There weren’t many Official Stills of Season 1 that immediately sparked my interest, but it’s fun to look over them again, now that it’s been many months since I’ve seen the episodes for the first time.
I’m looking back at the Official Stills for each Episode; picking my favorites and writing down some of my thoughts. (Because I just can’t keep quiet, as you all know by now.)
Episode 1×06: Wrench (Still Photographer: Guy D’Alema, Jace Downs)
We got 11 Official Stills for this episode via SpoilerTV and two more via Getty Images. Most of them feature the cast standing around, looking critically at something. There’s a touch of CSI.
Episode 1×06: Wrench (via SpoilerTV)
MY FAVORITE: That’s very easy: The one with Mac and Alfred Pena’s daughter Annabelle; curtesy of Still Photographer Guy D’Alema. It looks very heartfelt and genuine. This was also the first Still that actually reminded me of Original MacGyver.
NOW THAT’S DISAPPOINTING: Still no SAK, although it plays a crucial part in one of the MacGyverisms.
Episode 1xo7: Can Opener (Guy D’Alema, Jace Downs)
For this episode, we got 9 Stills via SpoilerTV and 3 more via Getty Images. All but 2 of them feature MacGyver in orange prison garb. Again, no Still of Bozer. But there’s also no Still of Thornton.
Episode 1×07: Can Opener (via Getty Images)
MY FAVORITE: MacGyver being interrogated by El Noche. There’s a sense of danger here. And I like the lighting.
NOW THAT’S DISAPPOINTING: Not that much. We see MacGyver in prison and Jack as a cop and want to know what’s going on. Also, the Original Show had an episode with MacGyver and Jack in prison as well.
Episode 1xo8: Corkscrew (D’Alema, Jace Downs)
The 8th episode gave us 7 Stills via SpoilerTV. Sadly, they’re all from the same scene: The one with Murdoc chasing MacGyver across a junk yard.
Episode 1×08: Corkscrew (via SpoilerTV)
MY FAVORITE: The one with MacGyver in the junk yard *lol*.
NOW THAT’S DISAPPOINTING: 6 Stills of MacGyver and 1 of Murdoc. I don’t really mind it that much, but for a TV show that relies so heavily on the team aspect, it’s a bit weird to imply this episode is MacGyver only. Since there was a press release about David Dastmalchian’s casting as Murdoc, his appearance wasn’t a suprise either. (Still no SAK.)
Episode 1xo9: Chisel
The episode granted us 17 Stills via SpoilerTV. Several of them feature Bozer while Riley and Thornton only appear as a side-note. The majority of them show MacGyverisms, which makes it pretty exciting.
Episode 1×09: Chisel (via SpoilerTV)
MY FAVORITE: I have some difficulties choosing a favorite, actually. I like this one because of the unusual perspective.
NOW THAT’S DISAPPOINTING: The Stills are of a different quality. They’re kind of… milky? I can’t really explain it. There’s also no Still Photographer listed yet on IMDb; maybe they didn’t have one? So many MacGyverisms to show, yet still no SAK.
Episode 1×10: Pliers
We only got 6 Official Stills via SpoilerTV for this episode. They all feature MacGyver teaching or doing science stuff. It feels very Original MacGyver to me and made me forget that “Team Phoenix” won’t be far away.
Episode 1×10: Pliers (via SpoilerTV)
MY FAVORITE: Not much to choose from – it’s either Mac teaching in front of the class or teaching Valerie. But that’s fine. It’s nice to see Mac with a kid being interested in science; especially a young girl. Reminds us a bit of the Ugly-Duckling-Episode, right?
NOW THAT’S DISAPPOINTING: So much science, but still no SAK. Also, I don’t really understand why they never have additional Stills with guest stars. Yes, John Heard doesn’t have that much screentime in this episode but his name and work is well-known. Why not use it for Promo?
Filming for Season 2 started about six weeks ago. The Season 2 Premiere will be in six weeks. I guess that means Halftime! Also, puppies have been taking over the set!
BtS of Season 2 (via Lucas Till)
(Spoiler Alert: You will get spoilered about Season 2 by reading this post and its comments or by clicking on the links provided!)
Season 2 News
Filming for Season 2 started about six weeks ago. During the last few days, the rate of pictures and videos being uploaded has flared up again. It’s so much I can’t even put it all into this Update, but it looks like we’ll get a car accident, explosions, a Halloween Episode, a plane crash and Mac crawling through tunnels!
I had hoped for a bigger budget for this season and I think CBS believed in the success of the Reboot; giving them the means to step up the quality of the production.
Cast and Crew are filming in many different locations. Because we still don’t know much about the storylines yet, it’s sometimes difficult to attribute the pictures to the right episode. According to the Casting Calls, we will join “Team Phoenix” to Paris and other interesting locations.
About MacGyver’s grandfather
Executive Producer Peter Lenkov posted a very interesting picture on August 9. It’s a shot of Episode 2×04 (X-Ray + Penny) and shows “Young Mac and grandfather”, the grandfather fiddling with an SAK. Funny thing: We can’t see the grandfather’s face.
This led to speculations if we would ever get to see his face in the episode or not. If it’s told from Young MacGyver’s point of view, I think it’s actually possible we won’t; at least not for now.
Episode 2×04: X-Ray + Penny (via Peter Lenkov)
It’s interesting to note that the actor does remind people of Original MacGyver Richard Dean Anderson. Lenkov had hinted that he wanted RDA to play the grandfather – but we already know that RDA had declined when they approached him over a year ago. I’m curious if Lenkov left a “backdoor” open by witholding the viewers from seeing the grandfather’s face – just in case RDA reconsiders his opinion one day.
