Dramatic Series 'Britannia' Gets Greenlight From Amazon and Sky

Amazon and Sky today Wednesday it has added Britannia to its lineup of dramatic Amazon Original Series in the US and Sky Original Dramas in the UK. Britannia is written by the multi-award winning Jez Butterworth (Jerusalem, Spectre) and stars Kelly Reilly (True Detective, Sherlock Holmes), David Morrissey (The Walking Dead, The Hollow Crown) and Zoe Wanamaker (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, My Family). Filmed completely abroad, Britannia is set in 43AD as the Roman Imperial Army, determined and terrified in equal measure, returns to crush the Celtic heart of Britannia, a mysterious land ruled by wild warrior women and powerful Druids who can channel the powerful forces of the underworld. Britannia is scheduled to premiere on Sky 1 in the UK and Ireland, and on Prime Video in the U.S. in 2017.

Martha Madison Scores New Role

Photo Credit: Brad Everett Young

Days of our Lives may not have appreciated her, but Martha Madison has found a new show that does! The popular actress has booked her next gig!

Madison has been cast in a recurring role on Amazon’s One Mississippi. She tweeted, "HOLY SCHMOLY! Just booked a recurring gig on One Mississippi! So excited for the table read tomorrow! #Comedy #PrimeTime #Amazon"

Click here to learn more about the series.

'The Bay' Moving to Amazon Prime! Carolyn Hennesy, Brandon Beemer, and Jensen Buchanan Join the Cast.

Hot off the heels of winning two Indie Series Awards last week and receiving five nominations for the upcoming Daytime Emmy Awards, LANY Entertainment has revealed its hit web series The Bay will be moving to Amazon Prime this summer. With a new beginning, viewers will be able to binge watch the “Director’s Cut” of the Emmy award-winning series, to be re-released in two 14-episode seasons on Amazon Prime.

“We’re excited to bring to the viewers these remastered episodes with never before seen footage,” explains creator Gregori J. Martin. “The show will have a new starting point, and we hope the viewers will binge watch the series to learn the whole story.”

With plans to shoot the 2nd half of the latter season, The Bay goes into production on six brand new episodes in May.

In the vein of Dicken’s “A Christmas Carol,” Mayor Jack Madison (Nicolas Coster) will be taken on a journey where he’ll reluctantly face his past transgressions.

Joining the cast in the role of the mayor’s ex-wife and son John Blackwell’s (Ronn Moss) late mother is Carolyn Hennesy (General Hospital, True Blood, Revenge). Brandon Beemer (Days of our Lives) will fill the role of a younger John Blackwell as Jensen Buchanan (The Young and the Restless, Another World) undertakes the role of Melody Garrett circa 1986. Marissa Tait (The Bold and the Beautiful) joins the cast as Young Katherine Blackwell while Eric Martsolf and Abby Wathen return in their roles as Young Lee and Young Sara.

Additional casting news will be released prior to production.

Erykah Badu, Lance Bass, Hunter Parrish, Jon Tenney and Jacob Vargas to Guest Star in Amazon's 'Hand of God'

Erykah Badu (Black Dynamite), Lance Bass (Hell & Back), Hunter Parrish (The Good Wife), Jon Tenney (Scandal) and Jacob Vargas (Sons Of Anarchy) will guest star Amazon's in the highly-anticipated dramatic series Hand of God. The series is currently shooting in the Los Angeles area and will premiere exclusively on Prime Instant Video this fall.

Created by Ben Watkins (Burn Notice), and marking the television debut of renowned filmmaker Marc Forster (World War Z), Hand of God stars Golden Globe winner Ron Perlman (Sons Of Anarchy) as the honorable justice Pernell Harris. The show centers on Judge Harris, a hard-living, law-bending married man with a high-end call girl on the side, who suffers a mental breakdown and goes on a vigilante quest to find the rapist who tore his family apart. With no real evidence to go on, Pernell begins to rely on “visions” and “messages” he believes are being sent by God through Pernell's ventilator-bound son. Hand of God also stars Dana Delany (Body Of Proof) as the Judge’s protective wife Crystal Harris, Garret Dillahunt (Justified) as KD, the born-again sociopath whose violent tendencies are exploited by Pernell, Andre Royo (The Wire) as the slick, smart, gregarious, and greedy mayor Robert ‘Bobo’ Boston, Alona Tal (Burn Notice) as Pernell’s grieving daughter-in-law Jocelyn Harris, Julian Morris (Pretty Little Liars) as the questionable preacher Paul Curtis, Elizabeth McLaughlin (Betrayal) as the preacher’s sultry girlfriend Alicia, and Emayatzy Corinealdi (Middle of Nowhere) as Pernell’s call girl and confidante Tessie.

Amazon to Begin Production on Original Movies for Theaters, Prime Instant Video

Amazon Studios, known for television series such as multi-Golden Globe winner Transparent, Annie-nominated Tumble Leaf, and Mozart in the Jungle, today announced that it will begin to produce and acquire original movies for theatrical release and early window distribution on Amazon Prime Instant Video. Whereas it typically takes 39 to 52 weeks for theatrical movies to premiere on subscription video services, Amazon Original Movies will premiere on Prime Instant Video in the U.S. just 4 to 8 weeks after their theatrical debut. Amazon Original Movies will focus on unique stories, voices, and characters from top and up-and-coming creators.

