All Seasons of Lana Parrilla’s “Once Upon a Time” to Begin Streaming on Hulu in September

Posted on August 29, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

It’s once more time for Lana Parrilla.

All seven seasons of ABC’s Once Upon a Time, starring the 46-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress as Regina Mills/The Evil Queen, will start streaming on Hulu on September 1.

The fairytale drama has been streaming exclusively on Disney+ since it left Netflix; it will now be shared by the two Disney entertainment platforms.

Exclusivity, considered paramount in the early stages of the streaming wars, has taken a back seat to media companies’ push for additional revenue and profitability. The strategy shift has led to original HBO series streaming on Netflix, for example, with NBCUniversal’s Suits also finding its way to the global streamer.

At Disney, there has been increasing cross-pollination between previously walled-up Disney+ and Hulu.

Once Upon a Time is considered a quintessential Disney+ series as it has been built on classic Disney IP, including most Disney princesses.

The move comes as both Disney+ and Hulu shed dozens of series and specials earlier this year in a cost-cutting measure as Disney is preparing to roll out a single streaming app with programming from both Hulu and Disney+ by the end of this year.

Created by Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz, One Upon a Time, which streamed on Hulu during its run on ABC, blends the fantastical and real worlds with fairytale characters living in Storybrooke, ME. Jennifer Morrison, Ginnifer Goodwin, Josh Dallas and Lana Parrilla star.

Edgar Ramirez to Star on Season Two of Peacock’s Anthology Series “Dr. Death”

Posted on November 9, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Death becomes Edgar Ramirez.

The 45-year-old Venezuelan actor will star in Peacock’s Dr. Death for the anthology series’ second season.

The Emmy-nominee will portray Paolo Macchiarini, the focus of Season 2 which is based on the third season of the Wondery podcast of the same name. Macchiarini is a visionary surgeon whose innovative organ transplants seduced the global medical community. When his fiancé, Benita Alexander, and a few suspicious colleagues launch investigations into his botched surgeries, cracks start to appear in Paolo’s charming persona. As Benita learns how far Paolo will go to protect his secrets, a group of doctors halfway across the world makes shocking discoveries of their own that call everything about him into question.

Season 2 hails from showrunner, writer, and executive producer Ashley Michel Hoban. Patrick Macmanus, who served as showrunner, writer, and EP of the show’s freshman season, will executive produce Season 2 via his Littleton Road Productions banner, under his overall deal with UCP.

Jennifer Morrison and Laura Belsey will split directing duties. Morrison is set to direct episodes one to four; Belsey will direct 5-8.

Ramirez most recently portrayed Detective Joe Mendoza in the HBO miniseries The Undoing alongside Nicole Kidman and Hugh Grant. He will lead the Netflix drama series Florida Man in the role of Mike Valentine.

He’s most notably known for his portrayal of Gianni Versace in Ryan Murphy’s The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, which earned Ramirez an Emmy nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series. He was also nominated for an Emmy for his portrayal of the titular character in the miniseries Carlos in 2011.

Marianly Tejada to Star in YA Mystery Drama Pilot “One of Us is Lying”

Posted on November 1, 2019 by Tom Castaneda

Marianly Tejada won’t be Lying low for long…

The Dominican-American actress has been cast in One of Us is Lying, the YA mystery drama pilot fo Peacock, NBCUniversal’s upcoming streaming service.

In addition to Tejada, the ensemble cast includes Cooper van Grootel, Annalisa Cochrane, newcomer Chibuikem Uche, Jessica McLeod, Barrett Carnahan and Puerto Rican/Spanish actress Melissa Collazo.

The project hails from NBCU’s UCP and John Sacchi’s 5 More Minutes Productions banner.

Written by Erica Saleh and based on Karen M. McManus’ bestselling novel, One of Us is Lying is the story of what happens when five high schoolers walk into detention and only four make it out alive. Everyone is a suspect, and everyone has something to hide.

Tejada will play Brownyn. Top of her class, Bronwyn is so focused on the future she rarely thinks about the present. Most classmates admire her more than they like her, and a few rivals wonder how far she’d go to get ahead.

van Grootel will portray Nate, the school’s most notorious drug dealer, a delinquent who lives alone with his alcoholic father. But that’s not the only reason he’s the police’s prime suspect.

Cochrane will play Addy. Addy makes high school look easy, but you don’t become the school’s most popular cheerleader without hiding secrets. If people really knew her, she fears, her whole world might fall apart.

Uche will portray Cooper. A dominant high school baseball pitcher, scouted by the major leagues, Cooper is on the verge of signing a life-changing professional deal – unless something (or someone) gets in his way.

McLeod is Janae. A punk outsider who hates her fake classmates, Janae is left angry and alone when her only friend is murdered. Rather than simply grieve his death, she promises to honor his bitter legacy.

Carnahan will play Jake, the captain of the football team and the boyfriend of Addy (Cochrane). Jake seems to have it all, but it’s never enough.

Collazo will portray Maeve, Bronwyn’s little sister, who developed a tough demeanor while losing years to a childhood fight with Leukemia. In remission now, she’s hungry to make up for lost time.

