AMAZING NEW "GAME OF THRONES 3" POSTERS & NEW TRAILER! PAUL BETTANY & JOHNNY DEPP IN "TRANSCENDENCE"! DANIEL RADCLIFFE IN "FRANKENSTEIN"! SF SAGA "TUNNELS" MOVIE ADAPTATION

Upcoming 2014 sf thriller TRANSCENDENCE in which Johnny 

Depp will play the lead role has added Paul Bettany to the cast as well. Johnny Depp will play a scientist who tries to create artificial intelligence by uploading his brain into a supercomputer. Another project to get first cast members is the new version of FRANKENSTEIN: "Variety" reports that Daniel Radcliffe is in talks to take the role of Igor. The sf version of the old horror tale to be directed by Paul McGuigan will bring a new look upon the Mary Shelley story focusing on topics such as friendship and redemption.This is just one of the many of the upcoming projects on the famous monster. Later this year we shall watch I, FRANKENSTEIN with Aaron Eckhart, Jai Courtney, Miranda Otto, Yvonne Strahovski and Bill Nighy. In that one, Frankenstein's creature finds himself caught in an all-out, centuries old war between two immortal clans.

  TUNNELS FANTASY FILM 

Relativity Media is preparing their movie adaptation of bestselling YA saga TUNNELS by Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams. Translated into 40

different countries and sold in millions, the six tomes of the saga  bring a thrilling, epic fantasy adventure for all ages. Beneath the streets of London, two teenage boys discover an incredible, hidden underground world where a secret civilization has been desperately waiting for a hero to save them all. The deeper they go, the closer they get to unearthing an evil that could destroy the world above and put an end to the lives they once lived. The film will be directed by Mihael Hafstrom and produced by famous Mark Canton who brought us legendary epics 300 and IMMORTALS!

  NEW GAME OF THRONES POSTERS AND TRAILER 

And your main treat for today are  new extended trailer and amazing character posters for the third season of popular and overly dark epic show GAME OF THRONES. Portraying the main characters from the

series, posters show each of the heroes with face half in light and half shadowed in darkness. I am guessing the meaning of that is clear once you remember that the previous season ended with the outbreak of some strange looking zombies, with winter setting upon the kingdoms and with the war raging across the land! The posters show Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke), Jon Snow (Kit Harington), Robb Stark 

(Richard Madden), Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey), Jamie Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner), Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley), Arya Stark (Maisie Williams), Joffrey Baratheon (Jack Gleeson), and Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead Wright). The new season will be based upon George R.R. Martin's book A STORM OF SWORDS from his SONG OF ICE

AND FIRE saga. The new thing is that each of the ten new episodes will last a bit less than an hour as opposed to the episodes of 52 minutes from the previous seasons. The third run of GAME OF THRONES stars March 31st in USA and next day in numerous other countries around the world.

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HOLLYWOOD SPY EXCLUSIVE SPOTLIGHT ON HISTORY CHANNEL'S LAVISH NEW HISTORICAL MINI SERIES "THE BIBLE" AIRING THIS MARCH IN TEN EPISODES

Well, people, it seems History Channel is trying to get into some serious game with their productions of scripted series beside their well known documentary shows. With their gala premiere of epic show VIKINGS this Sunday, they are also launching their historical saga THE BIBLE which will air throughout March in five two hour episodes. Shot in Morocco and numerous other locations around the world the historical series also used researchers, academic consultants and theologians in order to verify accuracy of the stories that will be told within the episodes.

THE BIBLE STORY

Television’s highly acclaimed producer, Mark Burnett ("The Voice", "Survivor", "The Apprentice"), and his wife, Roma Downey ("Touched by An Angel") are bringing the most widely-read book of all time to life on the screen, with breathtaking beauty and the use of dramatic live action and cutting-edge CGI technology. The series will cover "Genesis to Revelation" within five two-hour parts, each containing two or three biblical stories told through live action and computer generated imagery. The stories told will include Noah's Ark, the Exodus, and the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Five

episodes will be based on the Old Testament and the other five on the New Testament. THE BIBLE spans hundreds of years of biblical history, beginning with the sacrifice of Isaac and ending with the meeting between Pontius Pilate and Jesus and Ananias's baptism of St. Paul. In between, viewers will see Samson destroy the pagan Philistine temple, David fight Goliath, the Baptism of Jesus and Christ walking on water, among other scenes. The final episode of the series will air on Easter Sunday and will feature the death and resurrection of Jesus. The producers' goal was to retell the stories in a way which is appealing to the young audience as well.