“We look forward to expanding our production efforts into feature films. Our goal is to create close to twelve movies a year with production starting later this year,” said Roy Price, Vice President, Amazon Studios. “Not only will we bring Prime Instant Video customers exciting, unique, and exclusive films soon after a movie’s theatrical run, but we hope this program will also benefit filmmakers, who too often struggle to mount fresh and daring stories that deserve an audience.”

'True Blood' and 'General Hospital' Alum Nathan Parsons Stars in Amazon Pilot 'Point of Honor'

Nathan Parsons stars in Point of Honor.

The latest batch of Amazon pilots debuts on Thursday, January 15, including Point of Honor from Carlton Cuse (Lost) and Randall Wallace (Braveheart).

Point of Honor takes place at the start of the Civil War. A Virginia family, led by their West Point bred son, John Rhodes (played by Nathan Parsons, True Blood, General Hospital), makes the controversial decision to defend the South while freeing all of their slaves. At battle against his northern brethren and his best friend and brother-in-law Robert Sumner (played by Christopher O'Shea, Baby Daddy), John leaves his three strong-willed sisters at home to run the plantation that is now without a free labor source.

Amazon Announces Lineup for its First Pilot Season of 2015

Amazon today announced the lineup for its first pilot season of 2015 which is scheduled to debut early in the new year exclusively on Amazon Instant Video in the US, UK and Germany. Customers will find a wide-range of genres in this latest slate of pilots—from a close-up look at a family torn apart by the start of the Civil War in Virginia and an adaptation of Phillip K. Dick’s alternate history of the United States post-World War II, to a satire of new age yoga culture in west Los Angeles and the story of a supermodel fresh out of rehab who is unapologetically trying to claw her way back on to the runway. In addition to these pilots, Amazon will premiere its first docu-series pilot, The New Yorker Presents, which will bring the pages of America’s most award-winning magazine to life.

Once again, customers will be invited to watch and provide feedback on the shows they want to see turned into full series. The pilots can be viewed on Fire TV, Fire tablets, and Fire phone, and with the Amazon Instant Video app available for iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, Roku, Xbox, PlayStation, Wii, as well as hundreds of other connected devices such as smart TVs—or customers can visit Amazon.com/AIV to watch online.

The seven new pilots premiering early next year will include hour-long shows Cocked from Sam Baum (Lie to Me) and Sam Shaw (Manhattan – TV series), Mad Dogs from Cris Cole (The Bill) and Shawn Ryan (The Shield), The Man in the High Castle from Frank Spotnitz (The X-Files), and Point of Honor from Carlton Cuse (Lost) and Randall Wallace (Braveheart). In addition, three half hour pilots will debut including Down Dog from Robin Schiff (Are You There, Chelsea?) and Salem Rogers from newcomer Lindsey Stoddart, as well as The New Yorker Presents, a docu-series pilot produced in cooperation with America’s most award-winning magazine. The program will include scripted narrative and documentary segments based on the magazine and is produced by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Alex Gibney's Jigsaw Productions and Condé Nast Entertainment.

Amazon Debuts Five New Original Comedy and Drama Pilots Today

Amazon today launched its third pilot season, calling on customers in the US and UK to watch a brand new slate of original comedy and drama pilots, and provide feedback to help determine which shows should be made into Amazon Original Series. The line-up includes everything from a visit to modern day Paris, a psycho-physiological illness spread through social media, the humor and complexities of marriage, a New Jersey 1980's flashback, and a mysterious thriller. The pilots can be viewed with the Amazon Instant Video app available on Amazon Fire TV, Kindle Fire tablets, Fire phone, iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, Roku, Xbox, PlayStation, Wii, as well as hundreds of other connected devices such as smart TVs - or customers can visit amazonoriginals.com to watch online.

The five new pilots include half hour comedies The Cosmopolitans, Really and Red Oaks, and hour-long dramatic thrillers Hand of God and Hysteria. The pilots come from renowned creators including Shaun Cassidy, Jay Chandrasekhar, Marc Forster, David Gordon Green, Steven Soderbergh and Whit Stillman, and star Selma Blair, Adam Brody, Sarah Chalke, Dana Delany, Ron Perlman, Paul Reiser, Chloé Sevigny and Mena Suvari.

Amazon Adds Dramatic Thriller 'Hysteria' to Its Third Pilot Season

Amazon today announced it has added the hour-long dramatic thriller Hysteria, from Amazon Studios, Universal Television and Alcon Television Group, to its third pilot season, which will debut later this year on Amazon Instant Video. Starring Mena Suvari (American Beauty) as Dr. Logan Harlen, James McDaniel (Orange Is The New Black) as Carl Sapsi, Josh Stewart (The Dark Knight Rises) as Ray Ratajeck, Adan Canto (X-Men: Days of Future Past) as Matt Sanchez, Laura San Giacomo (Saving Grace) as Grace Pelayo, and T.R. Knight (Grey's Anatomy) as Carter Harlen, Hysteria follows a doctor (Suvari) who returns to her hometown of Austin, Texas to investigate a growing epidemic that appears to be spreading through social media. The show is written by Shaun Cassidy who also serves as Executive Producer alongside Adam Schroeder, Sharon Hall, Andrew Kosove, Broderick Johnson, Bryan Zuriff, and Director Otto Bathurst. Customers will once again be invited to watch and provide feedback on the pilots they want to see turned into full series, which will then become available on Prime Instant Video.