On a recent event appearance (London Comic Con, I think), RDA said that he had an acting project in the pipeline, but that it was too early to talk about it. People have been speculating for a while now if he will come back as Jeff Webber on General Hospital or as MacGyver’s father or grandfather in the Reboot. We’ll see. I’m down with anything that RDA appears in because I think he’s not really done with acting yet.
Otherwise, Peter Lenkov has been oddly quiet. He posted a few videos of him editing Hawaii Five-0 and a picture of Meredith Eaton as Matty.
Someone will get hurt (Mac!Whump)
On August 8, Lucas Till uploaded a picture of MacGyver that FanFiction Writers would probably label as “Mac!Whump”.
FunFact: Whump is a term to describe “physical and/or mental abuse laid on a character in a story” and is often used by Stargate FanFiction authors.
The Original Show was basically a Whump!Fest. I doubt a real-life MacGyver would have made it for seven years without suffering from permanent brain damage and extensive injuries requiring skin grafts. (If you want to refresh your memory, you can visit Nicholas Sweedo’s Shot Chart or the Injuries-Thread on MacGyver Online.)
The Reboot is rather tame compared to the Original, so I’m curious what this scene will be. (If you want to refresh your memory about the Reboot!Whump in Season 1, you can visit an overview here.)
BtS of Season 2 (via Lucas Till)
MacGyver getting whumped with no consequences was actually the reason why RDA wanted to give his Stargate-Character Jack O’Neill a permanent scar. This is an excerpt of an interview from 2003 (via RDAs Official Website):
From: CAZASIMPSON (Caron)
I have a question that’s been bugging me for a while. How did you get that scar across your eyebrow?
Richard Dean Anderson:
It’s part of what we established in the character. […] It was one of those elements of movies and television that has always driven me crazy. Like MacGyver, for instance, if we showed him naked at any point, he would be nothing but one big scar, because he was always getting cut or ripped or shot or whatever, beat up, bruised, and yet by the end of the series, he didn’t have a mark on him. It was one of those things. So, I can’t remember the episode, but I got hit in the eye or slugged or something, and we established a big bandage and the whole thing, and I told Jan [Newman, make-up artist], you know, this would leave a mark. Let’s run with this. Let’s keep it in there as part of what defines O’Neill.
Lucas’ picture hints at Mac!Whump, but bears a strikingly similarity to the Opening Gambit of Episode 1×12 (Screwdriver) where Jack was the one getting whumped; being interrogated by a terrorist while under the influence of a truth serum.
BtS of Season 2 (via Meredith Eaton)
On Lucas’ birthday (August 10), Meredith Eaton posted posted a short video of Matty pushing the wheelchair MacGyver is sitting in. This fits the hospital scene picture that Lenkov had posted on July 31st. George Eads took advantage of the wheelchair during filming breaks as well (seen in an Instagram Live Story video by Justin Hires).
Someone will get hurt (Jack!Whump) There was a sighting of George Eads on set this weekend. They filmed a scene involving an overturned military vehicle and a “big boom”. It’s safe to say that Jack will get whumped in this episode.
Key Grip Steven Serna and his grip co-workers (e.g. Cam Everson) posted several pictures and Instagram Live Stories of the filming process. At one point, the filming had to take a break due to a demonstration regarding recent events in Charlottesville. A few days later, they filmed additional scenes in the studio.
They also had a dummy that could be the one for Lucas, so maybe both heroes will get whumped. I don’t think this action sequence is related to the hospital scene, though.
Halloween, Underground Tunnels and Plane Crashes
Lucas Till shared on August 17 how he deals with the heat in Atlanta. It sure helped that Henry Winkler had sponsored an Ice Cream Truck for Cast and Crew. How cool is that? It might be Summer in Atlanta, but as Justin Hires revealed, they just started filming the Halloween Episode.
There have been Casting Calls for pilots. They filmed some more scenes at an airport this week, and apparently the crew cracked the pilot center window of an airplane (presumably an old C-141) by accident while filming a plane crash. Well, I guess it’s better to have broken windows than broken bones on set. (There have been accidents on movie sets in recent weeks that didn’t end well.)
According to Justin Hires and other BtS pictures by Anne-Marie, Cast and Crew are filming in the “Jungle” today. It’s possible this location is related to the plane crash.
I suspect this will be used to film in a narrow space. On the same day, there were pictures of the set with the crew standing around an open manhole. If you’ve seen one of the Original MacGyver Movies, you know what can happen when MacGyver goes underground…
On August 11, Justin Hires shared a BtS picture of Bozer, warning all criminals not to underestimate “Team Phoenix”. He posted another BtS picture of Bozer wearing the same shirt, standing in front of Jack’s car.
Jack’s car will get whumped, too. There were BtS pictures on August that revealed the car will be involved in an accident in an upcoming episode. Jack will be devastated.
There might be a little whump for Riley as well: Brittney Joy caught the crew filming in front of her appartement in Downtown Atlanta on August 5. She posted several videos of the process; filmed directly from above through the window. At one point, it looks likey Tristin Mays’ character Riley gets stuffed into the trunk of a car.
Dogs on Set
Besides Production Office Dog Clover (6 months) and Wardrobe Protection Dog Maggie, there’s Einstein. He’s everybody’s darling and has his own Instagram page with over 100 followers after just a week. Also, he’s Clover’s Cousin!
Einstein on the MacGyver Reboot Set
I wouldn’t mind if they involved one of the dogs in the production. The Original show had many storylines involving animals, and so far we haven’t seen any of that besides in the Crossover Episode (where Bozer rescues the little dog).
