To the viciously loyal legion of fans who fought tooth and nail to keep Chuck on NBC last season, Yvonne Strahovski is the most badass blonde on television these days. The Australian actress plays Sarah Walker, the skilled secret agent assigned to protecting Chuck (Zachary Levi) after he accidentally inherited top-secret government knowledge two seasons ago. Strahovski easily has the most fun on the show, alternating disguises, weapons and languages to guard her on-again, off-again love interest. In anticipation of this Sunday's two-hour premiere, Movieline spoke to Strahovski yesterday about Sarah's relationship with Chuck, her ability to kick ass and where you might be able to find her on a Friday night.
[Beware: The mildest of spoilers lay ahead about the direction of Season 3]
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Nina Garcia not only toughens the Project Runway judging panel, but she alone makes the group fearsome. The Marie Claire fashion director has spent six seasons (some better than others) sitting alongside Heidi Klum and Michael Kors, heralding and haranguing the work of amateur designers, and questioning the taste levels of everyone in sight. Season two's legendary Santino Rice found his greatest skeptic in Garcia, and season four's Christian Siriano found his greatest admirer. Movieline talked to the 44-year-old fashionista about the new season, her favorite memories on the show, and the "stupid" challenges that turned out to be legendary.
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There's something so wholesome and reassuringly American about Matthew Broderick that it's no surprise he pops the most in roles that let him play against it. Whether it's the subversive streak he brought to Ferris Bueller's Day Off or the more venal elements of his character in Election, Broderick's nice-guy persona lets him get away with things that other actors would be unsympathetic doing. His latest addition to the rogues gallery is pot-smoking misanthrope Ben in his friend Josh Goldin's Wonderful World, who's relentlessly pessimistic until he falls for an upbeat immigrant (Sanaa Lathan).
I spoke to Broderick today at the Standard in Los Angeles, where the 47-year-old actor opened up about the way he sees the world, his relationship with Ferris director John Hughes before he passed away, and the thorny case of Kenneth Lonergan's eternally-delayed Margaret.
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Before starring in one of ABC's most successful freshman family comedies this season, television audiences knew Neil Flynn from his eight-season run on Scrubs. As the enigmatic Janitor, Flynn's character clocked the most consistent batting average for laughs -- hitting solid singles each episode with his bizarrely detailed lies (about being a world class hurdler or claiming his siblings were also his parents) and occasionally stealing a base with an unexpectedly impressive song. Before Scrubs, the Illinois-native trained as a Second City performer and alternated between blockbuster leagues (The Fugitive, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs) and primetime roles (Seinfeld).
Two weeks ago, Movieline caught up with The Middle's leading actor to discuss that star-studded Second City 50th Anniversary reunion last month, Flynn's own improv experiences and the joys of working with that "trashy broad" Brooke Shields.
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Verne Troyer has been the butt of jokes so often -- whether it's in a Mike Myers comedy or in a stint on The Surreal Life -- that you have to wonder whether it's gotten to him. Here he is with a rare dramatic role in Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, where the 2-foot, 8-inch actor actually gets to hurl the insults for once, and yet Troyer couldn't be more self-effacing and doubtful about his own ability. When I sat down to talk to Troyer for Movieline, intending to congratulate him for his performance, I ended up having to convince him it was worth the kudos.
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Michael Cera's funny, sweet new comedy Youth in Revolt represents a curious turn for the 21-year-old actor, whose critics most often accuse him of playing variations of himself in all his geeky, ironic glory. Revolt seems to agree in part, casting Cera as Nick Twisp, a lovesick (and more than mildly horny) teen in pursuit of his elusive dream girl Sheeni Saunders (Portia Doubleday). Yet director Miguel Arteta's film also implodes expectations by featuring Cera as Nick's alter ego Francois Dillinger, a thin-mustached, chain-smoking creature of unspeakable wickedness and carnality who urges Nick to upend his life in a plot to win Sheeni's heart.
The two go at it credibly and often hilariously, heightening the dramatic stakes -- and adding, according to Cera, an unintentional twist -- of the story found in C.D. Payne's beloved source novel. The actor spoke to Movieline about nailing his adaptation, acting against himself, Arrested Development and why trouble does (or doesn't) love him.
