'Hunger Games': A VMA Survival Guide

The very first footage of "The Hunger Games" is set to debut this Sunday (August 29) at the MTV Video Music Awards. If this dystopian story, in which Katniss Everdeen must fight for her life in the kill-or-be-killed tournament that gives the film its ominous name, is new to you, there's still time to dive into the book on which it's based a best-selling page-turner by Suzanne Collins and get up to speed before the big VMA reveal. To help along the way, consider this MTV News' own donation a survival guide for the things Katniss must battle in the arena and the elements that aide in her quest to be crowned the victor of the 74th Hunger Games. Hunger Games: Annual "Running Man"-esque tournament in which young Panem citizens collaborate and/or kill one another in the hope to a) not die and b) bring glory and much needed grub to their District. Tribute: Name given to the contestants, two from each of the 12 Districts, picked every year to take part in the games. 74th games tributes include Katniss and Peeta from District 12, young Rue of District 11, and District 2 badass Cato. Gamemakers: Unnamed puppet masters who set up the games and control all aspects of the arena, from weather to natural disasters to the introduction of nasty predators. Cornucopia: Horn of plenty containing food, weapons and other essential goods available at the start of the games. Scene of much early carnage as tributes compete for resources. Bow and Arrow: Katniss' weapon of choice, available in the Cornucopia but only one of her possessions after she takes them, much later, by force. Fireballs: Early on, the blazing attack gamemakers hurl at Katniss in an attempt to force her into action. Hovercraft: High-tech vehicle that appears and whisks away a dead tribute. Donations: Gifts, like medicine or food, purchased at great expense by citizen sponsors and dropped, via parachute, near the selected tribute. High-Tech Meds: Burn cream, antibiotics and the like, created in the Capitol and delivered, via donations or the gamemakers, in key (and desperate) situations. Low-Tech Meds: Homeopathic remedies, such as crushed leaves, used to treat injuries when high-tech meds are unavailable. Snare: Traps set by Katniss to catch wild game and feed her empty belly. Hunting and Gathering: Tributes' primary manner to gain sustenance if and when Cornucopia food is unavailable. 74th games arena contains groosling, rabbit and other wild game, plus nuts, berries and edible plants (and even deadly fare like nightlock berries). Land Mines: Bombs present at the beginning of the games to ensure tributes don't get an early start. A savvy tribute could repurpose these weapons for nefarious purposes. Night-Vision Glasses: Eyewear allowing tributes to see at night, a useful tool when darkness falls in the arena. Muttations: Hybrid creatures created by the Capitol. Some, like singing birds called mockingjays, are harmless. Others, such as wasp-like tracker jackers, can be deadly.

