Exclusive interview with Josh Schwartz (Chuck creator) about Season 3 of Chuck below - Ausiello.
Q: NBC said the show's budget will remain unchanged from last season. I'm hearing different. What's the deal?
A: Schwartz: I can tell you that [Warner Bros.] asked us to make budget cuts to meet a decrease in the NBC license fee. That's how it was presented to me. That's as far as I know. My job is to then be able to produce the show at the number the studio is able to deficit it for.
Q: How will the cuts affect what we see?
A: Schwartz: Hopefully, you won't be able to tell. I don't think the look of the show is going to change. We might have certain episodes where Chuck's mission is such that we don't get the opportunity to go to the Buy More [as much]. We love our cast and, obviously, we want to use them as much as possible in as many episodes as possible.
Q: I heard Julia Ling [Anna] might not return. True?
A: Schwartz: No. We have plans for Anna to return.
Q: Has she been taken off contract?
A: Schwartz: We actually haven't finalized all of our actor deals yet. It's all being sorted out. But, like I said, we're going to do whatever we can to try to keep the ensemble together.
Q: Will the show's central trio be in every episodes?
A: Schwartz: Yes. Chuck, Sarah, and Casey are in all episodes.
Q: Will Sarah be working at a Subway next season?
A: Schwartz: [Laughs] You know, I don't know the full details of the Subway integration yet. I know it will be significant. Chuck is a show that happens to be well positioned for effortless product integration, especially because Chuck works at an electronics shop in a strip mall. If Sarah or someone worked at a Subway it would hopefully be no more intrusive or unrealistic than Liz Lemon working at NBC.
Q: Are you concerned at all about the show being off the air for 10 months?
A: Schwartz: It was really a tough choice that the network faced: Put us on Friday or [hold us until] midseason. I really believe Chuck is the little show that could. Our fans are clearly passionate, clearly loyal, and hopefully all we'll do is get them more and more [excited] for our return. And we'll come up with fun ways of stoking the fans throughout the fall. We also have something very, very fun planned for Comic-Con this year.
Q: How about a season 3 spoiler in honor of the show's renewal?
A: Schwartz: The biggest thing, obviously, will be dealing with the ramifications of how we ended the season. What does it mean for Chuck [and] how will it manifest itself? And I think for anyone who is concerned that he's no longer going to be the Everyman, or an accidental hero, fear not.
Q:Will Chuck and Sarah start the season off as a full-fledged couple?
A: Schwartz: I don't want to give anything away, but obviously, Chuck having the Intersect in his head will severely complicate their ability to be a couple.
Here is a small snippet out of the latest edition of TV Guide:
"The wait for new episodes of the NBC action-comedy will be worth it, promises cocreator Josh Schwartz. "Everything this year will be bigger -bigger explosions, bigger laughs, bigger twists and lots of guest stars." They include...
To read the rest of this spoiler, visit our Spoiler Section!
We start shooting Chuck on Friday and so far the first five scripts are great. I think each one is better than our best episode last year. We've had a nice break to recharge and regroup, and it's going to be a really fun season.
Gossip Girl starts up in a month.
These two shows play to different audiences, although I wouldn't mind some more dudes checking out Gossip Girl, and some older ladies hanging with Chuck.
Best solution: Get a dual DVR. And watch 'em both within the three-hour window allotted by Nielsen to count for ratings!"
—Josh Schwartz on Chuck and GG both airing 8PM on Mondays.
Chuck premieres for the first time ever in the UK tonight,
7 April 2008 at 10 PM on Virgin1.
Hope all the British fans enjoy Season 1 Episode 1: "The Pilot". ;)
NBC announced earlier that "Chuck" will stay at it's 8 PM timeslot this fall with "Heroes" just before as the show's lead-in. Here's what NBC's Ben Silverman said about the show:
On Pairing Chuck with Heroes: "We analyzed our ratings and a ton of young people were watching Chuck, and young people are watching Heroes, too, so we like that flow...The show [Chuck] will come back as strong as ever. We’re treating all our fall premieres for these returning shows as if it’s the first time people have ever seen them."
Source: Kristin at E!
Awesome news for UK fans of Chuck. Chuck starts airing on Virgin1 at 10 PM on Monday, 7 April 2008. Be sure to check it out and spread the word!
Off-script, it's possible there is no cast on TV more freewheeling and funny than the Chuck kids. I caught up with Zach Levi, Josh Gomez and Ryan McPartlin last night to find out their TV-crossover dreams and to learn who's romancing whom in the cast, so check out the video above for all the Paley Festival goodness!
View the video Here!
Last night The Paley Center presented the creative team and cast of NBC’s CHUCK as part of their Paley Fest 2008. Kath and I were front and center for the action and it was one hell of a panel. Yesterday was the first day back for the Chuck writing team so they didn’t have a ton of information to spill for the fans but really who cares because it’s all about watching these guys in action (both on the show and in person).
The WGA Strike imposed hiatus has left these kids nutty! Zac Levi (Chuck) and Josh Gomez (Morgan) are seriously in the biggest bromance this side of Make Me a Supermodel’s Ronnie and Prison Ben. They’re frik-n-frak and I’m happy they’ve found each other. God bless the women that dare come between these two. It could get ugly.
Production must be a bear to keep on schedule because its non-stop one-upping between not only Zac and Josh but the majority of the cast. They seem to have created an incredible family and it was fun getting to watch their reunion of sorts.
Production on Chuck Season 2 will begin toward the end of May and they are confirmed for Comic-Con this July where they hope to show a bunch of new clips instead of an entire episode.
Read more at Ducky Does TV. Labels: Adam Baldwin, Chuck, Chuck Actors, Chuck Cast, Josch Schwartz, NBC, Ryan McPartlin, Sarah Lancaster, Yvonne Strahovski, Zachary Levi
The entire Chuck cast and it's producers were at the 25th William S. Paley festival 2008 last night, 18 March 2008.
