Once Upon a Time has dipped into the Whedonverse yet again to fill a guest-starring role.

Amy Acker, who had roles on both Joss Whedon’s Angel and Dollhouse, will visit ABC’s fantastical freshman drama as a romantic interest for both Grumpy (of the Seven Dwarves) and his surly Storybrooke counterpart, Leroy, in a late winter episode that delves into the grouch’s backstory.

Lee Arenberg (Grumpy/Leroy) cheered the casting via Twitter, saying that on Friday he was “living the dream” working opposite both Acker and Ginnifer Goodwin (aka Snow White/Mary Margaret) — though it was not clear in which of the show’s two worlds their scenes were taking place.

Well, TVLine can exclusively report that Acker will play characters in both Storybrooke and the fairy tale world that was.

Earlier this fall, Once cast Buffy the Vampire Slayer alumna Emma Caulfield as the Blind Witch from Hansel and Gretel lore; she will appear in this season’s ninth episode (get exclusive scoop here). Of course, Buffy/Angel/Dollhouse vet Jane Espenson is a writer/producer for Once.

Acker’s TV resume also includes ABC’s Happy Town and No Ordinary Family, and last month’s Lifetime movie Dear Santa. Ironically, she will also guest-star this winter on NBC’s Grimm, which like Once (though in a decidedly different way) revolves around fairy tale characters.

Once Upon a Time, having aired its seventh episode/fall finale this month, resumes its freshman run Jan. 8.

Source

With David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf among the creators Grimm, it shouldn’t come as that much of a surprise that a former beloved cast member of Angel would make its way over to the NBC supernatural procedural, but it’s exciting nonetheless.

Grimm follows a detective who learns he’s the descendent of a long line of people who can see mythological beings disguised as regular people. Storybook baddies like the Big Bad Wolf are real, as it turns out, and Nick’s job is to protect people from the ones who mean harm.

TV Line got the scoop on the latest bit of casting news for the NBC series, stating that Amy Acker is set to play the “fearsome Black Widow.” Read on for more details or stop reading after this paragraph if you don’t want spoilers. Acker’s episode will air in 2012.

Ok, consider yourself spoiler-warned. As the “Black Widow,” Acker’s character ages rapidly and must drain the life out of three guys over the course of three days, every five years in order to stay young and gorgeous. It’s probably safe to assume her five-year time is up and she’s on the prowl for three unsuspecting men. It’s also entirely possible that she turns out to be just a suspect in Nick’s investigation, much in the way Nick met Monroe (a non-practicing Wolf), but maybe that’s just me hoping Acker’s part will turn into a recurring role. For now, it sounds like it’s just one episode.

Acker’s played a number of TV roles, one of which was the adorable Fred (and less adorable but still beautiful Illyria) in Angel, which connects her with Greenwalt and Kouf, both of whom were consulting producers on the series.

Source

Either someone is having fun with us, or Joss Whedon has made a movie based on Shakespeare’s comedy Much Ado About Nothing. What’s more, the cast list is pretty amazing, especially if you’re a fan of Joss Whedon’s TV series.

Nathan Fillion tweeted the link to MuchAdoTheMovie.com late Sunday night, as though whispering some delicious little secret through a bull-horn. The one-page site includes the phrase “Bellwether Pictures is proud to announce the completion of principal photography,” followed by a long list of names, some more recognizable than others. Among them is Amy Acker and Alexis Denisof (Fred and Wesley!), Nathan Fillion, Sean Maher, Tom Lenk, Clark Gregg and Fran Kranz.

Below the list of names is a photo of a man standing in the water, wearing snorkel gear and holding a cocktail. Maurissa Tancharoen (Dollhouse, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog) confirmed on her Facebook page that the man in the photo is Fran Kranz (Topher from Dollhouse).

So, what exactly is the deal here? Is it possible that Joss Whedon not only managed to work a Shakespeare adaptation into his schedule, which already included directing The Avengers, but also managed to keep this project a secret? Is it a big-screen picture? Or perhaps a new webseries? Your guess is as good as mine, but we’ll keep you posted if/when more information emerges.

The 18th Austin Film Festival is almost here. To help celebrate all the locally connected movies at this year’s fest, we’ve reached out to a number of filmmakers to find out about their Austin and Texas-tied films screening at AFF, and to hear about what they’re looking forward to doing during the festival.

Austin-based filmmaker Brandon Dickerson’s feature film debut Sironia features music by Texas singer-songwriter Wes Cunningham, who also co-wrote the script with Dickerson and Thomas Ward. Dickerson, pictured above on the right with actress Amy Acker and Wes Cunningham, shares some very personal stories about how the story and the film began. Audiences may not recognize all the names of cast and crew, but may notice a lot of familiar faces onscreen. The cast includes Jeremy Sisto, Carrie Preston and Ryan Cartwright, not to mention Dallas-born actress Acker.