Cast and Character News
As with Season 1, the Extras have apparently been advised to keep quiet for now. There were only a few posts that revealed people being part of an episode; e.g. Carl Kenndy, Tev Lanier, Tyrus Smash, Danny Boushebel (Episode 2×01) or Meagan.
About six weeks ago, we got some exclusive spoilers by Moviehole about the storyline of Episode 2×01 (DIY or DIE) and about the two new recurring female characters. There are still no official cast announcements or press releases yet.
Since Isabel Lucas still seems to be filming with the main cast while Karolina Wydra isn’t on set anymore, I’m assuming that Karolina will play Olivia Cage while Isabel plays intel extraction specialist Agent Carmen. We got another glimpse of Carmen by a picture via George Eads. Isabel Lucas herself posted an Instagram Live Story picture that has her dressed with a gun holder like Jack.
There is a chance that Karolina’s character Cage will be a recurring villain. Also, it’s interesting to note that she had apparently dyed her hair blonde just before filming started. She dyed it back to brunette this week.
There was also a Casting Call named “Paris”, looking for European Patrons and cars. Another interesting Casting Call was made on August 6, when Central Casting Georgia was looking for five Stand-Ins. They provided pictures what the Stand-Ins should look like. One of these was for Kate Bond (who played Phoenix Tech Lil Morgan in Episodes 1×20 and 1×21), one for a boy and another one for a certain person we all should recognize.
Casting Call for Stand-In (via Central Casting Georgia)
This is pretty exciting, I’ll say. David Dastmalchian being in Atlanta last week wasn’t a secret, but I assumed he wouldn’t have time for doing anything else than filming for the new Antman movie.
MacGyver in Germany – Ratings
Two episodes of the Reboot aired in Germany on Mondays, 8.15 pm and 9.15 pm on channel Sat.1. Despite predictions on social media and the constant negative reviews, the show earned good ratings. The two episodes this week (that also marked the Season Finale) earned the lowest ratings so far, though.
Episode 17 on August 7 earned 770’000 live viewers with a market share of 9.4% within the important demo group of 14-49 years (which is a market share of 6.3% in total viewers, meaning 1.7 million viewers older than age 3). The Crossover Episode even managed 940’000 live viewers (with a market share of 10.5% in demo). The Crossover also helped the following episode of Hawaii Five-0 (that aired at 22.15 pm) with ratings, reaching a market share of 10.8% in demo. (This was first time since April that H50 reached the desired market share of more than 10%.)
BtS of Season 2 (via LJ Gregg)
On August 14, Episode 20 had 620’000 live viewers with a market share of 7.6% in its demo group (which is a market share of 5.3% in total viewers, meaning 1.42 million). The Season Finale (1×21) only earned 700’000 live viewers (with a market share of 5.6% in demo). On one hand, there was a soccer game going on at the same time. On the other hand, Sat.1 neglected their promo duties, constantly promoting “Promi Big Brother” (the equivalent of Celebrity Big Brother). The only tweet and post about the final episodes was made just 30 minutes before the episode aired.
MacGyver in Germany – Skipping Episodes
It’s a bit sad that Germany skipped 3 Episodes in total (Episodes 11, 16 and 19). Sat.1 claims “program-planning reasons” due to the premiere dates for new episodes of NCIS and Bull. They promise to air the remaining episodes next year with Season 2, but the consequence of witholding these episodes means that they’re also not available on streaming platforms yet. It’s also not clear to me what this might mean for the DVD release.
Filming continues on Season 2. According to the BtS pictures and videos, we’ll get to see a lot of exciting locations and props this season!
Episode 2×03: Mustang + Paper Clips (via Lucas Till)
(Spoiler Alert: You will get spoilered about Season 2 by reading this post and its comments or by clicking on the links provided!)
Season 2 News
Filming for Season 2 started four weeks ago. While we got some pictures and Instagram Live Stories by cast and crew over the first few weeks, it wasn’t nearly as much as for Season 1. During the last week, the rate of pictures and videos being uploaded has picked up, though. It looks like we’ll get a lot of new and interesting locations next Season – and some exciting vehicles as well!
According to Executive Producer Peter Lenkov, there will also be more paperclip art.
Episode 2×02: Roulette Wheel (via Justin Hires)
In a talk show interview done back at Corus Upfronts in Toronto in June, Lucas Till talks about his Dad MacGyvering, about producing and financing his own movies in the past and about maybe directing an episode of the Reboot this season. I certainly wouldn’t mind!
It feels like they have invested more time on the Season Premiere Episode than they do on “normal” episodes. Also, because they use a lot of different locations and because we don’t know much about the storylines yet, it’s sometimes difficult to attribute the pictures to the right episode – but this only adds to the excitement and curiosity expressed by the fans.
Fun on Set
It’s nice to see that cast and crew are still having a lot of fun despite the long hours and the weekends they’re on set. Justin Hires posts many Instagram videos with cast and crew goofing around. Maybe it’s because of all the puppies on set that everyone’s so happy? Besides Production Office Dog Clover and Wardrobe Protection Dog Maggie, there’s another cutie on set (Einstein) who loves to pose for pictures as much as to take naps.
Dogs on Set (via Lucas Till, Brittany Lathan, Cornell Willis, Isabel Lucas, Roxanne Paul)
Apparently, the crew also hands out trophies. According to Brittany Lathan, crew member Hailey Porch already won the first trophy of the season (in the category “you’re the worst”). This could be a story worth hearing about.