THE BIBLE CAST

When it comes to the ensemble starring in the epic mini series, the names included are mostly unknown to the wider audience with Roma Downey (from TOUCHED BY ANGEL) playing Mother Mary, one of Portugal's top actors Diogo Morgado is Jesus Christ, Darwin Shaw is Peter, Sebastian Knapp plays John, Amber Rose Revah portrays Mary Magdalene, Greg Hicks will appear as Pilate, Simon Kunz is Nicodemus, Joe Wredden is Judas, Andrew Scarborough is Joshua ... It is also very interesting that the music for THE BIBLE mini series was composed by legendary Oscar winner Hans Zimmer who did music for THE LION KING, GLADIATOR, PEARL HARBOUR, MADAGASCAR....

  OTHER BIBLE PROJECTS 

History Channel's epic series is not the only Biblical project awaiting us ahead. Last year Steven Spielberg has entered negotiations with Warner Brothers to helm GODS AND KINGS, which is being described as a Braveheartish version of the Moses story in which the Jewish leader will be shown as the warrior to beat all warriors. You also know that Darren Aronofsky is finishing the lavish production on his science fiction epic NOAH which will follow the famous Biblical character but in an adventure much darker and more futuristic than in the Bible. The cast includes Anthony Hopkins who will play Methuselah the world's oldest living man, who dies seven days before the great flood that Noah survives with his ark full of animals. Russell Crowe is Noah, Douglas Booth and Logan Lerman are his sons, Jennifer Connelly is Noah's wife, and Ray Winstone is also in the cast.

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HOLLYWOOD SPY EXCLUSIVE SPOTLIGHT ON NEW BBC EPIC SERIES "THE MUSKETEERS" WITH LUKE PASQUALINO, SANTIAGO CABRERA, HUGO SPEER AND TOM BURKE

As you know, your Hollywood Spy simply adores the ongoing trend of new epic shows on television, and BBC is preparing quite a lot of those for us: beside ATLANTIS which is ready to replace their MERLIN, and THE WHITE QUEEN and WOLF HALL, which will go medieval and royal, sometime ago I also announced that BBC is planning their television adaptation of THE MUSKETEERS! The good news is that the project in the form of a ten episode show is ready to start shooting this month and we also have the cast revealed with TV heartthrobs Luke Pasqualino and Santiago Cabrera leading the cast!

  MUSKETEERS STORY

Set on the streets of seventeenth century Paris, where law and order is more an idea than reality, the series follows MUSKETEERS Athos, Aramis and Porthos. They are far more than King Louis XIII’s personal bodyguards. They stand resolutely for social justice, for honor, for valor, for love – and for the thrill of it. D’Artagnan (Luke Pasqualino), a skilled fighter from rural Gascony, meets the three Musketeers while on a mission to right the wrong of his father’s death. Although he meets the men in unfortunate circumstances, he finds kindred spirits in the other soldiers. Athos (Tom Burke), who has rejected his noble roots to become a Musketeer, has a past shrouded in mystery. He quickly befriends D’Artagnan, but is prone to getting in trouble. Porthos (Howard Charles) is a larger than life character, who has come from humble beginnings to become a soldier in the most elite regiment in the land, finding a family in the other Musketeers. Never short of admirers,

Aramis(Santiago Cabrera) has an effortless charm which leads him in and out of love. Despite this, he is a shrewd pragmatist who is ferocious in battle and commands a key place in the brotherhood. Constance Bonacieux (Tamla Kari) leads a dull but comfortable life married to a cloth merchant, but her life is turned upside down when D’Artagnan tumbles into her life, and she becomes involved with The Musketeers. Cardinal Richlieu (Peter Capaldi), while striving to achieve his vision of a thoroughly modern France, is a shadowy character who will stop at nothing to

achieve his objectives. Milady (Maimie McCoy) is the Cardinal’s secret weapon, the most mysterious and beautiful of villains whose motives are often concealed. The King relies on the advice of The Cardinal, his shrewd wife Queen Anne and also Captain Treville (Hugo Speer), the brave and respected commander of The Musketeers who keeps an eye on the soldiers to ensure they stay out of trouble. The series bursts with escapism, adventure and romance and is set to thrill audiences with cracking stories!

