Sci-Fi Storm

Australian actor Aaron Jakubenko (Neighbours, Spartacus: War of the Damned) will join the MTV straight-to-series fantasy series Shannara from Sonar Entertainment and Farah Films. Jakubenko will play Ander Elessedil, an Elven prince with the reputation for being the wild party boy who has yet to find his way in the world.

The fantasy drama is based on the popular Shannara series of novels by Terry Brooks. MTV has committed to 10 episodes.

At Syfy, another regular cast member for pilot The Magicians was announced, with Summer Bishil (Towelhead, The Last Airbender) playing Margo Hanson, a brilliant young student at the Brakebill’s Academy.

The Magicians is an adaptation of Lev Grossman’s best-selling fantasy book series from Universal Cable Productions, the pilot script was written by John McNamara (Prime Suspect) and Sera Gamble (Supernatural). The one-hour drama follows 20-somethings who, while studying magic in New York, discover that the magical fantasy world they read about as children is all too real and poses a grave danger to humanity.

Deadline reported last evening and then Variety seems to have confirmed that Paramount is kicking Roberto Orci out of the director’s chair for the Star Trek franchise.

The heir-apparent to J.J. Abrams, who left one franchise to take on Star Wars for Disney/Lucasfilm, apparently continued to butt heads with the studio over plans for the direction of the film/franchise (in one rumor I heard it involved a time machine gimmick that could have invalidated the events of the first two movies). He will remain on as a producer.

Paramount now needs to scramble to fill the center seat if they hope to still make a planned 2016 release. Rumors swirl about a short list already, with Trek fan Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World) at the top of the list.