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Episode 31 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of May 11, 2015.  The Incredibles 2 is up next, many TV shows are axed by the networks, NBC's Undateable will be live all next season, and also next season we'll have two live musicals on TV. Movie News Captain America: Civil War has officially started production, and as that happened there was news of two new cast members. Paul Rudd joined in his Ant Man role, and William Hurt will return to the Marvel cinematic universe as General Ross, last seen in The Incredible Hulk. Ross is the man that tried to bring down the Hulk, and also the father of Bruce Banner’s love interest Betty. This film now contains so many of the MCU characters, it’s starting to feel like a junior version of The Avengers. Captain America: Civil War is directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, and opens on May 6, 2016. The Hollywood Reporter brings news that Dreamworks has won the bidding war for the sci-fi comedy “Alpha Squad Seven”, which already had Furious 7 star Dwayne Johnson attached. Details on the script are being kept quiet, but it is being compared to Independence Day and Armageddon. Brad Bird, director of this month’s release Tomorrowland, has confirmed that his next film will be the sequel to the 2005 Pixar film The Incredibles. Bird wrote and directed the original, and is in the process of writing the sequel. After much conjecture about the story for The Incredibles 2, Bird took to twitter to try to calm the fans by sending quote "Reports" have been saying a LOT of nonsense about the plot of Incredibles 2. Just relax. I've got this.” Unquote. Variety reports that Warner Bros. has acquired the spec script “The Infinite Horizon” written by Ryan Condal, which is based on the graphic novel series by Gerry Duggan. Greg Berlanti, Executive Producer on the CW’s Arrow and The Flash, is attached to produce. The graphic novel is the story of a soldier who ends up stranded halfway across the globe when a war ends, and his trek home.   TV News A number of series were cancelled this week across all networks. Some of the notables getting the ax are: FOX Backstrom The Following The Mindy Project Red Band Society ABC: Forever Resurrection Revenge CW Hart of Dixie The Messengers NBC About a Boy Constantine Marry Me State of Affairs   In the same announcements, NBC’s comedy Undateable was renewed for Season 3, and the new season will air all episodes live. Undateable aired

Episode 30 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of May 4, 2015.  New cast members for Independence Day 2, Barbershop 3, and Captain America: Civil War.  On TV, a new version of Roots, and an adaptation of Brave New World.  And of course, updates on the NBA and NHL playoffs. Movie News Roland Emmerich took to Twitter last week to announce that “It Follows” star Maika Monroe had joined the cast of Independence Day 2. however, he did not mention her role. It was later revealed that Monroe would be assuming the role of Patricia Whitmore, the president’s daughter, a role played in the original by Mae Whitman. No reason has been given why Whitman was not invited back, but word is she was not even on the short list. Following news of Monroe’s casting was word that Sela Ward has also joined the cast of the Independence Day sequel, and will portray the President of the United States. Independence Day 2 hit theaters on June 24, 2016. Variety reports that rapper Nicki Minaj has joined the cast of “Barbershop 3″. Ice Cube and Cedric the Entertainer are returning, however, the series will have it’s third director in three outings. Malcolm D. Lee, who directed the “Best Man” movies, is directing “Barbershop 3″ from a script by Kenya Barris and Tracy Oliver. Minaj will play Draya, a new hairdresser in the beauty shop portion of the barbershop. No release date has been set, but look for it some time next year. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Louis CK is wearing the hats or writer, director, and actor in the upcoming indie film “I’m a Cop.” The film is about a depressed man whose mother is a decorated police officer. The man becomes a volunteer police officer, but when his mother dies, he decides to finally become a real cop. Bilbo Baggins and Dr Watson, also known as Martin Freeman, has joined the cast of Marvel’s Captain America: Civil War. Freeman role has not been announced, but fans are surely in great anticipation of that news. Captain America: Civil War hits theaters on May 6, 2016.   TV News Netflix has ordered 13 episodes of an animated version of the classic Dr. Seuss series Green Eggs and Ham. Their press release with the announcement was dead on, and read: “We’d love to share some happy news, based on the rhymes of Dr. Seuss. Green Eggs and Ham will become a show, and you’re among the first to know.” Ellen DeGeneres, along with others, is executive producing. History, A&E and Lifetime have gr

