Grey's Anatomy books Lena Waithe / Jon Bernthal's Punisher to return for one-off special / John Lithgow confirms Harry Potter Dumbledore role
PLUS: Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Land of the Giants and The Time Tunnel are being reimagined by Oscar winner Akiva Goldsman.
Lena Waithe to guest as a doctor on Grey’s Anatomy
The Emmy-winning The Chi creator will take on a rare acting role on a show she has no connection to when she visits Grey's as part of a two-episode arc in March. "She will play Dr. Evynn Moore, a brilliant and savvy former student of Catherine Fox’s (Debbie Allen) who visits Grey Sloan to help her on a unique case which happens to be for her wife, played by Andrea Bordeaux," according to Deadline's Nellie Andreeva, adding: "Currently booked for two episodes, Waithe will first appear in Episode 2110, 'Jump (for My Love),' which premieres March 13. In it, Meredith and Nick return to Grey Sloan to treat a liver transplant patient. Meanwhile, Bailey hosts an intern retreat at her home and Winston and Ben aid an unexpected crash victim."
Jon Bernthal's Punisher to return for Marvel one-off TV special that he's co-writing
"Jon Bernthal's Frank Castle, a.k.a. the Punisher, will officially return after an initial appearance in Daredevil: Born Again season 1, as the actor's gun-toting angel of vengeance will also headline his own Marvel special in the vein of Werewolf by Night or The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special," according to EW's Nick Romano. Bernthal is reteaming with We Own This City director Reinaldo Marcus Green to co-write the special, which Green will direct. "Bernthal is a generational actor," says Marvel TV boss Brad Winderbaum. "He's incredible what he brings to all the roles he plays, but particularly Frank Castle. And he's a great writer. He knows the character inside and out.... Also, I love Punisher, but I love Jon's Punisher in particular. The idea that he's in the MCU and can bring that to the greater universe, especially the more grounded street-level stuff, is a huge opportunity and, as a fan, the greatest thing ever."
Scott Foley to play a modern-day minister on Amazon faith-based drama It’s Not Like That
Faith-based content studio Wonder Project is producing Prime Video’s It’s Not Like That, in which Foley plays a modern-day minister named Malcolm. The potential series was created by Ian Deitchman and Kristin Robinson. Here's the official logline: “Lori is freshly divorced with two teens. Malcolm’s a minister and recently widowed dad of three. Their families once did everything together, but now Lori and Malcolm must navigate their newly minted singledom, parenthood and the complexities of Malcolm being a modern-day minister. Is this the beginning of a love story? It’s not like that. Or is it?”
John Lithgow confirms he'll play Dumbledore on HBO's Harry Potter series: "It's going to define me for the last chapter of my life"
"Well, it came as a total surprise to me," Lithgow tells ScreenRant of his casting. "I just got the phone call up at the Sundance Film Festival for yet another film, and it was not an easy decision because it's going to define me for the last chapter of my life, I'm afraid. But I'm very excited. Some wonderful people are turning their attention back to Harry Potter. That's why it's been such a hard decision. I'll be about 87 years old at the wrap party, but I've said yes."
John C. McGinley reunites with Scrubs creator Bill Lawrence on HBO's Steve Carell comedy
McGinley is also reuniting with former Scrubs producer Matt Tarses on the untitled comedy set on a college campus. McGinley will play the president of the university in his third collaboration with Lawrence after Scrubs and the TBS sitcom Ground Floor.
Ayo Edebiri to write, may star in a Barney the Dinosaur live-action movie
The Bear star has been tapped to write and is in talks to star in the Daniel Kaluuya-produced movie that is aimed at giving Barney & Friends an adult-oriented “surrealistic” spin, in the vein of films by Charlie Kaufman and Spike Jonze.
Kumail Nanjiani is headed to Hulu for his first standup special in 12 years
The former Silicon Valley star is returning to standup as part of Hulu's "Hularious" initiative. A release date and title will be revealed at a later date. This will be Nanjiani's first standup special since Comedy Central's Beta Male, his very first special, released in 2025.
Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Land of the Giants and The Time Tunnel are being reimagined by Oscar winner Akiva Goldsman
The A Beautiful Mind screenwriter is teaming with Legendary Television to reimagine three ABC classic sci-fi series created by Irwin Winkler: 1964-1968 series Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, 1968-1970 series Land of the Giants and 1966-1967 series The Time Tunnel. According to Deadline, "Goldsman and Legendary Television are crafting a unified vision for these stories, bringing modern sensibilities to their timeless appeal, and expanding upon his success in revitalizing the Star Trek universe."
