MacGyver Reboot Update #200

While the news flow has been slower than ever (at least that’s what it feels like), we did get some exciting news regarding the main MacGyver cast.

Welcome to Levy (via Levy Tran)

(For more material and to discuss your favourite topics, you can find me on Twitter and on the MacGyverOnline Forums.)

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The Abandons with Lucas Till
Lucas has boarded Netflix’ western series The Abandon. Season 1 has ten episodes and is filmed in Calgary and Oregon. According to Deadline, Lucas’ character name is Garret Van Ness. Main star Gillian Anderson plays Constance Van Ness, the matriarch of the wealthy Van Ness family. Aisling Franciosi will play Trisha Van Ness; so possibly the sister or wife of Lucas’ character.

Filming was delayed for almost a year due to the SAG-Aftra strike. The filming dates for Calgary listed on the official IATSE Local 212 website says May 14 to October 15. In recent weeks, several of Lucas’ future cast mates uploaded Insta stories of “Cowboy Camp”; training for horse riding and bull catching. We don’t know if Lucas did a refresher course too (as he has done horse riding training for the role in Hannah Montana many years ago and did horse scenes for Season 2 of MacGyver).

BtS photo of Justin Hires in Half Baked: Totally High (via Michael Tiddes)

Half Baked: Totally High with Justin Hires
Several years ago, Justin Hires wrote the first draft of a script for a sequel to stoner-movie Half Baked. They announced a straight-to-video-release for April 16, so there wasn’t any promo. You can also stream it on Tubi in the US. Justin has a cameo as a character named Curtis.

It’s not clear how much of his original script was changed in the rewrites. In a podcast episode last year, Justin hinted at wanting a producer credit the next time he sells a script because it would give him more creative control.

What are Cast and Crew up to?
Due to the SAG strike last year, the season orders for TV shows were much shorter this time. “Fall Season” (pushed to midseason) is almost over; and the studios have started ordering pilots for the next season. As far as I know, there haven’t been any official TV show casting news for the rest of the regular main cast.

Levy Tran taping an episode for the Reel Rolling Podcast (via Levy Tran)

On March 3, Levy Tran posted an Instagram Story about her reading a book. It looked like she was inside a trailer. She has been tagged twice in Instagram posts regarding action comedy Trouble Man, which was filmed in Atlanta last November. She’s not listed yet on IMDb, though.

A few months ago, I noticed that Levy had started following several AA accounts on Instagram. On April 3, she talked about her struggles with alcohol on the Reel Rolling Podcast.

She revealed that her audition scene for MacGyver was of Desi eating potato chips and that she was so nervous that the chips stuck in her dry mouth in a way that she couldn’t deliver the lines properly. The character was initially to be a guest-star role and she got offered a series regular role a few episodes in.

Levy stated that she has been auditioning a lot lately, but that it’s hard to book a job. Nevertheless, she seems happy; recently posting several photos with family, Carlos and boyfriend Mark celebrating her birthday.

George Eads and ex-wife Monika Casey enjoying a night out (via Fortune Feimster)

We got a rare sighting of George Eads who visited a comedy show of Fortune Feimster (FUBAR).

Henry Ian Cusick has been working on several things. Episode 2×01 of The Wingfeather Saga was released on April 5. According to TV Insider, he will be in the Season 3 Finale turned Series Finale of NCIS: Hawaii (the first episode of the two-parter airing tomorrow). The show got cancelled this week, but maybe his character might pop up in one of the other NCIS shows still on air.

Tristin Mays continued streaming on Twitch every now and then; with the breaks in between getting longer. In one of her streams, Tristin revealed that she’s writing a TV series and working on projects she can’t talk about yet. She also started playing the guitar again.

Video screenshot of Tristin Mays streaming on Twitch (March 13, 2024)

ICYMI: Tristin has moved back to LA a few months ago. Her Atlanta residence had been listed as available to rent since February 15; with the price being reduced before the listing was removed on April 17. Justin Hires just sold his house in Atlanta.

Wedding and Baby News for Lucas Till?
Last June, Lucas Till‘s then-girlfriend Skyler Samuels flashed an engagement ring while doing promo for her new movie of the Aurora Teagarden Series. Due to the SAG strike, Skyler got out of having to do the promo circuit for “The Meg 2” and pretty much disappeared off social media. In a photo posted by her brother back in August, I had a hunch she might be pregnant (as her face looked a bit fuller than usually).

In Episode 43 for the Wizards of Waverly Place Podcast (uploaded on March 4), Skyler referred to Lucas as her “now-husband”. One of the podcast hosts stated she was “glowing”. Skyler recently filmed the next two installments of Aurora Teagarden on Vancouver Island. When director Jessica Harmon posted an Instagram Story of Skyler and a co-star on set with the caption “Two new moms trying to make it to lunch”, that already raised eyebrows.

Proud Mama Skyler and baby (via Skyler Samuels)

Skyler was recently announced as the new brand ambassador for Charles & Colvard; a jewelry company that specializes in lab-grown diamonds. The first campaign video released for Mother’s Day promo has her interact with a baby; and the fact that the campaign was most likely filmed in their own farmhouse sent the fandom in a hubbubb of speculations, questions and excitement.

On April 21, Skyler posted photos of her with the baby; taken for the official photoshoot. Dedicating the post to “all my fellow mamas out there” was as good as confirmation that this wasn’t just the usual “stunt baby”. This week, People Magazine posted an online article about it. Charles & Colvard linked to this post on an Insta story, which was reposted by both Skyler and Skyler’s mom. Interestingly, Skyler chose a cover for “Isn’t She Lovely” as the underlying music. So maybe a baby girl?

Mama Skyler and baby (via Skyler Samuels)

Upcoming Projects for the main MacGyver Cast
Several main cast members of the MacGyver Reboot have movies in post-production or projects listed as completed:

• 1 Million Followers with Henry Ian Cusick: Has one distributor listed, but still no release date.
• Bang with Tristin Mays
• Fluxx with Henry Ian Cusick: The film was screened at the Mammoth Film Festival last month.
• For Cory with Levy Tran
• Short Film Hopeless Romantic with Tristin Mays
• Jamojaya with Henry Ian Cusick: Has been screened at several festivals, but never got an US release date.
• The Comic Shop with Tristin Mays

Other MacGyver-related News
Ende of March, Original MacGyver Richard Dean Anderson was at Paris Comic Con. You can find photos of his panel and photo sessions here. The weekend of April 20 and 21, he was at Comic Con Holland. You can find the panel video and photos of the photo and autograph sessions here.

Richard Dean Anderson at Paris Comic Con (via Roster Con)

David Dastmalchian has been busy. Recently been cast in Apple TV series Murderbot, he filmed a two-parter of ABC series The Rookie and a new commercial for Titan Casket. This week, he started the podcast Grave Conversations where he talks to his guests while both are in a coffin.

The release date for the exclusive BluRay box set of the Original MacGyver series in Germany was pushed back from March 28 to May 16. You can find all information here.

Other MacGyver-related news you might have missed:

• Richard Dean Anderson is scheduled to appear at some more conventions this year. The next ones are German Film and Comic Con (Dortmund, May 4 and May 5) and Basingstoke Comic Con (London, May 10 to 12). You can find his full schedule here.
• Henry Ian Cusick attended the 20th anniversary concert for LOST yesterday.
• The Collective with Lucas Till is available on several streaming services (e.g. Hulu and Paramount+ in the US); and the first official trailer by US distributor Quiver Distribution still gains views. It has almost 650’000 hits by now.

