David Semel Movies

The NBC cop drama Life was cast in the same mold as Fox's medical series House, in that it was built around a whimsically sarcastic, wittily iconoclastic and thoroughly irreverent anti-hero who rigidly adhered to a Zen-like philosophy in all matters both professional and personal. Damian Lewis starred as convict Charlie Crews, a former police detective serving a life sentence on a triple-homicide charge. Freed from prison after twelve years on the strength new DNA evidence supplied by his loyal attorney Brooke Langton (Contance Griffiths), Charlie was somewhat surprisingly reinstated by the police force, and even given his old job back. As he struggled to catch up with the technological advances of the past dozen years, Charlie also had to adjust himself to his new partner, another "reclamation project" named Dani Reese (Sarah Shawl), who had just overcome a nasty drug habit. Dedicating himself to capturing the person who committed the murders for which he was blamed, and to finding out who framed him and why, Charlie was unaware that Dani was actually a "mole" for his superior officer Lt. Karen Davis (Robin Weigert), who instensely disliked Charlie and had strongarmed Dani into helping her dig up a good excuse to fire him (woven into the series' basic storyline was a sinister, wide-ranging conspiracy which involved a number of characters who would greatly benefit from Charlie's removal--or his death). At least Charlie could count on the friendship and support of former white-collar criminal Ted Earley (Alan Arkin), who lived on the estate Charlie had purchased with his multimillion-dollar legal settlement against the police department, and who owed our hero innumerable favors stemming back to their days behind bars. Others in the cast were Jennifer Siebel as Charlie's ex-wife Jennifer and Brent Sexton as his embittered former partner Bobby Starks. Life was first telecast on September 26, 2007. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

While 34-year-old "supermom" Margo Dalton (Juile Warner) is being treated for uncontrollable muscle spasms, her daughter Stella (Ellie Fanning) runs amok throughout the clinic. The doctors are unable to find the reason for Margo's bizarre affliction, mainly because (surprise!) she has been lying to her husband about her medical condition. As for House (Hugh Laurie), he and Stacy (Sela Ward) have come to an "understanding" which permits him to wallow in misery as only he can, while Wilson (Robert Sean Leonard), who has had plenty of romantic misadventures of his own, tries to help House pick up the pieces. And after her run-in with AIDs patient in the earlier episode "Hunting", Cameron (Jennifer Morrison) is worried that she is now HIV-positive. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Inspired by the many real-life stories of "instant millionaires" created by various state lotteries, the weekly, 60-minute Windfall dramatized the trials and tribulations of 20 friends who had pooled their resources to win a 386-million-dollar lottery jackpot. The series focused on nine main characters, and how their sudden wealth changed their lives, both for good and ill, with emphasis on the legal, ethical, and moral problems arising from overnight affluence. Luke Perry and Lana Parrilla headed the cast as married couple Peter and Nina, who had entered the lottery with their lifelong friends Cameron (Jason Gedrick) and Beth (Sarah Wynter), also married; the enormous financial windfall caused Nina and Cameron, who'd once been sweethearts, to seriously reconsider resuming their premarital romance. Others in the cast included D.J. Cotrona as Sean Mathers, who tried to shun the spotlight after winning his share of the lottery so as not to expose an unsavory secret in his past; Jon Foster as teenager Damien, who, in order to claim the money and cut the cord binding him to his parents, impulsively married a Russian woman to gain legal status as an adult; Alice Greczyn as another teenager named Frankie, caught in the crossfire when her separated parents declared open warfare after her father claimed he was entitled to half of her mother's winnings; Malinda Williams as Kimberly George, a single mom with big ambitions; and Jaclyn DeSantis as nurse Maggie Hernandez, whose efforts to be generous with her money often proved disastrous. Originally set to air on Fox in the fall of 2005, Windfall was purchased by NBC, which unveiled the series on June 8, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Faith and skepticism walk side by side as two people look toward what might be the end of the world in this made-for-TV supernatural thriller. Richard Massey (Bill Pullman) is a college professor whose teenaged daughter recently died at the hands of a Satanist, who killed the girl as part of a ritual. While Massey is a confirmed atheist, he's trying to make some sort of sense of his daughter's death when he meets Sister Josepha Montifiore (Natascha McElhone), a nun who does research in unusual phenomena. Sister Josepha has become convinced that a number of signs point to the appearance of the Antichrist and the Apocalypse as predicted in the Book of Revelations; Massey becomes her skeptical accomplice as he searches for closure. Written for the screen by David Seltzer, the miniseries Revelations debuted on NBC on April 13, 2005. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Set in Philadelphia during the early '60s, the NBC drama series American Dreams concentrated on the Pryors, an Irish-Catholic family struggling to make sense of the great sociological changes being wrought upon the world -- and themselves. The first episode, ostensibly built around the determination of 15-year-old Meg Pryor (Brittany Snow) to appear on the locally produced TV dance show American Bandstand (whose host, Dick Clark, was one of American Dreams' executive producers), veered sharply into an entirely different direction with the announcement that President Kennedy had been assassinated in Dallas, an event that would inexorably shape the future of the entire family. Other characters included family patriarch Jack Pryor (Tom Verica), the traditionalist owner of a TV sales shop; Jack's wife Helen (Gail O'Grady), an incipient feminist who had begun to realize that a whole new world existed outside of her home and family; son J.J. (Will Estes), whose plans to attend Notre Dame on a football scholarship were sidetracked by his blossoming radicalism; the two younger Pryor children, Will (Ethan Dampf) and Patty (Sarah Ramos); Meg's best friend Roxanne (Vanessa Lengies); and the family's African-American friends, Henry and Sam Walker (Jonathan Adams, Arlen Escarpeta). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Young, beautiful, single Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter) heads out for a hot date with William Christopher (Ken Marino), a successful shutterbug introduced to her by her girlfriend Sarina (Daphne Duplaix). After spending the night with this handsome gentleman, Cordelia awakens to find herself pregnant -- with no fewer than seven offspring! She enlists the help of Angel (David Boreanaz) and Wesley (Alexis Denisof) in tracking William down to discover the supernatural origin of her rapid pregnancy. They learn that Sarina, too, is pregnant -- another victim of William's covert demon brethren. As Cordy succumbs to the demon's telepathic control and fiercely protects her impending offspring, Wesley and the huge demon that William serves engage in a duel. Angel arrives to put the freeze on the demon, and soon Cordy is her svelte, normal self. Originally broadcast January 25, 2000, on the WB network, "Expecting" marked season one, episode 12 of the supernatural comedy drama. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide

Still upset about his breakup with Jen (Michelle Williams), Dawson (James Van Der Beek) lies to Mary Beth (Megahn Perry) so that she will join him on a double date with Jen and Cliff (Scott Foley). His jealousy reveals itself over the course of the evening. Meanwhile, the relationship between Pacey (Joshua Jackson) and Joey (Katie Holmes) goes through some subtle changes as they work together on a school science project. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

Fathers and life decisions are the recurring themes on the first season finale of Dawson's Creek. Joey (Katie Holmes) must balance her new feelings for Dawson (James Van Der Beek) with the opportunity to live in France for a year. She must also visit her father on his birthday, even though he currently resides in prison. Pacey (Joshua Jackson) confronts his older brother about their respective relationships with their father. Jen (Michelle Williams) has reason to celebrate when her grandfather comes out of his coma, but becomes distraught when his health deteriorates. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

Episode five of the series finds the Master (Mark Metcalf) attempting to fulfill another prophecy. This time, an Anointed One will be turned into a vampire and become the Master's frontline weapon against the Slayer. In the meantime, the Master sends the Order of Aurelius -- special warrior vampires -- to kill Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar). She subsequently kills one them, and in reporting the incident to Giles (Anthony Stewart Head), learns of the prophecy. While Giles attempts to determine the identity of the Anointed One, Buffy attempts to have a date with Owen Thurman (Christopher Wiehl), a sensitive, good-looking student who likes the poetry of Emily Dickinson -- because it's so morbid. The date is interrupted halfway due to the pressing issue of having to save Giles from some vampires at a funeral home, where he went in search of the Anointed One. In coming to Giles' rescue, Buffy fights a large vampire spouting prophecy-like rhetoric, and she assumes that he's the Anointed One. The upside is that Owen, jazzed by their violent date, can't get enough of Buffy. The downside is that Buffy, realizing the danger she put him in, has to break up with him. Unbeknownst to Buffy and Giles, the Master has actually anointed a young boy and taken him into the catacombs below Sunnydale. ~ All Movie Guide

A group of teenagers telling ghost stories while stranded in the middle of nowhere sets the scene for this collection of horror tales. A girl is terrorized by a psycho she "met" on the internet, a biker makes the mistake of visiting a haunted farmhouse, and some folks in an RV finds monsters along the highway. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide