Amanda Peet: 'Game Of Thrones' Is Like Coke

post from TV on HuffingtonPost.com on 21 March 2012 08:43:00 AM. © TV on HuffingtonPost.com

Though you wouldn't know it from NBC's odd scheduling of "Bent" (they're ~~burning off~~ airing all six episodes in just three weeks, with back-to-back episodes on Wednesday nights starting Wed., Mar. 21, 9 and 9:30 p.m. ET) and sad lack of promotion (I've seen two billboards in L.A., and both went up this week), the new comedy offering is one of their strongest.

"Bent" stars Amanda Peetas Alex, the good girl and a busy working single mom, and David Walton as Pete, the bad boy with charm who becomes her contractor. They're practically living under the same roof -- along with Alex's daughter Charlie (Joey King), sister Screwsie (Margo Harshman), Pete's dad Walt (Jeffrey Tambor) and his ragtag crew (including JB Smoove and Jesse Plemons) -- and there's instant chemistry.

"I'm so glad!," Peet said when I told her I love the show, before launching into her own reasons for returning to TV, naming the costar that she can't stop laughing at and talking about her most "cringe-y" moment in the show's first season. She also talked about old "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" pals, her own must-see TV and how her executive producer husband has become like her druglord, feeding her bits of his hit HBO series "Game of Thrones," which she says she's "like a coke addict for."

You've got two little ones at home and I know that keeps you busy, beyond making movies. What made you decide to return to TV? Why this show?
Well, I loved the script, and I thought Tad [Quill]'s writing was great, and I felt like he was going to do something a little bit different. I thought that the feeling of the show was really charming, and I didn't feel like I was reading anything like that. So basically, I had several conversations with him about being able to take my kid to school sometimes, and he was very sweet about that.

It's very charming, with a twist. It has heart, but not at the expense of a faster pace with some risque humor.
I'm so glad that you think so, too. Tad's quite good at the witty repartee, I think.

How are you "pitching" this show to people who ask?
What? That's a lot of pressure! OK ... look ... it's about a Type-A single mom, who's a lawyer, who begrudgingly falls for her contractor who's a motorcycle-riding, pot-smoking good-for-nothing. And it's very sexy and romantic.

It's a lot about getting Alex to shake things up a bit. What's the most un-Alex thing that Alex does in this first season?
Letting myself go and almost kissing him. Then, towards the end, I'm embarrassingly jealous, and embarrassingly overt in my jealousy, when he starts dating someone else. It's really cringe-y, but it's really fun to play.

You're playing a single working mom and a sister, but you've also got the romance element. What's most fun for you to play?
Definitely the love triangle is really, really fun, with Matt Letscher and David Walton -- I couldn't be more honored to be stuck in the middle between those two men. [Laughs.] And then there's Jeffrey Tambor, and the only problem with Jeffrey Tambor is I can't keep a straight face when I have a scene with him. It's a little bit of a problem. It's a great, great character for him, and I just hope we get a chance to explore more.

The love triangle was sort of a last-minute addition to the show after the original pilot was shot. Do you think it'll make viewers a little torn about who Alex should be with? And do you think she should be with Pete?
That's the way Alex feels ... you want them to get together, but you recognize how ill-suited they are for one another. That's a pretty big rift between their lifestyles, and that's sort of what Tad was going for -- this incredible attraction that is simmering even though there's this sort of contentious vibe between them.

Matt Letscher was one of the additions after the original pilot was shot, and JB Smoove was another. Do you think those changes helped the show?
I think probably, yeah. I mean, JB and Jesse [Plemons] ... we hit the jackpot. I hope NBC is going to give us a chance to grow. But it's tough out there -- it's competitive.

It is! And when I think back to your last regular TV role on "Studio 60" ... I think almost all of the "Studio 60" stars are finally back on television.
[Laughs.] You're right!

Do you all still keep in touch at all?
Oh yeah. Totally. I've known Matthew [Perry] for 15 years, and I worship Bradley Whitford and Sarah Paulson is my best friend. We talk like 18 times a day.

I love that. OK, so when you're not working on TV, what are you watching on TV?
"It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia." Every night. "New Adventures of Old Christine." Almost every night.

