Diana Rigg, Ciaran Hinds: 'Game of Thrones:' A Look at Season 3's New Faces and Characters (YAHOO)

By Carrie Bell | Yahoo! TV – Mon, Mar 25, 2013 1:03 PM PDT

The cast dishes on Ciaran Hinds, Diana Rigg, and (spoiler!) a giant arriving in Westeros this season.

Helen Sloan/HBO - Mance Raydar (Ciaran Hinds) and Lady Olenna Tyrell (Diana Rigg) in "Game of Thrones" Season 3.

SPOILER ALERT: This post contains storyline and character spoilers for the third season of "Game of Thrones."

With 27 series regulars and hundreds of guest stars, day players, and extras wandering in and out of Westeros and points beyond, keeping track of who's who on "Game of Thrones" is almost as big a feat as planning the Battle of Blackwater Bay. That task isn't going to get any easier when Season 3, which was shot by three units across five countries and promises plenty of fresh faces, begins March 31 on HBO.

Arguably, the most major addition to the cast was Ciaran Hinds. One, his resumé is as respected as Tywin Lannister's and almost as long as the feared coming winter, with "Rome," "Harry Potter," "Political Animals," and "There Will Be Blood" among the highlights. Two, he is portraying Mance Rayder, the ex-Night's Watchman who united 90 clans into one Wildling army currently moving in on the Wall. Rose Leslie (Ygritte) admitted at the junket last week in Beverly Hills to being a tad starstruck as "we've been watching him from a young age. Phenomenal."

Kit Harington, whose Jon Snow is trying to infiltrate the camp and must get Rayder to trust him, was also in awe. "He's a wonderful, wonderful man, and for someone who hadn't read the books and hadn't even seen the show when he joined and did his first few scenes, he nailed the character. That's the mark of the man's genius and genius of the writing."

READ MORE: http://tv.yahoo.com/news/-game-of-thrones---a-look-at-season-3-s-new-faces-and-characters-200346280.html

Game of Thrones Season 3: Richard Madden The epic journey continues with season three (GULF NEWS)

There are times when the epic journey that his character, Robb Stark, has embarked on in Game of Thrones has felt a little similar to Richard Madden’s own experience working on the acclaimed HBO show. You might say that they’ve grown up together.

On screen, Madden plays Robb Stark who, when still a very young man, is chosen to lead his people after his father Ned (played by Sean Bean) is murdered at the hands of the Starks’ bitter enemies, The Lannisters.
The warring clans are at the heart of a brutal battle for control of Westeros, the fictional land created by George R. R. Martin in his brilliantly imagined series of best selling fantasy novels, A Song of Ice and Fire. Martin has now completed five volumes and a further two are planned.

Madden was just 21 when he landed the much sought after role in the show, which is based on Martin’s books, and he recently completed the third season. He has, he says, come of age as an actor during that time, mirroring his character, Robb, who develops into an assured, charismatic leader as the story unfolds.

“I went from being a young actor getting a great part in a big show, which I didn’t expect, with more and more pressure being put on me as an actor, which I’ve really enjoyed and hopefully I’ve handled well and acquitted myself well,” he says


READ MORE: http://gulfnews.com/arts-entertainment/celebrity/game-of-thrones-season-3-richard-madden-1.1163530

HBO: 'Game of Thrones' piracy is a compliment by James Hibberd (EW)

How does HBO feel about having the most pirated show on TV?

Not too bad, apparently.

HBO programming president Michael Lombardo spoke to EW about the rampant illegal downloading of the network’s fantasy hit drama Game of Thrones, which returns for its third season tonight.
The show’s second season was recently released to record-setting DVD sales for the network. But in December, Thrones topped another chart that is far more dubious — Thrones ranked as the most illegally downloaded TV series for 2012. “I probably shouldn’t be saying this, but it is a compliment of sorts,” Lombardo said. “The demand is there. And it certainly didn’t negatively impact the DVD sales. [Piracy is] something that comes along with having a wildly successful show on a subscription network.”

