Skynet is making its return: the trailer for the Netflix animated series “Terminator Zero” has been revealed.
The series follows the aftermath of Skynet, an AI being, gaining consciousness and waging its war against humanity in “Terminator 2: Judgment Day.” It becomes self-aware on Aug. 29, 1997, after which a war rages on for decades.
“Terminator Zero” is set in 2022 and follows a soldier, Eiko (Rosario Dawson), who is sent back in time to change the fate of humanity. She journeys back to 1997 to protect a scientist named Malcolm Lee (André Holland), who is working on another AI system, Kokono (Sonoya Mizuno) to compete with Skynet. Although it exists in the Terminator universe, it centers entirely around new characters.
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The trailer sees Lee attempting to save the Earth from Skynet, while being hunted down by an assassin from the future.
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Timothy Olyphant and Ann Dowd round out the voice cast. David Ellison, Dana Goldberg and Don Granger executive produce the series for Skydance.
The eight-episode series will be released on Aug. 29 on Netflix. Watch the trailer below.
In other TV roundup news:
FIRST LOOKS/TRAILERS
Apple TV+ medical drama series “Midnight Family” will make its global debut with two episodes on Sept. 25, followed by one new episode every Wednesday through Nov. 20. The streamer released first look images of the 10-episode series from showrunner and director Natalia Beristáin.
“Midnight Family” features an entirely Hispanic cast and crew, led by Joaquín Cosío (“Narcos: Mexico”) and featuring Renata Vaca (“Dale Gas”), Diego Calva (“Babylon”), Sergio Bautista, Óscar Jaenada (“Hernán”), José María de Tavira (“The Candidate”), Itzan Escamilla (“Élite”), Mariana Gómez (“The Queen of Flow”), Dolores Heredia (“Capadocia”) and special guest Yalitza Aparicio (“Roma”).
The series, inspired by the 2019 eponymous documentary, follows medical student Marigaby Tamayo (Vaca), who spends her nights saving lives in Mexico City in her family’s privately owned ambulance. She and her father Ramón (Cosío) and her siblings Marcus (Calva) and Julito (Bautista) tackle extreme medical emergencies to make a living.
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Cartoon Network unveiled their first look at the upcoming animated superhero series “Iyanu” at the 2024 San Diego Comic-Con.
The series, created by award-winning Nigerian filmmaker Roye Okupe, features an all-Nigerian cast and is produced by Lion Forge Entertainment.
“Iyanu” is an adaptation of Dark Horse Comics/YouNeek Studios’ popular graphic novel series “Iyanu: Child of Wonder” written by Okupe. The series “is a superhero tale set in the magical kingdom of Yorubaland, which draws from Nigerian culture, music and mythology. Drawing deeply from the rich tapestry of Yoruba people, the animated series follows a teenage orphan girl, Iyanu, who spends her days studying history and ancient arts but yearns for a normal life,” reads the series’ log line.
It continues: “One day, responding to danger, she unknowingly triggers her divine powers, the likes of which have not been seen since the Age of Wonders. With newly discovered superpowers, Iyanu joins forces with two other teenagers, Biyi and Toye, as they embark on a remarkable journey to discover the truth about the evil lurking in her homeland. Throughout her adventure, she’ll uncover the truth about her past, her parents, and her ultimate destiny to save the world.”
Serah Johnson leads the cast, which includes Okey Jude, Samuel Kugbiyi, Adesua Etomi-Wellington, Blossom Chukwujekwu, Stella Damasus, Shaffy Bello and Ike Ononye.
“Iyanu” is slated for release in the US on Cartoon Network and Max in 2025.
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“Yellowjackets” and “Fallout” star Ella Purnell is leading a twisted coming-of-rage series, “Sweetpea,” premiering in October from Starz. The teaser trailer for the show features Purnell as Rhiannon, a quiet wallflower who develops a taste for murder.
Nicôle Lecky (“Mood,” “Sense8”), Jon Pointing (“Big Boys,” “Smothered”), Calam Lynch (“Bridgerton”), Leah Harvey (“Foundation”), Jeremy Swift (“Ted Lasso”) and Dustin Demri-Burns (“Slow Horses”) round out the cast. The series is adapted from C.J. Skuse’s eponymous novel and is written by Kirstie Swain and Krissie Ducker.
Watch the teaser trailer below.
EXECUTIVE NEWS
Wondwossen “Wondu” Dikran has been appointed as senior vice president of Hallmark Studios, a newly created division at Hallmark Media.
Described by Hallmark as the “nerve center of the production process,” Dikran will manage relationships with creatives and business cross-functional partners while identifying new domestic and international partnerships that provide opportunities for continued innovation and production efficiencies.
“As we continue to expand and increase innovation and efficiencies, I am thrilled to have Wondu at the helm of this critical initiative at Hallmark Studios,” Lisa Hamilton Daly, EVP of programming, said in a statement. He brings a wealth of experience in the entertainment industry, a strategic vision, and a collaborative approach that will prove instrumental in shaping the future of production for Hallmark across linear and SVOD.”
Dikran was most recently head of development and production at Falkon Entertainment. Prior to that, he was head of production at NBC Universal/Dreamworks TV. He earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts-Film and Television Production from Chapman University.
Dikran will report to Daly and collaborate closely with the development team and the forthcoming SVP of talent strategy.
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Former American Zoetrope VP of film productions and acquisitions Michael Musante has been named executive in charge of film & TV finance and development for Cherokee Film.
“One of the reasons Native Americans are underrepresented in Hollywood is due to the lack of tribal representation in the spaces where key decisions are being made within the film industry,” said Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. “The Cherokee Nation is delighted to welcome Michael Musante into our Cherokee Film ecosystem to help us create the much-needed changes we continue working toward.”
Musante’s credits include “Mainstream,” starring Andrew Garfield, Maya Hawke, Nat Wolff and Jason Schwartzman, and “Fairyland,” starring Emilia Jones and Scoot McNairy. He also helped launch Tony-winning musical “The Outsiders Musical” on Broadway. which premiered on Broadway at the Bernard Jacobs Theater in April 2024 and won four Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Director. He’s additionally a co-founder and board member of The Decentralized Pictures Foundation, which supports independent filmmaking and filmmakers from underserved and underrepresented communities.
PROGRAMMING
Max has announced that the three-part Investigation Discovery docuseries “Taken Together: Who Killed Lyric and Elizabeth?” will debut on the streamer Aug. 8.
The official synopsis describes the series as an investigation into “the haunting 2012 double abduction of two cousins, 10-year-old Lyric Cook-Morrissey and 8-year-old Elizabeth Collins, in Evansdale, Iowa,” which includes “seven years of exclusive access and insider interviews.”
“Taken Together: Who Killed Lyric and Elizabeth?” is produced for Investigation Discovery by Maven Creative Media, Kristian Day and Nedzad Muhamedagic. Dylan Sires serves as series director. Executive producers include Douglas Banker and Alex Garinger for Five All In The Fifth, Jessica Sebastian-Dayehand and Donnie Eichar. Paul Sauer serves as co-executive producer.
AWARDS
The Hollywood Creative Alliance and GALECA: The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics will combine their Dorians TV Toast party and Astra TV Awards ceremony into back-to-back events on Sunday, August 18, 2024, at the Avalon Hollywood.
The 2024 Dorian Awards TV Toast, described as “an intimate champagne-and-appetizers gathering of GALECA nominees and members,” will start at 3 p.m., followed by HCA’s larger 2024 TV Astras ceremony at 7 p.m. The organizations have also partnered to present a jointly-sponsored Mosaic Award to a TV or streaming series “that captures the power of diversity, equity and inclusion in a polished, entertaining and seamless way.”
PUBLISHING
TV news anchor Kendis Gibson will publish “Five Trips: An Investigative Journey into Mental Health, Psychedelic Healing, and Saving a Life,” a memoir that will explore his personal experiences with psychedelics and how they helped him cope with issues tied to the stress of working in TV news as well as racial inequity and limited access in the BIPOC community.
In the book, Gibson will recount an anxiety attack during a rare interview with Beyoncé, a public confrontation with deeply entrenched racism at ABC, and his private struggle with sexual identity. A longtime TV anchor who previously worked for ABC News and MSNBC, Gibson currently anchors Nexstar’s WPIX in New York.
The book is published by Post Hill Press and will be released in December.
OBITUARIES
TV writer Patricia C. (“Patt”) Shea, whose career included classic series like “All in the Family,” “Archie Bunker’s Place,” “The Jeffersons,” “Happy Days,” “Cagney & Lacey,” “Lou Grant,” “In the Heat of the Night,” “Valerie,” “Baghdad Café,” “Gloria” and “The Golden Girls,” died on April 12 (her 93rd birthday) in Sherman Oaks. Shea was married to the late John (“Jack”) Shea, a former two-time president of the Directors Guild of America and veteran sitcom director.
Shea specialized in “Edith-centered” episodes of “All in the Family,” including “Too-Good Edith” (the 203rd and final episode). She was a three-time Humanitas Prize-nominee, for the “Edith Gets Fired” episode of “All in the Family” and the “Tough Love” and “Relapse” episodes of “Archie Bunker’s Place.” Shea co-created the Sally Struthers “All in The Family” spinoff “Gloria.”
Shea had five children, Shawn Shea (deceased), Elizabeth (deceased), Bill Shea, Michael Shea and J.J. Shea. Survivors include children Bill, Michael and J.J.; and six grandchildren..
