TVSquad

Will it be the magic again? You've gotta hope so... According to Watch with Kristin on E!online, there's a good chance that the Veronica Mars team of Kristen Bell and Rob Thomas will be working together again.

In a recent chat with Kristin, Kristen (that's Ms. Bell -- check the spelling) has been talking with Rob about the possibility of another series. It would be great if they were talking about bringing Veronica back, but that's apparently not meant to be. Only fans like us, we see that that is what we'd want most of all, but it ain't happening.

Cool news for fans of NBC's Heroes: it looks like the show is going to start filming a lot earlier than it usually does.

Shows usually start filming in July/August for the fall season, but according to Heroes star James Kyson Lee (Ando), the writers strike means that the show will start filming in June, and maybe as early as May. He says that NBC plans to really push the show this year, using the Olympics to hype the show.

That's the good news. The (possible) bad news is that TV Guide's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Kristen Bell isn't signed for the new season yet.

I'll admit it upfront, Gossip Girl is one of my TV guilty pleasures this season. It fills in the void left after the ending of shows like The O.C. and Gilmore Girls. Now that all the episodes of this CW's new series aired (the show was picked up for a full 22-episode season but had time to complete only the original order of 13 episodes before production was shut down due to the strike), it's time to take a step back and analyze what we've been offered so far.

Heroes didn't have time to complete more than 11 episodes, all of which have aired, before production was shut down due to writers' strike. However, it was confirmed the cast and crew had time to shoot some scenes for episodes 12 and 13 (other sources say they had time to shoot part, if not all, of episodes 12 to 16!). TV Guide's Michael Ausiello reports that Tim Kring presented a new trailer at the Jules Verne Adventure Film Festival of Los Angeles, which includes some of those yet-to-air scenes.

... Six welcome returns.

Every fall season I get stoked about all the new shows, with cool new premises ("A guy travels through time trying to make right what once went wrong!"-- Journeyman not Quantum Leap), and all the big changes in store for existing shows. But it's equally exciting to see which beloved actors will be returning to television. Brad Garrett coming back to television in 'Til Death last year? Cool! Patricia Heaton and Kelsey Grammer both coming back to television ... together? That's gotta be awesome, right? Jerry O'Connell on Carpoolers ... well ... ? I like the guy, but I'm not scheduling a 'Welcome Back' shindig for him.

Half the fun of a new television season is the return of great actors and actresses to the small screen. And while I could have easily done 10 or even 20 of these, I've narrowed it down to the six talents who were most welcome back in my house on a weekly basis this past year. I've even been so bold as to rank them. Feel free to agree, disagree and present your own lists in the comments.

It's that time of the year again. Time to put away the bathing suits, winterize the boats, and start thinking about getting the big coats out of the back of the closets, at least up here in the Jet City. While it will be sad to see those long summer days fade into fall, the silver lining is a truckload of new and returning shows, all set to debut.

One of the first out of the gate is Gossip Girl, which premieres next Wednesday at 9 on The CW. They were nice enough to send a copy of the pilot over to TV Squad HQ, and I couldn't resist the possibility of a good teen drama, so here is an early look at what the fifth network has cooking.

It's casting drama times two! Heroes casting news is the Paris Hilton of TV news, you just can't go three days without hearing about it. If you haven't heard about it, you must not come to this website often.

Just last week, we heard that our favorite superpower drama was adding a little old school flair with some new school brattitude. Forgive me for saying brattitude.

It seems that Kristen Bell of Veronica Mars fame, who stirred up her own drama when rumors said she was going to join Lost and again when she decided against it, will be the newest edition addition to the Heroes cast -- which has now been recognized as its own country.

Potential spoilers after the jump.

Hey, Brigitte here with TV Squad Daily. I'll be covering the TV stories I find interesting each day, Monday through Friday, in this video blog.

Today on TV Squad Daily:

• Will we see Britney Spears on stage at the VMA's? I hope not.
  
• Family Guy is a stage production, too? I had no idea.
  
• Kristen Bell chose Broadway over Lost, darnit.
  