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Gorgeous Texan Jake Pavelka sent thousands of hearts soaring during last season's Bachelorette when the commercial pilot returned to the show after being dismissed by Jillian Harris to warn her about a smarmy suitor will ill intentions. Tonight, Pavelka returns to ABC to hopefully find love among 25 women that range from a Nebraskan nanny to a woman allegedly sleeping with a crew member.
Before the holidays, Movieline spoke to Jake as he relaxed in sunny Dallas, about discovering the therapeutic elements of the show, the preparation that goes into each exotic date and his short acting career playing a young Chuck Norris.
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On the very first day of Movieline.com's launch last April, we introduced our weekly feature The Verge with the following spiel: "Ever watched a film and wondered, 'Who's that?' Now you'll know before you even have to ask. Welcome to The Verge, Movieline's weekly interview with up-and-coming actors on the verge of a serious career boost." Since that day, we've profiled 38 rising talents, and all of their profiles have only continued to surge. (Give yourself a pat on the back for getting in on the ground floor!) Here are ten of our favorites, who we can guarantee you'll be seeing more of soon:
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When you publish a few hundred interviews in eight months -- as Movieline did in 2009 -- you're bound to run into some fascinating people with plenty to say. What follows is a cross-section of our favorites, along with the hopes of many more to come in the year ahead. Reminisce, and enjoy!
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As Movieline spends so much time telling you what we made of 2009, why not occasionally cede the microphone to others in Hollywood? Actor Billy Burke is the latest to try his hand at a Fave Five -- you may know him from his role as Kristen Stewart's father in the Twilight Saga (though after seeing Feast of Love, I'll always imagine him naked and slapping around Radha Mitchell), and in addition to the upcoming installment Eclipse, he's got the lead in 2010 indies Highland Park and Luster. Still, we're getting ahead of ourselves by looking forward; before 2010 rolls around, what did Billy think were the pop culture highlights of 2009?
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We introduced you to Jeremy Renner in The Verge a little over six months ago, when the rugged The Hurt Locker star with the deceptively boyish face (he'll be 39 on Thursday) was still relatively unknown. That was then; now, Renner's moment has arrived. As Staff Sergeant William James -- a courageous, crazy, compassionate military technician who thrives on defusing bombs for an Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) unit stationed in Iraq -- Renner has crafted a war film hero for our fraught times. It's a marvelous performance, both subtle and bombastic, and we therefore offer it up as another "For Your Reconsideration." Fresh off shooting Ben Affleck's second directorial effort and busily running the awards season gantlet, we checked back in with Renner to see how life has changed since the film's release.
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Whether you're mourning the loss of 2009 or excited to put the year behind you (FYI: Only the latter option is correct), at least you've got a wealth of Fave Fives to help ease your transition into 2010. The newest one comes from Dan Jinks, the Oscar-winning producer of Milk, American Beauty, and the late, lamented Pushing Daisies (whose creator Bryan Fuller also contributed his own Fave Five). What five pop cultural events made Dan's year? Read on:
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If you're going to commit to watching one new television series in 2010, make it Better Off Ted, ABC's critically beloved yet under-appreciated workplace comedy that has been flying under the radar since its premiere last year. The series stars Jay Harrington as the head of research at a heartless technology company, who battles his emotionally devoid boss (played magnificently by Portia de Rossi) while juggling single fatherhood and an interoffice flirtation. ABC recently announced plans to burn through the rest of Ted's second season in January by airing four episodes in two weeks, but fans and critics hold out hope that the deserving series will finally find its audience.
Last week, Movieline caught up with Harrington just before he returned to Boston for the holidays, and discussed Better Off Ted's disappointing numbers (and fantastically loyal fans), sexual harassment and cadaver clubs at Veridian, and Ted's shot after the Rose Bowl.
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For the next chapter in our Fave Five project, Movieline has enlisted the help of Chelsea Handler's right-hand pop-culture commentator, writer, comedian, and "Staff Homosexual" Guy Branum. The 30-year-old panelist on Chelsea Lately mixes self-deprecation, Jonas Brothers awe, and the occasional Joy Luck Club reference into an effective blend. Now, the TV expert gives us his Fave Five primetime moments of 2009 and includes the best reference to Casablanca since Animaniacs.
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We know you're almost ready to count down the final moments of 2009, but why not do it with some talented company? The latest contributor to our Fave Five project is director Ruben Fleischer, who had a home run debut this fall with the action comedy Zombieland. Fleischer's next project may be a 3D sequel to that film, a tidbit that makes the first inclusion on his Fave Five list all the more auspicious:
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