from tvscoop:


I thought that Buffy heartthrob James Marsters was pretty good in the recent Torchwood series (not that the series was actually any good) and he seems to have enjoyed his stay in the UK because the man they used to call Spike is in final negotiations to appear in an ITV film, which tells the story of the first Apollo moon landing in 1969. Thanks to his Buffy efforts and Torchwood adventures (where he pretty much killed and shagged everything that moved) we're used to seeing in bonkers roles. However, ITV has a more orthodox role in mind for him.

Image: Rex Features

Marsters is reportedly in final negotiations to star as Buzz Aldrin in the 90-mnute film, Moonshot. If he accepts the role, he will play pioneering astronaut Buzz Aldrin, which will be a bit of a turn-around.

The film, according to The Hollywood Reporter, will begin 11 days before the launch, and will follow fellow astronauts Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins as they prepare for the big space flight.

Filming will be done in Lithuania, and has been commissioned by ITV popular factual wing. I wonder whether it'll be a drama-doc, rather than a straightforward drama. We shall soon see...

Moonshot will air in July next year, to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the landing.

I, for some odd reason had it in my head he was doing this in the UK. Lithuania......wonder if he'll meet Mab

It has 3 production companies behind it. ITV is the UK branch (and this will be shown in the UK), Pro-Siebens is the German branch (and it will be aired in Germany) and The History Channel in the USA (where it will air on the 40th anniversary of the launch...meaning next July) .


So,even though it will be seen on tv screens and not in theaters, it IS going to reach a lot of new viewers for James and should get quite a bit of publicity as it gets nearer.

Heck, tv guide already ran a pic of James and the announcement that he is off making this.

This is a great move. At least it seems like SOME people are noticing this guy is great and has a huge fan base. The only reason he isn;t huge is he's never had a big breakout role for general audiances.

You didn't catch my Mab reference. Remember the blooper from Summer Knight on his website? Shoot, I went to re listen and it was Latvia not Lithuania. close, but no cigar

Probably, because I hate hearing him say "Mab". There is an Irish name Maebh....that sounds like Maeve when you say it. It always makes me feel like I'm listening to a mistake when I hear him say Mab. But I could be wrong and there might be a lot of Mabs in Latvia.

Kosha Engler, an American actress living in England has been added to Moonshot as Micheal Collins wife. I remember her from Tuck Everlasting, a movie a few years back.

Tuck Everlasting is one of my favorite books. It's very beautiful. I never saw the movie even tho I liked much of the casting cause they FRELLED it up. How could they change the age of Winnie!! The whole concept was hung on her being 12 YO Anyway, if you haven't read it, grab a copy somewhere, it's small and it will be worth it

Just a strange thought:

Kate Collins is the daughter of Michael collins. She is an actress on one of the soap operas. It would have been funny if they had hired her to play her mother. Though she's just a bit older than the role in Moonshot.


Oh, thanks to Lurky for finding the rest of the cast list:

Principal cast:
Neil Armstrong - Daniel Lapaine
Buzz Aldrin - James Marsters
Michael Collins - Andrew Lincoln
Janet Armstrong - Anna Maxwell Martin
Joan Aldrin - Kelli Kerslake
Al Shepherd - Trevor White
Chris Kraft - Colin Stinton

The Discovery Channel has 6 part series starting tonight. It shows rare film footage of the Space missions. This is part of the same group who is behind James' Moonshot so I imagine that the rare footage they had access to will find it's way into his movie as well.

Cool B did you watch?

Yes, and I learned a lot. They showed a lot of the unmanned rockets they launched as they tried to figure out how to do it (lots of them exploded in all kinds of ways!), and how they sent a monkey first (to the disappointment of all the astronauts) because 98% of the doctors thought that there could be dire consequences of being in zero gravity conditions. They didn't show much of Buzz until the end of tonights show but he was really cute and smart too. The others were having trouble doing a "spacewalk". Buzz was a diver and practiced underwater...and when it was his turn, he did it slow like that and was able to complete the "spacewalk". Can't wait for the next installment.