Slackerwood: Describe your film for us, in a quick and dirty paragraph.

Brandon Dickerson: I’ve had some folks describe Sironia as “Once meets Away We Go,” which I’m cool with. Music plus love story. In simplest terms … the film is inspired by the music of singer-songwriter Wes Cunningham.

Sironia is the story of a talented musician who has been chewed up and spit out by the Hollywood music machine. Frustrated by his broken career, Thomas Fisher and his wife Molly impulsively pack up and move to small-town Sironia, Texas to live a more authentic life and raise their first child near Molly’s brother and his family. Despite the change of scenery, Thomas’s deep resentment over his lost dreams gets the best of him as he struggles to find peace with his stalled career, until he remembers what he loved about music — and Molly — in the first place.

Tell us one thing about this movie that is going to make it impossible for people to resist seeing it at AFF?

The timing of the film has been interesting as people are connecting with the idea of having to deal with their hopes and dreams not working out — whether that is their art or just not finding a job. The search for contentment outside of your circumstances seems to be a journey that resonates. Beyond that, I think it’s impossible for people to resist the music! You can listen and download for free at the Sironia website by the way.

How long have you been working on Sironia?

Two years total from page one of the script to Austin Film Festival premiere.

Are there any recognizable locations in Texas?

We shot in Waco and Los Angeles. Tons of great Waco spots like Common Grounds and Skateworld and of course the Alico Building, which I was surprised to also see in Tree of Life. I thought for sure we’d have a corner on that building being in a movie this year.

A very long story short — I was a director in LA when my wife’s mother was diagnosed with Stage 4 Cancer, given six months to live. We immediately moved to Waco to care for her and as a result I reconnected with my friend/musician Wes Cunningham. He introduced me to a friend of his, Thomas Ward, and we all decided it would be fun to craft a script around Wes’s songs, which we loved.

Basically, I lived in LA for years and years directing commercials and music videos trying to get a feature off the ground. Moved to Texas and was filming Sironia within a year.

After my wife’s mom passed away and we wrapped filming, we decided to relocate our family to Austin. Been living here for a year and absolutely love living in ATX. Our kids love it and I find the creative community here incredibly inspiring. This is home.

What are your future plans for Sironia?

I’m inspired by what a lot of films are doing with creative independent releases. Love the idea of doing shows plus concerts with Wes playing before the film. We are doing free concerts with Wes during AFF at Progress Coffee and The Highball on Friday and Monday evenings [details below]. Focus now is on AFF and we’ll decide afterward what’s next.

What one place to visit/eat/drink would you recommend to out-of-towners here for AFF?

I spend most days and my dollars at Progress where my Spiral Films office is, but I’m a sucker for Austin trailers so I would say folks would need to check out either The Vegan Yacht or G’Raj Mahal or any epic taco truck. The queso at Torchy’s is pretty life-changing and we have a nod to queso in Sironia as it’s such a Texas dish.

What are you looking forward to doing during AFF?

This is my first feature and I was that kid who wanted to be a feature director since he was eight years old, so I think our first screening is going to be a highlight for me. There are a lot of panels and films I want to see. I’m a huge fan of Lawrence Kasdan and look forward to hearing Chuck Palahniuk speak.

My wife has a funny story of me trying to meet Mira Sorvino crashing a party in NYC … so we will be all smiles at the Union Square screening.

Sironia plays Austin Film Festival on plays Austin Film Festival on Friday, October 21, at 9:30 pm at the Rollins Theater in the Long Center, and encores Wednesday, October 26, at 6 pm at Rollins. There are also free musical performances by Wes Cunningham on Friday, October 21, at 6pm at Progress Coffee (free beer during that performance) and The Highball on Monday, October 24, at 7 pm.

The upcoming indie film “Sironia” will make its debut at the Austin Film Festival on Friday night. The film, set in Waco, is deeply rooted in dreams both fulfilled and lost.

Inspired by the music and life of singer-songwriter Wes Cunningham, “Sironia” is the story of talented musician Thomas Fisher,frustrated by his Hollywood career. Thomas and his wife, Molly, decide to move to small town Sironia, Texas, to find a better life. There, Thomas struggles to find contentment and peace with his lost career, forced to choose what to hold on to and what to let go.

The cast includes Cunningham, Amy Acker from the WB’s “Angel,” Tony Hale, of “Arrested Development” and “Chuck,” and Robyn Lively, of “Savannah.”

Laura Smith, Lauren Schwartz and Steven Sills produced “Sironia.”

More than half of the film is shot in Waco, a place familiar to its three writers: Cunningham, Thomas Ward, and Brandon Dickerson, who is also directing the movie.

Cunningham and Dickerson attended Baylor together and many of the songs used in the film were written in Waco.

Ward is a professor in the theatre arts department.

