Many TV series deserve to be canceled. Some don’t resonate with audiences or have unappealing characters or a ridiculous premise. Or, they just plain suck. Arrested Development is not one of those series.

Fortunately, even though it was initially canceled by Fox, the series has found a new lease on life at Netflix. And now, that lease is about to pay off for fans as Netflix has official announced the premiere date of Sunday, May 26th for all-new episodes of the show.

But wait, there’s more. Not only has the official premiere date been announced, Netflix has also decided to increase the number of episodes (which had started at 10 and was raised to 14 in January) to a new number: 15. All episodes of the new season will be available simultaneously on launch day, which is the same thing Netflix did with House of Cards.

“Arrested Development is now widely viewed as one of the top TV comedies of all time and Mitch Hurwitz is bringing it to Netflix in a brand new way, crafted for the on-demand generation that has come to discover the show in the years since it last appeared on TV,” said Ted Sarandos, Chief Content Officer for Netflix. “The highly anticipated return of this show is sure to make history all over again.”

Said Hurwitz, “Ted said that? Wow. Well don’t print this obviously, but he’s going to be immensely disappointed”. He then added that “in truth we are doing something very ambitious that can only be done with Netflix as partners and on their platform. Finally my simple wish for the show is coming true: that it be broadcast every second around the clock to every television, computer or mobile device in existence.”

I sense an Arrested Development binge session coming soon. Can’t Wait.

There is new Arrested Development coming, it is safe to say the world has moved past jubilant bewilderment and now are fully engaged in eager anticipation. With the new season debuting on Netflix in the spring we are starting to enter the advanced promotion corridor that gives us gems like this.

Entertainment Weekly has a couple of cast photos to promote the upcoming season and they are at least two-thirds as funny as the show itself, which is a complement if you know the hilarity the show reaches. The publicity pics are of the family Bluth decked out in some very dapper duds. With the popularity of shows like The Tudors and The Borgias, maybe they producers are hedging their bets and leaving open the possibility of resurrecting the show back in time should the next season under perform*.

The cast looks great, and it is great to see them all together again in a context that is not lamenting its premature cancellation. You can take a look at the full images after the jump.

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I should be a millionaire right now. Thirty-five minutes into this purported suburban romantic comedy, I muttered to my companion, “I’ll bet you a million dollars this movie was written by a couple of middle-aged guys.”

Fifty-five long minutes later the movie was finally over and there were the writer credits: Ian Helfer and Jay Reiss. I don’t know anything about them but I do know this: they don’t think much of women (mother issues, big time) and they aren’t too clear about the definitions of either “romantic” or “comedy.” Anyway, I called it and I want my money. At least the million dollars would make me feel better about 91 minutes of my life wasted on The Oranges.

So here’s the deal: there are these two families who live across the street from one another in identical white Colonial houses in a pleasant tree-lined neighborhood in West Orange, NJ. The couples (Allison Janney and Oliver Platt are the Ostroffs, Katherine Keener and Hugh Laurie are the Wallings) are best friends who do everything together, including jogging, weekends and holidays. They have children close in age. They live the perfect lives.

You’ve seen enough of these suburban take-downs to know that everything—yes, EVERYTHING—is a lie. A fucking lie. American Beauty has nothing on this movie.

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Arrested Development is one of those series not really appreciated in its time. When it was on the air originally, it had rather low ratings and was cancelled by Fox after three seasons. It was a great show but sadly, a lot of people just didn’t “get it.”

Since its original run, the show has enjoyed newfound success in reruns as well as on DVD and Netflix and has attained cult status among those who appreciate great TV. There’s also been talk of a movie version of the series for years as well and now it seems those plans are finally coming to fruition.

But wait, there’s more. According to reports the show’s creator, Mitch Hurtwitz, plans to bring the Emmy-winning series back to television for 9 or 10 episodes before making movie. That’s right, a new series and a movie. Awesome.

Hurwitz didn’t say where the potential series would air but reportedly the two front runners are Netflix, which is looking for original programming, and Showtime, whose new entertainment president David Nevins used to work at Imagine TV and served as an executive producer on the original series.

Original series star Jason Bateman also confirmed the news on Twitter. “It’s true,” he posted. “We will do 10 episodes and the movie. Probably shoot them all together next summer for a release in early ’13. VERY excited!”

Pretty sure he’s not the only one.

Those who watch NBC comedies Parks & Recreation, Community and Saturday Night Live know that some of the considered “favorites” of those shows consist of Donald Glover, Andy Samberg, Bill Hader, and Aubrey Plaza. Sure, there are a few others, but now we’re getting all of these names in one place with the new indie comedy The Hand Job.

From Variety:

Hader’s wife, Maggie Carey, is set to write and make her feature directorial debut on the coming-of-age story; Plaza will star as a type-A valedictorian who’s determined to lose her virginity before leaving for college. Project does not have a start date yet, as financing is still coming together.

