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Armando Iannucci, the British satirist behind British cult political comedy "The Thick of It" (and its spin-off feature, "In the Loop"), turns his attention to America with HBO’s "Veep," a half-hour comedy that follows a former U.S. senator who has been elected vice president. "Seinfeld’s" Julia Louis-Dreyfus stars in this biting and witty satire as Selina Meyer, the woman who is one heartbeat away from becoming the president, but who is more concerned about personal vendettas, biodegradable utensils, and people’s opinions of her than the current administration. Louis-Dreyfus—joined by a cast that includes Anna Chlumsky, Tony Hale, Reid Scott, Matt Walsh, Sufe Bradshaw, and Timothy Simons—is at her trenchant best here, discovering early in her term as VP that the halls of power are filled with sharks. Not to be missed. (Launches in 2nd quarter 2012)
We polled The Daily Beast’s culture team to find out what art, films, books, TV, and music are worth looking forward to in 2012—and the results are promising. From the movie "Hunger Games" to Green Day's new album, here are The Daily Beast’s picks for the most anticipated releases of 2012.
With a built-in audience of fans of Suzanne Collins’s trilogy of young adult novels, the hype around this movie has been insane for more than a year. And it nearly got out of hand when each bit of casting news caused the Internet to have tremors: in the end, Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, and Liam Hemsworth were signed to play the three teenage leads. But beyond fan madness, what could be more politically relevant than the class warfare under the books’ surface? The plot revolves around Katniss Everdeen (Lawrence)—a poor 16-year-old girl from a destitute coal-mining community—who is conscripted to compete in the Hunger Games, a real-time reality show in which kids fight each other to the death. If the movie adaptation is faithful to the book, which the trailer indicates it will be, Katniss provides an antidote to the passive, marriage-oriented Bella from "Twilight"—a feminist heroine for millennials. With Donald Sutherland as the evil President Snow; Woody Harrelson as the charming, drunk mentor, Haymitch; and Elizabeth Banks as the not-as-clueless-as-she-seems Effie Trinket, the books’ devoted followers have much to look forward to. So does everyone else, we hope.
The third and final installment in filmmaker Christopher Nolan’s "Batman" trilogy takes place eight years after the events of "The Dark Knight," and sees Gotham experiencing a rare moment of peace. Batman (Christian Bale), a fugitive from justice after assuming responsibility for Harvey Dent’s crime spree, is drawn back to the city following an ominous warning from the mysterious Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway) that hints at evidence of Occupy Wall Street undertones, painting the Dark Knight as the “1 percent”: “You and your friends better batten down the hatches because when it hits, you’re all going to wonder how you ever thought you could live so large and leave so little for the rest of us.” Batman is then drawn back to Gotham to do battle with the muscle-bound menace, Bane (Tom Hardy).
Like his last film, "Inglourious Basterds," writer-director Quentin Tarantino’s latest is a brutal slice of revisionist history. The movie is set in the antebellum Deep South. Django (Jamie Foxx), a slave-turned-bounty hunter, teams up with his mentor, Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz), to rescue his wife from the ruthless Mississippi plantation owner Calvin Candie, played by Leonardo DiCaprio (in his first villain role). DiCaprio was supposed to star as Nazi Col. Hans Landa, but had to drop out due to scheduling conflicts. Waltz eventually replaced DiCaprio in the role, and won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Will this heinous villain bring DiCaprio a long overdue Oscar victory?
Adapted from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s seminal novel, "The Great Gatsby" sees Midwesterner Nick Carraway (Tobey Maguire) seduced into the decadent world of Jay Gatsby (Leonardo DiCaprio), his enigmatic neighbor who pines for Carraway’s fetching—and married—cousin, Daisy Buchanan (Carey Mulligan). The film marks the reunion of DiCaprio and director Baz Luhrmann, who worked together on 1996’s "Romeo + Juliet," as well as real-life pals DiCaprio and Maguire, who last shared the screen as young kids in 1993’s "This Boy’s Life" (that is, if you don’t count the 2001 disaster "Don’s Plum," which never saw the light of day). The film will be shot in 3D, and, judging by Luhrmann’s "Moulin Rouge!," will feature some eye-catching costumes.
