the thing where the tenth Doctor drops in on Rose before she's met the ninth Doctor? Oh, and there's a rumor — and I emphasize rumor — that a 1960s companion will turn up. But forum posters don't think it'll be Carole Ann Ford, because she's turning up in a Big Finish audio production, and those usually avoid using elements that are turning up on the TV show. [Gallifrey Base]

FlashForward:

Here's a new promo, featuring a confession of future infidelity:

Lost:

David H. Lawrence XVII, who played the puppetmaster guy on Heroes, Twittered that he landed a role in the final season of Lost. [The ODI]

Supernatural:

I don't think we've shown you this hilarious trailer, featuring some subliminal messages, before.

Smallville:

Here's a screencap from a new season nine sneak peek, featuring the Superman logo. Bigger version at the link. [The ODI]

Someone named LilMissX twittered a couple of promo photos of Chloe from the new season. [TwitPic via SpoilerTV]

And here's a sneak peek from the season opener, featuring Brian Austin Green making us all wish Sarah Connor was still being Chronicled.

Stargate Universe:

The season will end with an episode called "Subversion," followed by a two-parter called "Incursion." And that two-parter ends with "big-time cliffhanger," according to writer/producer Joseph Mallozzi, who calls it the "biggest HOLY #%&@! ending I have ever written." Because "Incursion" has been expanded from one hour to two, one other episode will get held over to season two — which means probably nobody much dies in that cliffhanger, or else they're able to rework the held-over episode somehow. [Gateworld]

Chuck:

Smallville's Kristin Kreuk will appear in multiple episodes as Hannah, a publishing industry veteran who meets Chuck on a flight to Paris. She loses her job and winds up working at the Buy More. And both Chuck and Morgan will have feelings for her. [EW]

Heroes:

So we already knew there would be more time travel this year, and now here are more details. Hayden Panettiere donned her old cheerleader outfit for some scenes that probably take place back during season one. And meanwhile, Hiro and Sylar filmed a confrontation in Odessa, TX that's probably set during the same era. Sylar throws Hiro up against a bus, and Hiro screams "Stoppp! I am dying!" And Sylar points his finger at Hiro's head. And here are some pics of both scenes — more at the link. [The ODI]

Also, Greg Grunberg says the thing where his Head-Sylar kidnaps his baby will all make sense. And he explains more of Matt's arc this season:

What's cool is that my powers evolve, and I start this year so regretting what I did last year that I have absolutely cut it cold turkey. I refuse to use my powers, and Sylar wants me to, so he's constantly on my shoulder going, 'Use your powers, you p-ssy.' It's great. It's really cool.

[Sci Fi Wire]

Creator Tim Kring says the upcoming "Redemption" arc could serve as the end of the show's story, but it doesn't have to.

We've never really posited an ending… [because] it's never been one long serialized story. Each volume has a beginning, middle and end. So we try to wrap things up pretty neatly each time and string a cliffhanger over the break to reward the loyal viewers.

[EW]

Eureka:

Here are some pics from episode 3x18, "What Goes Around." [SpoilerTV]

True Blood:

There's a plan in place for Evan Rachel Wood to return as Sophie the Vampire Queen next season. [EW]

Additional reporting by Alexis Brown.

Superman:

James McTeigue, one of the directors rumored to be in the running to direct the next Super-movie, says if he did handle Superman, he's take him in a totally new direction, one you wouldn't expect. The only other hint he offered was this:

I think it's good that they just had a court case where, basically, if you make another Superman movie, you can't touch Superman growing up-that's part of the story that you can't touch any more. That wouldn't be a bad thing. I think everybody's a bit sick of seeing the origin story.

