NCIS' Final Four: Chris O'Donnell, LL Cool & More

The much-talked about final four episodes are finally upon us, and for fans of CBS' kooky clan of Naval criminal investigators on NCIS dvd, that means we get to see the backdoor episode to the planned spinoff featuring Chris O'Donnell and LL Cool J.Chris and LL show up in tonight's episode, "Legend Part 1," and in next Tuesday's "Legend Part 2." But contrary to published reports, the spinoff—which has yet to be picked up (wait for after the May 20 CBS Upfronts in New York for that)—is not titled NCIS dvd: Legend, according to show runner Shane Brennan.We caught up with Shane to give us the lowdown on what's in store for these explosive last episodes of the season and what the spinoff is all about...Ziva's Wild Ride: "It's an emotional rollercoaster for Ziva [Officer Ziva David, played by Cote de Pablo], but it's also physical. It's the most physical she's been, and Cote does all her own stunts. It gets very intense, and Ziva's character is taken right to the edge emotionally in these last four episodes. She is in extreme jeopardy, and no one can help her. It's the nature of the work she does. Basically, Ziva's loyalties are tested, and she is forced to make some life-changing choices, both professionally and emotionally."Tony's Tragic Tale: "[Michael Weatherly's Special Agent Tony DiNozzo] has his own set of problems in these last four episodes. Tragic things happen to Tony and Ziva together, and to them separately as well. It definitely does not end up OK for either Tony or Ziva."Michael Rifkin's Return: "Michael Rifkin [Merik Tadros] was set up in the first episode this season in the Moroccan bar. He didn't utter a word. Then we revisited him twice with photos and phone calls. On [tonight's] episode, he arrives on the scene, and he definitely speaks. He's handsome, charming and dangerous. And he's also clearly someone Ziva really cares for."Jaime Murray's Role: "She comes in the second-to-last episode of the year. She's a strikingly attractive woman, and she causes some jealousy, but not between the people you think. Let me say that Abby [Pauley Perrette] gets jealous in that episode."Legend's Meaning: "Legend is a word coined by the East German secret police, the Stasi, and it means deep background. If you're going undercover, you need to have a legend, a backstory that holds up under scrutiny. The new show, which takes place in Los Angeles, takes a look at what it's like to be an undercover agent. That is, how it differs from NCIS dvd. No one from NCIS dvd is moving over to this new show. We'll announce the spinoff title when the show gets picked up."Chris O'Donnell's Character: "Chris plays Special Agent Callen, who has worked undercover for CIA, FBI and DEA, and he's been fired by all of the agencies. He's very good at what he does, but he doesn't like to be told how to do his job. And he's found a home here because Louise Lombard [who plays Special Agent Lara Macy] understands his value and his worth, and she knows he can be a loose cannon, but is willing to work with him." (Fun fact: Callen speaks Russian.)LL Cool J's Character: "LL plays Special Agent Sam Hanna, the only married member of the team. Sam is married with four kids and is a former Navy SEAL. He's very close with Callen; he's like his big brother, and he looks out for him and protects him. He's a wiser guy—an older guy with a different perspective on the world."Louise Lombard's Character: "We set up straight away that there is tension between Louise's character, Lara Macy, and Special Agent Jethro Gibbs [Mark Harmon]. You will go, 'Oh my God' and you'll get goose bumps. There is an emotional connection between the two of them that will make the hair on the back of your neck stand up. We learn more about Gibbs through Macy. They go back 18 years. I'm not going to eliminate romance and not going to confirm romance. They could've worked together."NCIS' May 19 Finale: "These four episodes are really four finales in a row. Everything is designed for the fifth episode in this arc, which is the first episode of next season. Over the summer, people are going to wring their hands and wonder what's going to happen. The first episode next season will be unexpected. People's expectations of what they see in the first 30 seconds will be stood on their head."

