FX is taking another trip to Fargo, where the cast is changing but some of the characters are not. The network announced on Monday that it has renewed the series for a second season with a new plot, fresh actors and a different time period. The executive producer Noah Hawley told a Television Critics Association panel that season two will be set primarily in North Dakota in 1979, with a younger version of the Lou Solverson character (played by Keith Carradine in season one.) His daughter, Molly, whom Allison Tolman portrayed, is just 4 years old. Hawley said he's open to changing the weather and is toying with starting the story in the winter and transitioning to spring and summer. The earliest the series will be broadcast is in autumn next year. – AP
Abhishek Bachchan on board for Housefull 3
The directors Sajid and Farhad will direct Housefull 3, the third in the comedy franchise produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, according to The Times of India. The third instalment will have Akshay Kumar, Riteish Deshmukh and John Abraham in lead roles. Also starring is Abhishek Bachchan, who was last seen sharing screen space with Kumar 12 years ago in Haan Maine Bhi Pyaar Kiya. Bachchan and Abraham are perhaps best known for their comic flair in the Dostana films. Sonakshi Sinha and Parineeti Chopra are likely to star in Housefull 3, but have not yet been confirmed. The film is expected to go into production at the end of the year and will be released late next year. – The National staff
Little Big Man author Thomas Berger dead at 89
The witty and eclectic novelist Thomas Berger, who reimagined the American West in the historical yarn Little Big Man, has died in New York. He was 89. Berger mastered genres ranging from detective stories to domestic farce. His literary agent Cristina Concepcion says he died on July 13, days before his 90th birthday. He had been in failing health. Berger was one of the last major authors to have served in the Second World War. He wrote more than 20 books, including The Feud, a finalist for the 1984 Pulitzer Prize. Berger's biggest mainstream success was Little Big Man, published in 1964. It's an ultra-wry tale of 111-year-old Jack Crabb, who says he fought with the Cherokees in the Battle of Little Big Horn. It was adapted into a 1970 movie of the same name, starring Dustin Hoffman. – AP
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