Aww, Julia Louis-Dreyfus has a new show too, but I miss that show ...
When you see "Veep," you won't miss it anymore. You'll just be so excited to see her again. So f---ing brilliant, you're gonna freak out.

I'm jealous you've seen it. Another show I'm guessing you've seen bits of already: "Game of Thrones," Season 2. Obviously your husband [executive producer David Benioff] is busy with that, but it must be on your "watch" list too, right?
Well, that goes without saying! I'm like a coke addict for "Game of Thrones." He's like my druglord -- when he brings home dailies, I'm like shaking in the corner.

Were you a fan of the books before he got involved with the show?
No! I was like, "I'm not gonna read those books! Gimme something about sex and marriage and relationships -- what do I want to watch this thing about dragons for?" [Laughs.] And then cut to me becoming like a coke fiend.

"Bent" premieres Wed., Mar. 1 with back-to-back episodes at 9 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. ET on NBC.

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Jimmy Fallon Bumps Joan Rivers For Whitney
Cummings

post from TV on HuffingtonPost.com on 21 March 2012 08:41:56 AM. © TV on HuffingtonPost.com

To say that Joan Rivers is a late night talk show veteran would be an understatement. She's practically a late night institution, and on "Joan And Melissa" (Tues., 9 p.m. ET on WE) she was really looking forward to appearing on NBC's "Late Night."

However, as she was being prepped in make-up she got some bad news from host Jimmy Fallon. "I am so sorry," he started, "I am going to have to bump you. ... I feel so bad doing this, we got Whitney Cummings."

Joan tried to keep it together, but couldn't resist having a dig at her younger replacement. "She's funny. Not very funny."

As Fallon kept apologizing Joan started to wonder if it was all a set-up at her expense. "Is this true?" she asked him. "I'm here in New York specifically for this."

Sadly for Joan, it was true, and as Fallon backed out he reassured her that "it's just the business." Eventually, mad that as she saw it she'd been the victim of ageism, Joan stormed out.

"Joan And Melissa: Joan Knows Best?" airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on WE.

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Vincent Kartheiser Talks Pete Campbell and Says,
"There's No Shotgunning of Any Beers on the Mad Men Set"

post from BuzzSugar on 21 March 2012 08:30:00 AM. © BuzzSugar

Pete Campbell is one of Mad Men's most divisive characters, as he's schemed and smarmed his way through four seasons at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce. Ahead of the series' return this Sunday, we got a chance to chat with Vincent Kartheiser, the man behind Pete Campbell's suit and smirk. Check out what he had to say about Pete's evolution, his favorite costars to work with, and why being drunk on the set is a bad idea.

Do you have any rituals you do to warm up before filming?
Vincent Katheiser: I used to jump around, scream and curse, and do all kinds of vocal exercises, but I don't really do that anymore. About halfway through last season, I found that none of that helped. I still do it once in a while, just out of habit. I've kind of killed most of my rituals.

Are you interested in a picking up a new ritual? Like shotgunning a beer?
VK: [Laughs] Yeah, no. There's no shotgunning of any beers on the Mad Men set. Contrary to popular belief, acting drunk while being drunk actually doesn't work that well.

Where do you hope Pete ends up at the end of the series?
VK: In the first season, I had all sorts of hopes, and I would sit and project, "Maybe it will be this," or, "Maybe they will send my character here," and a couple of times, I would talk to my friends about it. But I found that all the places that Matthew [Weiner] had brought Pete Campbell were completely unexpected by me. And were actually way more interesting and way more fun to play than any of those things that I had been thinking of. So I stopped having any expectations for my characters.

After such a long hiatus, is there fear among the cast that audiences have gotten over the Mad Men craze?
VK: I don't have fear about that because I know that we have a specific product that is not easily replaced, because it's not a genre; it's not a niche; it's a real story. It's not like we're doing a cop show, and there's a new cop show that everyone's into. It's not like we're even doing an advertising show. We're part of a show that is a specific story, and people have become interested in and intrigued with these characters, not necessarily with the genre or not necessarily with some type of gimmick. It's a story that I think people want to know the end of, and I think we have a group of fans that also aren't your usual television watchers. So it's a group of people that haven't refilled their DVR schedule with whatever is hottest this year, but rather it's people who have sought out our show in particular. We do believe that they will come back, and I also think that they will be rewarded for that, because when Matthew Weiner is given even a few more weeks to write something, it just gets better. And in this case he's been given a few more months. It's a great season. The scripts this year are intense and suspenseful and funny, and it's been a real joy to read and to perform this season, and I just know that the audience is going to be more excited than ever.

