We only recently just saw a full trailer for the upcoming sixth season of the HBO series True Blood, and now the network has unveiled a large batch of high-resolution images previewing the drama to come.  In addition to giving us looks at fan favorites like Sookie (Anna Paquin), Eric (Alexander Skarsgard), Bill (Stephen Moyer), and of course Pam (Kristin Bauer van Straten), these images also introduce us to a host of new characters played by the likes of Rutger Hauer (Blade Runner), Arliss Howard (Full Metal Jacket), and Jurnee Smollett-Bell (Friday Night Lights).

Hit the jump to peruse the gallery of images.  The series also stars Ryan Kwanten, Joe Manganiello, Rutina Wesley, Sam Trammell, Deborah Ann Woll, Carrie Preston, Todd Lowe, Nelsan Ellis, Michael McMillian, Lucy Griffiths, Lauren Bowles, Chris Bauer, Kelly Overton, Rob Kazinsky, and Amelia Rose Blaire.  Season six of True Blood premieres on HBO Sunday June 16th at 9pm/8c.

Two new promos for HBO’s gory vampire drama True Blood focus on Sookie’s brother Jason and the werewolf Alcide, giving viewers a little hint of what might be coming up in the show’s sixth season.  Some fans were relieved that Alan Ball was relinquishing his showrunner duties this year (moving on to create the fantastic Banshee on Cinemax), but with the news that new showrunner Mark Hudis left shooting halfway through this new season and was replaced with series writer Brian Buckner, well, to quote one of my favorite films, “alarm bells are ringing, Willie!”  Still True Blood always has a way of pulling us back into its chaos, and I’m sure this season will be no exception.  Hit the jump for the new teaser videos.

Here’s the latest casting news:

• Jason Sudeikis (Horrible Bosses) and Rose Byrne (Bridesmaids) are set to star in indie romantic comedy Tumbledown.
• 42 star Chadwick Boseman is closing in on a key supporting role in Ivan Reitman’s football-oriented drama Draft Day, starring Kevin Costner and Jennifer Garner.

Hit the jump for more on both projects.

Director David Ayer’s (End of Watch) upcoming action thriller Ten just nabbed a release date, but those itching to get a look at the film anytime soon will be sorely disappointed.  Open Road Films announced today that Ten will be released on January 24, 2014, which for you mathematicians out there is about 13 months away.  The film is loosely based on Agatha Christie’s classic mystery Ten Little Indians, as it centers on a DEA task force who heists a drug cartel safe house, only to start getting picked off one-by-one by an unknown assassin.  The impressive ensemble cast is lead by Arnold Schwarzenegger, with Sam Worthington, Joe Manganiello, Harold Perrineau, Terrence Howard, Josh Holloway, Max Martini (Revenge), Olivia Williams (Anna Karenina), and Mireille Enos (The Killing) rounding things out.

Currently no other film is slated for that same weekend in January 2014, but Open Road has also released a slightly new image from the film.  It’s incredibly similar to the first image of Schwarzenegger that was previously released, but this photo shows the actor striking a different (though no less intimidating) pose.  Hit the jump to read the press release and to take a look at the new image.

Thanks to social networking, we now have the first image of Arnold Schwarzenegger in director David Ayer’s new film, Ten.  Schwarzenegger tweeted the image earlier today, one that shows off a new look for the former Governor as he’s sporting a new haircut and a variety of new tattoos.  He’s also armed to the teeth and ready for battle in a police-issue bullet-proof vest, complete with knives, ammo and at least three guns.  Back when it was titled Breacher, Ayer said he wanted to “reinvent Arnold” during an interview with Steve.  You’ll have to decide for yourself whether or not he succeeded.  Hit the jump to check out the first image and for more on Schwarzenegger’s character.

Some macho Monday casting news for you today.  Here it is in brief:

• Joe Manganiello (True Blood) is in talks to join Arnold Schwarzenegger in Breacher, formerly titled Ten, an action thriller from director David Ayer (Street Kings).
• Patrick St. Esprit (Super 8) has joined director Francis Lawrence’s The Hunger Games: Catching FIre, which also stars Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth.
• Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler) has been cast in Albert Hughes’ crime drama, Motor City, opposite Gerard Butler.

Hit the jump for more on each of these projects.

Current showrunner and True Blood series adapter Alan Ball came on stage in Ballroom 20 to introduce a new trailer for the ongoing fifth season.  The panel for the popular HBO show inspired by the Charlaine Harris novels also featured cast members Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, Alexander Skarsgard, Ryan Kwanten, Rutina Wesley, Deborah Ann Woll, Sam Trammell, Joe Manganiello and Kristin Bauer van Straten. The lively and hilarious panel not only teased events in the next season, but also touched on the new relationships that will be forged and acted as a memorial to Ball’s work on the series before he departs as showrunner at the end of the season.  Hit the jump for my panel recap and click here for our continuing Comic-Con coverage.

This weekend I find myself deep in the heart of Louisville, KY for Fandomfest Louisville 2012. Part Comic-Con, part pop culture celebration, and part horror film festival, a few guests of note include Bruce Campbell, Sean Astin, Tyler Mane, and slasher icon Kane Hodder. While each of these attendees has a special place in my pop culture heart in one way or another, my mission today is to track down former WCW star Diamond Dallas Page. 10 year-old me loved nothing more than watching DDP and co. weekly on WCW Monday Nitro, and today may be the only opportunity I get to share that joy with someone who was an integral part of it.

