“We filmed the pilot a year and a half ago, and went through as series of setbacks and delays,” Newton, 33, says over the phone from Atlanta, where her husband Chris Diamantopoulos is playing Moe in the Farrelly Brothers new “Three Stooges” movie.

One of the stars, Jordana Spiro, had to go back to her old series, “My Boys.” The show runner, Cindy Chupack, quit for personal reasons. Once unveiled as the lynchpin to NBC’s fall season last year, it was bumped to midseason when Newton also became pregnant with her first child.

“These kinds of delays happen to a show. There’s not a show where these kinds of things don’t happen, when a show doesn’t go through a lot of changes,” Newton says. “But not often does it all happen to one show.”

Newton’s condition meant her character had to be entirely rewritten.

“Originally my character was going to be a virgin,” Newton says. “When I became pregnant, they wrote in that I was a surrogate mother for my sister. But I have to say when we got our heads together, it made the character so much more interesting,” she adds. “If the show had more time to explore the characters, how she related with her sister after the birth would have been the kind of relationship I don’t think has been on TV before.”

That won’t happen, since “Love Bites” was cancelled earlier this month.

“It was a short and sweet run, but one everyone who was involved with it would be very proud of,” Newton says. There won’t be a series finale tying up all the series threads on Thursday, Newton says. “This is what was great and complicated about the show. Every episode stood alone, and it was never meant to have an arc throughout show with a culmination.”

Being in an anthology show, with Greg Grunberg and Constance Zimmer the only recurring characters, she was surrounded by guest stars each week. Among them were Jeffrey Tambor, Sheryl Hines, Donald Faison, Christopher Gorham, Krista Allen, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Michelle Trachtenberg, Laura Prepon, Kurtwood Smith, Ken Jeong and Jaime King.

“It was unique every week,” Newton says. “I never worked with the same person twice. It was a huge difference from ‘Ugly Betty,’ where I worked with Michael Urie every day for four years. It was a great acting experience.”

And even if the show wasn’t a hit, it did connect with some viewers who enjoyed romantic comedy anthologies.

“What I have learned time and time again is that you can’t predict how a show will connect with people, and how a network will handle it. You just have to be proud of your work and whether two people see it or 200 people or 20 million people, if it connects with someone, with ‘Ugly Betty’ or different shows, it’s all you can do.”

Newton came to “Love Bites” immediately after her successful run as the brittle secretary Amanda Tanen on “Ugly Betty.” At the time, she says, “I was definitely looking for something very different than Amanda. Something very grounded and real – not that Amanda wasn’t real. But I was looking for something more relatable. I loved being able to play a character who was more similar to myself and in such a different style of writing. ‘Ugly Betty’ was very arch, and this was more grounded.” While waiting for “Love Bites” to air, Newton shot a pilot for CBS. “It was a multi-camera sitcom and I never did that,” she says. “What made it neat performing before a live audience. It was an incredible experience and I had such a great time doing it. “Homegrown” also starred Gerald McRaney. “I’m disappointed it didn’t get picked up,” she says, “But I discovered I loved that form of television.” Newton’s unsure of her next project, but she’s encouraged by what she’s seeing.

“I’m reading some really great scripts,” she says. “With the success of ‘Bridesmaids,’ and so many female comedies on TV, there is a lot of great material out there. With Tina Fey and Amy Poehler such great leading women, it’s the kind of thing you didn’t see five years ago. So I’m really hopeful.” In the meantime, she’s been enjoying spending time with her son and her husband on the set of slapstick “Stooges,” which wraps this week in Atlanta. “I go to the set every day,” she says. “He has bruises all over his body.”

She’s had time, too, to come back to Connecticut to visit family.

“I just spent 10 days at Evergreen Woods Retirement Community in Branford, where my 8 month old was the hit of the place,” she says. If the residents were also excited about a TV star in their midst, she says, “they didn’t say anything about it.”

“Michael Urie and I harass each other via text all the time,” Newton says with a laugh. Sadly, there aren’t currently any rumblings about revisiting the twosome’s ah-mazing 2010 cabaret act, but the bubbly star does offer this tidbit: “Michael and I need to tackle some sort of performance art in the future. I’m not sure what it is, but we will be reteaming for the rest of our lives on various projects.” Win!

Now, about that other plan…

“I’ve discovered my love of sitcoms,” Newton tells TVLine. “There’s nothing specific lined up right now, but I did a pilot for CBS [titled Home Grown] which unfortunately didn’t get picked up. I had never done a mutli-cam show before, and I absolutely loved it.” Translation: “The next step will be to play a sassy role on a multi-cam show!” Newton says that “the live audience [on Home Grown] was pretty great. It reminded me of my days back in theater. It was so much fun to tackle a scene and if it didn’t work, the writers would fly in with new lines and you’d try that.”

