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[08/07/08 - 07:01 PM]
Development Update: Thursday, August 7
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!
ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A 5TH GRADER? (FOX) - The network has ordered nine additional episodes of the series, bringing its third season total to 22 hours. Mark Burnett Productions and Zoo Productions are behind the project, which shifts to Friday nights starting September 5. Jeff Foxworthy hosts.
THE CONVERSATION (AMC) - Francis Ford Coppola's 1974 feature is once again being eyed for the small screen, this time at AMC. Christopher McQuarrie ("The Usual Suspects") and Erik Jendresen ("Band of Brothers") are penning the latest adaptation, following their previous pass for ABC/ABC Studios in 2006. Tony Krantz and Coppola are also returning via their respective companies Flame Ventures and American Zoetrope for Sony Pictures Television. McQuarrie, Jendresen and Heather McQuarrie then will executive produce alongside Krantz. As for specifics, the new incarnation will center on electronic surveillance expert Harry Caul (played by Gene Hackman in the film) as he works as an eavesdropper with a larger, ongoing storyline about who's monitoring him as he hears conversations he shouldn't be privy to. The AMC version will also bet set in the 1970s, unlike the ABC version which was set in present day. Prior to ABC, Krantz sold a version to NBC in 1995 as an agent, with Ron Bass writing and Kyle MacLachlan attached to star.
DROP DEAD DIVA (Lifetime) - Golden Brooks ("Girlfriends") and April Bowlby ("Two and a Half Men") are the latest additions to the drama pilot, about Deb, a dead aspiring actress-model who is reincarnated in the body of Jane (Brooke Elliott), a chubby, brilliant attorney. Brooks is set as Kim Kastle, who's detailed via the casting notice as: "Late 20s-Mid 30s, all ethnicities, in a Michael Kors suit, with a blue Hermes bag. Kim is a partner at the same law firm as Jane. Confident, savvy, manipulative and rather bitchy, she is not as smart as Jane, or as well liked by the clients, but she does know how to play the office politics game. For Kim, "everything's a competition. Every woman, a threat. Every man, a conquest"." And Bowlby then is playing Stacy Punt: "Early 20s, all ethnicities, "Sports Illustrated swimsuit sexy," a vapid but sweet young woman. She is Deb's best friend. Shallow, but with a gushy, fun personality, she is offended when Deb suggests she get a job and tells her, "I'm a model." Later, Stacy is the only person in whom Jane (Deb) confides about her rather unusual situation." Jackson Hurst and Margaret Cho also star in the Sony Pictures Television-based hour, which James Hayman is helming from a script by Josh Berman.
THE INFORMANT (FOX, New!) - Tom Szentgyorgyi ("Journeyman") is developing a domestic take on the Australian series of the same name, about Richard Button, a regular middle-class suburban dad who works as a police informant for an elite federal investigative agency. Greg Haddrick was behind the original version. 20th Century Fox Television and Alchemy Entertainment are co-producing.
LOVELAND (FOX, New!) - The network is reportedly close to importing the upcoming U.K. dating series, in which participants select their dates based on interactions with computer-generated versions of potential suitors. Jo Pine created the format, which comes from Tom Gutteridge's Standing Stone Productions. Antwerp animation house Nazooka is behind the technology used in the show, which is set to roll out on Sky One later this season, as is a web-based version of the format.
SHAWN RYAN PROJECTS (Various, New!) - "The Shield" creator Shawn Ryan has set up three new projects around town - "The Lead Sheet" at A&E, "Millionaires Club" at FOX and an untitled hour at FX. That's in addition to "Confessions of a Contractor" at CBS, which was announced earlier this week. All four stem from his overall deal with 20th Century Fox Television. "Sheet," created by author James Ellroy, chronicles the hunt for the infamous Hillside Strangler - a prolific serial killer who tortured, raped and killed young women in 1977-78 in the hills above Los Angeles. The series then follows three police officers and two DAs as they investigate the killer, with each episode of the crime procedural starting with a tip leading to a violent crime that may or may not be related to the Strangler. Ellroy is penning the hour and executive producing alongside his manager Joel Gotler. As for "Club," the single-camera comedy revolves around a ragtag group of wannabe millionaires who keep coming up with ill-fated plots to get rich. "Semi-Pro" helmer Kent Alterman attached to direct the half-hour from a script by Ryan. And finally, Ryan is teaming with "Ocean's Eleven" writer Ted Griffin for the FX project, which is billed as a comedic drama about a private eye. Ryan is executive producing each via his MiddKid Productions banner with 20th producing the broadcast projects and Fox 21 shepherding the cable projects.