The Official "Moonshot" site has put up the cast photo's

http://www.dangerous.co.uk/programmes/programme_moonshot.asp

So James is done with the Moon thing and he clearly has something lined up.....could it be Captain John???? PLEASE let it be Captain John!! I need SOMETHING happy in the Who/Torchwood verse. I RTD staying with Torchwood after he leaves Doctor Who cause I'm kind of hating him now. I don't trust his ass not to have the dang Dalek attack Torchwood......again!! He's already had the damn Cyberman

I think that's a pretty good guess. According to Freema,she's starting filming TW in September...so that would fit with James not doing any more Cons for awhile. I believe his sequel to Dragonball will film in the last of 08/first part of 09.

No, Julie Gardner has said that James will not be in Season 3 of TW...though he was wonderful and they'd love to have him back sometime.


But here's some new promo pics from Moonshot to keep us going

http://www.dangerous.co.uk/index.asp

That looks seriously awesome!!! James is in almost every clip

James said that he has done an awful lot of dangerous type things that other people would hesitate about doing, but that he has always thought he had a strange lack of fear. But that on Moonshot he discovered his fear. With the helmet on, and the shield close to his face...he had the fear of smothering. He was also running a fever for a lot of the time, so that might have kicked in too.

Anyway, I bet we'll never be able to notice it in the film.

Poor thing, he really did over do last year.

Oh, it was a strain on him. He said at the party that he had not had ONE weekend off in the last year. He said when he got finished with Moonshot, he really looked his age. But that after the 4 weeks off he's had, he's happy, healthy and looking like a million bucks (he didn't say that last one...but he is! )

Scifiwire has an interview where James talks about filming Moonshot

http://scifiwire.com/2009/04/james-marsters-on-how-moo.php

Thanks to Sky for the head's up!

from Hollywood Reporter

Buzz Aldrin to be feted at RomaFictionFest
World premiere of telepic "Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11"
By Eric J. Lyman

May 20, 2009, 11:44 AM ET
ROME -- Astronaut Buzz Aldrin will be a special guest of honor at the third RomaFictionFest, Rome's international television fiction festival, the event's organizers said Wednesday.

The unlikely guest will be on hand for the world premiere of the History Channel's TV movie "Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11," directed by Richard Dale. Aldrin was one of the three astronauts on the Apollo 11 flight, along with Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins.

The screening will take place on the festival's opening night, July 6 -- exactly two weeks shy of the 40th anniversary of the date Apollo 11 became the first flight to land on the moon.

The festival concludes July 11.
Buzz Aldrin to be feted at RomaFictionFest
World premiere of telepic "Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11"
By Eric J. Lyman

May 20, 2009, 11:44 AM ET

ROME -- Astronaut Buzz Aldrin will be a special guest of honor at the third RomaFictionFest, Rome's international television fiction festival, the event's organizers said Wednesday.

The unlikely guest will be on hand for the world premiere of the History Channel's TV movie "Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11," directed by Richard Dale. Aldrin was one of the three astronauts on the Apollo 11 flight, along with Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins.

The screening will take place on the festival's opening night, July 6 -- exactly two weeks shy of the 40th anniversary of the date Apollo 11 became the first flight to land on the moon.

The festival concludes July 11.

Moonshot will air on the History Channel on July 20th.

We are still waiting to hear when ITV will air it.


xheartrockx posted this new info:


As you know Moonshot is a co-production with the German TV channel ProSieben.

I received news this morning that the movie will air on June 27th on 8.15pm on ProSieben.

Thanks to Happymeal for the head's up on this!

http://www.multichannel.com/article/279152...1_s_Landing.php

Publicity for Moonshot is starting up. James told VioletSpike that he has seen about 20 minutes of this program and it's AWESOME! I am so looking forward to it.

