Entertainment

All aboard! It’s time to set sail on The Odyssey, where a new doctor has just hit the deck.

Joshua Jackson stars in the new ABC procedural Doctor Odyssey, where he plays Max Bankman, the on-board doctor of a luxury cruise ship. The show is the brainchild of TV powerhouse Ryan Murphy, who Jackson said he’s been trying to work with for years.

“Truthfully, we’ve tried to work together several times over the years,” Jackson told ABC Audio during the Disney Upfront event back in May. “I have had the desire to work on one of his shows for a long time, and this one came around at the exact right moment. I read it and that was that.”

Jackson said he categorizes Murphy shows into two different boxes.

“I guess you can break the Ryan Murphy universe into the outrageous side and the scary side,” Jackson said. “We are very much on the outrageous side. So, it is a show built for fun to be enjoyed. It’s gonna look beautiful.”

According to Jackson, that kind of energy made it easy to have a good time on set.

“I mean, that kind of dialogue, those kind of scenarios. You have to be kind of a curmudgeon not to enjoy yourself,” he said.

Doctor Odyssey premieres Thursday on ABC. It streams on Hulu the next day.

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Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs star Tim Roth has been tapped for a role in Netflix’s Peaky Blinders movie, joining Cillian Murphy, Rebecca Ferguson and Barry Keoghan, according to Deadline. Murphy will return as gangster Tommy Shelby, the role he played for six seasons between 2013 and 2022. Plot details are being kept under wraps, as are Roth, Ferguson and Keoghan’s roles. However, series creator Steven Knight describes the film as “an explosive chapter in the Peaky Blinders story. No holds barred. Full-on Peaky Blinders at war” …

Ben Stiller will produce and star in a pickleball-themed comedy called The Dink, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The film centers around a washed-up tennis pro, played by New Girl‘s Jake Johnson, who tries to “save a club in crisis and win his father’s respect” by doing the one thing he swore he’d never do — play pickleball …

Deadline reports Colin From Accounts’ creator and star Harriet Dyer will star opposite Tim Meadows in the CBS workplace comedy DMV. Dyer and Meadows will play Department of Motor Vehicles workers who rely on each other to do the thankless job of serving customers who are annoyed before they even walk in the door, per the outlet … 

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Paramount+ is once again going to the dogs with season 2 of the comedy series Colin from Accounts. All eight episodes of the new season of the hit Australian comedy are now available to stream.

The show was created by and stars husband and wife team Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall, and Patrick tells ABC Audio that he felt a little bit of pressure to recapture the magic of the first season.

“You know, people have a stake in the show, a sense of ownership of what the show should be,” he says. “But once we sat down to start writing it, it felt very much like ducks to water again. And we were able to just write stuff that thrilled us and made us laugh again.”

Every episode features at least a little bit of conflict between the couple at the center of it all, and Dyer thinks that’s what makes it interesting, noting “stuff going wrong is funny.”

Besides, she adds, “Happy is kind of boring.”

And even though the show is named after the dog who brought their characters together, Dryer says it’s not a dog show.

“This is the thing — it can get pretty doggy and madcap pretty quickly. Like, if you start to do super, super doggy storylines, suddenly we’re in, like, a family movie that comes out on Christmas Day. … We’ve got to try to not be that,” she says.

Brammall says he and his wife have an equal part in writing the show, but they’re not “hunched over one laptop trying to write a scene.”

“We’d never get anything done,” he says.

“We’d need a chiropractor, as well,” Dryer chimes in.

“And a divorce lawyer,” jokes Brammall.

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As reported, Hacks star Jean Smart is making her Saturday Night Live debut Sept. 28. However, a new video is more about the show kicking off its 50th season than her hosting.

“Here we are. SNL season 50,” Smart says in voice-over as she walks through the hallways behind the scenes — and a montage of classic clips from the show roll.

