Fringe Spoilers: SciFi Wire with Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman

SciFi Wire interviewed Fringe co-creators Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci about what's to come in the last six episodes of the season:

Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, who co-created Fox's sci-fi series Fringe with J.J. Abrams, told SCI FI Wire that the show will begin to answer a lot of its own questions as it wraps its first season.

"We are about to shoot our final two episodes of the season," Orci said in an exclusive interview last week with Kurtzman, his writing partner on Star Trek and Transformers and such TV series as Alias.

Will the final episodes of the season—which kick off on April 7 at 9 p.m. ET/PT—tie things together? Yes, Orci promises, adding: "The question is how fast."

"This is something we discussed very much with the network," Orci added. "Sometimes they want answers, and then we'll actually write a show in which everything is answered, and they're like, 'No, that's too fast!' So how slowly to dole things out is always the key question. But we definitely have answers that we're dying to give, and it's a matter of how quickly we get to them."

Following is an edited version of our exclusive interview with Orci and Kurtzman about Fringe, which stars Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson and John Noble.

Click here to read more...

SciFiWire: You have been setting stuff up about William Bell, the founder of Massive Dynamic and Walter Bishop's [Noble] old lab partner, as well as the weird bald guy [The Observer] and Olivia [Torv] and Peter [Jackson] and Walter and their past ties to one another. What can you talk about as to how much you're going to reveal and how much you're still going to keep out there?

Orci: Well, we have an ultimate solution. ... Essentially, one of the things that we came up with once the staff was hired—and we have to give a lot of credit to the amazing staff—was imagine the most basic question, which is "Why is the [Pattern] happening? What is causing all of these things? What is the Pattern?" And so we do have an answer to that. That answer will probably be a long time coming.

[But] various players' interests and allegiances, like William Bell—like his potential connections to our characters from before—all that will be more fleshed out and their place in the world more defined.

SciFiWire: Before the end of the first season?

Orci: Yes.

SciFiWire: Will we figure out who The Observer is?

Orci: Who he is? Not who, but you'll get a deeper context of what he's a part of.

SciFiWire: I think it's already been suggested he's from an alternate dimension or something?

Orci: That doesn't tell you much, does it? ... It's an answer without revelation. ...

SciFiWire: In the pilot, Agent Scott [Mark Valley] asked Olivia, "Why did Broyles [Lance Reddick] request to put you on this unit?" Is that question going to be answered by the end of the year?

Orci: Yes. ...

SciFiWire: There are also hints of something more going on between Olivia and Peter? Or are you not going to go in that direction?

Orci: Well, we want it to. It's obviously something that has to cross your mind, but we wanted to, you know, make sure it's earned. And it was interesting for the first 13 [episodes], because the natural assumption is "Oh, there's going to be a flirtatious pitter-patter between our two leads." But we very deliberately set up the fact that she'd just been tormented and hurt by her first love having gone horribly wrong. And when that kind of thing happens, the last thing you're feeling is kind of flirty. So we very purposefully built in a massive obstacle that would take, you know, most of the season to get over. And we're kind of playing it by ear in terms of seeing [how far to go]. Each show that we watch, we say, "Do I believe that she is recovered enough now to notice Peter?" And when that moment hits, hopefully it'll hit us all at the same time. ...

SciFiWire: I talked to John Noble a couple of weeks ago, and he also felt that he didn't want to see the Peter-Walter relationship sort of resolve itself too quickly, because there's too much baggage there for them to become pals right away. Do you guys sort of share that feeling?

Orci: Yeah. Our motto on them was always one step forward, two steps back. ...

SciFiWire: What sort of weird science will you incorporate into future episodes?

Orci: From chips under your skin to track you to cloning, [which] is now real in a way that it wasn't when The X-Files was on. We have a rover on Mars. We have invisibility cloaks. We have ... HAARP, the High [Frequency Active] Auroral Research Program that bounces lasers off the ionosphere and can see underground. We have potential weather control, used by the Chinese during the Olympics. We have chem trails, you know, the German government admitting that, yes, indeed, they have been putting chemicals in some of the airborne aerosols that planes ... I mean, literally, I don't know how we're going to run out of stories. As long as there's an Internet, we're not going to run out of stories.

Fringe Spoilers: TV Guide with Anna Torv

[scanned by: TheODI]

Fringe Behind-The-Scenes 119: The Road Not Taken

Fringe was shooting The Road Not Taken in NYC this weekend, which will air May 5th on FOX. SmokeInTheCity captured these great behind-the-scenes photos of may of the main characters: Joshua Jackson, Anna Torv, John Noble, and Kirk Acevedo.

