'Scrubs' shocker: School's in, hospital's out!

Scrubs boss Bill Lawrence said his cancellation-defying comedy would undergo an extreme makeover in its ninth season, and, man, he wasn't kidding. When the show returns next winter, the action will shift from the hospital to the classroom and make med-school professors of John C. McGinley's Dr. Cox and Donald Faison's Turk.

"It'll be a lot like Paper Chase as a comedy," Lawrence tells me. "It's going to be a different show. It'll still be life-and-death stakes, but if the show is just Scrubs again in the hospital with a different person's voiceover, it would be a disaster and people would be mad."

Of course, Sacred Heart won't go away altogether. Although J.D.'s old stomping ground no longer will serve as the show's base of operations, the students will occasionally rotate through its halls -- and bump into many of its familiar faces. In addition to McGinley and Faison, both of whom are expected to be full-time regulars alongside a quartet of newbies (most of them playing students), Scrubs vets Zach Braff, Sarah Chalke, Judy Reyes and Ken Jenkins have agreed to make guest appearances. (Neil Flynn has a costarring role as Patricia Heaton's husband in the new ABC sitcom The Middle, so his name-challenged Janitor will be MIA.)

"Med students in their first three years have to spend anywhere from 10 to 50 percent of their time at a hospital," Lawrence explains. "And that's when you'll see some of the [original cast members]. Continuity-wise, Sacred Heart will still exist with those people still working there."

But Lawrence insists "half the cast, if not 60 percent of it," will be comprised of freshmen, one of which will be more recognizable than the rest. "[ABC] is really after us to hire a big name," he reveals. "So one of them will be fairly famous."

Teen Wolf Remake In The Works. Sigh.

Sometimes it’s difficult to stay positive. Moviehole reports that Warner Brothers is in the early stages of putting together a Teen Wolf remake. They’re going out to writers now, so if you’ve got a comedic take that uses lycanthropy as an allegory for puberty, now’s the time to tell your story to a guy in a suit. Maybe you could argue for casting Jaden Smith, if he hasn’t already committed to be the male lead in an equally unnecessary Teen Witch remake.

I can be patient with remakes; if there’s a good story to tell, then sure, go ahead and do it. But Teen Wolf was a product of the ’80s in the same way that the Jonas Brothers are a product of Satan. You can’t catch the same lighting in a bottle. OK, it was more like a spark of static electricity, but without a budding star along the lines of Michael J Fox, who anchors this movie? Robert Pattinson? Zac Efron? Not a chance.

The original told of a scrawny kid who sucked at basketball and how his fortunes turned around when he realized he was the child of a werewolf. Cue forty minutes of Michael J Fox looking like the long-lost fourth member of ZZ Top, slam dunking the ball and scoring chicks with his wolfitude. It abrely played in 1985 and didn’t play at all in 1987 when Jason Bateman got to play Fox’s cousin in Teen Wolf Too. Let it die. Better yet, someone cast a couple of silver bullets now, before it is too late.

Angels & Airwaves' Prog Rock 'Love' Album, Film To Be Released For Free

Even as he prepares for blink-182's summer reunion tour, guitarist Tom DeLonge is deeply ensconced in the next project by his other band, Angels & Airwaves -- an album and film project called "Love" that should be out before the end of the year.

DeLonge tells Billboard.com that "Love" -- which will be released for free thanks to corporate underwriting -- is "the biggest release of my life, the pinnacle of my creativity" and likens it to Pink Floyd's "The Wall" in the scope of its ambition. "It's super conceptual and highbrow in many ways, very artistic, very Stanley Kubrick," he says. "But it's not a rock opera. It's a very modern version of what could happen when you blend the film industry and the music industry together in a very, very arty, kind of cool way with professionals involved all along the path."

DeLonge says the "Love" movie -- which began life as a documentary about Angels & Airwaves recording its 2006 debut album, "We Don't Need to Whisper," and expanded from there -- "blurs the line between full-fledged live action and documentary with these epic kind of...meditative sequences where the sound design and the music and the picture all bend together to create a sonic experience as much as a visual one." The script, meanwhile, "tells a story of human life and destiny but at the same time really makes usual moments of life extraordinary. It's a circular narrative in many ways, where it kind of sums up the human race in a time capsule."

The music of "Love," DeLonge says, will have a prog-rock kind of flavor. "It's like blending Radiohead and U2 together with these kind of Pink Floyd movements," he explains. "Things happen unpredictably and take you to these epic soundscapes. It's very much in the spirit of Angels & Airwaves, but it sounds way, way more thought-out and way more ambitious."

