
EXCLUSIVE: The reality TV landscape will never be the same. After 18 years at Fox, the dean of unscripted TV executives, Fox’s president of alternative programming Mike Darnell, is stepping down. He will stay on though the end of June, when his current contract is up, and help with the transition. Darnell was offered a new long-term deal at the network but, after long deliberation, decided it was time to move on. Darnell faced similar agonizing soul-searching five years ago when he was offered rich producing deals elsewhere but ultimately opted to stay at Fox where he’s had free reign on the unscripted side. This time around, he decided to leave the network, which he helped build, first with noise-making reality specials like World’s Scariest Police Chases and When Animals Attack! and then with tentpole series like American Idol and Family Guy. The colorful, unconventional, cowboy hat-wearing Darnell never shied away from controversy, relishing in the blockbuster attention projects like the Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire? special and hit series Joe Millionaire brought on. In a testament to Darnell’s importance to Fox and parent News Corp., News. Corp chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch has weighed in on his departure. “Mike took risks at a critical time and was a pioneering force in shaping the reality programming genre that exists today,” Murdoch said. ... Read More »

It almost feels like J.C. Chandor is showing off. In what is only his second feature film, after the chalk-and-cheese financial collapse movie “Margin Call," he sets himself a kind of exercise in filmmaking rigor, in the bare-bones, one-man survival-at-sea story “All Is Lost” and delivers. From the strong but talky, pointing-at-screens-spouting-financial-mumbo-jumbo of his debut, it’s initially hard to see how we could have predicted the filmmaker’s ability to deliver a much more visceral, physically gruelling, dialogue-free experience. But hindsight is 20/20 and what both movies share is an almost documentary-like immediacy to the material, and a hugely confident filmmaking style, unobstrusive and economical, that belies Chandor’s relative inexperience. Starting with a voiceover of a note he is writing, (really the only time we hear Robert Redford’s voice, aside from a couple of hoarse cries of “Help me!” and SOS calls) we’re introduced to a man, bobbing 1700 miles off the...

Nothing lifts my spirits better than a good Coca-Cola slurpee from 7-Eleven, so when I was invited to interview Ashley Benson as she kicked off Summer Slurpee Days with the inaugural sip of the season, I was so there. Pretty Little Liars gossip and my favorite frozen beverage? You don't have to ask me twice.
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Ashley sipped the chain's new Slurpee Lite Sugar Free Sprite flavor while I enjoyed my Coke variety (what can I say, I'm loyal). Take a peek at our convo below!
OK!: What’s your earliest slurpee memory?
Ashley Benson: My dad goes to 7-Eleven for all of his coffee so I grew up going there and I would always get a slurpee. And then me and my friends get slurpees all the time during the summer because I get hot and sweaty really easily. Their new light flavor is half the calories, there’s no sugar—it’s great for summer.
OK!: Are you a purist or do you mix them up?
AB: I like to mix them up, but I do like the coke flavor and I like this new Lite Sprite flavor. It’s very hard to say. But that’s it—the soda flavors I love.
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OK!: What can you tease about the upcoming season of PLL? I need to know who is in that trunk.
AB: It’s going to be pretty crazy. I’m excited for people to find out who’s in the trunk. I’m excited to see how fans like my storyline with my mom and I. We get into a lot of trouble this season. Caleb, my poor Tyler’s leaving me (for new ABC Family series Ravenswood), I’m really upset. There’s a lot that goes on. I think the biggest thing for me…I don’t care about any storyline, it’s just that my baby Tyler is leaving me. We have a crazy Halloween episode this year. It’s going to be amazing.
OK!: Would you like to do a crossover with Ravenswood?
AB: There have been a few conversations that have been brought up. I don’t know for sure if we’re going to but if they do I’d love to because I want to see my Tyler.
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OK!: What advice would you give to the cast of Ravenswood? I'm expecting it to blow up like PLL.
AB: I know it’s going to be big. They have such a great creative team behind that show. They’ve made our show what it is so I think it’s going to do really well. But just enjoy it!
OK!: How do you feel about Mona joining forces with the girls this season?
AB: I find it so weird. It’s such a good storyline but it’s hard for Hanna. She’s done so much to Hanna and she has to befriend her and use her in a way to find out what’s going on but I’m just like, “Ugh! This sucks!” But it’s good, it’s good for the storyline.
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OK!: What do you have going on for the summer?
AB: I get a week off for Fourth of July. I’m going to Europe. And then just working, hanging out with my friends on the weekends. I don’t really like to vacation. I’m surprised I’m actually going on vacation. I love to work. But I’m just going to go to Europe for a week.
OK!: But Europe can keep you busy—so much to see.
AB: And that’s the thing, I’m going with one of my friends who has lived all around the world—she’s lived in Rome, Paris, Switzerland, Germany—everywhere. So I’ll have something to do all the time, not just be like, “What to do? What to do?”
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OK!: Is there any place you’re really psyched to see?
AB: I’ve been to Paris. I’ve been to Rome. I’ve never been to Switzerland so I’m excited to go there. I’d love to travel everywhere but I just don’t have time. I went to Paris for four days in February and then I was I in Rome for 12 hours. So I’m going to Rome again because it’s beautiful there and Paris is amazing.
OK!: As far as work this summer, is it just PLL keeping you busy or are there other projects in the works?
AB: Not that I can talk about at the moment but, yes, I have other things that are awesome but I’ll be able to say it when I can say it. But, yes, PLL is going to keep me busy.
Treat yourself with 49-cent medium-sized Slurpees at 7-Elevens nationwide through Memorial Day Weekend.
What are you looking forward to about the upcoming season of PLL? Tell me in the comments below or tweet @OKMagazine.
Photo credit:
Getty Images for 7-Eleven

It is a big year for Danielle Fishel and we are so excited to be along for the ride with her. She's got the upcoming Girl Meets World series, she's writing a book and she's getting married! Photos: The best celeb Instagrams of the week! Yes, later this year Topanga herself will be tying the knot. And no, not to Cory Matthews (Ben Savage), but another super great guy! So during our latest Skype session with Danielle, she told us where she is in the planning and what she's been focusing on. OK! News: The American Idol alums returning to the show as judges! The most exciting part: she recently registered and told us some of the fun items on the list! OK! News: Everything Jonas you need to see before the Married to Jonas season finale Which item would you buy for Danielle? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter @OKMagazine. MORE VIDEOS YOU'LL LOVE: * TAKE A TOUR INSIDE LULU JOHNSON'S AMAZING CLOSET WITH FASHION ICON MOM BETSEY JOHNSON! * DETAILS ON ROBIN ROBERTS' UPCOMING MEMOIR * PARTYING WITH JUSTIN BIEBER COULD COST YOU $5 MILLION! Photo credit: Getty Images
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