Sendhil Ramamurthy Returning for ‘Heroes Reborn’

Sendhil Ramamurthy is the latest Heroes cast member to sign on for NBC’s Heroes Reborn. In the original series, Ramamurthy’s Mohinder Suresh was a geneticist trying to track down superhumans around the world, who later ended up acquiring special abilities himself. The actor will join former stars Jack Coleman, Masi Oka, Greg Grunberg and Jimmy Jean-Louis on the revival series, as well as newcomers to the show Zachary Levi (Chuck), Ryan Guzman (The Boy Next Door) and Robbie Kay (Once Upon a Time). Heroes Reborn is scheduled to air Thursday nights this fall. [Deadline]

Disney Channel Sets ‘Descendants’ Premiere Date

Disney’s new live-action movie Descendants makes being bad look so good. Many years after the classic Disney stories, the teenage children of Jafar, Maleficent, the Evil Queen, and Cruella de Vil are finally freed from the island where they’ve been imprisoned all their lives. Now allowed to join a prep school with Disney’s heroes and royals, they’ll need to decide whether being evil is really their destiny or merely a part of their past. Descendants, directed and choreographed by Kenny Ortega (High School Musical), premieres Friday, July 31 at 8 p.m. on Disney Channel.  [TVLine]

Sofia Coppola Drops Out Of ‘The Little Mermaid’

Sofia Coppola won’t be going under the sea with The Little Mermaid after all. The award-winning director has exited Universal Pictures and Working Title’s adaptation of the Hans Christian Andersen fairytale, citing creative differences over casting. Caroline Thompson (The Nightmare Before Christmas) is currently rewriting the script, and the studio and production company are now on the search for a new director. [Deadline]

‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Promotes Luke Mitchell to Series Regular

Luke Mitchell will have a new full-time gig come this fall. Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has promoted the former Tomorrow People alum to series regular for season 3. Mitchell’s character Lincoln was first introduced in April as a member of the Inhumans, a race of superhumans engineered by the alien Kree. Using his power to control electricity, Lincoln helped Skye defeat her mother Jiaying in the season finale. And with Marvel’s Inhumans movie drawing ever closer, adding Lincoln to the cast is the next step toward moving that storyline into the foreground. [TVLine]