MacGyver Reboot Update #199

After waiting for months, we finally have some exciting news regarding the main MacGyver cast.

Official Still of Henry Ian Cusick in NCIS: Hawaii (via TV Insider)

(For more material and to discuss your favourite topics, you can find me on Twitter and on the MacGyverOnline Forums.)

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The Abandons with Lucas Till
The Lucas Till and MacGyver fandoms have been in an excited frenzy since Netflix tweeted about Lucas boarding The Abandons alongside five more cast members. The western series has a 10 episodes order for Season 1 and is filmed in Calgary and Oregon. According to Deadline, Lucas’ character name is Garret Van Ness. Check out the premise in the press release:

The Abandons follows a group of diverse, outlier families pursuing their Manifest Destiny in 1850s Oregon, as a corrupt force of wealth and power, coveting their land, tries to force them out. These abandoned souls, the kind of lost souls living on the fringe of society, unite their tribes to form a family and fight back. In this bloody process, “justice” is stretched beyond the boundaries of the law. The Abandons will explore that fine line between survival and law, the consequences of violence, and the corrosive power of secrets, as this family fights to keep their land.

Deadline, March 1, 2024

The main stars (announced almost a year ago) are Gillian Anderson and Lena Headey. Gillian Anderson will play Constance Van Ness, the matriarch of the wealthy Van Ness family. If the name of the latter actress sounds familiar: Many years ago, Lena Headey was in Original MacGyver Movie Trail to Doomsday.

According to IMDb, filming has already started (presumably in Oregon). Filming was delayed due to the SAG-Aftra strike, and I’ve seen different filming dates (March and June, May to August, May to October).

BtS Video Screenshot of Lucas Till and Don Johnson in The Collective (via Mike Braga)

The Collective with Lucas Till
The Collective continues to make the rounds on streaming services; and the first official trailer by US distributor Quiver Distribution still gains views. It hit half a million views on January 1st and has more than 601’000 hits by now. Interestingly, the comments have been deactivated a few months ago. According to Flixpatrol, the movie still shows up in the Top Ten of Amazon Prime every now and then; especially in African countries.

What are Cast and Crew up to?
Although the SAG strike ended last year, the studios have been rather slow in resuming production and the season orders are much shorter this year. There hasn’t been as much news regarding the MacGyver cast and crew as I had expected.

After more than 6 months, Levy Tran posted on Instagram again; telling us about her first Jiu Jitsu competition.

Levy Tran presenting her bronze medal (via Instagram)

ICYMI: Tristin Mays set up a Twitch account; streaming her first live-stream on January 1st. In one of her streams, Tristin revealed that she’s writing a TV series and working on projects she can’t talk about yet. She directed and filmed a short mental health video for Instagram; starring boyfriend Marlon.

While her first Twitch streams were done in her Atlanta residence, she moved the equipment to The Enchanted Manor in LA last month. Her Atlanta residence has been listed as available to rent since February 15. We don’t know yet if she’s moved back to LA permanently or if she has planned to staying longer there for a specific reason. Interestingly, her production company Black Sheep Productions has been registered and trademarked in the UK last November. She also set up a website for the company.

BtS photo while filming Rain Man (via Tristin Mays)

Upcoming Projects for the main MacGyver Cast
A few weeks ago, Henry Ian Cusick‘s character made another appearance on Episode 3×02 of NCIS: Hawaii. It’s possible that he will have another guest spot this season.

Several main cast members of the MacGyver Reboot have movies in post-production or projects listed as completed:

• 1 Million Followers with Henry Ian Cusick: Has one distributor listed, but no release date.
• Bang with Tristin Mays
• Fluxx with Henry Ian Cusick: The film was screened yesterday at the Mammoth Film Festival. We know two of the co-stars: Tyrese Gibson (The Collective) and Lucas Till’s friend and ex-roommate Mike Milligan.
• Half Baked: Totally High with Justin Hires: His character is named Curtis.
• Short Film Hopeless Romantic with Tristin Mays
• Jamojaya with Henry Ian Cusick: Has been screened at several festivals, but never got an US reelase date.
• The Comic Shop with Tristin Mays
• For Cory with Levy Tran

Other MacGyver-related News
ICYMI: Last year, Plaion Pictures revealed a mock-up box and a release date for the exclusive BluRay box set of the Original MacGyver series. The limited edition box will be released on March 28. You can find all information here.

Cover Preview for the German MacGyver BluRay Box (via Plaion)

Other MacGyver-related news you might have missed:

• David Dastmalchian has been cast in Apple TV series Murderbot (filming will start this month in Toronto). He will also show up in a two-parter of ABC series The Rookie.
• Ben Wang (guest star in MacGyver Reboot Episode 5×04) has been cast as the lead in the new Karate Kid movie. Filming will start next month in Montreal.
• Richard Dean Anderson is scheduled to appear at several conventions this year. The next ones are GalaxyCon Richmond (March 15 to March 17), German Film and Comic Con (Dortmund, May 4 and May 5) and Basingstoke Comic Con (London, May 10 to 12). He will also visit Washington State Summer Con (Puyallup, June 21 to 23).

MacGyver Reboot Update #198

The SAG strike ended two months ago, but fans are still waiting for casting and project news.

Lucas Till and Y’lan Noel in The Spook Who Sat By The Door (via Scott P Murphy)

(For more material and to discuss your favourite topics, you can find me on Twitter and on the MacGyverOnline Forums.)

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The Collective with Lucas Till
The Collective was released digitally and on DVD in German-speaking regions on December 14. If you want to treat yourself with an After-Christmas gift, you can order it here. Sadly, the only bonus material is the trailer; and there’s no subtitles available.

If you prefer streaming, it’s available on AppleTV, Amazon Prime, GooglePlay, Maxdome and Sky in Germany. If you’re in Switzerland, you can buy it via BlueTV, AppleTV or GooglePlay.

BluRay Cover for The Collective (via Amazon Germany)

The trailer with the most views on YouTube is still the first official trailer by US distributor Quiver Distribution. It hit half a million views on January 1st and has almost 530’000 hits by now.

According to Flixpatrol, it was on Rank 68 for Amazon Prime in 2023; being in the Top 10 for more than 128 days. The Collective is currently on Rank 93 for Amazon Prime in 2024.

What are Cast and Crew up to?
There hasn’t been much news regarding the MacGyver cast and crew. Although the SAG strike ended last year, neither Levy Tran nor Lucas Till went back online to promote their latest movies. Generally, most of them have been taking breaks on social media; some of them deactivate accounts temporarily or for good.

Lucas Till in The Collective (via Bryan Marchulaitis)

Tristin Mays did an interview for Ned’s Declassified Podcast Survival Guide. It was uploaded on December 20. She revealed that she only had to audition once for MacGyver to book the role, which is rather unusual for a series regular role.

Tristin finally released her Les Miserables Pirates Musical Short on December 24. You can catch a glimpse of Bianca Malinowski (who played rebooted Penny Parker in two episodes MacGyver). Tristin also set up a Twitch account; streaming her first live-stream on January 1st.

