Liam McIntyre Replaces Andy Whitfield on "Spartacus" Season Two

[JamesG]

Starz Moving Forward with Second Season of "Spartacus", "Very Confident" in Recasting
Jan 7, 2011
by Natalie Abrams


"Spartacus: Blood and Sand" will return.

"We are officially going ahead with the long-planned, but unfortunately delayed second season of 'Spartacus'," Starz President Chris Albrecht announced at Friday's Television Critics Association's winter preview sessions.





Production on the series was halted in March after series star Andy Whitfield was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. After his cancer resurfaced, Whitfield was forced to drop out to resume aggressive treatment.

Albrecht says the network is "very confident" that its near the end of its search for someone to fill his role as Spartacus, the legendary gladiator who leads a revolt against Rome.

"We will never be able to truly replace Andy Whitfield... He is very supportive of the efforts to recast this role."







Despite the initial uncertainty over whether Whitfield would return or not, series producers say the Season 2 storyline they had planned will not change.

"Nothing good came from losing Andy," executive producer Rob Tapert says.

"If there's any upside to Andy's illness it's that we're better prepared to support the new Spartacus when he comes into the role in what will be a very epic Season 2.

It's a story that takes place no longer in the ludus, and is really the story that you normally associate with Spartacus. It's a different world and a different set of shoes to fill."







Before the series returns, Starz will premiere the prequel, "Spartacus: Gods of the Arena", which takes place five years prior to the events in the original series.

"It's a rare pleasure that never happens, when you get to go back and fill in the blanks and actually find out more about your own character," Lucy Lawless says.



Lawless, who plays Lucretia, wife to Batiatus (John Hannah), says we'll actually see her character as a devoted wife. "You get to see our characters when they're in the honeymoon phase of their lives," she says of the couple, whose fates were left uncertain at the end of Season 1.

Producers did note that despite a dagger in the belly, Lawless' character will be back in Season 2, but don't expect the same for Hannah unless Batiatus has a twin.




"Spartacus: Gods of the Arena" will premiere Friday, Jan. 21 on Starz.

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Starz-Mo...d-1027465.aspx

[JamesG]

Australian Actor Chosen as Next "Spartacus" Star
by Maureen Ryan
posted Jan 17th 2011


Australian actor Liam McIntyre will star in the second season of "Spartacus", which will be filmed this spring in New Zealand.

Starz issued a press release confirming McIntyre as the man who will replace Andy Whitfield in the title role of the gladiator series.




A prequel season, "Spartacus: Gods of the Arena", which will focus on a gladiator named Gannicus and chronicle the rise of gladiator owner Batiatus, will begin airing on Starz Jan. 21.

The second full season of "Spartacus" is not expected to air until early 2012.







Here is Starz's complete press release:

Australian film and TV actor Liam McIntyre has excelled at a grueling and rigorous audition process to claim the title role in the second season of Starz' hit franchise, "Spartacus," Starz, LLC, President and CEO Chris Albrecht announced today.

McIntyre takes over the role of the Thracian warrior sold into slavery in the Roman Republic city of Capua – where he rises to become the champion of the city – before leading the slave revolt that ended Season 1.

The part was played in the first season of "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" by Andy Whitfield, who was forced to leave the show in order due to health issues. Whitfield gave his blessing to the recasting.







"Since no one can really replace Andy, we realized that we should instead find an actor who can truly lead 'Spartacus' forward," Albrecht notes.

"It was important to us to have Andy endorse the idea of recasting this part, which he did in the same heroic manner that he's dealt with his whole ordeal. And that, coupled with our fortune in finding a young actor with the gladiator credentials and the acting ability of Liam, makes it easier for us to keep this hit franchise going."






From the time "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" debuted on Starz in January, 2010, it established itself as an epic production with rich storytelling and visuals unlike anything seen previously on any TV show.

Audiences responded immediately, making it the most-watched premiere in Starz' history, and making the show the most watched cable program on nearly two-thirds of the Fridays it aired original episodes.






Also starring John Hannah as Batiatus, Lucy Lawless as Lucretia, Peter Mensah as Doctore, Manu Bennett as Crixus and Viva Bianca as Ilythia, "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" was one of the most talked-about and best-loved TV shows of 2010.

Season 2 of the series finds Spartacus and his fellow gladiators now out of Capua and engaged in the massive slave rebellion against Roman society that has echoed through time.








"Spartacus: Gods of the Arena," a six-part prequel that tells the story of the House of Batiatus gladiator school, and the intricate personal, sexual and political maneuverings in Capua five years before "Blood and Sand" was set, debuts at 10 p.m. et/pt on Friday, Jan. 21.

Dustin Clare, as the charismatic and self-destructive gladiator Gannicus, joins Hannah, Lawless, Mensah and Bennett in the event series.
http://www.tvsquad.com/2011/01/17/spartacus-liam/