News

A new adaptation of Georges Simenon’s novels, “Maigret”, is heading to Masterpiece Mystery on PBS, with production underway in Budapest. The series will feature a contemporary take on the iconic Parisian Chief Inspector Jules Maigret, played by Benjamin Wainwright. The show is produced by Playground, with Colin Callender and David Stern serving as executive producers. […]

New ‘Maigret’ Adaptation Heading to Masterpiece Mystery...

A new iteration of one of the most beloved detectives in fiction is coming to PBS.

The public broadcaster has ordered Maigret, a series based on Georges Simenon’s novels about Jules Maigret, a chief inspector for the Paris police. Production on the series, which stars Benjamin Wainwright as the title character, has begun in Budapest; it will air under PBS’ Masterpiece Mystery! banner.

Simenon published more than 100 novels and short stories about Maigret, selling more books than any other detective series aside from Sherlock Holmes. The new Maigret series, produced by Playground (Wolf Hall, All Creatures Great and Small), is set in the present and will position the character as an unconventional young detective with something to prove, a rising star in the Police Judiciaire who is relentless in his investigations and has both an uncanny ability to get under the skin of the criminals he is chasing and...

Miss Marple has been portrayed by a variety of actresses from all over the world, ranging from the most obscure to the most acclaimed, each bringing their own unique style to the character. Julia McKenzie, a British actress, played Miss Marple in the series Marple, bringing a softer and self-deprecating side to the character. She is known for her fantastic performances in chapters like They Do it With Mirrors and Murder is Easy. Margaret Rutherford, who first played Miss Marple in The Mirror Crack'd Side to Side, set the standard for future actresses with her comedic and quirky portrayal of the character. Her performance was imitated for years and she became the most definitive and iconic Miss Marple actress.

Author Agatha Christie's Miss Marple is one of the most iconic and celebrated literary sleuths of all time, and there have been several Miss Marple actresses who have brought the character to life.

Season 2 of Magpie Murders – titled Moonflower Murders – is almost here!

If you need a refresher, Magpie Murders, which is currently re-airing its first season on PBS Masterpiece over the next few weeks, has a second season coming. Season 2 has been dubbed “Moonflower Murders” and will see many of the same cast members from the first iteration of the series.

The Masterpiece Mystery! series will premiere on Sunday, September 15, 2024.

Keep reading to see which season 1 cast members are returning for season 2…...

The vicars of Grantchester always know how to make a first impression.

On the June 30 episode of the long-running PBS Masterpiece Mystery series, the charming Rev. Alphy Kotteram (played by series newcomer Rishi Nair) drove into town in a head-turning red convertible. Spying him trying to enter the locked vicarage in street clothes, Mrs. C reported a “swarthy gentleman” to Geordie, who interrupted the detective’s pints (and reluctant poetry reading) with Leonard to investigate.

More from TVLine<em>Grantchester</em> Renewed for Season 10, Ahead of Season 9’s Big Vicar SwitchTVLine Items: New<em> Forsyte Saga</em> Series, Dwayne Johnson’s WCW Docu and...

Ji.hlava Documentary Film Festival has revealed to Variety the projects that the participants of its 2023 Emerging Producers program are working on. The producers were asked to deliver an elevator pitch for their projects.

Every year since 2010, the festival has selected 18 up-and-coming producers of documentary films (17 European and one representing a non-European guest country), which are then provided with educational, networking and promotional support.

Here’s what they submitted:

“Dreams at Sunset”

Producers: Genovéva Petrovits, Kristóf Sólyom, Kino Alfa (Hungary)

Director: Ibolya Simó

Genre: Creative documentary

Synopsis: Procrastination is a basic human trait. Often we fail to do exactly what we want because we’re afraid we won’t succeed. Transylvania’s impoverished villages are largely populated by the elderly who have spent their entire lives in manual, agricultural and farm work. With the help of a social worker, motivated by only good intentions, they will be brought out of their comfort zone.

It’s almost summer, and you know that means on PBS: more Grantchester! The mystery series will return with its eighth season premiering on Sunday, July 9 at 9/8c, as part of Masterpiece Mystery! It will all lead up to the final two episodes of the season airing on Sunday, August 6 (starting at 9/8c). And while things are going great when it begins, it sounds like things are going to take a turn. In Season 8, Will (Tom Brittney) and Bonnie (Charlotte Ritchie) are happily married — and the logline for Episode 6 reveals she’s going to give birth, but he’ll be Mia — “but fate introduces a stunning development that will rock [his] life and shifts everything in Grantchester,” PBS teases. Also coming up, Geordie (Robson Green) and Cathy (Kacey Ainsworth) are content, but will they stay that way after being confronted with surprising announcements from work? Also of note revealed in...