Armando Iannucci, the British satirist behind British cult political comedy "The Thick of It" (and its spin-off feature, "In the Loop"), turns his attention to America with HBO’s "Veep," a half-hour comedy that follows a former U.S. senator who has been elected vice president. "Seinfeld’s" Julia Louis-Dreyfus stars in this biting and witty satire as Selina Meyer, the woman who is one heartbeat away from becoming the president, but who is more concerned about personal vendettas, biodegradable utensils, and people’s opinions of her than the current administration. Louis-Dreyfus—joined by a cast that includes Anna Chlumsky, Tony Hale, Reid Scott, Matt Walsh, Sufe Bradshaw, and Timothy Simons—is at her trenchant best here, discovering early in her term as VP that the halls of power are filled with sharks. Not to be missed. (Launches in 2nd quarter 2012)
Airing the night after the Super Bowl, NBC’s answer to "Glee"—or perhaps a more sophisticated, adult version of "Glee"—is this musical-drama, which revolves around a group of Broadway producers, actors, writers, and directors putting on a show about the life and death of Marilyn Monroe. Capturing the behind-the-scenes tension and stress—and well as the exuberance and emotional highs—that mounting such a huge production would lead to, "Smash" features an all-star cast that includes Debra Messing, Katharine McPhee, Anjelica Huston, Megan Hilty, and Jack Davenport, and original music from Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman. The result is intoxicating and contagious, and the songs impossible to get out of your head. (Launches Feb. 6 at 10 p.m.)
Kiefer Sutherland back on TV: do we really need to say more? We don’t have to, but we will. Fox’s new "Touch" has so much promise—Kiefer Sutherland and the young actor, David Mazouz, who plays his son—are terrific as a father and son struggling to communicate in more ways than one. The show is emotional, spiritual, and has a strong overall message about connecting. If you’re worried you can’t see Kiefer Sutherland as anything other than Jack Bauer, the pilot episode quickly works hard to dispel that image. Danny Glover and Gugu Mbatha-Raw are also in the cast.
In the decade-plus since this multi-platinum-selling ska-pop quartet released its last album, "Rock Steady," lead singer Gwen Stefani stepped away from the band to have children with Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale and forge a chart-topping, arena-rocking career as a solo artist. Although No Doubt’s new disc was scheduled for release last year (with recording begun in 2008), the group punted its rollout into 2012. “We don’t want to rush this album just to get it out,” the band said in a statement. But does out of earshot mean out of mind? As evidenced by No Doubt’s rumored announcement as a co-headliner for 2012’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival—and, moreover, the excitement that news caused—the fans apparently haven’t forgotten them or moved on.
Question: can a snotty, bratty alterna-rock band hold on to its indie snarl after becoming one of the biggest pop acts in the world? After recording eight studio albums and mounting a successful Broadway adaptation of its music? Seven years on from the release of its barrier-breaking rock opera (turned musical) “American Idiot” and two years since Green Day’s last CD "21st Century Breakdown,” the Berkeley, Calif. trio return with what is arguably 2012’s most eagerly awaited rock offering. According to early intel (i.e. reviews of an intimate Halloween gig in New York City), the new material incorporates the harmonies, hooks and power chords of the group’s two previous discs. But lyrically, the new material is said to be more straightforward and less emo. Sample lyric: “Shut your mouth ‘cause you’re talking too much and I don’t give a f--- anyway.” (Release date TBD.)
The much-anticipated follow-up to pop-rap chanteuse Nicki Minaj’s platinum-selling debut album "Pink Friday," which included the breakout single “Super Bass”—albeit on the deluxe version only—will be released on Valentine’s Day. "Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded" will mark the return of the eclectically styled, Indian-Trinidadian singer’s bizarre alter ego, Roman Zolanski (think: Sasha Fierce with a screw loose, and a penis), which featured on her debut. So far, Minaj has released two singles from the upcoming album—“Roman in Moscow,” which received mixed reviews, and “Stupid Hoe.” Expect several high-profile cameos on the record, including her recent tour-mate Britney Spears, her boss, Lil Wayne, and former flame, Drake.