From George Carlin kicking things off on the very first show to Steve Martin‘s “Well Excuuuuuse Me!” to Eddie Murphy‘s Mr. Robinson’s Neighborhood, there’s a whole lot of looking back. 

Too much, in fact, Smart says, as her voice-over goes from nostalgic to annoyed. “You’re not going to show a clip from every season—” before being cut off by more clips. 

“You cut me off, and that’s kind of rude,” she tries to narrate, but is interrupted again by more segments.

Eventually, her voice-over protests give way to her just yelling from the stage, “Knock it off already, alright?”

She regains her composure, but just as she starts to talk about her first hosting appearance, she’s cut off by clips again. “Oh come on!” she screams off camera.

Jelly Roll will be the first musical guest of the 50th season. 

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Zack Snyder has made his share of “geek” films, from Man of Steel to The Watchmen to his latest Rebel Moon films. And now in a conversation posted by Netflix Geeked, he and another nerdcore superstar, Joe Manganiello, share their respective nerdiest treasures. 

“The nerdiest thing I own is … the life-size Han Solo in carbon freeze,” Snyder began, earning an envious “Ooh” from the Magic Mike star. 

Snyder continues, “I did a TV commercial with Harrison Ford, and I remember … he was like, ‘You know, I’m glad you’re just not one of those weirdo dorks, you know?'”

“And I was like, ‘Yeah! Me? Nah, of course not,'” earning a laugh from Manganiello. “Yeah, me? I don’t have you frozen in carbonite in my living room,” Joe added. 

Zack said he had to “come clean” to the Star Wars star, admitting that yes, he is one of those dorks, and yes, he did have Ford’s likeness entombed as his alter ego was at the end of The Empire Strikes Back. 

“And he was like, ‘That’s really disappointing,'” the director recalled.

For his part, Joe said, “Apart from all the things for the Friday night D&D games” — he hosts a weekly Dungeon & Dragons get-together for his famous friends — “the coolest thing that would appeal to nerds that I have is the Deathstroke helmet from the Justice League end credits scene.” 

Snyder, Justice League‘s original director, nodded but added, “That’s not even nerdy, that’s just cool.” 

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

It’s time for a new school year on Abbott Elementary.

The trailer for the Emmy-winning ABC sitcom’s fourth season, premiering Oct. 9, debuted online Wednesday and is full of laughs as Janine (Quinta Brunson), Barbara (Sheryl Lee Ralph), Gregory (Tyler James Williams), Melissa (Lisa Ann Walter), Jacob (Chris Perfetti), Ava (Janelle James) and Mr. Johnson (William Stanford Davis) do their best to deal with a variety of issues.

“We want books. We want paper towels in the class,” Ava says mockingly. “I bet y’all want raises, too.”

“I like money,” Melissa replies, while Barbara notes, “I’m still waiting on the paper towels.”

Janine laments that after asking the district for more money for after-school programs they “gave us $50 for class pets instead,” and she is promptly bitten on the finger by a guinea pig.

Barbara, on the other hand, seems pleased with her fishbowl, telling it, “We are going to get along swimmingly.”

Elsewhere in the sneak peek, Jacob tells everyone that a kid in his class has a case of ringworm, prompting an extreme response from the staff, including Mr. Johnson, who tells him, “I love you like a son … but I will beat you down” if he doesn’t stay quarantined.

“Cancel classes,” Gregory proclaims. “Burn Abbott down!”

Abbott Elementary season 4 premieres Oct. 9 on ABC. 

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Los Angeles Police Department sources tell ABC News that they’re investigating a possible “swatting incident” at the home of The Morning Show star and producer Jennifer Aniston on Sept. 20.

Unlike so many other such incidents that have made headlines in the past few years, this one was relatively tame: An unknown person called the cops to perform a welfare check on the former Friends star’s Los Angeles home, but didn’t mention her by name, according to TMZ, which broke the news. 

