I am sorry to report that Kevin James in Paul Blart: Mall Cop and Seth Rogen in Observe and Report have started a phenomenon, because a new reality series called Mall Cops: Mall of America is coming to TLC. This is what happens when two movies that are superficially related to each other get released in close chronological proximity.
Granted, the Mall of America is one of the biggest (if not the biggest) malls in America and there is likely more than a fair share of crimes that go on there during any given day. I just wonder if the show is going to hire its own criminals to commit felonies in the mall just to keep things interesting.
I can see it now: the season deals with standard problems like shoplifters and lost children until the season finale which ends in a hostage situation cliffhanger. Want to see the footage of how it turns out? Wait until season two.
SethRogen-related stories
Mall Cops coming to TV
Seth Rogen is back as B.O.B. for Monsters vs Aliens Halloween special
Seth Rogen has always enjoyed Halloween specials, from the TGIF line-up when he was a kid up to The Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror. Tonight, he'll be in his own Halloween special, Monsters vs. Aliens: Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space (NBC, 8 PM), based on the Dreamworks animated feature Monsters vs Aliens. "I was a nerd and had nothing to do on Friday nights," Rogen says of the TGIF line-up during a conference call with press. "Whenever like the sitcoms would do their Halloween episode, I always enjoyed that for some reason. That always spawned some good comedy."
Continue reading Seth Rogen is back as B.O.B. for Monsters vs Aliens Halloween special
Executive producer Al Jean talks about 20 years of The Simpsons
Al Jean started out with The Simpsons 20 years ago as a writer working a couple of days a week. He was there when the series started, and even before it was officially a series, working on the Christmas show in 1989, when The Simpsons first broke away from its beginnings on The Tracey Ullman Show. Now he's an executive producer and showrunner, staring down the twentieth anniversary of the official start of the series, which happens in January. I spoke with him this week about this Sunday's season premiere, a bit of Simpsons history, and just how long the Simpsons can keep making people laugh.
After 20 years of doing The Simpsons, how do you find something new to do with the show? How do you generate ideas you haven't done before?
Well, it's the best of both worlds. If something happens to you in your life or to the world, you can satirize it but you get to use these characters that people love and that you're very familiar with. To me, there's a lot of topics that are fresh and interesting.
Continue reading Executive producer Al Jean talks about 20 years of The Simpsons
Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill, Sarah Silverman among upcoming Simpsons guests - TCA Report
It's Fox day, at the TCAs, and they've started the day by giving us some announcements:- Guest voices on the 21st season of The Simpsons will include: Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill, Anne Hathaway, Chris Martin, Sarah Silverman, Angela Bassett, Chuck Liddell, Jackie Mason, Neve Campbell, Eli and Payton Manning, Bob Costas, and the late Eartha Kitt.
- From November 9 through November 15, Fox will hold a Simpsons "scavenger hunt" with clues scattered through their programming.
- Gordon Ramsay will conduct a live one-hour cooking demonstration on December 15 at 9 ET. The show is called Gordon Ramsay: Cookalong Live.
- Finally, Britney Spears will receive the "Ultimate Choice" award at the Teen Choice Awards.
More stuff to come during the day. Of course, for the latest, follow our Twitter feed.
Cinematical, TV Squad's detached fraternal siamese twin, also at Comic-Con
Even though TV Squad's very own John Scott Lewinski is fighting his way through hordes of overweight Rorschachs and pre-pubescent Chun Lis to get exclusive interviews and scoops on the newest TV news at the San Diego Comic Con, don't forget that our partners-in-crime from Cinematical are also there covering the latest flim-flam in film.
The movie side of the annual pop-culture cavalcade opened with one of the biggest names in the history of film and what could very well be one of the biggest names in the future of film. Director James Cameron screened a solid 25 minutes of his forthcoming sci-fi epic Avatar. Blogger Todd Gilchrist got a hint of the plot and special effects movie-goers can expect when the film hits theaters later this year and said it "promises to be both hugely entertaining and technically groundbreaking." Man, that's got me worried. That's what they also said about Titanic.
Continue reading Cinematical, TV Squad's detached fraternal siamese twin, also at Comic-Con
Right now on Cinematical
The folks at our sister site Cinematical are working hard to give you news and reviews of the best -- and worst -- the silver screen has to offer. Here are some of their musings on the latest blockbusters, indies, and everything in between:- As much as I love Seth Rogen, Observe and Report looks just a little too much like Paul Blart: Mall Cop for my tastes. Read the review and see if it's actually worth checking out this weekend.