[MTV]

Iron Man 2:

Here's a new promo pic of Sam Rockwell as Justin Hammer. [Fantasy.FR via FilmShaft]

Thor:

Diora Baird Twittered that she auditioned for a role as a character who's "pretty, but sturdy, with muscle." Which could be any one of a hundred Asgardian maidens, as others have pointed out. [MTV via Comic Book Resources]

Pandorum:

A new poster for this space-horror film hints at rather a lot of blood, and despairing gazes at the ceiling. [ShockTillYouDrop]

Inception:

The teaser trailer for Christopher Nolan's next project is appearing in front of Inglorious Basterds today, but it's not clear when it'll be online. A tipster describes it, saying that it includes footage of Leonardo DiCaprio and other actors — plus a fight scene involving Joseph Gordon-Levitt, in a hallway, that goes all over the walls and ceiling, sort of like The Matrix but different. Also, it includes a shot of DiCaprio's face, and a city scape, and then the words "YOUR MIND IS THE SCENE OF THE CRIME." And at one point, you see a glass of water, and it tilts. [Slashfilm]

Jennifer's Body:

A new promo shot of Megan Fox graces the cover of Sci Fi Now magazine. [Hollywood Gossip]

Surrogates:

Director Jonathan Mostow says the main villain of Robert Venditti's graphic novel, Steeplejack, isn't in the movie version at all: "he character of Steeplejack is not in the movie by name anymore," he says. Instead, there's a new villain, who's "sort of an amalgamation of a couple of things." Adds Mostow:

We tapped into certain themes more deeply in the movie than the comic book did. We put a lot of emphasis on another big theme-which is this idea of human physical perfection. We all want to look great all the time, to an unrealistic extent.

Maybe the new villain has something to do with the desire to look perfect all the time? Because that worked great for Catwoman. [MTV via Comic Book Resources]

Fringe:

In the season premiere, one main character dies, two kiss, and another faces medical uncertainty. (Olivia, I'm guessing, is the medically uncertain one.) Somehow, in spite of that "main character dies" thing, we're not supposed to count Charlie out just yet, because he plays a big role in the episode. But they didn't say anything about Charlie playing a big role after that episode. [TV Guide]

What happens in the first scene of season two? This promo teases but doesn't really answer. [Fringe Television]

Dollhouse:

Here's a new "character image" showing Echo in a rubber corset, waving a gun, with her hair in braids. [SpoilerTV]

Stargate Universe:

A new promo poster spells out what the space explorers' mission is this time around. Bigger version at the link. [EW]

Heroes:

Zachary Quinto hints there may be a new love interest for Sylar in season four — at least, there have been some "percolations" in the first half dozen episodes, but it remains to be seen if any of them take. It takes Sylar a while to figure out that he's really Sylar and not Nathan, and meanwhile, he's also in Matt Parkman's mind. So it's a slow process to get back to the Sylar we know and (possibly) love. And Sylar's involvement with that wacky carnival of mutant freaks is just starting to unfold in episode seven, now filming. [Sci Fi Wire]

And Greg Grunberg has more about that "Sylar is in Matt's mind" thing. Apparently, Matt will be trying to be a good police detective and family man again, but Sylar will be pushing him towards the dark side. Says Grunberg:

The evil part of Sylar got stuck in my subconscious, and he is slowly gaining control over me. I have a feeling that he's going to make Matt do things that he would never, ever do in a million years.

Weird thought: are we going to be seeing a Search For Spock thing here, where Sylar's brain is inside Matt's, while his body is stuck being Nathan? Given that Sylar is Spock it has a certain elegance. [TV Guide]

Also, here's another new promo, all about how our heroes dream about the way things used to be, but life won't cooperate:

Superman/Batman: Public Enemies:

The studio released some cool images of Black Lightning, another superhero who appears in this direct-to-DVD animated movie. And he's voiced by Geordi La Forge himself, LeVar Burton.

The Wolfman:

Here are some new pics from this toothsome movie, plus a plot synopsis:

Inspired by the classic Universal film that launched a legacy of horror, The Wolfman brings the myth of a cursed man back to its iconic origins. Oscar winner Benicio Del Toro stars as Lawrence Talbot, a haunted nobleman lured back to his family estate after his brother vanishes. Reunited with his estranged father (Oscar winner Anthony Hopkins), Talbot sets out to find his brother ... and discovers a horrifying destiny for himself.

