Coming Up This Week: March 10th-16th

The Xbox One's biggest exclusive of 2014 lands this week, plus there's a blast from the past for Agent Coulson!
It may not be as packed as its predecessor, yet this week still has a couple of great treats on the way for entertainment fans the world over. Better yet, from now on, the industry's offerings only continue to increase in frequency, so our 'Coming Up This Week' feature series will only become more valuable in the weeks ahead.

Let's not get too ahead of ourselves, though. Without further ado, here's our round-up of what's to come during the next seven days:

• MARVEL'S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D.: YES MEN- If the first appearance of a member of the Asgardian race in Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. back in Episode 8 left fans wanting, then their fully-fledged return this week should be the perfect antidote. Lady Sif herself is landing on Earth this time around in order to hunt down and capture a world-conquering trickstress named Lorelei (and if her resume reminds you of a certain beloved foe played by Tom Hiddleston, it's no coincidence, since Loki and Lorelei regularly team up in the comics to take down Thor!), a premise which should finally enable ABC and Marvel Studios to bring their show up to scratch with the glorious special effects of the Marvel Cinematic Universe films. Make no mistake, this is an episode which Marvelites will not want to miss under any circumstances, and will no doubt have them proclaiming "Another!" come its closing credits. (Tuesday 11th- ABC)
• TITANFALL (XBOX ONE & PC)- With Halo 5 currently rumoured to have been delayed until Spring 2015 or beyond, it looks as if Titanfall is set to be the Xbox One's main exclusive title of 2014. Don't fret, however, since Respawn's franchise début is showing all the signs of a game with the right to ascend to the throne of Best Multiplayer Title of the year, not least thanks to its unparalleled man-vs.-machine gameplay and the total lack of a single-player campaign allowing the ex-COD development team to focus their efforts exclusively on the much-discussed/-complemented online experience. For Xbox 360 fans waiting in the wings for Bluepoint Games' current-generation port, there's not too long to go now, with the ported version in question scheduled to launch in two weeks' time...(Friday 14th- Xbox One, PC)
• AND THERE'S MORE- The Michael McIntyre Chat Show premières on BBC One tomorrow, March 10th, plus The Butler, Death In Paradise Series 3, Outnumbered Series 5, Ender's Game, Fleming- The Man Who Would Be Bond and Beauty and the Beast Season 1 all land at DVD and Blu-Ray retailers everywhere tomorrow too.
• AND NEXT WEEK...Prepare for the entertainment release roster to pick up once again with an almighty bang, as The Hunger Games: Catching Fire débuts on DVD and Blu-Ray, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. continues with the team closing down on the Clairvoyant in The End of the Beginning, Diggle comes face-to-face with an iconic team of DC villains in Arrow: Suicide Squad, Konami launch their full prologue to Metal Gear Solid V in the form of Ground Zeroes (on Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3 and PC) and Sony's biggest PS4 exclusive of 2014, Infamous: Second Son, launches!

For all the latest news, reviews, previews and features on the entertainment industry's upcoming offerings, stay tuned to On-Screen in the days ahead.

Zorro Reboot Writer Announced

Antonio Banderas' Zorro is no more, as the first details on Sony's series reboot emerge.
Sony Pictures have today announced the writer attached to pen the screenplay of their upcoming reboot of the Zorro film franchise. The move to revive and reset the series comes after Columbia lost the rights to the 'Zorro' brand as a result of their commercial failures with The Mask of Zorro (1998) and The Legend of Zorro (2005), both of which starred Antonio Banderas as the titular swashbuckling defender of justice.

Chris Boal (a little-known American playwright, though we're sure that that won't be the case in a few years' time!) will be taking over writing duties on the motion picture as of today, with a previous draft of the screenplay seemingly not having gone down well enough to warrant the green light from Sony as of yet. Like virtually every other reboot in recent times, the tone is intended to be darker and grittier than the franchise's previous instalments, though we'll have to reserve judgement until the first production shots and on-set photos emerge onto the interwebs. There's no release date set in stone currently, but if and when we hear more on the matter, you'll be the first to know right here.

For all the latest news on Zorro and other developments in the film industry, keep it On-Screen in the weeks ahead.

New Tales From The Borderlands Trailer Released

As if The Walking Dead wasn't enough for Telltale fans this year, the studio have another major project on the way...
Telltale Games and Gearbox Software have this weekend released a new trailer (below) for their upcoming episodic point-and-click video game Tales from the Borderlands. Set in the aftermath of 2012's Borderlands 2, the multi-part DLC campaign introduces two original Vault Hunters- Fiona and Rhys- as its central protagonists, combining the much-loved FPS gameplay of the first two games with Telltale's equally acclaimed stylistic approach.

It has to be said, though, that to be a part of Telltale Games is a fairly unenviable position at present. As was revealed at the Spike VGX Awards 2013 presentation, the developers are hard at work on 'episodes' based on the The Walking Dead, Borderlands and Game of Thrones franchises, and although we remain wholly confident of their potential, one thing's for certain- the next twelve months are going to be an immeasurably intense period for the studio. With any luck, their efforts will come to fruition as 2014 progresses, and even if some of their upcoming projects fail to hit the mark, chances are that we can expect at least a few superb Game of the Year contenders along the way!

