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[02/15/08 - 05:25 PM]
Development Update: Week of February 11-15
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!
24 (FOX) - Co-creator/executive producer Joel Surnow is departing the series after seven and a half seasons. "I did some soul-searching," Surnow told the trade publications. "I took it as an opportunity to write on my own and do other things." The news comes on the eve of his overall deal with 20th Century Fox Television expiring. Surnow's exit nevertheless won't derail the show's production as fellow executive producer Howard Gordon has served as the day-to-day showrunner in recent years alongside co-creator Robert Cochran.
CW NOW (The CW) - In a follow up to our February 8 report (read the story), The Hollywood Reporter has subsequently confirmed the series has indeed been canceled. "While you always wish the ratings were higher, we are proud of 'CW Now' and how it improved every week from a creative standpoint," CW COO John Maatta said in a statement. "The program was a highly collaborative endeavor, and you can't put a price tag on what we learned from this project." The show's final broadcast is set for February 24.
HOLE IN THE WALL (FOX, New!) - FremantleMedia North America is looking to import the Japanese game show in which contestants, dressed in spandex and hard hats, play a game of human Tetris versus a shape-changing moving barrier in order to avoid being knocked into a pool of water. YouTube.com and "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" have popularized the format domestically. Fuji Television originated the family-friendly show in July of 2006. As for specifics, teams gain or lose points depending on whether they manage to stay dry through each round. Stuart Krasnow is on board to executive produce the U.S. version alongside FremantleMedia chief Cecile Frot-Coutaz.
IFL BATTLEGROUND (MyNetworkTV) - The fledgling netlet has opted out of a second season of its formerly top-rated series. The show was widely reported as being part of the network's 2007-08 season plans over the summer. Its March 12 launch scored a then record 0.8 household rating but ultimately sagged by its final first-run airing on September 24. Repeats were featured briefly on Saturday nights during October and November. IFL coverage nevertheless will continue on previous partner Fox Sports Net as well as the newly added HDNet.
POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECTS/THE UNITED STATES OF TARA (Showtime) - The pay channel has confirmed both pilots are still a go following the strike's resolution. In addition, Craig Gillespie ("Lars and the Real Girl") has signed on to direct the latter project, about a woman (Toni Collette) with multiple-personality disorder. "Juno" screenwriter Diablo Cody penned the half-hour, which comes from DreamWorks Television. Tim Robbins then is behind "Effects," a drama about a family that runs a pharmaceutical company and the political, scientific and bureaucratic machinery that makes up the pharmaceutical industry. Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas and Daniel Thomas also serve as executive producers.
THE RICHES (FX) - The cable channel has slated the show's second season to launch on Tuesday, March 18 at 10:00/9:00c. Like fellow sophomore entry "Dirt," only seven of the 13 episodes ordered were shot prior to the strike. The network has opted to bring back both series with truncated runs rather than wait until their original 13-episode order was completed. Izzard, Minnie Driver, Shannon Woodward, Noel Fisher, Aidan Mitchell, Margo Martindale, Gregg Henry, Todd Stashwick and Jared Harris all star. FX Productions and Fox Television Studios are co-producing.
UGLY BETTY (ABC) - Executive producers Marco Pennette and James Hayman have been let go from the series, the same week it was renewed for a third season. The news marks its latest behind-the-scenes shuffle, coming on the heels of letting five writers go after its freshman run. Silvio Horta, Salma Hayek and Jose Tamez will continue on as the remaining active executive producers.
UNTITLED DENISE RICHARDS PROJECT (E!, New!) - Denise Richards's long-rumored reality series has been officially announced by the cable channel. E! staple Ryan Seacrest ("Keeping Up With the Kardashians") is executive producing the project, which will focus on Richards's life as a single mom following her high-profile divorce from Charlie Sheen. The proposed series made headlines earlier this year after Sheen went to court over Richards's decision to allow their children in front of the cameras. Ryan Seacrest Productions's Eliot Goldberg will serve as a co-executive producer. No launch date was specified.
UNTITLED JUSTIN HARTLEY PROJECT (The CW) - Justin Hartley ("Smallville") has inked a talent holding deal with the network. The actor toplined two recent pilots for the network - "Aquaman" and "Spellbound" - and was brought in to replace Johnny Lewis on the midseason entry "Eight Days a Week." That project has been in limbo since the WGA strike as only the original pilot has been completed thus far. Said deal then calls for the CW to find a new project for the actor.
UNTITLED DAVID KOHAN/MAX MUTCHNICK PROJECT (ABC, New!) - "Will & Grace" creators David Kohan and Max Mutchnick have landed the first major TV sale since the end of the WGA strike, pacting with ABC for a new multi-camera comedy at the network. The semi-autobiographical project, which was written on spec prior to the strike, revolves around two men - one straight, one gay - who are lifelong best friends/business partners that find their relationship threatened after each begin serious romantic relationships. Said half-hour, which is based at Warner Bros. Television and has a pilot commitment, is not to be confused with their CBS effort from last season, about a gay writer and a straight writer who are best friends and their hot young assistants.