The cases aren’t cold, but the climate sure is in Annika. Nicola Walker’s latest Masterpiece Mystery! casts the Unforgotten alum as Annika Strandhed, new chief of Glasgow, Scotland’s Marine Homicide Unit. Smart and skilled, she can pilot a boat and break the fourth wall to share. “You are her confidant,” Walker says. “She’s not speaking to you just for effect. She’s talking to you because that’s how she works out her life.” What’s to work out? Besides being the single mom of a rebellious teen (Silvie Furneaux), she supervises a colleague (Jamie Sives) irked about being passed over for her position, as well as two junior investigators (Katie Leung and Ukweli Roach). Also helping the detective inspector solve murders: literature and folklore. In the first of six episodes, a man who was harpooned calls to mind Moby-Dick’s theme of obsession. Turning to the camera,...

Enjoy the Dirty Dancing–inspired holiday that vicar Will Davenport (Tom Brittney), Detective Inspector Geordie Keating (Robson Green), and the gang go on in the Grantchester premiere, because the fun of couples “having a snooze” in their cabins (wink-wink) and Will canoodling by the water won’t last long. Two storylines take Season 6 of the Masterpiece Mystery! to “dark places,” says creator Daisy Coulam, beginning when gay curate Leonard Finch’s (Al Weaver) loving private life — a crime in 1958 England — is exposed. (Credit: Colin Hutton (C) Kudos/ITV/Masterpiece/PBS) “Will and Geordie see somebody suffer because the law is not always just,” Coulam says, adding that the scandal impacts every character. “But there is some hope at the end.” The second half of the eight-episode season doubles down on that theme — the cost of facing the truth — with World War II prisoner of war Geordie confronting the painful past he’s suppressed.

Masterpiece Mystery’s latest offering, Miss Scarlet and the Duke, gives viewers a taste of the darker side of Victorian London and a bold woman detective to root for. The show produced by A+E International along with Alibi UK became a cult hit last summer in the UK. Once fans get past the elements that break with the period mystery tradition, they will be rewarded with compelling mysteries and plots that challenge gender norms.

Eliza Scarlet (Kate Phillips from The Alienist) is the daughter of a retired officer and private detective. Her father (Kevin Doyle) taught her many of his professional tricks but forbade her to become a detective because it wasn’t considered safe or “ladylike”. His death encourages Eliza to become a full-time private detective. Kate’s transition to full time detective work is a rough one, as her contact at Scotland Yard, Chief Inspector William Wellington...

“Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.”

That haunting line opened Daphne Du Maurier’s treasured 1938 romantic thriller “Rebecca,” which was published in 1938. Lauded by critics, it quickly became a best-seller and has been in print ever since. And for good reason.

Du Maurier wraps readers around her little finger with this addictive tale of a timid young woman-her name is never mentioned-who meets and falls in love with an enigmatic wealthy widower, Maxim de Winter, while in Monte Carlo working as a paid companion to the obnoxious American, Mrs. Van Hopper. Max and the young woman soon fall in love. They marry and he takes her home to his gothic estate Manderley run with an iron-fist by the tightly wound housekeeper Mrs. Danvers who is obsessed with the late, charismatic Rebecca, the late wife of Maxim.

Two years after its publication, “Gone with the Wind” producer David O. Selznick...

Dame Diana Rigg died Thursday in her native England at age 82 after a six-month battle with cancer.

She left behind a career spanning over six decades. Whether on the stage or the screen, she always commanded the audience’s attention.

More recent fans know her best as Olenna, the sharp-tongued matriarch of House Tyrell from “Game of Thrones” (a show she admitted to never having watched). Others may know her for her 15 years hosting “Mystery!” on PBS, or her Emmy-winning turn as Mrs. Danvers in “Rebecca” (1997).

Here are some of Diana Rigg’s other memorable roles.

Read original story Diana Rigg’s 12 Most Memorable Roles, From ‘The Avengers’ to ‘Game of Thrones’ At TheWrap...

Dame Diana Rigg, the veteran actress famous for playing Olenna Tyrell in the HBO series Game of Thrones among dozens of other movie and television roles, has sadly passed away. A specific cause of death hasn't been revealed, though a statement from Rigg's agent reveals the actress passed on Thursday morning while surrounded by family. "She died peacefully early this morning. She was at home with her family who have asked for privacy at this difficult time," the statement reads. She was 82 years old.

A Doncaster native, Diana Rigg was born Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg on the 20th of July in 1938. As a teenager, she attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art to train for her career in acting. She debuted on stage in 1957 with a Rada production of The Caucasion Chalk Circle, later portraying roles in other shows for the Royal Shakespeare Company. Though she'd move into working in movies and television,...

