Question: Happy belated birthday! My gift to you comes in the form of a question: Got any NCIS scoop? —Joel
Ausiello: You shouldn’t have. No. Really. You shouldn’t have. But since you did, I can exclusively confirm that Rena Sofer’s feisty legal eagle — who returns in Tuesday’s episode — will be back for multiple episodes in May and “set in motion a chain of events that forces Gibbs (Mark Harmon) to make a life-changing decision,” reveals exec producer Shane Brennan. And not just any life-changing decision, either. One, he says “that will impact every member of his team.”
Question: I’ll send you some birthday cake if you give me some Supernatural scoop about the 100th episode. —Annie
Ausiello: In the milestone episode, airing April 15,”a very important character will sacrifice themselves in a suicide mission,” reveals exec producer Sera Gamble. “We definitely kept in mind that this was [an important] episode. We wanted to deliver something with real scope; it’s about the Archangel Michael. Crises will come to a head for Dean and Castiel. And you’ll see characters you never thought you’d see again.” Here’s the pan I want you to use for my cake.
Question: Can you tell me if any of the following Losties will get a centric episode by season’s end: Miles, Ilana, Lapidus, or Claire? —Stephen
Ausiello: No, no, no, and no. At least as of 6.15. And my guess is the final hours won’t center on anyone. The good news: You’ll see a lot of those four in other people’s sideways arcs.
Question: Please tell me that you have at least one little morsel of a Bones spoiler. —Carrie
Ausiello: An April episode set at a rock & roll fantasy camp will feature enough testicle talk to make my high school sex-ed teacher Mrs. Sturke blush. It’ll also find Booth and Brennan “reprising a song they have sung on the show before,” hints exec producer Stephen Nathan. Guesses? Head to the comments!
Questions: Could I please, pretty please, have something about Angela and Hodgins on Bones? Please, with a cherry on top? —Dew
Ausiello: Exec producer Stephen Nathan says look for the Hodgins/Angela/Wendall imbroglio to get “stirred up” in coming weeks. “Obviously it’s a very complicated triangle, because Hodgins and Wendall are very good friends,” he adds. “And now Angela is sort of in the middle of this situation, and re-examining her relationship with Hodgins.”
Question: Now that we know Booth is getting a little action on Bones, what about Brennan? —Sydney
Ausiello: I hear there’s a second date with Hacker in her future.
Question: Anything on Damages? — Cyndi
Ausiello: Meta overload alert! Producers are currently on the hunt for an actress to play the role of an actress who ends up getting cast as Patty Hewes in a movie about the Frobisher case. (Got that?) Who do you think should play Glenn Close playing Patty Hewes? Head to the comments!
Question: Please give me some reason to hope that Big Love is going to get back on track soon. Last season it was one of the best shows on TV. This season has been a mess. —George
Ausiello: My love for Big has grown smaller, too. Save for a few isolated scenes and moments, this season has been a massive disappointment. The pacing is all out of whack, the plot twists feel contrived (Mexico standoff?), and some of my favorite characters are almost unrecognizable (please bring back the real Margene!). I’m not giving up on the show though. Hopefully, the producers will hear our pleas and do a course correction next season. In the meantime, there are still two episodes from this season left, including a finale that I’m told will feature a big betrayal within Bill’s campaign. Also, one of the wives will try out a new look.
Question: I heard you got the next four episodes of Chuck. Can you give us some scoop, pretty please? —Laura
Ausiello: The first episode back on Monday will feature…
A) a revealing look at Brandon Routh’s ripped upper body
B) a major revelation about Sarah
C) a nasty tooth extraction
D) massive amounts of Chuck-Hannah kissing
E) a break-up
F) three significant deaths
G) all of the above except F
H) none of the above
Place your best guesses in the comments section. And check out the kick-ass new trailer for major clues!
Question: I had a fire in my home the other night. Now I’m stuck in a hotel with a crappy, 25-year-old, 19-inch TV for seven weeks! I beg of you, give me some Chuck teases to cheer me up. —Scott
Ausiello: Wow, sucks to be you. This should get you out of your funk: The March 8, Zach Levi-directed episode is a game-changer in the truest sense of the word. And plot twists aside, it’s just an all-around great episode of Chuck. I watched it over the weekend on my state-of-the-art, 197-inch flat-screen TV in the comfort of my own home and was in heaven. Hope that helped!
Question: Zach Levi tweeted a picture of Nathan Fillion on the set of Chuck! Be still my Chuck/Firefly lovin’ heart! Please tell me you’ve got any scoop about the goings-on behind this picture! —Kathleen
Ausiello: If you’re asking me whether Nathan is guest-starring on Chuck, the answer is no. Faux rumor has it he was in the running to play the sexy and mysterious new cashier at Buy More, but the role ended up going to this guy.
Question: Any scoop on pilot season? —Sandy
Ausiello: I just heard that Amy Sherman-Palladino will also be sitting in the director’s chair for the pilot of The Wyoming Project, her new Little House-esque project for The CW.