In addition to the Slusho! drink mentioned below, there are two other important spoilers to note. First and foremost is the 'charcoal woman', which looks like a victim of spontaneous human combustion.



Also, check out the side of that bus - there's a Massive Dynamic ad!

Cloverfield's Slusho! to Appear in Fringe?

Fringe was shooting The Road Not Taken in NYC this weekend, which will air May 5th on FOX. SmokeInTheCity captured this photo of John Noble drinking a Slusho!

Is this just some behind the scenes antics, or will the magical drink make an appearance in the show?

FYI, Slusho! was a central theme of the Cloverfield online marketing, and has it's own website at Slusho.com. It also made several appearances in Heroes, thanks to J.J. Abrams' close friend Greg Grunberg. Here are some behind the scenes Slusho! photos taken by Heroes Director/Producer Greg Beeman.

Fringe Season 1 Finale Title Revealed

Writer/producer J.R. Orci revealed the title of this season's Fringe finale on his blog this morning: There's More Than One of Everything.

Could the globe be a clue? (There's more than one Earth?) Fringe's Season 1 finale airs May 12th.

Fringe Promo Photos 116: Unleashed

Here are the promotional photos for Fringe episode 116 Unleashed.
(Hover over each of the photos for a full description.)

Fringe Press Release 116: Unleashed

AGENT FRANCIS FACES-OFF WITH A GNARLY PIECE OF "FRINGE" SCIENCE TUESDAY, APRIL 14, ON FOX

As animal rights activists ransack a laboratory, they get more than they bargained for when one of the caged "animals" unleashes a ferocious appetite. Leaving grotesquely mutilated dead bodies in its wake, the scientific engineered beast with the body of a lion, claws of an eagle, fangs of a viper, skin of a rhinoceros and tail of a serpent attacks Charlie. With Charlie's life on the line, Walter must come face-to-face with both his past and the beast in the all-new "Unleashed" episode of FRINGE airing Tuesday, April 14 (9:01-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX.

Cast: Anna Torv as Olivia Dunham; Joshua Jackson as Peter Bishop; John Noble as Walter Bishop; Lance Reddick as Phillip Broyles; Kirk Acevedo as Charlie Francis; Mark Valley as John Scott; Blair Brown as Nina Sharp; Jasika Nicole as Astrid Farnsworth

Guest Cast: Craig Alan Edwards as Matt; Tim Gallin as Ken; Keith Nobbs as Carl Bussler; David Pittu as Robert Swift; Chris Jackson as EMT; Kiersten Warren as Sonia; Rafi Silver as Jonathan Swift; Jeremy Zorek as Tuck

Fringe Spoilers: TV Guide on William Bell

TV Guide has two new Fringe spoilers about William Bell's imminent appearance.

William Keck has the scoop on the upcoming William Bell appearance:

Fringe is casting a sixtysomething actor in the role of William Bell, a former lab partner of Walter Bishop (John Noble). Exec producer Jeff Pinkner describes the Bill Gates–meets–Dick Cheney character, who’ll debut in the season finale, as “one of the richest men behind the largest, most powerful, most secretive corporation with defense department and international ties.” The groundwork for Bell’s arrival is laid in the April 21 episode [titled Bad Dreams], which finds Olivia (Anna Torv) learning more about the role Bishop played in Bell’s experimentation on her with the drug Cortexiphan when she was a girl.

“What she finds out about some of the frightening things Walter did does not sit very well with her,” Anna says about the episode, written and directed by Oscar-winning screenwriter Akiva Goldsman (“A Beautiful Mind” and “The Da Vinci Code”). “Olivia starts having these horrific dreams of people dying and when she wakes up, she realizes it’s been happening for real.” The climactic scene finds hordes of people on a Manhattan rooftop about to plunge to their deaths.

Anna says her real life is much more peaceful: She and her new husband (and former Fringe love interest), Mark Valley, are sound sleepers who dream only “lovely” dreams. But her kid brother Dylan did some sleepwalking when he stayed with the couple in New York recently. Anna says, “He walked into the cupboard and sat down in a box and started bopping up and down like he was riding in a cab.” Dylan—lay off the Cortexiphan!!

Mickey O'Connor confirms Keck's info on Bell:

Q: Are we ever going to meet Dr. William Bell on Fringe or is he just a red herring? — Rob
MICKEY: Get ready, Rob! "I can't wait to see who it is, how it's revealed or what he represents or where he comes from," John Noble told us of the identity of his former partner in weird science. I'm hearing Dr. Bell will be ID'd in the finale, but that he might not be formally introduced in his first appearance, which could be sooner. So keep your eyes peeled.