The show is currently, on a per-season basis, the network’s top money-earner despite widespread piracy of the show, the executive confirmed. “If you look at aggregate of international and DVD sales — which are the two revenue streams we look at since we’re not selling it domestically on another platform — yes, absolutely, in terms of shows we have on now,” Lombardo said.

In fact, one of Lombardo’s issues with piracy is a creative one. The executive expressed concern that illegal copies can be of poor quality when the Thrones team takes pride in lavishly producing the show. “One of my worries is about the copies [downloaders are] seeing,” Lombardo said. “The production values of this show are so incredible. So I’m hoping that in the purloined different generation of cuts that the show is holding up.”

READ MORE: http://insidetv.ew.com/2013/03/31/hbo-thrones-piracy/

Ciaran Hinds: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Game of Thrones Star Ciarán Hinds is Not Funny He has specifically requested that we not elaborate on this headline.

By Kimberly Kaye • Mar 26, 2013 • New York City

"Don't explain it in that little section below the headline," Ciarán Hinds instructs while organizing tea for the two of us in his dressing room at the Richard Rodgers Theatre. "It should just be, headline: ‘Mr. Hinds isn't funny,' period. Then your first sentence can be, ‘Hinds comes from a long line of dead stoics,'" he laughs. Of course it's not true. Anyone who helps an interviewer fabricate skewed headlines and desk copy has a sense of humor, and Hinds continues to show it off with wry one-liners and well-placed expletives. A Belfast native and veteran onscreen bad guy in flicks like Munich and TV shows like Game of Thrones, the leading man is currently dominating Broadway's Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, playing infirmed Southern non-gentleman Big Daddy opposite Scarlett Johansson, Benjamin Walker, and Debra Monk. It's a role he nearly didn't take, convinced an American might be better suited to the Southern gothic poetics of Tennessee Williams. With the show's run coming to an end on March 31, we checked in with Hinds to talk about poetry, the possibility of doing drag, and his Broadway run with Scarlett and company.

You said opening night you felt there must be somebody more qualified to do American, poetic Tennessee Williams than you. Do you still feel similarly?

That's tough. I said yes to the job, I get paid to do the job. The job is to not shortchange anybody. But no [actor] ever really knows what [audiences get] from what they do. You try to work, with the director and your fellow actors, to get somewhere, but other people are the judge of whether you hit that note right. That's why sometimes you say yes to parts like this, even if you're unsure. You're unsure about much of what you do. Sometimes people will say to me ‘Why do you always play bad men? [points to face] It's the face!

READ MORE OF THE INTERVIEW HERE

Dwayne Johnson And Ray Stevenson Recall Their Battles On The Set Of G.I. JOE: RETALIATION (COMIC BOOK MOVIE)

With G.I. Joe: Retaliation now out in the US, what better way to get psyched for the movie than reading all about the epic fight scenes which took place between Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson (Roadblock) and Ray Stevenson (Firefly)?

Perhaps one of the most anticipated aspects of G.I. Joe: Retaliation is the big screen debut of fan favourite
Firefly. Enlisted by Cobra to break Cobra Commander out of jail, he plays a pivotal role in the sequel, and director John M. Chu had this to say about why he wanted to include character. "Firefly sees beauty in the redistribution of energy, so while explosions may seem like destruction to us, he believes he is creating something. This almost artistic philosophy made Firefly really interesting to me and it went way beyond being merely a cold-hearted killer." According to producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura, Firefly "only had about six lines when we first read the script," but they soon realised that they had to give him a much larger role in the movie. Who better to play him than Dexter and Thor star Ray Stevenson?

Read more at http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/JoshWildingNewsAndReviews/news/?a=76322#fx7vWdmQ16WLjOsl.99 

Game of Thrones Actor’s Ear Bitten Off During Brutal Attack Taylor Berman (GAWKER)

British actor Clive Mantle, best known stateside for playing Greatjon Umber on HBO's Game of Thrones, was brutally attacked by two men outside a hotel early Sunday morning in Newcastle, England. The incident occurred after the six-foot, five-inch actor asked fellow guests at a Travelodge to keep the noise down. The two rambunctious guests disagreed with Mantle and, rather than quieting down, decided instead to bite the actor's ear off.

