Chastain sets sights on sci-fi pic

ChastainAfter a lengthy search, Frederick Kosinski has chosen Jessica Chastain for 1 of 2 female leads in Universal's untitled sci-fier starring Tom Cruise. Formerly entitled "Oblivion" and/or "Horizons," pic involves a soldier positioned on the future Earth,the top which was destroyed by aliens. When he finds out a mysterious lady inside a crash-arrived pod, it sparks a series of occasions that create him to question everything they know. William Monahan and Karl Gajdusek modified the script with different graphic novel that Kosinski ("Tron: Legacy") authored. Peter Chernin and Dylan Clark are creating through Chernin Entertainment together with Craig Levine of Radical Posting and Kosinski. Production is anticipated to begin this winter Universal is slating the film to bow This summer 19, 2013. Disney dropped the pic in March, but Universal selected up and it has managed to get a high priority, particularly with Cruise's historical attachment. Variety first reported in August that Chastain was one of many stars who examined with Cruise their email list incorporated Olivia Wilde, Brit Marling and Noomi Rapace. You will find two major female roles within the film -- the mysterious lady and Cruise's wife -- also it wasn't immediately noted for which role Chastain was settling. Chastain has made an appearance this season in Fox Searchlight's "Tree of Existence," DreamWorks' "The AssistanceInch and also the Weinstein Co.'s "Your Debt,Inch with "Coriolanus" and "Take Shelter" likely to bow later this season. She's also arrived charge in U horror pic "Mama," created by Guillermo del Toro. She's repped by CAA and Variety. Contact Justin Kroll at justin.kroll@variety.com

Came Barrymore and John Krasinski Love Whales in Trailer for 'Big Miracle'

Should you thought the approaching John Krasinski-Came Barrymore romantic drama 'Big Miracle' wasn't really known as 'Big Miracle,' you are pardoned: for any very long time, the Ken Kwapis-directed film was really referred to as 'Everybody Loves Whales.' An appropriate title, really, since because the trailer for 'Big Miracle' proves, everybody does love whales -- and they're going to move boat loads of thick arctic ice in order to save them. Watch ahead. The star-studded 'Big Miracle' -- that also features Kristen Bell, Vinessa Shaw, Dermot Mulroney, Ted Danson, Andy Daly, Tim Blake Nelson and Stephen Root -- comes to theaters on February. 3, just over time to make use of the couples-crowd that loves both Barrymore and Krasinski. Also, whales. All of them love whales. Watch in HD at Apple. Related video

R.E.M.: 5 Career-Defining Videos

R.E.M. were nothing if not pioneers -- not just in exposing the music-loving world to so-called "indie-rock," but in creating more than a dozen music videos that remain as poignant as the songs that inspired them, even decades after they first premiered on MTV. It's the mark of a truly timeless band. As news of R.E.M's breakup registers in the hearts of minds of millions of fans, The Hollywood Reporter runs down five career-defining videos from Athens, Georgia's favorite sons. "Radio Free Europe" (1981) The song that got R.E.M. signed to I.R.S. Records is a sludgy masterpiece that spit in the face of traditional radio and would come to define the indie rock sound. Produced by Mitch Easter, the track eventually made its way to the 1983 album Murmur after which MTV requested a video be shot. Arthur Pierson directed the clip in the garden of artist Howard Finster, who would later paint the album art for the band's second album, Reckoning. "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)" (1987) It only reached No. 69 on the Billboard Hot 100, but R.E.M.'s apocalyptic anthem from 1987'sDocument, also released as a 7-inch and cassette (or would that be a cassingle?), spoke to millions of pre-grunge rebels looking for a rock sound that didn't involve slick guitars and power ballads. The video was directed byJames Herbert, who was singerMichael Stipe's art teacher at the University of Georgia and had filmed several clips with the band prior. "Losing My Religion" (1991) Many say it was R.E.M.'s mainstream breakout, and for good reason: the lead-off track from the 1991 albumOut of Timereached No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the modern rock tracks. It also followed a flurry of hits from their major label debutGreen, the first album released by Warner Bros., which included polar opposite rock radio staples "Stand" and "Orange Crush." The video for "Losing My Religion" was directed by Tarsem Singh and said to be inspired bySinéad O'Connor's "Nothing Compares 2 U." "Man on the Moon" (1992) The second single off theAutomaticalbum, which eventually sold 4 million copies in the U.S., the hit made several references to late comedian Andy Kaufman and incorporated footage from some of his classic clips. The video was directed byPeter Carein the desert outside of Lancaster, Calif. "Everybody Hurts" (1993) The video for this song off of 1992'sAutomatic for the Peoplewas directed byJake Scottand shot on highway I-10 outside of San Antonio. In the liner notes to a Best Of collection released a decade later, R.E.M. guitaristPeter Bucksaid the song was aimed at teenagers. "I've never watchedBuffy the Vampire Slayer, but the idea that high school is a portal to hell seems pretty realistic to me," he wrote. Related Topics R.E.M.

