‘Community’s’ Dan Harmon on the Shakeup at the Show: ‘I Got Fired’
“I got fired.”
‘Community’ Taps David Guarascio and Moses Port as New Showrunners
‘Community’s’ Jim Rash Talks Dean Pelton on the Finale, Next Season’s Move to Fridays
DVR Dilemma: The New Schedule’s Biggest Time Slot Conflicts
Upfronts Winners Losers: CBS Scores, NBC Reboots, Simon Cowell Hits (and Misses)
Those words came from Community creator Dan Harmon, who took to his Tumblr page to outline the facts of his employment status Friday. The explanation follows a round of news reports earlier that evening that confirmed Harmon was being replaced as showrunner of his Sony-produced show by David Guarascio and Moses Port. As part of the move, Harmon was said to be demoted to a consulting producer on the low-rated critical darling.
PHOTOS: NBC’s 2012-13 Season: ‘Revolution,’ ‘The New Normal’ and ‘Go On’
But the famously outspoken creator balks at the new title, noting that providing the latter is a “standard protective clause” for someone in his position. “Guys like me can’t actually just be shot and left in a ditch by Skynet, we’re still allowed to have a title on the things we create and ‘help out,’ like, I guess sharpening pencils and stuff,” wrote Harmon, whose voice is so much a part of the quirky show, which recently was renewed for a fourth season.
Days earlier, NBC entertainment chief Bob Greenblatt suggested that Harmon’s status on the series was, indeed, in flux. “I expect Dan’s voice to be a part of this show somehow; I’m just not sure if that means him running it day-to-day or consulting on it,” Greenblatt said during a conference call with reporters May 13. He declined to elaborate, though rumors of Harmon’s erratic behavior are long-running and well known.
VIDEOS: PaleyFest 2012: ‘Community’ Red Carpet Interviews
In his entry, entitled Hey, Did I Miss Anything?, Harmon insisted the network executive’s statement was a misquote. “I think he meant to say he’s sure cookies are yummy, because he’s never called me once in the entire duration of his employment at NBC. He didn’t call me to say he was starting to work there, he didn’t call me to say I was no longer working there, and he definitely didn’t call to ask if I was going to be involved,” he wrote. “I’m not saying it’s wrong for him to have bigger fish to fry, I’m just saying, NBC is not a credible source of All News Dan Harmon.”
STORY: ‘Community’ Taps David Guarascio and Moses Port as New Showrunners
To hear him tell it, the executives at Sony did not inform him of the shakeup either. “They literally haven’t called me since the season four pickup, so their reasons for replacing me are clearly none of my business,” added Harmon, who garnered a great deal of media attention earlier this year when he leaked an unflattering voicemail from series star Chevy Chase. “Community is their property, I only own 10 percent of it, and I kind of don’t want to hear what their complaints are because I’m sure it would hurt my feelings even more now that I’d be listening for free.” The studio declined comment; the network did not immediately return request for comment.
Email: Lacey.Rose@THR.com; Twitter: @LaceyVRose
Lady Gaga arrives in Philippines amid protests
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Pop singer Lady Gaga arrived in the Philippines on Saturday to cheers from fans and protests from young Christians calling for the cancellation of her upcoming concerts.
About 200 Christian young people marched in Manila for a second straight day, holding placards urging the singer to “respect our faith, stop the blasphemy.”
The Biblemode Youth Philippines members plan to hold a vigil starting Sunday near the concert venue. They said they are offended by Lady Gaga’s music, particularly her song “Judas,” which they said mocks Jesus Christ.
But throngs of shrieking, camera-toting fans mobbed her, seeking her autograph as she walked into her hotel surrounded by bodyguards. She arrived in Manila late Saturday on a private jet.
Authorities in the conservative, majority Roman Catholic country approved the concerts, set for Monday and Tuesday, but said they won’t allow nudity or lewd acts.
Sold-out crowds and angry protests have followed Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” Asian tour.
Fans younger than 18 were banned from concerts in South Korea over complaints her lyrics and costumes were too provocative, and she was denied a concert permit in Indonesia by police under pressure from Islamic hard-liners.
Riot police stopped Saturday’s marchers about a kilometer (half a mile) away from the concert venue. Phalanxes of security guards stood on alert in front of the arena.
