“Fringe” viewers had thought they’d seen the last of Leonard Nimoy and his character, William Bell. After all, we watched Bell dematerialize in the Season 2 finale, and Nimoy subsequently announced his retirement from acting.
While “Fringe” found creative ways to incorporate the spirit of Bell into its storyline, through animation and imitation, we hadn’t seen him in the flesh. That changed a few weeks ago, when the show planted a hint that he could still be around — Bell, encased in amber, at the end of the “Letters Of Transit” episode.
It became more than just a hint last week, when it was revealed that Bell is the mastermind behind the plan to collapse both of the “Fringe” universes.
Yes, Nimoy has pulled a Michael Jordan and come back from retirement. “Isn’t that the truth?” he laughs. “But I’m not as tall as he is, though.”
With Nimoy playing a significant role in tomorrow night’s season finale, Fox All Access spoke to him about his decision to return to the show. (Click on the media player to listen to Leonard Nimoy.)
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However, it certainly seems as if this William Bell isn’t the same one who selflessly sacrificed himself for the “Fringe” team in Season 2. (And technically, it isn’t — it’s the long-thought-dead alt-Bell.) So in the finale, Nimoy tells us we shouldn’t expect to see the same “Belly” we knew and loved.
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Obviously, we don’t know how the Season 4 finale will be resolved, but we did see him “alive” in “Fringe’s” future timeline. Does that mean we can expect Nimoy to delay his retirement once again and return for some screen time in “Fringe’s” final season?
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Part two of the “Fringe” season finale airs Friday night at 9/8c on Fox.
Every year, “Fringe” has rewarded its loyal viewers with mind-blowing season finales, and this year promises to be no different.
Executive producers Jeff Pinkner and J.H. Wyman, of course, were reluctant to give us any spoilers (with a show like “Fringe,” we prefer to watch spoiler-free anyway), but they did offer that the characters’ “desperate, emotionally difficult attempt to stop (villain David Robert) Jones” probably wasn’t entirely successful.
Which means that all the pieces are in place for a showdown of epic proportions, with the futures of both “Fringe” universes hanging in the balance.
Even by sci-fi’s innovative standards, the storytelling and plot twists of “Fringe” have taken a lot of risks and introduced some pretty far-out-there concepts. But ironically enough, Wyman told us the storytelling has always been grounded in real, everyday life, taking a look at the difficult decisions we all face. (Click on the media player to hear J.H. Wyman.)
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While breaking plenty of new ground, Season 4 of “Fringe” has also revisited some of the show’s old ground — bringing back some characters and concepts from previous seasons as part of the new stories. According to Pinkner, that’s something the show wanted to do for a couple of important reasons. (Click on the media player to hear Jeff Pinkner.)
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The two-part season finale of “Fringe,” “Brave New World,” begins Friday night at 9/8c on Fox.
Through the first three seasons of “Fringe,” Jasika Nicole’s character, Agent Astrid Farnsworth, has spent much of her time on the periphery, assisting in the lab and having her name mispronounced a myriad of ways by Dr. Walter Bishop (John Noble).
On tomorrow night’s episode of “Fringe,” however, she takes center-stage, as the Astrids from the two universes come face to face for the first time.
We spoke with Nicole this morning, and she told us about the circumstances that bring the two Astrids together. (Click on the media player to hear Jasika Nicole)
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Since this is the first time the two Astrids are meeting, it’s also the first time Nicole has had to play a scene with herself. So we had to ask: Was this the best actress she’d ever worked with? (Click on the media player to hear Jasika Nicole)
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Want to find out more? Check out this special “Astrid-centric” “Fringe” feature, then watch the all-new “Making Angels” episode of “Fringe,” Friday night at 9/8c on Fox.
While John Noble has been acting in movies and TV shows since 1988, most of his pre-”Fringe” work — with the notable exception of the “Lord Of
The Rings” trilogy — was done outside of the United States. So he’s thrilled to have gotten a job on a show that’s built a large, devoted fan base like.
“Fringe” at this stage of his career, and he’s even more happy that he gets to share that success with his family.
It’s been a long, long summer for “Fringe” fans, all of whom have been wondering, “Where’s Peter Bishop?” When Fox All Access host Chris Leary got to sit down with John Noble, who plays scientist Walter Bishop (as well as the other universe’s “Walternate”), finding out what happened to Peter was the first order of business.
As the conversation progresses, Noble offers his theory as to how the season may play out. But is it speculation or spoilers? Take a look, listen to what he has to say, and then watch the new season of “Fringe” to find out!