In addition, TV veterans Connie Britton (“Friday Night Lights”) and Alia Shawkat (“Arrested Development”) have joined the ensemble, while Plaza’s “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” co-stars Johnny Simmons and Mae Whitman have come aboard to provide comedic support.

So as if the list of stars wasn’t enough with NBC’s top four, they’re adding two Arrested Development alumni to the mix. This could just be the indie comedy (and hopefully more) of the year.

We’re just hoping they keep the title.

Dakota Fanning is all grown up and delivers an impressive performance in this bio-pic that skims the story of the origins of The Runaways. The all female rock band was a novelty in the 70′s, when founder Joan Jett (played by Kristen Stewart) was told on more than one occasion that “women don’t play electric guitar.”

Eschewing this advice, Jett strong-armed her way into meeting music producer Kim Fowley (Michael Shannon), who saw a glimmer of talent and encouraged Jett to work the all-female angle of her band. The first step was finding a charismatic lead singer.

Enter Cherie (Dakota Fanning), an androgynous David Bowie enthusiast all of 15 years old. Cherie is brought into the band, sexed up a bit, and soon is growling the infamous “Cherry bomb” song, which was inspired by Cherie.

It is notable to mention that Cherie was hand picked on her look alone, actual talent seemed to be of secondary importance. Seems some things about the music industry never change, huh?

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A little while back, we brought you the first clip from the upcoming rock biopic, The Runaways, in which Joan Jett (Kristen Stewart) and Cherie Currie (Dakota Fanning) meet for the very first time. With the film’s release less than a month away, we’re now getting even more stuff to share, including some great clips of the rest of the band.

The film is written and directed by artist Floria Sigismondi, and covers the formation and eventual break up of one of the first all-girl rock bands. The film is sure to get the attention of a younger crowd as it teams Twilight: New Moon’s Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning.

Also along for the ride is Halloween’s Scout Taylor-Compton and Arrested Development’s Alia Shawkat. The film looks to fall in the ranks with other great music biopics such as Almost Famous and Ray, while adding a younger appeal.

Check out four brand new clips from The Runaways after the jump, and be sure to catch the “cherry bomb” when it hit’s theaters on April 9th.

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It’s been three long, sad years since the Emmy-winning Fox TV show Arrested Development was canceled, and after months of rumor and speculation it looks like the Bluth family will be making it to the big screen after all. The Hollywood Reporter just reported that show creator Mitchell Hurwitz and show co-executive producer James Vallely are working on a script for the hugely anticipated big screen adaptation of the show. Imagine and Fox Searchlight will produce the film.

Debuting in 2003, Arrested Development focused in on the Bluths, a crazy family whose business goes sour and are left with nothing but each other. According to Hurwitz, the biggest holdup of the script being penned was getting the entire cast, including Jason Bateman, Michael Cera, David Cross, Will Arnett, Alia Shawkat, Portia de Rossi and Jeffrey Tambor, committed to the film.

Scheduling conflicts are certain, as cast members Cera, Arnett, and Bateman have had incredibly successful careers since the show ended. In the meantime, Hurwitz and Vallely are working together on a new animated show on Fox titled Sit Down, Shut Up, also starring Will Arnett and Jason Bateman.

Drew Barrymore makes an impressive directorial debut with this coming of age story set in the world of Roller Derby. This is a sports movie for women, by women, starring women.  I suspect men will have little trouble enjoying it as well. Adorable Ellen Page (Juno) plays Bliss, a socially awkward teenager from Bodeen, Texas, who is thrust into the world of pageants by her mother (Marcia Gay Harden). One day while shopping in a thrift store, she sees three women skate into the store  and leave some fliers about an upcoming Roller Derby.

Intrigued, she recruits her best friend Pash (Alia Shawkat of Arrested Development) to venture into Austin for the event. She is immediately captivated by the sport. She dusts off her old Barbie skates and tries out for the team. After making the team, she becomes an unlikely hero, using her small stature to weave in, out, and around her competitors. The title refers to a move the team uses when they grab her by the hand and catapult her ahead of the pack “whipping” her into position.

This movie is a blast, despite having all the sport movie clichés. Shauna Cross’s screenplay is not exactly brimming with originality. Underdog, check. Disapproving parents, check.  First love, check. Climatic final match, check.  However, the dynamic cast and the unusual sporting event breathe new life into the genre.  Ellen Page is fantastic, and captures the insecurities of her character perfectly.  A scene where she gets her heart broken takes your breath away.  I actually felt like someone had punched me in the gut.  You see her character harden a bit with steely resolve as she climbs the next rung on the ladder of life.  The mother/daughter scenes hold a lot of emotional resonance, and were very believable.

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