or


[07/31/08 - 06:55 PM]
Development Update: Thursday, July 31
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 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 CRU (CBS, New!) - Josh Berman ("Vanished") has booked a new drama at the Eye based on Michael Bennett, the lead character from James Patterson's 2007 novel "Step on a Crack." Berman is co-creating the hour, which has a script commitment with a penalty attached, alongside Katherine Ramsland, a professor of forensics. Bennett is a homicide detective who's thrust into the role of a negotiating team leader of the "Catastrophic Response Unit" when hostages are taken at the funeral of a former first lady. A second book by Patterson, featuring the character, is due in February. Berman then will presumably executive produce alongside Ramsland for Sony Pictures Television, where he has an overall deal.


DESTROYED IN SECONDS/DOING DA VINCI (Discovery, New!) - The cable channel has ordered a pair of projects from "Ghost Hunters" executive producer Craig Piligian. First up is "Doing Da Vinci," a new series that will try to bring to life the engineering designs of Leonardo Da Vinci, the 15th century artist who conceptualized many inventions that are now considered hundreds of years ahead of their time. The network has commissioned six hourlong episodes of the project, which will attempt to build two of the master artist's designs - which include blueprints of a helicopter, a tank, a calculator and the harvesting of solar power - in each installment with the help of a rocket scientist, a Hollywood special effects expert and an everyday in-the-garage inventor. Also on tap is "Destroyed in Seconds," a new half-hour series which features video clips of disasters where man-made constructions, from the intentional implosion of Dunes Hotel in Las Vegas to a terror attack on an Israeli marketplace, were destroyed - you guessed it - in seconds. 12 episodes will roll out on Thursday nights at 9:00/8:00c starting August 21 with Fox Sports' Ron Pitts serving as host. "Doing Da Vinci" then is expected to bow later in the year. Piligan is executive producing each effort via his Pilgrim Films and Television banner.


TIME HEALS (TNT, New!) - John Masius ("Providence") has landed a pilot order from the cable channel, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Said hour revolves around Nancy Hawthorne, "the strong but caring director of nursing at Charlotte Mercy Hospital in North Carolina, a single mother who always puts the pain of others first." The project is set up at Sony Pictures Television with Masius executive producing alongside studio-based producer Jamie Tarses.


Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [july 2008]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
  


· CRU, THE (CBS)
· DESTROYED IN SECONDS (DISCOVERY)
· DEVELOPMENT UPDATE (TFC)
· DOING DA VINCI (DISCOVERY)
· GHOST HUNTERS (A AND E)
· HAWTHORNE (TNT)
· PROVIDENCE (NBC)
· VANISHED (FOX)





[04/25/24 - 11:31 AM]
Netflix Greenlights Leanne Morgan Scripted Comedy from Co-Creator Chuck Lorre
Additionally, Morgan will do two stand-up specials for Netflix.

[04/25/24 - 11:01 AM]
Netflix & Shondaland Announce New "Bridgerton" Season 3 Product Collections & Brand Collaborations
In celebration of its upcoming Season 3 premiere, Netflix and Shondaland are announcing new product collections with leading lifestyle brands that speak to the essence of the Bridgerton universe and the underpinnings of the romantic Regency era releasing this spring.

[04/25/24 - 10:37 AM]
ABC's "Will Trent" Continues Momentum as Series Logs Highest Total Viewer Audience to Date and Highest Adults 18-49 Rating in Over a Year
After 35 days of viewing on ABC, Hulu and digital platforms, "Will Trent" continues its ratings climb in episode three of season two, growing to 11.23 million Total Viewers and marking its highest multiplatform telecast to date.

[04/25/24 - 10:07 AM]
Video: "Prom Dates" - Official Trailer - Hulu
"Prom Dates" follows best friends Jess and Hannah, who made a pact at 13 to have the perfect senior prom.

[04/25/24 - 10:02 AM]
HGTV Picks-Up New Season of Popular Hawaii-Based Series "Renovation Aloha"
The new season is slated to premiere in 2025.

[04/25/24 - 10:01 AM]
Video: Paramount+ Debuts Official Trailer and Key Art for Third Season of "Mayor of Kingstown"
In season three, a series of explosions rock Kingstown and its citizens, as a new face of the Russian mob sets up shop in the city, and a drug war rages inside and outside prison walls.

[04/25/24 - 10:00 AM]
The CW Network Enters Exclusive Multi-Year Agreement to Air Miss USA and Miss Teen USA Pageants
The 73rd Miss USA Pageant will air live on Sunday, August 4 while the companion pageant, Miss Teen USA, will air live on Thursday, August 1.

[04/25/24 - 09:29 AM]
The Brenner Brothers Are Back with a Sequel This Holiday Season on Hallmark Channel!
Paul Campbell, Tyler Hynes, Andrew Walker and Margaret Colin reprise their roles in the all-new sequel to "Three Wise Men and a Baby" - the #1 most-watched original movie premiere of 2022.

[04/25/24 - 09:01 AM]
The History Channel to Premiere Two-Night Event "The Great War" Executive Produced by Robin Roberts on May 27
The documentary series is told through dramatic narrative sequences, insightful interviews and contemporary scholarship, and dynamic archival footage.

[04/25/24 - 09:01 AM]
Video: "Clipped" - Official Trailer - Laurence Fishburne, Jacki Weaver, Cleopatra Coleman, Ed O'Neill - FX
The scandalous story of LA's other basketball team.

[04/25/24 - 09:01 AM]
Video: Apple TV+ Debuts Trailer for the New Documentary Series "Hollywood Con Queen," Featuring the Unbelievable Story of One of Hollywood's Biggest Scams, Premiering Globally May 8
"Hollywood Con Queen" hails from Emmy winner Chris Smith and Library Films.

[04/25/24 - 08:30 AM]
CBS Renews Drama "The Equalizer" for the 2024-2025 Broadcast Season
It is a top 10 primetime broadcast drama, ranking #8 overall season-to-date with 7.89 million viewers, according to Nielsen Most Current Data.

[04/25/24 - 08:01 AM]
Paramount+ Announces New Docuseries "Lolla: The Story of Lollapalooza" to Premiere May 21
Directed by the multi-Emmy nominated Michael John Warren and executive produced by multi-Emmy nominees James Lee Hernandez and Brian Lazarte, the three-part series made its triumphant world premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.

[04/25/24 - 08:00 AM]
Lights, Camera... "Action"! The High-Octane Documentary Series Makes Its Streaming Debut on Peacock on April 26
The new series features the real lives behind some of Hollywood's top stunt performers, including behind-the-scenes footage of Universal Pictures' The Fall Guy (in theaters May 3).

[04/25/24 - 05:00 AM]
Entertainment Icon Reba McEntire to Host the 59th Academy of Country Music Awards
The 16-time ACM Award-winning host will also take center stage to perform new music, in addition to helming country music's longest-running awards show.