TV TOPIC: Film Actors with New TV Shows This Fall 2013 Season

Whether they're tired of auditioning for mediocre film roles or have finally accepted that they're never going to be Brad or Angelina, this season these film actors are opening up shop on a small tube near you:

Giovanni Ribisi on FOX's "Dads" 
(premieres Sept. 17 - Tuesdays at 8pm)

Memorable Film Roles: The Other Sister, The Mod Squad, Boiler Room, Gone in Sixty Seconds, Avatar, The Rum Diary, Contraband, Ted, Gangster Squad.

New TV Role: He's done offbeat characters on "Friends" and "My Name is Earl," but this new role should be a change of pace for him, as he'll be playing a straight-laced businessman whose father (Martin Mull) suddenly moves in with him and his wife (Vanessa Lachey).
Watch the promo >

Anna Faris on CBS's "Mom" 
(premieres Sept. 23 - Mondays at 9:30pm)

Memorable Film Roles: Scary Movie 3 & 4, Just Friends, My Super Ex-Girlfriend, Smiley Face, The House Bunny, Observe and Report, Take Me Home Tonight, What's Your Number?, The Dictator

New TV Role: While this isn't her first time doing television, having had guest starring roles on "Friends" and "Entourage," it will be her first time starring in a series. In the CBS sitcom, she'll play a single mother (Anna Faris) who, after battling alcoholism, decides to restart her life, and struggles to do so because of her equally damaged mother's (Allison Janney) constant interference.
Watch the promo >

Malin Akerman on ABC's "Trophy Wife" 
(premieres Sept. 24 - Tuesdays at 9:30pm)

Memorable Film Roles: The Heartbreak Kid, 27 Dresses, Watchmen, Couples Retreat, Happythankyoumoreplease.

New TV Role: She's no stranger to sitcoms, as she has worked on "The Comeback," "Children's Hospital," and "Suburgatory." This, however, will be her first time starring in a series. She'll play a reformed party girl who ends up marrying a guy (Bradley Whitford) after she meets him at a karaoke bar. In the process, she finds herself dealing with his two ex-wives (Marcia Gay Harden and Michaela Watkins), their children, and the chaos that comes with mixed families.
Watch the promo >

Robin Williams on CBS's "The Crazy Ones" 
(premieres Sept. 26 - Thursdays at 9pm)

Memorable Film Roles: Dead Poets Society, Hook, Aladdin, Toys, Mrs. Doubtfire, The Birdcage, Jumanji, Jack, Flubber, Good Will Hunting, Patch Adams, Bicentennial Man, A.I. Artificial Intelligence, One Hour Photo, Happy Feet, Night at the Museum, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, Old Dogs, Happy Feet Two

New TV Role: I cannot believe Robin Williams has been making us laugh for almost 40 years. I mean, he hasn't really for almost a decade, but he's been trying. A combination of personal issues and poor screenwriting can be attributed to that. Fans fingers are crossed though for this new series to revive his career and reputation as a great comedic actor. In it, he plays an eccentric executive at an ad agency who works with his uptight daughter (Sarah Michelle Gellar). Let the laughs begin.
Watch the promo >

Michael Sheen on SHO's "Masters of Sex" 
(premieres Sept. 29 - Sundays at 10pm)

Memorable Film Roles: Underworld, Laws of Attraction, Kingdom of Heaven, Underworld: Evolution, The Queen, Frost/Nixon, Underworld: Rise of the Lycans, The Twilight Saga, TRON: Legacy, Midgnight in Paris, Admission

New TV Role: While it's true that Sheen was on a few hilariously awkward "30 Rock" episodes—were there any other kind?—after you watch this drama, you'll be seeing him in a whole new light. He's playing a doctor, opposite TV vet Lizzy Caplan ("Party Down"), who's interested in studying human sexuality, which leads to many scenes of sexual exploration, ripe with tension and double entendres. It's poised to be absolutely scintillating.
Watch the promo >

Rebel Wilson on ABC's "Super Fun Night" 
(premieres Oct. 2 - Wednesdays at 9:30pm)

Memorable Film Roles: Bridesmaids, Bachelorette, What to Expect When You're Expecting, Pitch Perfect, Pain & Gain

New TV Role: The scene-stealing Aussie import capitalized on her current buzz and pitched her own sitcom, which she's writing and producing. What sets her apart from Mindy Kaling and Lena Dunham? While the critics and commenters will definitely group them together as "chubby, funny girls desperate to awkwardly find love," they shouldn't be so quick to judgegeneralize. From the promo alone, I can tell Wilson will be way more of a hot mess than those other two. By the end of the pilot, she will make them seem like well-adjusted young women.
Watch the promo >