As you probably assumed already, you won’t be getting a follow-up to HBO‘s excellent and underrated Baltimore-set crime series “The Wire,” though there had been some confusion last year. Last Spring, the French outlet Society interviewed “The Wire” creator David Simon, and he revealed he was working on another Baltimore series, leading people to assume, hope, and “deduce,” that there was a potential sequel series in the works (though the Baltimore Sun shot down those theories quickly).

Continue reading ‘The Wire’ Creator David Simon Returns To HBO For New Baltimore Police Corruption Limited Series ‘We Own This City’ at The Playlist.

When HBO first announced that David Simon, the man responsible for “The Wire,” was teaming up with an all-star cast, led by Maggie Gyllenhaal and James Franco, for a period series about the porn industry, TV fans were very excited. However, after a critically-acclaimed first season, a dark cloud hung over the series moving forward, as allegations of misconduct were made against Franco, putting the entire future of the series in jeopardy.

Continue reading ‘The Deuce’ Creator Defends Decision To Keep James Franco & Why It Was Vital For The Show’s Ending at The Playlist.

While the age of Peak TV and the massive barrage of content due to the rising demand for streaming services means that our typical schedule for television isn’t quite as traditional as it used to be. Regardless, fall does often signify the return of plenty of favorites and this September doesn’t stray from the norm.

While there are a few network-friendly returns, streaming is still dominating with new content on Netflix seemingly every week.

Continue reading 13 TV Shows To Watch In September: ‘American Horror Story,’ ‘Politician,’ ‘Creepshow’ & More at The Playlist.

The final season of “The Deuce” is coming. But is the end a bit premature?

Despite a TV landscape with series regularly getting 4 or 5 seasons, with some going into the teens, the HBO series is only just about to enter its third season. “The Deuce” has attracted critical acclaim since it first dropped in 2017. This is why it came as a surprise to many when it was announced that Season 3 would be its last.

Continue reading ‘The Deuce’ Final Season Trailer: HBO’s Acclaimed Drama Is Back for One Last Round at The Playlist.

Gene Goldman’s (Luke Kirby) announcement of the Midtown Enforcement Project at the end of season two of all but signals the end of life as they know it for certain business happening on 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth. Streetwalkers are about to get mighty scarce, and police looking the other way will see their pockets padded no more. Gloria Gaynor closed out the ‘70s saying she would survive, but—as the saying goes—all good things must come to an end.

Continue reading ‘The Deuce’ Season 3 Teaser Trailer: Times Square’s American Sex Trade Faces Dying Days at The Playlist.

While a lot of the awards buzz right now seems to be focused on those films that just hit theaters or played at the major fall film festivals, we can’t forget some of those gems from earlier in the year that still should be recognized. One of those is “The Kindergarten Teacher.” The drama stars Maggie Gyllenhaal, in a truly great performance, as the titular educator that takes an interest in a young student that could very well be a poetry prodigy.

Continue reading Maggie Gyllenhaal Says #MeToo & Time’s Up Gave Her The Confidence To Direct Her First Film at The Playlist.

James Franco has been one of the more famous actors to get hit by #MeToo allegations. The exact nature of what he is accused of can be found in a variety of places, but needless to say, the things that Franco is alleged to have done are pretty horrible, and just recently, he had yet another allegation thrown at him from “Freaks and Geeks” co-star Busy Phillips.

Continue reading Maggie Gyllenhaal Says Canceling ‘The Deuce’ After James Franco Accusations Is “The Wrong Consequence” at The Playlist.

Known for “The Leftovers,” “Money Monster,” “Nerve,” and perhaps most notably, David Simon and George Pelecanos‘ “The Deuce,” Emily Meade has been acting in film and television for nearly 12 years. Self-taught in the craft of acting, Meade was primarily a character actor until her breakout role as prostitute Lori in Simon and Pelecanos’ hit HBO show about sex as a commodity.

Continue reading Emily Meade Discusses ‘The Deuce’ Season 2, Intimacy Coordinators & More [Interview] at The Playlist.

If a network wants to hire a guy to create, produce, and write a series that’s going to be on the air for a decade, then David Simon is not your guy. Though he did get his start on the show “Homicide: Life on the Street,” he was not responsible for much of the creative decisions, as the series was based on his life and novel of the same name.

Continue reading David Simon’s ‘The Deuce’ Renewed For A Third And Final Season By HBO at The Playlist.