Episode 29 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of April 27, 2015.  Lots of sequel news, including Zoolander, TMNT, Goon, and Super Troopers.  The Full House follow-up is coming to Netflix, and The X-Files in HD is now streaming.  Plus, updates on the NBA and NHL playoffs. Movie News Marvel announced that screenwriters Nicole Perlman and Meg LeFauve have been hired to write the scrit for the Captain Marvel movie. Perlman was one of the writers on Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy and LeFauve co-wrote this summer’s Pixar offering Inside Out. According to The Hollywood Reporter, each writer had written their own version of Captain Marvel, and that this pairing would combine best of each of those scripts. No director has been announced. Captain Marvel is scheduled for release November 2, 2018. Zoolander 2 is returning another of the characters from the 2001 original. Billy Zane has officially joined the cast of the sequel, joining previously announced Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, and Will Ferrell. Following that news, we learned that Late Night with Seth Meyers band leader Fred Armisten has also joined the cast. Zoolander 2 opens on February 12, 2016. Seann William Scott took to Reddit to announce that Goon 2, the sequel to the 2011 hockey comedy Goon, begins shooting this June, based on a script co-written by Jay Baruchel, who also co-wrote the original. No director has been announced. Expect Goon 2 to hit theaters sometime in 2016. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 begins full production in May, with Megan Fox and Will Arnett returning in their roles from the original. This week we got two bits of casting news from Variety. Actor and filmmaker Tyler Perry has joined the cast and will portray Baxter Stockman. Fans of the TMNT know that Stockman is the mad scientist that created the “Mousers”—robots that destroy sewer rats, which obviously puts him at odds with the TMNT. And, Brian Tee, known to comic movie fans from his role in The Wolverine, will play the villain Shredder. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 hits theaters on June 3, 2016. Super Troopers is a 2001 cult comedy about five Vermont state troopers that are more screw-ups than crime fighters. The film makers behind that classic, The Broken Lizard comedy troupe, took to Indiegogo in an attempt to crowdfund the long anticipated sequel. Their goal was for $2 million, and they reached it in a matter of 26 hours. When the campaign ended, they had raised over 4.4 million dollars, and

Episode 28 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of April 20, 2015.  A Flash Gordon film is on the way, more X-Men casting, Wonder Woman has a new director, Preacher has been cast, and the best week of movie trailers ever. Movie News Matthew Vaughn, director of X-Men: First Class and Kingsman: The Secret Service will direct a new version of Flash Gordon, the comic strip that hit the big screen many times, including in the 1980 version starring Max Von Sydow as Emperor Ming. The script was written by J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay. No word yet on any casting. Bryan Singer expanded the cast of X-Men: Apocalypse expands by adding Olivia Munn. Munn will play Betsy Braddock, better known to comic fans as Psylocke. Braddock, a telepath, took over the body and abilities of a Japanese ninja, Kwannon, becoming the X-Men member known as Psylocke.  X-Men: Apocalypse hits theaters on May 27, 2016. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Patty Jenkins has signed on with Warner Bros.' to replace Michelle MacLaren as the director of Wonder Woman. Jenkins was at one point targeted to direct Thor 2.  Jenkins first film was Monster starring Charlize Theron. With such a quick hiring, the film is likely still on track for it’s 2017 release. Director Roland Emmerich announced this week that two more cast member from the original Independence Day will be back for the sequel. Bill Pullman is returning as the former president, and Judd Hirsch is also back, portray Julius Levinson, the father of Jeff Goldblum's David Levinson. Slashfilm.com reports that director Gareth Edwards confirmed the plot of Star Wars: Rogue One, the first of the newly titled Star Wars Anthology series films. The plot is quote “A band of resistance fighters unite for a daring mission to steal the Death Star plans in Star Wars anthology film, Rogue One.” He confirmed the story takes place between Star Wars 3 and 4, a time in which the Jedi are basically extinct. Rogue One is scheduled for release on December 16, 2016.   TV News Netflix announced that "Orange Is The New Black" has been renewed for a fourth season. The third season of "Orange Is The New Black" is set to debut on Netflix on Friday, June 12, and the now confirmed fourth season will premiere on Netflix in 2016. Seth Rogen took to twitter to announce that the lead in his comic adaptation pilot “Preacher” has been cast. Dominic Cooper, known to comic movie fans as Howard Stark from Captain America and Agent Carter,

