Spartacus Cast Returns for SDCC 2010

Press Release:

“SPARTACUS” RETURNS TO COMIC-CON!! ANDY WHITFIELD, JOHN HANNAH, VIVA BIANCA AND LUCY LAWLESS WILL TOUT STARZ ORIGINAL HIT SERIES

Beverly Hills, Calif. – June 16, 2010 – Fresh from a triumphant first season on the Starz original series “Spartacus: Blood and Sand,” stars Andy Whitfield (Spartacus), Lucy Lawless (Lucretia), John Hannah (Batiatus), Viva Bianca (Ilythia), and Executive Producer and Head Writer Steven S. DeKnight will appear on a panel at the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con on Friday, July 23. The day ends with a Spartacus-sponsored late night “Wrath of Con” party where the stars will be in attendance.

Whitfield and Bianca’s first San Diego appearance will be joined by Comic-Con veterans Lawless, Hannah and DeKnight. The team will discuss the unique narrative approach to the ancient legend as well as giving the fans a glimpse of what to expect from the upcoming Spartacus prequel, which begins filming in New Zealand this August.

“I’m very excited to be at my first Comic-Con and meet the fans who have made this show an international success,” Whitfield said.

“We’re looking forward to returning to San Diego,” DeKnight added. “When we presented at last year’s Comic-Con, we could tell by the audience reaction that we had something special. This year, with the prequel and season 2 in the works, we have even more to share with the fans.”

“The 2009 Comic-Con kicked off our ‘Spartacus’ marketing campaign,” says Starz EVP, Marketing, Nancy McGee. “We were thrilled at the response, and are excited to bring Andy, Lucy, John and Viva so they can see first-hand the excitement the show has generated from audiences all over the world.”

About “Spartacus: Blood and Sand”

“Spartacus: Blood and Sand – The Complete First Season” will be released on Blu-Rayâ„¢ and DVD on September 21st from Anchor Bay Entertainment.

Airing exclusively on Starz, “Spartacus: Blood and Sand” is produced by Starz Media with Executive Producers Rob Tapert (30 Days of Night, Evil Dead Trilogy), Sam Raimi (Spider-Man and Evil Dead Trilogy), Joshua Donen (The Quick and the Dead), along with DeKnight (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer”). “Spartacus: Blood and Sand,” the top-rated show on Fridays for adults (18-49 based on coverage rating) on all of cable for 12 of its 13 episodes, was inspired by the actual slave of the Roman Republic who in 73 BC led a slave revolt that grew to more than 120,000 fighters. Defying the Roman Republic’s legions of soldiers, they campaigned for two years through much of what is now Italy before succumbing to a much larger army.

About Starz Entertainment

Starz Entertainment, LLC, is a premium movie and original programming entertainment service provider operating in the United States. The company offers 16 premium channels including the flagship Starz® and Encore® brands with approximately 17.1 million and 31.1 million subscribers respectively. Starz Entertainment airs in total more than 1,000 movies and original series every month across its pay TV channels and offers advanced services including Starz HD, Encore HD, Starz On Demand, Encore On Demand, MoviePlex On Demand, Starz HD On Demand, Encore HD On Demand, MoviePlex HD On Demand, and Starz Play. Starz Entertainment (www.starz.com) is an operating unit of Starz, LLC, which is a controlled subsidiary of Liberty Media Corporation, and is attributed to Liberty Starz, a tracking stock group of Liberty Media Corporation.

First Look at Spartacus at SDCC

Lucy Lawless, Rob Tapert, Andy Whitfield,and Steven DeKnight Host Exclusive First Look of Action Series Premiering January 2010

PANELISTS INCLUDE LUCY LAWLESS (“XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS”), PETER MENSAH, ROB TAPERT (EVIL DEAD 1-2, DRAG ME TO HELL), STEVEN S. DEKNIGHT (“BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER,” “ANGEL”) AND INTRODUCING ANDY WHITFIELD AS SPARTACUS

DEVIL’S DUE PUBLISHING & STARZ ALSO TO UNVEIL EXCLUSIVE COMIC BOOK MINI-SERIES INSPIRED BY “SPARTACUS: BLOOD AND SAND”

Exclusive ‘First Look’ at the anticipated original drama “Spartacus: Blood and Sand” PLUS interview opportunities with cast and production team AND Unveiling of the Exclusive First Edition of series-inspired comic w/ special Comic Con cover.

The world of gladiators comes to life as the Roman Republic’s most brutal fighters clash in the ultimate arena. “Spartacus: Blood and Sand” is an entirely new vision of the ancient legend and will utilize virtual environments giving it a unique graphic novel look and style, along with a fresh narrative approach. Debuting exclusively on Starz, “Spartacus: Blood and Sand” in January 2010 is produced by Starz Media with Executive Producers Rob Tapert, Sam Raimi and Joshua Donen. Starz’s new “Spartacus” series was inspired by the actual slave of the Roman Republic who in 73 BC led a slave revolt that grew to more than 120,000 fighters. Defying the Roman Republic’s legions of soldiers, they campaigned for two years through much of what is now Italy before succumbing to a much larger army. The new series will tell a new set of stories rich in character, action, sex and combat.

This series, including 13 one-hour episodes, is executive produced by heavy-hitters Sam Raimi (“Spider-Man” and “Evil Dead”), Rob Tapert (The Grudge, “Xena: Warrior Princess” and “Hercules: The Legendary Journeys”) and Steven DeKnight (“Smallville,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”). Production, based in New Zealand, runs through the end of October.