The Bingeworthy™ Breakdown is an occasional look at new TV shows. An estimated 500 scripted seasons of TV will air in 2018, and to help you sort the wheat from the chaff, we’re going to give you the lowdown to help you work out whether it’s worth tuning in every week for them or waiting to binge later. Today we look at HBO’s just-debuted new season of “The Deuce.”

READ MORE: 10 TV Shows To Watch In September

Season Two of George Pelecanos and David Simon’s “The Deuce” is still about porn in the ’70s, right?

Continue reading Bingeworthy Breakdown: Maggie Gyllenhaal & James Franco Return In Impressive ‘The Deuce’ Season Two at The Playlist.

Ready, set, GO!  The new television season is officially off to the races! Prior to the current era of Peak TV, viewers would be able to relax and take a break over the summer, as the vast majority of TV series ended their seasons in May before starting back up in the fall. Now, it’s nonstop, with each month seeing more and more high-profile premieres and finales. Now, without a breather, we enter September, where the biggest and best shows from the biggest and best networks (and streaming services) debut their marquee shows.

Continue reading 10 TV Shows To Watch In September at The Playlist.

There’s been a lot of questions surrounding the upcoming season of HBO’s “The Deuce.” Not just because the first season received critical acclaim and a Golden Globes nomination for star Maggie Gyllenhaal, either. No, the second season of “The Deuce” has had a little controversy as HBO has decided to move forward with the series’ star James Franco after the actor came under fire in recent months for alleged sexual misconduct.

Regardless of the behind-the-scenes drama, the second season of HBO’s hit series looks to be hitting the ground running based on the most recent trailer.

Continue reading ‘The Deuce’ Season 2 Trailer: New York’s Sex Industry Comes Under Attack at The Playlist.

Gird your polyester jumpsuits and afros. “The Deuce” is back and, this time, taking a time jump to tackle the days of 1978’s “punk, disco, and porn.” “The Deuce” follows the legalization of the porn industry and the rise of the drug epidemic.

The first season of “The Deuce” premiered last year to critical acclaim, with many people praising the directing and CGI recreating the sets. In our Bingeworthy Breakdown, we called show co-creator and executive producer David Simon “bit of a genius” and that the show was very reminiscent of his previous hit “The Wire.” Simon’s knack for taking his time to slowly unspool stories at their own pace definitely shows.

Continue reading ‘The Deuce’ Season 2 Trailer: Porn & Sex Are Still Paying The Bills at The Playlist.

In January, after receiving a Golden Globe for Best Actor, we reported that Twitter lit up with allegations of sexual misconduct against James Franco.  The actor was accused by five women of stepping over boundaries of acceptable behavior, in situations where there was a clearly imbalanced power dynamic at play.

The actor, who currently stars in HBO’s “The Deuce” stated that the accusations made against him were not accurate. 

Continue reading HBO “Felt Comfortable” Proceeding With James Franco On ‘The Deuce’ After #MeToo Accusations at The Playlist.

It goes without saying the lingering accusations against James Franco have clouded the Emmy campaign for David Simon and George Pelecanos’ “The Deuce,” but one member of its ensemble is rightfully getting the attention she deserves.  A previous Emmy nominee for  the mini-series “The Honourable Woman,” Maggie Gyllenhaal‘s charismatic turn as Candy was the highlight of the inaugural season of the HBO series.

A call girl who is tiring of life on the rough streets of Manhattan, Candy becomes fascinated with the burgeoning world of ’70s porn film production where her creative talents can finally be properly exploited.  

Continue reading Maggie Gyllenhaal Is Having A Moment With ‘The Deuce’ And ‘The Kindergarten Teacher’ at The Playlist.

It’s hard to believe but the 2018 Emmy Award season is already here.  Networks and streaming services are deep into their publicity and media plans while the industry as a whole nervously wonders whether a #MeToo campaign that flipped Hollywood upside down will continue to send shock waves.  Change has been a theme at the Globes and the Oscars, how will it affect TV’s biggest night?  Let’s hope that’s one reason we still don’t know who is hosting NBC’s annual rotation of the telecast this September.

Continue reading ‘Game of Thrones,’ ‘Mrs. Maisel’ and 9 Other Things We’ve Already Learned About The 2018 Emmy Season at The Playlist.