BtS photo preparing the costumes for the Pirates Musical Short (via Tristin Mays)

She recorded her second live-stream on January 5; playing some more Tomb Raider and chatting in between. Tristin revealed that she’s writing a TV series and that she has been sick just after catching Covid again. She also mentioned that while she’s in and out of LA, she still lives in Georgia.

According to a tweet by cast member Jason Antoon, Henry Ian Cusick‘s character will make another appearance on NCIS: Hawaii.

ICYMI: Production Designer Scott P Murphy uploaded several stills of Lucas Till in the unaired pilot for The Spook Who Sat By The Door to his website.

Levy Tran and Mark (via Levy Tran)

Upcoming Projects for the MacGyver Cast
Several main cast members of the MacGyver Reboot have movies in post-production or projects listed as completed. Sadly, none of them have release dates or distributors yet:

• 1 Million Followers with Henry Ian Cusick
• Bang with Tristin Mays
• Fluxx with Henry Ian Cusick: Filming wrapped wrapped last month. We know some of his co-stars: Tyrese Gibson (The Collective) and Lucas Till’s friend and ex-roommate Mike Milligan.
• Half Baked: Totally High with Justin Hires: News outlets reported a non-theatrical release and an R-rating.
• Short Film Hopeless Romantic with Tristin Mays
• Jamojaya with Henry Ian Cusick: Has been screened at several festivals.
• The Comic Shop with Tristin Mays
• For Cory with Levy Tran

Other MacGyver-related News
Rebooted Murdoc David Dastmalchian is the 8th most watched actor of 2023 on Letterboxd.

Mock-Up for the German MacGyver BluRay Box (via Plaion)

Back in December 2019, Koch Films teased OG MacGyver fans about the German release of an exclusive BluRay box set. CBS and the pandemic halted the production several times. In the meantime, Koch Films has been rebranded as Plaion Pictures. On December 12, Plaion revealed a mock-up box alongside its content and a release date: March 28 next year. Sadly, the box is rather pricy and the two TV movies are still missing as they weren’t able to get the rights from CBS. You can find all information here.

Other MacGyver-related news you might have missed:

• ICYMI: Justin Hires took part of a talks how episode of Gimme Five; available on Tubi now (although IMDb lists a release date of August 12, 2022).
• David Dastmalchian has been cast in feature film Dust Bunny; acting alongside Mads Mikkelsen and Sigourney Weaver.
• Richard Dean Anderson is scheduled to appear at German Film and Comic Con (Dortmund, May 4 and May 5) and at Basingstoke Comic Con (London, May 10 to 12).

MacGyver Reboot Update #197

The SAG strike has been over for a while now, but casting and project news are still slow.

Lucas Till and Y’lan Noel in The Spook Who Sat By The Door (via Scott P Murphy)

(For more material and to discuss your favourite topics, you can find me on Twitter and on the MacGyverOnline Forums.)

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The Collective with Lucas Till
The Collective was released digitally and on DVD in Australia and New Zealand on November 8. The DVD and BluRay-Release for the German version is set for December 14. If you want to treat yourself with a little Christmas gift, you can pre-order it here. The only bonus material listed is the trailer; and it looks like there won’t be any subtitles available.

The German voice of Lucas was dubbed by Ozan Ünal, who also dubbed him in MacGyver. There’s a preview clip on YouTube and GooglePlay, and it should be available on iTunes and Sky in Germany. If you’re in Switzerland, you can buy it via BlueTV.

DVD Cover Preview for The Collective (via Amazon Germany)

The trailer used for the German streaming services is the international version that was released as the second trailer. The one with the most views on YouTube is still the first official trailer by US distributor Quiver Distribution. It has almost 460’000 hits by now.

With a limited release, it’s difficult to get numbers on how well it has been doing. Also, my usual source (Flixpatrol) is now restricting their information; providing certain data for Premium Users only. Before the restrictions, it has been listed in the Amazon Prime Top 10 in several categories (e.g. Rank 1 for more than 40 days in total, Rank 4 in calendar week 36, Rank 8 in September).

Lucas Till in The Collective (via Bryan Marchulaitis)

It’s currently on Rank 67 for Amazon Prime in 2023; being in the Top 10 for more than 108 days. The Collective also reached the Top Ten for iTunes in Argentina and Salvador and for GooglePlay in Paraguay.

Expend4bles with Levy Tran
Since the release of Expend4bles, Levy Tran gained several thousand new followers on Instagram, even though she didn’t post much. On November 13, she posted an Instagram story about attending several weddings with her (presumed) boyfriend Mark – only to deactivate the account on the next day. It has been back up since December 4, but she cleaned up her archive and unfollowed many accounts.

Levy Tran as Lash in an Expend4bles photo shoot (Japan Promo)

It’s unclear if she got harrassed online or if she had simply deactivated to focus on her martial arts training. According to Team Traven, she recently achieved the blue belt in Jiu Jitsu.

What are Cast and Crew up to?
Production Designer Scott P Murphy uploaded several stills of the unaired pilot for The Spook Who Sat By The Door on his website. Thankfully, three of them show Lucas Till. Although the project has been said to be in re-development, I haven’t heard any news about it. The status on the IMDb entry has been changed to “completed” on October 14.

Marlon Webb and Tristin Mays at the DREAM SCENARIO After Party in Los Angeles (Photo by Stewart Cook/Getty Images)

According to Tristin Mays, her Les Miserables Pirates Musical Short with Marlon Webb will be released on December 24. She also set up a Twitch account; teasing that her first stream will drop next week. On November 6, Tristin and Marlon attended a Special Screening of A24s Dream Scenario; a movie with Nicolas Cage.

Justin Hires mostly used his social media accounts to promote the Stand-Up Comedy Special he had uploaded on YouTube on October 31st. There’s still no news regarding the release of Half Baked 2: Totally High (that he wrote the script for).

German DVD Back Cover Preview for The Collective (via Videobuster)

ICYMI: Rebooted Murdoc David Dastmalchian is the new brand ambassador for Titan Casket, a company that sells caskets online and helps with end-of-life planning. David has also been cast in feature film Dust Bunny; acting alongside Mads Mikkelsen and Sigourney Weaver. According to Collider, the story is about an eight-year-old girl who enlists the help of her intriguing neighbor to kill the monster under her bed that she believes ate her family.

NCIS: Hawaii started filming last week. We don’t have confirmation yet if Henry Ian Cusick will be back as character John Swift, but he’s currently sporting the right look for it. There haven’t been many news regarding the MacGyver crew, either. While some of the writers are back at work, others just lost their job as several shows got cancelled in the aftermath of the SAG strike (e.g. The Rookie: Feds).

Levy Tran presenting her blue belt (via Team Traven)

Other MacGyver-related News
Back in 2019, Koch Films teased OG MacGyver fans about the German release of an exclusive BluRay box set. CBS and the pandemic halted the production several times. In the meantime, Koch Films has been rebranded as Plaion Pictures. This week, Plaion has been teasing the reveal of their next exclusive item in a live stream on December 12; providing several hints towards MacGyver.

Other MacGyver-related news you might have missed:

• Richard Dean Anderson attended Comic Con Brussels (November 4 and 5) and Hero Festival in Marseille (November 11 and 12). He is scheduled to appear at Basingstoke Comic Con (London, May 10 to 12, 2024).
• Kate Bond (who played Jill on the MacGyver Reboot) was a guest star in the latest episode of Magnum PI. Episode 5×17: Consciousness of Guilt was co-written by her husband David Slack.