The TV vet also calls her sitcom experience an “incredible challenge,” though one that actually made her long to venture further into the genre. “The hardest [part on a sitcom] is continuing when a line doesn’t work, and not completely falling apart,” she laughs. “On Ugly Betty, we’d run in, do a scene and try different things — and we knew when it was funny. In a sitcom setting, I walked in with a joke that I thought was the funniest thing I’d ever heard — and heard dead silence!”

Regardless of where Newton ends up, though, she says she’s always thinking of her old Betty counterparts. “I miss them all so much,” she says. “We all get together anytime we’re in the same place. They are my family and I really love them.”

For now, you can catch Newton in Love Bites on NBC Thursdays at 10/9c.

TVLINE | Given that Love Bites was shelved for so long, was there ever a time that you were worried the show may never make it to air?
You know, I’ve learned through experience that you can’t ever predict what’s going to happen with any show. When I signed on to Ugly Betty, I just prayed that I wouldn’t get fired after the pilot, and four years later, I was still doing it. So, I’m really learning that you can just do your best work, and where the show goes from there is beyond your control.

TVLINE | What were your thoughts on all of the behind-the-scenes drama we kept hearing about? [TNT compelled My Boys star Jordana Spiro to vacate a lead role, original showrunner Cindy Chupack stepped down, the episode order got slashed....]
That’s what was so incredible about this experience — all of these things were going on, but it was actually the most well-run and organized show that I’ve ever worked on. It was really this incredibly pleasant experience. All of [Love Bites'] setbacks tend to happen individually on every show, but we just had a bunch of things happen around the same time. The impression of what was going on made it sound much more chaotic than it actually was. Every step along the way, people just went with the flow.

TVLINE | Love Bites is an “anthology series” — can you break it down in layman’s terms for prospective fans?
Love Bites is actually a bunch of vignettes put together — and that’s the most confusing and the most exciting part of the show. [Laughs] Every episode will have three separate stories that are linked thematically. Some of the characters are linked at times, but it’s really a chance to see three mini-episodes within one.

TVLINE | Love Bites has great guest stars each week. Was there anyone you were particular excited to work with? Or anyone you had a great time playing off of?
Someone that I’ve known about for a long time but had never worked with is Michelle Trachtenberg (Gossip Girl) and she made me laugh so hard every single day. I could not wait to get back to work when she and I were shooting together. She is really funny and I’d love to work with her in the future. Also, Jessica St. Clair (Worst Week) plays my sister and I really do feel like we’re sisters. I think maybe we are and we just don’t know it. [Laughs] I have to play her sister again in the future. It just made so much sense somehow.

TVLINE | How about a favorite moment in the series for fans to look forward to?
There is a moment in the second episode that I loved. Michelle’s character bakes banana bread for a guy as a token of affection, and it backfires horribly. I will say that when I first met my husband, I baked him lasagna and it did not backfire… because we’re now married. [Laughs] But it’s embarrassing that there’s an entire episode about why you should not bake anything for someone you have a crush on, when that’s all I did. I really think that’s how I won my husband’s heart over.

TVLINE | How are you feeling today, knowing that fans are finally going to see Love Bites? Are you proud of the finished product?
Everyone involved in Love Bites worked so hard — there’s really great writing, fantastic acting and the directors were incredible — so I’m really happy people will finally have a chance to see it. I think people are going to respond really well to the show.

TVLINE | Best case scenario: Love Bites is very well received and it takes the summer programming cake. Is there any talk of where things stand moving forward with the series?
As every person involved in Love Bites has learned, anything can happen! [Laughs] Of course, I would love to be part of this series again in the future, so I’m open to wherever the road leads.

GALLERY LINK:
Love Bites (2010) > Season One > Posters

“This new schedule brings NBC back to basics with its commitment to quality scripted programming,” said NBC Universal TV Entertainment chairman Jeff Gaspin. “Our new shows are distinctive and feature a combination of the biggest talent, the brightest new stars and the strongest auspices in television. With this new schedule, we’re poised to take the next step toward our long-term goals with a lineup that has stabilized and has been building solid momentum through the second half of the season.”
Added NBC/Universal Media Studios primetime entertainment president Angela Bromstad: “Our team has been working tirelessly to achieve our ambitious goals and we are so pleased to see that these new series demonstrate tremendous upside for NBC. We feel that this development season introduces shows that will become part of the great programming legacy of our network.”

Becki Newton has revealed she hated the rubber dress she wore for Ugly Betty.

The 30-year-old actress plays Amanda, Mode magazine’s catty receptionist who will wear anything to look stylish, but confessed the rubber dress was an experience she didn’t enjoy.

Becki said: “It sounds amazing and sexy but it really wasn’t at all – I needed about 10 people to help get me into it and they had to actually purchase whatever strippers use to get their latex costume on and off.”