The sexual misconduct allegations against James Franco that surfaced last month slowed the multi-hyphenate’s momentum. Five women came forward and accused Franco of sexually exploitative behavior, and the actor quickly responded, saying the allegations were “not accurate” during appearances on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” and “Late Night With Seth Meyers.”

“In my life, I pride myself on taking responsibility for things that I’ve done.

Continue reading James Franco Will Return For ‘The Deuce’ Season 2 Following Sexual Misconduct Allegations at The Playlist.

The American Society of Cinematographers announced the 2018 nominees for the ASC Awards. Like many guild honors it’s seen as a precursor for the equivalent category at the Academy Awards and this year that’s good news for Netflix and “Mudbound.”

“Mudbound’s” Rachel Morrison became the first woman ever nominated for this honor by the ASC and if she earns an Oscar nomination she’d also make history with the Academy in that respect (both stats are embarrassing, frankly).  

Continue reading ‘Mudbound’s’ Rachel Morrison Makes History As First ASC Awards Nominee at The Playlist.

Most filmmakers will tell you when they’re making a movie, that they have little time for anything else. So, that means that directors might have to go with missing that TV show everyone is talking about, or the movie that has set Twitter aflame. That’s how it went for Darren Aronofsky who spent the bulk of 2017 putting the finishing touches on “mother!” and then going out on a grueling press tour for the flick.

Continue reading Darren Aronofsky Can’t Wait To Finally Watch ‘Game Of Thrones’ Season 7 at The Playlist.

Aliens, robots, holograms, fruit, gods, demons, aquatic mystery creatures and shambling doppelgangers potentially occupied by the spirit of long-disappeared FBI agents trapped between dimensions — yes, it can only be our roundup of the year’s best sex scenes! To be fair, we’ve included a couple that have human participants, but only for form’s sake. Maybe it’s because it’s a global trend, maybe because The Playlist is a hotbed of perverts, but it seems to us the movie and TV year in sex was more than usually characterized by interspecies, mystical, plant-based and/or supernatural sex, and quite a few of the more ostensibly “traditional” sex scenes that impressed us did so for very unsexy reasons (we’re not naming names, but Yorgos Lanthimos).

Continue reading The Best Sex Scenes Of 2017 at The Playlist.

It’s always difficult to tell ahead of time which of our year-end lists will prove the most divisive among the usually harmonious Playlist team. But perhaps reflecting the inarguable explosion of quality TV over the past decade, and therefore the fact that not any one of us has seen everything, and every one of us has their favorites among stuff that no one else saw, this year that dubious title may just fall to the feature you are about to read.

Continue reading The Best TV Shows Of 2017 at The Playlist.

The Bingeworthy™ Breakdown is an occasional look at new TV shows. An estimated 500 scripted seasons of TV will air in 2017, and to help you sort the wheat from the chaff, we’re going to give you the lowdown to help you work out whether it’s worth tuning in every week for them or waiting to binge later. Today we look at HBO’s just-debuted new show “The Deuce.”

Time to break down the binge-worthiness of David Simon’s “The Deuce.” You ready?

Continue reading Bingeworthy Breakdown: Should You Be Watching David Simon’s Multi-Francoed ‘The Deuce’? at The Playlist.

Sometimes half the battle between being a good and a great show is knowing when to end. There are countless examples of series that perhaps went one season too long, or by contrast, didn’t get the space they needed to tell the story they wanted. For HBO‘s “The Deuce,” however, it looks like creators David Simon and George Pelecanos already have a gameplan, and for those of you who you like your narratives lean and mean, this going to be some good news.

Continue reading James Franco Says 3 Season Run Planned For ‘The Deuce’ at The Playlist.

After Martin Scorsese‘s very expensive “Vinyl” failed to connect with the critics and audiences, HBO swiftly — after flirting with a possibly retooled second season — canceled the series. Which made it all the more surprising when they went ahead and pursued “The Deuce,” another show set in the ’70s, but instead of tackling the music industry, the show takes on the seamy underbelly of the world of pornography.

Continue reading HBO Renews ‘The Deuce’ For Season 2 at The Playlist.

Pop open the bubbly: the month of September is not only the conclusion of Emmys season, but is also the traditional start of the new television season for broadcast and cable (although that is no longer really the case). Despite the rise of the flexible, year-long release calendar, September still represents the tantalizing promise of a clean slate and new faves, while attracting plum premieres. Check out our dozen September picks for the small screen below.

Continue reading 12 TV Shows To Watch In September at The Playlist.