Lawrence Talbot's childhood ended the night his mother died. After he left the sleepy Victorian hamlet of Blackmoor, he spent decades recovering and trying to forget. But when his brother's fiancee, Gwen Conliffe (Emily Blunt), tracks him down to help find her missing love, Talbot returns home to join the search. He learns that something with brute strength and insatiable bloodlust has been killing the villagers, and that a suspicious Scotland Yard inspector named Aberline (Hugo Weaving) has come to investigate.

As he pieces together the gory puzzle, he hears of an ancient curse that turns the afflicted into werewolves when the moon is full. Now, if he has any chance at ending the slaughter and protecting the woman he has grown to love, Talbot must destroy the vicious creature in the woods surrounding Blackmoor. But as he hunts for the nightmarish beast, a simple man with a tortured past will uncover a primal side to himself: one he never imagined existed.

[Sci Fi Wire and IGN]

Additional reporting by Alexis Brown.

What you're seeing in blue is the face of a Na'vi people who James Cameron described as giants with eyeballs four times the size of a human eye.

Pandorum, remains a mystery, we're still not sure what happens to the humans on board to make their skin peel off so, but it's creepy.

Pandorum will be out September 18, 2009.

Iron Man 2:

On the heels of last week's images of ScarJo in this sequel, Entertainment Weekly also posted new images of Don Cheadle as James Rhodes, with Sam Rockwell as Justin Hammer sitting next to him. And another image shows Jon Favreau and Robert Downey Jr. watching playback of a scene in a boxing ring. There's also a Gwyneth Paltrow pic at the link. [Slashfilm]

Pandorum:

Cung Le describes his character in this mysterious space-horror film:

His name is Manh. He's an agriculture specialist and he's been awake for a while. The storyline is two crew members wake up and don't know where they are at. Or what their mission is. I've been awake and I know what's going on and I've been surviving on this ship. Over time he's battle-hardened. He knows what to do.

There's a language barrier, since Manh speaks no English, and the other two crew members speak no Vietnamese. And every time you think you've figured out what's going on, there'll be another crazy twist, leading to a "mind-fuck" ending. And the creatures in the film are really scary, especially when they're coming straight at you. [ShockTillYouDrop]

Jennifer's Body:

A couple new promo pics include a virginal-looking Megan Fox. [IGN via ShockTillYouDrop]

New Moon:

More details from the set. Hollywood.com watched the filming of a scene where Volturi leader Aro taunts Edward from the other side of a wall. Aro says it's a delightful surprise that Bella's still alive, and says it makes him hungry. He asks Edward how he can stand being so close to Bella's yummy blood, and Edward says it's not without its difficulties. Responds Aro, "So now you know everything. Fascinating. I'd love to see if you are an exception to my gift as well. Would you do me the honor?" Then he stares at Bella, and nothing happens. "Interesting. I see nothing. I wonder if — Let's see if she's immune to all of us, shall we, Jane?" Cut to Dakota Fanning, who smirks, since she has the power to inflict pain.

And Rachelle Lefevre, who plays the evil vampire Victoria, says the vampire running this time around will look less like running and will be more grounded and "raw." And there's a huge underwater set piece. And this time around Victoria isn't barefoot, she's wearing combat boots symbolizing the fact that she's out on a big mission. And there will be a real-life wolf on set, for one of Bella's dream sequences. [Hollywood.com]

And here's a new promo pic. [L.A. Times]

Caprica:

Ron Moore says there are no plans to have Tricia Helfer appear as an early version of Six, but "you never say never." The ongoing show will be very different from the pilot, as we discover that some of the characters are totally different than we'd thought, and some plot strands go in very different directions than you'd expected. Both Daniel Graystone and Joseph Adama think they've put the events of the pilot behind them, but they'll quickly learn differently, and their paths will cross — sometimes explosively. Also, Zoe will struggle with whether she wants to return to the virtual world, and whether she wants her dad to know she's trapped in the robot — plus whatever the scientists will do to the robot as they try to develop the Cylon race. And we'll see much more of the virtual world, as well as the way in which the 12 Colonies became unified. [Crave Online]