Jennifer Morrisonwill direct the pilot and also executive produce.

Tejada’s television credits include recurring roles on Orange Is The New Black and The Purge.

Collazo recently recurred in Swamp Thing and plays the lead role in the upcoming feature film Lena and Snowball.

One of Us is Lying is one of three pilot orders from Peacock, joining Punky Brewster, also from UCP, and Straight Talk.

Julian Silva to Appear on Season 4 of NBC’s “This Is Us”

Posted on September 2, 2019 by Tom Castaneda

Julian Silva is no longer a stranger…

NBC has revealed several brand new cast members for This Is Us Season 4—including the Latino actor—seen in a new promo trailer for the special extended premiere episode entitled “Strangers”.

In addition to Silva, other newcomers include Asante Blackk, Marsha Stephanie Blake, M. Night Shyamalan,Bahara Golestani, Timothy Omundson, Auden Thornton, Nick Wechslerand Omar Epps.

The details of their roles aren’t yet known, but it appears that Blake may be playing Blackk’s mother—in the clip we see her kiss his cheek—while Epps may be his father, since we see the pair working together as car mechanics.

Jennifer Morrison’s major recurring role was already made official in July, and while its significance remains under wraps, the trailer gives us a few more breadcrumbs. She’s shown in a modern-day military uniform seated at a desk with a framed photo of a father who could be Kevin (Justin Hartley), with a young son. And of course, we already know from the Season 3 finale flash forward that Kevin will have a son.

The trailer opens with Rebecca (Mandy Moore) and Jack (Milo Ventimiglia) in a car. Following her first Emmy nomination for this role in July, Moore told Deadline of the Season 4 beginning: “Myself and Milo, we’re picking up where we left off after that fateful road trip out to California. We just arrived back in Pittsburgh and we’re trying to figure out how we move forward with our relationship and meet each other’s respective families.”

In the trailer, a young Rebecca tells Jack: “It’s actually kind of terrifying how a single cross with one person who you’ve never met can change everything.” It’s not clear to whom this foreboding speech refers, but as the clip flicks through the faces of the new cast members, in classic This Is Us style, Rebecca’s musing is likely to be the thread that draw together a series of different stories and timelines.

We see Griffin Dunne, who has previously played the older version of Nicky, while Ron Cephas Jonesis also set to resume the role of William, Randall Pearson (Sterling K. Brown)’s ill-fated father—a turn that won Jones his third Emmy nom this year (he won in 2018).

The clip also provides glimpses of other previous cast members, confirmed by NBC as returning this season. There’s Cosby Show veteran Phylicia Rashad as Carol, Beth (Susan Kelechi Watson)’s mother, Tim Jo as Randall’s campaign manager Jae-won Yoo, Elizabeth Perkins as Janet Malone, the racist mother of Rebecca (Mandy Moore), and Caitlin Thompson will resume her role of Madison, Kate (Chrissy Metz)’s friend.

This Is Us Season 4 will premiere on September 24 on NBC.

Bella Thorne’s “Amityville: The Awakening” to be Available Free on Google Play

Posted on September 22, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

Bella Thorne is ready to (Google) play scared…

After its release date was shifted four times, Weinstein Co./Dimension Films/Blumhouse Production’s Amityville: The Awakening, starring the 19-year-old half-Cuban American actress, will now be available for free exclusively on Google Play from October 12 to November 8.

In addition, Amityville will receive a limited theatrical release on October 28.

The movie stars Thorne, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jennifer Morrison, and Cameron Monaghan and was written and directed by Franck Khalfoun.

In the movie, Belle (Thorne) and her family encounter a strange phenomena when they move into their new house. Belle begins to suspect her mother (Leigh) isn’t telling her everything. It’s then that she soon realizes they just moved into the infamous Amityville house where between illusion and reality lies evil.

Dania Ramirez to Star on ABC’s “Once Upon A Time”

Posted on July 6, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

Dania Ramirez’s life is a fairy tale…

The 37-year-old Dominican actress and Devious Maids alum has been cast as a series regular on ABC’s Once Upon A Time for the upcoming seventh season.

Ramirez’s character details are being kept under wraps at the moment.

The addition of Ramirez follows the exodus of original cast members Ginnifer Goodwin, Josh Dallas, Emilie de Ravin, Jared S. Gilmore, Jennifer Morrison and Rebecca Mader at the end of Season 6, and set the stage for the planned “reset” of Season 7.

The new season will focus on returning cast members Lana Parrilla, Robert Carlyle and Colin O’Donoghue, along with The Walking Dead‘s Andrew J. West, who was introduced in the Season 6 finale.

Once is set in the fictional seaside town of Storybrooke, Maine, whose residents are characters from various fairy tales transported to the “real world” town and robbed of their original memories by a powerful curse. It premiered in 2011 to 12.8 million total viewers and a 4.0 demo rating, making it the highest-rated drama series premiere that season, but ratings in the past few seasons have declined. Its Season 6 ender (0.9/3) set a finale low for the series.

