Ashton Kutcher's 2 . 5 Males Debut Will get Idol-Like Amounts: 27.76 Million

2 . 5 Males How curious were people about Ashton Kutcher changing Charlie Sheen on 2 . 5 Males? Some 27.76 million people updated in - amounts that rival The American Idol Show. VIDEO: The 6 best jokes from Charlie Sheen's Roast Around the first official Monday from the 2011-12 TV season, the sitcom's Season 9 premiere snared a ten.3 rating among 18-to-49-year-olds - the greatest ever for that program, and most double those of Season 8's first episode. It is also probably the most-viewed scripted debut since Desperate Housewives' second season start (which came 28.36 million in September 2005). What have you think about Ashton Kutcher's 2 . 5 Males debut? Drafting behind at 9:30/8:30 on Monday, the series debut of two Broke Women was seen by 19.15 million (7. demo rating). Read our Dwts recaps The 2-hour, thirteenth season premiere from the irrepressible Dwts entertained 18.57 million (3.9 demo rating, lower 24 percent from last fall and it is cheapest-ranked start ever) - far outpacing the return from the Sing-Off, which handled to average just 5.20 million (1.9). As well as in exactly the same 8-10 p.m. time slot, the championship finale of Hell's Kitchen attracted 5.87 million (2.6). The Growing Season 9 Hell's Kitchen champion is ... Within the first hour of prime time, the growing season premiere of Generate An Income Met Your Mother drawn in 11.75 million fans (4.9 demo rating). Fall Preview: Get scoop in your favorite coming back shows In prime time's final hour, the debut of NBC's The Playboy Club unsuccessful to draw in many potential people - just 5 million along with a 1.7 demo rating. With amounts like this (worse than last year's Chase) the Club will probably be shuttered. ABC's surging Castle won the slot with 13.60 million audiences - a large jump from last year's 11.two million - and three.3 demo rating (up 22 percent), and CBS' sophomore reboot of Hawaii Five- (11.99 million/3.4) was lower 13 percent.

2 Broke Girls

Beth Behrs and Kat Dennings in "2 Broke Girls" Filmed in Los Angeles by Warner Bros. Television. Executive producers, Michael Patrick King, Whitney Cummings; producer, Tim Kaiser; director, James Burrows; writers, King, Cummings.Max Black - Kat Dennings Caroline Channing - Beth Behrs Earl - Garrett Morris Han Lee - Matthew Moy Oleg - Jonathan KiteTaking inventory of its assets and debits, "2 Broke Girls" has appealing co-stars, a quite functional premise, considerable raunch, a favorable time-slot and one inherent problem: While CBS has enjoyed solid success with its Monday comedies, programs dominated by female leads generally haven't been among them. Whether "Girls" can reverse that trend remains to be seen, and will perhaps depend in part on how handsomely the new-look "Two and a Half Men" does in sustaining an audience -- and propping up the entire night -- beyond its inevitable initial rush of curiosity. The Eye network has seemingly scored a coup by landing Kat Dennings as Max, a blunt, sexy, cash-strapped Manhattan waitress introduced putting a couple of grungy patrons in their place, telling one dude that snapping his fingers to demand service "dries up my vagina." In walks Caroline (Beth Behrs), the blond, leggy, Paris Hilton-like heiress to a fortune that has disappeared faster than you can say "Bernie Madoff." (From a programming standpoint, given the plot of "Damages" last season and a similar wrinkle in ABC's "G.C.B.," the Madoff scandal has become the narrative gift that keeps on giving.) Perky but impoverished, Caroline needs a job, which doesn't exactly provoke cartwheels from Max. Still, she takes a degree of pity on her, after grilling her about what it's like to be rich and have a pony. That the two will end up living together, "Odd Couple" style, is never in doubt. Still, producers Michael Patrick King ("Sex and the City") and Whitney Cummings (whose prospects looks considerably better here than in her new NBC sitcom) -- aided by the sure hand of pilot maestro James Burrows -- still manage to have fun getting there. "Oh my God, you were robbed!" Caroline shouts upon her first glimpse of Max's sparsely furnished apartment. Beyond the well-cast leads -- with Dennings enjoying the meatier role but Behrs holding her own -- the show distinguishes itself by being almost as dirty as "Men," albeit from a female perspective, with a lot of lascivious sighing about the chiseled abs of a guy Max is dating. There's also broad (if not especially strong) comic relief, including "Saturday Night Live" original Garrett Morris and Matthew Moy as the diner's owner. Not that naughtiness alone will be enough to secure "Girls'?" future where it counts, or by itself make the show feel like one of the boys. Still, if this promising half-hour finally comes up short on Nielsen's balance sheet, it won't be due to a deficit of energy or charm.Camera, Gary Baum; production designer, Glenda Rovello; editor, Peter Chakos; casting, Julie Ashton. 30 MIN. Contact Brian Lowry at brian.lowry@variety.com