Diana Rigg, best known for her iconic turn on The Avengers, and memorable roles on Game of Thrones and Theatre of Blood, died Sept. 10, at home with her family at the age of 82, according to Variety. “It is with tremendous sadness that we announce that Dame Diana Rigg died peacefully early this morning. She was at home with her family who have asked for privacy at this difficult time,” her agent Simon Beresford said in a statement. “Dame Diana was an icon of theatre, film, and television. She was the recipient of BAFTA, Emmy, Tony and Evening Standard Awards for her work on stage and screen. Dame Diana was a much loved and admired member of her profession, a force of nature who loved her work and her fellow actors. She will be greatly missed.”

Rigg was diagnosed with cancer in March, according to her daughter Rachael Stirling, who said...

Join Cinema St. Louis Executive Director Cliff Froehlich in their new collaboration with Shakespeare Festival St. Louis to present Shakespeare & Chill. Every Wednesday at 8pm Cliff will moderate 20-30 minute panel discussion of a Shakespeare-related movie conversations between Shakespeare aficionados and industry professionals. Stay tuned to the Cinema St. Louis Facebook page for updates on the event!

A discussion of the 1973 classic Vincent Price film Theatre Of Blood will take place between Cliff and Shakespeare and Vincent Price enthusiasts Chris Limber, Ben Ritchie, Kevin Townley, and We Are Movie Geeks own Tom Stockman Facebook on Wednesday May 13th at 8Pm. The discussion will post on the Cinema St. Louis and Shakespeare Festival St. Louis Facebook pages.

In the early 1970’s Vincent Price’s career was at a high point. The Doctor Phibes films were unexpected hits. How would he capitalize on these? In 1973 he took on a role in a...

Now here’s a mystery worth solving: Why doesn’t Hollywood give us more ridiculously complicated, gratuitously eccentric whodunits? You know, the kind of all-star affairs where a colorful assortment of highly suspicious characters gather in a remote manor, or at an old castle, or on the Orient Express, in order to be confronted by a corpse and the prospect that a murderer lurks among them. It’s not that audiences have lost their appetite for such tales. Au contraire, ’twas television that killed the old-fashioned detective story. Over the years, “Murder She Wrote” and “Masterpiece Mystery!” have rendered such movies redundant — on the big screen at least — by solving procedurals on the small screen each week.

With “Knives Out,” writer-director Rian Johnson shows that there’s life left in the genre, paying . Taking a break between “Star Wars” sequels to knock off something a little less far, far away...

Last we saw the Sherlock crew one year ago, things were a bit off-kilter for the characters -- due largely to the Christmas special’s Victorian-era setting and Moriarty’s mysterious (and presumed) resurrection. Now, with the debut of the anticipated fourth season mere days away, it’s back to business for the famous detective.

“It’s nice to go into the real story,” showrunner Steven Moffat tells Et. “One year ago with the Christmas special, we took a sidestep in the narrative. We’re finally getting back to the story we’re telling and that’s exciting.”

Moffat and company -- including star Benedict Cumberbatch, who plays the title character Sherlock Holmes -- have spent the past year warning loyal Sherlockians that the upcoming three episodes will be darker and more emotional. At Comic-Con this past July, Cumberbatch noted “there are quite a few tears.”

Related: Benedict Cumberbatch Teases 'Sherlock's' Most 'Ambitious' Season Ever[p...

PBS’ 2017 winter/spring season lineup includes the January 15 premiere of the seven-part drama Victoria on Masterpiece, which takes some dramatic license with the teen years of the 19th-century queen; the highly hyped return of Sherlock to Masterpiece Mystery on New Year's Day, and the second season of PBS' American drama series Mercy Street on January 22. PBS also announced a new Great Performances strand, Landmarks Live in Concert, featuring performances by Alicia Keys…...

Masterpiece has boarded upcoming Prime Suspect prequel, Prime Suspect: Tennison, as co-producer alongside ITV Studios and NoHo Film & Television. The original series, which starred Helen Mirren, aired on Masterpiece on PBS in the early 90s with installments 4-7 co-produced by Wgbh Boston for the Masterpiece Mystery anthology series. Created by Lynda La Plante, who wrote the early installments of the original, the six-part drama portrays the early career of iconic…...

[caption id="attachment_48561" align="aligncenter" width="421"] Roger Allam and Shaun Evans. (C) Mammoth Screen/Masterpiece/ITV Studios./caption]

We have spoilers for the third season of Masterpiece Mystery's Endeavour TV show, premiering on PBS, Sunday, June 19, 2016 at 9:00pm Et/Pt. The UK audience does not have have to worry about Endeavour being cancelled too soon, ITV renewed the drama for a fourth season. Will PBS follow suit and pick up Endeavour, season four? When we know, you will.