DeLonge says the group is still figuring out mechanisms for delivering the film and album and are also planning a tour to support the project. All of this, of course, is going on while he rehearses for the blink-182 tour, which begins July 23 in Las Vegas.

"It's gonna be a really busy time -- It's fucking crazy, actually. I don't know what I'm doing," DeLonge says with a laugh. "But I'm totally down and excited to figure out how to make it all happen, 'cause in my life both of these (bands) can be a very necessary thing."

LaBeouf Says Next Indiana Jones Moving Forward

In an interview with BBC News, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen star Shia LaBeouf says that it looks like a follow-up to Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is moving forward.

"Steven [Spielberg] just said that he cracked the story on it before I left and I think they're gearing that up," LaBeouf said. Last summer's blockbuster was made for about $185 million and earned $786.6 million worldwide. It was the second-highest earner of 2008, behind just The Dark Knight.

LaBeouf also briefly talked about the Wall Street sequel that teams him with director Oliver Stone and Michael Douglas. "'Money Never Sleeps' is, I think, the official title now," he said.

Fox Announces Fall Premiere Dates

Fox has announced its fall premiere dates for the 2009-2010 season. Here is the full press release:

FOX has set the fall premiere dates for its new and returning series. The 2009-2010 season will kick off Wednesday, Sept. 16 with the sixth season premiere of SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT), followed by the highly anticipated series premiere of GLEE (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT), the biting new comedy for the underdog in all of us that features a soundtrack of hit songs from past and present. On Thursday, Sept. 17, fan favorite BONES (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT) and the second thrilling season of FRINGE (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) return. BROTHERS, the new family comedy starring Michael Strahan, premieres Friday, Sept. 18 (8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT) followed by the return of ‘TIL DEATH (8:30-9:00 PM ET/PT) and the second season premiere of Joss Whedon’s DOLLHOUSE (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT).

HOUSE jumpstarts its sixth season with a special two-hour premiere Monday, Sept. 21 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT). Sunday, Sept. 27 marks the return of ANIMATION DOMINATION with the amazing 20th season premiere of THE SIMPSONS (8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT), the series premiere of THE CLEVELAND SHOW (8:30-9:00 PM ET/PT) and the season premieres of FAMILY GUY (9:00-9:30 PM ET/PT) and AMERICAN DAD (9:30-10:00 PM ET/PT). The second season of hit drama LIE TO ME will premiere Monday, Sept. 28 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT). SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE will air two nights per week when the original dance competition has its time period premiere Tuesday, Sept. 29 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT), and later expands to two-hour performance shows beginning Tuesday, Oct. 27 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT). In addition, new Saturday late-night entry THE WANDA SYKES SHOW (working title) debuts Saturday, Nov. 7 (11:00 PM-Midnight ET/PT).

Premieres of new series and returning favorites are listed below in chronological order.

Saturday, Sept. 12
8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT COPS (Season Premiere)
8:30-9:00 PM ET/PT COPS (All-New Episode)
9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT AMERICA’S MOST WANTED (Season Premiere)

Wednesday, Sept. 16
8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE (Season Premiere)
9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT GLEE (Series Premiere)

Thursday, Sept. 17
8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT BONES (Season Premiere)
9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT FRINGE (Season Premiere)

Friday, Sept. 18
8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT BROTHERS (Series Premiere)
8:30-9:00 PM ET/PT ‘TIL DEATH (Season Premiere)
9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT DOLLHOUSE (Season Premiere)

Monday, Sept. 21
8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT HOUSE (2-Hour Season Premiere)

Sunday, Sept. 27
8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT THE SIMPSONS (Season Premiere)
8:30-9:00 PM ET/PT THE CLEVELAND SHOW (Series Premiere)
9:00-9:30 PM ET/PT FAMILY GUY (Season Premiere)
9:30-10:00 PM ET/PT AMERICAN DAD (Season Premiere)

Monday, Sept. 28
8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT HOUSE (All-New Episode)
9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT LIE TO ME (Season Premiere)

Tuesday, Sept. 29
8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT HELL’S KITCHEN (All-New Episode)
9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE (Time Period Premiere)

Tuesday, Oct. 27
8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE (Time Period Premiere)

Saturday, Nov. 7
11:00 PM-Midnight ET/PT THE WANDA SYKES SHOW (wt) (Series Premiere)

What's Up with the Robocop Reboot?

Studio talks status of Darren Aronofsky's redux.

