Director Ron Howard’s adaptation of the Stephen King book series The Dark Tower has had an incredibly rough development process.  Given the sprawling nature of the book series, Howard, producer Brian Grazer, and screenwriter Akiva Goldsman planned an ambitious adaptation that would play out over three feature films and two limited seasons of a TV series.  Howard first set the project up at Universal with Javier Bardem in talks to take on the lead role of Roland Deschain, but as development progressed and the budget swelled, Universal got cold feet and pushed the production start date back just a few months before filming was poised to begin.

Though Howard, Grazer, and Goldsman worked to try and make the budget for The Dark Tower manageable, Universal ultimately decided to drop the project altogether.  Warner Bros. flirted with the idea of producing the project before passing as well, and last we heard Media Rights Capital was in “serious talks” to finance the project.  While we haven’t heard much about The Dark Tower in the meantime, Netflix Chief Creative Offficer Ted Sarandos recently revealed that he has had discussions with Howard about The Dark Tower on Netflix.  Hit the jump for more.

The first clip from the new batch of Arrested Development episodes has landed online, and it appears that the relationship between Tony Hale’s Buster and Jessica Walter’s Lucille hasn’t changed a bit.  The clip provides a tiny hint as to what Lucille has been up to since the events of the season three finale, but mainly it just showcases the series’ wonderful sense of humor that’s been sorely missing from our lives for far too long.  Additionally, Netflix has released a new batch of character posters for the new episodes that features the entire cast along with some rather familiar taglines.

Hit the jump to check out the clip and posters, and if you missed the EW covers and new images from yesterday, click here.  Netflix will release all 15 new episodes of Arrested Development at once on May 26th.

New episodes of Arrested Development are now just a month away (so close yet so far!), and in anticipation of the Bluths’ return, the show’s cast graces the covers of this week’s Entertainment Weekly.  We get a peek at everyone’s favorite dysfunctional family back together again, as three separate covers feature Gob, Michael and George Michael, Tobias, Lindsay and Maeby, and George Sr. and and Lucille respectively.  The publication has also released two new images from the upcoming batch of episodes, which show Tony Hale’s Buster returning to Army and Michael Cera’s George Michael getting his Segway on at what looks to be a college campus.

Hit the jump to check out the new images and EW covers.  15 new episodes of Arrested Development will be released at the same time on Netflix on May 26th.

Today, Netflix released all 13 episodes of its new original horror series Hemlock Grove, based on the novel of the same name by Brian McGreevy and produced by Eli Roth.  After the critical success of the subscription platform’s House of Cards series, it’s easy to see why viewers would be excited for the next offering.  Hemlock Grove though is worlds away from House of Cards, and while many outlets have slammed the series as being practically unwatchable, I actually have to give it credit for a few things despite its larger flaws.  Put it in the category of “guilty pleasure.”  And, actually, it manages to have a little something for everyone, even those who aren’t horror genre fans.  Hit the jump for more.

Author/screenwriter Brian McGreevy grew up in Pittsburgh and attended school at the University of Texas. His book, Hemlock Grove, was first published in 2012 and was immediately snapped up for possible film development. By then, he already had a pair of screenplays in development. Hemlock Grove was eventually slated for television status: with a 13-episode season slated for release as part of Netflix’s development of original content. He currently acts as the show’s executive producer, as well as its principal screenwriter. He spoke to the press in a roundtable interview during the last few days of shooting on the set.  Hit the jump to see what he had to say.

Aaron Douglas is best known as Galen Tyrol, the beloved Chief and possible Cylon sleeper agent on Battlestar Galactica. His other sci-fi television credits include Stargate SG-1, Smallville, Eureka and the new Netflix original series Hemlock Grove where he plays a small-town sheriff on the trail of some big secrets. A jovial, upbeat man in person, he was happy to sit down with the press for a roundtable interview shortly after wrapping his shoot on Hemlock Grove.  Hit the jump to read on.