When the police arrived, they were quickly informed that the call must have been a prank. The gossip site said cops made note of Aniston’s address and would call security first before dispatching units if another call came in about the same residence. 

Swatting has become a common prank against celebrity homes, schools and other locations; in some cases, the calls say there is an active shooter situation inside, prompting more extreme police responses than was used in this case.

While the case at Aniston’s home was quickly closed, the investigation is ongoing as to whom placed the call. 

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Ryan Reynolds posted to social media a heads-up that his blockbuster Deadpool & Wolverine is coming to HD digital to rent or own on Oct. 1.

It will be released on Blu-ray and HD DVD on Oct. 22. 

“Enjoy @thehughjackman’s abs from the comfort and privacy of your home,” Ryan jabbed at his buddy Hugh Jackman, whose shirt is conveniently blown off at the climax of the movie. 

The advert for the digital release teases “loads of extras,” including making-of clips and deleted scenes, one of which evidently centers on Wolverine’s reaction to the heretofore unseen oversized bulge sported by Nicepool — one of Ryan’s variants.

“Hey cowboy: My eyes are up here,” he gently admonishes the razor-clawed hero. “I know it’s tempting,” he smiles. “I look at it myself sometimes.”

Marvel Studios’ Deadpool & Wolverine made more than $1.3 billion worldwide since its release on July 26. 

Marvel Studios is owned by Disney, the parent company of ABC News. 

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Shailene Woodley is opening up about her plans to play Janis Joplin on the big screen.

The actress’s plans to produce and star in a biopic about Joplin were announced in early September. During an appearance on Live with Kelly and Mark Wednesday, she discussed how important it is to her to get things right. 

“It’s been over six years of putting it together,” she said of the film. “To me, it’s important to do these things with a lot of integrity and a lot of care. Janis is someone I just have always deeply respected and admired, like the spirit in her, and the soul she was on this planet and kind of the light that she was on this planet.”

She added, “It’s been a really fun journey getting to know her better through the process of finding all the creative elements.”

As for whether she can tackle the singing needed for the film, Shailene shared, “I’m not like a trained singer, but … I can sing in my shower. It turns out I can also sing outside of the shower, which I didn’t really know until I started working on the Janis project.”

She says she’s been working with hit songwriter Linda Perry getting ready for the film, noting, “She’s really encouraged me and helped me find my center in my own voice, which is incredible.”

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Julia Roberts was “so moved” by the late Lisa Marie Presley‘s memoir that she’s lending her voice to the star in an audiobook version of From Here to the Great Unknown. 

Lisa Marie’s actress daughter, Riley Keough, will also co-narrate the memoir, People is reporting.

Presley died in January 2023 of a small bowel obstruction. She was 54.

In a statement to the magazine, Riley said, “I’m so thrilled to have Julia be a part of this and read the voice of my mother. I couldn’t think of anyone more perfect to help share her story with the world.”

People says Presley had previously asked Riley for assistance with the work, which explores her growing up as the only child of Elvis and Priscilla Presley, as well as “her romantic relationships, motherhood and becoming a grandmother.”

Also addressed are Lisa Marie’s grief over losing her famous father, her own “struggles with addiction and the loss of her son Benjamin, Riley’s brother, who died by suicide in 2020.”

Riley’s father, Danny Keough, helped finish the book using voice recordings Lisa Marie left for her daughter, People says. 

In a statement to the magazine, Roberts said, “I was so moved by Lisa Marie’s incredible memoir. It was a real privilege to give voice to her wild and beautiful life and I deeply appreciate Riley entrusting me with her mother’s story.” 

For her part, Riley expressed of her mother, “What … I hope I’ve done in finishing it for her, is to go beneath the magazine headline idea of her and … turn her into a three-dimensional human being: the best mother, a wild child, a fierce friend, an underrated artist, frank, funny, traumatized, joyous, grieving, everything that she was throughout her remarkable life.” 

The audiobook debuts on Oct. 8.

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