MacGyver Reboot Update #196

The writers are back at work. Meanwhile, fans are waiting for the SAG strike to be over, too.

Levy Tran in Expend4bles (via CSFD)

(For more material and to discuss your favourite topics, you can find me on Twitter and on the MacGyverOnline Forums.)

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The Collective with Lucas Till
The Collective was released digitally in the Netherlands and Belgium on September 21. The release date for Australia and New Zealand has been set for November 8. I haven’t found any information regarding release dates for Italy, France or Spain.

The US-Version of the DVD was released on September 19. For the Netherlands and Belgium, there’s a DVD- and BluRay version with a different cover (released on October 11). The DVD and BluRay-Release for the German version has been set for December 14. The only extra listed so far is the trailer.

Official Still of Lucas Till in The Collective (via Pathé Thuis)

The trailer with the most views on YouTube is the official trailer by US distributor Quiver Distribution; reaching 300’000 hits on August 30. It has almost 387’000 hits by now.

With a limited release, it’s difficult to get numbers on how well it has been doing. Also, my usual source (Flixpatrol) started restricting their information last month; only providing certain data for Premium Users now. Before the restrictions, it has been listed in the Amazon Prime Top 10 in several categories (e.g. Rank 1 for more than 40 days in total, Rank 4 in calendar week 36, Rank 8 in September).

It’s currently on Rank 32 for October and on Rank 66 for 2023; being in the Top 10 for more than 60 days.

Levy Tran as Lash in an Expend4bles photo shoot (via Line Today)

Expend4bles with Levy Tran
Action movie Expend4bles with Levy Tran has been released internationally last month. Sadly, Levy couldn’t promote it due to the SAG strike. That’s why there were only a handful of video interviews (pre-recorded on set last year). She attended a screening with some of her Ju Jitsu friends in Atlanta.

Since the release, she has gained several thousand new followers on Instagram, even though she doesn’t post much. Otherwise, she’s been back in martial arts training.

What are Cast and Crew up to?
Justin Hires posted a teaser trailer for his Stand-Up Comedy Special that will hit YouTube on October 31st. You can subscribe to his email-list to watch it early.

Screenshot of Justin Hires and Henry Ian Cusick for the Urban Legendz Podcast (via YouTube)

Justin also did a new episode for his Urban Legendz Podcast; this time with Henry Ian Cusick. They talked about MacGyver and the cancellation, about Ian leaving social media and what they’ve been up to lately. When Ian asked for any news regarding Lucas Till, Justin said he would tell him in private afterwards, but that he is doing very well.

MacGyver was the most fun I’ve ever had on a show.

Henry Ian Cusick; Urban Legendz Podcast, September 24, 2023

Rebooted Murdoc David Dastmalchian is the new brand ambassador for Titan Casket, a company that sells caskets online and also helps with end-of-life planning. David will appear in marketing materials and be the face of the company.

In recent weeks, David attended several conventions and carpet events; promoting his upcoming Count Crowley comic (to be released on November 8). On November 12, he will take part in the T21 Walk by the Down Syndrome Association Los Angeles.

David Dastmalchian attends Knott’s Scary Farm 50th Anniversary (Photo by Jerod Harris/Getty Images)

Otherwise, there haven’t been many sightings of the MacGyver cast and crew:

• David Dastmalchian and Tate Donovan volunteered at the local food bank in LA a few weeks ago.
• Meredith Eaton added another puppy to her household.
• Tristin Mays helped her mother with some painting events for Halloween.

After the writers strike was over, some of the MacGyver writers joined the SAG picketing sites in LA; e.g. Teresa Huang. As she posted on Instagram, she was back at work by October 10. She continues holding free crash courses for Assistant Writers.

Levy Tran in Expend4bles (via Aktualne)

Other MacGyver-related News
Dick Butkus passed away this month. The NFL star played character Earl Dent in several episodes of Original MacGyver.

Other MacGyver-related news you might have missed:

• Richard Dean Anderson is scheduled to appear at Comic Con Brussels (Belgium, November 4 and 5), at Hero Festival (Marseille, November 11 and 12) and at Basingstoke Comic Con (London, May 10 to 12, 2024).
• Kate Bond (who played Jill on the MacGyver Reboot) is listed as a guest star for an upcoming episode of Magnum PI. Episode 5×17: Consciousness of Guilt was co-written by her husband David Slack.
• Executive Producer Henry Winkler will start his book tour on October 31 in New York. Several event stops have already been sold out.
• Ex-Showrunner Peter Lenkov is attached to write the script for Demolition Man 2.

MacGyver Reboot Update #195

The Collective will be released in the Netherlands and Belgium next week. Meanwhile, fans are waiting for their favorite actors to pop up on social media soon.

Official Still of Lucas Till in The Collective (via Pathé Thuis)

(For more material and to discuss your favourite topics, you can find me on Twitter and on the MacGyverOnline Forums.)

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The Collective with Lucas Till
Since August 4, The Collective has been released in several countries. Turkey had an official premiere event for the cinematic release; with goodies (e.g. tote bags) for the attending guests. The movie aired on 89 screens on opening weekend and made about 6’800 USD in box office.

The trailer with the most views on YouTube is the official trailer by US distributor Quiver Distribution; reaching 300’000 hits on August 30. It has almost 345’000 hits at the moment.

BtS photo of Mercedes Varnado and Lucas Till in The Collective (via Frankie Tarr)

With a limited release, it’s difficult to get numbers on how well it has been doing. It has been listed in the Amazon Prime Top 10, though:

• Rank 1 in several African countries; e.g. South Africa (29 days in total, six consecutive days on Rank 1), Zimbabwe or Kenya (each 25 days in total).
• Rank 4 in calendar week 36
• Rank 9 in calendar week 37
• currently Rank 5 in September

How to watch The Collective with Lucas Till?
US distributor Quiver Distribution lists several streaming services on their website: AppleTV, Amazon, Vudu-Fandango, Microsoft, Google Play, Comcast, Spectrum, Cox, DirecTV, Dish and Verizon. Other sites also list Hoopla and YouTube.

Blu Ray Cover Preview for The Collective in the Netherlands (via Bol)

There aren’t release dates for all the countries with distributors yet, but it will premiere digitally on September 21 in the Netherlands and Belgium. I haven’t found any information regarding release dates for Germany, Italy or Spain. France doesn’t seem to have a distributor listed yet.

The US-Version of the DVD will be released on September 19. Checking the backcover preview, it doesn’t look like there’s any bonus material included. For the Netherlands and Belgium, there’s also a Blu Ray version with a different cover preview (to be released in November). There’s no information about any bonus material as there’s no back cover preview yet.

Levy Tran in Expend4bles (via Ropa Carlo)

The Promo that was (Encore)
We got many interviews with director Tom DeNucci for smaller outlets. Sadly, we didn’t get any promo by the cast due to the SAG-AFTRA strike rules.

On August 8, Tom DeNucci did a podcast episode about the movie, but he didn’t reveal much more than he already had in the interviews. Nevertheless, the episode is his second most-watched of all the podcast episodes (about 61) so far. He also mentioned in his latest podcast episode that he would love to do a sequel.

