Latest from Ausiello - Various Shows - 05/17/11

Question: My gut is telling me that Beckett’s “shooting” in the Castle finale was staged — all part of an elaborate scheme to send her underground and shield her from the killer. Am I hot or cold? —Jeff
Ausiello: You’re freezing. Beckett was shot. This is no time for denial. Snap out of it!

Question: How shocked were you to find out about Lisa Edelstein leaving House? —A.
Ausiello: What on earth are you talking about?

Question: You better have a Castle Q&A coming up after that season finale. Please? —@jenkburns via Twitter
Ausiello: Sorry, no Q&A. I welcome you to join me in a fun game of connect the dots though! Weeeeee
Dot No. 1: Beckett was shot near the heart.
Dot No. 2: Beckett’s lovah, Josh, is a cardiac surgeon.
Dot. No. 3: In an interview with TVGuide.com, the show’s EP, Andrew Marlowe, all but confirmed that Victor Webster would be back next season. “He’s still out there, and he’s somebody we’re going to have to deal with,” Marlowe teased. “He’s an element moving forward and it’ll be interesting to see how that functions.”
Ready. Set. Connect!

Question: On the upcoming Glee death… I’m not asking for a total reveal, but will the death be a student or adult? The suspense is killing me, and I already don’t know if I want to watch the episode! — Matt
Ausiello: Adult. BTW, there will be two characters bidding farewell in this week’s episode — one permanently and one only possibly permanently. Chew on that. Oh, and while we’re on the subject of Glee, reports of the show’s ratings downturn have been greatly exaggerated. While the numbers have been down in recent weeks compared to its season average, DVR data shows viewers are still tuning in — just later. For example, the show’s 18-49 rating from last week’s prom episode surged a whopping 32 percent when Live Plus 3-data was factored in. Take note.

Question: Who’s gonna die in the Parks and Recreation finale? –Latifah
Ausiello: It’s a beloved character who has appeared on the show once before. Speaking of Thursday’s season-ender, keep a lookout for two big cliffhangers — one of which will put a romance in jeopardy, and one that necessitate a major piece of casting for next season’s premiere.

Question: I’ve had a rough week. Please make it better with some Parks & Rec scoop! —Ignacio
Ausiello: How’s this, straight from Aziz Ansari regarding Thursday’s season finale — which features Tom making a life-changing Decision. “Tom’s whole thing is pursuing the life of an empresario, but he’s doing it in Pawnee, and that’s a juxtaposition that doesn’t work,” he notes. “So [this episode] is kind of about him deciding if he should go for his dreams or keep that part of his life suppressed. It’s about him deciding if he should go for his dreams in a big way.” Wow… sounds heavy. But Ansari insists “it’s really funny. I think people will like it.”

Question: Please help us clarify what actually happened between Booth and Brennan in last week’s episode of Bones? Hart Hanson is too ambiguous. —JSKS
Ausiello: You think he‘s ambiguous? Check out what his second in command Stephen Nathan told me when I asked if this Thursday’s finale ended with a cliffhanger. “Not really,” he replied. ”It’s a bit more like leaping off the cliff.” [POUNDS FIST]

Question: Is there any chance NBC will pick up a full season’s worth of episodes for Chuck‘s final season, or is the 13 episodes set in stone? —Emily
Ausiello: It’s set in stone — unless, as NBC president Bob Greenblatt told me over the weekend, there are “suddenly 10 million viewers watching it on Friday night.” For his part, exec producer Chris Fedak is operating under the assumption that the episode order is locked. “It certainly feels like Episode 13 will be the finale of the show,” he tells me. “And the good thing about that is it allows us to design the season around those 13 episodes. And to know how much time we have will really help us crack that season.”

Question: Will either Linda Hamilton or Timothy Dalton be back for Chuck‘s final season? —Deb
Ausiello: “If I’m clever and can figure out [a way to write them in] I’d love to have them back on the show,” says Fedak. ” Timothy and Linda were amazing.”

Question: What will Jenna Fischer’s pregnancy mean for Pam on The Office? —Matt
Ausiello: I hear there’s a very good chance it’ll mean the Halperts will be adding to their brood next season.

Question: Any scoop regarding Drop Dead Diva? — Clavie
Ausiello: Yup. The show is bringing on Busy Philipps! Okay, not exactly Busy Philipps… but certainly someone who sounds a whole lot like her. In episode 9, Deb’s old pal, trashtastically sexy bar wench Cassie Moll (to be played by a Philipps type) falls for Grayson. But just one episode later, there’s already trouble afoot… which may explain why this is just a two-episode gig.

Question: Any news about what will be happening during the final episodes of Law & Order: Criminal Intent? — Keenan
Ausiello: Yes. There will be law. And also order. Just messin’. Try this on for size: You know the Social Network-inspired episode that the show has coming up? They’ve just found their version of the Winklevoss twins: former soap stud Thad Luckinbill and his identical twin, Trent.