'Downton Abbey' Tops Amazon Prime Instant Video’s Most Streamed List; Season Four Arrives Exclusively Today

Beginning today, Downton Abbey Season 4 is available for subscription streaming exclusively on Prime Instant Video.

Downton Abbey is the most watched TV series of all time on Prime Instant Video, with millions of Prime Instant Video customers having watched the show. With the addition of Season 4 today, Prime Instant Video is now the only video subscription service that offers all four seasons of Downton Abbey, and will continue to be the exclusive subscription home through Season 5.

A pre-World War I British period drama, Downton Abbey is one of the most widely watched and critically acclaimed television dramas in the world. The international series has won multiple Golden Globe, Primetime Emmy and Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Prime members have instant access to stream Downton Abbey on Fire TV, Kindle Fire, Kindle Fire HD, iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, Roku, Xbox, PlayStation 3, Wii and Wii U, among other connected TVs and devices—all at no additional cost to their membership.

New CBS Drama 'Extant,' Starring Academy Award Winner Halle Berry, To Premiere Exclusively on Amazon Prime Instant Video in the UK

Amazon and CBS Studios today announced that the highly-anticipated sci-fi thriller Extant, starring Academy Award winner Halle Berry and produced by Steven Spielberg's Amblin Television, will premiere exclusively on Amazon Prime Instant Video in the UK.

The first episode of Extant premieres on Prime Instant Video, the UK's largest movie and TV streaming service, on Thursday, July 10, the day after the U.S. premiere on CBS on Wednesday, July 9. New episodes will be available to stream exclusively from Amazon Prime Instant Video each week, one day after their U.S. broadcast, in high definition and on more than 400 devices.

HBO Programming Now Available on Prime Instant Video

Amazon.com, Inc. today announced the highly-anticipated arrival of the first wave of HBO programming on Prime Instant Video. Prime members in the US now have access to a collection of popular HBO shows, including critically-acclaimed classics and recent hits, original films, comedy specials and miniseries. The following titles are now available to Prime members for unlimited streaming, making Prime Instant Video the exclusive online-only subscription streaming service to offer these shows:

Amazon Studios New Original Comedy, Drama and Kids Pilots Debut with Rave Reviews from Customers and Critics

“Smart and Compelling”
“WOW! This is such a great pilot!”
“Adorable and Smart”
“Amazing, I must watch more”
“Can’t wait for more!”
“I want to see another episode ASAP”
“Well done! We need more programming like this”

…and the customer reviews are still rolling in. In just one week since their debut, Amazon Studios’ new original pilots have quickly become fan favorites garnering rave reviews from thousands of customers. More than 85% of ratings are 4 or 5 stars, and critics are calling the pilots “fresh” and “the best pilot in years.” In addition, Amazon Instant Video saw more than a 100% increase in the average number of streams per show for prime time pilots and a 200% increase for kid’s pilots per show versus last year’s pilot season.

All 10 pilots are currently available for any customer to view, rate and provide feedback on, ultimately helping determine which shows will become full series. The pilots are available to watch exclusively at www.amazonoriginals.com and on the Amazon Instant Video app for Kindle Fire HD, Kindle Fire, iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, Roku, Xbox, PlayStation, Wii, as well as hundreds of other connected devices.

VERONICA MARS To Stream On Amazon Prime

Amazon.com, Inc. today announced that Prime Instant Video will be the exclusive online-only subscription home for streaming the TV series VERONICA MARS in a deal with Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution. Beginning today, Prime customers can enjoy all three seasons of the popular Warner Bros. Television series starring Kristen Bell, and get caught up just in time for the March 14 debut of the Veronica Mars movie.

“The VERONICA MARS series has been popular on DVD and Amazon Instant Video for years, so we know how much Amazon customers love this iconic television show,” said Brad Beale, Director of Digital Video Content Acquisition. “We are excited to become the exclusive subscription streaming home for VERONICA MARS and to be able to offer the entire TV series to Prime members to enjoy at no additional charge. With the movie coming on March 14, both die-hard fans and new viewers can easily catch-up on this great show.”

Amazon and CBS Corporation Announce Exclusive Content Agreemtn For New CBS Series EXTANT

CBS Corporation (NYSE: CBS.A and CBS) and Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) announced today a content licensing agreement for the new CBS Television series EXTANT.

The serialized drama, starring Halle Berry and produced by Steven Spielberg's Amblin Television, will premiere on the CBS Television Network in June. Amazon Prime Instant Video will be the exclusive premium subscription home for EXTANT with unlimited streaming of all the series' episodes available to their members four days after their initial broadcast on CBS.