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 #190

We finally got some more material and news regarding The Collective. Also, Richard Dean Anderson visited Germany.

Amanda Tapping and Richard Dean Anderson at FedCon Germany (via Rico Rossberg)

(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
A first movie poster for The Collective with Lucas Till has been released last month. Since last week, director Tom DeNucci has shared new material in the form of short BtS videos on YouTube.

On May 9, Deadline reported that Quiver Distribution has acquired North American rights; with plans to release the film on August 4.

BtS Video Screenshot of Lucas Till and Mercedes Vernado filming a fight scene for The Collective (via Tom DeNucci)

On May 18, Screen Daily revealed more international distributors.

The film (…) has sold to Quiver for the US and Canada, CDC for Latin America, and Defiant for Australia and New Zealand.

(…) also closed deals for German-speaking Europe (Palatin), Italy (Eagle), Spain (Divisa Red), Poland (Monolith), Czech Republic and Romania (Vertical), former Yugoslavia (Blitz), Benelux (Premiere), Middle East (Front Row), and South Africa (Gravel Road).

Screen Daily, May 18

It’s not easy to predict if we get the chance for theatrical releases and/or a red carpet event. It’s safe to say that the German distributor is a very small player. Their last news item on the website is from 2021 and they don’t even have a digital catalogue listed. So it will probably be a straight-to-VOD-release in German-speaking regions.

Amanda Tapping and Richard Dean Anderson at FedCon Germany (via Claire)

While checking the websites of the other distributors, I couldn’t find any release dates but one. According to the website of Première TV Distribution, they set a VOD release date of September 21.

Conventions around the globe
Several MacGyver-related actors did conventions in Germany recently. Henry Ian Cusick attended the German Comic Con Spring Edition (May 6 and 7) in Dortmund.

Original MacGyver Richard Dean Anderson attended SciFi Convention FedCon in Bonn (May 26 to 28). He did several panels with other actors from Stargate SG1; also making the Jack/Sam shippers very happy.

David Dastmalchian attends the Premiere of The Boogeyman in LA (Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic via Getty Images)

What are Cast and Crew up to?
David Dastmalchian attended the premiere plus some additional red carpet events for horror movie The Boogeyman. He has some big movie releases scheduled for this year.

Henry Ian Cusick guest-starred in the two last episodes of NCIS: Hawaii this season. Apparently, his character has the potential to come back next season – but with the likely delay in filming due to the writer’s strike, it might be a while until we know about it.

On Memorial Day (May 29), Tristin Mays posted a new short film on Instagram. She promised more BtS material and Sneak Peeks on her new Instagram account for Black Sheep Productions. There are many more companies of the same name, but I haven’t found an official website yet.

Lucas Till on set of The Spook Who Sat By The Door (via Gerard McMurray)

For months, there was no new information regarding Justin Hires‘ movie Half Baked 2. On May 26, news sites reported on the movie getting an R rating and an official title: Half Baked: Totally High. There is still no release date, but it will probably go directly to streaming.

Burn It Down
Maureen (Mo) Ryan’s book about toxic showrunners will be released next Tuesday (June 6). Mo broke the story of Peter Lenkov’s abuse against cast and crew in the Vanity Fair article (which was probably the nail in the coffin for Lenkov’s career at CBS). In the preview on Amazon for the hardcover book, the full index of names is revealed; with Lenkov listed twice.

Marlon Webb and Tristin Mays in Masters of the House (via Kevin Bennylee)

After Vanity Fair published a chapter of the book regarding TV show LOST on May 30, pre-sales piled up. Just a day later, it soared up on several Amazon bestseller lists; reaching No. 1 in the categories Media Studies, Discrimination & Racism and Movie & Video History & Criticism. It reached Rank 716 on the Kindle Store. Yesterday, Meredith Eaton stated she has pre-ordered it.

Mo is scheduled for several podcast interviews and festival panels; but not for a full book tour (yet).

Other MacGyver-related News
We got a new/old BtS photo of Lucas Till on set of the unaired pilot for The Spook Who Sat By The Door via director Gerard McMurray.

BtS Video Screenshot of Lucas Till filming the Unaired MacGyver Pilot (via Aerial Dolly)

After 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). The clip is mostly wind machines and offers only a glimpse of Lucas. (But we take all what we can get about this mysterious pilot, right?)

Henry Ian Cusick is scheduled to attend East European Comic Con in Romania (August 25 to 27).

MacGyver Reboot Update #189

Reboot fans have been waiting for months regarding release dates and promo for upcoming projects. So far, we finally got some news regarding The Collective.