MUSKETEERS CAST

Created by Adrian Hodges from MY WEEKEND WITH MARILYN and PRIMEVAL, and scheduled to premier on the small screens in 2014, THE MUSKETEERS show will have dashing Luke Pasqualino ("Skins", "The Borgias", "Battlestar Galactica Blood and Chrome") playing the lead role of D’Artagnan alongside Tom Burke ("Great Expectations", "The Hour") as Athos, charismatic Santiago Cabrera (whom you remember as amazing Lancelot in BBC's "Merlin") as Aramis and Howard Charles (Royal Shakespeare Company) as Porthos. They all play a crack-team of highly trained soldiers. Meanwhile, Peter Capaldi ("The Hour", "The Thick of It"), Tamla Kari ("Cuckoo", "The Inbetweeners Movie"), beautiful Maimie McCoy ("Loving Miss Hatto"), and Hugo Speer ("Bedlam") will also star in this thrilling ten-part, fresh and contemporary take on the classic characters created by Alexandre Dumas in his much-loved novel.

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LEE PACE IN AMC 80'S COMPUTER SHOW "HALT AND CATCH FIRE"! TOM MISON & NICOLE BEHARIE IN "SLEEPY HOLLOW" SHOW! DEVIN KELLEY IN ABC SF SHOW "THE RETURNED"! BOB MORLEY & ELI GOREE IN SPACESHIP SHOW "HUNDRED"! DAREN KAGASOFF IN SF SHOW "DELIRIUM"

We shall have tones of casting news for new shows and pilots today starting with our favourite Lee Pace whom you watched as mesme-

rizing Elven king Thranduil leading his elven armies while riding his royal elk in THE HOBBIT. He is returning to TV after PUSHING DAISIES a few years ago. Now he will lead the cast in AMC's HALT AND CATCH FIRE! Set in the early '80s, the drama revolves around the personal computing boom and is told through the eyes of a visionary and an engineer and prodigy whose innovations directly confront the corporate behemoths of the time. Their partnership will be challenged by greed and ego while charting the changing culture in Texas' Silicon Prairie. THR reports that Lee Pace will play Joe MacMillan, who is often the smartest guy in the office and two steps ahead of both friends and enemies. Once a superstar salesman at IBM, he recently departed under mysterious circumstances only to resurface at an also-ran Dallas tech company. He arrives in Dallas with a plan to force the company into the new era of the PC boom. Mackenzie Davis will play a punk computer programming grad student whose aggressive behaviour covers a vulnerability. Her ambition is a magnet for MacMillan!

  SLEEPY HOLLOW & THE RETURNED CAST STARS 

Over at FOX they are preparing television show based on famous SLEEPY HOLLOW legend and the casting is under way!  Dashing British actor Tom Mison from PARADE'S END and SALMON FISHING IN THE YEMEN has been cast in the lead role as Ichabod Crane, joining Nicole Beharie ("Shame"), Orlando Jones ("Evolution") and Katia Winter ("Dexter")! Produced by STAR TREK's Alex Kurtzman and Robert Orci, SLEEPY HOLLOW will see Crane time-warped from the Revolutionary War to the present, where he teams with Detective Abbie Archer (Beharie) to thwart his returning foe, the Headless Horseman. Kate Beckinsale's husband

Len Wiseman is directing the pilot! Meanwhile, ABC has cast COVERT AFFAIRS star Devin Kelley for the lead in their new drama THE RETURNED which investigates what happens  when the people you have buried and mourned suddenly appear on your doorstep. Devin will play a tough, attractive and smart doctor at the local clinic in Arcadia with an inquisitive nature. Daughter of the local sheriff, her mother Barbara died 30 years ago in the same accident that killed an 8-year-old boy. Against her father's wishes, she teams up with Agent Martin Bellamy (Matt Craven) to get to the bottom of the mystery.

  SF SHOWS HUNDRED & DELIRIUM CASTING 

When it comes to CW's pilots, they have gathered the cast for sf show HUNDRED which, set 97 years after a nuclear war has destroyed civilization, follows a spaceship housing the lone human survivors which sends 100 juvenile delinquents back to Earth to investigate the possibility of re-colonizing the planet. Australian actor Bob Morley will play one of the delinquents - a manipulative, strong and crafty one. Eli Goree will play one of the young delinquents on the space station who is disliked by the others because many of their parents have been imprisoned, or worse, by his father, the chancellor of the space station. Fox has also found an actor for their own teen sf show DELIRIUM! Daren Kagasoff will star opposite Emma Roberts in the adaptation of Lauren Oliver's novels. The show is set in a world in which love is deemed illegal and is able to be eradicated with a special procedure. With 95 days to go until her scheduled treatment, Lena Holoway (Roberts) does the unthinkable: she falls in

 love. Kagasoff will play Alex, the object of Lena's affections, a police officer who on the surface appears tough, smug and a rigid enforcer of the government's rules but he is actually a member of an anti government group which opposes government's plan to eradicate love!

