Sci-Fi Storm

Terminator star Linda Hamilton, who most recently had a couple guest stints on Lost Girl and had a recurring role as Chuck’s mother in Chuck, will now appear in Season 2 of Syfy’s Defiance in a recurring role as Pilar, the mysterious and long-separated wife of Rafe McCawley (Graham Greene) and mother to their three children.

Premiering its second season on Thursday, June 19 at 8PM ET/PT, the ambitious series delivered an average of 1.5 million viewers 18-49 and 3.2 million total viewers in its first season, based on Live +7 data.

Separated from her family for a number of years, Pilar has now returned home. Pilar suffered from serious mental illness and in the aftermath of the Votan arrival and subsequent war, did not have access to her medication. With her mental state unchecked, Pilar snapped and tried to murder her children. Fearing for the family’s safety, Rafe sent her to an institution and told their children she had died. Now Pilar is back with both a steely resolve and a warm, maternal love for her family. But the motives for her return are unclear, and soon Rafe and others in town begin to question where she’s actually been these past years.

Trained at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute, Hamilton triumphed in her breakout role as the iconic Sarah Conner in James Cameron’s action/sci-fi masterpiece The Terminator, followed by the blockbuster sequel Terminator 2: Judgment Day. She is also well-known for her popular role on the television series Beauty and the Beast opposite Ron Perlman. Her additional film credits include Mr. Destiny, Silent Fall and Dante’s Peak.

Hamilton joins the previously announced James Murray, William Atherton and Anna Hopkins as new cast additions to season two of the series. Murray will portray the integral role of Pottinger, the new mayor of Defiance. Atherton portrays high-ranking Earth Republic official Viceroy Mercado and Hopkins is Earth Republic soldier Jessica “Berlin” Rainier.

Grant Bowler will return as Nolan, along with Julie Benz as Amanda Rosewater, Stephanie Leonidas as Irisa Nolan, Tony Curran as Datak Tarr, Jaime Murray as Stahma Tarr, Graham Greene as Rafe McCawley and Jesse Rath as Alak Tarr. The cast also features Dewshane Williams as Tommy, Trenna Keating as Doc Yewll, Justin Rain as Quentin McCawley and Nicole Munoz as Christie McCawley.

As the story of Defiance resumes, the lives of the townspeople are in drastic turmoil. The Earth Republic has assumed control of the town, with far-reaching consequences including a new mayor. Nolan traverses the badlands to find a lost Irisa, Amanda has an unexpected new role in the town as she searches for Kenya and the Tarr family desperately tries to keep control of their criminal empire in the midst of dramatic changes.

Kevin Murphy (Desperate Housewives, Caprica) resumes his role as executive producer and showrunner. Smallville’s Darren Swimmer and Todd Slavkin return as executive producers for season two and Michael Taylor serves as consulting producer. Michael Nankin (co-executive producer) is set to direct the season two opener. Defiance is produced by Universal Cable Productions.

Defiance is an unprecedented partnership between Syfy and Trion Worlds and the first-ever convergence of television and online gaming, featuring an interconnected world and storylines that co-exist on both platforms.

If you’re still a little down after the last night’s series finale of Being Human, perhaps this will pick you up a bit…Jim Cummings, one of the amazing voice actors who has done many, many voices but perhaps is known best as the voice of Winnie the Pooh, reading Darth Vader’s lines from Star Wars in Pooh’s voice…

Oh, bother…

Syfy today announced Z Nation, a 13-episode zombie series set to debut in the fall from production company The Asylum (the studio that brought us Sharknado). The action-horror series depicts the epic struggle to save humanity after a zombie apocalypse. The series, which will air on Syfy, will be produced by The Asylum and sold internationally by Dynamic Television.

Karl Schaefer (Eerie Indiana, Eureka, The Dead Zone) will serve as executive producer and showrunner. “Z Nation will take viewers where no zombie has gone before,” says Schaefer. The show, he continues, adds “a sense of hope to the horror of the apocalypse – our everyday heroes take the fight to the zombies. It’ll be an epic journey unlike anything you’ve seen before.”

In making the announcement, Chris Regina, Senior Vice President, Programming, Syfy, said: “Z Nation is a unique new journey into the long established zombie genre. Instead of existential despair, the series offers hope that somehow, some way, humanity will not only survive, but triumph. In producing their first ever weekly series, our long-time partners The Asylum have created a different way of telling an iconic story.”

In Z Nation, three years have passed since the zombie virus has gutted the country, and a team of everyday heroes must transport the only known survivor of the plague from New York to California, where the last functioning viral lab waits for his blood. Although the antibodies he carries are the world’s last, best hope for a vaccine, he hides a dark secret that threatens them all. With humankind’s survival at stake, the ragtag band embarks on a journey of survival across three thousand miles of rusted-out post-apocalyptic America.