It was last summer that we first heard about The Wrestler director Darren Aronofsky's interest in remaking the classic cyborg flick Robocop. But since that time, little else has been said about the project. Now, studio MGM has given an update on the reboot -- and they say it is still on track to protect and serve.

io9 got in touch with MGM the other day and a studio spokesman revealed that while the film is happening, the previous 2010 release date is no longer accurate.

"The rep said that the studio had told distributors at an event a couple weeks ago to expect the movie in 2011," reports the site. "He said director Darren Aronofsky ... and screenwriter David Self (Road to Perdition) were still working on the script, and that no casting had been completed."

Additionally, the new Dynamite Comics Robocop title that was just announced (and which spurred io9 to look into the movie in the first place) will have nothing to do with the film. Big surprise there.

This isn't the first time Aronofsky has been involved in a genre project that was delayed -- and seemingly in danger of stalling (remember, Batman fans?), so one has to wonder whether or not Robocop will ever actually happen. Still, if you've got to remake that movie, there could be no one better than Aronofsky to do it.

Fuller Talks F13 Sequel

IGN chats with the producer about the next Jason movie.

IGN recently took a nice, relaxing trip to Elm Street to meet with Freddy Krueger himself -- more on that in the coming weeks -- and in the process was able to chat up Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th producers Brad Fuller and Andrew Form to discuss the future of the Friday franchise.

"There's a nice date coming up next summer that we hope everyone can see another Friday the 13th on," said Form."

When pressed on the status of a script, Fuller replied, "Yes, with Shannon Swift. So, for 2009, I think that it's this and the sequel to Friday the 13th and then beyond that, I don't know."

Then came the question: "Is it possible that we may see a Friday film in the snow?"

Fuller smiled, turning, asking, "How'd you hear that?" and after a moment responded, "You know, we were having a blast on the set; we want to have fun. We also want to bring things [audiences] haven't seen before and one of the things that they haven't seen before is Jason in the snow."

When asked about the recent trend toward 3-D, and the singular 3-D Friday film in the franchise, Fuller was a little less confident. "It's certainly been talked about. The financial ramifications of doing a movie in 3-D on a budget that size, because it's not like they're going to say to us, 'Yeah, well, why don't you make a sequel and here's twice as much money.' It doesn't go that way. Our movies are virtually all the exact same budget and I guarantee you if we make that movie it'll be the same budget as the original. And we'll say, 'Hey, do you want to do it in 3-D?' And they'll say, 'Yeah, let's talk about it.' And then when they see that it's six or seven million dollars more they'll probably opt out unless something that we are not expecting happens. I suspect it will not be in 3-D, although we'd love to make a 3-D horror movie. We'd love to do it; they just don't throw that money our way."

Fuller wrapped the conversation with a note of caution, saying, "Here's the other problem, we don't have a release date, we don't have a green-lit movie. Let me be very clear… Friday the 13th Part 2, we don't have a script, it's not green-lit, and we have no idea what's going to happen. If it gets green-lit and we're able to mount it in a reasonable amount of time, we would hope the movie would open on August 13, 2010."

And it will take place in the snow?

Fuller laughed, shaking his head.

"No, I can tell you this, the movie itself will not take place in the snow. I don't want to sit in Winnipeg with him for two months in the snow. We did that once, I don't want to do it again."

Super Mario Galaxy 2 Won't Have A Deep Narrative

Miyamoto says he wants to keep his Mario games light on storytelling.

Fans expecting an epic, deep narrative from Nintendo's recently announced Super Mario Galaxy 2 might be disappointed to know the game won't focus on such heavy storytelling.

Speaking to Wired, legendary game creator Shigeru Miyamoto says he likes to keep his Mario games light on story and focus on gameplay, while leaving storytelling to the Zelda franchise.

"I'd like to go with as little story as possible," Miyamoto said. "I've always felt that the Mario games themselves aren't particularly suited to having a very heavy story."

So why can't fans see their favorite Italian plumber star in a game with a serious, Kojima-esque plot?

"I just feel that the Mario games are something that should be a much more bright and active experience," Miyamoto said. "With the Mario games, you don't need to have such a complicated setting where you have these particular characters with complicated backstories that can weigh down the bright and fun feel of the game."

Miyamoto would continue on saying "I feel that even if all that you have is that the villain is just simply a villain and you fight them, and you throw them down, and you find out, well, that wasn't such a bad villain after all, that's enough story for ultimately what is just about a very fun experience."

Writer reveals Green Lantern movie's progress and a few hints

Screenwriter Marc Guggenheim told SCI FI Wire exclusively that he has just completed a new draft of a proposed live-action Green Lantern movie, based on a script by him, Michael Green and Greg Berlanti.