A prequel to the Inspector Morse series which starred John Thaw in the title role, Endeavour stars Shaun Evans as the young Endeavor Morse. Roger Allam also stars, as Di Thursday. The Endeavour cast also includes: Anton Lesser, Jack Laskey, Sean Rigby, James Bradshaw, Caroline O'Neill, and Abigail Thaw (daughter the Inspector Morse star).

Read More…...

[caption id="attachment_47282" align="aligncenter" width="590"] (C) Casy Crafford/Left Bank Pictures (Television) Limited/Yellow Bird 2015. All rights reserved./caption]

Sweedish sleuth, Inspector Kurt Wallander, returns to PBS Masterpiece Mystery! for the fourth and final season of the Wallander TV show. Below, star Kenneth Branagh talks about the farewell episodes leading up to the Wallander TV series finale.

Along with Branagh, the cast of Wallander includes: Jeany Spark as Linda Wallander, Richard McCabe as Nyberg, Barnaby Kay as Lennart Mattson, and Ingeborga Dapkunaite as Baiba Liepa. The final season of Wallander was filmed in Cape Town, South Africa; Skåne, Sweden; and Copenhagen, Denmark.

Read More…...

[caption id="attachment_45830" align="aligncenter" width="589"] Grantchester. James Norton as Sidney Chambers. (C) Des Willie/Kudos & ITV for Masterpiece/caption]

Keep your shirts on! You can watch a preview for second season of Masterpiece Mystery's Grantchester TV series, right here. Season two of Grantchester premieres on PBS, Sunday, March 27, 2016 at 9:00pm Et/Pt. The series stars James Norton, Robson Green, Morven Christie, and Tessa Peake-Jones.

In season two, PBS teases "James Norton will don his priestly collar and Robson Green his rumpled raincoat," for a new season as the oddly matched crime-fighters -- Reverend Sidney Chambers and Inspector Geordie Keating. PBS says, "Together, they bring justice and spiritual nourishment to early 1950s England."

Read More…...

[caption id="attachment_45530" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Courtesy of © ITV plc (ITV Global Entertainment Ltd); John Rogers, photographer./caption]

PBS announces the Mr. Selfridge and Grantchester TV series return to Masterpiece, Sunday March 27, 2016. Below watch a preview of the fourth and final season of Mr. Selfridge. The cast includes Jeremy Piven, Amanda Abbington, Katherine Kelly, Grégory Fitoussi, Aisling Loftus, and Trystan Gravelle. The Mr. Selfridge TV series finale is scheduled for Sunday, May 22, 2016, at 10:00pm.

We also have a preview of the second season of Grantchester, starring James Norton and Robson Green. This Masterpiece Mystery drama premieres right before Mr. Selfridge at 9:00pm Et.Read More…...

"The stage is set. The curtain rises. We are ready to begin," Benedict Cumberbatch's Sherlock Holmes says in the dramatic trailer for the BBC's Victorian-set Christmas special, which will air on "Masterpiece" (PBS) before being released in select theaters via Fathom Events. "Sherlock: The Abominable Bride," a 90-minute special, will premiere Friday, January 1, 2016 on Masterpiece Mystery! on PBS at 9:00 p.m. Et, and simultaneously online. The special will have an encore broadcast on Sunday, January 10 at 10:00 p.m. Et. Bowing to popular demand, this marks the first time that "Sherlock" has premiered in the Us and the UK on the same day. True to producer Sue Vertue's promise at the jammed "Sherlock" Comic-Con panel last July, the powers did bring the showings in the UK and Us closer together. Watch the first clip and full Comic-Con panel with "Sherlock" executive producer/showrunner Steven Moffat, his.

Sherlock: The Abominable Bride, the much-anticipated 90-minute special of the BBC hit show starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman, on Friday drew an average audience of 8.4 million in Great Britain, according to overnight data. That made the drama the day's most-watched show in the U.K. and amounted to a share of 34.7 percent of people watching TV in the country at the time, according to the BBC. The special also aired on Masterpiece Mystery! on PBS, marking the first time that Sherlock has premiered in the U.S. and the U.K. on

read more...

Sherlockians and Cumberfans, get ready. Sherlock: The Abominable Bride, a 90-minute special, will premiere on Friday, January 1, 2016 on PBS’s Masterpiece Mystery. Then the fourth season of Sherlock will subsequently go into production this spring. Watch the latest trailer, which features a glimpse at the veiled, vengeful bride herself, for the wintry Victorian special above, and then refresh yourself on the set-up with the original trailer below:...