Filming the Casino Episode
Episode 2×02 (Roulette Wheel) is the infamous Casino Episode. We did get some BtS pictures and BtS videos that hinted at the Casino Episode being filmed – but we never got a good overview of the whole set (which was set up at the Biltmore Ballrooms).
Both Lucas Till and Justin Hires posted pictures of themselves with a yellow Lamborghini. It looks like Bozer (who’s wearing an overall) is pretending to be a mechanic. Several crew members posed in front of the car as well (e.g. Robert Ratner or Brandon Smith), although many of the crew have recently worked on the sets of The Fate of the Furious and Baby Driver (and therefore get to see fast cars up close quite often). In a post by Lamborghini Allstar, it’s hinted at that this will be an “Overseas Russian Scene”.
Where’s a casino, there’s also money. So while Bozer is probably taking care of the Lamborghini, Mac and Jack might be invading the vault. It’s not clear yet if the BtS picture by Lucas Till (that seems to take place in a cave) has anything to do with this. It reminds me of the pilot episode of the Original Show and has a certain Indiana-Jones-vibe to it. I like it.
The same week, Peter Lenkov posted a BtS picture of Mac and Jack in the hospital, both wearing hospital gowns. I hope this is part of an episode and not just a short sequence of an opening gambit. Since it looks like Jack somehow hurt his butt while MacGyver looks guilty as hell, this might be a funny scene – especially since Justin was nice enough to post a short BtS video for us to learn what George Eads is wearing under said hospital gown…
BtS picture of Season 2 (via Peter Lenkov)
Other posts last week consisted of BtS pictures by Justin Hires of the team in the War Room (both most likely from Episode 2×01), a picture of a smiling Lucas Till with Boom Operator Robert Maxfield or a glimpse at the hotel lobby or the props (e.g. a “throne“).
This Monday, Patrick Kral posted an interesting picture from inside the studio. It looks like another “Antarctica”-Set. Hopefully not more scenes of MacGyver dropping biological weapons into ice crevices. (Or bad guys getting the bio-weapon out of that crevice.)
On August 1st, we got a BtS picture of an Arcade Set. As Peter Lenkov revealed, there’s a mascot involved. Lucas additionally uploaded a video sequence that shows him playing an arcade game against Justin, Tristin and Meredith’s husband Brian. Justin posted another picture of Bozer at the Arcade Set just a few hours ago.
Arcade Set (via Peter Lenkov)
On the same day, they also shot some night scenes in a library. Lucas Till willingly posed for more fan pictures with Extras and with people working in the building. Meanwhile, the 2nd unit filmed in warehouses that made it necessary to wear masks again.
Mustangs and Airplanes
The people involved in the show sure like their cars – especially classic cars. As Tristin Mays revealed in an Instagram Live Story, Episode 2×03 might be called “Mustang + Paper Clips”. (It’s currently titled “Muscle Cars + Paper Clips” on IMDb.) The episode is directed by Ericson Core (Point Break). On August 3rd, Patrick Kral posted a slightly spoilery BtS picture that involves a Mustang and probably MacGyver with Agent Carmen, trying to save someone’s life.
Let’s hope the Mustang survives because rebooted MacGyver is notorious for taking cars apart – and while I’m in general not a big fan of cars, I really like this one. A few hours later, Lucas uploaded a BtS picture of him sitting in the Mustang; confirming that the BtS pictures were from the set of MacGyver although they have been filmed on the Walking-Dead-Set. Camera Operator Anthony Kountz granted a closer look at the car just a few hours ago.
Around the Fire Pit (via Justin Hires)
The cast has also been filming on an Airplane Set this week. There is a Green Screen involved that will probably be necessary for a tropical location. I’m assuming the skeleton sitting in an airplane (posted by several crew members from various angles and distances) belongs to the museum and not to the Reboot Set. (Although: Skeletons, Russians and airplanes remind me of a certain episode of the Original Show.)
Cast, Crew and Character News
As with Season 1, the Extras have probably been advised to keep quiet for now. There were only a few tweets or posts that revealed people being part of an episode; e.g. Daisy Pareja (as Mrs. Diaz in 2×01), Jeff Glover (who’s also been in two episodes of Season 1), Gabrielle LaFaye or JP Valenti who revealed being on set with Karolina Wydra (Quantico, Twin Peaks).
A month ago, we got some exclusive spoilers by Moviehole about the storyline of Episode 2×01 (DIY or DIE) and about two new recurring female characters for Season 2. There’s still no official cast announcement yet, but looking back at all the social media posts so far, I’m assuming that Karolina Wydra will play Olivia Cage while Isabel Lucas will play intel extraction specialist Agent Carmen.
It never made much sense to me that Nikki was never mentioned after Episode 12 (Screwdriver). They made it look like her and Mac intended to see each other again – plus she wanted to take down the Organization, so she should have been involved in every episode that dealt with the Organization; but especially in the Season Finale. I wonder if they’ll address it if she doesn’t come back this season.
Episode 1×10: Pliers (Amiah Miller with John Heard)
Reruns
There is no rerun today. Next week, you can catch a rerun of Episode 1×10 (Pliers) with the late John Heard (who sadly passed away two weeks ago). Amiah Miller (who had played Valerie) posted some new BtS pictures with her and John on set on July 23.
The rerun of Episode 1×06 (Wrench) on July 28 managed to get 3.89 million live viewers (with 0.5 in the important demo group of 19-49 year-old viewers) which is even a bit better than the rerun of Episode 1×02 (Metal Saw) two weeks earlier.