Bones' Star Confirms Finale Romp

If there were any doubts as to whether or not Bones dvd(Emily Deschanel) and Booth (David Boreanaz) will finally do it on the May 14 finale, Deschanel tells E! Online that the big romp, four seasons in the making, will finally happen."It should be surprising and good. The way it happens is surprising," she says.Yet before fans of the Bones-Booth tandem can jump for joy, Deschanel previously cautioned that this does not necessarily mean the two will end up as a couple. For one, Booth doesn't seem too keen on doing it just for procreation. Going forward, she thinks that Booth doesn't feel comfortable "just donating his sperm and not being part of the baby's life."Does this mean the central couple of the hit Fox procedural will couple up just for the sake of the baby? For her part, though, Brennan has a tendency to see it as merely a "transaction.""There's some twists and turns in the episode that will kind of throw a wrench into things, you'll see," she assures.Now for the Bones fans who are wondering why it took this long for the romance to be consummated, Deschanel says it will be worth it."I'm glad we waited this long. I think [creator and writer] Hart [Hanson] wanted to find a clever way to put them together that wouldn't forever taint everything on the show, and I think he figured a very clever way to do it."In other Bones dvd finale news, Grammy-nominated rock band Motley Crue is set to appear on the May 14 episode. The hard-living rock stars will perform in The Lab, a popular nightclub where a murdered body is discovered. USA Today reports that the Los Angeles-based band will interact with Brennan, Booth, and the other cast members.bones dvd

Two-parter lets fans meet new NCIS team

As an NCIS dvd fan, LL Cool J knows what needs to be retained for a spinoff to succeed."The chemistry between the characters is incredible: the banter, the way they've developed over the years," says the rapper/actor. "That is probably the best thing about the show."MORE: 'NCIS dvd' spinoff could ride on original series' coattailsChris O'Donnell, LL Cool J and the rest of the NCIS dvd Office of Special Projects (OSP) team will get their chance to impress viewers in two episodes (CBS, tonight and May 5, 8 p.m. ET/PT) that could result in a new series.LL Cool J says it was great to work with Harmon, and he appreciates this opportunity. "I let him know I respect the franchise and want to do it justice. I don't want to be the one to wreck it."FIND MORE STORIES IN: Los Angeles LL Cool J Chris O'Donnell Mark Harmon Michael Weatherly The spinoff, whose title will be revealed if and when CBS announces a fall pickup next month, also features a tight-knit NCIS dvd team, but it spends more time undercover on national security, including terrorism.The episodes highlight the units' differences: The murder of a Marine, the kind of case the original investigates, evolves into an attempt to thwart a security threat, the specialty of the OSP.NCIS's Gibbs (Mark Harmon) and McGee (Sean Murray) head to Los Angeles to team with OSP's G. Callen (O'Donnell) and Sam Hanna (LL Cool J) to investigate.Callen, a loose cannon with a mysterious past, was fired by other agencies before finding a home at NCIS, while Hanna, a former Navy SEAL, is a family man with four kids, executive producer Shane Brennan says.Callen "moved around to a lot of foster homes as a kid, had a lot of different influences," O'Donnell says. "That's part of what makes him unique; (he can) slip into so many different roles."The two report to special agent Lara Macy (Louise Lombard), with another agent (Daniela Ruah) and a psychologist (Peter Cambor) rounding out the team. "Gibbs isn't particularly happy to be working with Macy. They have some history," Brennan says. "People will find out something new about Gibbs."The two hours, besides introducing the new team, figure significantly in the season's conclusion, Brennan says.Fans will see the return of Michael Rivkin (Merik Tadros), a mysterious Mossad agent with ties to Ziva (Cote de Pablo), and they need to watch the episodes "if they want to see what happens to Tony (Michael Weatherly) and Ziva." Their relationship, which has been heating up this season, is at the core of the final episodes, Brennan says. Rivkin's return "causes friction between Tony and Ziva. He has an integral part in the last four episodes."

LL Cool J Paves Way for Possible 'NCIS' Spin-off

ET is with LL Cool J as he joins Mark Harmon on the set of "NCIS dvd." This exclusive takes you inside theepisodes that could lead to a possible spin-off show.Cool J and Chris O'Donnell will appear on two episodes of "NCIS" to set up a series that is beingconsidered to debut this fall.Special Agent Sam Hanna (Cool J) and G. Callen (O'Donnell) are from the NCIS dvd Office of SpecialProjects and team up with Special Agent Timothy McGee (Sean Murray) and Jethro Gibbs (Harmon) tosolve the murder of a U.S. Marine.Watch this ET exclusive to hear LL talk about his gun training and the pressure to "not mess up"when acting on one of the highest rated shows on television. The "NCIS dvd" special two-part story