Episode 27 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of April 13, 2015.  A Deadpool villain is confirmed, as well as another mutant for X-Men: Apocalypse, Cogsworth has been cast for the live-action Beauty and the Beast, and we take a look at the upcoming NHL and NBA playoffs. Movie News Ed Skrein (Game of Thrones) is confirmed as playing the villain Ajax in the Deadpool film. In addition, based on some set photos it seems that the mutant Colossus will appear in the film. Deadpool, starring Ryan Reynolds and likely rated R, arrives in theaters on February 12, 2016. Empireonline.com reports that Bryan Singer has confirmed that the mutant Angel will be in X-Men: Apocalypse, and that he'll be played by Ben Hardy. And there is speculation online, based on concept art, that we may also see Archangel. X-Men: Apocalypse hits theaters on May 19, 2016. Variety reports that Lionsgate has selected Project Almanac director Dean Israelite to direct its reboot of Power Rangers. Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz are writing the script. The film is a re imagining of the The 1993 Fox Kids TV series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and is expected to hit theaters on July 22, 2016. Also from Variety, Gandolf and Magneto himself has joined the cast of Disney’s live-action Beauty and the Beast as Cogsworth . If you've seen the animated version or the Broadway show, you know that Cogsworth is the butler that is turned into a clock. So you’re sure not to miss it, set your clock for March 17, 2017. Deadline.com reports that Kingsman: The Secret Service actress Sofia Boutella has been cast in lead role in the next Star Trek feature. This film, directed by Justin Lin and produced by Bad Robot, is set to be released on July 8, 2016, in time for Star Trek’s 50th anniversary. From The Hollywood Reporter, as a result of creative differences, Michelle MacLaren has dropped out of directing the upcoming Wonder Woman film starring Gail Gadot. No word yet on a replacement, nor if this will push back the planned 2017 release.   TV News ABC is bringing Family Feud back to prime-time in a celebrity version. Premiering on Sunday, June 21, Celebrity Family Feud, will be a six-episode series featuring celebrities competing with their families for charity following the infamous Family Feud format. The show will be hosted by Steve Harvey. Deadline.com reports that Brenda Song has landed a regular role on the NBC comedy pilot Take It From Us. This show, from Sony and Universal

Episode 26 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of April 6, 2015.  News from Disney on surprise Avengers cast members, live action Winnie the Pooh is on the way, and all six Star Wars films in digital release.  Plus the CW superhero spinoff casts Hawkgirl, and we look at the box office history of the Fast & Furious franchise. Movie News Disney sent a press release for the April 13 premiere of Avengers: Age of Ultron, and it contained two surprises--Julie Delpy and Linda Cardellini.  No word yet on what roles they are playing. As expected, the live action redo of animated classics trend at Disney continues. They announced last week that they are working on a live-action feature adaptation of Winnie The Pooh. The focus of the film will be Christopher Robin as an adult. 20th Century Fox and Hasbro are teaming up for a live-action Play-Doh film. Deadline.com reports that Bridesmaids director Paul Feig is negotiating to direct the film, with Jason Micallef writing the script. Walt Disney Studios, Lucasfilm Ltd., and 20th Century Fox have announced that the complete Star Wars Saga will finally be available on digital HD in all markets, beginning April 10. The Set includes all six films and some bonus extras, and will cost $100.00 for the set or individually at $20.00 per film. Purists will be disappointed, as this set includes the Special Edition version of the original trilogy, not the original theatrical version that fans have been looking for for years.   TV News Deadline.com reports that Broadway veteran Ciara Renee has joined the cast of the in-development spin-off of The Flash and Arrow. Renee will play the role of Kendra Saunders, also known as Hawkgirl, who is a warrior with wings that grow out of her back. Still no word on a title nor an air date for this new show. The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that Netflix has ordered four 30-minute episodes of a new sketch comedy titled With Bob and David. The series stars Bob Odenkirk, whom you may know from Better Call Saul, and David Cross of Alvin and the Chipmunks. This pair appeared together for four years in the HBO sketch series Mr. Show With Bob and David. After Syfy cancelled Wil Wheaton’s talk show last summer, they are again looking at a weekly talk show. They announced that they teaming with Chris Hardwick to develop a Nerdist News series, expanding on the Nerdist News YouTube series, which is hosted by Jessica Chobot. A host for the proposed Syfy show has not been announc

Episode 25 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of March 30, 2015.  Alien Nation is being remade, X-Files is returning to Fox and Coach is also back, Final Four facts, and some Easter videos. Movie News According to The Hollywood Repo...

