January and February are habitually known as the dumping ground for studios to test out their films that they have less faith in than their major tentpole or franchise films. That certainly doesn’t seem to be the case this weekend, as 2 very different genre film topping the box office.

First, a second generation sci-fi writer, Max Landis’ Chronicle about 3 friends that develop superpowers and figure out which side, good or evil, they want to fight for. The film, which got an 85% on RottenTomatoes, managed to pull in an estimated $22 million this weekend, which is nearly double what the production budget of the film was. Easily, a success.

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Somehow it’s Thursday again and that means new episodes of some of our favirite shows on NBC. We won’t bore you with more angry rants about the lack of Community on the schedule, we can leave that alone for the moment. Instead, let’s focus on the fun shows that are still around.

Well, to be honest, there’s pretty much only one show we know of that’s still going strong. That show? Parks and Recreation. It’s a great time and helps us forget, at least a little while, the sting of not having any Community to watch. Sorry, couldn’t help ourselves.

We’ve got previews for tonight’s Park and Rec for you today and in this episode Valentine’s Day comes early to Pawnee. Yes, it’s a V-Day episode. Don’t worry, it will be funny. We promise.

We’ve also got preview for The Office in which Jim plays hooky and things don’t go over well with his coworkers. Last, but not least, we’ve also got a preview for Up all Night, a show we haven’t really watched but it does have Will Arnett in it, so how bad can it be?

Check out all the videos after the break.

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Those who have had the stomach to sit through the post-departure of Steve Carell from The Office know that the show hasn’t had the same excitement and originality it had when he was attached. Since Helms and newcomer James Spader have taken the lead in the show, it’s become less about the boss and more about the employees of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company.

That’s probably why NBC is contemplating taking the show’s standout character, Dwight Shrute, and giving him his own spin-off, a la NBC’s move with Friends and Joey. We all remember how that ended. THR has the scoop.

Reports of NBC eyeing a potential spin-off centered around Rainn Wilson’s quirky Dwight Schrute character are indeed true, according to a well-placed source. The idea would be to further explore the Shrute family farm, with multiple generations of Schrutes involved. The comedy concept could get a test of sorts on an episode of The Office later this season.

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Today is Thursday so that means new episodes of some of our favorite shows tonight on NBC. Naturally, when you think new episodes, you think of previews.

So do we. Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Starting off we’ve got three Parks and Recreation sneak peeks. Ron Swanson faces the herculean task of replacing Tom while Leslie takes Model U.N. to a whole new level — with loads of Leslie/Ben tension of course.

Next up on The Office, Robert California is back and on his way to becoming a zit. Or rather, joining Andy, Kevin, and Darryl’s band. Plus, Pam gets suspicious as the new temp enters the picture.

Next on Whitney, she tries to get to know Alex on a deeper level by sharing some of his forgotten interests. Finally, on Prime Suspect, things get tough for the team when a young child is murdered at school.

Check out all the previews after the break. It all starts tonight at 8/7C with Community on NBC.

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After a long run, and multiple Emmy Awards, on David E. Kelly’s Boston Legal and The Practice, as well as a terrific guest spot on The Office season finale, James Spader will be back on TV in a more permanent role in the Fall.

That’s right, Spader will be joining NBC’s The Office next season. He won’t, however, be a replacement for Steve Carell’s Michael Scott. Instead, Spader will return to his role as Robert California, who has been hired as the CEO of Sabre, Dunder Mifflin’s parent company.

This is good news for those Spader fans out there (and here at The Flickcast). His work on The Office was pretty great and could help the show stay funny and bring in viewers. Good job NBC.

If you want to know more, click through for the official press release from NBC. The Office returns later this year.

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Tonight’s the night we find out (probably) who will be the new boss on The Office to replace Michael Scott (aka Steve Carell). A litany of guest starts are along for the ride and should make this an interesting show, to say the least.

Here’s the breakdown from NBC:

If you were going into a job interview, wouldn’t it be nice to meet Jim Halpert? That’s what the candidates will face tonight on The Office! Everyone knows Dwight’s vying for the new manager job, but he’s facing stiff competition from guest stars Jim Carey, Will Arnett, Ricky Gervais, Ray Romano, and Catherine Tate among others.

There’s also the Parks and Rec season finale tonight as well as a bonus episode right before it. In the bonus episode, Chris wants to make departmental changes and Tom doubts his career path. Then, the season finale features an old friend that may surprise you (it did us).

Click through to check out a preview for tonight’s episode of The Office after the break. Find out who the boss is tonight at 9/8C on NBC. No, it probably won’t be Tony Danza.

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Buyer beware: if you haven’t read Emily Giffin’s book, it is likely that this film adaptation will fall flat. Those who have read the novel will be pleasantly surprised to see the world of Rachel, Darcy, and Dex wonderfully brought to life. This is the rare book adaptation that was perfectly cast, and should please the fans.