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Drive: Cannes 2011 Review

CANNES -- A spasmodically violent, creatively cast and off-center fast-cars-and-crime drama, Drive belongs to a rarified genre subset of stripped down, semi-arty and quasi-existentialist action films that includes Point Blank, Bullitt and The Driver. With Ryan Gosling ably incarnating a pent-up man of few words who goes to great lengths to make one positive gesture in a rotten world, Danish wunderkind Nicolas Winding Refn has fashioned an atmospheric and engaging glorified potboiler that nonetheless seems powered by a half-empty creative tank. Not the sort of film normally seen in the competition at Cannes, this moody and bloody entry should be promotable to good box office results from both discerning and popcorn audiences come September.our editor recommendsCANNES 2011 Q&A: 'Drive' Director Nicolas Winding RefnRelated Topics•Cannes Film Festival Revi...•Cannes Film Festival Never speaking unless absolutely necessary, Gosling's unnamed Driver works doing movie stunts during the day and moonlights as a robbery getaway driver. The sharply executed opening sequence shows Driver's complete mastery of Los Angeles streets, as well as his grace under pressure, as he threads his way through a net of police cars and helicopters to escape from a nocturnal warehouse break-in. Drawn to an appealing neighborin his near-downtown apartment building, Irene (Carey Mulligan), Driver does more talking with his eyes than with his mouth. An initial exchange between them sums up the semi-philosophical, borderline hilarious sort of dialogue that often finds its way into this kind of fare. Irene: "Whaddya' do?" Driver: "I drive." We never learn much more about the man than that, but he quickly takes a strong interest in the welfare of this young woman, who has a cute young son (Kaden Leos) whose dad is in prison. At the same time, it appears that Driver's professional fortunes might be improving, as his longtime boss and patron, gimpy-legged auto shop owner Shannon (Bryan Cranston) makes a deal with big-bucks investor Bernie Rose (Albert Brooks) to back Driver as a stock car racer. When Irene's man, named Standard (Oscar Isaac), is released, he expresses regret over his former actions and genuine appreciation for his shot at a second chance. However, an unpaid debt, unknown links to Bernie's vulgar criminal pal Nino (Ron Perlman), a botched robbery and deeply entrenched venality on several fronts pull Driver into a treacherous underworld that ultimately requires far more of him than his driving skill. The lulls between set pieces tend to be quiet and moody, which dramatically offsets the efficiently executed car chases and the killings that mount up -- and become increasing gory -- as the bad deeds multiply. The downtime never threatens to become dull, not with this cast nor with Refn's lively style and the wildly eclectic soundtrack that's embedded in techno music but extends well beyond it. All the same, Hossein Amini's adaptation of James Sallis' short novel feels more threadbare than bracingly terse; he's clearly aspiring to the sort of spare muscularity in crime writing pioneered by Hemingway in The Killers and subsequently employed by many others. Amini simply doesn't build enough subtext and layering beneath the surface of the characters and dialogue; the tough talk is simply not loaded the way it is in the best noirs, so the lack of resonance is manifest. Possibly for the same reason, something analogous takes place visually as well. Refn, who has built himself a substantial following on the basis of such stylishly powerful works as the Pusher trilogy, Bronson and Valhalla Rising, creates a strong imprint with his vision of a dark, seamy L.A. (Newton Thomas Sigel was the resourceful cinematographer), and the violence increasingly goes beyond what you expect. But there are no sequences here that thrill or absolutely kick butt in the maximum genre way (except for the creative manner some killings are done). The good stuff here is quite good, but it doesn't reach the highest level. So it's a fun, if not exhilarating, ride, one sped along with the help of a wonderfully assembled cast. Gosling here makes a bid to enter the iconic ranks of tough, self-possessed American screen actors -- Steve McQueen, Clint Eastwood, Lee Marvin -- who express themselves through actions rather than words. Sometimes (mostly around Irene), his Driver smiles too much, but Gosling assumes just the right posture of untroubled certainty in the driving scenes and summons unsuspected reserves when called upon for very rough stuff later on. Mulligan, seen only in classy fare up to now, is a delightful choice as the sweet but bereft Irene, while Isaac invests his jailbird with unanticipated intelligence and sincerity. Christina Hendricks isn't around for long but makes a strong impression as an accomplice in an ill-advised robbery. Cranston applies craggy color to his good-guy loser, while Perlman pushes the evil all the way. Most surprising of all, however, is Brooks, who is wonderful as a rich, reasonable-sounding gent who's better than the others at hiding that he's a total s.o.b. Venue: Cannes Film Festival, Competition Sales: Sierra/Affinity Release: Sept. 16 (Film District) Production: Marc Platt Prods., OddLot Entertainment, Bold Flms Cast: Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston, Christina Hendricks, Ron Perlman, Oscar Isaac, Albert Brooks, Kaden Leos Director: Nicolas Winding Refn Screenwriter: Hossein Amini, based on the novel by James Sallis Producers: Marc Platt, Adam Siegel, John Palermo, Michael Litvak, Gigi Pritzker Executive producers: William Lischak, Linda McDonough, David Lancaster, Gary Michael Walters, Jeffrey Stott Director of photography: Newton Thomas Sigel Production designer: Beth Mickle Costume designer: Erin Benach Editor: Matthew Newman Music: Cliff Martinez 100 minutes Festival de Cannes Carey Mulligan Ryan Gosling Drive Cannes 2011 Cannes Film Festival Reviews