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Thesps to acquire 'Smashed'

Super Crispy Entertainment is organizing a amazing cast due to its latest project "Smashed," as "The Main One Factor" heroine Mary Elizabeth Winstead and "Breaking Bad" star Aaron Paul will be in discussions to topline the indie dramedy, while Octavia Spencer, the breakout star of "The Help,In . and "Parks and Entertainment" thesp Nick Offerman will be in discussions to co-star.James Ponsoldt ("In the Black") is pointing in the script he co-written with Susan Burke.Loosely known to being an current undertake Blake Edwards' 1962 drama "Occasions of Wine and Roses," pic stars Winstead and Paul just like a couple whose bond is created around the mutual adoration for alcohol. Their relationship is provide the exam when the wife decides to acquire sober and attend AA conferences.Spencer is at predicts play Winstead's close friend and sponsor, while Offerman is at predicts play an assistant principal within the elementary school where the protag shows.Super Crispy principals Jonathan Schwartz and Andrea Sperling are coming up with alongside Jennifer Cochis, while Stephen Ricci, Elise Salomon and Stephanie Meurer assists as co-producers. Production is skedded to start around the beginning of November."Smashed" will be the third film Super Crispy has place in production this year, round the heels of Ry Russo-Young's "Nobody Walks" and Drake Doremus' untitled follow-around "Constantly,Inch which stars Guy Pearce, Amy Ryan, Felicity Manley and newcomer Mackenzie Davis. Super Crispy produced Sundance champion "Constantly,Inch which Componen Vantage opens March. 28.Winstead, who formerly starred in "Scott Pilgrim versus. the planetInch and "Live Free or Die Hard," next stars opposite Joel Edgerton in Universal's remake of "The Main One Factor," which opens March. 14. Thesp will rapidly be seen as Mary Todd Lincoln subsequently subsequently in Timur Bekmambetov's adaptation of "Abraham Lincoln subsequently subsequently: Vampire Hunter."Paul, whose bigscreen credits are the "Last House round the Left" remake, recently wrapped the Gilbert Films-produced indie "Quad." The "Large Love" thesp won an Emmy a year ago for his perf as Jesse Pinkman on AMC's "Breaking Bad."Spencer is predicted to become major honours contender on her behalf supporting turn as feisty maid Minny Jackson in "The Help.InchOfferman, who recently grew to become an associate from the cast of Lionsgate's "Gay Dude," will rapidly be alongside Will Ferrell inside the The the spanish language language-language comedy "Casa p mi padre."Winstead is repped by CAA, while Spencer is repped by WME. UTA reps Offerman, Paul and Ponsoldt, while using latter duo handled by Leverage Management and Brillstein Entertainment Partners, correspondingly. Contact Rob Sneider at rob.sneider@variety.com

Olivia Munn on I Don't Know How She Does It, Her Feminist Critics, and Trying to Do it All