It looks like the BBC wants to dispel a little mystery surrounding its New Year's Day special Victorian period one-off episode of the Sherlock TV show, Sherlock: The Abominable Bride. The British network hasn't just planted clues, it has positively dumped them. In the Us, the 90-minute special premieres Friday, January 1, 2016 on Masterpiece Mystery! on PBS at 9:00 p.m. Et/Pt, and simultaneously online at pbs.org/masterpiece, with an encore broadcast on Sunday, January 10 at 10:00 p.m. Et/Pt.

This special episode of Sherlock marks the first time that the Us will see an episode on the same day it airs in on BBC One, in UK. A what-if episode, in Sherlock: The Abominable Bride, Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock Holmes) and Martin Freeman (John Watson) portray their fictional counterparts during the Victorian age. Season four of the regular Sherlock TV show, which is set...

Masterpiece and PBS today announced that Sherlock: The Abominable Bride, a 90-minute special, will premiere Friday, January 1, 2016, on Masterpiece Mystery! on PBS at 9:00pm Et, and simultaneously online at pbs.org/masterpiece. The special will have an encore broadcast on Sunday, January 10, at 10:00pm Et. This is the first time that Sherlock has premiered in the Us and the UK on the same day.

Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman return as Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson in the acclaimed modern retelling of Arthur Conan Doyle's classic stories. But now, our heroes find themselves in 1890s London. Beloved characters Mary Morstan (played by Amanda Abbington), Inspector Lestrade (Rupert Graves) and Mrs. Hudson (Una Stubbs) also turn up at 221b Baker Street.&#160Sherlock&#160Season 4, will go into production in Spring, 2016. Airdate Tbd.

Following a brief glimpse of footage in a new BBC promo, Masterpiece PBS unveiled a full...

Sherlock fans, mark your calendars. PBS announced Saturday morning that Sherlock: The Abominable Bride, a 90-minute special, will premiere Jan. 1, 2016 on Masterpiece Mystery! on PBS at 9 p.m. Et (and simultaneously online at pbs.org/masterpiece). The special will have an encore broadcast Jan. 10 at 10 p.m. Et. This is the first time that Sherlock has premiered in the U.S. and the U.K. on the same day. Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat's Sherlock's season 4, which stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman, will go into production in Spring 2016 after nearly a two-

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The Victorian era Sherlock special that’s been shrouded in mystery these past many months has dropped some clues today, and an updated trailer (above). Masterpiece and PBS have announced that the 90-minute one-off special, titled Sherlock: The Abominable Bride, will premiere in the U.S. at 9Pm Et on Masterpiece Mystery on January 1, 2016. BBC One also confirmed it is airing the same day in the UK. This marks the first time the series has premiered on the same day in both countries which should delight viewers who’ve been frustrated by the traditional lag time.

The special finds Benedict Cumberbatch’s high-functioning sociopath along with his sidekick Dr John Watson (Martin Freeman) in 1890s London. Mary Morstan (Amanda Abbington), Inspector Lestrade (Rupert Graves) and Mrs Hudson (Una Stubbs) also turn up at 221b Baker Street in the period episode.

The special is also due for a theatrical release in select moviehouses around the world,...

The Victorian era Sherlock special that’s been shrouded in mystery these past many months has dropped some clues today, and an updated trailer (above). Masterpiece and PBS have announced that the 90-minute one-off special, titled Sherlock: The Abominable Bride, will premiere in the U.S. at 9Pm Et on Masterpiece Mystery on January 1, 2016. BBC One also confirmed it is airing the same day in the UK. This marks the first time the series has premiered on the same day in both…...

PBS and Masterpiece have announced that "Sherlock: The Abominable Bride," the upcoming 90-minute Victorian-era set special, will premiere January 1st 2016 on Masterpiece Mystery! on PBS at 9pm Us-et.

The special will have an encore broadcast January 10th at 10pm Us-et. It will also be the first time that "Sherlock" has premiered in the U.S. and the U.K. on the same day.

Production on a full fourth season of "Sherlock" is slated to kick off in the Spring, though an airdate has not yet been specified.

Source: PBS...

A Most Violent Year I was not the fan most were of J.C. Chandor's A Most Violent Year. It was one of those movies I respected more than enjoyed for its aesthetic, its approach to the genre and the performances. However, as I wrote in my review, I felt it was "a movie that feels like it's trying to be something rather than actually being that something." A second viewing may give me a little more respect for its narrative, but that's where I sit right now.

readmore postid="163864" The Immigrant The appreciation people have for James Gray's The Immigrant is something I will never understand. I saw it at the Cannes Film Festival back in 2013 (read my review here) and wow did I not enjoy it.

