Michael Pitt leaves HANNIBAL

In surprise news, actor Michael Pitt (Funny Games, Boardwalk Empire) had decided not to return as serial killer Mason Verger for the third season of NBC's HANNIBAL. One presumes the actor didn't find spending hours in the makeup trailer very appealing, but it makes you wonder what he thought the longterm future of playing this character would be. Didn't he read the book or see the movie? Or maybe he just wasn't as interested in how the character was being written? Or what the future storyline was for Verger?

Why is there a WALKING DEAD spin-off?

Answer: $$$$$. AMC have a phenomenon on their schedule, but the cash cow only produces 16 episodes a year, which they split into two batches to try and make it feel more substantial. A spin-off (sorry, "companion" series) will help keep THE WALKING DEAD universe on-air for twice as long, while benefiting from fresh characters and a different location. It also helps that this new series (codenamed COBALT) won't be following an established comic-book's lead, which will mean no spoilers and a less predictable direction. Here's what we know:

Kirsten Dunst and Jesse Plemons join FARGO season 2 cast

HBO recently confirmed the new casting for True Detective, and now it's the turn of FX with FARGO. We already know the second season will jump back in time, to dramatise the 1979 Sioux Falls, South Dakota case mentioned by Keith Carradine's character Lou Solverson. Now we know that Kirsten Dunst (Spider-Man) will play Peggy Blomquist, "… small town beautician with big city dreams who is trying to figure out who she really is and what she really wants as she struggles with traditional societal expectations." Her husband, a butcher named Ed, will be played by Jesse Plemons (Breaking Bad).

Fox's SCREAM QUEENS casts Emma Roberts and Jamie Lee Curtis

If you haven't heard, producer-writer-director Ryan Murphy (Glee, American Horror Story) has a new 15-episode horror drama beginning on Fox early next year. Entitled SCREAM QUEENS, it's another anthology show like AHS, with the first season revolving around a campus rocked by a spate of murders. Yeah, it sounds like American Horror Story: Slasher. Or Scream: The TV Series, which is actually coming next year courtesy of MTV.

THE LEFTOVERS undergoing changes for season 2

HBO's high-concept drama THE LEFTOVERS (set in a universe where 2% of the world's population inexplicably vanished) will apparently jettison much of its supporting cast, and the action is moving away from the fictional town of Mapleton, New York.

Hallelujah! AMC officially order a PREACHER pilot

AMC have ordered a pilot of Gareth Ennis and Steven Dillon's 1990s comic-book PREACHER, masterminded by Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and Sam Catlin (Breaking Bad). AMC must have loved the script, which concerns a Texan preacher called Jesse Custer who becomes possessed by an entity that bestows on him the ability to enforce his will on others, vocally. This triggers a crazy road trip to find God, where he's joined by gun-toting ex-girlfriend Tulip O'Hare and an Irish vampire called Cassidy.

By George, it's DOWNTON CLOONEY!

On the one hand, it's rather marvellous a humble ITV drama like DOWNTON ABBEY now has the clout to attract A-list Hollywood talent like George Clooney for a glorified cameo. On the other hand, is this a shark-jumping moment? It totally breaks whatever thin vestige of realism the show's clinging to, being suddenly presented with the visage of ER's Dr Doug Ross... no?

Newsbuzz: DOCTOR WHO's Christmas clue, TRUE DETECTIVE casting, WONDER WOMAN finds a director, ITV adapting JEKYLL & HYDE

The BBC have revealed that this year's DOCTOR WHO Christmas special is entitled "Last Christmas", fanning the flames of a summer rumour about Jenna Coleman leaving the series.

Is Joel McHale ripping off Adam Buxton now?

Look, I really like Joel McHale. He's great on Community and he seems like a really nice guy, but it's just been announced he's producing a new E! pilot called COMMENTS SECTION. The show will find comedian Michael Kosta taking a sardonic look at the 'bottom half of the internet', where cretinous people leave dumb comments. (No offence to the wonderful commenters of DMD, who are the clear exception to the rule). I'm talking more about YouTube commenters and the like. But does anyone else think that sounds worryingly close to a remake of Adam Buxton's live stage-show (and subsequent Sky Atlantic series) BUG? Hmmm.

Newsbuzz: CONSTANTINE cut, Netflix save Tina Fey's cult comedy, Fox adapting GLOBAL FREQUENCY

NBC have refused to give their new supernatural drama CONSTANTINE a "back nine"; additional episodes to take it beyond the thirteen hours commissioned. The show hasn't been cancelled, but it's a sign the network isn't entirely happy with its longterm prospects. Maybe they just see the benefit of a cable-length run, rather than force the writers to crank out more episodes (which does tend to mean a saggy middle, past a natural end-point, in these circumstances). The ratings haven't been abysmal (considering it's in a Friday night timeslot U.S TV abhors) and it's a very marketable show overseas, so I'm optimistic of renewal...