Eli Roth is at it again, delivering chills, thrills and bloody disgusting goodness in the newly-released red-band trailer for Netflix’s original series Hemlock Grove.  Roth serves as executive producer for the gothic thriller, based on Brian McGreevy’s novel of the same name.  The story follows the residents of a former steel town in Pennsylvania after the murder of a 17-year-old girl.  Of course, as any investigation goes, it soon begins to unravel the mysteries and obscurities that plague some of its residents.  Grove marks Roth’s first venture into television and will also mark Netflix’s latest original series following the successful release of House of Cards earlier this year.  By the looks of the trailer, they seem to be pushing the boundaries when it comes to R-rated content.  It’s heart-stopping action enveloped in cringe-worthy bloody visuals, with plenty of sex and even a dash of comedy – I’m definitely on board this crazy train.

The series stars Famke Janssen, Penelope Mitchell, Bill Skarsgard, Freya Tingley, and Lili Taylor.  All 13 episodes will be available to Netflix members on Friday, April 19th.  Hit the jump to view the red-band trailer forHemlock Grove.  For more insight on the show and some cool tidbits, check out our set visit here.

Not many Americans are familiar Parkwood Estate, a Canadian National Historic Site about an hour’s drive east of Toronto. The sprawling mansion was home to Samuel McLaughlin, a business magnate who founded General Motors of Canada and built the home and gardens in the town of Oshawa. Today, it’s open to the public, though its interiors and garden remain much the same as they were when McLaughlin lived in it in the 1930s. It’s also the site of a number of famous film and television shoots, including the original X-Men, Billy Madison, Warehouse 13 and The Ref. On the day Collider visited, a much different series is wrapping up principal photography:  Netflix’s new original series Hemlock Grove. Hit the jump to read our full set visit report.

Hemlock Grove, based on Brian McGreevy’s novel of the same name, puts a spin on the current trend of werewolves and vampires, replacing love triangles with body parts and unconsummated longing with raunchy, bloody sex.  The story picks up in the small town of Hemlock Grove following a string of grisly murders when new boy in town, Peter Rumancek, gypsy trailer trash and rumored werewolf, comes under suspicion for the crime.  Peter finds an unlikely ally in Roman Godfrey, golden boy of the wealthy and influential Godfrey estate, Hemlock Grove’s resident wealthy philanthropists in the model of the Carnegies.  Together the pair attempts to solve the mystery of the murder before the killer can strike again.  From Producers Eli Roth, Lee Shipman, and Mark Verheiden, the show stars Famke Janssen, Dougray Scott, Lili Taylor, Bill Skarsgard, Landon Liboiron, Penelope Mitchell, Freya Tingley, Kandyse McClure, and Aaron Douglas, and premieres April 19^th on Netflix.

Shortly before the WonderCon panel producers Mark Verheiden, Brian McGreevy, and Lee Shipman sat down for a roundtable interview.  We talked about the creative freedom of working on Netflix, how close the show sticks to the book, translating the story from page to screen, the mythology of the story, Peter and Roman’s relationship, Hemlock Grove’s roots in Pittsburgh and more.  Check out the full interview after the jump.  Please be aware that this interview has light spoilers for the first three episodes.

It’s almost here, folks.  Netflix announced today that the long-awaited new episodes of Arrested Development will premiere on the streaming site at 12:01am PT on Sunday, May 26th.  Moreover, the show’s order has been expanded yet again to 15 total episodes from an initial order of 10.  Netflix stressed that this new batch of episodes does not amount to a fourth season (something Jason Bateman has also been adamant about), but the cast and crew are hoping that this is act one of a story that will be completed with an Arrested Development movie.  Hit the jump for more, including the official poster for this new season.