Question: Got any deets on the return of Sheldon’s archenemy, Evil Wil Wheaton, to The Big Bang Theory? —Jason
Ausiello: This time around, the foes will face off in a bowling alley. “Sheldon sees this as an opportunity to settle the score and right the injustice that was created when Wil beat him at the fantasy card game,” explains exec producer Bill Prady of the April 12 episode, which finds the Big Bang crew competing against the gang from the comic book store. This raises the question: How good a bowler is Sheldon? “We’re saying that he is a good bowler,” says Prady. “We’re saying he bowled as a child. He was on a championship team in the East Texas Youth Camp in the 7 to 13 year-old division.” Prady cryptically adds that “Wil’s competitive desire to win at all costs will [inflict] collateral damage on other characters.” Hmm… I wonder if this has anything to do with the looming turmoil in Penny and Leonard’s relationship.
Question: I’m a diehard fan of 24. While the new sets and the slick technology are cool, there seems to be a noticeable lack of action this season (except for episode 8). When will things start to turn around? —Aditya
Ausiello: A wholly unbiased source at the show tells me that Monday’s episode is “classic 24” in that it both crackles with suspense and features a lot of Jack and Chloe. It also boasts what the insider calls a “heart-wrenching performance” from Mare Winningham as the mother of a young terrorist recruit and lots of Jack and Chloe. Anything about that appeal to you, Aditya?
Question: The Psych finale is in a few weeks and some of us are scrambling for some new spoilers! Can you give us anything on how maybe Henry or Abigail play into the finale? Or anything new in general. —Jenna
Ausiello: As you know, the finale will revisit the Yin Yang killer story from Season 3 and feature the return of Yang herself (a.k.a. Ally Sheedy). But what you may not know is that it’ll also include a surprise twist that no one — I repeat, no one — will see coming.
Question: Is Lisa Edelstein leaving House? I read about that and I’m sad. —Camila
Ausiello: I assume you’re referring to comments Edelstein made to Jewish Exponent that seemed to suggest she was planning to move on next season when her contract expired. Well, relax. Edelstein’s not going anywhere. “The question behind that quote was regarding life after House,” she clarifies. ”I’m not planning on leaving, I just don’t count my chickens before they hatch. Since I’m only owned for seven years at the moment, seven is what I said. However, if they want me for more I’m raring to go. I love my job!” Glad that’s settled.
Question: Where will Wilson’s ex-wife (Cynthia Watros) be living when she shows up on House? I can’t imagine she’ll be shacking up with House and Wilson.—Dana
Ausiello: “She hasn’t moved in, but she’s around a lot,” says Robert Sean Leonard, who reveals that Watros’ meatiest scenes are actually with Hugh Laurie. “I have the least to do in a way [of the three of us]. The whole dynamic of this is: the first wife returns, House hates her, and wants to start spying. I’m kind of the guy in the middle trying to keep peace. But it’s a lot of fun to watch Cynthia and Hugh tear into their scenes.”
Question: What’s going on with Katherine Heigl? Is she ever going to be returning to Grey’s Anatomy? —Hannah
Ausiello: Heigl’s due back on the Grey’s set on Monday, so it looks like Izzie will be in this season’s final five episodes. What happens after that is anyone’s guess. In other Grey’s news, I just learned that a second Mercy Wester will not be returning next season. Have you figured out who the other one is yet?
Question: Crazed fans like myself desperately need an update on Smallville’s renewal. How’s it looking? Any idea what the hold-up is? —Ryan
Ausiello: It’s looking really, really good. And the hold-up is due to boring stuff like contracts and money.
Question: Any Ugly Betty scoop? —Matt
Ausiello: Adam Rodriguez confirmed the worst kept secret in TV land: Hilda and Bobby are getting hitched in the series finale. “Poor Hilda gets her happy ending,” he says with a laugh. “She so deserves it. She’s a good mom, a good daughter, a great person, and you really never get to see her win. She’s always faced with these obstacles and these bad guys that come in and out of her life who never work out. And finally she meets somebody who’s willing to love her the way she deserves to be loved. So to end the show with her getting married and having that Cinderella moment for her is really great. I’m really excited about that. And for the character of Bobby, it’s a great way to show that this guy has really come full circle. He’s willing to get married and be a real grown-up finally. They’re a great couple I think the audience is going to be happy to see them get married and solidify that relationship.”
Question: I am dying here without Vampire Diaries! Please give us some scoop on the Damon-Elena relationship because I am loving it! —Ash
Ausiello: Then prepare to love this season’s final strong of episodes, which exec producer Julie Plec tells me will be heavily focused on the pair. “We’ll see Damon start to look at Elena as more than just his brother’s girlfriend or the doppelganger to the love of his life,” she reveals. “He’ll start to love and understand her as a human being, which is ironic because Damon could typically give a s–t about anything involving humanity. It’s some good stuff.”
