Sad news indeed as it seems Spartacus: Blood and Sand star Andy Whitfield won’t be able to return to the show for its second season due to health complications. According to Starz, the network which produces the show, the actor’s doctors have advised him to stop training for season two of the series and seek immediate, aggressive treatment for his illness.

The actor was first diagnosed with treatable Stage 1 non-Hodgkin Lymphoma in early March but had been in remission. He was even at Comic-Con in San Diego where we spoke to him and he seemed perfectly healthy and in good spirits, ready to begin season 2 of the series.

Starz is currently in production on a prequel series called Spartacus: Gods of the Arena which it plans to air in January and then was to begin production on season 2 of the main series following that for a planned return in mid 2011. Obviously, with this news on Whitfield’s condition, things have changed.

As fans of Whitfield and the show we are saddened to hear of his condition, We wish him all the best for a full and speedy recovery.

Click through to read the full press release from Starz.

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Okay, who’s a fan of epic series chronicling the exploits of a slave who rises to godlike stature due mostly to his skill at slicing and dicing opponents in an arena? Or, how about a show featuring amazing action, terrific performances and enough naked flesh to satisfy even the most prurient among you? If you don’t know what show I’m talking about then by all means you need to  read on.

The show is, of course, Starz epic series Spartacus: Blood and Sand which debuted to much fanfare and has risen to cult status almost over night. The show is truly unique and serves as a reminder of what talented an determined creative people can do if given the freedom to do it.

The first season of the show is coming to Blu-ray (The only way to watch it, btw) and we’ve got two more trailers to share with you today. Both give you a great idea of how amazing this show really is. Hopefully, we’ll get more new episodes soon. Until then, the first season Blu-ray will have to suffice.

Check out the trailers after the jump. Spartacus: Blood and Sand season one hits Blu-ray and DVD on September 21st.

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Make no mistake Spartacus: Blood and Sand is one terrific series. After a slightly rocky start, it has quickly matured and become one of the most popular and successful in premium cable’s history. Obviously, we love it here at The Flickcast and have brought you a whole bunch of coverage to hopefully bring even more fans into the fold.

Helping to achieve that goal will be the series imminent debut on Blu-ray and DVD. Coming from Anchor Bay Entertainment, the four-disk set will include a whole bunch of new features and extras. Some of those include hours of bonus features which take you behind the scenes of the making of the show with interviews and commentaries from the actors and filmmakers, augmented with rare production footage exploring the series’ visual effects, production and costume design.

In addition, the release will feature enhanced digital effects for several of the episodes and as a Blu-ray exclusive, four episodes have been selected as “Directors’ Cut Extended Episodes” and will feature content considered “too risque’” even for cable. Other bonuses include featurettes such as “Gladiator Camp”, “The Hole” and “History Rewritten”, behind-the-scenes footage, audio commentaries, interviews, outtakes and more.

Given all the bonus features and extended episodes it seems like Starz and Anchor Bay are giving this release the attention and care it deserves. If you haven’t had a chance to see Spartacus: Blood and Sand yet, do yourself a favor and pick it up on Blu-ray or DVD. It’s a great show and you’ll be glad you did.

Spartacus: Blood and Sand The Complete First Season arrives on Blu-ray and DVD September 21st. Until then, check out this trailer for the release after the break.

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Spartacus: Blood and Sand is back with a vengeance, with more blood and you guessed it – more sand. In addition to shooting what will be a glorious Season 2, Starz is also shooting a six-part prequel that will be covering The House of Batiatus’ rise to arena awesomeness and air in January 2011.

In anticipation of the new episodes, The Flickcast was there to catch up with Andy Whitfield who plays none other than Spartacus himself. He achieved the greatest victory of all by defeating cancer, and we’re glad to hear he’s going to be back and better than ever with a small part in the prequel and a starring role once again in Season 2.

As buff gladiators strutted the Comic-Con convention floor towards the Anchor Bay Entertainment booth, I happily took a seat in a cozy room alongside the protein-packed actor. Starz certainly knows how to keep a woman’s interest.

Sitting down with Andy Whitfield was a delight. Besides being easy on the eyes, Andy was humble and charmingly insightful. But, don’t take my word for it. Following the jump, take a seat as the bringer of rain answers questions about fighting alongside his brethren and filming on location under the hot sun of New Zealand.

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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.

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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.

Like most weeks, this time around we’ve got another bunch of new movies and TV shows hitting DVD and Blu-ray. Some of them are new, some are old and some are hitting Blu-ray for the first time.

Of the ones hitting stores today, we’re most interested in the Blu-ray release of The Road, Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along Blog, the Criterion edition of Stagecoach, True Blood Season Two, Royal Pains Season One, the western Django and the 50th anniversary of Stanley Kubrick’s 1960 film Spartacus (pictured above with Woody Strode and Kick Douglas).

Movies

Babysitter Wanted ~ Bill Moseley, Matt Dallas, Bruce Thompson (Blu-ray and DVD)

City of the Living Dead ~ Christopher George, Giovanni Lombardo Radice (Blu-ray)

Clash of the Titans ~ Laurence Olivier, Burgess Meredith, Harry Hamlin (Blu-ray)

Dear John ~ Channing Tatum (Blu-ray and DVD)

Django ~ Franco Nero, Loredana Nusciak, Angel Alvarez (Blu-ray)

Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog ~ Neil Patrick Harris, Nathan Fillion, Felicia Day (Blu-ray and DVD)

Flashbacks Of A Fool ~ Daniel Craig, Olivia Williams, Claire Forlani (Blu-ray and DVD)

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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.

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.

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