or


[01/24/06 - 12:00 AM]
Development Update: January 23-24
By The Futon Critic Staff (TFC)

LOS ANGELES (thefutoncritic.com) -- The latest development news, culled from recent wire reports:

Looking to keep track of all the various projects in development? Click here to visit our newly branded "Devwatch" section. There visitors can view our listings by network, genre, studio and even development stage (ordered to pilot, cast-contingent, script, etc.). It's updated every day!

THE 12TH MAN (A.K.A. UNTITLED TIM STORY COMEDY PROJECT) (FOX) - FOX has given a pilot order to director Tim Story ("Fantastic Four") and writer Dan Fogelman's ("Like Family") comedy project for the network. The single-camera half-hour revolves around a pro basketball player who's not quite good enough to get much court time and feels marginalized as a result. Fogelman is writing the pilot script to the project, which is based on former pro basketball player Paul Shirley's blog "My So-Called NBA Career" on ESPN.com. Story then will direct and executive produce the 20th Century Fox Television-based half-hour along with Fogelman. Shirley himself will also serve as a producer.

ENEMIES (ABC) - Sean Bailey's ("Push, Nevada") long-in-the-works drama project for the Alphabet has been given the green light to produce a pilot. Said hour revolves around two Chicago-based best friends who grow up to become mortal enemies - one's a top player at the F.B.I. while the other's a mob boss. Bailey wrote the pilot and will executive produce the project for Touchstone Television along with Ken Olin ("Alias").

LOST (ABC) - The show's 11 remaining original cast members - Naveen Andrews, Emilie de Ravin, Matthew Fox, Jorge Garcia, Josh Holloway, Daniel Dae Kim, Yunjin Kim, Evangeline Lilly, Dominic Monaghan, Terry O�Quinn and Harold Perrineau - will all reportedly receive a pay bump next season, with each raking in almost $80,000 an episode. The news marks a significant jump from their current salaries, which are said to range from $20,000-$40,000 per installment. In addition, each actor is expected to agree to a one-year extension on their standard five-year contracts as part of the deal with Touchstone Television however there are no guarantees about the length of their tenure on the show. Finally, recent Golden Globe nominee Fox is also understood to have earned an extra bonus of at least $250,000. To date this season, "Lost" has averaged a whopping 16.76 million viewers as well as finished 2005 as the second-best-selling TV-DVD with 1.04 million units sold and helped drive the 1.5 million video downloads off of Apple's iTunes music store.

MY NAME IS EARL (NBC) - Production on the hit NBC comedy has been suspended as series star Jason Lee recovers from the chicken pox. The break, which is expected to last a few weeks, won't affect the show's air schedule as the Peacock is preparing to launch its 17-day coverage of the Winter Olympics starting February 10.

OCTOBER ROAD (ABC, New!) - Feature writer Scott Rosenberg ("High Fidelity") is set to team with Andre Nemec ("Fastlane") and Josh Appelbaum ("Alias") for a new drama at the Alphabet and Touchstone Television about a Manhattan-based screenwriter who moves back home to his small New England hometown, where he becomes a teacher and must readjust to life with his family and old friends. Gary Fleder ("Don't Say a Word") is also on board to direct and executive produce the project (via his Mojo Films banner), which ABC has given a pilot order.

PRIMARY (A.K.A. UNTITLED TIM STORY DRAMA PROJECT) (FOX) - Writer/producer Craig Silverstein ("The Dead Zone") has scored a pilot order for "Primary," a new drama which centers on a man and a woman who dance around their budding relationship while focusing on their jobs as hostage negotiators. Feature director Tim Story ("Fantastic Four") is on board to direct and executive produce the 20th Century Fox Television-based hour along with Silverstein.

SIX DEGREES (ABC) - Rodrigo Garcia, who's helmed the pilots to both "Big Love" and "Carnivale" at HBO, has signed on to direct the drama pilot, about a group of six young college grads whose lives intertwine in various ways. Raven Metzner, Stu Zicherman, J.J. Abrams, Bryan Burk and Thom Sherman are behind the hour, which is set up at Touchstone Television and Bad Robot. (Note: A previous version of this report indicated Garcia would direct both "Nine Lives" and "Six Degress." Said information, taken from The Hollywood Reporter, turned out to be incorrect. We apologize for the error.)

UNTITLED SHONDA RHIMES PROJECT (ABC, New!) - "Grey's Anatomy" creator Shonda Rhimes is developing a new drama at ABC and producers Touchstone Television and the Mark Gordon Co. about four female journalists from different media who travel the country. The project, which is being targeted for midseason next year, is said to be derived from a script Rhimes penned during the 2002-03 development season. Rhimes and Gordon then will executive produce the hour along with Betsy Beers and Julie Lynn.

Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [january 2006]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S


· 12TH MAN, THE (FOX)
· ALIAS (ABC)
· BIG LOVE (HBO)
· CARNIVALE (HBO)
· CORRESPONDENTS (ABC)
· DEAD ZONE, THE (USA)
· ENEMIES (ABC)
· FASTLANE (FOX)
· GREY'S ANATOMY (ABC)
· LIKE FAMILY (WB)
· LOST (ABC)
· MY NAME IS EARL (NBC)
· NINE, THE (ABC)
· OCTOBER ROAD (ABC)
· PUSH, NEVADA (ABC)
· SIX DEGREES (ABC)
· STANDOFF (FOX)





[11/03/25 - 09:04 AM]
Video: Peacock Debuts Official Trailer and Key Art for Fourth and Final Season of "Bel-Air"
In season four of Peacock's "Bel-Air," Will tries to balance the fun and excitement of senior year with the expectations that have brought him to this moment.

[11/03/25 - 09:01 AM]
AMC Networks' "Best Christmas Ever" Returns with Month-Long Celebration of the Holidays Beginning November 29
Highlights include "The Last Drive-In: Joe Bob's Cold Cruel Christmas" and "The Boulet Brothers' Dragula Holiday of Horrors."

[11/03/25 - 09:00 AM]
Video: Let It Bro! "A Very Jonas Christmas Movie" Official Trailer Is Here
The trailer also features the first single from the movie, "Coming Home This Christmas" featuring Kenny G, which is now available on Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Music and YouTube Music.

[11/03/25 - 08:00 AM]
Video: First Look at Upcoming FOX Series "Best Medicine" Starring Josh Charles, Abigail Spencer, Annie Potts, Josh Segarra & Cree
The series centers on Dr. Martin Best (Josh Charles), a brilliant surgeon who abruptly leaves his illustrious career in Boston to become the general practitioner in a quaint East Coast fishing village where he spent summers as a child with his Aunt Sarah (Annie Potts).

[11/03/25 - 07:01 AM]
Video: "Is It Cake? Holiday" - Season 2 Official Trailer - Netflix
Three "Is It Cake" alum and three baking heavy hitters try to fool celebrity judges with their incredible hyper-realistic cakes.

[11/03/25 - 06:31 AM]
Video: "Sesame Street" Is Coming to Netflix - Official Trailer - Netflix
This freshly reimagined "Sesame Street" series features characters you love, fan-favorite segments - and new ways to play!

[11/03/25 - 06:01 AM]
America's Most Watched Entertainment Telecast of the Year - Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade - Returns Live on NBC and Peacock Nov. 27
The Parade will feature a world-class lineup of music's biggest talents, iconic character balloons, imaginative floats and the one-and-only Santa Claus.

[11/03/25 - 05:11 AM]
25,984,000 Viewers Tuned in for the Dodgers Back-to-Back, Dramatic Clinch of the Fall Classic Across FOX, FOX Deportes and FOX Sports Streaming Services - The Most Since 2017
On FOX, World Series Game 7 peaked with 31,543,000 viewers from 11:30-11:45 PM ET.

[11/03/25 - 12:01 AM]
Video: "Lefter: The Story of the Ordinarius" - Official Trailer - Netflix
A football prodigy rises to fame, battling prejudice and inner turmoil on his quest for greatness.

[11/01/25 - 08:46 PM]
Video: "Operation Safed Sagar" - First Look - Netflix
A squadron of Indian Air Force pilots push beyond their limits to attempt a daring and dangerous mission. Based on true events.

[10/31/25 - 02:22 PM]
FOX Sports Hits 14.6 Million Viewers for Game 5 of the World Series
The telecast reached a peak viewership of 16,034,000 viewers on FOX between 10:00-10:15 PM ET.

[10/31/25 - 10:42 AM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Scares Up More Wins - Rising for Historic Sixth Week in a Row
"Dancing with the Stars" is the only fall show to increase its overall audience for six consecutive weeks following its season premiere.

[10/31/25 - 06:31 AM]
ESPN Networks Deliver Record College Football Viewership at the Midway Point of the Season, "College GameDay" Continues on Historic Run
Through nine weeks, ESPN networks are averaging 2.3 million viewers per game, their largest audience since 2009 and an increase of 20 percent year-over-year.

[10/31/25 - 06:30 AM]
NBC Sports and Royal Ascot, One of the World's Most Prestigious Horse Racing Meets, Partner on Multi-Year Media Rights Extension
NBC Sports has been presenting Royal Ascot via linear and digital platforms since 2017.

[10/31/25 - 06:01 AM]
Video: "Frankenstein" - Guillermo del Toro - Final Trailer - Netflix
Oscar winner Guillermo del Toro reimagines Mary Shelley's classic tale of a brilliant scientist and the creature his monstrous ambition brings to life.