Z Nation is a dynamic ensemble drama that will plunge viewers into a fully-imagined post-zombie America and take them on an adventure with a diverse group of richly-drawn characters. As the reluctant heroes learn to work as a team and battle ever-more-menacing zombies, their flaws, idiosyncrasies, and moral dilemmas will ultimately become the heart of the show.

After the success of “re-imagination” shows like Merlin and Atlantis, it seems Syfy is seeing some benefit in the re-telling of the old stories.

Syfy, Reunion Pictures and Great Point Media today announced a new mythological drama series Olympus, which will take viewers into the action-packed world of humans, Gods and monsters.

The 13-part series of one hour episodes will premiere on Syfy in 2015.

The team behind Olympus includes writer Nick Willing (Tinman, Alice, Neverland) and legendary executive producer Robert Halmi Sr. (Mr. and Mrs. Bridge, The Odyssey, Gulliver’s Travels).

Olympus will tell the story of how a few brave men and women banished the Gods to the realm of the unconscious – a place they called the Underworld or the Kingdom of Hades. The series will follow the protagonist on his journey as he gradually transforms from a fresh-faced and raw young man through the dramatic experiences of betrayal, love, disappointment, empowerment and exile, until he emerges a ruthless leader of men, and a match for the Gods themselves.

The series is being produced by Reunion Pictures and Olympus TV (London) Limited in association with Great Point Media, and will begin production this summer in Vancouver and London, with the first episode written and directed by Willing. Executive Producers are Robert Halmi Sr. for The Halmi Company, Robert Halmi Jr. and Jim Reeve for Great Point Media and Matthew O’Connor and Lisa Richardson for Reunion Pictures. The series is being marketed and distributed by Content Media Group outside the US, Germany and Canada.

“Olympus is a fantastic blend of action, intense thrills, creatures and great story telling. It will feature characters from mythology in a way never before imagined,” said Chris Regina, Senior Vice President, Programming, Syfy. “It’s an excellent complement to our roster of programming and we can’t wait to share the adventures of Hero with the Syfy audience.”

“I’m thrilled that the team of Willing, O’Connor and Halmi are together on another exciting Syfy project. With the success of Tinman, Neverland and Alice, we are confident that this will be another epic adventure for television,” stated Halmi Sr.

In the season finale of Lost Girl, Bo puts her faith in Dyson to protect the world from ruins. Check out “Dark Horse” tomorrow night at 10/9c on Syfy!
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Syfy’s President Dave How announced today that it is giving is giving a series greenlight to 12 Monkeys, a drama based on the 1995 Universal Pictures film directed by Terry Gilliam. Syfy is ordering 12 episodes in addition to the pilot which was filmed last year. The series is produced by Universal Cable Productions and Atlas Entertainment, producer of the original theatrical. The show is expected to debut next January. (For those following the Syfy pilot slate, another recent pilot, High Moon, is not moving forward.)

Said Dave Howe, “12 Monkeys is a captivating time travel adventure and high stakes race against the clock. We are thrilled to add it to our slate of engaging and thought-provoking new scripted projects including the recently announced event series Ascension and the second season renewal of Helix from Ron Moore.”

12 Monkeys, starring Aaron Stanford (Nikita, X-Men: The Last Stand, X2), Amanda Schull (Suits, Pretty Little Liars), Noah Bean (Nikita, Damages) and Kirk Acevedo (Fringe), follows the journey of a time traveler (Stanford) from the post-apocalyptic future who appears in present day on a mission to locate and eradicate the source of a deadly plague that will eventually decimate the human race.

Atlas Entertainment’s Charles Roven (American Hustle, Man of Steel, The Dark Knight Trilogy) and Richard Suckle (American Hustle, The International), will Executive Produce. Roven produced the original film. Jake Kurily will serve as Atlas’s executive on the series. Terry Matalas & Travis Fickett (Nikita), writers of the pilot, will serve as Co-Executive Producers with Natalie Chaidez (In Plain Sight, V, Heroes) as Executive Producer/Showrunner. Jeffrey Reiner (Friday Night Lights) directed and served as Executive Producer on the pilot.

After being on a conference call earlier today to talk about the upcoming final episodes of Warehouse 13, I’m finding myself saddened again today thinking about the upcoming finale of Being Human. Check out our final sneak peek for “There Goes The Neighborhood, Part 3”, along with “Inside Being Human” and another clip. Then turn in and be sad with us on Monday at 9/8c for the finale…
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Syfy has greenlit the 12-episode summer series, The Wil Wheaton Project (working title), a weekly topical comedy show hosted by actor, blogger and champion of geek culture Wil Wheaton. The 30-minute show will offer a fast-paced, lighthearted exploration and celebration of all things within the realm of science fiction and genre entertainment. The series premieres Tuesday, May 27 at 10PM ET/PT on Syfy. The announcement was made today by Dave Howe, President, Syfy.