Episode 24 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of March 23, 2015.  Blue Thunder is being remade, Fast & Furious is becoming a ride, Avengers: Infinity War now has directors, and a fun baseball pool for the upcoming season. Movie News ...

Episode 23 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of March 16, 2015.  We'll be getting sequels to both Mallrats and Frozen, Seinfeld will soon be streaming, and some little known facts about St. Patrick's Day. Movie News Writer-director-comic book fan Kevin Smith has confirmed that we will be getting a sequel to 1995’s “Mallrats”. That comedy starred Smith, Ben Affleck, and Shannen Doherty and though it did not do well at the box office, it has become a cult classic. Smith stated the that script is half done, and shooting will begin in mid-2016. Variety reports that Frozen’s Josh Gad will play Gaston’s sidekick LeFou in Disney’s upcoming live-action “Beauty and the Beast” film. He joins Emma Watson as Belle, Dan Stevens as the Beast and Luke Evans as Gaston. Beauty and the Beast will be directed by Bill Condon, and starts filming later this year. No release date has been set. Moviefone reported that Hotel Transylvania director Genndy Tartakovsky is no longer working on the Sony Pictures Animation’s Popeye movie. It appears that the studio’s new management is putting things on hold, and will be re-evaluating which projects will go forward.  Check out the sneak peek created for the project. https://youtu.be/i4tNuM9XttM Disney has announced they will be making a sequel to Frozen. Not much detail, but Josh Gad attended the announcement, and it was stated the characters will return to Arendelle.   TV News The Wall Street Journal reports that Sony Pictures Television is in advanced talks to sell the 180 episodes of “Seinfeld” to an online video streaming service. Bidders include Hulu, Amazon and Yahoo, but not Netflix. Netflix acquired the episodes of Friends last year for $500,000 per-episode, and word is that Sony is seeking a higher price than that for Seinfeld. The Pop Network, formerly known as TV Guide Network, has renewed “Schitt’s Creek,” for a second season. The show, created by Eugene and Daniel Levy, stars Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara, Catch the show Wednesdays at 10:00 pm. Deadline.com reports that another character from the Arrow-Flash universe is joining the CW’s superhero spinoff show. Dominic Purcell will reprise his role as Mick Rory/Heat Wave, and joins Brandon Routh, Wentworth Miller, Victor Garber and Caity Lotz in the new show, which is targeted for next season.   NCAA Basketball Tournaments The NCAA Men’s Basketball tournament bracket is set, and the top seeds are: Kentuck

