LIAM NEESON & DAN STEVENS IN "A WALK AMONG THE TOMBSTONES"! MATTHEW GOODE IN "VATICAN" SHOW! DYLAN MCDERMOTT & TONI COLLETTE IN CBS "HOSTAGES" SHOW! LAUREN GRAHAM & ROBIN WILLIAMS IN "FRIGGIN' CHRISTMAS"! "BOXTROLLS" ANIMATED TALE

Here is some lovely news for all the fans of DOWNTON ABBEY (which I personally find snobbishly monotonous, but that is just moi) - according to "Variety" Dan Stevens has joined Liam Neeson in

A WALK AMONG THE TOMBSTONES. Neeson will play alcoholic private investigator Matt Scudder, who operates just outside the law. The story follows Scudder as he takes a case to find the kidnapped wife of a drug dealer. He discovers the kidnappers are linked to a number of brutal murders and kidnappings! As I've reported before, Dan Stevens will also star next to Benedict Cumberbatch in THE FIFTH ESTATE, a film about the famous hero of the freedom loving world Julian Assange, which traces the heady, early days of WikiLeaks, culminating in the release of a series of controversial and history changing information leaks. The website’s overnight success brought instant fame to its principal architects and transformed the flow of information to news media and the world at large!

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In TV news - it seems that dashing Dylan McDermott has found himself a new gig after AMERICAN HORROR STORY. He will join new CBS show HOSTAGES

which has Toni Collette in the lead role. Coming from Jerry Bruckheimer, the show will follow a Washington, D.C., surgeon who is thrown into a political conspiracy after being chosen to operate on the president of the United States. Her family is taken hostage, and it's her responsibility to save their lives. McDermott will play Duncan, a righteous FBI agent who is at the centre of a political conspiracy involving the president but whose role will come as a surprise. Showtime has also found their own male lead for their new show VATICAN. Our favourite Matthew Goode (BIRDSONG, WATCHMEN) will play papal secretary and his closest confidante, who has a very powerful perch within the inner-circle of the Vatican, in this contemporary thriller about spirituality, power and politics, set against the modern day political machinations within the Catholic church. The potential series would explore the relationships and rivalries in addition to the mysteries and miracles behind the institution! The pilot will be directed by Ridley Scott!

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Another new sf movie will be RESILIENT. With Virginia Madsen and Robert Beltran in the cast, the sci fi disaster movie will revolve

 around a spaceship engineer returning to Earth to save his family from natural catastrophes sweeping the globe! But if you prefer comedies, THR reports about Lauren Graham, Joel McHale and Robin Williams starring in FRIGGIN' CHRISTMAS! The dysfunctional family comedy follows Boyd Mitchler (McHale) and his wife Luann (Lauren Graham) as they spend a dreaded Christmas with Boyd’s father Mitch (Williams) and his family of misfits. Upon realizing that he has left all of his son’s gifts at home, Boyd hits the road with his father and younger brother in an attempt to make the eight-hour round trip before sunrise. The authors of Oscar nominated PARANORMAN are working on new animated film THE BOXTROLLS! With Toni Collette and Ben Kingsley in the voice cast, the 3D stop motion/CG hybrid feature based on Alan Snow’s fantasy adventure novel "Here Be Monsters", unfolds in Cheesebridge, where beneath its cobblestone streets dwell the Boxtrolls. Legend has it that they are foul monsters, but in truth, the Boxtrolls are a community of oddballs who have raised an orphaned human boy. The visually dazzling mash-up of gripping detective story, absurdist comedy and steampunk adventure will also be a moving and human story with timelessness and powerful emotional resonance.