"In fact, I'm ... delivering another draft today," Guggenheim (TV's Flash Forward) said in an exclusive interview on Friday. "So it continues to move forward."

The film is expected to be directed by Martin Campbell, who stepped in for Berlanti, and is slated to begin production at Australia's Fox Studios in Sydney this summer for a release on June 17, 2011.
Guggenheim confirmed that his script will focus on Hal Jordan, based on the Silver Age DC Comics incarnation of the superhero, and how he became a member of the Green Lantern Corps.

Beyond that, Guggenheim remained tight-lipped. "You know I really can't [say anything]," he said. "I've sworn a blood oath of secrecy in relation to the project. But, you know, the thing I can tell you is that it is a very loving and respectful approach."

Guggenheim added: "The goal here is to do the best cinematic representation of the Green Lantern character. You know, there's no desire on anyone's part to completely change the character and just call this other character Green Lantern and try to ... draft off the name recognition. This is all about 'How do we bring the best version of this character to the silver screen?'"

As for the movie's source material, Guggenheim said, "We've drawn heavily from ... a lot of different sources in terms of the comic books. ... The character ... is several decades old, so ... we've really had an incredible amount of source material to cherry-pick from."

As for casting of the iconic character, rumors have centered on such of-the-moment actors as The Hangover's Bradley Cooper and Star Trek's Chris Pine. None are true, Guggenheim said.

"They're all false," he said. "I mean, they're all false insofar as we haven't chosen anyone yet. They're still in the negotiations, you know? There's a lot of names being talked about, and there's a lot of people being met, and a lot of ... actors reading the script. But if you read online [that] Pauly Shore's been cast as Hal Jordan, I can guarantee you we have not cast anyone." That last rumor was a joke. We think.

As for the process, Guggenheim said, "It remains a lot of fun. It's such a great character, it's been a really great project so far."

Weekly Ratings: 6/7 – 6/11

Ratings for The Bachelorette, The Closer and More

Some recent ratings highlights:

• With I'm a Celebrity waning, The Bachelorette surged 13 percent week-to-week on Monday night to average 7.2 million total viewers over its two-hour run. Here Come the Newlyweds (4.77 mil), however, dipped 5 percent.

• The Closer returned to an audience of 7.14 million, slipping just 8 percent from its Season 4 opener. Raising the Bar in turn kicked off its sophomore run with an audience nearly double (3.6 mil) its Season 1 finale.

• I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here! delivered 5.19 mil, which was on par with its most recent outing but down 18 percent from its premiere a week ago. In fact, the reality series placed fourth during the 8 o'clock hour, then floated up to third at 9, squeaking past a Bones repeat.

• Sunday's Season 5 launch of The Next Food Network Star emerged as the-watched series premiere in Food Network history, serving 2.2 million viewers (a 16 percent increase over the competition's previous opener).

Ratings: One Week Into Battle, Dave Tops Conan's Tonight Show

On their seventh day of head-to-head competition, David Letterman's Late Show squeaked past Conan O'Brien's Tonight Show, though by a slim margin — one half of a rating point.

Still, Letterman's latest performance represents a 13 percent week-to-week gain, while Conan has dropped 42 percent since his Tonight Show debut.

The Tonight Show's numbers, in fact, have declined every night since O'Brien seized the reins on June 1. To be fair, on Tuesday night he was hampered by soft lead-in numbers courtesy of NBC's NHL coverage.

Letterman's guests for Tuesday were Julia Roberts (who told her host, "You are so much funnier than other people who talk at this time of the evening") and the Black Eyed Peas, while O'Brien welcomed Eddie Murphy, The Office's Angela Kinsey and Bonnie Raitt.

The last time Dave topped The Tonight Show was on consecutive nights in mid-October 2008, with guests John McCain and Tina Fey.

Elsewhere on Tuesday:

• ABC's coverage of the NBA Finals averaged 9.6 mil, while NBC's NHL Stanley Cup broadcast scored 5.45 mil. Both sporting events got beat by CBS repeats of NCIS and The Mentalist (the non-jock in me must point out).

• Fox's Mental — featuring a dialogue-free guest-star turn by David Carradine — delivered 4.83 million total viewers, dipping 210K.

Wednesday Ratings: Is I'm a Celebrity Suffering a Lack of Speidi Bite?

• For the first time in three weeks of head-to-head competition, Fox's So You Think You Can Dance toppled ABC's (special double dose of) Wipeout, 8.7 million total viewers to 8.42 mil.

• I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here!, now sans drama magnets Spencer and Heidi Pratt, welcomed 4.6 mil to the jungle. That's a drop of 600K from the survivors' last outing, and the show is now off a full 28 percent from its season premiere.