The Wachowski Siblings are headed to TV by developing the 10-episode series Sense8 for Netflix.  The series will be co-developed with J. Michael Straczynski (Babylon 5).  There are currently no plot details aside from the vague description of “a gripping global tale of minds linked and souls hunted”, but in a press release, the Wachowskis said, “Several years ago, we had a late night conversation [with Straczynski] about the ways technology simultaneously unites and divides us, and out of that paradox ‘Sense8′ was born.”  I’m not a big fan of Straczynski’s work, but I’ll see anything the Wachowskis put together.  Netflix is also continuing their savvy decision to pair with recognized talent like they did with David Fincher on House of Cards.

Hit the jump for the press release.  Sense8 is set to arrive on Netflix Watch Instantly in late 2014.

We’ve got a couple of interesting casting stories to share this afternoon.  First up, add Ben Stiller to the long list of guest stars that will be appearing on the upcoming fourth season of Arrested Development.  EW reports that Stiller will reprise his role as magician Tony Wonder in one episode of the resurrected show on Netflix, but further details are unknown.  Though it was recently confirmed that this will be the one and only new season of the show, creator Mitch Hurwitz certainly does seem to have put together one hell of a run of episodes.  Other guest stars include Seth Rogen, Kristen Wiig, Conan O’Brien, Isla Fisher, Andy Richter, John Slattery, and Terry Crews.  All 13 episodes will be released at the same time on Netflix in May.

Hit the jump to find out who will be playing the chief antagonist in the upcoming third season of American Horror Story.

For those who have been closely following the progress of the new Arrested Development episodes on Netflix, the following probably won’t come as too big a shock, but it has been confirmed that upcoming fourth season of the show will be the only batch of new episodes produced for the streaming giant.  The formulation of this new season was a herculean task of scheduling given the series’ large ensemble cast, but somehow creator Mitch Hurwitz pulled it off and fans are keeping their fingers crossed that the upcoming fourth season lives up to the incredibly high expectations.

Hit the jump for more on why Netflix is only producing one season of the series and how the upcoming episodes fit into the overall plan for Arrested Development’s resurrection. 

Fresh off the company’s wild success of the original series House of Cards (read Matt’s glowing review here), Netflix is continuing on with original content by developing a new show geared towards kids.  It was announced today that Netflix and DreamWorks Animation will be teaming up to create the first ever Netflix original series for kids.  The show will be an adaptation of DreamWorks’ upcoming racing film Turbo, which centers on a snail who has dreams of competing in a professional race.

The series, titled Turbo: F.A.S.T. (Fast Action Stunt Team), picks up where the film leaves off as it “showcases the world-traveling exploits of our snail hero and his tricked-out racing crew as they master outrageous new stunts and challenge any villain unlucky enough to cross their path.”  As kids nowadays are learning to use an iPad before they can talk, this project sounds like a pretty smart idea.  Hit the jump to watch the teaser trailer for Turbo and to read the press release.  The film opens in 3D on July 19th.

We’ll dedicate more time to this topic after the jump, but in just a few sentences I want to share a quick thought I had while watching Netflix’s House of Cards last weekend. It’s not just that I think the show is great. When you involve talents like Kevin Spacey and David Fincher, it’s hard to imagine a scenario where quality work is in short supply. It’s that this level of material was birthed by and is only consumed via the Internet. I’ve been in debates where the question was whether or not the web would foster an age of amateurs. A future in which the training and dedication required to further perfect one’s craft would fall by the wayside leaving audiences with less than stellar work produced by those made lazy by the eased production and distribution technologies afforded by the Internet. While the fact that I’m writing to a considerable audience today via this site is evidence to that very argument, the overall quality of HOC is a strong rebuttal against those concerned about the quality of entertainment work in a digital age.

All thinking out loud aside, this week’s Top 5 features an editorial response to Disney’s announcement that Star Wars spinoff films are in the works, Side Effects interviews with Steven Soderbergh and more, a word about Hulk’s movie future, Matt’s editorial on Netflix and the affect time shifting has on viewing habits, and the latest news out of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 camp. As you’re probably expecting, a brief recap and link to each waits after the jump.