TREME (HBO) - Khandi Alexander ("CSI: Miami") and "The Wire" alums Wendell Pierce and Clarke Peters are the first to be cast in the drama pilot, a post-Katrina-themed drama which chronicles the rebuilding of New Orleans through the eyes of local musicians. David Simon and Eric Overmyer are behind the hour, which is also executive produced by Nina Noble for Simon's Blown Deadline Productions. As for specifics, Pierce will play Antoine Batiste, "an accomplished jazz trombonist who is now scratching for gigs, trying to support a live-in girlfriend and a new baby, while still carrying a torch for a failed marriage to Ladonna Batiste (Alexander), the mother of his two children, who is single-handedly keeping her bar afloat," according to The Hollywood Reporter. Peters then is set as Albert Lambreaux, a big chief of the White Feather Nation trying to bring the tribe's members home.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
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[06/17/26 - 12:14 PM]
Top 10 Most-Watched Prime Original Films & Series for the Week of June 8
"Off Campus," "Every Year After," "Spider-Noir," "Clarkson's Farm," and "The Boys" led all original series worldwide.
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[06/17/26 - 12:00 PM]
Disney+ Announces Season Four of "The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder" and New Holiday Special "A Proud Family Wizmas"
The fourth and final season will premiere on Wednesday, July 29, ahead of the beloved series' 25th anniversary.
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[06/17/26 - 11:22 AM]
Lifetime Announces Five New Movies for July and August
"He Couldn't Let Go," "Crowning at the Prom," "Girl in the Coffin," "Killer Clown," and "She Stole My Son's Heart" will premiere on successive Saturdays beginning July 11.
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[06/17/26 - 10:29 AM]
"BET Awards" 2026 Reveals First Wave of Performers
As Culture's Biggest Night approaches, BET will continue to unveil additional performers, presenters, special guests, and surprise moments leading up to the live broadcast, hosted by Druski, airing Sunday, June 28 at 8 PM ET/PT on BET from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.
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[06/17/26 - 10:14 AM]
Video: "The Welcome Table" - Official Trailer - HBO
From Oscar-nominated director Josh Fox, the film tells the story of climate migrants across six continents, centering the voices and experiences of survivors on the front lines of the climate crisis.
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[06/17/26 - 10:07 AM]
"Solo Traveling with Tracee Ellis Ross" Season 2 - Streaming on The Roku Channel July 20th
She's back, packing her bags and inviting audiences to join her solo trips to Australia, Thailand, and Switzerland to experience the joy of solo travel.
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[06/17/26 - 10:03 AM]
Starz Picks Up Timely and Riveting Queer Drama "Tip Toe," Starring Alan Cumming and David Morrissey to Air in 2026
Starring Alan Cumming and David Morrissey as warring neighbors, the five-part series will premiere exclusively on Starz later this year.
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[06/17/26 - 10:01 AM]
New Series "Homestead Rescue: Intervention" Pushes Wilderness Expert Raney Family Into Their Most Emotional and High-Stakes Rescues of Off-Gridders Living Beyond the Edge of Survival
The series premieres Tuesday, July 14 at 8:00PM ET/PT on Discovery Channel.
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[06/17/26 - 09:20 AM]
NBC's "Macy's 4th of July Fireworks" Celebrates 50th Anniversary with Star-Studded Lineup of Musical Artists
The star-studded event will feature performances by Noah Kahan, Post Malone, Salt-N-Pepa, Bebe Rexha, Shaboozey and Blake Shelton.
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[06/17/26 - 09:05 AM]
New City. New Experts. Bold New Era of Love. Season 20 of Peacock's "Married at First Sight" Returns Sunday, July 12
Featuring more couples than ever before, a brand-new panel of experts, fresh dynamics and deeper emotional stakes, Season 20 reimagines the groundbreaking social experiment that has captivated audiences for two decades.
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[06/17/26 - 09:01 AM]
BET Returns to Its Stand-Up Comedy Roots with "ComicView: Rooftop Series," Hosted by Chris "CP" Powell, Premiering June 30
Each episode spotlights three of the funniest comics delivering sharp, unfiltered takes on culture, family, and real life - from a Hollywood rooftop.
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[06/17/26 - 09:00 AM]
Prime Video Greenlights Season Two of "One Night in Idaho: The College Murders"
The series returns for a new season with unprecedented first-time, exclusive access to the police and lead investigators who bore the weight of a nation's obsession and - until now - were unable to tell their story due to a gag order on the case.
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[06/17/26 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "Susana and Elvira: No Plan B" - Official Trailer - Netflix
After a fallout abroad, two former best friends reluctantly reunite to plan a high-profile wedding for the hottest artists in town - with no backup plan.
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[06/17/26 - 07:44 AM]
CNN FlashDoc "Chasing Soccer Glory: America's Long Game" Now Streaming on the CNN App
More than three decades after the World Cup last came to the United States, "Chasing Soccer Glory" examines how soccer evolved from a niche sport into a cultural force, and why the promise of the U.S. Men's National Team remains unfulfilled.
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[06/17/26 - 07:41 AM]
Video: MGM+ Debuts Official Trailer, Key Art and New Photos for Gritty Drama Series "The Westies" Starring Academy Award-Winner J.K. Simmons
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