Episode 22 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of March 9, 2015.  Hawkeye will fight the Civil War, Sharknado casts a human Shark, another new (but male) Ghostbusters, and it's NCAA Basketball Tournament bracket time. Movie News Jeremy Renner, who plays Hawkeye in this summer’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron, has been confirmed as included in the cast of Captain America: Civil War. This will be Renner’s fourth outing as Hawkeye, including the two Avengers films and his small role in the original Thor.  Renner joins Robert Downey Jr., who has also been confirmed, along with Anthony Mackie and Scarlett Johansson. Deadline.com reports that Sony Pictures is expanding the Ghostbusters franchise with a male-driven outing following the Paul Feig-directed female-driven film that starts shooting this summer. Captain America: The Winter Soldier directors Joe and Anthony Russo are targeted to be behind the camera. Word is that Channing Tatum will be wooed to play one of the Ghostbusters. Shooting is targeted for summer 2016.   TV News Dallas Mavericks owner and Shark Tank panelist Mark Cuban will play the President of the United States, and political commentator Ann Coulter will play his Vice President in Syfy’s upcoming Sharknado 3. Again starring Ian Ziering and Tara Reid, the third edition of Sharknado will premiere on Syfy in July, This time the sharks wreak havoc from Washington, D.C., down to Florida. Bridgit Mendler of the Disney Channel hit Good Luck Charlie has joined the cast of NBC’s comedy Undatable. Catch the second season premiere next Tuesday, March 17, at 9pm on NBC. Fox has announced summer premiere dates. Popular quiz show Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? returns for a new season, beginning Tuesday, May 26, 8:00 pm, again hosted by Jeff Foxworthy. The 12th season of So You Think You Can Dance kicks off with auditions on Monday, June 1, 8:00 pm. Judge Nigel Lythgoe is joined by new judges Paula Abdul and Jason Derulo. And finally, a new quiz show titled BOOM!, hosted by comedian Tom Papa, premieres on Thursday, June 25, 8:00 pm. AMC’s Walking Dead spinoff has not only been ordered to series, it has been renewed for season 2 months before it airs. Season 1, which premieres late summer, will consist of six one-hour episodes. Season two is scheduled for 2016.   Online Videos As we are now less than 2 months out from Avengers: Age of Uitron, take a look at this deleted scene from The Avengers in which Captain Ameri

Episode 21 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of March 2, 2015.  The long awaited Blade Runner sequel progresses, Aliens 5 is coming, and we pay our respects to the late, great Leonard Nimoy. Movie News Alcon Entertainment’s confirmed that Harrison Ford will return for a second outing as Rick Deckard in their upcoming sequel to the 1982 sci-fi classic Blade Runner. The film will begin shooting summer 2016. No release date has been set, but it we should expect it some time in 2017. Sigourney Weaver will return as Ripley in Neill Blomkamp’s Alien sequel. Earlier Blomkamp had described this sequel as “the genetic sibling of Aliens”, saying “it’s Alien, Aliens and then this film”, after which he followed up by saying his film will not undo the events in Alien 3 and Alien: Resurrection. The new film is expected to arrive in 2017. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Nu Image/Millennium has hired Christopher Cosmos to write a brand new script for a Red Sonja film. No director nor actors are attached. Red Sonja last hit the big screen in the 1985 version starring Brigitte Nielsen. Deadline.com reports that Warner Bros. is developing an animated feature film based on Cartoon Network’s Adventure Time. The film will be produced by Chris McKay and Roy Lee, who both worked on 2014’s The Lego Movie.   TV News Legendary Entertainment and Fullscreen are rebooting the 1970’s superhero series “Electra Woman and Dyna Girl”. The two heroes will be played by YouTube stars Grace Helbig and Hannah Hart. Fullscreen will debut the series in the U.S. Meagan Good of Anchorman 2 and Stark Sands of Inside Llewyn Davis will star in the upcoming The Minority Report pilot, a series sequel to the 2002 Steven Spielberg film starring Tom Cruise. Good will play a detective, and Sands will play twin brother Precogs that both have the ability to see murders before they happen. An untitled project currently in development for CW will team up superheroes and villians from both Arrow and The Flash, including Arrow‘s Ray Palmer/The Atom (Brandon Routh), Flash villain Leonard Snart/Captain Cold (Wentworth Miller), and Flash‘s Dr. Martin Stein (Victor Garber). The show is being developed by Arrow creators Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg and Marc Guggenheim.   Online Videos With another Alien sequel now getting going, I wanted to highlight this deleted scene from the original 1979 Alien. WARNING: this scene is a bit gruesome. http://youtu.b