To see what Kartheiser had to say about Pete's fatherhood and more, just

What do you think about the path that your character has taken over the course of the last four seasons? Has fatherhood changed him?
VK: Well, I think fatherhood has changed him, in the sense that it has brought this level of expectation and pressure to his household for him to be even more ambitious than he was before. Which must be quite an accomplishment for someone like Pete, who has been willing to blackmail his way into success. I love where the character's gone. It's such an interesting time, 26- to 30-years-old, and I think that time in a man's life, you either succeed or find out that you never will really be the man that you wanted to be. Late 20s, early 30s is when you kind of have to stick your flag in the ground. There was a while there when it was up in the air whether Pete was going to get the opportunity to do that or not. He didn't really feel like he fit the job of account manager very well. He thought, incorrectly, that he should be in Don Draper's shoes, making creative choices. Somewhere in season three, he kind of slid nicely into his character, and I think that has to do with his profession, and I think that has a lot to do with his wife, who has kind of made him buckle down and made him see what he has to do and believed in him and supported him. And I think the same comes with this child. It's forced him to kind of man up and say, "OK, this is the path that I'm on. I'm doing OK here. Instead of trying to be all these other things, I'm gonna be the best damn account man I can be." So in those ways, he's found a way to make a name for himself at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce, and he's become a partner, and he has a lot of responsibility at that firm. So it's been a great evolution. And it's been interesting because myself, Vincent Kartheiser, as an actor, I was also trying to find a role that would help me stick my own flag in the ground, and Pete Campbell has done that for me. So there's a bit of synchronicity between the two.

How are you and Pete similar and how are you different?
VK: I'm similar to Pete because we both can be immature and petulant, and we can act out of fear. But I'm also similar to him because I think me and him are both generally sure that we are doing the correct thing. Even though Pete sometimes is not doing the right thing, he thinks it is the right thing, and he thinks it is, sometimes, the only option. And I think I can have similar feelings. When it comes to being different, we have very different backgrounds and very different relationships with our family and very different outlooks on the priorities in our life. Pete is much more ambitious than I am and much more cutthroat than I am. I think he can be way more competitive than me as well.

What have been some of your favorite moments to shoot in the last few seasons?
VK: I love all the scenes I have with Elisabeth Moss. She's such a fantastic actress, and I just love all the stuff we've had together. I love all the stuff that John Slattery has directed me in. He's got such a great tone when speaking with me as an actor, and he's a real director at heart, and I think every actor should work with him as a director once in their life. He's phenomenal.

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'NCIS': Gibbs And Ryan Kiss

post from TV on HuffingtonPost.com on 21 March 2012 08:29:25 AM. © TV on HuffingtonPost.com

Jamie Lee Curtis was back on "NCIS" (Tues., 8 p.m. ET on CBS) Tuesday night playing Dr. Samantha Ryan, and this time she got to lock lips with the silver fox himself, Special Agent Gibbs (Mark Harmon).

The sexual tension had been building between between Ryan and Gibbs for some time, ever since she called him up in the middle of the night and asked if he wanted to join her for breakfast.

After their brief moment of passion, Ryan had to leave to go take care of her son. Before she left, she hinted strongly that she was ready to stay in one place for a while and put down roots but, "I don't know if I can."

Gibbs told her he could take care of her ex, but she left anyway.

Could this be the start of something big for Ryan and Gibbs? Tune in to "NCIS" every Tuesday night at 8 p.m. ET on CBS to find out.

TV Replay scours the vast television landscape to find the most interesting, amusing, and, on a good day, amazing moments, and delivers them right to your browser.