As Bryn Newton, Mantle's agent, described it to the Mirror UK (so, grain of salt warning):

His agent, Bryn Newton, said: "On the first occasion, he'd said ‘can you keep the noise down please?' He was very polite. It was 4.30 in the morning and he was very tired. He returned to bed but when he went back outside there were two drunken Scotsmen. He said to them ‘If you don't keep the noise down I am going to call security' That's when they set about him. Even though he is a big guy they got him on the ground."

"One of them bit the top part of his right ear off. It was savage."

READ MORE:http://gawker.com/5992521/game-of-thrones-actors-ear-bitten-off-during-brutal-attack

'Mr. Selfridge' could profit from 'Downton Abbey' love Carol Memmott (USA TODAY)

Can Mr. Selfridge cash in on the phenomenal success of Downton Abbey? Will the love affairs of a store's clerks and wealthy patrons enthrall viewers as much as the downstairs-upstairs goings-on at the Grantham estate?

Like Downton, Mr. Selfridge is a lavish costume drama, premiering on PBS' Masterpiece Sunday (9 ET/PT, times may vary). Also set in early 20th-century England, it's the rags-to-riches story of Harry Gordon Selfridge, the charismatic, American entrepreneur who in 1909 threw open the doors to Selfridge's, welcoming London and the world to the first truly modern department store.

"No one does period drama better than the Brits," says Jeremy Piven, the three-time Emmy-winning actor who played Hollywood agent Ari Gold in HBO's Entourage, and who stars as the bigger-than-life Selfridge. The timing, he says, couldn't be better.


"If you would have said three years ago that America would fall in love with a period drama that takes place at the turn of the century, with a group of British actors Americans weren't familiar with, that it would be a hit and it was on PBS, I think it would be hard to wrap your mind around it," Piven says.

But Mr. Selfridge is banking on more than good timing. The eight-part series is written by Andrew Davies, who has smitten audiences worldwide with screenplays based on classic characters and stories. His Pride and Prejudice, based on Jane Austen's iconic novel, will forever evoke an image of Mr. Darcy's (Colin Firth) toned torso encased in a clingy, wet white shirt.

"Mr. Selfridge is the story of one man's life, a pretty remarkable man at that, and it's a family story and a workplace story," says Davies, who loosely based the series on British writer Lindy Woodhead's 2007 biography Shopping, Seduction & Mr. Selfridge.

READ MORE: http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/tv/2013/03/25/downton-abbey-mr-selfridge-jeremy-piven-entourage/2002665/

Ray Stevenson reveals his panic after flooring Hollywood hardman The Rock during filming for GI Joe: Retaliation (DAILY RECORD)

ACTION hero thought he'd broken champion wrestlers nose 

when stunt for fight scene in latest movie went badly wrong.

MOVIE star Ray Stevenson has revealed his panic after accidentally flooring Hollywood hardman The Rock.

The 48-year-old, who featured in hit TV series Rome, thought his uppercut might have broken the champion wrestler’s nose.

The two heavyweight actors had been swapping punches for a fight scene in big-budget romp GI Joe: Retaliation, which also stars Elodie Yung and Adrianne Palicki.

Ray has told how, even though the bruising tussle with The Rock – whose real name is Dwayne Johnson – was as tightly choreographed as a dance, slips still happened.

He said: “The worst moment was when we filmed the first big fight. I spun round and accidentally caught him right across the bridge of his nose.

“I drew blood and I was worried. But Dwayne just shrugged it off. He was great about it and just said, ‘These things happen.’”

Ray, who was born in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, joins the GI Joe film franchise as explosive villain Firefly, while The Rock plays Roadblock, a vital member of the GI Joe elite fighting force.

Ray accepted from the start that bumps and bruises were inevitable during the creation of realistic action sequences.

He said: “Dwayne and I went for it and we did clip each other a couple of times.

“His arms are the size of my thighs and, when he blocked my fist, it was like hitting an iron bar. I was black and blue with bruises.”