V:

A new review of the pilot reveals a few new details that we didn't include in our own write-up. The situation is set up very quickly — the visitors show up, and then it's "two weeks later" and everyone's accepting them. Also, we learn that the Visitors have been here before, and humans organized a resistance, and bad things happened — involving secret alien traitor Ryan as well as resistance leader Georgie. [Visitorsite]

Fringe:

There's a casting call for episode 2x04, "This Is The Night Mail," written by former Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles scribes Ashley Edward Miller and Zack Stentz. There's Rebecca, a fifty-year-old blonde who never married, but has a full life anyway. And she's psychic, which has been a blessing as well as a curse. She may be a recurring character. Also, there's a ruthless killer named Smith, and a new recurring villain for "multiple episodes" named John Mellor — who's seen at the end of the episode but has no lines. [SpoilerTV]

Chuck:

Someone posted an image of a computer screen, holding a single script page from Chuck season three, episode two, and it actually features the Buy More guys. So, obviously, not too sidelined. It's Morgan talking about Carina, a "Swedish super-model" whom he hooked up a couple of years ago. Now she's back, and he's gonna "make the magic happen again." There's another guy in the picture, but Morgan feels he's still got a shot, since she probably doesn't have feelings for him. Jeff and Lester insinuate themselves into the conversation and ask obnoxious questions. Morgan says Carina is Sweden's "hottest export since Bjorn Borg," and Jeff says "People mistake me for him all the time." "Yes, Jeff, drunken people," Chuck responds. [ChuckTV]

Eureka:

Here are some green-hued promo pics from episode 3x12, "It's Not Easy Being Green." [SpoilerTV]

Warehouse 13:

We already showed you some pictures of Stargate's Joe Flanigan guest-starring in the August 4 episode, "Elements." But now there are more details. Flanigan plays Jeffrey Weaver, a rich guy "whose charm captures Myka's interest, but he finds himself under Pete and Myka's scrutiny when a sculpture on which he bid, vanishes in an impossible heist." And here's the episode's synopsis: "When a sculpture is stolen thanks to a Native American artifact that allowed the thief to walk through the steel walls of a vault, Pete (Eddie McClintock) and Myka (Joanne Kelly) are sent to New York City to investigate. The hunt for the truth eventually leads them to the discovery of a sacred place-and they'll do all they can to protect it." [Gateworld]

FlashForward:

Episode two will be called "White To Play." And actor Shohreh Aghdashloo says she's playing a recurring, but unspecified, role on this show. [SpoilerTV]

Eastwick:

There's also a casting call for episode two of this show, in which we'll meet Dorothy, the mother of Chad (Matt Dallas), the much younger boyfriend of Roxie. She's not thrilled, because her husband had an affair with Roxie years ago. We also meet that husband/father, Bill. And then there's Pastor Tim, who takes over conducting the sermon at Deacon Dunn's church after the Deacon is exposed as a hypocrite. And finally, two townspeople who bid on the lawn mower in Deacon Dunn's church auction. [SpoilerTV]

True Blood:

Bill more or less disappears in the third Sookie Stackhouse book, but don't expect the third season of the television show to follow suit, says Stephen Moyer. "That just gives Alan [Ball] the opportunity to invent something," he says. "I'm confident that however they keep him there, they'll keep Bill's story interesting." He also says the Dallas trip will flesh out Eric's history and details of the vampire world. Towards the end of the season, we'll ascend higher in the hierarchy and meet the monarch of Texas, who's not the ruler of America. "It's kind of an almost feudal system." And there's an upcoming plot twist that you won't believe. [TV Guide via True-Blood.net]

Additional reporting by Alexis Brown.