Each week, Wil provides his insider point-of-view, sense of humor and genre expertise as he dissects the week’s most popular and trending topics across science fiction film, television and pop culture, video games, viral videos and news. Wil is on his feet for the rapid-fire half hour, delivering witty commentary on the things he knows and loves in this golden age of sci-pop culture. The result is a fun appreciation and celebration of fandom and all things science fiction.

“Wil Wheaton’s rock star status within the genre fan base, along with his insatiable passion for all things pop culture make him the ideal arbiter of what’s hot and what’s not in the genre space,” said Dave Howe. “Wil’s legion of fans will relish his wry sense of humor and sharp wit, coupled with his unique commentary on the most popular genre entertainment out there.”

“The Wil Wheaton Project has been incredibly fun to develop, and I can’t wait for my fellow geeks to see it,” said Wheaton.

Wil Wheaton began acting in commercials at the age of seven, and by the age of ten had appeared in numerous television and film roles. In 1986, his critically acclaimed role in Rob Reiner’s Stand By Me put him in the public spotlight. In 1987, Wil was cast as Wesley Crusher in the hit television series Star Trek: The Next Generation. Recently, Wil has held recurring roles on Syfy’s Eureka, TNT’s Leverage and CBS’s The Big Bang Theory. He played Axis of Anarchy leader Fawkes in Felicia Day’s webseries, The Guild, and currently hosts Falling Skies: Second Watch for TNT. Off-camera, he is the creator producer, and host of the wildly successful webseries Tabletop, which is currently in its second season. Tabletop was awarded the 2013 Diana Jones Award for Excellence in Gaming and the gold ENnie for Best Podcast at the 2013 Gen Con EN World RPG Awards. Wil was also awarded Best Host (taped) and the webseries was honored as the Best Hosted Series (Pre-Recorded) at the 2013 IAWTV Awards.

Wil is also an author, blogger, podcaster, voice actor and widely-followed original Twitter user. Wil personally maintains a popular social media presence, and his frequently-cited Twitter account is followed by over 2.3 million people from all over the world. He has published a number of acclaimed books, among them: Just A Geek, Dancing Barefoot and The Happiest Days of Our Lives. His latest book is Memories of the Future Volume 1, a humorous and nostalgic episode guide of the first half of the first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation. All of his books grew out of his award-winning weblog, which he personally created and maintains at WIL WHEATON dot NET. Wil is also widely recognized as one of the original celebrity bloggers, and is a respected voice in the blogging community.

All-new summer episodes of Heroes of Cosplay also debut that night, airing at 9:00PM ET/PT on Syfy.

The Wil Wheaton Project is a production of Pilgrim Studios. Craig Piligian and Mike Nichols (Ghost Hunters) are executive producers.

The Doctor Who community has been saddened by the loss of two notable people…on Thursday directory Derek Martinus passed away at the age of 82 after battling Alzheimer’s. Martinus presided over a number of episodes spanning from 1965 to 1970 and with three different Doctors, including major serials like Galaxy 4, The Tenth Planet, The Evil of the Daleks, and The Ice Warriors, with his final serial being Spearhead From Space, notable for being Jon Pertwee’s debut and the first episode broadcast it color.

Then on Sunday actress Kate O’Mara, who played fellow Time Lord The Rani in a couple of serials in the 1980s, passed away at the age of 74 after a short illness. O’Mara appeared as the evil Time Lord opposite Colin Baker in “The Mark of the Rani”, then again in Sylvester McCoy’s debut episode “Time and the Rani”. She was also perhaps better known to U.S. audiences as Cassandra Morrell, sister to Alexis Carrington on Dynasty. Overall her TV career spanned almost 50 years.

Love and loyalty clash when Syfy’s popular time traveling police drama Continuum returns for Season 3 on Friday, April 4 at 10PM (ET/PT).

At the end of Season 2, Alec Sadler (Erik Knudsen) made the Earth-shattering decision to hijack Kiera’s (Rachel Nichols) chance to get home, in order to save Emily, the girl he loves, from certain death.

This act of desperation condemned Kiera to incarceration by the Freelancers, who are ‘collecting’ time travelers to protect history. Now, Kiera must face the consequences of Alec’s betrayal and somehow escape the Freelancers.

Continuum co-stars Victor Webster (Castle, Melrose Place) as detective Carlos Fonnegra and Erik Knudsen (Jericho, Scream 4), who plays teen tech genius Alec Sadler.