'Help,' Irene are key BO factors

'The Help''Our Idiot Brother'Bailee Madison in "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" Zoe Saldana is Cataleya in TriStar Pictures' 'Colombiana.'The quiet days of August turn out to have been the ideal spot for "The Help," which is poised to top Stateside box office again. The Disney-DreamWorks pic is pitted against a trio of wide releases all of which are likely to earn less than $15 million.The imminent arrival of Hurricane Irene on the East Coast could also hit weekend B.O., which isn't expected to keep up with the same frame last year, when "Takers" and "The Last Exorcism" bowed with $20.5 million and $20.4 million, respectively.Horror pic "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark," which FilmDistrict is launching at 2,760 U.S. locations, is tracking in the $10 million-$12 million range, and the Weinstein Co.'s Sundance comedy pickup "Our Idiot Brother," at 2,555, is expecting to achieve a similar performance in the low teens. Actioner "Colombiana," which Sony acquired as a service deal, should figure in the $7 million-$8 million range, according to B.O. pundits. Overseas box office could see more of the same as few debut titles enter the fray against Sony's repeat champ "The Smurfs," which has cumed $211.5 million after four weeks. "Cowboys and Aliens," with a cume of $17.8 million, stands the best chance of unseating "Smurfs" as it expands into 18 markets including France, Germany and Mexico.Last weekend, disappointing B.O. returns for the new entries had bizzers blaming negative reviews and poor audience reaction, while "The Help," as well as Fox's "Rise of the Planet of the Apes," continue to hold well based on strong word of mouth. "The Help" has grossed almost $80 million through Wednesday; "Apes," $138.4 million.Responding to the title's hold on the market, Disney is adding another 88 locations for "The Help"; the Mouse added 156 last weekend, based on exhib demand. In total, "The Help" will have 2,778 U.S. engagements this weekend.It's extremely rare for a film to rank No. 1 for multiple consecutive weeks following a debut that was not in the top spot. "The Blind Side" climbed to No. 1 in its third frame -- so did "True Grit" -- but neither film managed to stay on top in its fourth outing."The Help" isn't likely to reach overall domestic totals comparable to "The Blind Side" ($255 million), since the latter pic played through Christmas and first-quarter 2010. Likewise, "True Grit, with a cume of $171 million, benefited from increased moviegoing during the 2010 holidays, as well as an awards-season boost. "The Help" stands as one of the summer's most pleasant surprises regardless of final totals."Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" and "Our Idiot Brother" could attract similar auds -- namely, femmes under 25 -- though "Brother" also boasts strong interest from male moviegoers. Both limit some younger auds given their R ratings.Produced by Guillermo del Toro, "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" stars Katie Holmes, Guy Pearce and Bailee Madison. Pic was financed by Miramax for a reported $28 million (FilmDistrict picked up distribution rights after the Disney-Miramax divorce). FilmDistrict, which footed the P&A bill, marketed the film heavily based on popularity for del Toro.Meanwhile, "Our Idiot Brother," which toplines Paul Rudd as the title sibling, cost TWC $6 million coming out of Sundance, with an added minimum P&A commitment around $15 million. Elizabeth Banks, Emily Mortimer and Zooey Deschanel co-star as Rudd's sisters.The weekend's third wide release, "Colombiana," was fully financed by EuropaCorp. Sony signed on to distribute and market the film Stateside through its TriStar label, as well as handle some Latin American territories. Pic tells the story of a young woman (Zoe Saldana) who witnesses the murder of her parents and grows up to be an assassin.A pair of Sundance pics, "Higher Ground" and "Circumstance," bow in limited release."Higher Ground," Vera Farmiga's directorial debut from Sony Pictures Classics, opens at three locations in New York and L.A., while Roadside Attractions' Iranian gay-themed drama "Circumstance" bows today at seven U.S. playdates. Contact Andrew Stewart at andrew.stewart@variety.com

Strike Back Explodes Onto Cinemax

Strike Back They're blowing things up at Cinemax - literally. The channel, a testosterone-dripping younger brother to HBO, is adding the explosive new action series Strike Back in a bid to expand its oft-maligned original programming. "Cinemax needed to evolve and feel like a premium to subscribers," says HBO miniseries president Kary Antholis, who also oversees shows for Cinemax. "We're trying to grow the brand to a place where it's serving another purpose for people." But fans of "Skin-emax" will be relieved to hear that Strike Back features all kinds of action - both in the bedroom and on the battlefield. "We looked at what our customers appreciated about Cinemax in the first place, and the best-performing programs were high-octane, combat-oriented action movies," Antholis says. Among the most popular movie titles on the channel: the Transporter (which Cinemax is also turning into a TV series; alas, without star Jason Statham), Transformers and X-Men franchises. Strike Back, which could be described as a hopped-up-on-steroids version of 24, should fit in just fine. The series revolves around a U.S. Special Forces operative (Sullivan Stapleton of Animal Kingdom) who teams up with a British black-ops agent (Fringe's Philip Winchester) to stop international terrorists. "It's boys being boys, killing bad guys, blowing s--t up, stealing cars and jumping out of choppers," says Stapleton, who relished the action and was put through a grueling boot camp in order to emulate the real special-ops unit Delta Force. "We went to hell and back." Strike Back was inspired by a series of novels by British writer Chris Ryan. "His books are not brilliant literature, but they're epic and these wonderful, almost Greek tragedies," says executive producer Dan Percival, who also directed several episodes. "It's people caught and compromised by the desire to do right, finding themselves in impossible situations where moral choices are blurred." The original season of Strike Back was produced for British channel Sky1 in 2010 and featured Captain America costar Richard Armitage (who wasn't available for Season 2). Antholis believed the show would make a great fit for the new Cinemax and struck a deal to coproduce Season 2 with Sky. With Cinemax on board, Strike Back was revamped. The budget was increased (to a hefty $3 million an episode), and Stapleton's American character was added. X-Files alum Frank Spotnitz was also brought in to write several episodes. "We're incredibly proud of what they've done," Antholis says. "We're giving people the equivalent of a mini action movie in every episode." The show, which was shot on location in South Africa and Hungary, contains plots ripped from the headlines and inspired by events like the 2008 Mumbai attacks. The season focuses on a Pakistani terrorist and shines a light on that country's instability - a plot that became even more relevant when Osama bin Laden was found and killed there. Percival admits it was strange to be making a show about terrorism as that story unfolded. "What was surreal was seeing the kind of rhetoric playing out in the real world that we were dramatizing," he says. "But that's the world that Strike Back lives in." British actress Amanda Mealing (Four Weddings and a Funeral), who plays a take-charge colonel, says the cast and crew came to work the day after bin Laden was taken down, and compared the stories on Strike Back to the Special Forces mission to hunt the Al Qaeda leader. "It's a drama - we're not making a documentary. But to think that what we're doing is actually going on... It sent a chill through everyone," she says. Strike Back doesn't shy away from showing the brutality of terrorism, with heads blown off, children in danger and snipers around every corner. A major character even dies in the first episode. Percival says no one on the show is safe. "There's a running joke on the set that you never know when the bullet is coming for you," he says. "There will be something that confounds your expectations every week. But that's war - and real life." Strike Back premieres Friday at 10/9c on Cinemax. Subscribe to TV Guide Magazine now!