READ MORE: http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/entertainment/celebrity-interviews/ray-stevenson-reveals-floored-holywood-1782598

Helen Mirren: Anger as film casts doubt on Phil Spector murder verdict Email Edward Helmore in New York The Observer, Saturday 16 March 2013 09.38 EDT (THE GUARDIAN)

Victims' rights groups fear that David Mamet movie will question music producer's murder conviction

Four years ago the Wall of Sound music producer Phil Spector was convicted of murdering B-movie actress Lana Clarkson at his Los Angeles castle home. Many believe Clarkson's death was a tragedy waiting to happen – Spector was well known for terrorising women, and musicians, with guns – but the guilty verdict was a surprise in a town where celebrities with far stronger evidence against them typically walk free.

Now a new HBO-produced film to be broadcast next Sunday, Phil Spector, has sparked a row between victims' rights groups and those, like the film-makers, who believe the evidence against the producer did not rise to the threshold of "beyond reasonable doubt".

Al Pacino, who stars as Spector, has revealed that, while he was undecided about Spector's guilt, David Mamet, the movie's writer and director, was certain of his innocence. Helen Mirren stars as Linda Kenney Baden, Spector's lawyer in the first of his two trials for Clarkson's murder in 2003. He was accused of putting a gun in her mouth and shooting her dead.

Spector's wife, 32-year-old Rachelle Spector, told the Observer she believes that the film, despite leaning towards the conclusion that Spector was wrongly convicted, is a breach of client-attorney confidentiality between Spector, 73, and Kenney Baden, who was an adviser to HBO. She fears it will serve to further cement her husband's reputation as a "freak and a megalomaniac" – "a minotaur" who imprisoned people in his castle.

READ MORE: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/mar/16/phil-spector-film-doubts-murder-verdict

Ciaran Hinds, James Purefoy - CAESAR'S DEATH - HAPPY IDES OF MARCH

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FvgP5hO99o

ZARADUR

Benedict Cumberbatch and Tom Hiddleston win new awards and their loyal fan armies rejoice (Gazette)

Benedict Cumberbatch plays Christopher Tietjens in Parade's End, a BBC/HBO/VRT co-production. (HBO)

British actors Benedict Cumberbatch and Tom Hiddleston have both won awards at the South Bank Sky Arts Awards, Tuesday, March 12, 2013, in London.

Strictly speaking, Cumberbatch’s award was an indirect one. He starred in Parade’s End, which won the Best TV Drama Award. Would it have done so if he were not in it? Would it have garnered as many viewers?

I don’t think so, and neither does Susanna White, who directed the series. She told Britain’s Radio Times:  “I think Benedict is one of the finest actors of his generation. And we were really lucky to get him because without him, Parade’s End would be nothing like it is.”

Parade’s End is set in the days before, during and after World War I and is based on a series of novels by Ford Madox Ford. It can be still be seen on HBO and HBO Canada. (Click to see the HBO schedule, or the HBO Canada schedule.)

As for Tom Hiddleston, The Guardian reported that he: “. . .picked up the Times breakthrough award for his acting in The Hollow Crown and films including War Horse and Avengers Assemble.”

The Hollow Crown was a four-part BBC series of Shakespeare’s plays: Richard II; Henry IV, Part 1; Henry IV, Part 2; Henry V. Tom Hiddleston was in all of them except for Richard II. He played Prince Hal, son of Henry IV, and then went on to play Henry V. The series was shown in Britain in 2012 as part of that country’s Olympic celebrations, and will be shown on PBS in the U.S. (much) later this year.

Hiddleston played the troubled villain Loki (fangirls love to love him) in Thor and the film that’s simply known as The Avengers in other countries.  It’s called Avengers Assemble in Britain to distinguish it from the TV series that starred Diana Rigg and Patrick Macnee. (Oh! The Internet says that Macnee is 91. Bravo! )

READ MORE: http://blogs.montrealgazette.com/2013/03/12/benedict-cumberbatch-and-tom-hiddleston-win-new-awards-and-their-loyal-fan-armies-rejoice/

Henry Cavill, Jonathan Rhys Meyers: The Tudors Blooper Reel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhRXRVWdJ00

MsBloodysmiles's

James Purefoy: The Following renewed for season 2 News Louisa Mellor 5 Mar 2013 - 07:00 (DEN OF GEEK)

Kevin Bacon and James Purefoy will be taking another spin on the serial killer merry-go-round as Fox renews The Following...

