The 'Entourage' Boys Are Back in Town

Sept. 5, 2008 — -- Bro-mance: It's in the air. And you can thank the boys of "Entourage" for that.

Emmy nominees Kevin Dillon and Jeremy Piven palled around with Adrien Grenier, Kevin Connolly and Jerry Ferrara at New York's famed Ziegfeld Theatre earlier this week and celebrated the series' Season 5 premiere.

In between "man hugs," with his co-stars, Ferrara offered a cryptic warning for fans of the hit HBO comedy:

"You can expect things not to be so perfect in 'Entourage'-land," he said.

Hopefully, the drama will add to the show's loyal following. "Entourage" is practically HBO's hallmark show, with the critically acclaimed series "The Sopranos" and "The Wire" now gone.

The guys get serious and even deal with an "unexpected" death in the new season, premiering Sunday, that begins with movie star Vincent Chase and his loyal entourage still smarting from the failure of their labor of love, the Pablo Escobar biopic "Medellin."

"Vince eventually has to move on from being distracted from women and start becoming more focused this year," Grenier said.

Guest appearances from "Sopranos" star Jamie-Lynn Sigler and "Gossip Girl's" Leighton Meester won't help his cause; neither will Vince's popularity with female fans, a phenomenon Grenier knows too well.

"I usually wear a full football uniform," he said. "Just because it bruises when they throw themselves at me."

As always, abrasive agent Ari Gold (Piven) will keep the showbiz machine in motion but -- surprise -- the man of many insults will actually turn "sweet" when it comes to his wife, Mrs. Ari, played by Perrey Reeves.

"You're going to see a little more love and gentleness this year," said Reeves. "It's like they're really in love again."

Confronted with talk of his transformation, Piven told ABC News: "I am more loving, absolutely. But I also swear a lot. And I'm a wrecking ball."

Piven proved it by uttering a phrase, unmentionable here, shouted by Ari in the new season.

"Entourage" executive producer Mark Wahlberg managed to remain silent on the silver carpet. Laryngitis kept him from sharing details about his cameo, but Piven revealed Wahlberg will play himself on a golf outing with Ari and golf pro Phil Mickelson.

"I am a terrible golfer," Piven said. "Mark is incredible."

Life is finally looking up for Kevin Dillon's fame-craving Johnny Drama in Season 5.

"Let's just say the entourage is living with me now," he said. "And I'm buying the groceries."

Look for Johnny Drama to trade bro-mance for romance, as he maintains a connection with Jacqueline, the French beauty with whom he shared a rendezvous in the season finale. Julia Levy-Boeken, who plays Jacqueline, said the men of "Entourage" gave her a warm welcome in Cannes.

"We went and hit on girls all together," she said. "It was really cool."

But don't be deceived -- Johnny still has a flair for the dramatic. Dillon confirms that Drama will suffer a meltdown on ABC's "The View," but he's tight-lipped about the story line.

"I could tell you, but I'd have to kill you," Dillon said. "It's actually my favorite episode of the season for my character."

"Entourage" premieres Sunday on HBO.