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[12/26/08 - 06:43 PM]
Development Update: Week of December 22-26
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!
BITCHES (FOX, New!) - Feature writer Michael Dougherty ("Superman Returns") has scored a hefty script commitment from the network for a new drama about a quartet of female friends in New York who are werewolves. The project, which has a penalty attached should it not move forward to pilot, is set up at Warner Bros. Television. Writer/producers Gretchen Berg and Aaron Harberts ("Pushing Daisies") have been tapped to supervise Dougherty and executive produce. No other specifics were given.
GILMORE GIRLS (The CW) - One day after filing a lawsuit against CBS over "Two and a Half Men" (see below), Warner Bros. Television itself has been sued by producer Gavin Polone over "Gilmore Girls." The breach-of-contract lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, claims the vertically integrated Time Warner companies Warner Bros. Television and The WB "have colluded to defraud the originator of hit 'Gilmore Girls' television series with a scheme that rivals the greed and bravado of any story line defendants could script." Hofflund/Polone, Polone's company with Judy Hofflund, alleges the "modified adjusted gross," the money the show earns after costs are deducted, for "Gilmore's" first six seasons was modified by the studio - through "collusion among defendants to set below-market license fees" and a series of improper charges - which cut into Hofflund/Polone's profits as a result. A third-party audit commissioned by Hofflund/Polone in October 2006 alleges that number was understated by $45.5 million and the company has asked for "tens of millions of dollars" in damages as a result. Warner Bros. has yet to comment on the suit.
LOST & FOUND (NBC) - Australian actor Damon Herriman ("All Saints") has joined the cast of the drama pilot, which centers on Tessa Cooper (Katee Sackhoff), an offbeat LAPD detective who, after butting heads with higher-ups, is sent as punishment to the basement to work on John and Jane Doe cases. He'll play Anthony Yeckel, an oddball civilian consultant to the police's lost-and-found department who has an obsessive love of old detective TV shows. Brian Cox and Josh Cooke also star in the Universal Media Studios/Wolf Films-based hour, which Michael Engler is directing from a script by creator Chris Levinson.
TWO AND A HALF MEN (CBS) - Warner Bros. Television filed a $49 million breach of contract lawsuit against CBS on Tuesday. Said suit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, claims the network owes Warner Bros. additional fees toward the production deficit carried by the studio. The "deficit recoupment" was understood to be tied to "Men" hitting certain ratings milestones as specified by the show's original four-year license agreement signed in 2003. The suit indicates the studio incurred a $61.1 million deficit over the course of the first four years of the show (for instance CBS paid $750,000 per episode during "Men's" first season while Warner Bros. actual cost to produce the show came in at $1.22 million), a cost which CBS would cover should "Men" finish as a top 10 show. Additionally, should "Men" finish in the top five in its fourth season, CBS would pay an additional $650,000 more per episode in the fifth and sixth seasons (with a downward scale from there). "CBS has reaped the benefits of the tremendous success of 'Two and a Half Men" but wants to deny Warner Bros. the right to its agreed-upon share," Warner Bros. said in a statement. CBS countered with simply, "Wow, I wonder what they got the other networks for Christmas."
UGLY BETTY (ABC) - "Dexter" co-star Lauren Velez has booked a multi-episode arc on the Thursday dramedy. She'll play Elena, a nurse that enters the lives of the Suarez family, whom reports speculate will be linked to a major plot development. It's not clear when her first episode will air.
UNTITLED MARIA BELLO PROJECT (HBO, New!) - Maria Bello ("The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor") is set to topline a potential new drama at the pay channel about a woman who's forced into a life of crime to support her three teenage sons after her husband is killed. Gary Lennon ("The Shield") is penning the hour, which sees the woman using her sons as henchmen, leading them all down a destructive road. Bello herself will executive produce alongside Lennon, Gavin Polone and John Carrabino.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
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[04/28/25 - 11:09 AM]
Lifetime Greenlights New "Ripped from the Headlines" Movie Inspired by Real Stories "Girl in the Attic" Starring Jean Louisa Kelly and Sophia Carriere
Premiering Saturday, June 14, the harrowing and suspenseful film delves into the resilience of the human spirit and the power of unlikely alliances in the face of unimaginable terror.