First-look: PENNY DREADFUL - Season Two

Sky have released a first-look photo from PENNY DREADFUL season 2, which is currently filming in Dublin. It's not much to get excited about, unless the fact Eva Green wearing her hair down is a cryptic clue about something (beyond changing Victorian fashions). More interesting is knowing that Helen McCrory will have a bigger role as spiritualist Evelyn Poole/Madame Kali, and will be joined by new stars like Patti Lupone (as a character linked to Vanessa's past), Douglas Hodge (as a Scotland Yard investigator), Sarah Greene (as Evelyn's daughter Hecate), and Johnny Beachamp.

Penny Dreadful will return to Showtime/Sky Atlantic in 2015.

Newsbuzz: JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NORELL adaptation, Isaac Asimov's FOUNDATION and Tom Hardy's TABOO

The BBC are adapting Susanna Clarke's 2004 novel JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NORRELL into a seven-part series for next year. Peter Harness (Wallander) has written the scripts, which will star Eddie Marsan (as Mr Norrell) and Bertie Carvel (as Mr Strange), two Englishmen living in an alternate 19th-century, who help the British government in the war against Napoleon using magic. It will also star Alice Englert (Beautiful Creatures), Marc Warren (Mad Dogs), Samuel West (Mr Selfridge) and Charlotte Riley (Wuthering Heights).

Fox remaking hit UK crime thriller LUTHER - and the original to return?

Despite the response to Gracepoint (Fox's remake of ITV's Broadchurch) being lukewarm, the same U.S network is pressing ahead with another adaptation of a British hit. BBC1's LUTHER has been given a pilot order, with creator Neil Cross involved with the script. Idris Elba (The Wire) won't be reprising his role as tough city cop John Luther, but he will executive-produce the new show. My thoughts below...

Preview: DOCTOR WHO Christmas Special 2014 - The Doctor and Santa

Children in Need had their traditional sneak peek of this year's DOCTOR WHO special for Christmas Day. The two-minute scene selected appears to show Clara's first encounter with Santa Claus (as played by Nick Frost, looking uncannily like Richard Attenborough in Miracle on 34th Street), before The Doctor interrupts and whisks her away in his TARDIS. Also amusing to spot Nathan McMullen from Misfits as one of Santa's elves. If you appreciated seeing this clip early, please donate to Children in Need.

MTV's SCREAM series won't involve Ghostface, so is it really SCREAM?

The good news? MTV recently ordered 10 episodes of a new television horror drama based on the successful SCREAM movie saga. I'm excited about this because I think the concept could work on television, and it's being developed by Jill Blotevogel (who wrote for Harper's Island, which was a very Scream-esque CBS drama from 2008 that only lasted a season).

The bad news? The Scream TV series won't debut until October 2015, despite the fact they started filming the pilot three months ago, so we still have a whole year to wait. (You wonder if this would be the case if it didn't make marketing sense to launch it around Halloween time.)

Keith David and Paget Brewster join COMMUNITY for season 6

It's finally been revealed how the sixth season of COMMUNITY intends to plug the gaps left by Donald Glover (who quit halfway through last season), Yvette Nicole Brown (who's decided to leave to care for her sick father), Jonathan Banks (who's now too busy with Better Call Saul to return), and John Oliver (who’s too committed with other projects). Yesterday it was announced that Paget Brewster (Criminal Minds) and Keith David (Enlisted) will be joining the rest of the cast. Huzzah!

Watch the entire DAREDEVIL panel from New York Comic Con!

Marvel's new Netflix series DAREDEVIL was a highlight of the recent New York Comic Con weekend, and they've kindly uploaded the entire panel (embedded above). It featured stars Charlie Cox (Matt Murdoch/Daredevil), Deborah Ann Woll (Karen Page), Elden Henson (Foggy), Vincent D'Onofrio (Wilson Fisk/Kingpin), Bob Gunton (Leland Owlsley), and others.

Showtime reviving TWIN PEAKS for a nine-episode season

It's incredible news for fans of David Lynch and Mark Frost's seminal '90s TV drama TWIN PEAKS, because Showtime have announced they've commissioned a nine-episode revival of the famous murder-mystery show. It's rumoured that Lynch and Frost will write every episode, with Lynch directing every hour.

Amazon order more of HAND OF GOD and RED OAKS

Apparently, rave customer reviews have resulted in Amazon committing to more episodes of HAND OF GOD and RED OAKS, after their pilots were released to Amazon Prime subscribers in August. I have no idea who reacted positively to the mess that was Hand of God (about an anti-hero judge receiving hallucinations that turn him into a vigilante), but thankfully Red Oaks earned some praise (the '80s-set comedy-drama about a young man working at a wealthy country club). I reviewed them both here.

Can the impervious COMMUNITY survive without three original actors?

Has a sitcom ever had a more turbulent life than COMMUNITY? Creator Dan Harmon was fired after three seasons by NBC. The consequently dire fourth season faced a backlash from fans. Harmon was thus rehired, but Chevy Chase didn't return. Then Donald Glover upped sticks halfway through the fifth season, ahead of the show being axed by NBC. Only for it to be rescued for a sixth season by Yahoo online; which Jonathan Banks can't return to because of commitments to Better Call Saul. And now original star Yvette Nicole Brown has announced she won't be back, having decided to spent more time caring for his ailing father.