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Jimmy Fallon Revives Tebowie As Broncos Sign
Peyton Manning (Video)

post from Hollywood Reporter - Live Feed on 21 March 2012 08:28:05 AM. © Hollywood Reporter - Live Feed

Jordan Zakarin
The "Late Night" host once again mashes up David Bowie and Tim Tebow, singing the lament of the displaced Denver quarterback.

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Ringer - It's In The Cards

post from Television Without Pity on 21 March 2012 08:19:53 AM. © Television Without Pity

That Woman's Never Been A Victim Her Entire Life: Andrew recovers. Henry boots Shiv to the curb. Shiv weasels her way back in. Everybody tells a little truth.

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Sophia Vergara's Hottest Moments

post from TV on HuffingtonPost.com on 21 March 2012 08:09:32 AM. © TV on HuffingtonPost.com

Muy caliente, indeed!

Sofia Vergara set record-high temperatures across the Internet yesterday thanks to the release of Esquire magazine's latest cover, on which she graces the cover in lingerie.

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Sofia Vergara's Hottest Moments

Muy caliente, indeed!

Sofia Vergara set record-high temperatures across the Internet yesterday thanks to the release of Esquire magazine's latest cover, on which she graces the cover in lingerie.

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Kristen Bell Tells 'Kimmel' About Her Obsession
With 'The Hunger Games'

Everyone seems to be talking about "The Hunger Games" right now, and on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" (Weeknights, 12 a.m. ET on ABC) actress Kristen Bell admitted that she's more than a little obsessed with the book.

The "Hunger Games" super fan said she was so blown away by Suzanne Collins' book that she believes "this is the piece of literature that in a hundred years we'll look back on and it will be the best thing we've ever written."

Although her husband Dax Shepard wasn't so keen to read the books for himself, Bell gradually wore down his resistance until he seemed to be on the cusp of giving in.

However, an airport encounter with an avid tween "Hunger Games" fan pushed him right back in the other direction.

So what's a girl to do? Bell took it upon herself to read her favorite book aloud to him, of course!

It took her around three weeks, with Bell reading him a couple of chapters a night. By the end, "he was really into it" she assured Jimmy Kimmel.

"The Hunger Games" is in movie theaters Friday March 23. Check out what "The Hunger Games" star Jennifer Lawrence had to say about the fans on "Late Show" Tuesday night.

"Jimmy Kimmel Live" airs weeknights at 12 a.m. ET on ABC.

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'Doctor Who's' Newest Companion Revealed

"Doctor Who" has a new companion in Jenna Louise-Coleman. BBC announced the 25-year-old actress will replace Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill on the series and appear alongside Matt Smith after Gillan and Darvill's characters make a "heartbreaking departure" later in 2012.

"I'm beyond excited, I can't wait to get cracking; working alongside Matt I know is going to be enormous fun and a huge adventure," Coleman said in a statement.

Coleman's other credits include "Emmerdale," "Captain America: The First Avenger," "Waterloo Road," the upcoming "Titanic" miniseries (Sat., April 14 8-11 p.m. ET and Sun., April 15 9 p.m. ET on ABC) and "Dancing On The Edge."

"It always seems impossible when you start casting these parts, but when we saw Matt and Jenna together we knew we had our girl," Steven Moffat, executive producer and lead writer of "Doctor Who," said in a statement. "She's funny and clever and exactly mad enough to step on board the TARDIS."

Coleman joins a long line of famous faces who have traveled alongside the Doctor. Since "Doctor Who's" rebirth in 2005, Billie Piper, Freema Agyeman and Catherine Tate have all co-starred on the series as the Doctor's companion.

"It's not often the Doctor meets someone who can talk even faster than he does, but it's about to happen. Jenna is going to lead him his merriest dance yet," Moffat said. "And that's all you're getting for now. Who she's playing, how the Doctor meets her, and even where he finds her, are all part of one of the biggest mysteries the Time Lord ever encounters. Even by the Doctor's standards, this isn't your usual boy meets girl."

What's to come of the Doctor's current companions, Amy and Rory? BBC America sent out this tweet.

Get a glimpse of Coleman below from the "Titanic" miniseries airing on ABC.

"Doctor Who" is currently filming its seventh (since the 2005 relaunch) season.