Poster for The Collective (via Movie Meter)

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The Collective with Lucas Till
We finally got a first movie poster for The Collective. The Movie Meter site states a runtime of 95 minutes.

Director Tom DeNucci has been busy promoting his new movie Johnny and Clyde this week. In an interview with Amanda Bacon, DeNucci said that The Collective will be out in August. On May 9, Deadline reported that Quiver Distribution has acquired North American rights; with plans to release the film on August 4. They provided a first still with Don Johnson and a slight variation of the poster in better quality. Additionally, it has Lucas’ name being first on the poster instead of last. It’s not clear yet if we get the chance for a theatrical release and/or a red carpet event.

Richard Dean Anderson at Prague Comic Con (via Extra CZ)

Great Escape handles worldwide sales while Première TV Distribution will handle distribution in Belgium and the Netherlands. According to their website, they set a VOD release date of September 21. With the Cannes Film Festival starting soon, it’s possible that the production company will try to shop it to international distributors at the Marché du Film.

Conventions around the globe
Several MacGyver-related actors did conventions in the last few weeks:

• Original MacGyver Richard Dean Anderson attended Comic Con Prague (April 14 to 16); doing photo shoots and a panel with his Stargate SG-1 co-star Corin Nemec. You can find photos and videos of the event here.
• David Dastmalchian was at Amazing Comic Con in Las Vegas (April 29 and 30); presenting his current comic issue of Count Crowley.
• Henry Ian Cusick attended the German Comic Con Spring Edition (May 6 and 7) in Dortmund.

There are more conventions planned in the next few months:

• Richard Dean Anderson is scheduled to attend SciFi Convention FedCon in Germany (May 26 to 28). He will do both individual and Stargate SG-1 group stage panels and photo ops. You can find more information here.

What are Cast and Crew up to?
Henry Ian Cusick is guest-starring for the two last episodes of NCIS: Hawaii this season. Additionally, animated show The Wingfeather Saga has been renewed for Season 2, so there’s more Peet The Sockman coming.

Henry Ian Cusick in NCIS: Hawaii (via CBS)

ICYMI: Tristin Mays attended several carpet premieres in the last few weeks; e.g. the premiere of Dungeons and Dragons or a special screening for Season 2 of sci-fi horror series FROM.

Together with Marlon Webb, she created an Instagram account for Black Sheep Productions. It’s not an officially registered production company, yet – but there is a registration application pending (filed on February 18). And while the logo on the insta account shows both Tristin and Marlon, Tristin seems to be the owner of the company (at least on paper). According to the USPTO Report website, the

BLACK SHEEP PRODUCTIONS LLC™ trademark registration is intended to cover the categories of production of films; Film production; Media production services, namely, video and film production; Music video production; Television show production.

USPTO

There’s no new information regarding her movie releases or Justin Hires‘ movie Half Baked 2. In a recent podcast episode, he stated that he’s involved in developing several TV projects that he will pitch to networks soon. The writer’s strike might have put a stop on these projects as the networks are already retracting from renewal and cancellation decisions just days before Upfronts.

Tristin Mays attending a special screening for sci-fi horror series FROM (Paul Archuleta/Getty Images)

Other MacGyver-related News
On March 25, MacGyver Writers Teresa Huang and Jim Adler attended a TV writing panel at Wonder Con. You can find the video here. According to the WGA directory site, Teresa was working on Avatar: The Last Airbender before the writer’s strike started. She posted several photos taken when picketing in front of several studios.

Other MacGyver-related news you might have missed:

• ICYMI: Costume Designer Sarah Downer started her own Etsy Shop; selling “all things retro and kitsch”.
• Both MacGyver stores on the CBS merch page still seem to be deactivated; with “broken” images on the stores overview page.

MacGyver Reboot Update #188

Reboot fans are waiting for news regarding release dates and promo for new projects. Meanwhile, the OG fans got some nice goodies in recent weeks.

Corin Nemec and Richard Dean Anderson at Prague Comic Con (via Extra CZ)

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Conventions around the globe
Original MacGyver Richard Dean Anderson attended Steel City Con (March 31 to April 2) in Pittsburgh. He was excited to attend his first convention in four years and did photo shoots with his co-star Teri Hatcher (who played Penny Parker in the original show).

Two weeks later, RDA attended Comic Con Prague (April 14 to 16); doing photo shoots and a panel with his Stargate SG-1 co-star Corin Nemec. You can find photos and videos of the event here.