Many consider J.J. Abrams a modern Hollywood mogul. Abrams has found great success in film, especially with his latest movie, Super 8. As many know, Abrams also found major success as a television creator and producer with his shows “Lost” and “Fringe”. As if his resume was not impressive enough, Abrams can now add two more television shows to his credits. FOX has picked up his new series, Alcatraz, which will be seen in January, and his other new drama, Person of Interest (starring James Caviezel), will air on CBS this Fall.
Abrams is balancing his television projects with his films as he is preparing to start work on the sequel to Star Trek. We asked him how he balances the workload of two new television shows and his films.
As we mentioned on the Fox All Access radio show this weekend, Leonard Nimoy’s having a difficult time staying retired. While his return to “Fringe” was unexpected, that’s nothing compared to the shock of seeing him in the alternate version of Bruno Mars’ video for “Lazy Song.” Suffice it to say, it’s a role unlike anything we’ve ever seen him do before — and it’s hilarious! Enjoy the video, live long, and prosper.
…In our day to day activities here at FOX All Access Headquarters we come across some pretty awesome people and really random cool stuff. Recently we got to thinking “What if we took the random cool stuff and traded it for other random things with random people who would really appreciate the randomness of it all?” Thus, Twitter Trade Tuesday was born.
To kick off Twitter Trade Tuesday, and to celebrate the upcoming season finale of FRINGE, we are offering up this random sugar cube box that is now a one of kind item thanks to Mr. John Noble’s fancy work with a sharpie. Yes, that’s right, Dr. Walter Bishop himself autographed the box during our last interview with him, and now we want to trade it with YOU.
So here’s the deal: We’ll trade this Fringe worthy item with the person that posts the most creative photo of their ”frozen in amber” pose on Twitter.
Just go to Twitter and post your most creative pic at #T3FAA by Thursday, May 5th at 12:00pm PT. If we select your pic, we’ll send you a direct message on Friday, May 6th and arrange the trade. It’s that easy.
Don’t forget to tune it this Friday, May 6th at 9pm ET/PT for the season finale of Fringe on FOX.
We’ll be doing more… So if Fringe isn’t for you, check back next Tuesday for our next trade worthy item!
To trade, you must be a U.S. Resident and 18+. No purchase necessary. We’re not responsible if you don’t respond to our direct message, so keep your eyes peeled. Judging of photo will be based on creativity and what makes us go “wow”.
As you get ready to start watching the two-part season finale of “Fringe,” enjoy the conclusion of our talk with Walter/Walternate himself, John Noble. He talks about Walter’s season-long journey, the props he’d like to take home from the “Fringe” set, and when we get into the infamous “LSD episode,” the chat becomes rather animated.
The two-part season finale of “Fringe” begins tonight at 9/8c on Fox and concludes next Friday night. And it’s going to be a long, long summer.
Don’t bother calling “Fringe” fans on any of the next four Friday nights. Chances are, they wouldn’t pick up the phone anyway. The sci-fi show with the fervent following is counting down to its third season finale.
In a season widely praised for its innovative storytelling, has the “Fringe” creative team saved the best for last? “We’re very proud of a lot of the things we did this season,” executive producer Jeff Pinkner told Fox All Access. “We love the finale, but whether it’s the best or not will be judged in retrospect, I suspect.”
Pinkner and fellow exec producer J.H. Wyman did, however, promise that the season would once again end with “Fringe’s” traditional mix of closure and a cliffhanger.
“The whole concept of every season finale is that we close one chapter and open up another,” Wyman said, noting that by the time the final credits roll on May 6, viewers will “understand” the Doomsday device that has loomed large in the Season 3 storyline. “Our goal is to reset the viewer to view the show in a different context every season and get deeper and deeper.”
Both Pinkner and Wyatt are impressed by the show’s fan base, and told us they’re constantly getting e-mail from fans who remember small details from the first season that have turned into larger plot points later on.
And both are excited about the show’s return for a fourth season on Fox. When we suggested it would be a long summer for “Fringe” fans waiting for new episodes, Pinkner compared it to the way he would wait for each new book in the “Harry Potter” series: “Yet I was really excited, and the anticipation is half the fun.”
And while they couldn’t divulge much about what will happen in Season 4, they did offer a few hints. (Click audio player to listen to Jeff Pinkner and J.H. Wyman.)
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The first of the season’s final four “Fringe” episodes airs Friday night at 9/8c on Fox.
“Fringe” viewers had thought they’d seen the last of Leonard Nimoy and his character, William Bell. After all, we watched Bell dematerialize in the Season 2 finale, and Nimoy subsequently announced his retirement from acting.