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EMILY BROWNING JOINS KIT HARINGTON IN "POMPEII" EPIC? LAURA RAMSEY TO LEAD NBC SF SHOW "THE SIXTH GUN"! JAMIE CHUNG, SIENNA GUILORY, JAMES MCLAUGHLIN IN J.J. ABRAM'S SF SHOW "BELIEVE"

A couple of times last year, your trusted HOLLYWOOD SPY has informed you that Paul W. Anderson is preparing an epic film which will follow the infamous natural disaster at POMPEII. Now we

have new rumours on the possible casting: delightful Emily Browning, whom we've last seen in SUCKER PUNCH and SLEEPING BEAUTY, could possibly take the lead female role joining GAME OF THRONES Kit Harington who is taking the lead male role. The script, which was rewritten by DOWNTON ABBEY's Julian Fellowes (let us hope he didn't turn it into a yawnfest), is set in the days leading up to the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius and follows the love of a slave and the daughter of the slave's master amid the eruption in A.D. 79 and destruction of Pompeii. Emily will star this June in pre WW1 set movie SUMMER IN FEBRUARY with Dominic Cooper and DOWNTON ABBEY's Dan Stevens in a true tale of love, liberty and scandal amongst the Edwardian artists' colony in Cornwall!

  THE SIXTH GUN SF SHOW 

And in television casting news today, NBC has found their actress for the lead role in new science fiction epic show THE SIXTH GUN which will get its pilot this year. According to "Deadline", stunning beauty Laura Ramsey, whom we've watched in THE RUINS, will portray the main protagonist in the television adaptation of the science fiction western comic book. Based on the Oni Press comic by Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt, THE SIXTH GUN tells the story of six pistols of otherwordly power, and charts the chaos that occurs when an innocent girl comes into possession of the last, most powerful weapon. Two other additions to the cast are W Earl Brown who will appear in the show as foul-mouthed undead Confederate General Oliander Hume, with hunky Graham McTavish (from THE HOBBIT) playing his lieutenant while Aldis Hodge is set to play private detective Mr Mercer.

  BELIEVE SF SHOW 

Other 2013 pilots are also casting their leads: according to "The Hollywood Reporter" NBC's new science fiction show BELIEVE has cast ONCE UPON A TIME's Jamie Chung, ERAGON's Sienna Guillory, SAVAGE's James McLaughlin and newcomer Johnny Sequoyah! Produced by STAR TREK and STAR WARS director J.J. Abrams and directed by HARRY PLOPPER's Alfonso Cuaron,  the story of the new drama revolves around Bo (Johhny Sequoyah), a young girl in possession of great powers,  which will come into their own in seven years, and the man who is sprung from prison (Jake McLaughlin) to protect her from those trying to hunt her down. Jamie Chung, Mulan in ONCE UPON A TIME, will play Channing, a strong, practical and smart woman who works for Winter (Delroy Lindo) and assists Tate (McLaughlin) when he escapes from prison. Meanwhile, Sienna Guillory will play Moore, a cool hit-woman who has issues with her own mother.

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JAMIE BELL IN 18TH CENTURY SHOW "TURN"! TOM ELLIS, CHRIS EGAN IN ABC FANTASY SHOW "GOTHICA"! TRAILER FOR BBC'S "IN THE FLESH" ZOMBIE SHOW! JAMES MCAVOY IS "THE CROW" IN THE REMAKE?

Another epic show to come to ABC this year is GOTHICA, a "gothic soap" weaving together the mythology and stories of classic literary

figures such as Frankenstein, Dracula and Dorian Gray. Brilliant British star Tom Ellis will play Victor Frankenstein who is in charge of a hospital and its biotech research programme. He is grieving for his recently deceased daughter, and trying to work out if there's a way he can bring her back to life. Chris Egan will play Dorian Gray, a wealthy playboy and aspiring entrepreneur who invests $20 million of his fortune into a newspaper owned by Frankenstein's old flame Grace van Helsing. Gorgeous Janet Montgomery plays Grace van Helsing, from a wealthy publishing family, who returns to run her family newspaper with the help of Gray's investment! Chris Egan played the lead in POE pilot, while Tom Ellis starred in British TV showS MIRANDA, MERLIN and THE FADES. Stunning Janet Montgomery also starred in MERLIN as ethereal Princess Mithian!