Television

Mike HaleTo think it all started with “JAG.” That steady performer (10 seasons, 227 episodes) begat “NCIS dvd” (6 seasons, 134 episodes and counting), which is now, CBS willing, about to spin off a third series, tentatively titled “NCIS: Legend.” It’s being set up by a two-part episode of “NCIS dvd” beginning this week (8 p.m. Tuesday) that takes the Naval Criminal Investigative Service team led by Jethro Gibbs (Mark Harmon) to Los Angeles, where the famously uncooperative Gibbs must work with the local office to solve the murder of a Marine.The guest cast — all presumably auditioning for spots as special agents in the new show — includes Chris O’Donnell, L L Cool J, Louise Lombard and Daniela Ruah, an American-born veteran of Portuguese telenovelas.“100 FEET” (Sci Fi Channel, 9 p.m. Sunday) is not the usual Sci Fi original movie: it began life as a theatrical film, written and directed by Eric Red (a writer of “The Hitcher” and “Near Dark”) and played the genre-festival circuit before being picked up for television. It stars Famke Janssen as a woman transferred from prison to house arrest, where an ankle bracelet limits her movements to the radius described in the title; that’s inconvenient, since the husband she killed in self-defense (Michael Paré) has returned to haunt her. The interesting cast includes Bobby Cannavale and the “Gossip Girl” pretty boy Ed Westwick.
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'Bones' season finale to feature guest appearance by Motley Crue. Discuss.

SPOILER ALERT! Fox has confirmed that Motley Crue will guest star on the May 14 season finale of Bones dvd, performing "Dr. Feelgood." This sounds like one of Booth's hallucinations to me, but maybe not. A corpse is found at the popular nightclub, The Lab, where the Crüe plays, and the team investigates with "Booth (David Boreanaz) and Brennan (Emily Deschanel) working together like never seen before." (How did Fox resist putting an exclamation point at the end of that sentence? Impressive.) Also guesting in the episode, Ryan O'Neal (Brennan's dad, Max) and Brendan Fehr (Booth's brother, Jared).What are your theories? Go. bones dvd
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Stargate, Sanctuary nab 38 Leo nominations

The teams behind the productions of SCI FI Channel’s Stargate and Sanctuary landed an astounding 38 seperate nominations for the 2009 Leo Awards, to be held Saturday, May 9 in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Stargate Atlantis dvd led the pack with an astounding 17 nominations, including Best Program, Best Direction (Robert C. Cooper’s “Vegas”), three screenwriting nods (“Remnants,” “The Shrine” and “The Queen”), Cinematography, Picture and Sound Editing, Costume and Production Design, Visual Effects, and Make-Up. In the actor categories, Jewel State is nominated for Lead Performance (Female) for “Tracker.”
David Hewlett was originally nominated in the Lead Performance (Male) category for “The Shrine,” but reportedly removed himself from the running because he did not live in Canada — and thus would not qualify.
Stargate: Continuum earned 11 Leo nominations in the film category, ranging from Best Director (Martin Wood) and Screenwriter (Brad Wright) to Cinematography, Picture and Sound Editing, Production and Costume Design, Visual Effects, and Lead Performances for Michael Shanks (“Daniel Jackson”) and Amanda Tapping (“Samantha Carter”).
Finally, Stargate’s Friday night companion series Sanctuary earned 10 nominations for its freshman season, including Direction, Screenwriting, Picture Editing, Make-Up and Visual Effects. Tapping was nominated for her performance in the episode “Requiem,” along with Ryan Robbins (”Edward”), Christopher Heyerdahl (”Revelations, Part 2″), and guest stars Jonathan Young (”Revelations, Part 2″) and Gabrielle Rose (”Edward”).
Stargate Atlantis dvd and Universe co-creators Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper will also be honored at the ceremony with a special Outstanding Achievement Award.
The annual Leo Awards honor the best in British Columbian television and film production. The awards are a program of the Motion Picture Arts and Sciences foundation of British Columbia. The Leos were founded in 1999, and were established to provide support and recognition for the work of film and television producers, writers, directors, performers and others.
To put the nominations in perspective, it’s important to look back to the past. While Stargate has always received a handful of yearly nominations, the last time a Stargate production took home an award was in 2005, when Stargate SG-1 won a costuming award for “Moebius, Part 2″ and Stargate Atlantis dvd won a Visual Effects award for “The Eye.” Tapping also won for her acting performance in Season Eight’s “Threads.” Since that time, no Stargate production has taken home awards, as they’ve gone to other Vancouver-based series such as Smallville, Painkiller Jane, Flash Gordon, and more.
Listed here are a full look at the nominations. GateWorld also extends congratulations to the cast and crew of Sanctuary, who have garnered ten nominations in their first year — including acting nominations for Stargate alumni Amanda Tapping, Christopher Heyerdahl and Ryan Robbins.
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