MacGyver in Germany – Ratings
Two episodes of the Reboot air in Germany each Monday, 8.15 pm and 9.15 pm on channel Sat.1. Against predictions on social media and the constant negative reviews, the show continues to earn good ratings.
Episode 2×02: Roulette Wheel (via Lucas Till)
Episode 12 on July 25 earned 840’000 live viewers with a market share of 9.3% within the important demo group of 14-49 years (which is a market share of 5.7% in total viewers, meaning 1.7 million viewers older than age 3). The following episode even managed 970’000 live viewers (with a market share of 10.1% in demo). For comparison: The episode of Hawaii Five-0 (that aired at 22.15 pm) had a market share of 8.8% in demo.
MacGyver in Germany – Skipping Episodes
It’s a bit sad that Germany won’t air Episodes 11 (Scissors), 16 (Hook) and 19 (Compass) yet. The reasons are still unclear because the episodes have already been dubbed into German. Sat.1 claims “program-planning reasons”. The fact that they’re skipping random episodes instead of the last 3 indicates that this hasn’t been planned in advance, though. The fact that Rush Hour was pushed to midnight after only 3 aired episodes and Hawaii Five-0 took its place at 22.15 pm (and therefore premiered months sooner than initially planned) might have messed things up in their schedule.
BtS picture of Season 2 (via Lucas Till)
MacGyver in Austria
If you missed any of the German-dubbed episodes that aired so far, you’re lucky: Austrian channel ORF1 starts the show on Saturday, September 2nd (7.10pm). It will be interesting to see if ORF1 has its own licence and will air the three “missing” episodes before Germany.
Disclaimer: My original guest-post was first published on The MacGyver Project on December 23, 2016. I made some minor changes (e.g. grammar or source corrections, link corrections, additional pictures) before re-posting it on my own blog for safe-keeping.
Production of the reboot is on hiatus until next year. The premiere of Episode 12 will be on January 6.
via Kirk Riley
(Spoiler Alert: To avoid spoilers, I won’t post any pictures that are too revealing, but you will get spoilered by reading this post or by clicking on the links provided!)
Work hard and you shall be rewarded…
… with an SAK! Back in November, Executive Producer Peter Lenkov had posted a picture of an SAK with the official logo for Season 1. Every now and then, other pictures showed up on social media by script writers and cast members – but it was still unclear if it was an exclusive gift for the crew or if eventually everyone would be able to get one of these as an official merchandize tool.
It looks like several more of these SAKs were handed out before Christmas Break because many pictures have popped up over the last few days (e.g. by Script Writer Brian Durkin, Co-Executive Producer David Slack, Assistant Sean O’Reilly, Composer Keith Power, recurring cast member Aina Dumlao, Stuntman Michael Li or crew members “etc317“, Cornell Willis and Kirk Riley). It is quite a dangerous gift, though – Publicist Beth Haiken already suffered her first puncture wound.
Working on Episodes 12, 13 and 14
Peter Lenkov confessed that Jack’s selfie habit with bad guys (before punching them) is getting out of hand. By posting a short video of David Slack demonstrating a MacGyverism involving a film cannister to the prop departement, he revealed why the show is so much fun to write for.
Lenkov shared a picture and a short video for Episode 13 on Instagram. He posted some scenes for Episode 12 on Instagram Stories (where videos disappear after 24 hours), but several fansites managed to snag the material and put screen shots online. Another scene for Episode 12 with MacGyver and Jack all dressed up in church and an additional Instagram-Stories-Teaser for Episode 13 were just posted today. Seems like Mr. Lenkov is hard at work to get as much editing done as possible.
Justin Hires was very excited for his character Bozer joining the team. He also posed for BtS-pictures with Bozer’s Elf Apron. In a video by Tristin Mays, Lucas Till tests the Golden Magic Slingshot that she got him as a gift. He doesn’t succeed on the first try, but he does succeed. Even New MacGyver needs some training, after all.
via Brian Durkin
Cornell Willis shared several nice pictures of the nature surrounding the set. After fighting the heat wave in summer while filming the pilot episode, fog and cold temperatures were a nuisance while filming. DP Gabriel Beristain posted pictures of him with Lucas Till and crew members on Facebook.
The glossy black helicopter for Episode 13 still garnered attention among the crew. Jeffery Ellis provided a look at the crashed version of it. And it was looking so nice and pristine before! Besides filming on a roof, they also built an extra set for the scene.
Extra Michael Tow showed us what serious agents Cho and Brooks look like while getting ready for filming. Meanwhile, crew member Jes tested a creepy mask – another one of Bozer’s creations?
Premieres of Episodes 10 and 11
After the high ratings of Episode 9 (Chisel, 8.12 millions), Episode 10 (Pliers, 7.42 millions) wasn’t as good in numbers. Overall, the ratings are still steady, though with Episode 11 (Scissors) as the Christmas Episode at 7.67 millions.
via Sean O’Reilly
Interestingly, Episode 11 was trending much earlier (at least 5 minutes) on Twitter than Episode 10. The writers again live-tweeted during the airings; e.g. providing us with research information about the Elephant Toothpaste MacGyverism (and what happens when they test it in the backlot) or that they spent hours researching the air-raid-siren. They also provided a nice sketch by Writer John Turman that they sent to the props departement so they could build the GPS-Satellite. (At least one of them has sketching skills!).
Extra/Stuntman Simon Rhee posted BtS-pictures of Episode 11 with the main cast.
Stills and Press Releases
On December 13, CBS shared more first-look-pictures of Episode 11 (Scissors). SpoilerTV provided us with a press release for Episode 12 (Screwdriver) that will air after the Christmas Break on January 6. It is written by Lenkov, Craig O’Neill and David Slack and confirms that three major recurring characters will be back: Murdoc (David Dastmalchian), Nikki (Tracy Spiridakos) and Sarah Adler (Amy Acker).