VIDEO: Barbra Streisand Shares Reminiscences from Hit Song

Barbra Streisand Barbra Streisand is honoring her buddies and collaborators on her behalf latest album, What Matters Most. Within the video below, Streisand recalls her first memory of meeting Alan and Marilyn Bergman, the duo behind a lot of her hit tunes so they cover for example "'The Approach We Take To Were," "You Do Not Bring Me Flowers," and "Papa Are You Able To Hear Me?" Streisand, 69, states it required a very long time before she understood the lyrics for their song "The Windmills of the Mind." "Initially when i first heard "The Windmills of the Mind" it had been so complex and that i most likely never required time to evaluate it ... It grew to become interesting in my experience and that i like it now," she states. What Matters Most, Streisand's first new album since 2009, is going to be available August. 22. Discover the shocking truth of Streisand and Marilyn Bergman below:

Exclusive Leverage Video: Nate Comes Face-to-Face with His Nemesis!

Timothy Hutton Someone's been keeping tabs on Leverage's Nate Ford (Timothy Hutton) all season. In Sunday's episode, that man will reveal himself, and we have your exclusive first look!Exclusive: Leverage recruits Saving Grace's Leon Rippy for recurring roleGuest star Leon Rippy (Deadwood, Saving Grace) returns as professional investor Jack Latimer in Sunday's "The Boiler Room Job" (10/9c, TNT). His Warren Buffet-type character has figured out the Leverage team's game, and he has begun lining his own pockets by taking advantage of the companies Nate's team destroys.Although Latimer originally reached out to Nate after he and his team took down Reed Rockwell (guest star Michael Gladis) in this season's third episode, Nate refused to talk business without a face-to-face meeting. Now, it seems his wish has been granted."I divulge to Nate exactly who I am and what I'm doing - and that I'm on to his game," Rippy tells TVGuide.com. "He's working on these other guys, but I'm hip to it so that's unsettling to him."Check out photos of the Leverage castHowever, Rippy, who's made a career out of playing bad guys, says he's not necessarily a true villain. "I think it's my crooked teeth and some of the Southernisms that I have lend itself to a bad guy," he says. "But I would classify him as a semi-bad guy. He's a business guy. A lot of successful people have a lot of enemies they've made while getting there."So, why does Latimer reveal himself now? "It's gamesmanship," Rippy says. "It's not about the money. It's about the game - the 'I'm better at it than you are.' But, I think they are equals in a lot of ways."The Latimer story line won't be resolved until the show's final two episodes, slated to air on TNT next winter. But Rippy says he's game to continue beyond that if the story dictates. "The way that it's left in the final script, it's not tying anything up," Rippy says with a laugh. It's not saying this is the end of this guy."Leverage will air two new episodes Sunday, beginning at 9/8c. Watch a clip from Rippy's episode below.

USA renews final season of 'In Plain Sight'

'In Plain Sight'USA Network's "In Plain Sight" will get one further hurrah before saying goodbye. Cabler is reviving the Mary McCormack starrer for any fifth and final eight-episode season, that will air in spring 2012. Internet also gave another-season order to newcomer series "Suits," starring Gabriel Macht and Patrick Adams. The 4th season of "In Plain Sight" ended Sunday, with rankings about the uptick. The finale was up 6% from last year, and also the series averaged a proper 4.9 million audiences overall and saw double-digit gains within the major demos. "We have built an agreement using the audience and wish to provide them with a feeling of closure," USA Network co-prexy Shaun Wachtel told Variety. USA has marketed the ultimate run of the show before, giving an advertising and marketing victory lap to "Monk," which, like "In Plain Sight," was among the foundations from the net's schedule. "This can be a show that's near to our hearts," stated co-leader Chris McCumber, repeating the significance of "In Plain Sight" and McCormack in creating the net's "Figures Welcome" brand. "It's among the primary implies that built our business at USA. We owe it for them to get eight final episodes." McCormack stars like a U.S. marshal who works best for the witness protection program. She must keep her federal witnesses alive while controlling her very own dysfunctional family. Also coming back are regulars Ernest Weller, Paul Ben Victor and Rachel Boston. Erectile dysfunction Decter, John J. Strauss, Serta Lerner and Natalie Chaidez are professional producers. Series, shot in Albuquerque, N.M., is created by Universal Cable Prods. "Suits," which first showed June 23 and can finish its 12-episode run Sept. 8, worked out well in the 10 p.m. Thursday timeslot, calculating 6.3 million total audiences. UCP skein is professional created by Doug Liman and David Bartis. Internet is anticipated to get Callie Thorne starrer "Necessary Roughness" within the next couple of days. "Suits" and "Necessary Roughness" opened up inside a week of one another inside a crowed summer time landscape and outperformed anticipation. Contact Stuart Levine at stuart.levine@variety.com

First Look: 'A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas'

'Smurfs' this is not. The first image of the third 'Harold & Kumar' movie has finally arrived -- and it's about as goofy as you would imagine. John Cho (Harold), Kal Penn (Kumar) and Neil Patrick Harris (himself) are dressed up like extras in a production of 'The Nutcracker.' 'A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas' (are we just naming every third movie in a series 3D now?) will feature our stoner heroes having to replace a Christmas tree after the one belonging to Harold's family "goes up in smoke." You can check out the first photo, along with the marijuana-laced movie premise (courtesy of /Film), below. After years of growing apart, Harold Lee and Kumar Patel have replaced each other with new friends and are preparing for their respective Yuletide celebrations. But when a mysterious package mistakenly arrives at Kumar's door on Christmas Eve, his attempt to redirect it to Harold's house ends with the "high grade" contents - and Harold's father-in-law's prize Christmas tree - going up in smoke. With his in-laws out of the house for the day, Harold decides to cover his tracks, rather than come clean. Reluctantly embarking on another ill-advised journey with Kumar through New York City, their search for the perfect replacement tree takes them through party heaven - and almost blows Christmas Eve sky high. What do you think of the new 'Harold & Kumar' pic? [via /Film and Yahoo! Movies]

Sesame Street To Come Back with a number of Celebrity Visitors, Spoofs

Sesame Street Sesame Street's approaching 42nd season promises a bunch of celebrity visitors who'll frolic with children and puppets - in addition to some skits depending on pop-culture references. Does Sesame Street possess a liberal prejudice? Talking about individuals, Glee (inside a skit known as "G"), Most harmful Catch ("The Most Heavy Catch"), the Broadway musical Spider-Guy: Switch Off the Dark ("SpiderMonster the Musical") and cooking competitions ("Surefire Cooks") is going to be one of the subjects of Sesame's gentle (and lightly educational) skewering. Sesame Street wins TCA Award And so far as the stars go, here is a full alphabetical listing of whom the show introduced Monday: Can Be Anthony May Samantha Bee Came Brees Elvis Costello Gustavo Dudamel Craig Ferguson Jesse Tyler Ferguson Sutton Promote Johnny Galecki The Harlem Globetrotters Ken Jeong Jason Johnson Juanes Nicole Kidman Due To Jimmy Kimmel John Krasinski Mila Kunis George Lopez Bruno Mars James Marsden Joel McHale Maria Menounos Michelle Monaghan Conan O'Brien Jerry O'Connell Adam Rodriguez Rico Rodriguez Seth Rogen Mark Ruffalo Andy Samberg Liev Schreiber Jason Schwartzman Jay Sean Emma Stone Amar'e Stoudemire Sofia Vergara Naomi W Robin Williams Aside from the Hollywood types, music artists and sports stars, Top Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor can make a look and feel. Season 42 of Seasame Street begins Monday, Sept. 26 on PBS.