DeNucci made an appearance at the Brimfield Comic Con (September 5 to 10). He hasn’t posted any new material lately.

David Dastmalchian volunteering at the local food bank (via Box Lunch)

What are Cast and Crew up to?
There haven’t been many sightings of the MacGyver cast:

• Rebooted Murdoc David Dastmalchian volunteered at the local food bank in LA a few days ago.
• Henry Ian Cusick attended DragonCon in Atlanta (August 31 to September 4).
• Justin Hires continued with Comedy Stand-Up appearances and recording podcast episodes. Filming his Stand-Up Special in New York fell through.

The US release date for Expend4bles (aka The Expendables 4) is set for September 22, but Levy Tran probably can’t promote it (unless they pre-recorded some stuff on set).

It’s a pity that after Secret Headquarters, another big movie with Levy falls through regarding promo (last time due to Paramount pushing the movie to streaming instead of the cinematic released they had initially planned, this time due to the strike).

Levy Tran as Lash in an Expend4bles photo shoot (via Line Today)

ICYMI: A new credit has been added to the IMDb page of Tristin Mays recently: Short Film Hopeless Romantic, which was filmed in March 2022. It was screened at Climax Film Festival in November 2022). She postd a few photos from a Beyoncé concert but otherwise, she wasn’t as active on social media as usual.

Maureen Ryan is still doing interviews for her book Burn It Down. She mentioned Lucas Till in an interview with Adam Conover:

He actually said to me in our very first conversation: “I don’t care if I never work again. I cannot take the work environment my colleagues are being put through.” And then it came out what that work environment was doing to him.

Hollywood’s Toxic Underbelly with Maureen Ryan, August 23, 2023

There were some more sightings of MacGyver writers, cast and crew members and guest stars at the picketing sites in LA and NY though; e.g. Teresa Huang, Kate Bond, David Slack, Joy Sunday, Alexandra Grey, Tate Donovan or Jeri Ryan.

Levy in Ju Jitsu class (via Elen Catiuce)

Other MacGyver-related News
Other MacGyver-related news you might have missed:

• Movie Million Followers with Henry Ian Cusick was shopped at TIFF (Toronto Film Festival, September 7 to 17).
• Richard Dean Anderson is scheduled to appear at Comic Con Brussels (Belgium, November 4 and 5), at Hero Festival (Marseille, November 11 and 12) and at Basingstoke Comic Con (London, May 10 to 12, 2024).
• Another volume of David Dastmalchians comic series Count Crowley hits stores on November 8. Unlike with movie projects, he’s allowed to promote the comic.
• Kate Bond (who played Jill on the MacGyver Reboot) is listed as a guest star for an upcoming episode of Magnum PI. Episode 5×17: Consciousness of Guilt was co-written by her husband David Slack.

MacGyver Reboot Update #194

The Collective was released on August 4 in the US. While the reviews were mixed, fans are still eager to share and promote the movie on social media.

Mama Till and Lucas Till (via Dana Till)

(For more material and to discuss your favourite topics, you can find me on Twitter and on the MacGyverOnline Forums.)

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The Collective with Lucas Till
Since August 4, The Collective has been released in several countries. Turkey also did an official premiere event for the cinematic release; handing out goodies (e.g. tote bags and postcards) for the attending guests.

While many reviews are mixed and user ratings are rather low, the interest is still there to check it out and search for it online: The trailer with the most views on YouTube is the official trailer by US distributor Quiver Distribution; reaching 280’000 hits today. It’s now in the Top 12 of all their videos. They also gained more than 1800 new subscribers since the trailer was released.

Official Poster for The Collective in Turkey (via Beyazperde)

With a limited release, it’s difficult to get numbers on how well it has been doing. And The Collective isn’t treated with respect much (Amazon lists only three actors in the cast list with Lucas as the lead not even being one of them). But the movie is listed in the Amazon Prime Top 10 for several countries; e.g. South Africa (six consecutive days), Malawi and Uganda.

How to watch The Collective with Lucas Till?
As it’s a limited release, you best check on a cinema website if there’s still a screening nearby. I’ve seen screenings listed for locations in California, Georgia, Texas and Florida.

US distributor Quiver Distribution lists several streaming services on their website: AppleTV, Amazon, Vudu-Fandango, Microsoft, Google Play, Comcast, Spectrum, Cox, DirecTV, Dish and Verizon. Other sites also list Hoopla and YouTube.

Official Cinema Promo for The Collective in Turkey (via Alican Yenice)

There’s a few more international upcoming release dates (to be found either on IMDb or on the distributors’ websites); e.g. September 21 for the Netherlands and Belgium.

Amazon US lists the DVD to be released on September 19. Checking the backcover preview, it doesn’t look like there’s any bonus material included (at least not in the US version).

The Promo that wasn’t (Encore)
Sadly, we didn’t get any promo by the cast due to the SAG-AFTRA strike rules. And knowing that most actors and crew members move on when a project is further behind them (and they’re busy with new projects), it’s not very likely that we will get to see much BtS material in the future.

DVD Back Cover Preview for The Collective (via Amazon US)

Since it doesn’t look like the strike is resolved any time soon, people will be so happy to be back at work that they will mostly share stuff from the projects they’re currently working on (and not old ones released months ago).

The best chance for new material would be if we get international screenings after the strike, but that doesn’t seem very linkely (since action movies without A-listers aren’t a good candidate for festival circuits).

The writers, producers and directors don’t have the same strike rules regarding promo. Therefore, Director Tom DeNucci continued posting more BtS videos. He didn’t offer much material with Lucas, though. And we also didn’t get any BtS material regarding the photoshoot for the poster.

Character Poster for Levy Tran in Expend4bles (via ScreenRant)

The Promo that was: Interviews (Encore)
We got many interviews with director Tom DeNucci for smaller outlets (because due to the strike, he couldn’t share the workload). Here’s an overview of the interesting tidbits:

• Written interview with The Knockturnal (the movie was filmed within 15 days)
• Written and video interview with The Action Elite (DeNucci praised Lucas and how quickly he took to the physical acting)
• Written and video interview with Screen Rant (developing Lucas’ character Sam in collaboration with Lucas and having the same sense of humour)
• Video interview with WorldFilm Geek (the potential of a sequel)
• Video interview with Movie Show Plus (DeNucci and Lucas played video games together)
• Video interview with Watch or Pass (Lucas was very nice on set to everybody; despite the pressure of being Number 1 on the call sheet)
• Video interview with LRM Online (Lucas does the majority of his own stunts)
• Video interview with Fandomize (the “Pistol Puppet” and the science of film making)
• Video interview with The Screen Chatter Interview Page (fight choreography)
• Video interview with Nerds Rule The World (the duality of Lucas having a baby face and the quiet assertiveness)
• Video interview with Deepest Dreams (Lucas having the all the intrinsical qualities of a hero; including a gentlemanly way of carrying himself)
• Audio interview with Castle Bridge Media (Lucas being the quarterback of the movie)
• Video interview with The Jan Price Show
• Audio interview with Slice of SciFi (the precision of Lucas’ fight scenes)
• Written interview with MovieWeb (there might be a BluRay release in October)

It’s interesting how many of the interviewers asked about the potential of a sequel or how many reviews brought up the potential of this being a TV show instead of a movie.

