In an effort to raise awareness, NBC’s Awake is the latest series pilot to be put online ahead of the series premiere to drum up interest. In a part of a growing trend, the opening episode of the parallel universe drama starring Jason Isaacs is being made available 2 weeks before the series’ premiere on March 1.

This comes one day after the network put out the first seven minutes of the mid-season replacement series. The show is created by Kyle Killen (Lone Star) and also executive produced by Howard Gordon (24, Homeland).

A similar tactic was used for Smash, which premiered Feb. 6 to 11.4 million total viewers and a 3.8 rating following The Voice. NBC released the first episode for the “making of a Broadway musical” show beginning Jan. 16 via digital platforms, three weeks before it launched. The network also screened the pilot in select cities.

Awake makes its way to the small screen Thursday, March 1 at 10 p.m., taking over the slot previously occupied by Prime Suspect and The Firm, the latter now airing on Saturdays.

Awake centers on police detective Michael Britten (Isaacs) who finds himself living in two realities after a brutal car accident, one where his wife Hannah (Laura Allen) is alive and the other where his son Rex (Dylan Minnette) is.

Watch the full pilot after the jump.

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When you’ve spent so much time being a bad guy on TV and then, during a break from your series wearing a dress in a college comedy, what would you want to do next? The answer for actor Michael Rosenbaum who, of course, played the evil and misunderstood Lex Luthor for seven seasons on Smallville, is that he wants to direct.

That’s right, Lex Luthor is now a director and will be helming his first feature film, the drama Old Days. Rosenbaum also wrote and will star in the new project. The lovely and talented Morena Baccarin, who can currently be seen in Homeland on Showtime, has been cast as the female lead.

In the film Rosenbaum plays Jim Owens, a discouraged actor who returns home to Indiana for his 15th high school reunion. Once there he gets into trouble with his friends and rekindles a romance with his high school sweetheart (Baccarin).

The film is scheduled to start shooting on March 5 and will also co-star Sarah Colonna, Harland Williams, Jay Ferguson and Kris Palohu. No word yet on likely distribution for the project but with the names involved and the likelihood of a relatively modest budget, you can bet this one will probably get picked up rather easily.

As is the usual practice almost anywhere were column inches or post counts matter, writers such as myself take to their keyboards and make lists. I am no exception and, with a great deal of difficulty and toil, have managed to cobble together a list of what I think are some of the best things of 2011.

I don’t really want to bore you with a lot of explanations as to why I picked what I did. Suffice it to say these picks are mine and mine alone. Also, they are not in any particular order, mostly because I find it hard to rank them that closely. Or, I was just too lazy.

Either way, here you go.

Movies

Drive
The Artist
Attack the Block
X-Men: First Class
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
The Descendants
Thunder Soul
13 Assassins
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2
Hugo

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Even though this is technically a blog, we like to think of ourselves primarily as writers here at The Flickcast. Many of us have even been paid to write over the years and you can bet that pretty much everyone here has one or two screenplays, comic books or other literary works they are currently working on. It’s just the nature of things.

So, when the Writer’s Guild of America announces the nominations for outstanding writing for Television, we take notice and bring you all the details. That’s especially true when the top nominees are shows we really like.

One such show is Showtime’s freshman drama Homeland, which received 3 nominations including best drama series, best new series and best episodic drama. Homeland tied with perennial favorites Modern Family, Breaking Bad and Boardwalk Empire for the most nominations.

In addition to Homeland, Game Of Thrones, The Killing, New Girl and the Matt LeBlanc comedy Episodes all received nominations with Showtime getting a first time record of six for its shows. You may be wondering where Mad Men is in all of this?

Sadly, as the fifth season of the show was delayed, it didn’t make the cut for eligibility for this year’s awards. That’s probably okay as it gives a few other shows, like Homeland and Game of Thrones, a chance to shine. Can’t have Mad Men taking up all the awards, now can we?

The winners will be announced at the 2012 Writers Guild Awards on Feb. 19, 2012, at simultaneous ceremonies in Los Angeles and New York. Click through for the full list of nominee.

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While we are kinda sorry that ABC decided to cancel V (hey, it had potential) we are glad at least one of our favorite actresses from the show is moving on to something new. That’s right folks, you’ve loved her since she starred as Inara, the companion with a heart of gold, in Firefly and now you’ll be able to see Morena Baccarin next on Showtime’s upcoming new series Homeland.

The new thriller, from 24 executive producers Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa, centers on Marine Sergeant Scott Brody (Damian Lewis), who returns home eight years after going missing in Iraq, and Carrie Anderson (Claire Danes), a driven CIA officer who suspects he might be plotting an attack on America.

Baccarin will play Jessica Brody, Scott’s smart, strong wife. She replaces Laura Fraser, who played the role in the pilot. The series, which also co-stars Mandy Patinkin, is slated to debut in the fall.

Sounds like a cool show — as long as Mandy Patankin doesn’t sing in every episode. Plus, always liked Damian Lewis since he was in Band of Brothers and through his stint on the under appreciated series Life . Could be fun.

Until we know for sure, check out a trailer for the show after the break, coutesy of the folks at Showtime. Sadly, Morena Baccarin isn’t in it.

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Recently, we told you about Showtime’s pickup of two new series. One of those series was Homeland and now the network has released the first advance look at the show, which is set to begin production this Summer.

The thriller, based on Gideon Raff’s Israeli series Prisoners of War, was written by former 24 showrunner Howard Gordon, Raff and Alex Gansa. It tells the story of Carrie Anderson (Claire Danes), a CIA officer battling her own demons who becomes convinced that the intelligence that led to the rescue of Scott Brody (Damian Lewis), a U.S. soldier who had been missing and presumed deal for nine years, was a setup and may be connected to an Al-Qaeda plot to be carried out on American soil.

Mandy Patinkin plays Saul, a veteran CIA Division Chief who is Carrie’s boss and mentor. As I said before, sounds interesting. I guess we’ll get a look at the other new Showtime series House of Lies soon enough as well.

Until then, check out the teaser for Homeland after the jump. Homeland comes to Showtime later this year.

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In addition to HBO, Showtime has also usually been a home for good original drama and comedy programming. From Weeds to The Tudors, Californication, Dexter and the recent The Borgias, the network has been pulling out all the proverbial stops to up the ante for pay cable entertainment.

Following that line, Showtime has given series commitments to two new show: the drama Homeland and the comedy House of Lies. Both have received 12-episode orders.

Homeland, which comes from 24 showrunner Howard Gordon, stars Claire Danes, Damien Lewis and Emmy-winner Mandy Patinkin. House of Lies stars Don Cheadle and Kristen Bell.

Here’s more info on each show:

Homeland, produced by Fox 21, is based on Gideon Raff’s Israeli series Prisoners of War. written by Gordon, Raff and Alex Gansa, it tells the story of Carrie Anderson (Claire Danes), a CIA officer battling her own demons, who becomes convinced that the intelligence that led to the rescue of Scott Brody (Damian Lewis), a U.S. soldier who had been missing and presumed deal for nine years, was a setup and may be connected to an Al Qaeda plot to be carried out on American soil. Mandy Patinkin plays Saul, a veteran CIA Division Chief who is Carrie’s (Danes) boss and mentor.

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