Fans of puppet master serial killer drama The Following can rest easy in the knowledge that, though we're almost at the halfway point in season one, a further fifteen episodes are on their way. The Kevin Williamson thriller starring Kevin Bacon and James Purefoy as a former FBI agent and his cult-leading serial-killing nemesis, has just been renewed for season two.

Described by Fox as an "edge-of-your-seat" "thrill ride", The Following debuted to somewhat mixed reviews, but audience interest has seen it through. Fulfilling the unspoken rule that everyone involved with The Following has to be named Kevin, here's what Fox entertainment chairman Kevin Reilly had to say:

READ MORE: http://www.denofgeek.com/tv/the-following/24707/the-following-renewed-for-season-2

Hello Ray Stevenson you silver fox Posted on March 2, 2013 By Pip Ellwood - (EF)

We know that fancying the villain in a series is not usually the done thing but Ray Stevenson is making us a little swoony in the new season of Dexter.

The Irish actor plays Isaak Sirko, the mob boss that makes Dexter’s life a misery over the course of the seventh season. He also has the Miami Metro Homicide Division in his sights. Ooo he’s an evil bugger.

/Ray’s been in loads of stuff over the years including Rome, Thor and The Three Musketeers. He’s definitely a bit of a silver fox and sometimes we prefer an older man.

- See more at: http://www.entertainment-focus.com/gay-focus-section/gay-focus-news/hello-ray-stevenson-you-silver-fox/#sthash.jSZjcb8c.dpuf

Benedict Cumberbatch: Parade's End director calls Benedict Cumberbatch "one of the finest actors of his generation" Susanna White admits that "without Cumberbatch, Parade’s End would be nothing like it is" (RADIO TIMES)

Tom Cole
11:24 AM, 27 February 2013

Bafta award-winning Parade’s End director Susanna White has called Benedict Cumberbatch “one of the finest actors of his generation” and admitted that “without him, Parade’s End would be nothing like it is.”

White is currently promoting the BBC period drama in the States ahead of its transmission on HBO, and opened up earlier this week about how lucky she was to secure the 36-year-old Sherlock star for the lead role of aristocrat Christopher Tietjens.

“There were less than a handful of actors who could have played that role," White told Collider. "Christopher is so buttoned up and so self-enclosed, and yet you have to really care about his situation. I knew Benedict could do that.”

The 52-year-old director also admitted that she was grateful to find an actor capable of tackling the role, who looked nothing like the “fat ox” described in Ford Maddox Ford’s 1920s novels, which formed the basis of the drama.

“I wanted women to really fall in love with him, so it was important to find somebody who would be both attractive and who also could play the emotional layers and have the intelligence,” she said.

READ MORE: http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2013-02-27/parades-end-director-calls-benedict-cumberbatch-one-of-the-finest-actors-of-his-generation

Jerome Flynn: GAME OF THRONES Season 3: Jerome Flynn Hints At Bronn Arc by ROCO on FEBRUARY 26, 2013 ·(Seriable)

Game Of Thrones actor Jerome Flynn has teased his character’s fractious trajectory in the fantasy serial’s upcoming third season, premiering March 31 on HBO.

In a chat with Access Hollywood, Flynn hinted that the love-in between his character Bronn and Peter Dinklage‘s Tyrion Lannister could meet stormy weather in the wake of Tyrion losing his job as Hand of the King to Tywin Lannister.

“He’s just about sticking it with Tyrion. He’s getting a bit frustrated, underpaid. He’s not got the position he had, but there’s still love between them. And some good, some nice scenes together, but not much.”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRKidXDTkzQ

Originally posted: http://seriable.com/game-of-thrones-season-3-jerome-flynn-hints-at-bronn-arc/#ixzz2M7bYaNMN