Episode 20 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of February 23, 2015.  House of Cards season 3 this week, more casting news for Oliver Stone's Snowden film, and Wesley Snipes in an NBC pilot.  Plus some fun online videos and the highlights of this year's movie releases. Movie News The Oscars were presented last Sunday, and answering last week’s feedback question, there were two films tied for the most trophies—Birdman and Grand Budapest Hotel. Of the two, Birdman took home the more prestigious awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay. Nicolas Cage has joined the cast of Oliver Stone‘s Snowden, the story of Edward Snowden, the man that leaked US National Security Agency information to the media in 2013. Cage joins Joseph Gordon Levitt, who is playing Snowden, and Shailene Woodley, who plays Snowden’s girlfriend, Lindsay Mills, and Zachary Quinto, who is playing journalist Glenn Greenwald. Shooting has already begun in Germany, and is set for a Christmas release. DC Comics fans got a treat this week as Zack Snyder tweeted the first image of Jason Momoa as Aguaman, with the caption “There is only one true king #unitetheseven.” In the photo, Momoa is sporting a full beard, wild long hair, and full-body tatoos. We will first see Aquaman on screen in next year’s Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice.   TV News Calista Flockhart, of Ally McBeal and more recently Brothers & Sisters, has joined the cast of CBS’ “Supergirl”. Flockhart will portray Cat Grant, the founder of CatCo, where Kara Zor-El (Melissa Benoist) works as her assistant. Wesley Snipes has been hired to star in the NBC's drama pilot Endgame, from The Blacklist producers John Davis and John Fox. Endgame takes place in Las Vegas, where a former sniper is forced to complete a series of heroic challenges in order to save innocent lives. Snipes plays the intelligent and mysterious pit boss for this Game. John Rogers of The Librarians‘ is writing the script. NBC tweeted during the Oscars that Neil Patrick Harris will be starring in his own variety show this fall on NBC. No other details are available yet.   MLB News Major League baseball spring training in underway, with most teams having already reported. Games begin this Sunday, March 1.  Spring training occurs in two states—the Grapefruit League plays it’s games in Florida, and the Cactus League plays in Arizona. Each league is comprised of teams from both the Ameri

Episode 19 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of February 16, 2015.  The Assassin's Creed film is underway, a fourth installment for the Chipmunks, and facts and a video on the Oscars. Movie News Ubisoft confirmed that the cinematic adaptation of the Assassin's Creed gaming series will hit theaters on December 21, 2016, and that it has officially started production. Director Guy Ritchie’s King Arthur film, Knights of the Round Table, has cast the role of Arthur’s father. Eric Bana will portray the father of the famed king. Charlie Hunnam is set to play Arthur. Release is scheduled for July 22, 2016. Tony Hale of HBO’s Veep will play the villain in Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip, This is the fourth in the Chipmunks film series. Jason Lee is back as Dave, the Chipmunks’ caretaker, and Justin Long, Matthew Gray Gubler and Jesse McCartney are back as the voices of Alvin, Simon and Theodore. The fun arrives on December 23, 2015.   TV News The Wrap reports that James Franco will star in Hulu’s nine-part series 11/22/63, based on the 2011 Stephen King novel and produced by J.J. Abrams. Franco will play an English teacher who finds a portal that transports him back in time to the 1958, giving him the chance to stop John F. Kennedy’s assassination—if he chooses to stay in the past for five years. No premiere date has been set for the series. TNT has renewed its adventure series The Librarians. The Librarians finished the year as basic cable's #2 new series of 2014, second only to TNT's The Last Ship. TNT has ordered 10 episodes for the second season, which will air later in 2015.   NFL News Plans to build an NFL-caliber stadium in Inglewood, CA are moving quickly. Reports are that the plans for an 80,000 seat facility could get approval from the Ingelwood City Council at a Feb. 24 council meeting. The NFL Scouting combine is being held this week at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Over 300 prospects will participate in an effort to elevate their draft position. On field workouts begin on Friday, February 20.   Online Videos Watch as President Obama parodies himself and takes a selfie using a selfie stick in Buzzfeed’s video promoting healthcare.gov. http://youtu.be/KKxY9GqBLEk The next video is thought provoking, and likely fairly polarizing. It is called “Free Killer Tan”, and shows people in NYC being tricked into coming in to a tanning salon expecting to get a free tanning session, but instead