Fringe Promo Photos 115: Inner Child

Here are the promotional photos for Fringe episode 115 Inner Child.
(Hover over each of the photos for a full description.)

Fringe Press Release 115: Inner Child

A NEW CHAPTER BEGINS WHEN "FRINGE" RETURNS AND AGENTS OBSERVE A MYSTERIOUS BOY AS A SERIAL KILLER RESURFACES TUESDAY, APRIL 7, ON FOX

Just seconds before a building is demolished, a mysterious mute child that has been living alone underground is discovered. When the FBI's Fringe Division investigates, the boy forms an unspoken connection with Agent Olivia Dunham. Meanwhile, an especially gruesome serial killer resurfaces and showcases his "artistry" by displaying his work publicly. As the boy gradually assimilates into a new environment, Olivia and the team must race against the clock to prevent the mad man from further macabre in the all-new FRINGE episode "Inner Child" airing Tuesday, April 7 (9:01-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. (FR-115) (TV-14 D, L, V)

Cast: Anna Torv as Olivia Dunham; Joshua Jackson as Peter Bishop; John Noble as Walter Bishop; Lance Reddick as Phillip Broyles; Kirk Acevedo as Charlie Francis; Mark Valley as John Scott; Blair Brown as Nina Sharp; Jasika Nicole as Astrid Farnsworth

Guest Cast: Jeremy Shamos as The Artist; Spencer List as The Child; Matt Mulhern as Dennis; Alicia Goranson as Tattoo Girl; Carolyn Feldschuh as Older Woman; Jimmy Palumbo as Mike; Erik Palladino as Eliot Michaels; Nelson Pena as Junior Agent; Robert Payne as Agent; Victor Williams as Phil; Phil Nee as Archie; Sandra Daley as Dr. Winick; Mary Lou Schriber as Nurse

Fringe Spoilers: Preview #2

Fox showed a new preview for Fringe during Lie To Me and Dollhouse this week.


Here are some screenshots:

Fringe Spoilers: Promo Video

Here is a promotional video featuring scenes from the upcoming Fringe Episode "Inner Child", which premiers April 7th, 2009.

UPDATE: Here is a MUCH better quality video:



Here are some interesting screenshots from the video:

Fringe Spoilers: TV Guides talks to John Noble

TV Guide's Mickey O'Connor has the Fringe spoiler scoop on Walter and Peter:

As we've discussed, Fringe is on an Idol-related hiatus until April 7, at which point the focus will partially shift from Olivia's past to Peter's past, including the mysterious "health issue" that dad Walter has at times alluded to. As John Noble shared this week here at the TVGuide.com offices, "When we find out [what's Peter's 'condition' is], you'll see why Walter is so desperately attached to him and so desperately concerned about him." By the way, Noble calls the first episode back "extraordinary" and the subsequent five "among our very best."

Fringe Spoilers: Episode 119 Title Confirmed

J.R. "Rick" Orci officially confirmed the title "The Road Not Taken" for Fringe episode 119. Rick posted this stylized photo of the script on his Flicker account, with what looks like a 1954 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing? I wonder if that's how Rick rolls?

Fringe Spoilers: E! Online with John Noble

Olivia, Peter, and Walter with a young observer(?) in the Fringe Episode 'Inner Child'

E! Online has the first promo photo for Fringe Episode 115: Inner Child, featuring the "Young Observer" mentioned in the 115 casting call.

FYI, the YO is wearing a Northwestern shirt, which is a university in Chicago area.

Krisin also talked with John Noble, who plays mad scientist Walter Bishop.

John Noble on Olivia and Peter:

"I don’t want anyone to have a romantic storyline," John confides to us. "I don’t want Peter and Olivia to, but everybody else does. I want them to be just friends because they’ll have the romantic thing, and then they’ll have the bustup, and [that] will break up the team."

John Noble on William Bell:

"There will be a major revelation about William Bell, my former lab partner [and founder of Massive Dynamics]," John dishes. "That’s going to happen. And there is much more to know about Peter, Olivia and Walter and the fact that they were, in fact, all linked initially. That’s going to be important. That’s pretty cool."

John Noble on the rest of the season:

"The next four or five are already in the can, and they are really exquisite," he adds. The show returns in "early April, I believe, and then we go straight through for the rest of the season. We’ll see the sort of culmination of the journey through season one."