Richard Dean Anderson at Prague Comic Con (via Extra CZ)

There are more conventions planned in the next few months:

• David Dastmalchian will attend Amazing Comic Con in Las Vegas (April 29 and 30); presenting his current comic issue of Count Crowley.
• Henry Ian Cusick is scheduled to attend the German Comic Con Spring Edition (May 6 and 7) in Dortmund.
• Richard Dean Anderson is scheduled to attend SciFi Convention FedCon in Germany (May 26 to 28).

The Collective with Lucas Till
There haven’t been many news regarding The Collective with Lucas Till in the last few months. But according to IMDb, Première TV Distribution will handle distribution in Belgium and the Netherlands. According to their website, they set a VOD release date of September 21.

Potential Lucas Till in The Collective (via Tom Denucci)

They’ve also added a new synopsis:

In this high-octane action thriller, an elite group of secret agents called “The Collective” operates in the shadows of the international underworld. Headed by Liam James (Don Johnson), the group’s newest recruit is Sam Alexander (Lucas Till), a former District Attorney disillusioned by the justice system. Sam’s first assignment is to rendezvous with in-hiding Collective member Hugo Fredericks (Tyrese Gibson). Together, their mission will be to take down a human trafficking ring – fronted by the vicious Daisy (Ruby Rose) – that has nabbed a government whistleblower and set him on an auction block for the highest bidder. If the Collective agents are unable rescue their asset in time and his intel falls into the wrong hands, their failure will have perilous consequences and send shockwaves across the globe.

Première TV Distribution Website

Director Tom DeNucci just finished filming a movie and will start filming a webseries on Sunday. It seemed like he put The Collective on the back burner for a while, but he posted a few Instagram stories indicating that he’s still doing post-production regarding ADR and sound effects.

Video screenshot of Justin Hires in podcast All Hustle No Fear (via YouTube)

What are Cast and Crew up to?
Rebooted Murdoc actor David Dastmalchian did the promo cycle for Late Night with the Devil; a movie that was co-produced by his production company Good Fiend Films. He’s also spotted (for a second) in the trailer for horror film Boogeyman (which will be released on June 2nd in the US).

Henry Ian Cusick keeps himself busy. In my last blog post, I wondered why he was sporting a mustache and a shorter haircut and if he’s working on a new project. Turns out he is listed for the two last episodes of NCIS: Hawaii this season (although he’s not wearing the mustache on the BtS photos). Additionally, animated show The Wingfeather Saga has been renewed for Season 2, so there’s more Peet The Sockman coming.

Tristin Mays at the premiere of Dungeons and Dragons (via Bianca Malinowski)

On April 1st, Tristin Mays posted the video of another self-made project with Marlon Webb. She attended several carpet premieres in the last few weeks; e.g. posing with Bianca Malinowski (rebooted Penny Parker) at the premiere of Dungeons and Dragons or a special screening for Season 2 of sci-fi horror series FROM. Deadline mentioned her in an article posted on April 14; revealing the synopsis for indie movie The Comic Shop.

Justin Hires once mentioned a planned release date of April 20 for Half Baked 2. So far, there’s no trailer, poster or distributor news. In a recent podcast episode with Mike Eshaq, he stated that he doesn’t know when it’s coming out and that he’s involved in developing several TV projects (one a game show, another one a scripted show) that he will pitch to networks soon. In a recent episode of his own podcast, he talked about why he had turned down a comedy special.

David Dastmalchian at the IMDb Portrait Studio Photo Call at SXSW 2023 (Robby Klein/Contour via Getty Images)

Other MacGyver-related News
On March 25, MacGyver Writers Teresa Huang and Jim Adler attended a TV writing panel at Wonder Con. The organizers said it would be online about a week later, but so far I wasn’t able to find it.

Back in December, Ex-Showrunner Peter Lenkov did an episode of the Sensory Deprivation Podcast. He was quite open and reflectful in some moments; e.g. talking about being OCD and ADD and a micro-manager, and stating that he needed to change his behavior. But the host didn’t hide the fact that he is a big fan and clearly in favor of Lenkov regarding of what happened at CBS, which influenced the episode in my opinion. And in instagram stories last month, he just indicated that Meredith Eaton and Lucas Till are “terrible people”.

Teresa Huang and Jim Adler at WonderCon (via Chad Kennedy)

Other MacGyver-related news you might have missed:

• Sandrine Holt has been cast in David Cronenberg movie The Shrouds; alongside Guy Pearce, Vincent Cassel and Diane Kruger.
• Costume Designer Sarah Downer started her own Etsy Shop; selling “all things retro and kitsch”.
• Both MacGyver stores on the CBS merch page still seem to be deactivated; with “broken” images on the stores overview page.

