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[02/08/08 - 06:21 PM] Development Update: Week of February 4-8 By The Futon Critic Staff (TFC) |
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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 signature "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 BIG MATCH (Lifetime, New!) - Paul Buccieri's Granada America has landed a pilot order from the cable channel for a new game show in which 100 single men compete for a dream date with one woman. Cat Deeley ("So You Think You Can Dance") is already on board to host the project, which was created by Michael Agbabian and Dwight Smith ("Phenomenon"). Buccieri will presumably executive produce the pilot alongside Agbabian and Smith. No other specifics however were given.
FRINGE (FOX) - Joshua Jackson ("Dawson's Creek") has scored the final principal role on the two-hour drama pilot, about an FBI agent Olivia Warren (Anna Torv) who teams with an institutionalized scientist (John Noble), to confront the spread of unexplained phenomena. Jackson will play Peter Bishop, the estranged son of Noble's character, a high-school dropout with an IQ of 190 and a misfit who is scrambling to erase a gambling debt. J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci and Alex Graves are all behind the Warner Bros. Television/Bad Robot-based project, which also stars Blair Brown, Lance Reddick, Kirk Acevedo, Mark Valley and Jasika Nicole. Production is underway in Toronto with the quartet executive producing alongside Bad Robot's Bryan Burk.
THE GOODE FAMILY (ABC, New!) - "King of the Hill's" Mike Judge, John Altschuler and Dave Krinsky are set to re-team for a new animated series at the Alphabet about a family obsessed with doing the "right" thing - environmentally, politically or socially - only to have their efforts result in unintended comedic consequences. The network has given a blind 13-episode commitment to the project, which is based at indie production company Media Rights Capital. Judge is expected to voice several characters on the show, including the family's father. He'll also executive produce alongside Altschuler, Krinsky and 3 Arts Entertainment's Michael Rotenberg and Tom Lassally. The news marks ABC's first on-air animated commitment since 2000's short-lived "Clerks."
INSIDE THE NFL (HBO) - HBO has pulled the plug on the veteran NFL highlights show after 31 seasons with its final episode airing this past Wednesday. "It has been a terrific franchise," HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg said in a statement. "But the television landscape has changed quite a bit over the last 30 years, and we have to recognize the realities of the business." Among said realities - "a whopping $8 million per year for the rights to use the highlights of NFL games," according to Profootballtalk.com's Mike Florio. "Add to that estimated annual production costs of $20 million, and that's a hefty price tag for any network to pay." The NFL nevertheless is in talks with "three or four other unnamed outlets" to find a new home for the franchise. It's not clear however if co-hosts Bob Costas, Dan Marino, Cris Collinsworth and Cris Carter will make the transition to any new incarnation.
KROD MANDOON (Comedy Central, New!) - Media Rights Capital has booked a six-episode commitment from the network for a new workplace comedy set in the Middle Ages. Peter Knight is behind the project, which is expected to roll out in early 2009. Additional specifics however weren't released.
THE LIFE & TIMES OF TIM (HBO) - The pay channel has given a 10-episode order to Steve Dilderian's animated comedy, about a single, offbeat guy (who he also voices) living in New York City whose instincts lead him down the wrong paths in life. The project was previously set up at FOX, who commissioned a pilot presentation last season. Media Rights Capital has subsequently taken over the distribution from Warner Bros. Television, who will still maintain a passive stake in the show. It's not clear if the original voice ensemble - Bob Morrow, Cheri Oteri, Kurtwood Smith, Matt Johnson, MJ Otto and Nick Kroll - is returning for the HBO incarnation. Production nevertheless is underway for a potential summer start with Dilderian, Tom Werner, Jimmy Miller and Mike Clements executive producing. The news likewise marks HBO's first animated effort since 1997-99's "Spawn."
THE MAN OF YOUR DREAMS (NBC) - Constance Zimmer ("Entourage"), Christina Chang ("CSI: Miami"), RonReaco Lee ("Committed") and Justina Machado ("Six Feet Under") have all joined the cast of the multi-camera comedy pilot, about a womanizer named Larry (Michael Trucco) who uses his expertise to help romantically challenged women. Zimmer will play Liza, the brother of Trucco's character, a smart, hardworking divorcee who is single-handedly raising her teen daughter while running her own wedding-planning business. Chang then is set as Malinda, a hot, twice-divorced woman and a gold digger who "carries her shovel proudly" with Lee as Larry's protege Mitch, a "Star Wars" buff, and Machado as Sheryl, Liza's friend and business partner, an attractive but somewhat curvy divorced woman. Jay Lacopo is behind the Universal Media Studios/Conaco-based half-hour, which he's executive producing alongside Conan O'Brien, David Kissinger and Jeff Ross.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
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[05/16/25 - 11:48 AM] "American Idol" Sunday and Monday "Disney" Nights Tower Over the Competition Sunday's episode of "American Idol" earned 5.27 million Total Viewers and a 0.62 rating in Adults 18-49.
