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The Americans - S4 of the KGB spy drama - Keri Russell & Matthew Rhys - Wed on FX

Small bit of casting news as they're back in production:

- ‘The Americans’ Casts Brett Tucker
Mistresses alum Brett Tucker has booked a recurring role on the upcoming fifth season of FX’s praised Cold War spy drama The Americans. Tucker will play Ben Stobert,
a charming, intelligent and passionate scientist, whose work goes deeper than it seems.
Australian-born Tucker played Harry Davis on all four seasons of ABC’s summer series Mistresses. He previously played Dave Brewer in McLeod’s Daughters and Daniel Fitzgerald in Neighbours, and also appeared in Marvel’s Thor: The Dark World. He’s repped by Gersh, Primary Wave Management and Aran Michael in Australia.

Also, guess who's back on set?
 
- THR panel discussion with Russell, Rhys, Fields, and Weisberg from last night at the 92nd Street Y in New York
Fields revealed that they were currently shooting the first two episodes in season five, which is set to air in 2017, and have written scripts for that season's first seven episodes as well as the next two full stories and have everything sketched out for the rest of that season in great detail. He and Weisberg also said that the fifth season is a fresh start in some ways.

"We talk about this almost every day that we've been working on season five that there is a feeling that we're starting over," Weisberg said. "Not really with you guys [to Russell and Rhys] and the family, but with a lot of the operations you've run, that those paid off in season four, so we started building those fresh."

Fields added that the fifth season "feels a bit different." "We're leaning into this longer storytelling and there is an element of that that feels so fresh and liberating," he said. "Even characters in the same story, there are new beginnings for that."

Later he said that the fact that they'd already mapped out all of season five allows them the freedom to rearrange the timing of certain plot points.

"Because we write so far in advance, we actually have the opportunity to be more improvisatory and that may sound bizarre," Fields explained. "What that allows us to do is be rewriting all of that simultaneously, so if a better idea comes up for episode eight that could be set up effectively in episode two, we can go ahead and do that and make it look like we planned it."
Much more via the link including a full stream of the panel.
 

effzee

Member
Just started watching this show and I am still only on season 1 episode 12. LOVE LOVE LOVE it so far but had a question:

Throughout the first season I keep getting the sense Elizabeth was never into Philip (which is ok fair) but that he fell for her from always the start. That he always tried to make the marriage work and was really in love with her.

Then mid-way through the season she starts to have feelings for him and tries but of course Philip has a meeting with an old love who he sleeps with and next think you they separate.

Am I the only one who sees this as one sided? She was having an affair for almost a decade with that guy Gregory. She knew Philip finding out would hurt him. Yet he slips once, and the show tries to depict her as a victim?

More frustrating is Philip not calling her out on her BS. She also tells the center that he might defect so gets the shit beat out of him, and again she throws a tantrum after he sleeps with his ex.
 

Grizzlyjin

Supersonic, idiotic, disconnecting, not respecting, who would really ever wanna go and top that
Just started watching this show and I am still only on season 1 episode 12. LOVE LOVE LOVE it so far but had a question:

Throughout the first season I keep getting the sense Elizabeth was never into Philip (which is ok fair) but that he fell for her from always the start. That he always tried to make the marriage work and was really in love with her.

Then mid-way through the season she starts to have feelings for him and tries but of course Philip has a meeting with an old love who he sleeps with and next think you they separate.

Am I the only one who sees this as one sided? She was having an affair for almost a decade with that guy Gregory. She knew Philip finding out would hurt him. Yet he slips once, and the show tries to depict her as a victim?

More frustrating is Philip not calling her out on her BS. She also tells the center that he might defect so gets the shit beat out of him, and again she throws a tantrum after he sleeps with his ex.

Hmm, I remember having a similar read at the time. Their whole thing is...complicated. It's literally an arranged marriage. But just like many arranged marriages, the couples can learn to love each other over time. I think just by virtue of her personality, Elizabeth is cold to the entire thing initially. The show plays around with their dynamic beautifully. Even if things were 100% real between them, they're going to have relationships and sleep around as part of the job. I haven't watched the early seasons in awhile but I always took it as the line between duty and true feelings were blurred for Elizabeth, while there is no line at all for Philip.

Glad to see you've started the show, you're in for a great ride.
 

IronRinn

Member
giphy.gif
 
Sounds good.
Indeed:
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: When producers know they’re doing a penultimate season, they usually opt for one of two tactics: Either more ramping up to the dramatic final season or they approach things like it’s actually the first half of the final season and major events are happening throughout. Which did you opt for?

