— News came late Thursday that “Saving Grace” will be ending its run on TNT next year.
Originally slated to resume its third season in the winter with six additional episodes, the show will instead return for its final bow next summer–with nine episodes hitting the air. TNT upped the order by three in order to allow “Grace” writers to tie up the loose ends.
According to THR, TNT had offered a full fourth season order to “Saving Grace,” but FOX TV Studios declined due to cost issues. With A-list talent Holly Hunter as the topline and other recognizable actors in the cast, the show is an expensive cable drama.
“It’s been a fantastic beacon for the network, which has both challenged and entertained viewers in ways few other shows on television ever dare,” said Michael Wright, head of TNT programming.
— EW.com reports a casting spoiler for “Gossip Girl.” The CW drama is seeking an actress to play the mother to Vanessa (Jessica Szohr); the announcement reads, “Gabriela Abrams: An African-American female in her early 40s. She’s Vanessa’s attractive, warm, outgoing mother. Recurring potential.”
— Former “Lost” star Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, who played the presumably dead character Mr. Eko, is campaigning for a return in the show’s sixth and final season. He tells Entertainment Weekly, “Adewale is open for business. We have had talks about some things they might do for the final season and there are other dead folks coming back allegedly but at the moment it is still a maybe. A strong maybe but I have not shot anything yet or signed any contracts. But I’m hoping.”
The Mr. Eko character, who was a standout during his time on the show’s second season and the early part of the third season (a bright spot during a period in which critics felt the show bottomed out creatively), was written out when the actor reportedly requested off the show.