She added: “It was horrifying. I couldn’t take the dress off for 16 hours straight, so you can imagine how lovely that was at the end of the day!”

But Becki feels playing Amanda has changed her views on fashion.

She said: “I’ve developed an appreciation for more avant garde clothes.

“I prefer to be a little more comfortable in real life, but Amanda doesn’t care if she’s comfortable. She doesn’t understand what the word means, it’s irrelevant.”

Becki Newton refuses to take fashion seriously.

The ‘Ugly Betty’ star – who plays clothes-obsessed receptionist Amanda in the hit US show – says she likes to have fun with her look and wouldn’t want her life ruled by having the latest trends.

She said: “I read fashion magazines all the time. It’s fun, but I don’t take it very seriously. I find if you take hair, make-up and clothes too seriously, you’ll become like Amanda – and that’s a cautionary tale!”

However, Becki admits she enjoys being given free clothes and accessories by designers.

She told Britain’s Look magazine: “As an actress, one of the perks is having access to ridiculously expensive clothing and prancing around on the red carpet. Who wouldn’t want to have fun with that?

“I’ve managed to get some beautiful bags. I have a great collection and so does my mother. My favourite is a purple one by Gucci, which I take everywhere!”

Becki Newton of Ugly Betty fame is known for her blush-bronze look both on the show and on the red carpet, sparking a major new beauty trend for the summer months ahead.

Bronzers have been given a bad rep recently, thanks to orange WAGS and Z-list celebrities, but bronzers can, when applied properly, highlight your cheekbones and give you a nice golden glow.

This latest beauty trend however, is all about wearing a brighter form of bronzer, that has a mix of different tones in it which will ultimately give you a more natural look.

Opt for a bronzer that will suit all skintones, so you can use when your skin is paler during the winter months, and slightly darker during the summertime.

We’re loving Rimmel’s Sunshimmer Duo Bronzer, as it can be swept across your forehead, cheeks and nose to give you a golden glow, that doesn’t look too severe or unnatural.

Source: Beauty Buzz

Network to air six episodes this season, by Michael Schneider
ABC has cut back the order for midseason laffer “In the Motherhood.”
The Alphabet web will only air six episodes of the sitcom this season, in addition to the pilot. ABC had originally ordered 13 episodes.

According to the network, decision to slash the order came after ABC decided it didn’t have room for all 13 segs after all. “Motherhood,” which bowed Thursday, airs in the slot temporarily vacated by “Ugly Betty.” “Betty” returns May 7.

But word of the cutback came after the show opened with tepid ratings — and to mostly poor reviews. “Motherhood” debuted with a 2.1 rating and 6 share among adults 18-49, and attracted 6.7 million viewers

Mode After Hours, a webseries spun off from the popular ABC series Ugly Betty, consists of five-minute wacky adventures with Marc (Michael Urie) and Amanda (Becki Newton), two assistants at the fashion magazine around which the soap opera/comedy hybrid revolves. The first episode, Big Package, reveals what Amanda does with many of the packages that come across her desk; in the second, April Fools (released, oddly, a solid week before April 1), the two plot nasty pranks to pull on Betty. The “after hours” gimmick boils down to setting the two actors loose on the show’s pre-existing sets for five minutes of bantering. It’s a low-budget enterprise, well-produced and cleverly written.

However, as quirky as Marc and Amanda are, are they really the two characters people want to see more of, especially given that their role on the show is to complicate Betty’s life and put her down? I mean, why are we suddenly excited about the mean kids at the office? Are they really the best calling card for the series? Also, I’m not a regular Ugly Betty viewer, so I found references to current show developments going over my head (even after getting a quick briefing from a more up-to-date fan). Without any inclusion of the more charming elements of the show (such as Betty’s fumbling attempts at love or intense bond with her family), plus a pretty harsh reminder that you can’t just jump into the series without a solid understanding of the backstory, it’s hard to imagine any newcomer coming back again. Thus, as a means of drawing in new viewers for its parent show, Mode After Hours is pretty much a failure.

But fortunately that’s not its raison d’etre, as the series is being updated weekly to bridge the six-week gap between Betty’s last new episode, March 17, and its return on May 7 — a clever way to keep the show alive in the minds of its audience. It’s this scheduling decision that makes Mode vital, not its content (though if you can’t get a full hour of catty soap opera comedy, then a five-minute fix is a good substitute).

The first season of Mode After Hours, according to Alexis Rapo of ABC.com at NewTeeVee Live, racked up 8.5 million views last September, and there’s no reason to think that this new run of episodes won’t be just as successful. But I do wish that this had been seen as a two-part opportunity — a chance to make new friends, even while they kept the old.

Source: NewTeeVee