JOE WEISBERG: We are doing neither of those tactics. We have a whole new tactic. People have called this show a “slow burn.” We used to think that was a back-handed compliment, or possibly even an insult. We’ve come to embrace the slow burn — such a slow burn that it may not even be burning at all. We’re just telling a story as it unfolds. For us, the penultimate season is just another season of telling a story of this family and the people around them. It’s not ramped up. It’s not hyped up. It’s not building the tension — but it will be a great season.

JOEL FIELDS: In a strange way this story has come to life so much for us that we’re just telling the story we have and following it. It would seem backward to us to say, “How do we construct backward from the final season of the show?” When FX picked up the final season they didn’t say, “You have 23 episodes left.” They said, “What do you guys feel?” and “let’s have a dialogue and how much we need together to tell this story.” The story is giving us more than we’re giving the story.
 
I watched the first season as it aired but fell off the wagon. Decided I've really, really got to correct that so started over again with season 1 (since I don't remember a ton of details). Man, that first episode! I'm in for a treat I think. =)
 
- YahooTV's Winter Preview
‘The Americans’ (March, FX)

This Season's Theme: "The theme of this season would be a spoiler,” says co-showrunner Joe Weisberg. “We can’t tell you the theme."

Where We Left Off: Nina's dead, as is William, after being infected with the deadly virus before the FBI captured him. Oleg (Costa Ronin) chose to return to Russia, while Arkady (Lev Gorn) was ordered to flee the U.S. by the American government. The Jennings (Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys) avoided being outed by Pastor Tim (Kelly AuCoin), but Paige's (Holly Taylor) budding romance with Matthew (Danny Flaherty) promised more trouble ahead for the family.

Coming Up:
We'll find out what decision the Jennings made about moving back to their homeland in the season premiere; William (Dylan Baker) is gone, but his case isn't closed just yet; Matthew isn't the only Beeman male whose outlook has changed because of a female; and the opener begins and ends with truly surprising moments. Oh, and about Oleg, who has emerged as one of The Americans' most endearing characters: "He’s become a really interesting window, particularly as we head into this season, into life in the Soviet Union," says co-showrunner Joel Fields. "The show has been so much about the United States, but [he] has now allowed us to start opening the curtain into what life was like there."

Boys’ Club: Philip’s older son Mischa (Alex Ozerov) will continue to search for his dad in Season 5, while Henry (Keidrich Sellati) will finally get some real screen time. "There are a lot of great stories to tell for Henry, and we’ve always really struggled to find the space," Weisberg says. "This year, for the first time we found the space we’ve been looking for to tell an expanded story about Henry."


This is up now if anyone wants to watch:
This is airing on Saturday evening on most PBS stations in case anyone wants to check it out. It's a half hour discussion.

- 'The Americans' and the New Cold War
Emmy nominated creator of FX's The Americans Joe Weisberg talks about the U.S. relationship with Russia, espionage, fact and fiction.
Presumably this link will lead to a stream of the video once it airs.
 

IronRinn

Member
The second part of the second paragraph of spoilers is good news.
Henry has been under-used for way too long, a la Walt Jr.
 
- TVLine's Winter TV preview on The Americans
THE AMERICANS

As we approach the endgame for FX’s ’80s spy thriller (it’s been renewed for two final seasons), Season 5 will tackle
some lingering issues for the Jennings family — including Philip’s continuing doubts about whether he wants to be a spy at all. “Almost from the beginning of the show, we saw that as a series-long journey for Philip,” executive producer Joel Fields says. “And Season 5 is going to be very, very big for Philip’s struggles with those questions.” Philip and Elizabeth are more “connected” than ever in Season 5, he adds, but “as their marriage has moved into a better, more honest and trusting partnership, their challenges in the world have only gotten harder.” Also, look for The Walking Dead‘s Laurie Holden to join the cast as “a new romantic interest for Stan,” exec producer Joe Weisberg hints, along with “a boatload of new Russians… new KGB officers who are going to be be really compelling and interesting.”
 
Some entertaining stuff already:

#MatthewRhys on directing wife #KeriRussell on #TheAmericans to #TCA17 panel via satellite: Long pause. "I think we're going into a tunnel."
Asked when Paige will learn to kill with her bare hands, @HollyTaylor97 replies, “I’ve been wondering that since Season 1!” #TheAmericans
 
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