Even More Voices Rec 4 Masterpiece Mystery: Grantchester Foo Fighters: Sonic Highways Frasier: The Complete Series Matlock: The Complete Series...

TV Picks: Grantchester On Masterpiece Mystery!James Norton (Happy Valley) stars as Reverend Chambers, with Robson Green (Wire in the Blood, Reckless) as Inspector Geordie Keating, in this six-part drama based on James Runcie’s acclaimed “Grantchester Mysteries.”Meet Sidney Chambers: clergyman, jazz enthusiast, and talented amateur sleuth. Grantchester premieres Sunday, Jan. 18, 2015, 10pm Et on Masterpiece Mystery! on PBS. #GrantchesterPBS Sundays, January 18 – February 22, 2015At a Special Time: 10pm Et on PBSFond of whisky, jazz, and women, Reverend Sidney Chambers gives clergymen a fresh image in Grantchester, a new mystery series airing on Masterpiece in January. In Grantchester, a […]...

This weekend, Keanu Reeves plays a retired legendary assassin out for revenge in the bloody action movie "John Wick," "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" is now streaming on Netflix, while Quentin Tarantino's "Django Unchained" will be available on October 25, and the new CW dramedy "Jane the Virgin" airs its third episode Monday night at 9 p.m. with its first two episodes available now on Hulu.

Also in theaters this weekend: In "Ouija," a group of friends must confront their most terrifying fears when they awaken the dark powers of an ancient spirit board. "White Bird in a Blizzard" follows a teenage girl (Shailene Woodley) whose life is thrown into chaos when her mother (Eva Green) disappears. "Laggies" stars Keira Knightley as a 28-year-old in the throes of a quarter-life crisis who goes to live with her new 16-year-old (Chloe Grace Moretz) after her boyfriend proposes to her. "Citizenfour" follows...

This weekend, a group of teenage boys are trapped in a maze in the big-screen adaptation of the best-selling young adult novel "The Maze Runner," a soldier shows up at the doorstep of a fallen comrade's grieving family in the psychological thriller "The Guest," the Julianna Margulies-starring "The Good Wife" kicks off Season 6 Sunday night on CBS, and the new comic-book series "Gotham" premieres Monday night on Fox.

Also in theaters this weekend: In "This Is Where I Leave You," four grown siblings are forced to return to their childhood home in the wake of their father's death. The comedy-drama stars Jason Bateman, Tina Fey, Jane Fonda, Adam Driver, Rose Byrne, and more. "A Walk Among the Tombstones" stars Liam Neeson as a private investigator hired by a drug kingpin to find out who kidnapped and murdered his wife. Directed by Kevin Smith, horror movie "Tusk" stars Justin Long...

This weekend, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson brings a mythical hero to life in "Hercules," Philip Seymour Hoffman stars in the John le Carré-penned spy thriller "A Most Wanted Man," the season finale of "The Bachelorette" airs Monday night on ABC, and "Running Wild With Bear Grylls" premieres on NBC with guest star Zac Efron.

Also in theaters this weekend: Written and directed by Luc Besson, "Lucy" stars Scarlett Johansson as a woman who transforms into a merciless warrior and turns the tables on her captors. "And So It Goes" follows a grumpy, self-centered realtor (Michael Douglas) who enlists the help of his neighbor (Diane Keaton) when he's left in charge of his granddaughter. "Magic in the Moonlight" stars Emma Stone and Colin Firth in a romantic comedy from Woody Allen about an Englishman brought in to unmask a possible phony spiritualist in the 1920s. "The Fluffy Movie" is a...

The Raid 2: Berandal I was not a fan of The Raid, but I am expecting a Blu-ray review copy of The Raid 2 any day now as I'm willing to check out the sequel and see if there were any improvements. Maybe this film will be more than an action montage and have some sort of narrative weight to it.

Nymphomaniac Volume I & II I've already posted my review of both volumes of Lars von Trier's Nymphomaniac and suffice to say, I wasn't entirely impressed. Some seem to think it's because the so-called comedy went over my head. Perhaps, but if what we're talking about here is blatant comedy then I'm just not interested.

Bad Words Still haven't seen it, but the box art says it's a "tour de force" and "great", and box art never lies.

Jodorowsky's Dune I still need and intend to see this movie,...

This weekend, Mark Wahlberg and Optimus Prime take on the Autobots and Decepticons in "Transformers: Age of Extinction," Chris Evans and Tilda Swinton face off in a futuristic class war in "Snowpiercer," Cory and Topanga return in the highly-anticipated "Girl Meets World," which premieres Friday on the Disney Channel, and Damon Lindelof's "The Leftovers" kicks off this Sunday on HBO.