Belle revealed the name for Episode 13 (Large Blade) while Extra Michael Tow provided us with the name of Episode 14 (Fish Scaler).
On December 22, CBS Express published the press release for Episode 13. It’s written by Andrew Karlsruher (CSI: Cyber) and directed by Sylvain White (Hawaii Five-0).
via David Slack
Sneak Peeks and Previews
We got two clips for Episode 11 (Scissors) via SpoilerTV. Additionally, ET Online shared an exclusive clip that reveals more of Jack’s history with Riley’s mother.
Soundtrack, Google and other Stuff
If you’re interested in the songs used in Season 1, there’s a neat little site that has it all in one place.
As Google’s Year in Search revealed, MacGyver was one of the most-googled search words in September.
In an Interview with Matt Carter, Peter Lenkov talked about why he brought the character Bozer into the show and why he thinks that “personal stuff” makes an episode stronger.
StuntTeam and crew engaged in the project “Toys for Tots” to collect Christmas gifts for children who otherwise wouldn’t have any this year. What a nice gesture!
via Junior
Cast, Crew and Character News Central Casting Georgia has made several casting calls; e.g. for bus passengers and administrators, for Atlanta Policemen, for “great drivers who can parallel park like experts” and for people in their 20s-40s that can portray mourners.
As already revealed above, we will get Murdoc, Nikki and Sarah Adler back for Episode 12. Reads like danger and action and plot twist.
Peter Lenkov confirmed to a fan that MacGyver’s grandpa will make an appearance on the show “at some point”. Sounds like we might have to wait for the second season for this, though.
Disclaimer: My original guest-post was first published on The MacGyver Project on December 8, 2016. I made some minor changes (e.g. grammar or source corrections, link corrections, additional pictures) before re-posting it on my own blog for safe-keeping.
While CBS was taking a break and airing reruns, cast and crew were working on more episodes.
via MacGyver on CBS
(Spoiler Alert: To avoid spoilers, I won’t post any pictures that are too revealing, but you will get spoilered by reading this post or by clicking on the links provided!)
Getting into the Christmas Spirit
While cast and crew were working to wrap up more episodes before Christmas Break, the audience had to wait two weeks for new episodes. Meanwhile, CBS launched a new look for their shows on social media. The Reboot also got a new header and a new icon on November 28.
Additionally, CBS started a look back at some of their favorite tv-show-moments this year. The Reboot makes an appearance in their show-reels for “Stunts” and “Bromance“.
Lucas Till shared another picture of MacGyver doing bad, bad things – this time of posing with terrorists. Lucas is also seen in a picture with Extra Lyman Chen, who complimented cast and crew as being one of the friendliest he had ever had the pleasure to work with. Chen is listed for Episode 11 and it looks like there are Ninja Swords involved.
A1 Management Group posted a short video of Sandrine Holt filming a scene in a hotel with a tactical team. They also shared pictures of the military guys having fun posing for pictures.
Lucky bypassers got to see cast and crew filming scenes with said helicopter on a rooftop in Downtown Atlanta on December 7. According to Todd Edwards who posted some pictures on Facebook, MacGyver gets beaten up, wrapped in blue tarp and tossed in – and then people start shooting at the chopper. Apparently the heavily armed “terrorists” looked so real that they scared the office workers in the building.
This week, the crew had to endure a few days of shooting outside under heavy rain. Several crew members posted pictures of their muddy shoes or of themselves in wet gear.
Let’s get technical
Technical Consultant Rhett Allain wrote another piece on MacGyverisms – this time about “How to make an UV-light out of your phone’s LED flash” as seen in Episode 8 (Corkscrew). Additionally, he appeared on the “Lab Out Loud Podcast” on November 28, talking a bit about working on the show.
Allain also gave some insights for an article on Popular Science about “5 MacGyver Hacks you should try at home” (laser microphone, fire starter, soda bottle gas mask, DIY eye in the sky and Leyden jar battery) and “2 you really shouldn’t” (car battery arc welder and thermite lance). I honestly don’t remember some of these MacGvyerisms – so either I’m getting old and forgetful, they were from deleted scenes or the episodes haven’t aired yet.
Reruns of Episodes 3 and 4
During the break, CBS aired reruns of Episode 3 (Awl, 4.09 millions) on Friday and Episode 4 (Wire Cutter, 4.61 millions) on Sunday. For the occasion, script writer John Turman shared a new BtS-pic from Episode 4.
Episode 1×04: Wire Cutter (via John Turman)
I’ve been wondering why CBS chose these two episodes to draw new viewers in. To catch up on the backstories of the recurring female characters (mainly Nikki, but also Riley or Amy Acker’s character Sarah Adler), the pilot (The Rising) and Episode 2 (Metal Saw) would have probably made more sense – but the ratings of these two episodes are also the lowest on IMDb.
Stills and Press Releases SpoilerTV provided us with press releases and/or official stills for Episode 10 (Pliers) and 11 (Scissors). They also revealed the title for Episode 12: “Screwdriver”. Stills and Synopsis for Episode 10 remind me a bit of the “Ugly Duckling” Episode of the original show.
Interestingly, Episode 11 will be directed by Stephen Herek. Many, many years ago, Herek had directed the unaired pilot episode for “Young MacGyver”. Considering how many people – mainly “Supernatural” Fans – are still commenting and being confused about Lucas looking like a young Jared Padalecki, I found this kinda funny.
