Created by Jeff Eastin (White Collar) and inspired by a true story, the USA Network drama series Graceland delves into the lives of an elusive group of undercover agents from the FBI, DEA and U.S. Customs, whose worlds collide at a repossessed Southern California beachfront mansion.  In such a high stress, dangerous job, lies become normal and secrets are a matter of life or death.  The show stars Daniel Sunjata, Aaron Tveit, Vanessa Ferlito, Brandon Jay McLaren, Manny Montana and Serinda Swan.

While at the USA Network portion of the TCA Press Tour, executive producer Jeff Eastin talked about how the title of the show came about, how he became aware of the real beach house used by undercover agents that had been decommissioned, that this is a dark but reality-based show, the pressure that the success of White Collar puts on this new series, shooting in Florida, and the research that he found most helpful.  Check out what he had to say after the jump.

On the hit USA Network drama series White Collar, the unique partnership between slick con man Neal Caffrey (Matt Bomer) and FBI Agent Peter Burke (Tim DeKay) was upended in the highly buzzed about season three finale when Neal fled the country with Mozzie (Willie Garson).  The critically acclaimed series returns for a dramatic fourth season, exploring Burke’s fate with the FBI, the whereabouts of Caffrey, and whether or not their relationship will ever be the same again.  This will also be the season that Caffrey finally digs deeper into his family, in his search for answers about who he really is and where he comes from.

During this recent exclusive phone interview with Collider, show creator/executive producer/writer Jeff Eastin talked about figuring out how to get out of what they set up in the Season 3 finale, shooting on location in Puerto Rico, the direction they’re going in Season 4, the addition of Treat Williams for an arc on the show, how tricky it is to dive into the past of a character (Neal Caffrey) that’s been set up for three seasons now, and whether viewers might ever get to see a cross-over episode with White Collar and one of the other USA Network shows.   He also talked about how his newest TV series Graceland (which follows a group of DEA, FBI and U.S. Customs agents, whose worlds collide when they are forced to live together in an undercover beach house in Southern California) is going, what it will be like to juggle two USA shows that will shoot on opposite coasts, and what exactly happened to the unused True Lies sequel script that he wrote.  Check out what he had to say after the jump, and be aware that there are some spoilers.

His series White Collar has found a comfortable home at USA with a decent audience following on the cable network, and now Deadline Jeff Eastin has lined up the pilot for a new one-hour drama series. The currently untitled series is likely to have the same blend of comedy and drama as White Collar as it follows agents from various federal and local agencies (DEA, FBI, LAPD) who all live at an undercover house in Southern California. Likely the dynamic of the agencies working together and living under one roof will be the source of the lighter side of the series with the drama coming from the various cases they’re working on. If it’s half as successful as White Collar, which already has a fourth season order, then USA will keep their track record going strong.

Ever since Arnold Schwarzenegger let it be known that he was ready to jump back into acting, everyone has been waiting to see what the actor will choose for his first film following his tenure as Governor of California. Well, one of the possible projects includes the ever-elusive sequel to James Cameron’s 1994 action-comedy True Lies. Now co-star Tom Arnold says a new script exists for the sequel and he sounds very optimistic:

I have read a great True Lies 2 script, and I hope we are able to do it. Knock on wood. Arnold Schwarzenegger is excited. I am excited….We have both read the script. There is a script that James Cameron and a guy named Jeff Eastin, who created the TV show White Collar, wrote. It is really great. Jim can’t direct it. But he can produce it. We hope it gets done. We have a few fun things we want to do. I am supposed to remain cool about this. For me, it would be a lot of fun to work with the guys again.

Now, this could very well be wishful thinking on Arnold’s part, given that Schwarzenegger has been offered roles in reboots/sequels/remakes of seemingly every film he’s ever made. But I, for one, would love to see the two team-up again. Hit the jump for more.

Jeff Eastin is the creator and executive producer of the popular USA Network original series White Collar, about the unlikely partnership of con artist Neal Caffrey (Matt Bomer) and FBI Agent Peter Burke (Tim DeKay).

After graduating from Colorado State University with a degree in journalism, he landed a position as director of photography on two Roger Corman films that were being shot locally, before heading out to try his luck in Hollywood. He soon wrote a movie that Jamie Foxx starred in, and then began to get involved with television, doing a UPN series called Shasta and creating Hawaii for NBC, eventually making his way to the USA Network with White Collar.

During a recent interview, writer/executive producer Jeff Eastin talked about how White Collar came about, why he thinks the show works so well and where he plans to take it in Season 2. Check out what he had to say after the jump:

USA Network’s hit original series White Collar returns for Season 2 on July 13^th. Focusing on the unusual partnership between a con artist and an FBI agent, this season will see reformed thief Neal Caffrey (Matt Bomer) struggling to deal with the death of the woman he loved, and leaving Agent Peter Burke (Tim DeKay) to wonder just how well he’s holding it together.

Since it’s premiere, White Collar has been a favorite among both critics and fans, who love the mix of humor and drama, and the great chemistry between the cast. During a recent interview, co-stars Matt Bomer and Tim DeKay talked about their evolving characters, giving pay-offs to their viewers, the new additions to the cast for Season 2 and whether Matt’s White Collar character, Neal Caffrey, could take his Chuck character, Bryce Larkin in a fight. Check out what they had to say after the jump: