Cuba Gooding Jr. was Asked to Play O.J. Simpson as Both Guilty and Innocent for ‘American Crime Story’

TV Tattle

Cuba Gooding Jr. was asked to play O.J. Simpson as both guilty and innocent for American Crime Story

Gooding says he turned down an O.J. Simpson movie role to work with Ryan Murphy, who asked him to do multiple takes playing Simpson as both guilty and innocent. “He says to you, ‘On this take, I want you to play it this way,” says Gooding. “That way might be showing O.J.’s guilt, or it might be portraying the frustration of his innocence. I have to be true to what he’s asking me to do. So I can’t let myself be too convinced in one frame of mind or one way of thinking.”


ESPN will air a sports-themed Star Wars lightsaber special, hosted by Mark Hamill

Disney-owned ESPN will help promote Disney’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens film with Star Wars: Evolution of the Lightsaber Duel. The Dec. 15 half-hour special will examine “the sport and athleticism behind the choreography and training utilized in the making of Star Wars lightsaber duels.”


Wayward Pines will be back for a 2nd season, along with M. Night Shyamalan

Fox has renewed the summer series. But Chad Hodge, who adapted the novel to the small screen, won’t return for Season 2.


Gotham is staging an O.C. reunion with Melinda Clarke

Clarke will reunite with Ben McKenzie, recurring as the “attractive and cultured Grace Van Dahl.”


Discovery Channel’s Killing Fields will tackle a murder investigation in real time

Premiering Jan. 5, the true-crime series will follow the murder investigation of a young woman in a “killing field” in 1997 Louisiana.


Are there more Christmas specials airing this year?

With more and more shows going out with midseason finales by early December, networks have been filling time more and more holiday specials. As John Koblin notes, “At the very least, the War on Christmas is not being waged on television.”


Scandal’s Kate Burton is headed to Madam Secretary

She’ll guest as Tim Daly’s sister on the CBS drama.


Laura Dern is the latest big name to join HBO’s Reese Witherspoon-Nicole Kidman drama

She’ll play a powerful career woman and anti-bullying crusader on the David E. Kelley limited series Big Little Lies.


What’s Borat doing on Jimmy Kimmel Live?

Sacha Baron Cohen has revived his famous character to disrupt tonight’s monologue.


Fargo Season 2 has become a crash course in existentialism

Besides the direct Albert Camus reference this season, Ed and Peggy appear to be facing the main challenge posed by existentialism.


ESPN and the College Football Playoffs agree not to air Daily Fantasy ads

DraftKings and FanDuel ads won’t be shown during the two college playoff games on New Years’ Eve, plus the national championship game on Jan. 11.


The Daily Show to introduce one of its exec producers as a new contributor

Comedian Adam Lowitt started on the Comedy Central show as an intern in 2002, and tonight he makes his debut in front of the camera.


Listen to Alec Baldwin interview Jimmy Fallon

The Tonight Show host visited Baldwin’s podcast Here’s the Thing, where they recalled their time working together in fall 1998, when Fallon had just joined Saturday Night Live.


Mindy Kaling took a pic with Aziz Ansari, her “handsome cousin”

“I ran into my handsome cousin at the lobby of the Wynn!” she said in the caption of the photo with her fellow Indian-American/show creator/author/comedy star. PLUS: Mindy Project’s first Hulu season had the right ending, and Mindy will always be consistently inconsistent.


The Flash books Truth Be Told star Tone Bell

The comedian will play the brash new editor at Central City Picture News as part of a multi-episode arc.


ABC remaking British unemployment office comedy The Job Lot

Raising Hope creator Greg Garcia is teaming with Stephnie Weir on The Job Squad, a comedy set in an unemployment office.


Watch the trailer for The 100 Season 3

The CW drama returns Jan. 21.


Nashville adds Meg Steedle

The Boardwalk Empire and Mysteries of Laura vet will guest on the ABC drama as a single mom.


Will Generation Z actually adapt MTV’s The Founders label?

Unlike previous generations, the generation born after 2000 didn’t grow up watching MTV.