Episode 18 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of February 9, 2015.  More Spaceballs are on the way, Sling TV is now live, and I list my top five flims for you to watch with your sweetheart on Valentine's Day. Movie News Mel Brooks confirmed in an appearance on Adam Carolla’s podcast that he is developing a sequel to his 1987 sci-fi comedy Spaceballs. He wants some of the original cast back for the new chapter. Brooks said the sequel is tentatively titled “Spaceballs: The Search For More Money”, and he hopes to begin filming in 2016. Variety reports that Nicolas Cage will star in USS Indianapolis: Men Of Courage, the story of the worst disaster in US Naval history, the sinking of the USS Indianapolis. The ship was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine, and the lives of almost 900 sailors were lost. Cage will star as Captain Charles Butler McVay, the man who was court-martialed after the ship was torpedoed, then exonerated more than 50 years later. The film will be directed by Mario Van Peebles and is scheduled to be released on Memorial Day weekend in 2016. The Hollywood Reporter reports that Neighbors 2, the sequel to 2014’s Seth Rogen/Zach Effron comedy, is moving forward, with shooting set to begin in a few months. Both Rogen and Effron are on board, as are Rose Byrne, director Nicholas Stoller, screenwriters Andrew Jay Cohen and Brendan O’Brien. This time it’s a sorority that moves next door to the couple, and they recruit Efron to help them outdo.   TV News The trailer for Netflix’s latest original series, Bloodline, was released this week. This thiller is about a family’s eldest son coming home and threatening to expose the family’s dark secrets. The show stars Kyle Chandler of Friday Night Lights, Linda Cardellini of Mad Men, Sam Shepard of The Right Stuff, and Sissy Spacek of r. All 13 episodes of “Bloodline,” will be available in 4K on Netflix on Friday, March 20th. Sling TV from Dish Network is now live and available to you on your Roku box, your Android or iOS device, or your PC. For $20 per month, you get ESPN, ESPN2, TNT, TBS, CNN, Disney Channel, and others, and soon you will also get AMC. You won’t get local channels, but a decent antenna will bring those in in most markets. Sling TV will soon add support for Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick, Xbox One, Samsung and LG TVs, and Google Chromecast.   Online Videos Valentine for Boston flash mob. http://youtu.be/irPDNeWulUw   Basketball trick

Episode 17 of the What's Up On Earth? podcast for the week of February 2, 2015.  The Ghostbusters reboot cast is announced, two new members of the AKA Jessica Jones cast, big game related videos, and a super celebrity bet. Movie News Disney announced that the two episodes of the Star Wars saga following December’s The Force Awakens will be two years apart. So, look for episode 8 in 2017, and episode 9 in 2019. We’ve learned the cast members of Paul Feig’s upcoming Ghostbusters reboot—they are Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones. Release is scheduled for July 22, 2016. The Sleepless Night, an American remake of a 2011 French film, has cast Jamie Foxx and Michelle Monaghan. Slashfilm.com has referred to the original film as “Die Hard  in a nightclub crossed with Taken.”   TV News Marvel upcoming Netflix series "A.K.A. Jessica Jones“ has added two new cast members. Rachael Taylor will portray Trish Walker, Jessica Jones' best friend on the show. Also joining the show in a yet to be announced role is Carrie-Anne Moss. Moss played Trinity in the Matrix trilogy. More Supergirl news this week as True Blood's Mehcad Brooks has been cast as James Olsen, and word is that the villain faced in the pilot episode will be The Lumberjack. According to the DC wiki, The Lumberjack is a Canadian Assassin that made one appearance in the comics in the June 1980 issue of Wonder Woman. HBO has given the go ahead to Lewis and Clark, a six-hour miniseries starring Casey Affleck and Matthias Schoenaerts. The story follows Lewis and Clark as they search for an all-water route to the Pacific Ocean. The series is based on Stephen E. Ambrose’s Undaunted Courage.   Online Videos The Madden NFL 15 Super Bowl prediction is scary accurate. http://youtu.be/i8WXhQVfQTA   The NFL's picks for the top 10 Superbowl plays of all time. http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-network-total-access/0ap2000000133132/Top-10-Super-Bowl-plays   With the Super Bowl this week, and all the attention on the commercials, I had to include my favorite commercial of all time--the eTrade commercial from 2000. http://youtu.be/LjpcaRxgtlA   Super Bowl Bet - Pratt and Evans Listen for the details of and my thoughts on the Chris Pratt / Chris Evans bet.   Feedback Question How do you like to watch TV--weekly or binge?  Leave your answer in the comments below.   That's it for the week of  February 2, 2015.  Thanks for visiting, and come