CBS could have as many as 12 spinoffs on its schedule next season
"What’s the saying, 'Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery?' Or, When you’ve got a good thing going'…? Whatever the case, CBS aka America’s Most Watched Network — perhaps more than any other broadcast (or cable, or streaming…) outlet — is a firm believer in taking what works and making more of it, by spinning off its most popular or beloved series," says TVLine's Matt Webb Mitovich. The 12 current and potentially future spinoffs include The Neighborhood spinoff, a Blue Bloods spinoff, three FBI spinoffs, The Equalizer spinoff, Elsbeth, Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage, Sheriff Country and the three NCIS series.
Suits LA has a lackluster debut on NBC
On Sunday, the Stephen Amell-led Suits spinoff attracted only 2.6 million viewers, which was below NBC freshman dramas Brilliant Minds and The Hunting Party. Only Grosse Pointe Garden Society, which also premiered Sunday, lagged behind, with 1.8 million subscribers.
Keith Urban will serve as headliner CBS country music competition The Road from Blake Shelton and Taylor Sheridan
On The Road, up-and-coming musical acts will get the chance to serve as the country music star's opener. The audience at those shows will help determine who stays on tour and who goes home. “I spent a lot of my underage life playing in some seedy pubs, sometimes just for the bartender. So I love the idea of throwing artists into a real-world environment to find out if they are artists,” Urban said in a statement. “Paying your dues sucks, but there are things in this business that can’t be taught, like how to put together a set list, whether to extend or cut a song during your performance or how to work the crowd. For me, touring has always been my first love. It’s where the rubber meets the road. But it’s the only road to take if you want to be a performer.”
Rachel Maddow reportedly fought MSNBC against cancelations and firings on Sunday
During a hastily called staff meeting on Sunday, Maddow said she privately fought the recent cutbacks, according to Semafor's Max Tani. Maddow made her anger over MSNBC's decisions, including canceling Joy Reid's The ReidOut and Alex Wagner Tonight, known on air on Monday night.
Ozzy Osbourne's health issues to be the subject of a Paramount+ documentary
Titled No Escape From Now, the documentary will “reveal the devastating setbacks” the 76-year-old rocker has “faced since his fateful fall in 2019,” according to a press release. “This is Ozzy Osbourne like you’ve never seen before: an honest, warm and deeply personal portrait of one of the greatest rock stars of all-time, detailing how the singer’s world shuddered to a halt six years ago, forcing him to contemplate who he really is, confront his own mortality and question whether or not he can ever perform on stage for one last time,” according to the documentary's logline. “Addressing his health issues and impact of his Parkinson’s diagnosis, the film showcases the central role music continues to play in Ozzy’s life — also proving his mischievous sense of humor remains resolutely intact despite it all.”
NCIS uses coffee to give a brief update on the Hawai’i, Los Angeles and New Orleans teams
Monday's episode not only referenced the teams from the now-defunct NCIS spinoffs, but also mentioned NCIS: Sydney.
Jeff Probst says he came up with the name and idea for Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans
"It started with me saying I wanted it to be a thank you to the fans because that's the whole reason we've been on so long is their loyalty of sticking with us," he tells EW. "Even if they don't love every idea, they don't quit on us. And so that was it. And honestly, I was just sitting in my office for a few days thinking, and I came up with the name In the Hands of the Fans. That's when I kind of knew what the idea was and let's let the fans be in charge. The first instinct is: Let them pick the cast. But we've done that. I wanted to do something different, and this is the riskiest idea we've done in that we're used to being in charge of the game design. But what makes it fun is it's forcing us to evolve again and say: Let's create a variety of game elements that you will vote on, and then let's just see what that mixture ends up being. Because we're more methodical. We would lay out a season and say A connects to B, connects to C, connects to D, and there's a theme and there's symmetry. We may not have that in Survivor 50. We may have some people voting for one thing that takes the game backwards, and voting for something that projects us into the future." ALSO: Jeff Probst quashes rumor that country singer Dierks Bentley is competing on Survivor.
Reacher spinoff reveals its title as it adds Damon Herriman, Greyston Holt and more to its cast
The Amazon Prime Video Reacher spinoff focused on Maria Sten’s Frances Neagley will be titled Neagley. Additional cast members include Matthew Del Negro, Adeline Rudolph and Jasper Jones.