However, without the back story of the novel, you are likely to be confused or even annoyed by the love/hate relationship of the title characters. For the uninitiated, Something Borrowed is the tale of Rachel, an attorney who is not particularly happy with her job, and is perpetually single. She has lived in the shadow of her best friend Darcy, a beautiful party girl who lives a charmed existence, for most of her life.

Rachel became pals with Dex during law school, and has nursed a crush on him since day one. Lacking the confidence to divulge her true feelings to Dex, Rachel steps aside and lets a romance brew between Darcy and Dex. It’s a decision that will come back to haunt her.

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We may be in between seasons of FX’s Justified, but that isn’t stopping star Timoythy Olyphant from showing his face on TV. He guest stars in tomorrow night’s episode of The Office as the new, good-looking salesman who’s here to take business from our favorite coworkers. From NBC:

When a competing sales associate (guest star Timothy Olyphant) steals a Dunder Mifflin client, Michael (Golden Globe winner Steve Carell), Jim (John Krasinski) and Dwight (Rainn Wilson) decide to set up a sting to find out his sales secrets. Andy (Ed Helms) decides to start a band after finding out a friend from college has a successful music career.

In the very funny four clips we’re bringing you today, Michael, Dwight, and Jim all plan a way to figure out Olyphant’s secret to selling, all while referencing the film The Sting.

Check out the clips after the jump, and be sure to catch The Office tomorrow night at 9pm ET on NBC.

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If there’s one tv program we enjoy watching around here it’s The Office. The weekly hijinks of our favorite paper company characters never cease to bring the funny. We had a recap of last week’s episode “New Leads” for you a few days ago and as good as that episode was, we felt like there was still something missing.

Fortunately, NBC responded and has sent us three deleted scenes from the episode we can share with you today. These scenes including Stanley’s story about his wife poisoning him, Creed’s unique demands of Andy and more. In short, some pretty darn funny stuff.

The Office returns tomorrow night with a brand new episode. In the meantime, check out these deleted scenes after the jump.

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I’m probably not alone in this, but the moment I saw “New Leads” listed as tonight’s episode, I was half-expecting, half-hoping for a Scrantonian send-up of Glengarry Glen Ross. Who’d be Shelly? Stanley? Or Phyllis? Would Michael perform his own version of Alec Baldwin’s monologue? Heck, Baldwin’s on 30 Rock, at the very least he could make a guest appearance…

Well, for fans of David Mamet’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play, the only resemblance is that there are new leads in, they’re gold, and the sales staff can’t have them—and it’s probably for the best because parodies are like Betty White hosting SNL bacon-wrapped Peeps: in the end, never as funny as the idea.

Also good because it would’ve weighed an otherwise very good episode down.

The titular new leads are $50,000 worth of names Sabre has spent to be doled out to the sales staff as per the corporate office’s new “Sales is king” policy.  Naturally the power’s gone to the salesmen’s heads—Phyllis refuses to answer Angela’s e-mails; Andy (while on the phone, no less) flaunts his supposed dibs to everything in the office, including Darryl’s pencil; and Dwight believes he’s in the same company as Jesus (“If sales is king, and I’m the king of sales, that makes me the King of Kings).

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In the latest The First Avenger: Captain America news, HeatVision is reporting that Hugo Weaving (Matrix, Lord of the Rings) is Marvel Studio’s first choice to star as the film’s villain, Red Skull. In the comic books, Red Skull is Captain America’s archenemy, engaging in espionage and sabotage as Adolf Hitler’s right-hand man.

If Weaving is tapped, it would reunite the star with director Joe Johnston, whom he worked with in this year’s The Wolfman. In other casting news, the list of Captain America contenders appears to have thinned.

We recently reported that five actors were in the running. However, HeatVision and Deadline New York have both reported that John Krasinski is no longer in the race for the coveted role. According to the sites, Marvel is now considering Wilson Bethel (Generation Kill), Mike Vogel (Cloverfield), Chris Evans (Fantastic Four) and Garrett Hudlund (Tron Legacy), who have all either read, tested, or received test offers.

The First Avenger: Captain America is slated for a July 11, 2011 release.

A classic staple of the sitcom, aside from the clip show (hmm, they covered that one a few weeks ago, right?) and the Big Wedding (that one, too) is the Baby Episode. Staples, yes, but also synonymous with jumping the shark.

Fortunately, The Office writers seem aware of this and made the wedding episode, Niagra, one the season’s strongest. On the other hand, the clip show, The Banker, was one of the weakest.

The Delivery, The Office’s Baby Episode falls somewhere in between. In this hour-long installment, Jim and Pam, on the verge of joy-bundling, are determined to hold off on getting to the hospital until the very last minute since their health insurance covers only two nights’ stay. As Pam begins contracting, Michael calls a conference to get her mind off the little fella inside her clawing to get out. Andy performs the evolution of dance (sans music, as it’d just throw him off), Erin recites Kentucky Derby winners, and Michael usefully suggests doing the opposite of 10 Things to Induce Labor.

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