All wrestling memories aside, awaiting you on the other side of this week’s Top 5 is a brief recap and link to our Magic Mike interviews with Channing Tatum, Steven Soderbergh and more, the new international and domestic trailers for Rian Johnson‘s Looper, Steve’s People Like Us video interviews with Chris Pine, Elizabeth Banks and more, the new Total Recall trailer, and Brendan’s inaugural By the Numbers feature that spans Pixar’s entire filmography to date.

It hasn’t even hit theaters yet, but Steven Soderbergh’s Magic Mike may soon be headed to Broadway.  Magic Mike: The Musical is currently in development by Soderbergh and star Channing Tatum, whose early life as a male stripper led to the genesis of the film.  The duo plans to have the musical performing and on its way to Broadway by the summer of next year.  John Buzzetti of WME is bringing the project together, while Soderbergh and Tatum are producing alongside Gregory Jacobs, Nick Wechsler and Reid Carolin. Deadline reports that Carolin, who scripted the feature film, will also pen the musical adaptation.  Magic Mike, starring Tatum, Matthew McConaughey, Alex Pettyfer, Joe Manganiello, Kevin Nash and Olivia Munn opens June 29th.

Magic Mike tells the story of an entrepreneur named Mike (Channing Tatum), who is a man of many talents and seemingly endless charm.  When he’s not roofing houses, detailing cars and designing his own furniture, he’s headlining an all-male revue in Tampa that’s run by club owner Dallas (Matthew McConaughey) and features Ken (Matt Bomer), Big Dick Richie (Joe Manganiello), Tarzan (Kevin Nash) and Tito (Adam Rodriguez).  He sees potential in a 19-year-old co-worker who he calls the Kid (Alex Pettyfer) and takes him under his wing to teach him how to make easy money while taking full advantage of the lifestyle, but quickly realizes that he’s really looking for something more for his own life.  For more on the film, here’s twelve clips.

At the film’s press day, co-stars Channing Tatum (who’s also one of the film’s producers), Matthew McConaughey, Matt Bomer (White Collar) and Joe Manganiello (True Blood) talked about their lack of wardrobe, why male strip clubs are different than female strip clubs, how nervous they all were for their big dance numbers, what surprised them about making this film, and their favorite costumes.  Channing Tatum also talked about how he, himself, ended up stripping at 18 and why he decided to stop.  Check out what they had to say after the jump.

12 clips from director Steven Soderbergh’s male stripper pic Magic Mike have been released.  The film is loosely based on Channing Tatum’s early days as a male stripper, and the actor stars as a stripping mentor to a young up-and-comer played by Alex Pettyfer.  With Soderbergh onboard, we can reasonably assume that this won’t simply be a straightforward, flashy stripper movie.  Early word has been strongly positive, and I’m eager to see what kind of story Soderbergh intends to tell against the backdrop of this kind of world.

Hit the jump to watch the clips.  The film also stars Matthew McConaughey, Matt Bomer, Joe Manganiello, Olivia Munn, Kevin Nash, Riley Keough, Cody Horn and Adam Rodriguez.  Magic Mike opens on June 29th.

A couple of new red-band clips for director Steven Soderbergh’s Magic Mike have gone online.  Though there aren’t any gratuitous full-frontal shots, there’s plenty of shirtlessness, pantslessness and ass-shots to put the rest of us members of the male species to shame.  I’m beyond eager to see what Soderbergh has put together with this “stripper movie” and based on general buzz, the unofficial Year of Channing Tatum should continue full speed ahead on the heels of Magic Mike.

Hit the jump to watch the NSFW trailer and TV spot, and if you missed 53 high-resolution images from the film click here.  The film also stars Matthew McConaughey, Alex Pettyfer, Matt Bomer, Joe Manganiello, Olivia Munn, Kevin Nash, Riley Keough, Cody Horn and Adam Rodriguez.  The film opens on June 29th.

HBO’s True Blood is back this Sunday, June 10th, at 9pm, and the show’s fifth season is sure to be full of bloody mayhem that will hopefully rectify some of last year’s lackluster performance.  As the number of magical creatures and love triangles (love-dodecahedrons, at this point) continues to increase, it may be hard to keep track of who’s alive, who’s dead, who came back and what kind of magic they possess.  Take a spoiler-filled refresher course after the jump to relive the last four seasons of True Blood, including some of the best, worst and weirdest surprises from Bon Temps over the last few years (or moments, if you’re on fairy time).

Ladies, you’ve been patient with our non-stop nerd postings related to all-things-superheroic (which I’m sure you enjoy, too), but we have a little treat for you.  We recently posted images of stars Matthew McConaughey, Channing Tatum and Alex Pettyfer in the stripper story, Magic Mike, but now we’ve got over fifty high resolution images.  You can also listen to what Tatum had to say about the project in this recent interview with Steve.  Directed by Steven Soderbergh and also starring Matt Bomer, Joe Manganiello, Olivia Munn, Kevin Nash, Riley Keough, Cody Horn and Adam Rodriguez, Magic Mike opens on June 29th.  Hit the jump to check out the images.

Despite the fandom’s ritual end-of-season swearing off of True Blood, every summer on the eve of the show’s return it starts looking good again, pulling viewers back in like maenads to a bacchanal.  At the very least, Season Five has added Christopher Meloni, Scott Foley and Alexander Drew (as a little kid vampire)  to the cast, plus the return of fan favorite character Russell Edgington as well as the Evangelical Steve Newlin (now a vamp!)

HBO has just released a trio of teaser clips for the upcoming season, which starts June 10th at 9pm, to whet our appetites like a platter of Merlotte’s spicy buffalo wings. Hit the jump for the videos as well as some analysis.