Amazing Spider-Guy 2 Release Set

The follow up has already been dated for 2014.... Don't forget this little story from in March, where we reported on Amazing Spider-Guy author James Vanderbilt being hired to begin writing the follow up. And that we snarked it was just dependent on time - likely soon after the film arrives - before The new sony introduced a release date? Works out we did not even have to do too much! Why? The studio has introduced to start dating ? for that follow up as the first movie continues to be several weeks from coming. With what seems to become a huge election of confidence in Vanderbilt, Mark Webb, Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone and also the relaxation from the Spider-cast and crew, The Astonishing Spider-Guy 2 (or whatever it eventually ends up being known as) will hit movie theaters on May 2, 2014. That's under 2 yrs following the original arrives. Even though there wasn't a pr release concerning the date, a The new sony spokesbod did state that it "talks volumes" of Webb's effort. Getting got a glance at some footage at Comic-Disadvantage, we must admit that people thought it looked pretty great, although the real test will include the finished film. With Garfield, Stone, Rhys Ifans, Martin Sheen, Sally Area, Irrfan Kahn, Campbell Scott, and Julianne Nicholson one of the cast, The Astonishing Spider-Guy will arrive on This summer 6 the coming year. Expect the 3rd and 4th films - to become shot together, without doubt - to become introduced in a few days. And also the second reboot? The coming year. Kidding!*. *Or shall we be?

Bradley Cooper And Robert De Niro Reuniting For David O. Russell

Bradley Cooper should be looking at his silver linings as he and his "Limitless" costar Robert De Niro are in talks to team up with director David O Russell for "The Silver Linings Playbook." Deadline has the news that Cooper and De Niro are in negotiations for the flick. Cooper would be replacing Mark Wahlberg, who departed due to other obligations. Jennifer Lawrence is still committed as the movie's leading lady. Check out the rest of today's casting news after the jump! Leonardo DiCaprio To Head West Jumping on the Western bandwagon, Leonardo DiCaprio is said to be interested in the long in development project "The Creed of Violence," The Los Angeles Times is reporting. The casting is far from certain, but the source who spoke to the Times said DiCaprio is looking to play one of the movie's two lead roles. The flick is set in the 1910s and follows a criminal who is caught by a government agent that shares a secret past with him. Reese Witherspoon Gets A "Wish List" Deadline is reporting that Reese Witherspoon has come on board Disney's latest comedy, "Wish List." The movie follows a girl who makes 10 wishes in a wishing well, but they never come true because her coin gets lodged and never reaches the bottom. Twenty-five years later, the coin reaches the bottom and she has to deal with the ramifications of the wishes she made when she was 10 years old. Alden Ehrenreich Joins "Stoker" The latest piece of the "Stoker" casting puzzle goes to Coppola family regular Alden Ehrenreich, The Playlist is reporting that he will be joining the already cast Nicole Kidman, Matthew Goode, Mia Wasikowska, Jacki Weaver and Lucas Till as Whip Taylor, a jock jerk turned nice guy turned jerk again. Shooting on the flick is supposed to begin soon with a planned 2012 release date. Ethan Hawke And Scott Derrickson Team Up For New Thriller Summit Entertainment just bought the rights to Scott Derrickson's latest jaunt into thriller territory. Deadline is reporting that the "Exorcism of Emily Rose" director will be directing a "found footage" thriller that will star Ethan Hawke. Hawke will play a journalist moving his family around the country to investigate gruesome murders that he then turns into books. He moves into a house and discovers footage that gives him clues at how the family previously living there was gruesomely murdered. Tell us your thoughts on today's Casting Call in the comments section below or on Twitter!