The other night, The Academy of Television and Science hosted an exclusive panel with the cast and creator of HBO’s Boardwalk Empire. Boardwalk recounts the rise of the duplicitous Nucky Thompson torn between the political upheaval and criminal birth of the Prohibition.  His rise is cast against the downfall of his surrogate son, Jimmy Darmondy, a War Veteran scarred by his time over there.  It is the tense interplay between the two characters that gave Boardwalk Empire much of its dramatic heft during its first two remarkable seasons – which is probably what made Season Two’s conclusion so… surprising.

During the panel, Steve Buscemi and Michael Pitt discussed the controversial finale, costar Michael Shannon lamented always playing “the crazy person”, and creator Terence Winter previewed Season Three, among many other topics of conversation.  For highlights from the panel (which also included costars Kelly Macdonald, Michael Stuhlbarg, Michael Kenneth Williams, Vincent Piazza and Gretchen Mol) hit the jump.

Red Granite Pictures has confirmed last month’s report that Martin Scorsese will reteam with Leonardo DiCaprio for the adaptation of Jordan Belfort‘s memoir The Wolf of Wall Street.  DiCaprio will play Belfort, a hard partying, drug addicted stockbroker who was indicted in 1998 for security fraud and money laundering and served a 22-month federal prison stretch.  Boardwalk Empire creator Terence Winter penned the script.  Filming is slated to begin in New York in August.

Hit the jump for the press release.

HBO has renewed their new series Boardwalk Empire for a second season after only one episode.  However, that one episode, Sunday night’s series premiere, was the network’s most watched premiere in six years.  The critically acclaimed drama scored 7.1 million viewers, far above what was expected.  As one of those 7.1 million viewers, I was not disappointed by the show, which was created by Martin Scorsese and Terence Winter.

Hit the jump to check out the press release and click here to read Ethan’s spoiler-free review of the first six episode.  Boardwalk Empire stars Steve Buscemi, Michael Pitt, Kelly Macdonald, Michael Stuhlbarg, Shea Whigham, and Michael Shannon.   New episodes air Sunday at 9pm (EST).

Combining the creative forces of Emmy Award-winning writer Terence Winter with Academy Award-winning filmmaker Martin Scorsese, along with veteran HBO producers Mark Wahlberg and Steve Levinson, the new original drama Boardwalk Empire was born.

Taking place in Atlantic City in the 1920s, and starting on the eve of Prohibition, it tells the story of the people who make up the political and criminal machinery that is behind the glitz and glamor of what was referred to as the world’s playground. Along with the talent behind the camera, the stellar cast of actors includes Steve Buscemi, Michael Pitt, Kelly MacDonald, Michael Shannon, Dabney Coleman, Gretchen Mol and many others.

Check out what show creator/executive producer Terence Winter and executive producer/director Martin Scorsese had to say about this epic 12-episode drama after the jump:

In America, 1920 was a time of change.  Women got the vote, broadcast radio began, and young people ruled the world. The Great War was over, Wall Street was about to boom, and everything was for sale.

From Terence Winter, Emmy Award-winning writer of The Sopranos, and Academy Award-winning director Martin Scorsese, the new HBO drama Boardwalk Empire is set in Atlantic City, at the dawn of Prohibition, and showcases the time period when the sale of alcohol became illegal throughout the United States and certain individuals learned how to profit from that.

During a recent interview, the series’ lead actor Steve Buscemi talked about playing the town’s treasurer Enoch “Nucky” Thompson, the undisputed ruler of Atlantic City, getting the opportunity to be a romantic lead, and how this is one of the best roles of his career. Check out what he had to say after the jump:

When Martin Scorsese’s name becomes a part of a project you know heads are going to turn.  When you add The Sopranos and Boardwalk Empire writer Terence Winter, people’s mouths begin to water.  And then throw in rock-and-roll icon Mick Jagger: there would be mayhem in the streets.  Deadline reports that all three of those names are in talks to produce a new show on HBO based on an idea of Jagger’s.  The show — tentatively titled History of Music — would center on two friends over the course of forty years in the music industry, from early R&B to modern day hip hop.

Music has been bouncing around Hollywood for some time.  Originally housed at Disney, Scorsese took it to Paramount where he was set to direct.  Scorsese still has first dibs to direct the pilot now that it’s at HBO, if he so chooses.  Scorsese and Winter teamed up before for the gangster series Boardwalk Empire, which debuts September 19th.  Jagger has worked with Scorsese several times, most recently on the concert documentary Shine A Light.

If you liked yesterday’s trailer for David Simon’s Treme, you’re gonna love the teaser trailer HBO just premiered for their upcoming prohibition-era crime drama Boardwalk Empire.  The trailer only features two lines of dialogue (and I won’t spoil them because they’re great), and the rest is set to some slick music.  The visuals look great, the cast is strong, and I can’t wait to check this show out.  The wait will be somewhat excruciating as the show won’t premiere until this fall.

Hit the jump to watch the trailer and read the full synopsis for Boardwalk Empire.

HBO makes great television. We all know that. Every year the cable channel produces series and mini-series that go on to win Emmys and create intense conversations about the latest episodes. And right now, the network is hard at work producing what’s sure to be a massive television event, “Boardwalk Empire”.

If you haven’t yet heard of the show, don’t panic. The network only shot the pilot a few months ago and the full series begins shooting next month. But the reason you should care is one name: Martin Scorsese. Yes, one of the greatest directors in Hollywood directed the pilot and he’s producing the show along with a few people that made “The Sopranos”. The show is a look at the origins of Atlantic City’s boardwalk and is based on the book “Boardwalk Empire: The Birth, High Times, and Corruption of Atlantic City” by Nelson Johnson. I recently got to speak to one of the stars of the show, Michael Stuhlbarg, and after the jump you can read what he had to say: