Stars on Screen
Time-twisted drama: War, it seems, never changes, and ABC’s new sci-fi drama is ready to shine the spotlight on a deeply human by-product that conflict has created since the beginning of history: refugees fleeing the horrors of fighting.
“The Crossing” premieres Monday, April 2, and while the subject may be a heavy one, that doesn’t mean that the series is all doom and gloom. Steve Zahn (“Diary of a Wimpy Kid,” 2010) leads the cast as the sheriff of a small fishing town in Oregon. A recent transplant from Oakland, he’s looking to put his past behind him and build new lives for himself and his young son.The sleepy town’s tranquility is shattered soon after his arrival, when dozens of refugees fleeing war wash up on shore and request asylum.
Of course, there’s a twist to this: that war-torn country from which the refugees have fled is the United States, and the war is occurring 180 years in the future.
Natalie Martinez (“APB”) co-stars as asylum seeker Reece, but unlike the other refugees, she’s a genetically enhanced soldier with superhuman mental and physical abilities. Although she was engineered to eliminate her enemies, she’s come to the past — our present — for a very different mission altogether: to find safety for her daughter, from whom she was separated during their flight and whom she is now desperate to find. Also starring is Sandrine Holt (“House of Cards”) as the Homeland Security agent in charge of the investigation.
At its core, “The Crossing” is a sci-fi mystery. What is this war from which these people have fled, and why have they come to our time, specifically? With the feds also involved and a horrific virus from the future on the loose, the new sheriff has his work cut out for him as he conducts his own investigation while also dealing with his dark past.
Star power: HBO delves into one of the darker chapters in college football’s long history, and the network has turned to an Oscar winner to really bring the story to life.
“Scent of a Woman” (1992) star Al Pacino headlines the cast in HBO’s biographical film “Paterno,” which premieres Saturday, April 7. In it, he plays the titular role of Joe Paterno, a coach renowned for the most wins ever in college football but whose legacy was tarnished in the wake of a sexual abuse scandal that involved his former defensive co-ordinator.
As is the expectation for an HBO film, a quality ensemble cast has been assembled to really bring the story to life on screen. Riley Keough (“Logan Lucky,” 2017) plays young journalist Sara Ganim, the woman who first broke the story of the abuse of minors that was taking place. Kathy Baker (“Picket Fences”) stars as Paterno’s wife, Sue, while Larry Mitchell (“Hostages”), Greg Grunberg (“Heroes”) and Annie Parisse (“Person of Interest”) play his three children.
“Paterno” is just the latest collaboration that Pacino has had with HBO, and all three have been with Oscarwinning director Barry Levinson.The actor starred in 2010’s “You Don’t Know Jack,” about controversial pathologist Jack Kevorkian, an outspoken proponent of doctor-assisted suicide. The role netted Pacino both an Emmy and a Golden Globe Award, and Levinson an Emmy nomination. In 2013, Pacino played the title role in “Phil Spector,” a film about the murder trials of the notorious record producer.
All that ever was: Fasten those seatbelts — the Ship of the Imagination is fueling up, its captain is plotting out its next course and we’re all invited to come along for the trip through space, time and everything in between.
A new season of “Cosmos” is in the works at Fox, this time with the subtitle “Possible Worlds.” The original 1980 series, “Cosmos: A Personal Voyage,” starred astronomer and cosmologist Carl Sagan as he took viewers on a journey through a vast array of scientific subjects, from humanity’s place in the universe to the origins of life itself. In 2014, astrophysicist Neil de Grasse Tyson hosted a followup, “Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey,” which won critical acclaim and several awards, including four Emmys.
“Cosmos: Possible Worlds” is in the
works for a spring 2019 pre----
miere, and will reunite Tyson with executive producer Seth MacFarlane (“Family Guy”), who was instrumental in getting “A Spacetime Odyssey” made.
Just what the focus of the new series will be remains shrouded in mystery, but don’t expect a rehashing of the subjects visited in “A Spacetime Odyssey.” The team behind it has promised that previously unexplored subjects will be examined, and in an age when the terms “fake news” and “alternative facts” have become part of the lexicon, a little dose of some cutting-edge science explained in an easy to understand way may be just what the astrophysicist ordered.