Question: Any scoop on Addison and Sam getting back together on Private Practice‘s? — Connie
Ausiello: Sounds to me like they’ll stay broken up after Benjamin Bratt makes his first appearance in Thursday’s season finale. The Law & Order alum “plays, for wont of a better word, a mysterious stranger who Addison meets in a grocery store,” reveals boss lady Shonda Rhimes. “He’s tempting her to look in a new direction, and when we end the episode, you very much feel like this might be the last we see of him… except we all know it’s not.” Whether Addison will fall for the newbie’s character remains to be seen. But Rhimes for sure has. “I wasn’t planning to bring anybody in,” she says, “and then I met Benjamin Bratt and couldn’t get him out of my head!”

Question: Too soon to ask for scoop on Game of Thrones second season? —Bill
Ausiello: Bill, come on! The first season is still airing! However, as luck would have it… I do have season 2 scoop. When the show returns, we’ll meet two new recurring characters: Melisandre, a red — and red-hot — priestess from Asshai who counsels and eventually boffs Stannis Baratheon, and Brienne Tarth, a stout-hearted warriorette who, though a plain Jane, has been nicknamed Brienne the Beauty. People can be so mean!

Question: I am dying to learn any and all info you have on the upcoming Pretty Little Liars premiere! –Paige
Ausiello: Although Aria and Ezra will still be going strong when the show returns on June 14, look for a new guy to catch Aria’s eye. “I think it makes her realize how much she really is risking by being with Ezra,” Lucy Hale tells TVLine. “At this point in filming, I don’t know which guy she’s going to choose.” Not making matters any easier, Hale adds that “the two guys are completely different.” So who is the mystery anti-Ezra? Hale wouldn’t give up the deets, but a source tells us his identity will surprise fans and offer up some insight into Aria.

Question: I was hoping for at least a small mother-related clue in the How I Met Your Mother finale. Since the wedding will be revisited in the premiere, can we expect some intel then? —George
Ausiello: You’ll get some before then actually. “There’s an exclusive clue in the season 6 DVD that will be released in September,” Thomas reveals. “There’s a longer version of a scene from last night’s finale on the DVD that gives you a little more information about the actual moment Ted meets the mother. That’s DVD only. I realize I sound like a salesman saying that. It’s just true.”

Question: I was super excited to see that Barney was the groom in the HIMYM finale, but something is bothering me: Why would Ted be his best man over his brother James? That just doesn’t sit right with me. Will that be explained next season? —Elizabeth
Ausiello: It’ll be explained right now. “That’s a good question,” concedes Mr. Thomas, adding, “Ultimately, I think one of the great loves of Barney’s life is Ted. Barney’s drive in the pilot is just wanting Ted to wear a suit because he wants Ted to take his advice and take him seriously and look up to him. I think Ted is just so important in Barney’s life. They have gone through so much together. They have been wingmen all these years. I think Ted edges out James. Plus, Josh Radnor has appeared in way more episodes than Wayne Brady has. It’s probably like 136 to 2 or something. So he won it. In the end, he won the vote.”

Question: It’s been quite some time since we’ve gotten any juicy Mentalist scoop. I was wondering if you have anything to whet our appetites? Perhaps something about the Red John storyline in the finale? —Mike
Ausiello: Done. And. Done. The reveal of Red John’s CBI mole will leave no less than three dead bodies in its wake, while the appearance of Jane’s elusive and taunting nemesis himself (we sported a huge grin when we saw who it was) triggers a battle of the brains that is not to be missed. For one, RJ lets loose with a monologue that might even get you thinking he is one of the good guys, plus there’s a killer twist that poses a massive question for next season’s premiere.

Question: With Kirk Acevedo cast in NBC’s Prime Suspect reboot, does that mean we won’t see Charlie on Fringe next season?! That was one of the best things about the Alt. Universe! — Erica
Ausiello: “All I know is they do want me back,” the actor himself told TVLine’s Matt Mitovich at NBC’s upfront presentation on Monday, adding that he wants to go back. “It’s a great group of guys over there, and [on-screen partner] Seth [Gabel] is such a good guy. I talk to him all the time.” So what’s the trouble? “I can only, contractually, do maybe three or four [episodes],” he reveals.

Question: Now that Parenthood has been renewed (best news ever, btw!) and The Event has not, is it possible we will see Jason Ritter return in season 3 to rekindle his relationship with Sarah? — Kellen
Ausiello: Seems likely. Even highly likely. In fact, when Mitovich spoke with Lauren Graham, she was hoping the same thing you were — so much so that real-life beau Peter Krause teased that she liked her leading man. “We all like him,” she laughed. “I like him for Sarah Braverman!” And you know what else the former Gilmore Girl likes for her current character? A job. “I think it’d be cool for her to have a career [as a writer],” she says, “and build on that some more.”

Source: TVLine