  HOLLYWOOD HEADLINES 

Now, here's an interesting casting twist: after the plans to have Bradley Cooper or Channing Tatum  as the new lead actor in the remake of

THE CROW have broke down, according to "Movie Web" the new candidate for the gig is James McAvoy from ATONEMENT and X-MEN! If he gets the job he will take the role of Eric Draven, a rock star who is brutally murdered along with his fiancée. He comes back to life to avenge his and his fiancee's murder, so their souls can finally rest in peace. As you know the role was played by Brandon Lee back in the 90s when he died at the set.Beside action crime films WELCOME TO THE PUNCH and TRANCE, McAvoy will be seen next year again as Professor X in X-MEN DAYS OF FUTURE PAST which is trying to reunite all the previous mutant superheroes. And yet another movie star to move

 over to television is Jamie Bell who will take the lead role in AMC's new drama TURN! According to "TVLine" he will play play a New York farmer who forms an unlikely spy ring with his childhood friends! It is interesting that the show will be historical since his character - Abraham Woodhull will find himself unexpectedly at the centre of a battle for America's independence in the 1778-set drama. The pilot will be directed by RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES Rupert Wyatt!

  IN THE FLESH TRAILER 

And here's a spooky zombie trailer for upcoming BBC Three show IN THE FLESH which will start airing this March! Starring Luke Newberry, Ricky Tomlinson and Kenneth Cranhamthe show takes place four years after a zombie uprising and charts humanity's

efforts to reintegrate the living dead into society. One such zombie is Kieren Walker, who must adjust to his new life with the help of fellow zombie Amy (Emily Bevan), his best friend Rick (David Walmsley) and his sister Jem (Harriet Cains).

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DRAMATIC TRAILER FOR RAFTING ACTION "KON-TIKI" & ROMANTIC FOR "SOMETHING REAL AND GOOD"! ROBERT EMMS CAST IN BBC "ATLANTIS"! ROBBIE AMELL IN "TOMORROW PEOPLE" SF SHOW! BRIDGET REGAN JOINS "MURDER IN MANHATTAN" SERIES

 Your first trailer for today is for Norwegian Best Foreign Film contender at this year's Oscars - KON-TIKI: In 1947, the world is gripped

with excitement as the young Norwegian adventurer Thor Heyerdahl embarks on an astonishing expedition - a journey of 4,300 nautical miles across the Pacific Ocean on the KON-TIKI raft. Thor suspects that the South Sea Islands had been settled by ancient South Americans from thousands of miles to the east. Despite his inability to swim and fear of water, Thor decides to prove his theory by sailing the legendary voyage himself. After replicating the design of an ancient raft in balsa wood, Thor and five fellow adventurers set sail from Peru. Their only modern equipment is a radio, and they take a parrot along for company. A natural leader, Thor uses the stars and

the ocean's current to navigate the raft. After three dangerous months on the open sea, encountering raging storms, sharks, and all the dangers the Ocean can muster, the exhausted crew sight Polynesia and make

 a triumphant landing. Having sacrificed everything for his mission, even his marriage, the success of the KON-TIKI expedition proves bittersweet for Thor. The film hits cinemas in April!

  HOLLYWOOD HEADLINES 

In latest TV news, lovely Bridget Regan, whom we remember as the lead actress from LEGEND OF THE SEEKER, has taken the lead role in ABC new drama MURDER IN MANHATTAN and will play a part of

a New York-based mother and daughter team who act as amateur sleuths. Over at CW, REVENGE star Robbie Amell has joined new sf show THE TOMORROW PEOPLE about teens with super powers who fight evil around the world. He will play a tortured young man who dreams of being normal next to Peyton List and Luke Mitchell! Meanwhile over in United Kingdom, BBC has made their first casting choice for their Autumn 2013 new epic fantasy show ATLANTIS which will replace MERLIN in Saturday primetime! Robert Emms (WAR HORSE, MIRROR MIRROR) will play young Pythagoras, a genius mathematician and philosopher, in the thirteen episode series set in the mysterious ancient world of ATLANTIS a place of bull leaping, of snake haired goddesses and of palaces so vast it was said they were built by giants. It’s into this strange, compelling realm that the young Jason

arrives and an amazing adventure begins, bringing to life the vast store of Greek myths and legends re-imagined for a new generation. The role of Jason is yet to be cast, let us hope they cast someone delightful like Colin Morgan was in MERLIN!

  SOMETHING REAL AND GOOD TRAILER

Well, this is what we all dream of - for an ordinary, boring day to turn into SOMETHING REAL AND GOOD. And that is also the title of the new independent romantic movie for which you can watch the first trailer below. The story of the movie follows a young man and woman who meet by chance in an airport while waiting for a delayed flight. When the plane is rerouted, they decide to make the best of it, and over the course of one night, realize that sometimes it takes a detour to make a connection. The film, which premiers March 5th, stars Alex Hannant, Dillaran Martin, Tommy Shayne Manfredi, Marla Stone.

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