Episode 1×10: Pliers (via SpoilerTV)
Sneak Peeks and Previews
We finally got a preview and three sneak peeks of Episode 10 (Pliers) on December 7. It seems like the storyline will focus a bit more on the friendship between MacGyver and Jack – or the so-called “bromance” that has been advertized endlessly in the promo cycle before the premiere of the Pilot Episode.
Cast, Crew and Character News Central Casting Georgia has made some more casting calls; e.g. for men who’ve had tactical defense and gun training; for Mom, Dad, and a 6 year old blonde girl to portray a family and for a “short Caucasian female” between the height of 4′ 3″ to 4′ 11″. The agency stated that this would be a regular stand in gig, working until mid-March. So it seems like there will be a young recurring character – does New MacGyver have a half-sister, maybe?
As Matt Webb Mitovich revealed back in November, we will get to know more about Jack’s love life next year. This fits with the picture by Peter Lenkov and the synopsis for Episode 11, because we will meet Riley’s mother.
Fans getting inspired
The Reboot has already inspired many fans to share their art, stories, collages and videos; especially during the break. Because FanFictionNet counts the reboot within the same category as the original show, we only know the total amount of stories (379). On Archive of Our Own, the reboot has its own category and hit the story count of the magical 100 on December 6.
Disclaimer: My original guest-post was first published on The MacGyver Project on November 25, 2016. I made some minor changes (e.g. grammar or source corrections, link corrections, additional pictures) before re-posting it on my own blog for safe-keeping.
While the reboot is taking a break and airing reruns, cast and crew are working on the mid-season finale. Also, Amy Acker and Tracy Spiridakos are back on set!
via Gabriel Beristain
(Spoiler Alert: To avoid spoilers, I won’t post any pictures that are too revealing, but you will definitely get spoilered by reading this post or by clicking on the links provided!)
Working towards Christmas Break
As I mentioned before, we don’t see much exclusive stuff anymore from the main cast. They’re busy bees to wrap up the initially ordered episodes before Christmas Break. As Tristin Mays revealed on Twitter, they’re often still filming while the new episodes air and don’t get to see the premiere.
Lucas Till posted more pictures of MacGyver doing bad, bad things like aiming a gun and being friendly with terrorists. Of course, this led to David Dastmalchian pulling out a big gun of his own (ahem, this doesn’t look as R-rated as it sounds). Tristin shared that Episode 9 (Chisel) has been her favorite episode to film so far besides Episode 4 (Wire Cutter).
Justin Hires’ Stand-In Kevin Marshall Pinkney posted a picture of him sitting in a 60’s Volkswagon while working on Episode 12. Guess we just got to see Bozer’s car? Interesting choice!
via Peter Lenkov
On November 14, Just Jared shared paparazzi pictures of Lucas on set. As several crew members (e.g. Cornell Willis or Kait C.) revealed, they were filming in a church on November 21. Thanks to Camera Operator Tiko Pavoni, we got a glimpse at MacGyver’s “back yard”.
Brian Durkin revealed how the writer’s crew tested MacGyver’s escape in Episode 8 (Corkscrew). The script writers also provided the original diagram of the Chinese Lantern Surveillance Drone in Episode 9 (Chisel) and the math equations that Tech Advisor Rhett Allain did to estimate how much paper MacGyver would need to stop a bullet.
On November 11, Lucas’ Mom had visited the set. She shared some pictures on social media. While filming outside on November 14, the set got visited by an elementary class. Learning about TV production directly from cast and crew on set is sure more interesting and memorable than regular class!
via MacGyverWriters
Premieres of Episodes 8 and 9
As expected, Episode 8 (Corkscrew, 7.65 million) got better ratings than the previous episode – although they weren’t as high as I expected (it was the return of beloved Murdoc, after all). Overall, New Murdoc’s first appearance was well received on Twitter and even got praise by Original Murdoc Michael Des Barres.
The most recent Episode 9 (Chisel, 8.12 million) made the third-highest ratings of this season.
Upcoming Episodes
SpoilerTV provided us with a press release for Episode 10 (Pliers – although thanks to the Phoenix Foundation Podcast, that episode will always be “Pilers” to me). Episode 10 will air on December 9 because the show is taking a break and CBS airs reruns on Fridays instead. Tonight, they will show Episode 3 (Awl).
Looking at the surprisingly high ratings from last week, I’m not sure if it’s a wise decision having a break of 3 weeks, now with so many people stating on social media that the episodes are getting better and that they finally started to like the show.
Interviews, Articles and other Promo
On November 16, CBS uploaded some more BtS-pictures; mainly from Episode 7 (Can Opener). They also provided a Survival Guide for Thanksgiving. The CBS Watch! Magazine provided another picture of their photoshoot with Lucas and George for #ManCrushMonday.
via CBS Watch! Magazine
ET Online visited Lucas Till in his Hometown. We got to meet his mom, his younger brother and a high school friend. In an interview with TVLine, Lucas talked about Nikki, Murdoc and his favorite MacGyverism.
The soundbites aren’t new, but in an interview with TV Insider posted on November 25, Executive Producer Peter Lenkov affirmed that he’s still planning on a crossover with Hawaii Five-O.
In case you wondered what had happened to the huge Wall Painting on Hotel Figueroa in LA that was made back in the first promo wave: It got painted over with an ad for Apple’s iPhone.
Cast, Crew and Character News Central Casting Georgia has made several casting calls; e.g. for men who are trained with guns, for business men and women who own expensive luggage, for wedding guests, groomsmen and bridesmaids and for hispanic looking males with upscale wedding guest style attire.