Reminder:
"Moonshot" will have its German premiere tomorrow, Saturday, June 27 at 20.15 o'clock on ProSieben.

History Channel has a clip up


http://www.history.com/genericContent.do?id=71504

Looks like the History Channel has Moonshot up for preorder now.


http://shop.history.com/d...dvds-and-books_pre-orders

from Keith Toppings blog (thanks to deborah37 for the head's up! )


Monday 20 July
I've mentioned this one a few weeks back when it was first announced but Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11 - 10:50 ITV - despite being on ridiculously late (why?!), looks to be the highlight of the night. This is a docudrama mixing together the story of the men who undertook the historic mission to land on the moon with genuine NASA footage from Apollo 11 itself. Dramatising key moments in the years spent preparing for the mission, the film follows the astronauts as went go through NASA's intense selection procedures and reveals the arduous Apollo training programme and its impact on their families and friendships. It stars James Marsters from Buffy (as Buzz Aldrin) and Andrew Lincoln from This Life (as Michael Collins). And it looks gorgeous. It's been made in a co-production by the History Channel and there is, apparently, a ninety-minute version that's likely to turn up over there at some stage. But, even this shortened, sixty-nine minute film is highly recommended.

nice interview with James here


http://www.nzherald.co.nz/movies/news/arti...jectid=10584587

Good article about the movie here


http://blogs.coventrytelegraph.net/thegeek...ry-was-mad.html

Article in Irish newspaper on the movie and the times

http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/tv...me-1828803.html

Moonshot will be shown on Finnish TV tomorrow afternoon


And on Belgian tv today!

Sky has collected the most complete set of airdates I've seen:


Germany: 27.6.2009 (aired)
Belgium & Netherlands: 18.7.2009 - 20:35 - Belgian 1
Italy: 18.7.2009 - 21:00 - History Channel
Finland: 19.7.2009 - 15:10 - MTV3
Sweden: 19.7.2009 - 15:05 - TV4 (TV4 HD)
Denmark: 19.7.2009 - 15:05 - Svensk TV4
Switzerland: 19.7.2009 - 21:00 - TSI1
France: 19.7.2009 - 23:25 - TF1
19.7.2009 - 21:00 (9pm) - History Channel: Argentina | Bolivia | Brasil | Caribe | Chile | Colombia | Costa Rica | Ecuador | El Salvador | Guatemala | Nicaragua | Honduras | México | Panamá | Perú | Paraguay | Puerto Rico | República Dominicana | Uruguay | Venezuela
US: 20.7.2009 - 21:00 (9pm) - History Channel
UK: 20.7.2009 - 22:50 (10:50pm) & 25.7. - 16:00 (4:00pm) - ITV 1
Australia: 20.7.2009 - 20:30 (8:30pm) - BBC Knowledge
Ireland: 20.7.2009 - 22:50 - UTV
Spain: 20.7.2009 - 22:15 (or at 23:00) - La Sexta (thank you)
Česká republika: - 21.7.2009 - 20:00 - ČT1 & 23.7.2009 - 09:10 - ČT2
Norway: 21.7.2009 - 22:15 - NRK2
Estonia: 21.7.2009 - 21:30 - ETV-s
Poland: 21.7.2009 - 22:00 - BBC Knowledge
New Zealand: 26.7.2009 - 20:30 (8:30pm) - Prime TV
Slovensko: zatím se mi nepodařilo najít, ale většina z vás, jak vás znám, stejně chytá ČT 1


Thanks so much, Sky!

Thanks for the info B and the reminder. It was awesome. I'll definately get the DVDs. I'm glad James got to do this part and what great exposure but I'm sure more important to him to get to be a part of something like this.

The history Channel is his recreational go-to programming. He doesn't watch drama...just likes to learn about the world. So, yes, this is a huge thrill for him as well as being something that I think will open some doors for him.

The History Channel schedule:

Moonshot will be re-aired twice today.. At 8 AM and at 2PM. If you haven't seen it yet, it's good work on James' part.