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[04/28/25 - 11:00 AM]
New Investigative Genealogy Series "Relative Secrets" to Premiere Monday, June 2 on BBC America and Acorn TV
Each episode in this suspenseful new series will investigate an everyday American family's darkest mystery, aiming both to solve the mystery and explore how it shapes that family today.
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[04/28/25 - 09:00 AM]
Grammy Award Winner Gretchen Wilson Announced as "Tour Manager" for CBS' New Music Competition Series "The Road"
As "tour manager," Wilson will provide support and guidance to the emerging musicians while they make their way across America, ensuring the tour's success while sharing her own expertise and experiences on the road as a touring artist.
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[04/28/25 - 09:00 AM]
BET+ Greenlights Critically Acclaimed "Diarra from Detroit" for Second Season
Bryan Terrell Clark, DomiNque Perry, and Jon Chaffin are confirmed to return as series regulars in the upcoming season, continuing their dynamic roles alongside Kilpatrick.
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[04/28/25 - 08:36 AM]
AXS TV Kicks Off the Summer with a Memorial Day Music Marathon, Airing All Day Long on Monday, May 26 Starting at 8A ET
The all-day event puts the spotlight on 13 powerhouse performances from some of music's most iconic artists.
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[04/28/25 - 06:01 AM]
Video: Netflix Tudum 2025 - Official Trailer - May 31 - Netflix
This high-energy show will be streamed LIVE on Netflix May 31st at 5:00 PM PT / 8:00 PM ET from the Kia Forum in Los Angeles.
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[04/28/25 - 06:01 AM]
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation Unveils Electrifying Class of 2025 Inductees
The 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction will be live on Saturday, November 8, at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, California.
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[04/28/25 - 06:00 AM]
Video: "Welcome to Wrexham" - Season 4 Official Trailer - Rob McElhenney, Ryan Reynolds - FX
Things are kicking off as Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds welcome us back to Wrexham FC - and what is shaping up to be the greatest underdog story of all time.
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[04/28/25 - 04:01 AM]
Video: "Cheat: Unfinished Business" - Official Trailer #2 - What Is Cheating? - Netflix
Sun, scandal and second chances collide in this reality show in which former cheaters reconnect with their exes. With Amanda Holden and Paul C. Brunson.
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[04/28/25 - 03:01 AM]
"Kaulitz & Kaulitz" - Launch Date and First Look for Season 2
Season 2 of the reality series about Germany's most famous twins debuts on June 17.
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[04/28/25 - 02:01 AM]
Video: "Rotten Legacy" - Official Trailer - Netflix
After a grave illness, a media mogul discovers his children's tactics threaten the empire he carefully built - and he'll do whatever it takes to save it.
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[04/27/25 - 03:01 PM]
Japanese Amazon Original Drama Series, "Marry My Husband," Starring Fuka Koshiba and Takeru Satoh, Coming Exclusively to Prime Video
Based on the popular NAVER web novel, this Japan-Korea joint project marks the Japanese adaptation of the hit series.
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[04/27/25 - 06:26 AM]
ABC News Exclusive: President Donald J. Trump Sits Down With Terry Moran as He Marks His First 100 Days in Office
The one-hour special will air this Tuesday, April 29 at 8 p.m. EDT/7 p.m. CDT on ABC.
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[04/26/25 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "Alien: Earth" - Official Teasers - FX
The highly anticipated sci-fi horror series from executive producer Noah Hawley is coming to FX and Hulu in Summer 2025.
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[04/26/25 - 12:11 AM]
Video: "Dan Da Dan" Season 2 - Official Trailer - Netflix Anime
Season 2 is coming to Netflix on July 3.
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