For the entire article, check out Fringe Returns in April With Mega-Revelation at Eonline.com

Exclusive Fringe Spoilers: Episode 119 Title

Our exclusive inside source has revealed to us the title for Fringe Episode 119.

"The Road Not Taken" will air May 5th, and will be directed by Fred Toye. Toye also directed The Ghost Network, The Dreamscape, and Bound, and has worked with J.J. Abrams on Lost and Alias.

Also, Brad Anderson will be directing the season finale, episode 120.

Fringe Spoilers: Casting Call 120

There's a new casting call for the Fringe season finale, episode 120:

[DR. SMITH]
(MALE, 55 – 65) Brilliant scientist, authoritative, comes from old money. A contemporary of Walter Bishop (JOHN NOBLE). One scene this season, major recur next season. RECURRING

Reading between the lines, this part obviously for the role of William Bell. The inside word is that they want get a big name to fill the spot - someone who's name could be promoted along side Anna Torv, Josh Jackson, and John Noble.

This also means that William Bell is NOT someone we have already seen on the show, despite what Jeff Pinkner keeps saying...

I'm thinking someone like Victor Garber (Alias), Clancy Brown (Highlander, Carnivale), or Rutger Hauer (Blade Runner)? Who would you like to like to see play William Bell?

Fringe Spoilers: Ask Ausiello

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello has the latest spoiler scoop on Fringe:

"Peter's shady past will catch up with him," reveals exec producer Jeff Pinkner. "Specifically the work he was doing in Iraq at the start of the series. Those criminal doings will have direct consequences to his work on the Fringe team."

Got anything else, Mr. Pinkner? "Olivia will learn more about the experiments done to her as a child with the drug Cortexiphan. She'll also meet a man who underwent the same experiments as a child -- but [he] can't control the dangerous results."

Got anything else, Mr. Pinkner? [Crickets] Guess not.

Fringe Spoilers: Casting Call 119

SpoilerTV has a new casting call for Fringe episode 119, which is set to film between the 17^th and 27^th of March 2009, and will be directed by Fred Toye.

[SUSAN & NANCY LUTZ] (FEMALE, 29) Twins; pretty but not striking, a loner, reserved. GUEST

[DRIVER] (MALE, 40-50) Bus driver with a frantic passenger. TWO SCENES – PLEASE SPECIFY IF ACTOR IS CERTIFIED TO DRIVE A BUS

[WINTERS] (MALE, 35) Non-speaking, threatening with an air of menace. TWO SCENES

[MICHAEL CARLIN] (MALE, 39) Informant Peter and Olivia go to. ONE SCENE

[MANAGER] (MALE, 55) Building manager, gives Olivia and Peter a tour. ONE SCENE

[FORENSIC TECH] (MALE or FEMALE, 30s) At a crime scene. UNDER FIVE

It is interesting to note that Nelson McCormick was originally slated to direct Fringe episode 119, and Fred Toye was going to direct 121. However, with the season getting cut down to 20 episodes, there won't be a 121, so it looks like it Toye's episode may have been moved up to the 119 slot.

Fringe Spoilers: TV Guide and EW Scoops

Here are some of the latest Fringe rumors / spoilers:

TV Guide senior editor Mickey O'Connor:

Question: Is Fox going to pick-up Fringe for a second season? Also, any juicy storylines happening in the spring? — Bryan

MICKEY: Well, ratings were steady before its American Idol-dodging hiatus, but my mole tells me that the network will wait and see how it does once it returns on April 7. Me, I'm all wait-and-see about Peter's new love interest — not yet convinced that she's the right blonde for him.

Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello:

Question: How about some Fringe scoop? I am dying here now that it isn't coming on again until April! --Garrett

Ausiello: A main character will become pregnant by the end of the season. But there's a twist. Guesses as to what it might be? Head to the comments!

Exclusive Fringe Spoilers: Episode 118 Title

Our exclusive inside source has revealed to us the title for Fringe Episode 118.

The Fringe episode Midnight will air April 28th, and is written and directed by J.H. Wyman & Andrew Kreisberg. Wyman was a writer on Keen Eddie, a TV show that starred Mark Valley (John Scott), and Kreisbers was a writer and producer of Eli Stone and Boston Legal.

Also, Brad Anderson has signed as a producer for the last 6 episode of the season. Anderson has already produced two great episodes - In Which We Meet Mr. Jones and The Transformation.

Fringe Spoilers: Watch With Kristin On The Observer

Kristin Dos Santos has the exclusive scoop from Roberto Orci about Fringe. A second observer may be making an appearance, and it could even be a female observer!

BTW, Who would you pick to play the role?