WOMEN'S MURDER CLUB (ABC) - R. Scott Gemmill, Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain have all been let go from the freshman drama. Said development comes as the Alphabet mulls the fate of the 20th Century Fox Television-based hour, which will ultimately hinge on finding a replacement. Craft and Fain, who created the series, will remain under their overall deals with 20th, as will Gemmill.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
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[03/08/21 - 11:24 AM]
Amazon Prime Video Achieves Massive Royal Opening Weekend with the Launch of "Coming 2 America"
The sequel is the #1 streamed movie of this weekend, with the #1 opening weekend of any other streaming movie in 2021 thus far, and #1 opening weekend of any streaming movie in the past 12 months (post-COVID theater closures), per 3rd party Screen Engine/ASI's weekly PostVODTM ranking.
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[03/08/21 - 11:19 AM]
USA Network's "Queen of the South" Will Return for a 10-Episode Fifth and Final Season on Wednesday, April 7
"We could not be prouder of our entire cast and crew that joined us on this magnificent journey," said executive producers Dailyn Rodriguez, Ben Lobato and David Friendly.
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[03/08/21 - 11:00 AM]
Video: AMC+'s Exclusive Series "Cold Courage" Premieres Thursday, March 11
The first three episodes premiere Thursday, March 11 on AMC+, with subsequent episodes released every Thursday.
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[03/08/21 - 10:29 AM]
HBO Max to Debut "LFG" from CNN Films and Academy Award-Winning Directors Andrea Nix Fine and Sean Fine
The film is a no-holds-barred, inside account of the U.S. women's national team's ongoing fight for equal pay as told by Megan Rapinoe, Jessica McDonald, Becky Sauerbrunn, Kelley O'Hara, Sam Mewis and others.
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[03/08/21 - 10:21 AM]
HGTV Celebrates Europe's Luckiest Winners in New Series "My Lottery Dream Home International"
Inspired by "My Lottery Dream Home," the spin-off features lauded British interior designer Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen as he helps lucky winners newly flush with cash search for properties that reflect their wealthier status.
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[03/08/21 - 10:01 AM]
Sunday's Broadcast Ratings: "Oprah with Meghan and Harry" Special Puts CBS on Top
The Eye dominates the evening in both total viewers and adults 18-49.
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[03/08/21 - 10:01 AM]
WWE Network to Launch on Peacock March 18
WWE will have a dedicated page on Peacock where fans can browse and access every PPV event in the last calendar year.
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[03/08/21 - 10:01 AM]
Kim Kardashian, Gal Gadot, Robert Downey Jr., Millie Bobby Brown, Charli D'Amelio, BTS, Hailey Bieber, Addison Rae, Sofia Vergara, David Dobrik, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Tiffany Haddish and More Scheduled to Appear at Nickelodeon's Kids' Choice Awards 2021
Hosted by Kenan Thompson, and featuring show-stopping performances from Justin Bieber, Nickelodeon's Kids' Choice Awards 2021 will air live on Saturday, March 13.
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[03/08/21 - 09:07 AM]
"Oprah with Meghan and Harry: A CBS Primetime Special" Delivers Broadcast Television Event - 17.1 Million Viewers
CBS spins the numbers for Sunday, March 7.
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[03/08/21 - 08:15 AM]
Peacock Continues to Expand Original Programming with Drama Series "Dime Quien Soy: Mistress of War" Launching Today
The series tells the story of Amelia Garayoa, a Spanish socialite who is suddenly plunged into the world of international espionage.
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[03/08/21 - 07:28 AM]
"Deliciousness" Returns for Another One-Week Special Event Monday, March 22 on MTV
From food blunders to restaurant server fails to kids in the kitchen and more, "Deliciousness" helps satisfy the foodie in all of us.
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[03/08/21 - 07:04 AM]
Fox Corporation Partners with SeeHer & Launches "She's a Hero" Initiative
FOX will highlight the amazing achievements of real-life female first responders with a thematic, custom- produced, spot that will air on March 8 in a FOX Fast Break during an original episode of the hit drama "9-1-1."
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[03/08/21 - 07:01 AM]
Video: "Family Reunion" Part 3 - Official Trailer - Netflix
The McKellans may be tight on funds, but the family's never lacking in love as they power through heartache, loss and adversity of all kinds this season.
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[03/07/21 - 10:31 PM]
Video: "Aelay" - Official Trailer - Samuthirakani, M. Manikandan & Madhumathi - Tamil Film - Netflix India
After the death of his father Muthukutty, Parthi returns to his village to perform the last rites.
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[03/07/21 - 06:59 PM]
New Japanese Film "My Dearest, Like a Cherry Blossom" (working title)
The Netflix film is a tale of love that encapsulates the transience and beauty of cherry blossoms based on a bestselling novel of the same name in Japan by Keiichi Uyama from Shueisha, produced by Kei Haruna.
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