- I would say that not only should Jon Hamm be in more movies, but Jon Hamm should be in every movie. Crazy? Maybe. Awesome? Definitely.
- If you have kids who are into Miley Cyrus, you're going to be seeing Hannah Montana this weekend, regardless of the reviews. However, it may not hurt to read one just to see what you may be getting yourself into.
- 8 Mile and Die Hard reimagined as 50s French Classics? Uh, okay. Why not?
- Cinematical puts out a call for women who hate The Big Lebowski. I am definiitely not one of them.
Saturday Night Live: Seth Rogen/Phoenix - VIDEOS
(S34E20) Seth Rogen returned to host for the second time to promote his new mall cop movie (yeah, I know). Unlike last time, when there were one or two stand-out sketches, this episode didn't have any particularly memorable moments. However, there were Muppets, Mogwai and a thinner Seth Rogen involved, so maybe things weren't too horrible.
Continue reading Saturday Night Live: Seth Rogen/Phoenix - VIDEOS
Where are the Freaks and the Geeks now?
Freaks and Geeks is not only a cult classic among TV fans, but it's also one of TV Squad's favorite "Ol' Yellers". Those are the shows that were taken out back and shot down by the networks before they had a chance to fully develop, despite the crying, whimpering, snot-producing pleas of those who loved them most. It may not be clever, but it sounded a lot nicer than "stillborns". So it's no surprise that the show made a cameo appearance in a recent AOL interview with mega-superduperstar Seth Rogen on the heels of his new movie Observe and Report about a rogue mall cop who is more tazer-happy than the campus police at the University of Florida.
Continue reading Where are the Freaks and the Geeks now?
Has cable become credible?
What the hell is going on here? Have we entered the bizarro world? Is up now down? Has black become white? Was The Simpsons canceled after the first three episodes while The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer went on to become the longest running and most award winning series in the history of television? Variety reports that while the big four networks are cutting back on their sitcoms and dramas for more reality fare, cable networks have been ramping up their dramas, comedies and dramadies and are now in a position to compete for some real ratings.
And it's not just in quantity where cable has tipped the scales.
Continue reading Has cable become credible?
Seth Rogen to make more porn
I don't know whether to pity or exalt Seth Rogen. The man has essentially become a celebrity from potty humor. First, he's in a bunch of movies that are almost porn (including one with "porno" in the title). Now, he's co-developing a series for Showtime with the premise of three guys that run a pornography shop.It seems unlikely that Rogen would step in front of the camera for this series, given his movie career at the moment. But hey, anything is possible. I suspect the series will reflect the perverted sense of humor he displayed in his writing of the movie Superbad.
Perhaps it's a Canadian thing. He joins a long line of Canucks who garnered fame and fortune via television. The list includes William Shatner and Michael J. Fox.
Rogen stands as proof that anybody with a little luck can actually become a movie star (and television producer). As a result, he earns my admiration and envy.
The Daily Show: August 5, 2008 - VIDEOS
Continue reading The Daily Show: August 5, 2008 - VIDEOS
Saturday Night Live: Seth Rogen/Spoon
(S33E02) "A Message From K-Fed": I suppose it would have been tough to avoid covering the news about Britney Spears losing custody of her children to K-Fed, but was it really worthy of a cold open? The sketch managed to make me crack a smile, but I didn't even come close to laughing, which is disappointing because K-Fed is already inherently hilarious."Monologue": Seth Rogen shared the Saturday Night Live monologue that he's supposedly always dreamed of doing, complete with Bill Hader as Steven Segal. It was cute but, again, didn't get huge laughs. I could tell that Rogen wasn't going to be one of those guests who lose all sense of comedic timing and rhythm on live TV, though. Honestly, I would have been crushed if that was the case. Oh, and speaking of Rogen and Hader, I totally expected more of them working together. I was pretty disappointed by Superbad (sorry, Michael Cera, I still love you), but Rogen and Hader were great as a team, with or without McLovin.
The TV Squad Podcast: Vik Sahay of Chuck, Oprah talk, brutal timeslots, and more!
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Andy Richter: The TV Squad Interview