Stephanie Hicks, Aleks Biskis, Monica Macer and Curran Sullivan (via Teresa Huang)

On August 8, Tom DeNucci did a podcast episode about the movie, but he didn’t reveal much more than he already had in the interviews. Nevertheless, the episode is his second most-watched of all the podcast episodes (about 58) so far.

In spite of these shortcomings, The Collective manages to salvage itself through sporadic bursts of action and character-driven intrigue. The film’s pacing keeps audiences engaged, and its thematic exploration of vigilante justice and morality adds a layer of depth to the proceedings. While not groundbreaking, the movie serves as a competent entry into the action thriller genre.

Been To The Movies, August 14, 2023

DeNucci will make an appearance at the Brimfield Comic Con (September 5 to 10); but it’s not clear if he will talk about The Collective some more.

What are Cast and Crew up to?
Lucas Till didn’t just have a movie release, but also his 33th birthday to celebrate. Mama Till was so nice to provide us with a new/old photo (probably taken in autumn; judging by the trees in the background).

We don’t know how he spent his birthday, but he got some birthday wishes on social media by friends and co-workers; e.g. MacGyver Still Photographer Guy D’Alema.

Levy Tran in Expend4bles (via Ropa Carlo)

In recent weeks, several MacGyver cast and crew members and guest stars have hit the picketing sites in LA and NY; e.g. Joy Sunday, Tate Donovan or Jeri Ryan. Writer Teresa Huang met up with Showrunner Monica Macer, actress Camille Mana and writers Stephanie Hicks and Aleks Biskis.

With Levy Tran being very low-profile on social media lately, it was nice to see her out with friends for ice cream. The US release date for Expend4bles (aka The Expendables 4) is still set for September 22, but she probably can’t promote it (unless they pre-recorded some stuff on set).

A new credit has been added to the IMDb page of Tristin Mays recently: Short Film Hopeless Romantic, which was filmed in March 2022. It apparently already had screenings at film festivals last year (e.g. Climax Film Festival in November 2022). Interestingly, one of the producers and co-stars is Jack Kesy (lead actor of the movie Bang she filmed last Summer).

Tristin Mays at a networking event (via Plus1 Network)

In one of his podcast episodes, Justin Hires talked about being “the quota black guy” on TV and what he would do differently now. He’s currently in New York for several Comedy Stand-Up appearances (and maybe also filming his Stand-Up Special).

Other MacGyver-related News
Henry Ian Cusick was scheduled to attend East European Comic Con in Romania (August 25 to 27), but once again cancelled a convention appearance (the reasons are unknown, but maybe related to the recent wildfires in Hawaii). Another volume of David Dastmalchians comic series Count Crowley hits stores on November 8.

MacGyver Reboot Update #193

The wait is over: The Collective is being released in the US today. Fans are very excited; sharing and promoting on social media while cast and crew can’t.

Lucas Till in an Official Still for The Collective (via Great Escape)

(For more material and to discuss your favourite topics, you can find me on Twitter and on the MacGyverOnline Forums.)

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The Collective with Lucas Till
About seven months ago, we realized that Lucas Till is filming a new movie. And for once, the wait until the release wasn’t too long (remember that it took about two years for Son of the South to be released and about four years for Monster Trucks).

On June 27, we got the first official trailer and some official stills. Several accounts uploaded it to YouTube (and still do every day). The trailer with the most views has more than 250’000 hits.

Official Poster for The Collective (via IMDb)

On July 11, we got a new poster in a different style and color tone; matching the trailer credits (presumably for the theatrical release). Quiver Distribution provided two slightly different posters in the same style, but with half the cast each (the good ones vs. the villains) on July 20. On the same day, yet another poster in a different style (tagline: When all else fails, they don’t) became the official poster on IMDb.

On July 25, we got an exclusive clip with Lucas Till and Tyrese Gibson by Movie Webb. In the clip, Tyrese’s character Hugo is not too happy with Lucas’ character Sam because he has no military or special ops trained background to take on the mission.

On July 27, Middle East distributor Front Row Filmed Entertainment uploaded a completely different trailer with many new scenes and different artwork used for the title credits. They uploaded the trailer again on July 31, providing a release date for a week earlier and a new poster (tagline: Judge. Jury. Executioners.).

Official Poster for The Collective (via Quiver Distribution )

How to watch The Collective?
As it’s a limited release, you best check on a cinema website if there’s a screening nearby. I’ve seen screenings listed for locations in California, Georgia, Texas and Florida.

US distributor Quiver Distribution lists several streaming services for the R-rated movie on their website: AppleTV, Amazon, Vudu-Fandango, Microsoft, Google Play, Comcast, Spectrum, Cox, DirecTV, Dish and Verizon.

There’s also a few international release dates (to be found either on IMDb or on the distributors’ websites):

• August 10 for the Middle East
• August 18 for Turkey
• September 21 for the Netherlands and Belgium

Amazon US lists the DVD to be released on September 19. Checking the backcover preview, it doesn’t look like there’s any bonus material included (at least not in the US version). The DVD Cover Preview has yet another color style and tagline (Justice takes aim) and shows the logo implemented into the writing.

DVD Cover Preview for The Collective (via Amazon US)

The Promo that wasn’t
Sadly, we didn’t get any promo by the cast. Because it’s an indie production (which usually have lower budgets), fans didn’t expect much promo anyway. But the SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild) joining the writers in their strike had diminished the additional promo by the cast to basically zero. And because the studios and networks are stalling negotiations, this strike will be a long one.

According to the strike guidelines, promo and publicity services for actors are forbidden; meaning no attendance of red carpet events and no promo on social media. Blockbusters like The Meg 2 let the fans and non-union “celebrities” do the photo ops with the occasional introduction of the director; probably to make use of the venues booked and merchandize produced months in advance. But they also have the advantage of BtS interviews filmed on set months ago.

The writers, producers and directors don’t have the same rules regarding promo. Therefore, Director Tom DeNucci continued posting BtS videos.

Lucas Till in an Official Still for The Collective (via Yale Entertainment)

In an interview with Indie Wire (posted on July 24), DeNucci said that he wants to wait until the stars can promote it, but that the release plans are too far along to be rolled back.

As I stated in my last blog post, it’s a pity that promo for yet another project of Lucas has been hindered. Although Son of the South did get some promo in the form of international screenings (after the worst of the pandemic was over), it would have been nice for him to have an event in the US where family and friends can attend as well. And I think he would have liked doing video interviews with some of his co-stars.

The Promo that was: Written Interviews
We got several interviews with director Tom DeNucci for smaller outlets (because the poor guy didn’t have anyone to share the workload with).

In the interview with The Knockturnal, DeNucci revealed that the movie had been filmed within 15 days. In the interview with The Action Elite, DeNucci praised Lucas and how quickly he took to the physical acting during rehearsal with Stunt Coordinator Anthony Hoang. He also teased that Lucas “does something very unique with a couple of shrimp skewers”. With Screen Rant, he talked about developing Lucas’ character Sam in collaboration with Lucas and that they have the same sense of humour.

Official Poster for The Collective (via Front Row Films)

The Promo that was: Video Interviews
In the video interview with WorldFilm Geek, they talked about the potential of a sequel. In the interview with Movie Show Plus, DeNucci revealed that he and Lucas played video games together after work. In the video interview with Watch or Pass, he mentioned Lucas being very nice on set to everybody; despite the pressure of being Number 1 on the call sheet. He also stated that Lucas does the majority of his own stunts; which he repeated in the interview with LRM Online.