Judge allows the estate of ER creator Michael Crichton to proceed with its lawsuit against The Pitt
In a ruling issued Monday, a judge denied Warner Bros. Discovery's motion to throw out the lawsuit under California’s anti-SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation) statute, finding that the estate’s lawsuit has enough merit to proceed.
Agatha Christie's great-grandson accuses The Traitors of stealing from the legendary author
James Prichard, chairman of the late author’s estate, believes the popular reality TV franchise was heavily inspired by Christie’s 1939 story And Then There Were None. "At the beginning of the series, they're on the train. They’ve got the board with all the faces being picked off, one by one," Prichard tells Radio Times. "They’ve got the library, it’s everything Agatha Christie. It’s And Then There Were None in lots of ways."
Baby Reindeer creator Richard Gadd rounds out the cast of his HBO/BBC drama Half Man
Joining Gadd and co-star Jamie Bell will be Mitchell Robertson, Stuart Campbell, Neve McIntosh and Marianne McIvor, among others.
Rick Steves: "I'm Cancer Free"
"I’ve been on a deeply personal journey since last July, when I was diagnosed with prostate cancer," the veteran PBS travel host wrote on social media. "I promised I’d keep my traveling family posted — and I’m happy to now report that I’ve weathered the storm."
Interior Chinatown's Charles Yu to next tackle sci-fi series Consider Phlebas with help from Chloé Zhao
Yu, the author of Interior Chinatown and creator of its Hulu adaptation, is teaming with Nomadland Oscar winner Zhao to adapt the late Scottish author Iain M Banks' 1987 sci-fi book Consider Phlebas, which was the first book in his Culture series. Zhao will serve as executive producer. "In Consider Phlebas, while war rages between the utopian Culture and the Idiran Empire, a Culture Ship AI 'Mind' takes refuge on a forbidden planet.," per Deadline. "Both Horza, a shape-shifting mercenary working for the Idirans, and Balveda, a ‘Special Circumstances’ Culture agent, have been tasked with retrieving it to tip the balance in a galaxy-spanning conflict. Consider Phlebas pits sentience against AI in an epic and bloody quest across the cosmos."
Poker Face sets spring Season 2 premiere window shares photos of John Mulaney and Cynthia Erivo
The teaser images show Mulaney posing against an airplane while Erivo is shown playing three of five sex sextuplets.
Netflix unveils ambitious Italian limited series The Leopard
Premiering March 5, The Leopard contains "lavish historical tapestry — with elements comparable to Downton Abbey or The Crown and potential to make a global mark — is a modern take on the sensual Sicilian saga famously adapted into a film by Luchino Visconti starring Claudia Cardinale, Alain Delon and Burt Lancasterm," according to Variety. "The film, now an Italian cinema classic, won the 1963 Palme d’Or at Cannes Film Festival."
Noah Eagle officially joins NBA on NBC team
The rising sports broadcaster will be one of the lead play-by-play voices when the NBA returns to NBC this fall.
Happy 90th birthday, Sally Jessy Raphael!
"I had a wonderful birthday brunch this weekend with some of my favorite friends and family," the retired longtime daytime talk show host tells People. "They kept saying, 'We can’t believe you’re 90!' I told them to stop reminding me, because I certainly don’t feel it!" she adds with a laugh. "Now I’m off on a girls’ trip to Paris to continue celebrating!”
JWoww goes from Jersey Shore to filmmaker
Last year, Jenni "JWoww" Farley made her directorial debut with the horror movie Devon. Next, she'll write and direct the psychological thriller Nanny Cam, starring Katie Cassidy.
Netflix unveils the trailer for its The Traitors-esque Million Dollar Secret
Premiering March 26, The Traitors-style competition reality show promises to display "wit, cunning and deception." According to the official logline, contestants will "enter a sumptuous lakeside estate and in each of their rooms is a mysterious welcome gift — a box. Eleven of them are empty and one contains $1,000,000, and it's for that guest to keep — as long as they keep their identity hidden," it continues. "Devilish games will reveal clues about the millionaire’s identity, and they must do whatever it takes to keep their Million Dollar Secret."
Joe Goldberg faces his murderous self in new You final season teaser
The fifth and final season, premiering April 24 on Netflix, has the following logline: “Well, well, well, if it isn’t the luckiest guy in New York? In the epic fifth and final season, Joe Goldberg returns to New York to enjoy his happily ever after… until his perfect life is threatened by the ghosts of his past and his own dark desires.”
Watch Netflix's trailer for Bert Kreischer's fourth Netflix special
A shirtless Kreischer talks about his family and shedding 45 pounds in Bert Kreischer: Lucky, premiering March 18.