MacGyver Reboot Update #187

The waiting game continues. Fans are itching for news regarding release dates and promo related to their favorite cast. Therefore, this might be my shortest update post ever.

New/Old portrait photo for Un fils du Sud during the 2021 Deauville American Film Festival (Olivier Vigerie / Contour by Getty Images)

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What are Cast and Crew up to?
Rebooted Murdoc actor David Dastmalchian and his production company Good Fiend Films held the world premiere of their horror movie Late Night with the Devil at SXSW Film Festival in Texas.

Since then, David has done several screenings at other events; alongside carpet premieres and photo calls for the press junket.

David Dastmalchian at the IMDb Portrait Studio Photo Call at SXSW 2023 (Corey Nickols via Getty Images)

On March 3, Henry Ian Cusick took part in a livestream for The Wingfeather Saga. The animated show has already been renewed for Season 2, so there’s more Peet The Sockman coming. Sporting a mustache and a shorter haircut, I’m not sure if this is his usual hiatus look or if he’s already working on something else.

His movie Jamojaya is screening at the Hawai’i International Film Festival (HIFF) Spring Showcase on March 31. He has another movie in post-production, but there’s no release date yet.

There haven’t been any news regarding The Collective with Lucas Till. Director Tom DeNucci just finished filming another movie last week and keeps posting clips of Seclusion while editing; putting The Collective on the back burner for now. He also has another movie coming out soon.

The curious case of the missing MacGyver stores (via CBS Store)

It might be a Twitter glitch, but it looks like Lucas isn’t following anyone anymore with his Twitter account (while he kept his followers and is also still following people on Instagram).

Generally, the social media presence of the MacGyver cast has been very reduced lately. The Instagram account of Henry Ian Cusick has disappeared (presumably deactivated or deleted). And while Levy Tran “un-deleted” some of her former Instagram posts and is using a new profile photo, she hasn’t posted anything new.

ICYMI: Last month, Tristin Mays teased us with seeing more of her “self-made” projects soon – but so far, she hasn’t shared any more material and sightings have become rare.

Levy Tran on set of Secret Headquarters (via Mike Bless)

Justin Hires had mentioned a planned release date of April 20 for Half Baked 2 in a podcast episode. So far, there’s no trailer, poster or distributor news. It’s not a typical film festival movie, but they could still try to shop it around. Otherwise, I’ll expect a straight-to-streaming release.

Justin did a recent radio show interview on All Hustle No Fear (which I didn’t have a chance to listen to yet).

Other MacGyver-related News
Tomorrow, MacGyver Writers Teresa Huang and Jim Adler will attend a TV writing panel at Wonder Con.

Original MacGyver Richard Dean Anderson will attend Steel City Con (March 31 to April 2) in Pittsburgh. He’s excited to attend his first convention in four years. RDA is also scheduled to attend Comic Con Prague (April 14 to 16) and SciFi Convention FedCon in Germany (May 26 to 28.

Other MacGyver-related news you might have missed:

• Sandrine Holt has been cast in TV Show Daredevil: Born Again.
• CBS seems to have deactivated both MacGyver merch stores. It’s not clear if they’re updating again or closing down for good; especially since those two stores are the only ones not working currently. The last time this happened, the stores were down for months.
• David Dastmalchian will attend Amazing Comic Con in Las Vegas (April 29 and 30) to present his current comic issue of Count Crowley.
• Henry Ian Cusick is scheduled to attend the German Comic Con Spring Edition (May 6 and 7) in Dortmund.

MacGyver Reboot Update #184

The MacGyver cast has several movies in post-production. Also, the MacGyver Musical concept album is out today.

Lucas Till on set of The Collective (via Sid O’Connell)

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

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Upcoming Movie Projects for the MacGyver Cast
Several cast members of the MacGyver Reboot have movies in post-production:

• Jamojaya with Henry Ian Cusick premiered at Sundance Film Festival on January 23. There’s no cinematic release date yet. It might be screened at more festivals first.
• The Collective with Lucas Till: I don’t expect a release date announced before early Summer. It’s probably a limited cinematic release or straight-to-streaming.
• Bang with Tristin Mays: An Instagram post back in October stated “April”. Since then, there was no mention of it. The project doesn’t even have an IMDb page. I expect a release straight-to-streaming.
• The Comic Shop with Tristin Mays has wrapped just before Christmas. I expect a limited cinematic release, though it might be shopped at film festivals.
• For Cory with Levy Tran was made by stunt crew mostly. It’s a new production company, so they might try shopping it around at film festivals.
• Expend4bles with Levy Tran: The release date is set for September 22. I expect an US and international cinematic release; including several press circuits.
• The script for Half Baked 2 was written by Justin Hires (who also has a cameo in it). It is planned as straight-to-streaming, but could still get a limited cinematic release.