At Fandomize, the interviewer turned out to be a Lucas fan as well. DeNucci elaborated on the “Pistol Puppet” used in a scene with Lucas and talked about the science of film making. For The Screen Chatter Interview Page, DeNucci talked about fight choreography.

MacGyver Reboot Reunion Picket Announcement (via Teresa Huang)

We also got some reviews (beware of spoilers!); e.g. by WorldFilm Geek (who gave it a B+ rating) or by Voices from the Balcony (who gave it 3,5 Stars out of 5).

The Collective is a pretty good action thriller which has little nuances of horror (humans chained and locked in cages) and crime drama, but overall fun entertainment. Lucas Till continues his rise as a future action star and Mercedes Varnado makes an excellent feature debut as the ruthless enforcer of the villains. A fun popcorn flick.

World Film Geek, July 31, 2023

What are Cast and Crew up to?
In recent weeks, several MacGyver cast and crew members have hit the picketing sites in LA; e.g. writers Teresa Huang and David Slack or actresses Kate Bond and Sheryl Lee Ralph. On July 27, Teresa tweeted about a MacGyver Reboot Reunion Picket on Monday; inviting former writers, cast, crew and fans to attend.

The group that met up was small, but some MacGyver guest stars were sighted at other picketing locations that day (e.g. Joy Sunday in New York, Sebastian Roche in LA).

Aina Dumlao, Monica Macer, Alex B., Teresa Huang and a Friend on the picket line at Amazon Studios (Amanda Edwards via Getty Images)

Instagram Stories by Meredith Eaton indicated she’s in Hawaii for a few days. Some low-budget productions got a “waiver” from SAG-AFTRA to continue filming (as long as they agree to all the terms that the unions have demanded from the studios). But I haven’t heard anything about someone from the MacGyver cast being back on a film set.

ICYMI: Levy Tran did a podcast episode for Poddywood UK (released on July 3), but wasn’t able to talk about Expend4bles (aka The Expendables 4) much. Due to the strike, it’s unclear if she’s able to do any promo for the movie at all. The US release date is still set for September 22. Her video is the third-most watched of all 99 videos on the Poddywood YouTube account, so fans clearly want to see more of Levy.

With Levy being very low-profile on social media lately, it was nice to see her out with friends for ice cream.

Levy Tran on an ice cream date with friends (via Kinetic Motions)

Despite the strike, David Dastmalchian was able to attend San Diego Comic Con; mostly to talk about his upcoming comic and merchandise projects. He also had a screening for indie movie Late Night with the Devil (according to his Instagram post, the screening was “SAG/strike approved as an independent cinema event”).

The first episode of the animated short series Pizza Girl with Tristin Mays was released on June 19. There has been no news about further episodes (though production probably would have had to stop anyway due to the strike). On July 18, Celeb Secrets released a video interview with the cast. Tristin stated that the loved doing voice acting and that the response to the first clip had been great.

She was spotted at different social events in the last few weeks; e.g. at a networking event, a wedding and at a screening in LA for the movie Talk To Me. She’s probably busy now as she’s become an auntie again.

Video screenshot of Tristin Mays (via Celeb Secrets)

In a short video, Justin Hires revealed that his main YouTube account (that he’s been using since 2009) has been deleted. He hasn’t decided yet if he will re-upload some of his videos as he is still in the process of trying to get it back.

He’s also been preparing to film his first Comedy Stand-Up Special in September in New York.

Other MacGyver-related News
Original MacGyver‘s daughter Wylie Anderson directed her first short movie last year. It was screened at the LA Shorts film festival on July 24. The release date on IMDb was changed from December last year to August 2nd this year. Apparently, she also has the funding ready to direct another project soon.

Other MacGyver-related news you might have missed (beware of changes due to the strike):

• Henry Ian Cusick is scheduled to attend East European Comic Con in Romania (August 25 to 27).
• Henry Winkler is scheduled for a book tour for his memoir; starting October 31. He has planned stops in Atlanta and LA.

MacGyver Reboot Update #192

We got a trailer, stills plus a new poster for The Collective. The fans are very happy; sharing and promoting all material they can find. There might not be more material coming for a while.

Lucas Till in an official still for The Collective (via IMDb)

(For more material and to discuss your favourite topics, you can find me on Twitter and on the MacGyverOnline Forums.)

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The Collective with Lucas Till
On June 27, we got the first official trailer in an exclusive article via the Collider. A few hours later, we also got some official stills via IMDb.

While the view counts for the trailer by the official distributor account on YouTube stayed rather low (and even started losing counts after a few days), several of the trailer videos uploaded by movie accounts did better. The trailer with the most views had more than 210’000 hits by Thursday evening.

Official poster for The Collective (via Coming Soon Net)

The distributor in the Netherlands exchanged the poster with a slightly different version after uploading the trailer to their website. On July 11, we got a new poster in a different style and color tone; matching the trailer credits (presumably for the theatrical release).

The SAG-AFTRA combines two American labor unions: Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. Because negotiations for a new contract fell through, the SAG-AFTRA has joined the writers guild on their strike. Yesterday, a TV/Theatrical/Streaming Strike has been ordered; effective July 14 at 12:01am.

Video screenshot of Levy Tran in a podcast episode for Poddywood (via Poddywood UK)

Sadly, this means that it’s very unlikely that we will get any further promo for The Collective as promo and publicity services are forbidden; meaning no attendance of red carpet events and no promo on social media. The strike also includes principal off camera work (such as ADR, voice acting or TV and Theatrical Trailers), so lets hope that all post-production work that includes actors has been finished.

The promotional restrictions are listed as follows:

It’s not clear to me what that means for interviews taken before the strike – but low-budget movies usually don’t do these in advance anyway, but during the week of the release.

While I believe this strike is very important for the future of TV and Film production, it’s a pity that once again, a project of Lucas is derailed regarding publicity and visibility (since any promo for Monster Trucks outside of social media had been scrapped and the pandemic hindered a prestigious festival circuit for Son of the South). He hasn’t gotten an US movie premiere to take family and friends to since at least 8 years.

David Dastmalchian on the red carpet for the UK premiere of Oppenheimer (HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP via Getty Images)

Upcoming Projects for the MacGyver Cast
Several main cast members of the MacGyver Reboot have projects waiting to entertain us:

• Jamojaya with Henry Ian Cusick: Has been screened at several festivals. There is no cinematic release date listed.
• Pizza Girl with Tristin Mays: The first episode of the animated short series was released on June 19. There has been no news about episode two, and further production has probably been stopped due to the strike anyway.
• Expend4bles with Levy Tran: The first official trailer was revealed on June 7. The US release date is set for September 22, but it’s possible that the strike will lead to changes. Her character’s name is Lash.
• Half Baked: Totally High with Justin Hires: News outlets reported a non-theatrical release in 2023, but provided no date. The movie got an R-rating.
• Bang with Tristin Mays: There’s no news to report. It’s unclear what the status of post-production is.
• The Comic Shop with Tristin Mays: Allociné states that it will be released in 2024, but there’s no French distributor attached.
• For Cory with Levy Tran: There’s no news to report.

