By Cindy Elavsky
Q: I can’t tell you how excited I am that the fall shows are about to start up. Can you give me a little scoop as to what I can expect on my favorite show, “Castle”? — Drew D., via e-mail
A: The ABC Monday night comedy/suspense/detective drama returns with a bang on Sept. 20. I spoke recently with Jon Huertas, who plays Detective Javier Esposito, and he gave me a sneak peek at Season Three.
“For my character in particular, I’m going to have a little bit of an onscreen romance with another member of the cast,” he said. “Also, for the first episode, there’s a big surprise. In the murder we are investigating, our first suspect surprises everybody. You also are going to see a lot more fleshing out of the satellite characters — my character and Dr. Lanie Parish — there’s going to be a lot more of that.”
(If you’re curious as to whom Jon was referring when he mentioned the suspect on the season opener who will surprise everyone, read our full interview at www.celebrityextraonline.com.)
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Q: I know there is talk that Danny McBride could be coming to “The Office” to fill the void when Steve Carell leaves, and I think that’s a great idea, but I hope it won’t interfere with his hilarious HBO series, “Eastbound and Down.” When does Season Two start, and can you tell me anything about it? — Sam M., Miami
A: Ana de la Reguera, who co-starred with Jack Black in “Nacho Libre,” comes to the show as a series regular (when it returns on Sept. 26) as a lounge singer whom Kenny Powers meets in Mexico. Ana gave me the scoop: “After Kenny leaves April at the gas station, he basically disappears and wants to start over. He wants to go to a new world, so he goes to Mexico. He’s in a completely new culture. His weaknesses are much bigger. I’m a singer, and he thinks we have a connection because I sing Bob Seger songs, covers, but in Spanish the whole time.”
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Q: Why didn’t Sylvester Stallone cast Jean-Claude Van Damme in his summer blockbuster, “The Expendables”? He seems like a perfect fit! — Denny J., via e-mail
A: I agree, and so did Sly. However, Jean-Claude did not. According to Sylvester (in an recent interview in Britain’s Sunday Times), he asked Jean-Claude to be in the movie: “I wanted to set Jean-Claude against Jet Li, but he didn’t want to lose to Jet. He didn’t think that was cool. But that’s why it would be cool — to have Jean-Claude beaten by the other man.”
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Q: How is Michael Douglas doing? I read he has cancer! — Trudy G., Altoona, Pa.
A: Doctors discovered a tumor in the throat of the 65-year-old actor, for which he’ll have to undergo eight weeks of radiation and chemotherapy. His doctors expect him to make a full recovery.
Write to Cindy at King Features Weekly Service, P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475; or e-mail her at [email protected]. For more news and extended interviews, visit www.celebrityextraonline.com and twitter.com/Celebrity_Extra.
© 2010 King Features Synd., Inc.