Mary-Louise Parker News

Today, SHOWTIME kicks-off its 'Best in SHO' Emmy Free Weekend promotion, granting unprecedented access to members of the Television Academy with an awards-themed free preview weekend featuring marathon runs of the network's award-winning original programming.

The show that introduced America to a pot-dealing soccer mom and changed the face of the network is sparking up its final toke: after eight unforgettable, jaw-dropping seasons, WEEDS is coming to an end. SHOWTIME will air the final 13 episodes beginning Sunday, July 1st at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT. In addition, the series will achieve a much-coveted television milestone: the 11th episode of the season will mark the series' 100th. Created by Jenji Kohan and produced by Lionsgate, WEEDS has been honored with multiple award nominations, including 21 Emmys(R), 10 Golden Globes(R) and six SAG(R) Awards over the course of its seven seasons on air. Its success put SHOWTIME on the map as a destination for top-quality original series and set the stage for hits like DEXTER(R), NURSE JACKIE, CALIFORNICATION and HOMELAND.

Variety reports that Showtime has canceled its long-running series WEEDS. The half-hour comedy from Lionsgate first aired on the cable network in 2005 and features Broadway vet Hunter Parrish. The upcoming eighth and final season of the show is currently in production and is set to air July 1.

Showtime announces its 2012 Summer programming overview. Among the many series and documentaries will be CAROL CHANNING: LARGER THAN LIFE premiering Monday, July 16th at 6:30 PM (ET/PT).

Julia Stiles stars in a new series, BLUE which is premiering now on the YouTube Channel, WIGS (www.youtube.com/wigs). In the series, Stiles stars as the title character, a single mom trying to protect her son from the consequences of her secret career.

Showtime has just released its 2012 Summer Programming Overview, including original series Weeds, Episodes, Web Therapy, The Franchise, The Real L Word, comedy specials, documentary specials, and more. See full details below.

'Best in SHO' is an awards-themed free preview weekend featuring marathon runs of the network's award-winning original programming and is the first ever awards-themed free preview weekend offered by a premium network.

Jennifer Garner and Alfred Molina star in SERENA, a short film written and directed by Rodrigo Garcia, a co-founder of WIGS along with Jon Avnet and Jake Avnet. Garner plays Serena, a woman who makes a series of shocking confessions to her Priest (Molina).

Today, award-winning filmmakers Jon Avnet ('Black Swan,' 'Fried Green Tomatoes,' 'Risky Business') and Rodrigo Garcia ('Albert Nobbs,' 'In Treatment,' 'Mother and Child') launch 'Jan,' the first WIGS series from a comprehensive slate of new, original programming.The digital channel's premiere series, 'Jan,' is written and directed by Jon Avnet. The series stars Caitlin Gerard ('The Social Network'), Virginia Madsen ('Sideways'), Stephen Moyer ('True Blood'), along with Alexandra Holden ('Friday Night Lights'), Jaime Murray ('Dexter,' 'Spartacus'), Kyle Gallner ('A Nightmare on Elm Street'), Iddo Goldberg ('Diary of a Call Girl,' 'Uprising'), Laura Spencer, Dorothy Davis, Allison McAtee, Andrea De Oliveira, John Ales, and Cass Castelow. Watch the first episode below!

EWOnline reports that Tony Award and Academy Award winner Catherine Zeta-Jones will join the cast of RED 2.

The Drama League has gathered together a team of Broadway's best to serve as Honorary Co-Chairs for the 78th Annual Drama League Awards set for Friday, May 18, 2012 at 12:00 p.m., at the Marriott Marquis Times Square (1535 Broadway). The team of Broadway luminaries includes Nina Arianda, Christian Borle, Norbert Leo Butz, Kathleen Chalfant, Raul Esparza, Rosemary Harris, Jeremy Jordan, Christine Lahti, Linda Lavin, Norm Lewis, Judith Light, Audra McDonald, Cynthia Nixon, Denis O'Hare and Blair Underwood. The Honorary Co-Chairs serve as ambassadors for The Drama League Awards and the excellence of the New York theatre season, and welcome the attendees of the Awards Luncheon at a cocktail reception before the event.

The Drama League has announced Drama League nominee Megan Hilty (9 To 5, "Smash") and Justin Long (Seminar) will co-host the announcement of the The 2012 Drama League Nominees for Distinguished Production of a Play, Distinguished Production of a Musical, Distinguished Revival of a Play, Distinguished Revival of a Musical, and the much coveted Distinguished Performance Award on Tuesday, April 24, 2012 at 11:00 a.m. at Sardi's. As in years past, the nominations ceremony will be broadcast worldwide via live stream right here on BroadwayWorld!

The Tony Award®-winning Hartford Stage, under the leadership of Darko Tresnjak, Artistic Director, and Michael Stotts, Managing Director, today announced that David Henderson has been appointed Director of Marketing, Sales and Communications, beginning April 9, 2012.

The Drama League has announced that this year's 78th Annual Drama League Awards will be hosted by Tony Award winners Stockard Channing (Other Desert Cities) and John Larroquette (Gore Vidal's The Best Man). The awards ceremony is set for Friday afternoon, May 18th at the Marriott Marquis Times Square (1535 Broadway) at Noon. This year's Drama League Award Nominees will be announced Tuesday morning, April 24th at Sardi's.

The Drama League will honor three outstanding theatre luminaries at this year's 78th Annual Drama League Awards set for Friday afternoon, May 18th at the Marriott Marquis Times Square.

It's going to be a sizzling summer of comedy on SHOWTIME with the season premieres of the hit series WEEDS (10 p.m. ET/PT) and EPISODES (10:30 p.m. ET/PT) on Sunday, July 1st. Thirteen half-hour episodes of WEEDS' eighth season go into production in Los Angeles in April, and nine half-hours of EPISODES' second season recently wrapped production in London and Los Angeles.

Hunter Parrish will release his debut album April 17, which is preceded by his single. Listen to the single, Sitting at Home, in the video below!

As first reported in the Hollywood Reporter, actors James Woods, Mary Louise Parker and Ving Rhames have joined the cast of the upcoming Indie drama film JAMESY BOY. The film will be directed by Trevor White.

Producers Julian Schlossberg and Letty Aronson just announced that the world premiere production of BULLETS OVER BROADWAY, a new musical adaptation of Woody Allen's iconic 1994 crime-comedy film will arrive home on Broadway in 2013 featuring a book by Woody Allen.

"Dead Man's Cell Phone" is by Sarah Ruhl, one of the hottest young playwrights on today's American theater scene. She was the recipient of a MacArthur "Genius" Award, as well as a Pulitzer Prize finalist. "Cell Phone" was a hit Off-Broadway with Mary Louise Parker ("Weeds") and was one of the top five most produced plays in 2011 in regional theaters across the country. The Waterfront now brings this wonderfully vibrant piece to the Keys community. The New York Times called it "A beguiling comedy with surprising twists and turns."