Olivia Munn first became known for keeping geeks everywhere enthralled on a daily basis as the co-host of G4’s Attack of the Show, but since leaving the program to pursue acting she’s hit the ground running by joining The Daily Show, starring in the short-lived sitcom Perfect Couples, and snagging roles in upcoming projects from the likes of Aaron Sorkin and Steven Soderbergh. Speaking with Munn over the weekend about her latest film, I Don’t Know How She Does It, Movieline was determined not to ask the pun-tastic question of how, in fact, she does it. What we discovered instead was the story of how, in the course of following her Hollywood dreams, she tried to do it all. “I wanted to be at G4, doing what I was doing, and also be able to pursue acting and other creative outlets,” said Munn, wistfully explaining how she came to part ways with the network that launched her career. “I just wanted to make some other dreams come true.” Munn adds a strong credit to her resume as Momo Hahn, a Type A career-oriented analyst with a severe outlook on life and a bone-dry delivery in the Sarah Jessica Parker vehicle I Don’t Know How She Does It. She spoke with Movieline about her character, battling female stereotypes on and off-screen, being both sexy and smart despite what her critics say (and the infamous backlash to her Daily Show hiring), the frustrations that led to her split from G4, her work on Steven Soderbergh’s Magic Mike, and more. I wanted to make a point not to start by asking you how you do it, because I’m sure you’ve gotten that question a lot already. [Laughs] Yeah, I have! ‘How do you do it all?’ It’s always like, ‘This movie’s called I Don’t Know How She Does It and we watch Sarah Jessica doing that, but you with the movies and the show, how do you do it all?!’ I’m like, well, I don’t have children right now. So how are you going to start it off instead? By asking you how you found you related to the women in this film. I’m 30, I don’t have kids, and so I don’t necessarily relate to Sarah Jessica’s character as much as I do to your character, Momo. So when you first read the script, who did you find yourself relating to most? You know, the only similarity I find between my character and myself is that we’re both hardworking. I actually relate more to Sarah Jessica’s world — not that I’m in it, but it’s something that I would want one day, to be able to have children and a family and also have my work and my career. So my biggest thing was, Momo has a filter, she just chooses not to use it. She has a very structured, very specific outlook on life. That’s why I wanted to cut my hair, too. I wanted there to be nothing that was going to get in her way, even something as trivial as her hair. But she has one goal in life. I think what I loved about the role so much was that I could see how she is perceived, and you want to break down the character in a way that is harder to break down. She’s robotic, and phobic of children. ‘Oh, you want kids one day?’ I get asked that a lot. And it’s more of a rhetorical question. ‘Do you want kids one day? Do you realize that your eggs are literally falling out of you, one by one?’ And I’m like, okay, I’ve picked up on your tone. Thank you for that. Momo starts out as a career woman who doesn’t see the appeal in motherhood but then reveals a surprising maternal instinct. In that, she’s probably the most interesting character in the film. What I love about this is that some people want to put these people in a box; Momo has a very specific view in life. My mother and my aunt, they all went to university and worked really hard and got their degrees and they got married and had children and thought they had to make a choice, one or the other. And our generation, I think that’s what we see when we look at our parents. We’re not going to let family and all that stuff get in the way of our dreams. My mom growing up said to me all the time, one, ‘Don’t get pregnant.’ And ‘don’t do drugs.’ Then the last one was, ‘Never just marry a man and become his wife. Make a name for yourself.’ That’s something that she said to me all the time, and it stuck with me. But here’s the thing; my whole life is work right now. And like you’re saying, you don’t have children and you’re career-oriented, but it doesn’t mean that you don’t want to have kids. Also, if you don’t have kids it doesn’t mean that you picked your career over it. Some people don’t want to have kids. So what I wanted to do with Momo was show someone from that point of view, but also she’s an extreme version of a lot of people that I’ve seen or I’ve heard about. How do you see the women in this film? There are two people: The women who stay at home, or the women who work and have a plan in life and that’s it. But the most important thing for me was to show that if you’re a real human being you’re not just a caricature. A real human being has to be more than just that. The main storyline is, how can a woman be a great mother and a great wife and great at her job at the same time; how do you juggle that? But the B storyline to me is showing that women in different forms can be really horrible to each other, like Busy Phillips’ character, or we can be really supportive of each other if we understand each others’ world like Christina Hendricks, but what I play is that we can be women with two completely different outlooks on life and different agendas, yet be supportive and be friends and love each other and need each other. My choices with Momo, it was always coming from a place of, ‘I’m rooting for you. I’m on your team.’ Sometimes people, and even women, perpetuate this stereotype themselves, not realizing it, wanting to hold each other down. Did that come up during scenes? Sometimes we would be doing a scene and as with any great project, everyone’s really collaborative and talking about it. But one time there was a note for me to be more catty, or to say something that I just said, ‘It doesn’t matter what my delivery is on this, it doesn’t sound supportive. I won’t do it.’ The women that I know in my life, the reality, is that we are really supportive. My two best girlfriends, one’s an architect and one’s a nurse. We couldn’t be more different. Many chick flicks and romantic comedies these days do that as well, it seems. Like Something Borrowed, which actually is about two female friends competing for the same man. It’s a plane movie — you watch it on the plane. [Laughs] But that movie is like a lot of movies, not to just single that one out, where one woman is so oblivious to her best friend’s feelings about somebody else, and on the same token where one woman is so closed off to her best friend about her feelings about somebody else. Then later on when you can go and sleep with your best friend’s fianc… I’m literally like, push her off a bridge! To me, that is real in some women’s worlds. Those are the women who want to, I think, hold back other women who actually want to be more progressive. I think it’s dangerous, and people make the joke, ‘Women dress for other women.’ I’m like, no I don’t! Because one, it’s not 1995, because that joke’s old. And two, I don’t want that girl to want to have sex with me. I want that guy to want to have sex with me, and let’s just call it like it is. And sometimes, I just want to feel good for me. I don’t walk through life dressing up for other women, and I never have. It’s just obnoxious. And we have to be accountable for what we put out there, and I know how lucky we are. In the beginning when you start to do different jobs you’re just thankful to get any kind of work and do it, and people are guiding you, but you have to have a sense of self. How does that translate into your career and how it’s evolved in the last few years? From G4 to now, at what point did you try to start transitioning into acting? From the very beginning. I moved down here in 2003 and was going out for every commercial audition, doing everything I could. I got a small Nickelodeon show right before I went to G4, and they offered me a job and I actually turned it down three or four times. I thought it was a great opportunity but they were like, ‘It’s 9 to 5, Monday through Friday’ — oh no, I have to be able to continue auditioning and all that crap. They were like, what’s good for you is good for us, we want you here and we’ll work it out. I said, great! And for the first six months I dedicated everything, and after that I started auditioning for stuff. I was actually offered a TV pilot but at this point the ratings for Attack of the Show had gone up a lot. They were like, ‘Oh no, you can’t do it.’ I was like, ‘What? You promised me I could!’ ‘Well, we just can’t really afford to have you off our show right now…’ And I wasn’t going to be off, I was going to do them both. But I think the fear there was that I wouldn’t be able to do both. I said OK, I cried, the next one came around a few weeks later and they said, ‘The next one that comes around, we’ll let you do.’ They wouldn’t let me do it. Alright — hold on. You guys promised me this! They said, ‘Well, in good faith…’ Good faith! Good faith, as in their faith. I’m big on loyalty and sticking by my word. So long story short, they worked it out with the lawyers to try and figure it out, but I wanted to be able to live my dream. I wanted to be able to do this, it was a dream of mine, but I also wanted to be able to be creative in other ways. And that’s when I said, I really want to start doing comedic skits. Doing things like comedic acting pieces, and I could put on different characters and make sure the audience was always seeing me in a different character with a different name and being different people, so that when the transition did happen, if I was lucky enough for it to happen, they wouldn’t be like, ‘That’s Olivia!’ The first one we did was ‘It’s hard to be a female superhero’ with Wonder Woman… ‘There’s no pockets for your mirrors and your brush!’ ‘The invisible jet is really hard to find!’ I think that became the calling card for the network, and for myself.

