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Television
+ Last week, CBS and NBC seemed to prepare for the possibility of a long
strike by releasing new winter schedules chock-full of reality TV. But
one scripted series producer got some very good news. Dick Wolf — who just
18 months ago made an 11th-hour deal that spared his 18-year-old legal
drama Law & Order and its 7-year-old sibling Law & Order: Criminal
Intent — is ''absolutely delighted'' to see his flagship series return to
its old Wednesdays-at-10 time slot on Jan. 2. (Reruns of Intent, which
debuted on USA earlier this fall, will join the Wednesday lineup on Jan.
9.) NBC had previously announced it would slate the show on Sundays this
winter. But now that Life has gone dark and NBC needs original scripted
fare, Wolf has an ideal slot to introduce new cast members like Jeremy
Sisto (Six Feet Under) as Det. Cyrus Lupo. ''We'll be on against a lot of
reruns,'' Wolf says. ''I don't think [the strike] will hurt it.'' He adds
that the two shows have remained in production during the work stoppage,
though he won't say how many episodes have been completed.
+ You had it coming, Meredith! Newcomer Lauren Stamile, who joined Grey's Anatomy on Nov. 15 as feisty nurse Rose, will stick around
for at least four more episodes to play McDreamy's love interest (they
exchanged their first kiss on Dec. 6). And she was over the moon about
the possibility of acting with Patrick Dempsey — not to mention slightly
shocked: ''It was like, are you kidding me? I'm kind of geeky. I hope
people aren't disappointed.'' — Lynette Rice
Movies
+ Josh Brolin and Emile Hirsch are aligning themselves with yet another
prestige project. The duo, who are currently earning Oscar buzz for
their roles in No Country for Old Men and Into the Wild, respectively,
are in negotiations for Milk, the Gus Van Sant biopic starring Sean Penn as Harvey Milk, the late San Francisco city supervisor and gay-rights
activist. Brolin is in talks to play Dan White, the elected official who
assassinated Milk in 1978, while Hirsch is eyeing the role of street
hustler-turned-Milk aide Cleve Jones. James Franco (In the Valley of
Elah), meanwhile, is gearing up to play Milk's longtime lover, Scott
Smith. Milk — which is scheduled to begin shooting Jan. 21 in San
Francisco — is being made by Groundswell Productions and will be released
by Focus Features. — Nicole Sperling
Music
+ Is a ''Black Monday'' or ''Black Friday'' in store for the music biz this
week? Layoffs are on the way at Sony BMG, home to Rick Rubin's Columbia
Records (Bruce Springsteen, Beyoncé). Massive restructuring also looks likely for Interscope/Geffen/A&M, which could affect everything from
marketing to radio promotion for marquee artists like Fergie and
Mary J. Blige, whose new album arrives Dec. 18. And Island Def Jam (The Killers, Kanye West) just saw key execs depart in a cost-cutting move.
At least two labels can rest easy (for now): Jive and J Records, which
is boasting a hit album from Alicia Keys. Both are run by BMG chairman
Clive Davis. — Shirley Halperin
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