Viewers will see familiar Waco places in the film, such as Katie’s Frozen Custard, Common Grounds, the suspension bridge, George’s Restaurant and the Baylor campus.

“You write what you know, and we know Waco, so it worked,” Ward said.

The idea for Sironia came to the writers two years ago over coffee at Café Cappuccino.

When Dickerson’s mother-in-law was diagnosed with cancer, his family moved to Waco. In Texas, Dickerson joined Cunningham, a musician who had recently moved to Waco after a stint in Los Angeles. Cunningham then introduced Dickerson to Ward. Over coffee, the three instantly connected over music, acting and film. Dickerson and Ward bragged on Cunningham’s music and talked about how visual his lyrics are.

“Thomas said that we should write a stageplay,” Dickerson said. “I said, ‘Forget that. Let’s write a script.’ By the end of that first breakfast, our movie was in the making.”

Dickerson and Ward encouraged Cunningham to make two musical playlists, one about conflict and one about resolution.

“Wes has a nice cavalier of music, and some of it is dark and some of it is celebratory,” Ward said. “And that’s what we wanted for our story. Challenges and conflict, but also redemption.”

Dickerson said that Cunningham’s music is the backbone of the film and that it goes further than “inspired by a true story.”

“In many ways, Wes had been writing ‘Sironia’ for years,” Dickerson said. “Using the stories Wes had already been writing through his music, we crafted a story that is both unique and genuine.”

The film deals with the idea of finding contentment no matter the circumstance, and how to react when dreams go unrealized. Dickerson said it is a narrative that can resonate with people personally.

“The movie asks a compelling question about which dream you live for,” Cunningham said. “We all have to prioritize in our life, and the other writers and I have talked a lot about how we wrote a move that is a real challenge to live.”

When it came time to cast for the movie, Cunningham was interested, but the directors decided from the beginning to choose the best fit for the role of the main character, Thomas.

Cunningham fought for the role and had to prove himself because there were a lot of talented men who auditioned for the role alongside him.

“There was a lot of talent, but most of the men who tried out for the role lacked the authenticity that we wanted,” Dickerson said. “Despite never having done a film, Wes has that rare raw talent.”

Cunningham worked with acting coaches to improve technicalities and fulfill the role.

“Brandon took a huge risk in casting me, and he staked the movie on it,” Cunningham said. “Acting, for me, is absolutely thrilling, and I really didn’t expect it. Brandon really stuck his neck out for me in a big way, and I am very grateful.”

Baylor was also involved in the filmmaking. The writers were pleased to get the privilege to film on campus. There was also an internship program in the film department for about 30 students to help out with the film.

Funding for the movie came from Gary and Diane Heavins, a Waco family, much faster than Dickerson expected and the writers were extremely grateful.

“I had been in California for 15 years trying to make movies, and when I moved to Waco everyone told me it was career suicide,” Dickerson said. “After all of those years in L.A., who knew I would be making a movie in Waco within the first year I moved?”

The film will premiere at 9:30 p.m. Friday at Rollins Theatre in the Long Center in Austin. Following the film, there will be a Q&A with the filmmakers and cast.

Lionsgate’s picked up The Cabin in the Woods and has set an April 13, 2012 release date for the horror film. Joss Whedon (who’s currently busy on The Avengers) co-wrote and produced Cabin, and screenwriter Drew Goddard (Cloverfield) made his directorial debut with the project.

The film, which Whedon calls the “horror movie to end all horror movies,” finds Thor star Chris Hemsworth playing a “young professional who visits a quaint cabin in the woods with a group of friends and ends up scratching the surface of something so massive and horrific that they can only begin to fathom it as time quickly runs out.”

The Cabin in the Woods also features Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford, Kristen Connolly, Brian J. White, Amy Acker, Fran Kranz, and Jesse Williams.

Announcing the acquisition, President of the Motion Picture Group Joe Drake stated, “This is a movie that operates on many levels, and it works gloriously on every one of them. There is intense fan anticipation for this film, and we are thrilled to have the opportunity to deliver what we’re sure will be a major zeitgeist movie and an instant horror classic- and on a Friday the 13th no less.”

Director Goddard added, “Lionsgate’s passion and enthusiasm for our movie has been so overwhelming, I had to go back and make sure we didn’t accidentally screen The Godfather for them. Fortunately, we did not. We couldn’t be happier at our new home.”

Goddard’s writing credits include Angel, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Alias, and Lost. He’s currently adapting Daniel H Wilson’s Robopocalypse for the big screen, with Steven Spielberg attached to direct. (Source)

In this interview, Amy speaks to us about her visit to Sydney, her experience both on Angel and Dollhouse, what it’s like to work with Joss Whedon, and her fans. Amy’s latest film is The Cabin in the Woods, a thriller directed by Wendy Lin and due to be released October. She’s an absolute delight to talk to and is actually more gorgeous than her photos (yes, that is possible!). You can take a look at our interview down below. (Source)