TRUE BLOOD Spoilers and Scoop from Paley Fest ’11

You’ll have to forgive me if I’m a little hard of hearing today.  Last night I attended the Paley Festival’s TRUE BLOOD panel, and with all the screeching for hot vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters, and yes, humans – my ears are still ringing.

TRUE BLOOD fans packed the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills in the hopes of getting some scoop on the upcoming Season 4 of the hit HBO show. A “little” scoop is what they got.  Creator Alan Ball watched closely over his cast who seemed very well rehearsed as to what they were and were not allowed to spill. Anna Paquin (Sookie) was the most tight lipped and admittedly talked in circles to avoid answering any S4 questions directly. Oh Sookie, if only we could read her thoughts.

But that’s not to say there weren’t a few spoilers spilled – some during the panel and some to me directly as I got the chance to interview some of the cast on the red carpet before the event. 

Here are some of the highlights from last night’s panel including some scoop from season 4 of TRUE BLOOD. More from my interviews coming soon.

TRUE BLOOD fans are Team Eric AND Team Alicide

We know which of the super hot supernaturals fans want to see Sookie with this season.  Those on Team Eric were by far the most vocal (and continued to be all night, much to visual embarrassment of Alexander Skarsgård). But those wanting Sookie to get up close and personal with Bon Temps hottest werewolf made their voices heard too. While there was more than a smattering of applause from those wanting Sookie and Bill to live happily ever after, fans of these “soul mates” (Alan Ball’s word, not mine) seemed to be coming up short.

But will Bill and Sookie find their way back to each other?  Ball told the audience that “[Bill’s] betrayal is so deep is so deep that I don’t think she sees a way back from that.” Their reunion will be a “long journey”.

So who will Sookie spend her precious time with if Bill isn’t her leading man?  Could it possibly be Eric or Alcide?  Anna Paquin wouldn’t say much but did state the obvious saying “Alcide doesn’t turn into a ball of fire during the daytime, so that’s a plus.” (One of the many, if you ask me.) But on the flip side, Paquin did remind us that Alcide comes with a lot of “baggage”, most notably an ex-girlfriend “who wants to  kick the ever-loving… out of Sookie”.

Everyone loves Pam

If there was one consistent theme to last night’s panel, it’s that the cast of TRUE BLOOD loves Pam.  Kristen Bauer van Straten was certainly sitting pretty at the cool kids table last night as her castmates gushed over everything from Pam’s wardrobe to her sassy dialogue.  When each of the cast asked which character they would most like to share screen time with, many said Pam, including Rutina Wesley (Tara) who said that she would love to see some “Tara and Pam” action, to which Alan Ball said “oh, you will.”

So who would Kristen like to see Pam interact more with this season?  Jason Stackhouse. “I think Jason and Pam would be hysterical.”

We agree.

Hoyt & Jess are still together…for now.

In an exclusive scene from the season 4 premiere, Hoyt, Jessica and Pam are confronted by anti-vampire protesters who congregate outside Fangtasia. Seems Russell’s spine-ripping antics have really heated up Reverend Newlin’s supporters, many of who spend their time vocally hating on vamps and the humans that love them.

Hoyt turns the tables on the protesters and contends that if they are good Christians then they should be tolerant of others, including vampires and the humans that love him. When that valid argument falls on deaf ears, Hoyt decides to let his fists do the talking. Pam holds Jessica back from the brawl as the vampires can’t risk getting involved in any altercations that would add fuel to the fire of Reverend Newlin’s cause.

Fighting public acceptance won’t be the only trouble for Hoyt and Jessica. When asked about what the future holds for the young lovers, Debra Ann Wolll (Jessica) reminded us that “The fairy tale can’t last forever,” but then offered, “but maybe reality is better than a fairy tale.” Let’s hope so, because anything short of that would be devastating for Hoyt. Jim Parrack (Hoyt) explained their connection by saying “sometime you see ‘the one’ and that’s it [and for Hoyt] she’s the one.”

Here’s to hoping Mama Fortenberry and her shotgun don’t go anywhere near these lovebirds.

Terry and Arlene’s Bundle of Evil Joy

Todd Lowe (Terry) revealed to me on the red carpet that Terry and Arlene will becoming the loving parents of a bouncing baby boy.  But it seems that Terry is a little more hands on when it comes to the baby. “Arlene already has two kids so this isn’t as exciting to her as it is for Terry,” said Lowe.  Add to that Arlene’s fear that her new son inherited his biological father’s evil, serial killer ways and all indications are that Arlene might not be the mother of the year when it comes to her new baby.

Perhaps a little help is on the way.  Marshall Allman offered the babysitting services of his character, Tommy Mickens.  “I’m the best companion.” Maybe as a dog, Tommy, but in your human form, not so much.

Can we Trust Jesus?

Not getting all religious fanatical on you here, I promise.  But it’s a question whose answer will impact the future of Lafayette Reynolds.  “You can never trust anyone too much,” said Kevin Alejandro (Jesus). “Trust him as much as you can.” As for whether or not Lafayette trusts his witchy boyfriend, Nelsan Ellis said that his character does, if only “because he’s under Jesus’ spell.”  Still not sure how literal we should take that response.

Jesus won’t be the only witch in town in Season 4.  The Wicaans will be appearing but Ball said they “are not the bringers of evil,” adding “there’s an older entity that comes in.”

Eric Northman is a Lost Man

Perhaps the biggest reveal of the night, at least for the non-book readers in the audience, was that Eric Northman will lose his memory early on in the new season.  It seems “he messed with the wrong people” which caused him to lose his memories and himself.

“Things are definitely not stable for Eric,” the uber-handsome Alexander Skarsgård  told the audience. “Eric needs help. He is lost, completely lost….he doesn’t know who he is anymore.”

When asked if perhaps Sookie will help him find his way, Skarsgård only said that “there are a lot of helpful people in Bon Temps.”

If Eric needs a little help, I’m only a phone call away.

The first six episode of season 4 of TRUE BLOOD have been shot, but it’s going to be quite a while until fans get to return to Bon Temps. Hopefully these teasers will make it a little easier to get through this long drought without new episodes.

But there’s more TRUE BLOOD to come.  Stay tuned to GIVE ME MY REMOTE as we’ll have more from the cast of TRUE BLOOD, including my one-on-one red carpet interviews. (We didn’t want to give it all away now…that wouldn’t be any fun.)

Are you excited for the new season? Excited by the scoop you just heard?  The comments are open…let’s chat!