• At 10 pm/ET, the penultimate episode of ABC's The Unusuals drew 4.67 million viewers, placing third behind CSI: NY and Law & Order repeats.

Thursday Ratings: Think You Can Dancers Get Hotter

8 pm/ET
ABC's coverage of the NBA Finals, led by a Jimmy Kimmel special, was the night's most-watched fare, averaging 11.3 million total viewers across primetime. I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, down 100K week-to-week, placed third behind a Bones repeat.

9 pm
Fox's So You Think You Can Dance results show (8.7 million viewers) gained 6 percent week-to-week to edge out a CSI repeat and claim second. Pitted against NBA overtime on the West Coast, Burn Notice (5.2 mil) was down from its season premiere.

10 pm
Episode 3 of NBC's The Listener (4.4 mil) plunged 17 percent, placing a distant third behind basketball and a Mentalist repeat. USA Network's Royal Pains matched its premiere audience of 5.6 million and became the cabler's first scripted series to grow its demos in Week 2.

The Hangover Lasts Another Weekend

The ComingSoon.net Box Office Report has been updated with studio estimates for the weekend.

Warner Bros. Pictures' R-rated The Hangover topped the box office for a second straight weekend with an estimated $33.4 million, a dip of just 25.7% in ticket sales from last weekend. The Todd Phillips-directed comedy, starring Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Heather Graham and Justin Bartha, has earned $105.4 million and took only 10 days to pass the $100 million mark, a new record for an R-rated movie. The old mark of 11 days was set last year by Sex and the City. The film cost about $35 million to make and is expected to reach the $200 million mark.

Disney•Pixar's animated-adventure Up remained in second place with another $30.5 million in its third weekend to push its total to $187.2 million.

Columbia Pictures' new action-thriller The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 opened in third with $25 million from 3,074 theaters and averaged $8,133 per location. Made for a reported $100 million, the film was directed by Tony Scott and stars Denzel Washington, John Travolta, John Turturro, Luis Guzman, Michael Rispoli and James Gandolfini.

20th Century Fox's Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian kept its fourth spot, taking in $9.6 million in its fourth weekend. The Shawn Levy-directed sequel, starring Ben Stiller, was made for $150 million and has earned $143.4 million after four weeks. Internationally, the film has brought in $176.2 million and has earned $319.6 million worldwide.

Universal Pictures' Land of the Lost, starring Will Ferrell, Danny R. McBride, Anna Friel and Jorma Taccone, rounded out the top five with $9.2 million. The $100-million budgeted big screen adaptation has collected $34.98 million in two weeks.

Paramount Pictures' Imagine That bombed out of the gate in sixth place with just $5.7 million from 3,008 theaters, an average of $1,895 per site. The Karey Kirkpatrick-directed comedy stars Eddie Murphy, Thomas Haden Church, Yara Shahidi, Nicole Ari Parker, Ronny Cox and Martin Sheen.

J.J. Abrams' Star Trek continued to do well in its sixth weekend, bringing in another $5.6 million to take its total to $232 million. Overseas, the film has collected $119 million for a worldwide sum of $351 million. The movie was made for $150 million.

Warner Bros.' Terminator Salvation dropped two spots to eighth and added $4.7 million in its fourth weekend for a total of $113.8. The $200 million film topped the box office internationally with $46.1 million and has reached $165.5 million for a worldwide total of $279.3 million.

In ninth, Sony's Angels & Demons earned an additional $4.2 million in its fifth weekend. Domestically the film has earned $123.3 million, but internationally it has already reached $315 million for a worldwide total of $438.3 million.

Bekmambetov Prepares Wanted 2

Russian newsite RIA Novosti had a chance to talk to that country's biggest filmmaker Timur Bekmabetov recently, and he told them that he has started preparations on making the sequel to the 2008 summer hit Wanted and that they've found a way to bring Angelina Jolie's character back.

Talking about the tentatively-titled Wanted 2, Bekmambetov told them, "In July we will start preparation for the film. I think in the late autumn or winter shooting will be performed. The shooting will take place in America, India and Russia."

Besides Jolie's character, Fox, Bekmambetov hopes to bring back the character played by Kostya Khabenskiy, who also starred in Bekmambetov's breakout films Night Watch and Day Watch, as well as introducing new characters. The sequel reportedly has a $150 million budget, which is the biggest Hollywood production made by a Russian filmmaker, and Bekmambetov will once again have Russian crew involved in all aspects of production.

(Thanks to the English language site Russian InfoCentre for the translation.)