Fox Orders Four More Cases of Bones, However, If Do They Really Air?

Emily Deschanel Fox has bought four more cases of Bones - nonetheless they may not air this season, TVLine reviews.Fall Preview: Get scoop inside your favorite returning showsAfter scaling back the seventh season to 13 episodes because of Emily Deschanel's pregnancy, the network has acquired the additional episodes to air either inside the summer season or incorporated within an anticipated eighth season.The extra episodes will probably be written as standalones since the season had been plotted out through 13 episodes, executive producer Stephen Nathan notifies the web site.Decrease TV: Have the lowdown relating to this season's must-see new shows"Because the show is centrally episodic, which we all know what's happening with Booth and Brennan, we could do four great episodes which act like a little-season," Nathan states. "And then we is capable of doing a four-episode small season following a 13-episode regular season."Bones premieres Thursday, November. 3 at 9/8c with six episodes, before breaking before spring, if the will return while using remaining seven. Inside the interim, its spin-in the Finder will air within the place.

World's First Max Payne 3 Game Trailer

Max has returned, bald, and incredibly angry It is a unusual occasion whenever we demonstrate a game title trailer on Empire rather than a movie one, however when it's from Rockstar Games, and it is for any much-loved franchise like Max Payne, how could we not?Sure, the film version starring Mark Wahlberg and Mila Kunis might have been, well.... pretty garbage, but there does not appear to become any unpredicted black angels in Max Payne 3, so we are already happy on that front. Obviously, Rockstar did not produce the original neo noir two slo-mo photographers - which was because of individuals lovely Finnish folk at Remedy Entertainment - however that they have absorbed the franchise, possibly don't be surprised exactly the same success they'd once they bought up Red-colored Dead a couple of in the past. Knowing in the trailer we now have for you personally below, it's much more of a contemporary undertake Max, less Las Vegas and much more Bryan Cranston from Breaking Bad - just with, you realize, more machine guns. The legendary slow motion dives can not be seen up to now, but we are sure they create a look and feel in the game. Well, they better do, anyway. The plot sees Payne from the pressure and into some heavy shit lower in Sao Paulo, where it appears what must have been an easy job has converted into a balls-to-the-floor rampage, using the girl Max was designed to safeguard from his grasp and also the only factor to hands being a set of hair clippers along with a gun or two. Still, have a look, and let's read your comments, both as players so that as movie enthusiasts. Can Rockstar revive Mr. Payne? Could it be much better than the film? Our guess: yes. Certainly yes. Max Payne 3 has gone out March 2012 for Xbox 360 360, PS3 and PC.

VIDEO Exclusive: Neil Patrick Harris Rocks On Penguins of Madagascar

Penguins of Madagascar Neil Patrick Harris features his effective pipes towards the level,the net and the way I Met Your Mother, however he's taking his singing voice to Nickelodeon's animated Penguins of Madagascar special, "Blowhole Strikes Back." Inside the hourlong special (airing Friday at 8/7c), Harris returns since the penguins' sinister enemy, Dr. Blowhole. Inside the exclusive clip below, Harris works the power ballad "Mutant Disaster," among six original tunes within the movie. See the clip. Does Harris produce a good monster, during animated form?