The masks of the Asian General and George Washington were made by Larry Torro. He provided a picture of the president’s mask from Episode 8 on Instagram. I think the masks look very good and I really hope we’ll see more of them, now that Bozer has joined the team.
via Larry Torro
Amy Acker recently revealed at a convention in Asia that she will be back on the show. On November 18, Peter Lenkov posted footage of a scene of Amy’s character Sarah with Jack; confirming that she’s already been filming her scenes. On the same day, Tracy Spiridakos posted a picture on Instagram that confirmed she was also back on set.
Interestingly, Preston James Hillier (who’s played Amy’s boyfriend / fiancé Jeff on Episode 2) also tweeted on that day; saying that he enjoyed to work with Lucas and George again. What’s even more interesting is a comment on that tweet that was later removed (after I pointed out to this person that this tweet might be a spoiler – you’ve been warned!).
The deleted tweet complimented Preston and made a statement about being a proud mother of the groom. We already know that there will be a wedding scene in this season and that they’ve been filming in a church; so I’ll predict that Jack will get his heart broken in the mid-season finale (for now, Preston is listed for Episode 12 on IMDb).
Disclaimer: My original guest-post was first published on The MacGyver Project on November 11, 2016. I made some minor changes (e.g. grammar or source corrections, link corrections, additional pictures) before re-posting it on my own blog for safe-keeping.
Cast and crew are busy working on more episodes until they get to enjoy a break over Christmas. Also, our favorite villain will come back in today’s episode!
Episode 1×08: Corkscrew (via SpoilerTV)
(Spoiler Alert: To avoid spoilers, I won’t post any pictures that are too revealing, but you will get spoilered by reading this post or by clicking on the links provided!)
So this is Christmas…
As I mentioned last time, we don’t see much current material anymore from the main cast. Lucas Till posted some pictures of MacGyver doing bad, bad things like stealing money and holding guns. He also shared some new stills and BtS-pictures of Episode 7. Justin Hires posted a nice picture of the male trio.
We also got a throwback to Episode 2 (Metal Saw): SkyDroneCinema just posted a video today of Jack and MacGyver chasing “Julio”.
It looks like they’re filming a Christmas Episode at the moment. First, Executive Producer Peter Lenkov posted paperclip art snow flakes on November 8. The next day, he shared a picture of Christmas Stockings. Looks like Jack has been a naughty boy!
Lucas Till was also seen on set wearing a pretty warm coat. So far no skis, (fake) snow or hockey sticks, though. I tend to forget that MacGyver is not filming in Vancouver anymore. (It’s also Original MacGyver’s fault that I used to think it snows regularly in California *ahem*.)
Stand-In Mikey Leo granted us a look at the “second team” while Extra Aimee Carrero assures us she’s acting “totally normally” in her scene.
Brian Durkin (who wrote Episode 6) shared visualizations and early drawings of an old school bomb defusal technique called “tape and line”. According to his statements on Twitter, he had many conversations with real bomb defusal technicians while doing research for the script.
Premieres of Episodes 6 and 7
I assumed ratings would rise some more for the Halloween Episode, but I’m not up to date with sport events (especially not sporty events abroad) and didn’t take into account that the world series would have an effect. So, it’s no surprise that ratings for Episode 6 (Wrench, 7.27 million) have been lower than expected (which is a shame because I actually think this episode was the best so far). Nonetheless: The Hashtag #MacGyver has been trending again – as it has for every episode premiere this season.
Episode 7 (Can Opener, 7.59 million) got better ratings and the numbers might rise again for Episode 8: I assume that many people will tune in for the return of Murdoc – maybe even people that have abandoned the show after the pilot or the first few episodes.
Sneak Peeks and Previews
We got several sneak and previews for Episode 7; e.g. by Yahoo or by ET Online. Stunt Extra Raul Colon shared a few BtS-pictures of his Laundry-Room-Fight with MacGyver.
Entertainment Weeklybrought an exclusive clip of Episode 8, where Bozer meets Murdoc. It fits the short video clip that Peter Lenkov posted a few days earlier with Team MacGyver all dressed up for a mission in an Art Gallery.
Interviews and Articles CBS Watch! Magazine revealed on October 28 that there will be a feature article including a photoshoot with Lucas Till and George Eads in January.
via CBS Watch! Magazine
On November 2, Peter Lenkov shared an article by TVGuidefor Episode 7. TVLine did an interview with David Dastmalchian about his take on Murdoc.
TVInsider spoke with Lucas Till and George Eads. Lucas revealed that he hasn’t reached out to Richard Dean Anderson yet and that he’s a little afraid of what RDA would have to say about the show and his take on the iconic character.
The NY Post did interviews with Lucas and Peter Lenkov. Lenkov revealed that the show will see “a major change” early next year at the Phoenix Foundation: “Fans will probably figure it out because a lot of Easter eggs have been planted.”
Cast, Crew and Character News Central Casting Georgia has made several casting calls; e.g. for middle school students, for motorized scooters or for Asian men and women with military and gun training experience.
via Arnold Hernandez
It seems like Arnold Hernandez met the guy who is responsible for the paper clip art. Hernandez put Lee Folds to the test and got a paperclip guitar in return. That’s pretty awesome and I really hope we will get some BtS-material or an article about these little props some day.
We already know that both Murdoc and Nikki (Tracy Spiridakos) will show up on Episode 8. On November 4, Justin Hires confirmed our suspicions that he will join Team MacGyver. According to a tweet by Vinnie Jones, he also might come back to “kick some asses”. Looks like someone still holds a grudge.
Dashboard On Fire 