“She declared a distorted view toward Jesus Christ and for us Biblical Christians it is offensive,” said Ruben Abante, a protest leader. “Her music and everything about her is different from what our values are.”
Organizers from Ovation Productions said they respect the beliefs of critics but promised that the performances “will not pose a threat to their sense of morality and conduct.”
Under Philippine law, people who offend race or religion can be sentenced to up to six years in prison, although no one has been convicted recently.
Cannes 2012: In Praise of Its Treatment of Women (Onscreen, at Least)
Recently, a petition was circulated that upwards of 1,200 people have already signed, taking the Cannes Film Festival to task for not including any films by women directors in the main competition category. This omission offended me, too, until I started seeing some of the films that were included.
Lo and behold, the rarest of all things: movies about women that didn’t have anything to do with the men they were sleeping with or marrying. All but one of the films I’ve seen so far in competition have had strong female storylines, and the one that hasn’t still had many well-drawn female supporting players.
Also read: Cannes 2012′s Female Troubles: Directors, Jurors Weigh In
Watching these films so far, one gets a much more refreshing look at women’s place in the world. Wow — there are writers and directors who do consider women to be actual thinking people with motivations beyond getting married.
One has little choice but tip one’s hat to this fest in that regard — women are represented here more than at any film festival I’ve ever attended. Yes, it would be nice if one of the films had been directed by a woman, but if it had, would anyone have taken it as seriously? The Oscar contenders last year were about the male ego, once again repairing itself from a damaged state so that the man can go back to saving the world.
The two films I saw at Cannes on Friday are about female characters. Remarkably, neither film depends on a man to complete things. Male characters are in the film, but their roles are less important to the overall story than the females.
The first, “Beasts of the Southern Wild,” is a revelation. Not since Tatum O’Neil followed around after father Ryan in “Paper Moon” has a girl actor exploded off the screen like Quvenzhané Wallis (photo above), the bold and formidable heroine of this inexplicably brilliant film. I am not sure how its co-writer and director Benh Zeitlin delivered this piece of work, but to me, it is right up there with the best feature debuts by the best filmmakers — we’re talking Orson Welles, Steven Soderbergh, Kathryn Bigelow, Quentin Tarantino and Spike Lee.
Here is a brand new voice, a visionary who is not afraid of the obscure, who dares to carve a wholly new way of telling a story. He uses symbolism and poetry but it’s brazen and unclean, not politically correct but the raw and whole truth.
Also read: ‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’ Rips Through Sundance
I’ll make the assumption now that you won’t see a better female performance all year than the one Wallis brings. (Yeah, Oscar is a long shot.) Tatum O’Neil was wrapped up in the star system already and “Paper Moon” was a fairly conventional film. “Beasts,” which is competing in Un Certain Regard, is anything but conventional.
Mostly I liked the idea that the story turned on the inner life of its heroine — a girl, imagine that. After the movie ended, I couldn’t really catch my breath. I had to wait through the credits in hopes that I eventually could. When the credits finished rolling, the crowd applauded once again, loudly, enthusiastically, with shouts throughout the theater. It didn’t get a standing ovation, but it came mighty close.
The second film again turned on its female characters’ storylines. “Beyond the Hills” (“Dupa Dealuri”) is the second feature by Cristian Mungiu, who rose to prominence with the much lauded “4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days.” Like that film, “Beyond the Hills” feels destined for controversy.
For the last two years in Cannes, there have been several pro-religion, pro-god movies that are, frankly, a chore to sit through if you aren’t a believer. But Mungiu’s film is anything but.
The story centers on a passionate friendship between two teenage girls, Alina (Cristina Flutur) and Voichita (Cosmina Stratan), which becomes strained when Voichita turns to the church. She becomes a nun and takes God into her heart as her one and only love. Alina has a problem with this, and wants things to be the way they once were. (Sex between them is alluded to but never directly confirmed.) Once Alina figures out that Voichita is never going to leave the church, her behavior becomes more and more violent. Finally, the father of the church decides to perform an exorcism on her to get rid of Satan’s grasp.
Unfortunately, by the time we finally get to the exorcism, the film has gone on at least an hour too long. Had they shaved off some of the beginning, we might be more inclined to get wrapped up in this story. If you are a non-believer, however, you will find it satisfying that the film has decided to take on faith versus science.