The Raid: Toronto Review

Audiences will be scrambling to find enough compound adjectives to describe Gareth Huw Evans hard-driving, butt-kicking, pulse-pounding, bone-crunching, skull-smashing, blood-curdling martial arts siege movie, The Raid. "Squeezing a trigger? That's like ordering takeout," scoffs one particularly psychotic killing machine when faced with the choice of using a gun or his lethal fists and feet. The director is similarly disdainful of swift execution, instead favoring the adrenaline rush of sustained pummeling. Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions grabbed U.S. rights prior to Toronto and it was announced during the festival that Mike Shinoda of Linkin Park will compose an entirely new score for the film. While the addition of some nu-metal grit certainly won't hurt, the movie is already plenty propulsive. Welsh-born Evans turned heads with his 2009 feature, Merantau. He teams again here with the same breakout action star, Iko Uwais, marrying Western genre conventions with the traditional Indonesian kickboxing discipline of silat. The influence that most comes to mind is John Carpenter's 1976 Assault on Precinct 13, albeit in a wildly amped-up homage. There's perhaps also a touch of Big Trouble in Little China thrown in. Like Carpenter, Evans brings a sly sense of amusement to his mayhem. Get More: Movie Trailers, Movies Blog In the opening scene, rookie cop Rama (Uwais) puts in time on his prayer rug and on his workout. Both are good insurance for the ordeal he is about to face. Kissing his pregnant wife, he heads out with a SWAT team on an ill-planned mission to bring down sadistic underworld kingpin Tama (Ray Sahetapy), who rules over a seedy population of thugs, criminals and junkies from his headquarters in a fortress-like Jakarta tenement block. While Evans has little use for character establishment, he introduces Tama calmly snacking on noodles before icing a lineup of bound-and-gagged rival gang members, playfully switching to a hammer when he's out of bullets. As soon as the cops get past the outer defense barriers Tama deploys his goon squad, as he monitors the entire building via closed-circuit surveillance cameras and a PA system. Most of the 20-member SWAT team are pulped before they know what hits them, leaving only a handful of men to weigh the choice of survival or the near-certain suicide of proceeding to the 15th floor to get the man they came for. One of the few to escape the initial onslaught, Rama gets his wounded colleague to a relatively safe hiding place, endures a literal close shave with a machete and then single-handedly takes on dozens of would-be assassins, mostly unarmed. The liability of a crooked cop amongst the survivors is somewhat predictable, but there's a more diverting wild card in the presence in Tama's inner circle of Rama's black-sheep brother Andi (Doni Alamsyah). As the body count mounts on both sides, the code of fraternal loyalty proves to be the one that matters. For a movie with very little downtime, The Raid is remarkably well modulated in its succession of extended set pieces. Full of dynamic physical stunts and imaginative death blows, the movie balances moments of intense quiet with fresh crescendos of visceral violence. This kind of relentless noise and carnage can be numbing in less skilled hands, but Evans, who also handled the rapid-fire editing, brings elegance and imagination to the outrageously charged action, as well as unflagging energy. In addition to Matt Flannery's nervy, hyper-agile camerawork, Evans' principal allies are his superb fight choreographers, Uwais and Yayan Ruhian. The latter also plays a stringy-haired killer who doles out the movie's most vicious punishments, going up first against former Indonesian Judo champ Joe Taslim as another cop, and then squaring off against the brothers in a spectacularly ugly battle. If Sony can find a way to steer the young male demographic into theaters to watch a subtitled Indonesian film, this could be quite a cult hit. Either way, it's a calling card that will open a lot of doors for Evans. Venue: Toronto International Film Festival (Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions) Production companies: PT Merantau Films in association with XYZ Films, Celluloid Nightmares Cast: Iko Uwais, Joe Taslim, Doni Alamsyah, Yayan Ruhian, Ray Sahetapy, Pierre Gruno, Tegar Satrya Director/screenwriter/editor: Gareth Huw Evans Producer: Ario Sagantoro Executive producer: Rangga Maya Barack-Evans, Irwan D. Musry, Nate Bolotin, Todd Brown Directorof photography: Matt Flannery Production designer: Moti D. Setyanto Music: Fajar Yuskemal, Aria Prayogi Fight choreographers: Iko Uwais, Yayan Ruhian Sales: Celluloid Nightmares No rating, 100minutes Toronto International Film Festival International Asia