Also in theaters this weekend: Directed by John Carney, "Begin Again" follows a disgraced music executive (Mark Ruffalo) who collaborates with a young, recently-dumped singer-songwriter (Keira Knightley). "Whitey: United States of America v. James J. Bulger" documents the notorious gangster's rule over South Boston and his complicated relationship with the FBI. "Yves Saint Laurent" examines the life of the French designer from the beginning of his career in 1958 when he met his lover and business partner, Pierre Berge. "They Came Together" stars Amy Poehler as an independent candy shop...

The Escape Artist, Season 1, Episode 2, “Episode 2”

Written by David Wolstencroft

Directed by Brian Welsh

Airs Sundays 9pm (Et) on PBS

“Have courage in your convictions. Don’t let them rattle you”

The first half of Masterpiece Mystery’s The Escape Artist was a jumbled but ultimately entertaining crime thriller with some intriguing twists and exceptional acting by leads David Tennant and Toby Kebbell. It was far from perfect though- there were one too many questions concerning Kebbell’s psychopath Liam Foyle. He was a terrifying character, expertly acted but his motivations were sketchy and it was hard to relate to his actions because of that.

“Episode 2” is a more tightly wound episode than the first part, which it’s a big improvement over. The episode’s early courtroom scenes are fascinating and well put together; so are the quiet periods. Watching Will (David Tennant) and his son adjust after Foyle...

The Escape Artist, Season 1, Episode 1, “Episode 1”

Written by David Wolstencroft

Directed by Brian Welsh

Airs Sundays at 9pm (Et) on PBS

“It was a mistake; I just made sure they paid for it”

Legal crime dramas with ace lawyers as their lead are pretty easy to come by nowadays. Most don’t have David Tennant as that ace lawyer, though. The Escape Artist, airing for two weeks on Masterpiece Mystery, is a somewhat predictable thriller aided by great performances.

Tennant plays Will Burton, a talented junior barrister who’s never lost a case. He doesn’t particularly like the people he’s defending, but his career choice has been good to him. It’s given his family, sweet and understanding wife Kate (Ashley Jensen) and curious son Jamie (Gus Barry), a modern flat in the city and a quaint cottage in the country.

The Escape Artist doesn’t waste much...

Endeavour

Returns June 29th, 2014

Masterpiece Mystery

On the surface, Endeavour may sound like it’s full of tired clichés. Inspector Endeavour Morse (a brilliant Shaun Evans) is an emotionally damaged young detective who investigates complex murders in 1960s London. But Endeavour remains one of the most endlessly fascinating characters on television.

Created as a prequel series to Inspector Morse, which ran for thirteen years and starred John Thaw as the detective in his later years, Endeavour begins in 1965 as the young detective is writing his resignation letter. He’s never been one for dead bodies; he actually gets sick around them and doesn’t care much about attention and flashy cases. He simply likes the puzzle that cases represent and he often attacks them with a zeal that’s made him an outcast with other police officers. They feel he’s been given too much too young and is just plain weird.

PBS's summer slate includes the documentaries “Freedom Summer” and “Al Capone,” as well as a preview of Ken Burns’ upcoming “The Roosevelts: An Intimate History.” Returning shows include the second season of “Endeavour” on Masterpiece Mystery and the perennial Independence Day celebration “A Capitol Fourth.” PBS also plans the Pov documentaries including the film “When I Walk.” Also read: ‘This Old House’ Meets ‘Iron Chef’ in Michael Symon Crossover (Video) “From acclaimed returning series to new thought-provoking specials, this summer offers a fresh slate of programs that will have audiences tuning in night after night to PBS,” said Beth Hoppe,...

You know how we're going to have to wait positively forever for a fourth season of Sherlock? Well, maybe the powers that be are going to do something to take the edge off. Martin Freeman sparked a bit of Internet frenzy during his appearance on the Alan Carr-hosted Chatty Man, airing Friday, when he said, according to reports, that the series' creators were kicking around an idea for a one-off special to premiere sometime before the years-in-the-making fourth season hits BBC One, let alone PBS' Masterpiece Mystery. "Mark Gatiss may beat me up, but there is an idea for this one-off special that's such a good idea, and as I was listening to it I thought, 'We've just got to do...

PBS has announced their programming plans for this summer. They include the returns of Endeavour, Last Tango in Halifax, and Poirot -- as well as the premieres of Breathless and Vicious.