What are Cast and Crew up to?
Levy Tran did a podcast episode for Poddywood UK that was released on July 3, but wasn’t able to talk about Expend4bles (aka The Expendables 4) much. She did talk about her career; also praising Lucas Till and his MacGyver-like qualities (drop him off in a forest somewhere, and he’ll be fine).

Dog Carlos also made an appearance. In less than two weeks, her video already reached the third-most hits of all 99 videos on the Poddywood YouTube account.

Video screenshot of Levy Tran in a podcast episode for Poddywood (via Poddywood UK)

Henry Ian Cusick attended the Grounders in Paris Con; celebrating a reunion with several cast members from TV show The 100.

David Dastmalchian attended the UK premiere carpet event for Oppenheimer in London yesterday (the cast left the venue after the strike was called to go into effect soon).

Tristin Mays has posted some more BtS material on her Instagram account for Black Sheep Productions; e.g. two parts of the Making Of for the Sweeney Todd video. Last month, Tristin attended the “Celebrity Summer Camp” in Jamaica for charity. She spent July 4 on the property of Ex-MacGyver-Showrunner Peter Lenkov.

In a short video, Justin Hires revealed that he will film his first Comedy Stand-Up Special in September in New York. To stay in control and film it on his own terms in the location he wants, he declined several offers and will produce it himself. (I’m not sure if he will have to postpone it if the strike is still going on by September.)

Lucas Till in an official still for The Collective (via IMDb)

Other MacGyver-related News
Original MacGyver Producer Henry Winkler has been nominated for an Emmy Award; as have Sheryl Lee Ralph (rebooted Mama Colton) and Jeri Ryan (rebooted MacGyver’s aunt Gwendolyn Hayes).

Other MacGyver-related news you might have missed (beware of changes due to the strike):

• David Dastmalchian is scheduled to attend San Diego Comic Con for a panel on July 22.
• Henry Ian Cusick is scheduled to attend East European Comic Con in Romania (August 25 to 27).
• Henry Winkler is scheduled for a book tour for his memoir; starting October 31. He also stops in Atlanta and LA planned.

MacGyver Reboot Update #191

We finally got some promo material and news regarding Expend4bles. Meanwhile, fans are still waiting for a trailer for The Collective.

Official Still for Expend4bles with Levy Tran

(For more material and to discuss your favourite topics, you can find me on Twitter and on the MacGyverOnline Forums.)

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The Collective with Lucas Till
For several weeks, director Tom DeNucci has shared short BtS videos on YouTube. The movie has a poster, an US release date (August 4) and several international distributors, but fans are still waiting for an official trailer and some official stills (instead of blurry BtS videos).

Website The Numbers lists it as a limited theatrical release, so there might still be some showings (presumably in LA and/or NY). The US distributor released a trailer for their newest movie that premieres in a month just this week, so we might have to wait for a trailer until July 4.

BtS photo of Levy Tran in a podcast episode for Poddywood (via Poddywood UK)

Upcoming Projects for the MacGyver Cast
Besides Lucas, other cast members of the MacGyver Reboot have projects waiting to entertain us. Most of them don’t have a release date or a distributor attached yet:

• Jamojaya with Henry Ian Cusick: Has been screened at several festivals so far.
• Pizza Girl with Tristin Mays: On June 12, we got news that Tristin has been cast in an animated short series. The first episode was released on June 19.
• Expend4bles with Levy Tran: The US release date is set for September 22. Her character’s name is Lash. The first official trailer was revealed on June 7. We can expect an international promo tour (hopefully with Levy).
• Half Baked: Totally High with Justin Hires: News outlets reported a non-theatrical release in 2023, but provided no date. The movie got an R-rating.
• Bang with Tristin Mays: There’s an inofficial Instagram account (run by the director). There’s no official poster, no official trailer or even an IMDb entry.
• The Comic Shop with Tristin Mays: Allociné states that it will be released in 2024, but there’s no French distributor attached.
• For Cory with Levy Tran: There’s no news to report.

What are Cast and Crew up to?
Levy Tran has apparently kicked off her promo circuit before the release of blockbuster movie Expend4bles (aka The Expendables 4). According to Poddywood UK, she did a podcast episode that will be released next week.

Interestingly, the CBS website has her attached to the cast of reality show Love Island, but that is probably a fluke (since she’s not listed on the official cast list).

Announcement for Tristin Mays at the Celebrity Summer Camp (via RuJohn Foundation)

Tristin Mays has posted some BtS material of her self-produced short films on her Instagram account for Black Sheep Productions. On June 4, Tristin and Justin Hires attended a charity event held on Ex-Showrunner Peter Lenkov’s property.

On June 17, Tristin travelled to Jamaica for charity. As she has done several times before the pandemic, she was scheduled to attend the “Celebrity Summer Camp” organized by the RuJohn Foundation. She was joined by friends; e.g. recurring MacGyver actor Lance Gross (Billy Colton) or Dexter Darden (who worked with Lucas Till in Son of the South and with Justin Hires in Half Baked: Totally High).

MacGyver Reboot Costume Designer Sarah Downer recently attended the writers strike together with Kate Bond (who played Jill Morgan in several episodes). While her Etsy store has been up for several months, Sarah also created a website for her Retro Doll Boutique.

Kate Bond and Sarah Downer (with her oldest daughter) at the writers strike (via Sarah Downer)

Burn It Down
Maureen (Mo) Ryan’s book about toxic showrunners was released on June 6; climbing the bestseller lists immediately. As far as I know, there weren’t more reveals about Peter Lenkov’s abuse against cast and crew on his TV shows.

According to this tweet, Mo thanked Lucas Till for his contribution. She also mentioned Lucas in an interview with the Daily Beast:

I don’t enjoy excavating something very difficult, and it can be very hard (…). But I take inspiration from people I have worked with on stories—and this is from an assistant, to the No. 1 actor on the call sheet, to executives, to mid-level people in the industry. So many people have allowed me to tell their stories. They were taking a huge risk. And they took that risk because they believed in something greater than themselves.

I’ll never forget my conversation with Lucas Till [for an exposé about former CBS showrunner Peter Lenkov]… He said, “This is my breaking point. I can’t stand how this colleague is being treated. It’s not OK.”

Daily Beast, June 19, 2023

Other MacGyver-related News
ICYMI: Doing another deep dive into Vimeo archives, I found a short BtS video of Lucas filming the parachute scene for the Unaired MacGyver pilot (filmed in April 2016). Original MacGyver Richard Dean Anderson attended SciFi Convention FedCon in Bonn (May 26 to 28).

Lucas Till‘s girlfriend Skyler Samuels has been flashing an engagement ring while doing promo for her movie for the Aurora Teagarden series. In an interview with Digital Journal, she stated that she and her fiancé bought a little farm house in Georgia. Maybe it’s just a coincidence that several family members of Lucas’ family switched their social media accounts to private a few months ago. Maybe.

Other MacGyver-related news you might have missed:

• Son Of The South with Lucas Till airs on Italian FreeTV (channel Rai 3) tonight.
• The War Bride has been added to Lucas’ IMDb page. Go rate and/or review the episode if you have an account!
• Henry Ian Cusick is scheduled to attend East European Comic Con in Romania (August 25 to 27).
• Original MacGyver Producer Henry Winkler will do a book tour for his memoir; starting October 31. There’s also stops in Atlanta and LA.