The NFL Rushes Back for Another Thrilling Season

NFL It was the $9 billion question: Could NFL owners and players reach an agreement to end the bitter lockout threatening the 2011 season? After a resounding yes on July 25, teams scrambled to get ready. Record-setting TV ratings last year cemented the game's status as America's favorite sport, but what can fans expect on the field in the wake of the time-consuming labor dispute? "Teams that had very little change are going to have a huge advantage once the season starts," says CBS analyst Rich Gannon. "Some teams that have new quarterbacks, new systems, they're going to struggle." As the season kicks off tonight, TV Guide Magazine asked NFL analysts to tackle five burning questions. How much can No. 1 draft pick Cam Newton do to turn around the Panthers?Newton won the Heisman Trophy and the national championship at Auburn University, but he can't outrun NFL-rookie growing pains. "He came from a one-look-and-go passing offense," Fox analyst Daryl Johnston says. "He will struggle reading pro-style defenses coverage schemes at the NFL level." Still, the Panthers should improve on last year's 2-14 record, thanks to first-year coach Ron Rivera, who ran the Bears' defense during their 2006 Super Bowl run. "They are one of the more interesting teams," says NBC's Cris Collinsworth. "A lot of people will be following them. Who would have said that about Carolina a year ago?" Can the Packers defend their Super Bowl title?"This team actually could be better than last year," Johnston says. "People forget Green Bay had a lot of injuries last year." Among those coming back are two-time 1,200-yard rusher Ryan Grant and sure-handed tight end Jermichael Finley, who will strengthen the running game and give Super Bowl MVP Aaron Rodgers another potent weapon. "They have made minor tweaks, minor changes," Collinsworth says. "I love the quarterback, the coaching staff and the defense." The 27-year-old Rodgers was especially impressive in last season's playoffs, throwing nine touchdowns and only two interceptions while completing 70 percent of his passes in four games. "He has an amazingly quick release and terrific ability to decipher what the defense is doing," says Collinsworth. So don't be surprised if the Cheeseheads are rejoicing once again in February. What impact will Chad Ochocinco and Albert Haynesworth have on the Patriots?New England head coach Bill Belichick never hesitates to acquire projects. Expect his latest two to give the Patriots a significant boost. If flamboyant wide receiver Ochocinco gets in sync with quarterback Tom Brady, the Pats are a threat to reach their first Super Bowl in four years. "I think Chad will put up big numbers," Collinsworth says. "He will replace [the departed] Randy Moss in terms of catching bombs over the top." Look for a motivated Haynesworth to regain his dominant form playing alongside standout nose tackle Vince Wilfork. Haynesworth was overweight in Washington, where he feuded with coach Mike Shanahan. "All Bill needs [from Haynesworth] is 20 to 30 high-quality, high-effort snaps," NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock says. "I think he is going to get it." But Mayock's optimism is cautious: "If either one doesn't toe the line the Patriots' way, Bill will cut them." Will Wade Phillips help the Houston Texans finally reach the playoffs?Phillips, fired in November as the Dallas Cowboys' head coach, is in his first season as defensive coordinator for the Texans. "They have a playoff-caliber offense and they've had it for the last few years," says ESPN play-by-play man Mike Tirico. "They need a defense that is about middle-of-the-pack in terms of the stats to give them a real legitimate playoff opportunity." Tirico says Phillips has a history of joining a team and bolstering its defense, "so it would be an ideal time in Houston, because there's pressure on the coaching staff." The Texans, who joined the NFL in 2002, have never made the playoffs. They'll get an early test in Week 1 against AFC South rival Indianapolis, whose quarterback, Peyton Manning, is benched after coming off neck surgery. Says Tirico: "This might be the best time to get a leg up in the division." Can Michael Vick take the Philadelphia Eagles to the next level?"I think he can," says CBS' Gannon. "Last year he took a major step, in my opinion." Starting 12 games for the Eagles (which finished 10-6), he reestablished himself as a major talent in the wake of his dogfighting scandal. "He had career numbers in terms of completion percentage and yards and touchdowns; his quarterback rating was 100," Gannon says. "They were significant signs that this guy is beginning to really figure things out and improve as a passer, which is something I was curious to see if he could do." But Gannon adds that Vick faltered in his last two starts, losses to the Minnesota Vikings and in the wild-card playoff to the Green Bay Packers. "Can he take the next step in his development, in his maturation as a quarterback - and that's not necessarily physically, but mentally?" Gannon asks. "And part of that is recognizing pressure, being better in situational football. If he can improve, there's no reason why the Eagles won't be in the mix." Subscribe to TV Guide Magazine now!