What are Cast and Crew up to?
We got a few new BtS photos for The Collective; e.g. of the portraits photoshoot by Still Photographer Bryan Marchulaitis or by Sid O’Connell. Sadly, several crew members deleted BtS photos after excited fans had re-uploaded the photos across several social media platforms and websites without giving proper credit.

Henry Ian Cusick doing a photocall for Jamojaya at Sundance (Emily Assiran/Contour via Getty Images)

A second press release by Deadline announced Paul Ben-Victor and Mercedes Varnado as co-stars. In And Action! Podcast Episode 33 regarding stunts, director Tom DeNucci teased the fans that the movie will be very action-packed and stunt-heavy; and that he was very pleased with the first cut after the editing sessions.

It’s been about 3 years, but the promo for Son of the South hasn’t stopped. On February 4, Lucas Till will make an appearance at an honorary screening for Bob Zellner (who’s story the movie is based on) in Seattle.

In the past, the movie had had several screenings with Lucas either joining via video call or the organisators just playing a pre-recorded Q&A, so it will be nice to see him out and about again after such a long time.

Henry Ian Cusick attended the premiere of Jamojaya at Sundance; joining the photo calls and Q&As and enjoying several days at the festival. Including the premiere, there will be 7 screenings in total. The Season Finale of Big Sky aired on January 18. The show hasn’t been renewed yet.

According to Deadline, rebooted Murdoc actor David Dastmalchian has launched his own production company called Good Fiend Films. The company will produce character-driven projects across horror, sci-fi and fantasy for film, television, audio and publishing. The first project released will be horror movie Late Night with the Devil, starring David as a 1970s late-night talk show host. The film will make its world premiere at SXSW Film Festival in Texas this March.

Tristin Mays and Marlon Webb attending the premiere of The Last of Us (Rodin Eckenroth via WireImage)

On January 9, Tristin Mays attended the Los Angeles Premiere of the new HBO show The Last of Us. She was accompanied by Marlon Webb.

In a new episode of In My Feelings, Justin Hires talked about why he had stopped auditioning for a while in 2021. He mentioned that he’s developing and producing some shows that have A-list-actors attached. Justin is also working on the script for Homecoming again (a movie that has been in development for quite some time).

Yesterday, Levy Tran posted an Instagram Story with the statement “Yay for knee rehabilitation excercises”; hinting at hurting her knee a while ago. She revealed that she was barely able to walk stairs last month; finally being able to do squats again.

Eli Cusick and Henry Ian Cusick doing a photocall for Jamojaya at Sundance (John Salangsang/Variety via Getty Images)

There’s still no news regarding Meredith Eaton or George Eads.

MacGyver The Musical
ICYMI: The release date for the MacGyver Musical Album is set for today. You can find the track list and order the album here.

Singers and producers did several short interviews for promo; for example Brandon Victor Dixon (e.g. with Musical Theatre Radio), Lee David Zlotoff (e.g. for TV Brittany or for Like It’s Live with Peter Lurye) or Tristin Mays (for the Official MacGyver Account).

For people who have subscribed to Lee’s Musical Newsletter, an exclusive interview with Tristin and some BtS footage should drop today as well.

MacGyver The Musical CD Cover (via Broadway Records)

There have been hints about the musical launching stage productions in other cities for a limited run. Since then, there has been no concrete news regarding another stage run being planned or which city will be next.

I’d never produced a musical before. I’d never produced an album before. But I said, “Well, you know, we’ll just MacGyver our way through this.” And that’s exactly what we did.

Lee David Zlotoff, via TV Britanny F (January 25)

Other MacGyver-related News
MacGyver Reboot guest star Sheryl Lee Ralph (Mama Colton) won a Critics Choice Award as “Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series” in Abbott Elementary.

Tristin Mays and Jesse Metcalfe in a BtS photo on set of The Comic Shop (via Jonathan Bowen)

Other MacGyver-related news you might have missed:

• Since January 6, ion Mystery airs reruns of ten episodes of the MacGyver Reboot on Fridays.
• The German DVD/BluRay of Secret Headquarters with Levy Tran was released on January 19. The UK version was released on January 23.
• Richard Dean Anderson will attend Steel City Con (March 31 to April 2) in Pittsburgh.
• According to this tweet, RDA will also attend Comic Con Prague (April 14 to 16). He’s not listed on the website yet, but fellow actor Corin Nemec (Stargate SG-1) is.