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[05/16/25 - 11:26 AM] Video: "Death Valley" - BritBox Original Trailer A retired actor. A struggling young detective. They're the perfect crime-fighting duo - when they get along.
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[05/16/25 - 11:02 AM] NBC to Air Encore of "SNL50: The Anniversary Special" on Sunday, June 8 The special, which originally aired February 16 live on NBC and Peacock, has garnered 22 million viewers across all platforms.
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[05/16/25 - 11:02 AM] Video: BET+ Original Movie - Official Trailer - "To Get Her" In a foreign country, a mother, her sister, and her friend must take matters into their own hands to rescue her missing daughter.
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[05/16/25 - 10:00 AM] Prime Video Announces Multi-Title Licensing Deal with Glitch Productions, Starting with Fan-Favorite Indie Web Series "Murder Drones" The fan-favorite series has garnered over 270 million views on YouTube captivating audiences with its unique blend of humor, horror, and survival in a frozen post-apocalyptic world with hormonal (and sometimes murderous) robots.
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[05/16/25 - 09:16 AM] 2025 NBA Western Conference Finals: Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Oklahoma City Thunder or Denver Nuggets Exclusively on ESPN Platforms ESPN's lead NBA broadcast team - Mike Breen, analysts Doris Burke and Richard Jefferson and reporter Lisa Salters will provide commentary.
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[05/16/25 - 09:01 AM] Video: HBO Releases Official Trailer and Key Art for the Original Film "Mountainhead," Written and Directed by Jesse Armstrong, Debuting May 31 A group of billionaire friends get together against the backdrop of a rolling international crisis.
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[05/16/25 - 08:01 AM] Video: "The Heart Knows" - Official Trailer - Netflix After a heart transplant, Manuel feels a personality shift and explores his donor's life, leading him to meet the widowed Vale and her community.
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[05/16/25 - 08:00 AM] "Mickey 17" Begins Streaming Exclusively on Max May 23 From the Academy Award-winning writer/director of "Parasite," Bong Joon Ho, comes his next groundbreaking cinematic experience.
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[05/16/25 - 06:01 AM] Lady Gaga Takes the Stage at Netflix Tudum 2025: The Live Event Tudum LIVE is Netflix's global fan event, named after the iconic sound that plays at the start of every Netflix movie, series or event.
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[05/16/25 - 06:00 AM] Starz Adds Shameik Moore to Cast of "Power Book III: Raising Kanan" as "Breeze," A Pivotal Character in the "Power" Universe Moore will join the cast as a series regular in the prequel series' upcoming fifth season, which has also been confirmed as the final season.
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[05/15/25 - 03:30 PM] CNN to Exclusively Air Live George Clooney's Five-Time Tony Nominated Broadway Play "Good Night, and Good Luck" on Saturday, June 7 at 7pm ET Across CNN Platforms Clooney commented, "I can't tell you how exciting it is to do something that's never been done. CNN is the perfect place to bring this story of courage to so many more people than we could have ever hoped. Live TV. No net. Buckle up everyone."
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[05/15/25 - 02:07 PM] "9-1-1" Hits Six-Month High as Show Builds Toward Season Finale Standing as the No. 1 non-sports telecast of the night in the key Adult demo, "9-1-1" delivered 6.48 million Total Viewers and a 0.63 rating among Adults 18-49 on linear.
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[05/15/25 - 01:59 PM] Max Original Documentary "Bloody Trophy" Debuts May 16 A hard-hitting journalistic investigation into the illegal rhino horn trade leads straight to Poland and exposes the shadowy involvement of the Vietnamese mafia.
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[05/15/25 - 01:05 PM] ABC News Studios Announces "Hey Beautiful: Anatomy of a Romance Scam" Begins Streaming May 20, Only on Hulu There's big money in the lonely-hearts business with online scammers primed to take advantage of vulnerable women around the world.
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