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Indomitable Ent. stamps brand inhouse

Financier-production company Indomitable Entertainment has established an inhouse branded entertainment division, to be headed by former Marvel Entertainment exec VP Russell Brown. Indomitable topper Dominic Ianno has also hired exec Erin Austin to serve as chief operating officer. Austin was previously general counsel and exec VP of business and legal affairs at Artisan Entertainment and will assume operational responsibilities for strategic and financial growth in addition to overseeing legal affairs. Additionally, former Sony Pictures development exec Mathew Guliner has been hired as VP to head business development and will be responsible for strategy, new business initiatives and structuring, managing and executing financing, distribution and corporate transactions for film, Broadway and digital media clients. Austin, Brown and Guliner will work out of Indomitable's NY office and report directly to Ianno. Ianno and partner David Tice exec produced "Soul Surfer" and Ianno was a strategic consultant on "The Whistleblower." "We view branded entertainment as a key tool for Indomitable Entertainment in the financing and marketing of the films the company is involved in," Ianno said. Indomitable's branded entertainment division will handle product placement, promotions, licensing and sponsorships. The goal is to have the coin from the marketing push help offset budget expenditures and quicken Indomitabe's return on investment. Indomitable is also working on development of action thriller "Mortis Rex" with producer Jim Jacks, writer-director Peter Briggs and visual effects company Pixumundo and has finished comedy "The Secret Lives of Dorks." Contact Dave McNary at dave.mcnary@variety.com

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Terra Nova Exclusive: About the Group of TV's Most popular New Show

