The fourth season of Nurse Jackie is gearing up to welcome some pretty formidable patients to All Saints’ Hospital. One of whom will be film, stage and television veteran Joel Grey, who might well be most famous for his Master of Ceremonies role in the 1972 film Cabaret. Grey will be joining Edie Falco and the rest of the Showtime series’ cast on a an episode in the fourth season, playing a patient suffering from dementia. Grey is inequivocally skilled in both comedic and dramatic acting, so it’s hard his appearance could lean either way, especially considering the comedic and dramatic balance on which Nurse Jackie prides itself. The Showtime series will return to television in 2012. –TVLine
Jennie Garth will be stepping out of the bounds of the 90210 zipcode to take a stab at her own comedy series: ABC has cast the former Kelly Taylor as the lead in a new sitcom Village People. Garth’s character will be a business-minded executive named Alexa who takes on the responsibility of caring for an “at risk” teen mother and her infant child, eventually adopting the infant. The very nature of this series has drama written all over it, so it’s especially interesting that the show is dubbed a comedy. –Deadline
Ashley Tisdale is known for her very musical high school education. Of course, she also had a brief shot at college on Hellcats. But now, she’s ready for parenthood. The High School Musical star will appear on an episode of Fox’s dramedy, Raising Hope. In your classic TV romance scheme, Tisdale will pose as a fake girlfriend for protagonist Jimmy Chance (Lucas Neff) in an effort to make his love interest Sabrina (Shannon Woodward) jealous. Raising Hope airs Tuesday nights at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT on Fox. –EW
Every great mind eventually meets its match and accordingly, this upcoming guest appearance on Fox’s House is being slated as the showdown of the the century. Film actor Jeffrey Wright (celebrated especially for his roles in The Manchurian Candidate and Angels in America) will find his way to the New Jersey-based hospital to challenge and possibly dismiss Dr. House’s (Hugh Laurie) authority. Apparently, Wright’s character will be a famed neurosurgeon who has some kind of student-teacher relationship with Dr. House’s associate, Dr. Foreman (Omar Epps). What will come of this titanic clash, we cannot say, but there will definitely be some damage. House airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Fox. –TVLine
