It’s no secret that some of us here at The Flickcast are huge Spartacus: Blood and Sand fans, having written about the Starz show during it’s premiere season, covering Andy Whitfield’s battle with a treatable form of non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, as well as Starz’ decision to film a 6- episode prequel to buy some time for Andy to recover.

So when Starz announced there would be a SDCC 2010 panel featuring Andy Whitfield and the cast and producers, we knew we’d be there to cover all of the Comic-Con exclusive news and trailers.

The panel opened with a trailer, mostly highlight from Season 1, however it was great fun to re-watch some of the best moments from the show’s first dozen or so episodes. As the lights went up, Andy Whitfield, Spartacus himself, walked onto stage to thunderous applause from the enthusiastic audience.

Andy looked great, rested and perhaps a few pounds below normal, but considering what he’s been through, medically-speaking over the past 9 months, he’s definitely recovered nicely. The rest of the panel attendees were introduced and included: Lucy Lawless (Lucretia), John Hannah (Batiatus), Viva Bianca (Ilithyia) and Steven S. DeKnight (Writer/Executive Producer)

Whitfield talked a bit about being grateful for the prequel, which bought him some time for him to undergo treatment and how thankful he was that the show stuck it out with him. He talked briefly about his illness, and joked that he can’t wait to get back to the gym to try and bulk up a bit for Season 2. Andy clarified that the doctors have cleared him to work, he’s feeling really great and has had plenty of time to really rest and reboot. “Bring it on!” He shouted as the lights started to dim for yet another video.

Continue Reading →

It’s no secret we’re big fans of Spartacus: Blood and Sand around here. We’ve talked about the show extensively and have also worried if it can return given the illness of star Andy Whitfield. Fortunately, reports now say that Whitfield is good to go and will be appearing at Comic-Con this week and then season two of the show. However, that didn’t stop Starz from going ahead with it’s planned prequel series anyway.

As we told you previously, the prequel, which is called Spartacus: God of the Arena, will be a six-part story chronicling the rise of the House of Batiatus and the first gladiator to be champion of Capua now it has a star and two supporting players. Dustin Clare, a virtual unknown in the U.S., but a popular TV actor in his native Australia, has landed the lead. Jaime Murray and Marisa Ramirez are also now set to co-star as well.

Reprising their roles from Spartacus: Blood and Sand are Lucy Lawless (Lucretia), John Hannah (Batiatus), Peter Mensah (Oenomaus) and Manu Bennett (Crixus). Murray will play Gaia, Lucretia’s (Lawless) friend and a Capua social climber. Ramirez will play a beautiful slave girl with complicated relationships. Spartacus himself, Andy Whitfield, will also appear briefly in the prequel, which is slated to begin production in August in New Zealand for a January premiere on Starz.

Then, Whitfield will rejoin Spartacus: Blood and Sand for season two, which is set to begin production later this year. So, look for both of these shows coming soon — but not soon enough.

In a follow-up to my previous article about Andy Whitfield, whose epic battle with a treatable form of non-Hodgkin Lymphoma has delayed Season 2 of Starz hit series Spartacus : Blood and Sand, Starz has announced that pre-production is underway on a new six-part prequel to the show.

While Andy Whitfield, who played the title role in the series, will briefly appear in two episodes of the prequel, it will be Lucy Lawless and John Hannah who take center stage. The story will center on the rise of the House of Batiatus and its champions before Spartacus arrives as a captured Thracian slave. With the title still to be determined, the prequel will begin production this summer in New Zealand, and is slated to air on Starz in January 2011.

Other returning actors include Peter Mensah (Doctore), Manu Bennett (Crixus), Antonio Te Maioha (Barca), Nick E. Tarabay (Ashur), Lesley-Ann Brandt (Naevia) – and others. New characters will also be added – most notably the gladiator who was champion of the House of Batiatus before Spartacus or even Crixus – who will help fill in the story about the people and politics in the House of Batiatus and ancient Capua as a whole.

“The prequel story maintains the excitement and entertainment value of the first season of ‘Spartacus,’ giving audiences the engaging experience they’ve come to expect,” said Starz President and CEO Chris Albrecht. “We look forward to continuing the Spartacus story.”

Produced by Rob Tapert, Sam Raimi, Joshua Donen and Steven S. DeKnight, Spartacus: Blood and Sand was the highest rated show for the 18-49 demographic among all cable networks for 12 of the 13 Fridays on which it aired based on coverage rating. The production team remains intact for the six-part prequel which is expected to air later this year or in January of next year.

Here at The Flickcast there is near unanimous love for the Starz Spartacus: Blood and Sand series. With its blatant gladiator-driven homo-eroticism, 300-level gore, violence and the treacherous characters whose destinies are tied to the sands of the Roman Arena of Capua and the House of Batiatus, there’s something for everyone.

Unfortunately, Spartacus lead Andy Whitfield has been diagnosed with a treatable form of non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, which leaves fans wondering just how Starz will handle Andy’s indefinite leave from the show while he is in treatment. A recent statement from Starz Entertainment indicates that it will postpone production on season 2, titled ‘Spartacus: Vengeance,’ while Whitfield undergoes cancer treatments.

Show writer Maurissa Tancharoe, elaborates via Twitter: “The second season is still happening; however, it is on hold at the moment due to star Andy Whitfield’s health problems.” Another tweet seemed to reassure fans that season 2 is definitely not cancelled declaring, “Season two of #Spartacus has NOT been cancelled. Don’t know where that rumor came from.”

Rumors have also surfaced that a prequel series could be under way with a younger actor filling Whitfield’s role as Spartacus, but it’s not clear if Lucy Lawless and John Hannah will be starring in that as well. NY Magazine seems to be confirming that Starz will be developing a 6-episode mini-series prequel to keep momentum going with the show’s nearly one million weekly viewers. Whatever happens, we wish Andy Whitfield a speedy recovery.

When you say the word “history” out loud, it’s usually met with a chorus of groans. “I hated history in school! All those dates and crap! So boring.” It’s depressing.

History, if taught right, is a story.  (That’s why it has “story” embedded into it. No joke.) It’s not names, dates, and places. It’s blood and sex, with a dash of art and higher aspirations. It’s the stuff you pay to watch in theaters or on HBO but with the kicker that it actually happened.

I couldn’t be happier that television has decided to take that idea and run crazy with it. The new trend on cable is taking finding some notorious era of history, populated with sex and swearing, and spin a few seasons out of it. HBO kicked off the trend with Rome and Deadwood (and promptly broke our hearts in the process), and now Showtime and Starz have taken up the gauntlet.

Showtime has been happily running around Renaissance England with The Tudors, which is about to wrap up in its fourth season now that Henry VIII is coming to the end of his wives. While it’s played a little fast and loose with history, it’s been a sumptuous watch, and fans won’t have to look far for a replacement.

Continue Reading →

Right off the bat, I should point out that HBO’s Rome was the best TV series ever made. That’s right, ever made. I’m a huge fan of Roman history and mythology.

I was extremely impressed by the creators of HBO’s Rome because they took their accuracy seriously. So seriously in fact that even the craftsmen in the bazaar were actual Roman craftsmen. The money spent to create a truly accurate atmosphere just may have had a tiny bit to do with why it was canceled after 2 seasons.

Spartacus: Blood and Sand, however, doesn’t care nearly as much about history. What it does care about is blood and sand. The title does not disappoint. Within the first episode, I swear, a gladiator spewed gallons of blood on a very sandy plane of death.

A human body holds around 8-10 pints of blood, so it’s quite a feat for a gladiator to expunge even a few gallons. These men must have been built very tough and it seems very liquidity.

While the mono-syllable, shoddy dialogue is straight out of 300 or perhaps G.I. Joe, the view is stunningly breathtaking (for TV).  Spartacus is wholly gratuitous in a cheesecake, soft-core sort of way, but it’s worth noting that it is equally gratuitous. There are plenty of raunchy shows that panhandle to men in the audience with oh-so-classy shots of women come undone. These same shows forget that perhaps some women might be watching.

Continue Reading →

The cable movie channel Starz isn’t best known for their original programming. They’ve had mild success with the episodic spinoff of the Oscar winning Crash, starring Dennis Hopper, but outside of that, things have been pretty quiet. That’s all expected to change tonight, as Spartacus: Blood and Sand premieres on the channel, bringing in fans of all creed to enjoy this epic tale of Roman gore. Luckily, that’s exactly what the show is.

Obviously, the main focus of the show is Spartacus (played by Andy Whitfield), while there are plenty of other fan favorites to help us along the way, such as Lucy Lawless, John Hannah of the Mummy movies, and Legend Of The Seeker‘s Craig Parker. These familiar faces help us along the way, making it feel a bit more like a Raimi/Tapert production, which always helps.

Now onto the grit, which is certainly in affluence here. Of course, the show creators wanted this series to stand out above the rest, and with a name like Blood and Sand, they also wanted to deliver on the former. With that comes, in my opinion, way too much CG blood. The slow-motion fight sequences are one thing, but when you’re using buckets of computer animated blood to transition between scenes, a la a gory episode of Home Improvement, you may have gone too far.

Not many know this but Ridley Scott’s Gladiator is actually based on the story of Spatacus, among others. With that in mind, you may find yourself developing a bit of déjá vu. Luckily the overabundance of blood and nudity, and complete lack of Russell Crowe, will snap you back into the moment.

Continue Reading →

The list of new shows debuting at Comic-Con in San Diego just grew by one more. Starz Entertainment plans to showcase its new show featuring Xena and Battlestar Galactica alumi Lucy Lawless at the Con. The new show Spartacus: Blood and Sand, which is Exec. Produced by Sam Raimi, Rob Tapert and Steven S. DeKnight, will run for 13 episodes on the network and in addition, will have a tie-in comic book to be published by Devil’s Due.

According to the network, the show “follows the world of gladiators comes to life as the Roman Republic’s most brutal fighters clash in the ultimate arena.” In addition, it “is an entirely new vision of the ancient legend and will utilize virtual environments giving it a unique graphic novel look and style, along with a fresh narrative approach.”

As for the show’s storyline, it “was inspired by the actual slave of the Roman Republic who in 73 BC led a slave revolt that grew to more than 120,000 fighters. Defying the Roman Republic’s legions of soldiers, they campaigned for two years through much of what is now Italy before succumbing to a much larger army. The new series will tell a new set of stories rich in character, action, sex and combat.”

Sounds cool. And really, who doesn’t like Lucy Lawless? Spartacus: Blood and Sand debuts on Starz in January 2010. And, if you happen to be at Comic-C0n on July 24th, be sure to check out the show’s panel featuring Lucy Lawless, Rob Tapert and Steven S. DeKnight. We’ll see you there.