Cannavale to Appear in “Variety Studio: Actors on Actors” Series

Bobby Cannavale is ready to talk shop…

Variety and PBS SoCal have announced the line-up for the fourth installment of their awards season series “Variety Studio: Actors on Actors,” with the 45-year-old half-Cuban American actor making the final cut.

Bobby Cannavale in Vinyl

Available to stream on Variety.com, the new “Actors on Actors” season will feature one-on-one discussions between this year’s Emmy contenders.

Along with Cannavale, who stars in HBO’s Vinyl, this year’s conversations, which will be printed in the June 7 issue of Variety, will also include Aziz Ansari (“Master of None”), Rachel Bloom (“Crazy Ex-Girlfriend”), Emilia Clarke (“Game of Thrones”), Jamie Lee Curtis (“Scream Queens”), Kirsten Dunst (“Fargo”), Jay Duplass (“Transparent”), Billy Eichner (“Difficult People”), Sam Heughan (“Outlander”), Tom Hiddleston (“The Night Manager”), Felicity Huffman (“American Crime”), Lady Gaga (“American Horror Story”), Jennifer Lopez (“Shades of Blue”), Rob Lowe (“Grinder”), Rami Malek (“Mr. Robot”), Thomas Middleditch (“Silicon Valley”), Aaron Paul (“The Path”), Sarah Paulson (“American Crime Story”), Krysten Ritter (“Jessica Jones”), Tracee Ellis Ross (“Black-ish”), Patrick Stewart (“Blunt Talk”), John Travolta (“American Crime Story”), Courtney B. Vance (“American Crime Story”) and Kerry Washington (“Confirmation”).

“Variety is thrilled to cover the best actors on television in this season’s ‘Actors on Actors’ for PBS stations,” said Variety‘s executive TV editor Debra Birnbaum in a statement. “This season’s lineup includes actors from some of the top new television programs and showcases the wide diversity of roles for actors on broadcast, cable and streaming platforms.”

PBS SoCal will premiere the segment in two episodes, one on June 12 and the other on June 19.

“Through their craft, the actors interviewed on ‘Actors on Actors’ effortlessly spark our imaginations and take us to new places,” said PBS SoCal president and CEO Andy Russell in a statement. “Through this partnership with Variety we are pleased to enhance the experience of fans of great television – providing them greater insight into the people who bring them their favorite dramas, comedies and more.”

Molina’s NBC Comedy Pilot “Assistance” Still Alive at NBC

It looks like Alfred Molina may still be heading to the Peacock Network in the near future…

NBC is reportedly keeping its comedy pilot Assistance, which stars the 60-year-old half-Spanish actor, in contention with an order for three more scripts, according to Deadline.com.

Alfred Molina

Universal Television, which is producing the project, has extended the options on several cast members, including Molina and star Krysten Ritter.

From Will Ferrell and Adam McKay’s Gary Sanchez Prods., Assistance is based on the play by Leslye Headland, who wrote the adaptation.

It centers on an idealistic “working girl” assistant (Ritter) who is pulled between her colleague (“work husband”) and her real-life fiance while trying to manage a demanding boss.

Molina most recently starred in TNT’s medial drama Monday Mornings. And he voices one of the new characters in Disney/Pixar’s Monsters University.

Garcia’s Finishing School For Boys Novel Headed to MTV

He’s already seen his novels adapted into a feature films like Matchstick Men and Repo Man… But Eric Garcia could soon see one of his popular works brought to life as a television series.

MTV has placed a pilot order for the Miami-born writer’s Cassandra French’s Finishing School For Boys, a drama based on Garcia’s chick-lit satire novel of the same name. The author wrote the script for the small screen drama, which is being described as another Heathers.

Eric Garcia

The series—executive produced by Garcia and actress Krysten Ritter—centers on Cassie French, a 22-year-old overachiever who lands her dream job as a lawyer for a Hollywood studio but can’t find a guy ready for a real, mature relationship. After the latest disappointment, she locks a guy up in her basement in order to train him to become the perfect gentleman.

Cassandra French's Finishing School for Boys

This is the latest scripted pilot order for MTV, which has been aggressively expanding its slate of scripted series. The network has Teen Wolf and Awkward set to return this summer, and another freshman series, I Just Want My Pants Back, looking good for renewal with solid ratings.

Garcia is currently writing Wheel Of Time for Universal and The Prize Of Peril for Sony.