Terra Nova There's an earsplitting boom and Stephen Lang hits when hard because the home windows implode. "That's nothing," the aficionado 59-year-old actor states, getting rid of his ear plugs and brushing saw dust from his hair. "You would not believe the items that happens around here." We are deep within the Australian rose bush about the group of Fox's new adventure series Terra Nova. Within the scene filming today, a meteor just skyrocketed within the atmosphere over the prehistoric colony presided over by Lang's Commander Nathaniel Taylor, knocking the energy and sickness another obstacle for that pilgrims in the future who're grappling using the past. It's obvious in the size and permanency from the set this megabucks Steven Spielberg-created series, in regards to a family in the year 2149 who travel back 85 million years to assist reboot civilization, is really a greatly ambitious project. Using the two-hour premiere's budget believed at $16 million, and also the commitment of showstopping visual effects every week, this really is shaping as much as function as the most costly Television show available. "I opened up the script and that i thought, 'There's no way this is often made,'" states series star Jason O'Mara (Existence on Mars). "I have been doing television almost solely within the last eight many I have done some very ambitious shows, but nothing beats this. So that's virtually why I needed to register.Inch At the middle of the storyline may be the Shannon family, area of the Tenth Pilgrimage towards the past. They bid farewell to an Earth where pollution and overpopulation threaten mankind with extinction. Researchers have found a fracture within the time-space continuum, delivering a 1-way ticket for an unspoiled Earth where humanity can begin anew. Ex-cop Jim Shannon (O'Mara) continues to be jailed for smashing the 22nd century "household is four" law - restricting couples to 2 children - but handles a final-minute escape to become listed on his surgeon wife Elisabeth (British actress Shelley Conn) as well as their teenage children Josh (Landon Liboiron) and Maddy (Naomi Scott), plus their illegal third child, 5-year-old Zoe (Alana Mansour), because they mind right into a brave " new world ". "We are trying to produce a civilization here in the manner the pioneers did within the old West," states O'Mara, like a low mist comes in within the set and also the silence is pierced through the eerie call of the whipbird. Within the lush Gold Coast hinterland of Queensland in northeast Australia, a sizable ensemble and 100s of extra supplies will work lengthy hrs, however the mood is buoyant. They are shooting totally on location, inside a former cow pasture that now hosts the sprawling Terra Nova settlement, a football area-size colony ringed by regal bushland. Everybody concurs the landscape feeds in to the authenticity of the items they are creating on the watch's screen. "It feels prehistoric here," states New Zealander Simone Kessell, who plays Commander Taylor's partner Alicia Washington. "Whenever you lookup at this tree line, it feels as though nobody has have you been here before. It's this untouched quality." Even on the other hand around the globe, the excitement and anticipation for that show are inevitable. "We are telling this specific story on the scale for television that's never been done before," O'Mara states. "This set may be the type of factor you'd build for that Hobbit or even the The almighty from the Rings." Avatar star Lang concurs, calling this probably the most challenging production he's tried: "When you are coping with computer-produced dinosaurs, with meteors and forces of character, you seem like the stakes are elevated." Oh, yes, did we mention the dinosaurs? We are guaranteed roughly one new creature each episode - some benign, some petrifying, these spectacular. Produced mainly with cutting-edge CGI, they stomp and chomp their way with the series, casting a lengthy shadow. "It is so true once they the show's really concerning the drama, concerning the people," states Lang. "Except... It's about the dinosaurs! Which does not imply that the dinosaurs need to come in every frame, but the potential for them coming, the seem of these passing by always needs to be thrilling and possible so when they are doing come, they have to be magnificent." We'll meet an infant ankylosaurus incubated from an abandoned egg rampaging, short-armed carnotauruses along with a pack of nicoraptors, that are like mangy, feral dogs. As well as in a chapter that plays as an homage to Hitchcock's The Wild birds, the colony is ornamented by lots of pterosaurs, nasty winged monsters how big large crows. "Moments like that aren't made to electrify audiences using the beauty a lot,Inch states Lang. "They are designed to scare the pants from you.Inch That'll be as much as the results people. But Terra Nova's endurance will relaxation using its narrative and character conflict, hence the marketing team's focus on family drama over sci-fi mythology. Professional producers Brannon Braga and René Echevarria describe it as being a romantic epic - type of Little House about the Prairie meets Jurassic Park. "The makings from the show are epic, but at the middle of everything is that one family," Braga states from L.A., where he's writing approaching episodes. For additional on Terra Nova, get this week's problem of TV Guide Magazine, on newsstands Thursday, August 25! Sign up for TV Guide Magazine now!

Comedian Anthony Jeselnik Signs Development Deal With Comedy Central

Comedy Central has signed comedian Anthony Jeselnik in a development deal. Jeselnik will develop a series project, which he will star in and executive produce. The presentation, also executive produced by Christie Smith, will shoot in early 2012. At this point in my career, I feel like this is the best thing that could happen for Comedy Central, said Jeselnik, known for his dark and often twisted humor. Here is Jeselnik roasting Donald Trump on Comedy Central last year:

Sarah Chalke Lands 20th TV Development Deal

Sarah Chalke has inked a development/talent holding cope with twentieth century Fox Television.our editor recommends'How I Met Your Mother' Restored for 2 More Seasons Included in the pact, the studio will turn to create a comedy work for the first kind Scrubs star specific for next fall.If 20th TV doesn't develop a project particularly on her, the studio will cast her into something already setup. The arrangement marks a reunion for Chalke, who were built with a extended arc on 20th TV's Generate An Income Met Your Mother as Ted Mosby's fiance Stella. More lately, she made an appearance in CBS' mid-season comedy, Mad Love, opposite Judy Greer and Jason Biggs. Email: Lacey.Rose@THR.com Twitter: @LaceyVRose Related Subjects CBS Generate An Income Met Your Mother