 |
 |
[08/07/08 - 07:01 PM]
Development Update: Thursday, August 7
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!
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
|
|
|
 [august 2008]  |
S |
M |
T |
W |
T |
F |
S |
| | | | | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
[03/24/25 - 10:31 AM]
Caitlin Clark Joins Netflix's "My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman" on April 8
In 26 episodes across five seasons, "My Next Guest" has featured notables including Barack Obama, Tina Fey, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, JAY-Z, Robert Downey Jr., Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Dave Chappelle, Miley Cyrus, and Billie Eilish.
|
[03/24/25 - 09:01 AM]
Video: "Pangolin: Kulu's Journey" - Official Trailer - Netflix
A man finds new purpose when he helps rescue a baby pangolin, one of the most trafficked animals in the world, in a sting operation in South Africa.
|
[03/24/25 - 09:00 AM]
Video: Trailer & Key Art Debut - Hulu's "Got to Get Out"
Hosted by Simu Liu, all eight episodes premiere Friday, April 11 on Hulu.
|
[03/24/25 - 09:00 AM]
Video: Prime Video Releases Official Trailer for the Captivating New Docuseries "Spy High"
All four binge-worthy episodes will premiere exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide on April 8.
|
[03/24/25 - 08:50 AM]
"Project Runway" Icons Christian Siriano & Nina Garcia Join Heidi Klum on the Emmy-Award Winning Reality Competition Series, Alongside New Judge & Fashion Trailblazer Law Roach
Production begins today on the new season and will air this summer on Disney+, Hulu and Freeform.
|
[03/24/25 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "Andor" - Official Trailer - Final Season Streaming April 22 on Disney+
Welcome to the rebellion.
|
[03/24/25 - 08:00 AM]
Blake Shelton, Eric Church, and Lainey Wilson Kick-Off Performance Rollout for Milestone 60th Academy of Country Music Awards
Hosted by Reba McEntire, the 60th ACM Awards will stream live exclusively for a global audience across 240+ countries and territories on Prime Video and the Amazon Music channel on Twitch on Thursday, May 8.
|
[03/24/25 - 07:47 AM]
ESPN Begins 36th Season of Major League Baseball Coverage with Opening Day Doubleheader and 2025 "Sunday Night Baseball" Debut
Both of ESPN's MLB Opening Day games will also be available for the first time on ESPN+ and Disney+.
|
[03/24/25 - 07:13 AM]
Video: ESPN Unveils Newest "Georgia on My Mind" Rendition for the Masters Tournament Featuring 2x Grammy Nominated, Multi-Platinum Singer-Songwriter Noah Kahan
This is ESPN's sixth rendition of the hit 1960s song "Georgia on My Mind" by Ray Charles to be used in its annual marketing campaign leading up its coverage of the prestigious event.
|
[03/24/25 - 06:00 AM]
Video: Disney+ Unveils Otherworldly New "Doctor Who" Season Two Trailer
The Doctor meets Belinda Chandra and begins an epic quest to get her back to Earth.
|
[03/23/25 - 09:59 PM]
First Look Photos from "Conan O'Brien: The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor" Premiering Sunday, May 4 Only on Netflix
Comedy's biggest stars gather to toast and celebrate late-night legend Conan O'Brien as he accepts the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.
|
[03/23/25 - 06:37 PM]
"When Calls the Heart" Will Return for Season 13
The network confirms they'll see you back in Hope Valley in 2026.
|
[03/23/25 - 06:07 PM]
Video: ESPN Announces Jonas Brothers' "I Can't Lose" to Be Opening Day & "Sunday Night Baseball" Anthem for 2025 MLB season
The song will be used as ESPN's season-long anthem for all "Sunday Night Baseball" promotions, featured across the broadcasts and weekly tune-in commercials.
|
[03/23/25 - 05:01 PM]
Video: "When Life Gives You Tangerines" - Volume 4 Trailer - Netflix
In Jeju, a spirited girl and a steadfast boy's island story blossoms into a lifelong tale of setbacks and triumphs - proving love endures across time.
|
[03/21/25 - 08:11 PM]
From Cosmic Adventures to Charming Tales: Netflix Showcases AnimeJapan 2025 Highlights
Highlights include new trailers for "The Summer Hikaru Died" and "Moonrise."
|
|
|
|