Final Charlie Sheen Roasters Announced

Comedy Central's Roast of Charlie Sheen tapes Saturday and will air on the cable channel September 19 (a half-hour after the new Sheen-less Two and a Half Men premieres), and the network is steadily releasing the names of those set to roast the actor.our editor recommends'Two and a Half Men's' Holland Taylor Won't Roast Charlie SheenCharlie Sheen Roast: Jon Cryer Wont ParticipateCharlie Sheen Roast Deliberately Scheduled to Take On Ashton Kutchers Men Debut 'Two and a Half Men's' Ashton Kutcher, Chuck Lorre Talk Charlie Sheen, Series Reboot PHOTOS: Charlie Sheen's Colorful Career Its latest batch of roasters includes William Shatner, Kate Walsh and comedians Jon Lovitz, Patrice O'Neal (The Office) and Amy Schumer (Red Eye). The show will also feature a "special appearance" from guitarist Slash. STORY: Charlie Sheen Roast to Get Huge Marketing Push From Comedy Central Sheen's former Men co-stars Jon Cryer and Holland Taylor have said they won't be participating in the lambasting of the actor, who was fired from the show in March. No word has been released from Angus T. Jones on his participation. VIDEO: Charlie Sheen Roast: Two More Promos Released Last week Comedy Central announced Mike Tyson, Jackass' Steve-O, TMZ's Harvey Levin, comedians Jeffrey Ross and Anthony Jeselnik (former Late Night with Jimmy Fallon writer), who will join Roast Master Seth MacFarlane. RELATED: PHOTOS: Charlie Sheen's Crazy Twit Pics VIDEO: Charlie Sheen: Roast Is a 'Celebration of Who I Am' Related Topics Harvey Levin Holland Taylor Kate Walsh Slash William Shatner Charlie Sheen Comedy Central Jon Cryer Two and a Half Men

5 Things You Do Not Know About 2 . 5 Men's Angus T. Johnson

Angus T. Johnson Angus T. Johnson puts the "half" in 2 . 5 Males and, by our count, will get under half the interest that his fellow teen stars - not to mention his ex-costar Charlie Sheen - get. But he is among the most effective, as well as loaded, youthful stars within the biz. Because the refurbished Males gears up for Season 9, listed here are five things to understand about the reduced-key Johnson, that has been playing Jon Cryer's underachieving boy, Mike, since he was 9.What's in your Watchlist? Create one and add your faves, like 2 . 5 Males 1. Johnson, who turns 18 on March. 8, may be the greatest-compensated child TV actor after signing a $300,000-per-episode contract this past year, ensuring him $7.8 million over two seasons. Ok last one, additionally, there are that hefty $500,000 signing bonus. Under his previous contract, he gained $250,000 a chapter. The following greatest-compensated minor out there: iCarly's Miranda Cosgrove, who reels in $180,000 per episode.2. An Austin, Texas, native, Johnson and the family gone to live in La when he was 4, but he never thought about being an actress. Rather, his mother required him to auditions wishing he might make some cash for his college savings. Johnson began doing advertisements coupled with a small sector within the 1999 film Simpatico. He arrived his initial film role, See Place Run opposite David Arquette, when he was 6.3. Johnson was the only real child actor Chuck Lorre and Males producers saw for negligence Mike. Lorre requested Johnson to audition having seen his turn as Dennis Quaid's boy within the Rookie and immediately offered him offered the task after. Johnson learned he was cast because he was departing the audition. Exclusive: Ashton Kutcher, Jon Cryer and Angus T. Johnson about the new 2 . 5 Men4. Males is well known because of its racy jokes and sexual innuendoes, but Johnson hasn't requested his castmates or producers to describe the adult humor to him - even when they desired to. "At some point I requested him if he desired to know and that he stated no," Cryer told The La Occasions last year. "He does not take it track of me. He isn't like lots of boys."5. Had Males ended following the Sheen debacle captured, Johnson would have been perfectly fine by using it because he would have came back to college for any regular year. Education happens to be a primary focus from the actor and that he plans to visit college. Next? You never know? Johnson has stated he isn't confident that he really wants to continue acting.2 . 5 Males returns Monday, Sept. 19 at 9/8c on CBS.