Tales from the Borderlands will retail on Xbox Live, PlayStation Network and PC marketplaces this Autumn.

Call The Midwife Lead Star Departure Revealed

An Adventure in Space and Time and Line of Duty's Jessica Raine leaves the period drama tomorrow.
The Mirror and other sources have reported today that lead star Jessica Raine will depart the BBC's period drama Call the Midwife in the final episode of its third season. Raine has played the character of Jenny since the show's inception (marvellously, we might add), but in recent months has signed on to a number of other projects including the BBC Two Doctor Who 50th Anniversary docudrama An Adventure in Space and Time (which aired last November) and the BBC Two police drama Line of Duty (currently in the midst of its second season).

As the old saying goes, though, the show must go on, and that idiom remains largely true in this instance. Call The Midwife was commissioned for a fourth season of eight instalments last month, but that the actress' name was not amongst the list of confirmed returnees should have already set the alarm bells ringing for regular followers of one of the most popular period productions of recent times. We wish Jessica all the best of luck in her future endeavours both in the TV and film industry, and look forward to seeing her name inevitably adorn the cast listings of countless high-brow projects in the not too distant future. For now, at least there's still an hour left to be spent in the company of Jenny (and indeed, the notion of how the programme itself will deal with the lack of the character whose older persona has traditionally narrated events will be fascinating come Christmas 2014).

Call The Midwife concludes its third season on BBC One tomorrow, March 9th at 8pm.

In The Flesh Season Two Broadcast Window Announced

BBC Three's days may be numbered, but that doesn't mean it can't go without a bang...
Den of Geek have today confirmed a broadcast window for the second season of the BBC's supernatural drama In the Flesh. The series premièred last Spring with a critically acclaimed three-episode run, prompting the studio to commission a further six one-hour instalments with all of the show's original cast reprising their roles as the residents of the undead-infiltrated town of Roarton.

What with BBC Three's announced closure yesterday (albeit not set to take effect until October 2015), inevitably the second run will bring with it an underlying tinge of melancholy, as In the Flesh risks being killed in its prime if it fails to achieve the desired ratings to prompt a shift over to BBC One or BBC Two (the studio confirmed that all "long form" programming from their soon-to-be-axed channel will be transferred to a late evening slot on one of their two flagship networks come 2015). Thankfully, Den of Geek's spoiler free report claims that we're going to see "how sensibly and sensitively [the show's] world has been expanded, without distorting series one's compact charm", so perhaps a Season Three re-commission won't be out of the question after all...

In the Flesh returns to BBC Three for a second season of social confrontations and morally-challenging storylines aplenty this May.

New Constantine Guest Stars Announced

Robin Hood fans, prepare for a dose of deja vu...
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) have this week confirmed two actors set to star in the pilot episode of their magical drama Constantine. This loose adaptation of the DC series Hellblazer will join three other TV properties based on the comic-book publisher's various superhero franchises: Arrow, The Flash and Gotham.

We already knew before today that British performer Matt Ryan (Torchwood; 500 Days Later) would be taking on the lead role of John Constantine, and it transpires that he's not alone in terms of domestic talent from our neck of the woods joining the project. Lucy Griffiths, best known for her portrayal of Lady Marian in the BBC One drama Robin Hood (2006-2009), will play the show's female lead, John's love interest Liv. On top of that, NBC confirmed that both Lost's Harold Perrineau and The Detective's Charles Halford have signed on as Manny (a mysterious angel guiding the actions of John, who himself is a true magician) and Chas (John's oldest ally) respectively. It's important to keep in mind that these castings are only for the show's pilot episode, and we'll have to wait until after that has been screened to NBC execs before we know if we're getting a full season of instalments in the Autumn, but the talent's certainly there to warrant a re-commission in a few months' time.

Provided that everything goes according to plan, Constantine will première on NBC this Autumn.

First The Jungle Book Guest Star Announced

First, he was Luther. Then, he was Heimdall. But just who is Idris Elba playing now?
Walt Disney Pictures have today announced a guest star set to feature in their live-action fantasy movie The Jungle Book. Directed by Iron Man and Iron Man 2 helm Jon Favreau, this intriguing remake of perhaps Disney's best-loved animated movie is currently shrouded in secrecy, so this announcement marks the first step in what is sure to be an overly extensive marketing campaign.

The first actor to join its cast is none other than Idris Elba. Here he'll play the Rudyard Kipling novel's antagonist, the tiger Shere Khan, but as anyone who lives above a rock will know, this is by no means Elba's first big break in the entertainment industry, since he has gained starring roles in major productions such as Thor, Luther and Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom (to name but a few) in the last couple of years. Even so, this is a reassuring initial piece of casting for a potentially controversial project, and here's hoping future announcements are met with such a warm reception as this one seems to have been granted today.

The Jungle Book will teach audiences across the world the bare necessities of life from October 9th, 2015.