Ramirez’s previous television credits include Entourage, Heroes and The Sopranos.

Parrilla’s “Once Upon a Time” Reportedly Eyeing a Musical Episode

Posted on January 23, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

Lana Parrilla may have to warm up her vocal chords…

Once Upon a Time, starring the 39-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress, is reportedly preparing a musical episode, which is slated to premiere sometime in the spring. However, there’s no confirmation from ABC‘s spokesperson regarding the news, according to TVLine.

The musical episode has been considered by the producers of the fairy tale series for quite some time now. Back at 2015’s Comic-Con, series co-creator Eddy Kitsis said in an interview, “It would be great to do a musical episode, [but] I don’t even know where to begin.”

“We all sing,” Jennifer Morrison said in a statement back in 2011. “Josh Dallas, Ginny Goodwin, me.” The actress added, “I don’t know if Robert Carlyle sings. He probably does. I feel like we have a lot of musically inclined people in the cast. We’ll see.”

Once Upon a Time returns with the second half of season six starting on Sunday, March 5 at 8:00 pm ET on ABC.

Parrilla Reveals First Minute of “Once Upon a Time” Premiere

Posted on August 16, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

It appears Lana Parrilla won’t living up to her character’s title on Once Upon a Time…

ABC’s fairy tale drama was showcased at Disney‘s D23 for “An Evening with Snow White & the Evil Queen,” with the 38-year-old Puerto Rican actress (Regina/Evil Queen), Ginnifer Goodwin (Mary Margaret/Snow White) and surprise guest Josh Dallas (David/Charming) joining series co-creators Adam Horowitz and Eddy Kitsis.

During the panel, the audience was treated to season five’s opening minute, which picked up exactly where season four left off — with Emma (Jennifer Morrison) taking on the powers of the Dark One in order to save Regina…and vanishing.

“How could she be so stupid?” Regina asks. And when Snow points out that Emma saved Regina’s life, the former Evil Queen acknowledges she knows that. But, unfortunately, “Now she’s a problem for all of us,” Regina points out.

And when Hook (Colin O’Donoghue) tries to use the dagger to summon Emma with no success, Regina tells him that means one thing: Emma’s not in this world.

Once Upon a Time returns Sunday, Sept. 27 at 8 p.m. on ABC.

Parrilla Graces the Cover of “Once Upon a Time” Magazine

Posted on February 25, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

It looks like Oprah isn’t the only celebrity to grace the cover of her own magazine…

Once Upon a Time star Lana Parrilla appears on the cover of the hit ABC fairy tale drama’s new magazine.

Titan Magazines is publishing two special collector’s edition magazines, with the first issue going on sale Tuesday. The second edition will go on sale this summer.

The magazine will serve as a companion to the series, with 148 pages of content including cast interviews with Parrilla, Jennifer Morrison, Jared Gilmore and Meghan Ory, as well as interviews with the show’s creators Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis. Other components in the magazine include making-of features and a guide to season one.

The second issue will include an interview with Ginnifer Goodwin, among other features.

Once Upon a Time airs at 8 p.m. Sundays on ABC.

Happily Ever After for Parrilla’s Evil Queen

Posted on November 4, 2011 by Tom Castaneda

ABC has only aired two episodes of Once Upon a Time… But the network has given the insta-hit show—starring Puerto Rican-American actress Lana Parrilla—a full-season pickup…

Once—a fairy tale drama about a group of fairy-tale characters trapped in a New England town—is the highest-rated new drama of the fall, averaging 12.3 million viewers and a strong 4.0 rating in the crucial Adults 18-49 demographic. And the show seems to be holding up well, despite stiff competition from NFL football and more.

So what’s the key to the show’s success? Experts credit the series’ originality and family-friendly feel. By tapping into a family audience with its fanciful tale of a prince, a lonely adopted boy and Parrilla’s oh-so-evil queen, Once seems to be filling a void in primetime television. It’s a tale of good and evil, involving more than poisoned apples and sleeping curses. The fairy tale characters have been banished to live in the “real world” by the Evil Queen with no idea of their true identities.

Along with scene-stealer Parrilla as the Evil Queen and conniving town mayor Regina Mills, Once stars Ginnifer Goodwin as Snow White/Mary Margaret Blanchard, Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan, Robert Carlyle as Rumpelstiltskin/Mr. Gold.

Parrilla doesn’t see her character as being that cruel or evil…

“As Regina, I come from a place of love, really, and fear of losing a son, and the threat posed by Emma Swan coming into this town. Sometimes, when you’re faced with that kind of threat, it doesn’t bring out the best in someone,” explains Parrilla. “She feels this kind of possession over Henry, and she really wants him to love her. But he hates her. He just hates her. And we’ll get into why, further down the road.”

And now that Once has been picked up for a full season, it looks like we’ll get the full story as the show progresses. And that’s a happily ever after the show’s growing fan base can really appreciate!

Once Upon a Time airs Sundays on ABC at 8:00 pm ET.

Images courtesy of ABC.

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