“Beyond the Hills” was the first film I saw at Cannes to receive boos – and yes, perhaps the audience was expecting something better. But the selection committee did right by choosing this complicated story for the Cannes competition.
These two extraordinary films had more to say from the mouths of their female characters than all of the films I saw last year. The people making the important decisions here really do consider more important elements than marketability. When you are here, the possibilities are endless; Cannes is the best place for dreams to thrive. Even women’s dreams.
Box Office Report: ‘Battleship’ Torpedoed With $9.1 Million Friday
CANNES — Universal and Hasbro Entertainment’s big-budget Battleship was nearly sunk at the Friday box office, grossing a disappointing $9.1 million for a projected weekend debut of just $25.1 million.
That’s well below the anticipated $35 million to $40 million that Universal and director Peter Berg were hoping for. Battleship, which earned a solid B CinemaScore, could come in higher if kids and parents start showing up on Saturday. The tentpole cost at least $209 million to produce, excluding a pricey marketing spend.
Battleship’s international gross of roughly $220 million provides some cushion, but the tentpole starring Taylor Kitsch, Rihanna, Brooklyn Decker and Liam Neeson needed a strong domestic performance to end up in the black. A $26 million opening means it might not clear $70 million over the long haul domestically, resulting in what could be a notable loss for Universal.
PHOTOS: 28 of Summer’s Most Anticipated Movies: ‘Avengers,’ ‘Dark Knight,’ ‘Prometheus’
There’s already speculation that Battleship will follow the same course as Disney’s John Carter, which debuted to $30.2 million in March and topped out at $71.8 million domestically. Overseas, John Carter, also starring Kitsch, earned $200.6 million. The pic resulted in a $200 million los for Disney.
The continuing strength of Disney and Marvel Studios’ The Avengers is no doubt making life difficult for Battleship and other new product (Warner Bros.’ Dark Shadows is another underperformer) but box-office observers say Battleship faces its own obstacles as well.
The alien-invasion actioner — based the classic board game not well known by younger generations — played notably older Friday, with 66 percent of the audience over the age of 25. Males made up 57 percent of those buying tickets, according to CinemaScore exit-polling data.
Avengers continues to be a box-office monster globally, growing its global gross to $1.1 billion through Friday — the No. 6 movie of all time. It will easily stay at No. 1 this weekend, with an expected domestic gross of $52 million or more after earning $15.3 million on Friday.
PHOTOS: ‘Battleship’ Premiere Red Carpet Arrivals
The weekend’s other new offerings at the domestic box office are Sacha Baron Cohen’s R-rated comedy The Dictator and Lionsgate’s ensemble comedy What to Expect When You’re Expecting.
While softer than Baron Cohen’s Borat and Bruno, Dictator — which opened Wednesday — pulled ahead of What to Expect on Friday, grossing an estimated $5.7 million for a three-day gross of $16 million and five-day debut of $23.5 million.
Dictator received a C CinemaScore and skewed heavily male (65 percent). The pic, which Paramount says cost $65 million to produce, did play notably younger, with 56 percent under the age of 25.
VIDEO: ‘Battleship’s’ Jesse Plemons Talks Action Films and Board Games
Dictator is doing better business overseas and should earn $30 million by Sunday from its 29 markets.
What to Expect, based on the best-selling self-help book, looked to earn $4 million on Friday for a weak $11.5 million weekend.
As with Battleship, What to Expect — which earned a B- CinemaScore — also played older, with 77 percent over the age of 25. Females made up 67 percent of the audience.
Gael Garcia Bernal’s confident ‘No’
Cannes, France (AP) — Gael Garcia Bernal is selling happiness in Cannes.
The Mexican actor stars in “No,” directed by Chilean director Pablo Larrain, which shows how television helped Chile overthrow Gen. Augusto Pinochet in 1988.
Bernal plays an advertising guy, drawn into the rival referendum TV campaigns — trying to persuade people to vote “No” to eight more years of Pinochet.
His character uses adverts to sell Chileans the idea of happiness and positive change.
Bernal is also in a good mood.
The Mexican actor and the movie received rapturous applause when it was shown at the film festival’s Directors’ Fortnight Friday.
Bernal says: “I’m really happy. It’s strange, I don’t think I’ve ever felt as confident as I feel now, because I saw the film before coming here and I absolutely loved it.”