DOCTOR WHO Smashes BBC America Ratings Record!

The season nine premiere of DOCTOR WHO drew 2 million total viewers to BBC America Saturday night, with double-digit growth in all the key demos, making it the network‘s biggest season premiere ever, according to AC Nielsen and the net itself.

Sarah Barnett, president of BBC America said:

“DOCTOR WHO is unlike anything else on television, a storied franchise that is as fresh and contemporary as ever, with brilliant writing and superb performances. We couldn’t be more thrilled that new and returning DOCTOR WHO fans tuned into the live premiere in record numbers and we look forward to bringing more of the Doctor to this passionate audience.”

New Doctor Peter Capaldi Will Tour Earth Before Debut

The 12th Doctor may be materializing on TV screens here in the USA and Britain when the new season of DOCTOR WHO premieres on Aug. 23, but stars Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman (Clara) will be the feature attractions of a globe-spanning publicity tour that kicks off Aug. 7 in Cardiff, Wales, and stops in New York on Aug. 14.

The five-continent, seven-city, 12-day tour will see executive producer and lead writer Steven Moffat pop up at select stops and also include London; Seoul, South Korea; Sydney, Mexico City; and Rio de Janeiro.

‘Sin City 2’ Poster: A Retouch of Class

Remember that poster for Sin City: A Dame to Kill For that the MPAA rejected for being too sexy? Well, Dimension Films came back with a slightly retouched version that apparently tamped down Eva Green‘s hotness sufficiently for the censorship board industry trade panel to sign off on it.

Yeah, the two versions look essentially the same, but if you look closely, titular character Ava Lord’s white robe has been darkened enough to obscure more of her right nipple, which was the primary sticking point for the MPAA.

So now, this poster is perfectly appropriate for viewing by impressionable young children. Unlike the sure-to-be-R-rated movie itself.

New ‘Catching Fire’ Photos (Including Johanna!)

Finally, we get a new promotional photo for The Hunger Games: Catching Fire that includes Jena Malone’s Johanna Mason!

I know that Katniss Everdeen is the lead character in this flick, but — even setting aside my obsession enthusiasm for Jena — I’m surprised that Johanna is not getting a big push, since she is probably the most popular new character from the sequel book. Okay, you can probably make a case for Finnick, but he’s pretty front-and-center in the promotional campaigns. I was at the New York Comic Con this past weekend, where the Catching Fire booth included a display of character Barbie dolls, and who do you think was represented? Katniss, Peeta, Finnick and Effie Trinket! No Johanna. (Interestingly, the Peeta doll is the same height as the Katniss.) Let’s see a little more love for Johanna, people!

District 7’s Johanna (Jena Malone) practicing with her axe while District 1’s Cashmere (Stephanie Leigh Schlund) and Gloss (Alan Ritchson) look on.

 

 

The Gamesmakers, including Plutarch Heavensbee (Philip Seymour Hoffman) front and center.

 

 

Pacific Rim Becomes an ‘Art Film’

If you need just one more reason to attend tonight’s advance screenings of Pacific Rim — which technically opens tomorrow, July 12 — how about this sweetener: Fans who attend an IMAX screening at designated theaters can get this frankly awesome-looking free poster print!

Director Guillermo Del Toro has commissioned Los Angeles artist Sergio Grisanti to create a poster of the Jaeger Gipsy Danger battling the kaiju Leatherback, and it will only be available as a giveaway tonight.

The Awesome Giant Robots of Pacific Rim

There are bunch of great movies to get excited about this summer, but let’s not forget about a potential dark potential dark horse — or at least a potential tentpole flick with a much lower profile than Iron Man 3: Pacific Rim.

You remember Pacific Rim, right? Guillermo Del Toro‘s giant robots vs. giant monsters movie. Well, the studio has released a quartet of character posters featuring four of the robots (known as Jaegers in the movie universe):  Australia’s Striker Eureka, Russia’s Cherno Alpha, Japan’s Coyote Tango and China’s Crimson Typhoon.

Which is your favorite? So far, I like Cherno Alpha and Crimson Typhoon, but we haven’t seen a full-length shot of Gypsy Danger yet, have we?

Mark your calendars for July 12.

New Teaser Photos for DOCTOR WHO Series 7b

What’s all this then? Ah, I see… promo photos from the first four stories of the second half of series seven. Fantastic!

The episode names appear to be (in order): “The Bells of St. John’s,” “Rings of Akhenaten,” “The Cold War” and “The Hider in the House” (which still might be named “Phantoms of the Hex” unless cooler heads prevail).

Catching Fire Character Portraits

I like the publicity campaign (so far) for The Hunger Games: Catching Fire — these “official Capital portraits” are doing a fine job of capturing the characters in poses that look deliberately staged while sneaking in some personal characterization. You can almost see some of the characters crying out with their eyes, “I’m not really onboard with this; I’m posing because I have to.”

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire opens Nov. 22.