• The Sopranos has inspired a line of pool sticks.
  

The video's embedded below, or you can subscribe to this podcast via our feed. Plus, you can also download the file directly.

Kristen Bell, formerly of Veronica Mars, was reportedly asked to join the cast of Lost next season as a new, recurring character (one of The Others!). But, Bell has apparently turned down the opportunity to live and work in Hawaii in favor of living and working on Broadway in New York City.

According to TV Guide's Michael Ausiello, Bell will take over the lead role in the Broadway version of Legally Blonde in February. He's putting two-and-two together to come to this conclusion, but it seems pretty logical. She has wanted to do Broadway in the past, but her Veronica Mars schedule would never accommodate it.

This seems like an...interesting...career choice. A role on Lost would boost her visibility with mainstream viewers, while a role on Broadway will only make her visible to those who are into that sort of thing. But, if Broadway's your dream, go for it!

All casting rumors for Lost seem to have been debunked almost as quickly as they spread.

Last week, Isabelle reported on word that Veronica Mars' Kristen Bell and Prison Break's Peter Stormare were being considered for two new recurring roles on Lost. The Stormare rumor got squashed pretty quickly, and today TV Guide's Ausiello is reporting that Kristen Bell won't be joining the cast, either. The reason, he says, is because Bell didn't want to relocate to Hawaii.

Well, shucks. I adore Stormare and would love to see Bell get a gig that'll give her a wider audience.

Hey, Brigitte here with TV Squad Daily. I'll be covering the TV stories I find interesting each day, Monday through Friday, in this video blog.

Today on TV Squad Daily:

• Veronica Mars fans to become Lost fans? Kristen Bell might be joining the cast of Lost next season.
  
• My unsolicited advice to Mandy Moore: accepting a party-girl guest star role on How I Met Your Mother was a bad idea.
  
• Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards, we're so done hearing about your weird divorce drama.
  

The video's embedded below, or you can subscribe to this podcast via our feed. Plus, you can also download the file directly.

ABC's hit show Lost may only return in February 2008 but that doesn't mean they will start shooting episodes later than usual. The show is currently casting for the roles of two new recurring characters that may end up to be regulars. One role is female and the other is male (more about those after the jump since it involves spoilers).

Casting rumors are flying all over the Internet but two actors mentioned seem to be the most serious contenders: Prison Break's Peter Stormare and Veronica Mars' Kristen Bell.

Spoilers after the jump!

The CW's got some funny sitcoms both old (Everybody Hates Chris) and new (Aliens in America -- more on that later), but the network's funniest asset is Paul McGuire, executive vice president, network communications.

Before introducing Dawn Ostroff, president entertainment, The CW, McGuire fires off some zingers to get the reporters up and running.

Of the recycled tote bags that The CW gave to the press (perfect for hauling all our cable swag home), McGuire quips, "They're made entirely from recycled billboards, including some from Hidden Palms -- or as some dirt bag reporter called it -- 'Hidden Ratings.'"

Apparently, the executives over at the CW network like to pull the chains of the collective viewer. Last year they did it when they said 7th Heaven and Reba weren't coming back, then they turned around and renewed them anyway. In 2007 they seem to be doing it again. This time with fan favorite Veronica Mars.

For months rumors have been flying about the apparent cancellation of VM. Now it seems that those rumors may not have as much merit as previously thought. According to Mike Ausiello over at TV Guide network executives over at the CW are taking a second look at the show, or at least the character of Veronica Mars in particular. Why the sudden change of heart? Well, there are a few reasons.

The axe has fallen. Well, sort of. The network still has to confirm it but many solid sources have told E! Online's Kristin Veitch that Veronica Mars would not be coming back for a fourth season.

The CW show has been struggling in ratings since its premiere on UPN. However, a good fan base helped get the show renewed up to a third season even though it moved around the schedule a bit. Many fans and TV critics were optimistic that the Gilmore Girls/Veronica Mars pairing would work well for both shows and bring in enough ratings. However, it seems it wasn't enough to secure a fourth season for this gem of a show featuring Kristen Bell.