Here are all the details:

PBS Announces Sizzling Summer Season Lineup

- Summer Highlights Include Star-Studded Dramas on Sundays, Fascinating Independent Films and Documentaries, Including American Experience "Freedom Summer" -

Arlington, Va; April 10, 2014 -- PBS announced today a summer schedule of programming spanning generations and genres. From examinations of our nation's history to our connections to the animal kingdom, and escapes to Britain's courtrooms and countryside, PBS offers diverse series and specials for all viewers. Returning favorites this summer include the second season of "Endeavour" on Masterpiece Mystery!, perennial Independence Day celebration A Capitol Fourth and engrossing documentaries from Pov, including the season premiere film "When...

News

Bravo has renewed Top Chef for a 12th season. That’s probably not a surprise considering that Bravo just announced it’s developing another sequel for the hit competition show.

Also renewed: Cinemax’s Banshee which means more Antony Starr hotness and Hoon Lee fierceness.

Banshee‘s Antony Starr

MTV has ordered 12 episodes of Finding Carter, a series about a teen who finds out she was kidnapped from her family as a child. The series’ cast includes Alexis Denisof, Cynthia Watros along with Meredith Baxter in a recurring role.

Following a list of franchises that have never been rebooted, io9 asked what’s the difference between a retcon and a reboot. #nerdproblems

In case you were wondering, Ryan Murphy tells EW this season of American Horror Story wasn’t just an excuse to get Stevie Nicks to perform “Seven Wonders” as part of the story, “Well, she brought it...

Maybe it is just because Masterpiece Mystery has started airing new episodes of Sherlock, and the great detective has a hold on my brain, but while watching The Fifth Estate, I couldn’t help but be distracted by how familiar Julian Assange seemed to me. The antisocial behavior crossed with brainy brilliance, the unsavory ego infatuated with its own cleverness, the necessity of a more level sidekick to keep our anti-hero from crossing the line into total madness, even the loopy hair--Benedict Cumberbatch plays Assange as he does Sherlock Holmes, with the addition of a bucket of bleach and an Australian accent. That is not meant to slight Cumberbatch as an actor; his performance is one of the best things about The Fifth Estate, director Bill Condon’s uneven exploration of the creation of WikiLeaks. Rather, it’s just startling how similar these characters are, despite one being fictional...

Shooting the wedding in the Sunday, Jan. 26, episode of "Sherlock" on PBS' "Masterpiece Mystery" gave Amanda Abbington pause.

Abbington plays Mary Morstan, the fiancee of John Watson (Martin Freeman), best friend and partner-in-crime-investigation to a 21st century Sherlock Holmes (Benedict Cumberbatch). In real life, Abbington and Freeman have been together for nearly 14 years and have two children, eight-year-old Joe and five-and-a-half-year-old Grace.

Sitting with Zap2it during a recent visit to Southern California, Abbington recalls that, during filming, she thought, "'Well, we've done this now, haven't we? We're doing this now. We're having a party; I'm in a wedding dress; I've got a ring on; I just need to change my name by deed poll, and that's it.'"

Asked why there hasn't been a real-life wedding thus far, Abbington says, "Yeah, I don't know. Maybe one day we will. It sometimes does [come up], 'Should we do it? I think we will,...

It's been nearly two years since Sherlock Holmes seemingly fell to his death in the epic Season 2 finale of Sherlock, and since then all anyone has wanted to know is: how did he survive? The question is finally answered when London's greatest consulting detective returns in Sherlock: Season Three, available on Blu-ray and DVD February 11, 2014 from BBC Home Entertainment. The third season of Sherlock premieres in the Us on Masterpiece Mystery! on PBS on January 19, 2014. Earlier this month, the season premiere was watched by 9.2 million viewers on BBC One in the UK, making it the most-watched episode of Sherlock ever. Sherlock Holmes (Benedict Cumberbatch, Star Trek Into Darkness, 12 Years a Slave) and Dr. John Watson (Martin Freeman, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, The World's End) reteam in three brand new action-packed adventures of the Emmy-nominated series that USA Today called "TV pleasure at its most intense..."

Bonus features...

When it was revealed that Watson's fiancee, Mary Morstan, would be joining Season 3 of "Sherlock," the reaction from some fans was ... less than thrilled.

"There was a lot of, 'How could you bring her in, she's such a non-character, I hate her already,'" Amanda Abbington, who plays Mary, said Monday (Jan. 20) at the TCA winter press tour. "[I thought] give it a minute, let them see what I'm doing."

What she's not doing, both Abbington and executive producer Steven Moffat say, is trying to break up the bromance between Watson (Martin Freeman) and Holmes (Benedict Cumberbatch).

"I think she's just very confident in her own skin," Abbington says. "She likes Sherlock, she loves John, she wants him to get back together with his friend. She just doesn't take any nonsense, and I kind of like that she's a very strong character. You see that in the rest of the series."

Moffat...