or


[03/09/09 - 06:11 PM]
Development Update: Monday, March 9
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!


COP HOUSE (FOX) - Tony Hale ("Chuck") has joined the cast of the comedy pilot, about a halfway house for troubled cops. He'll play a cop who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder on the project, following his stint on fellow FOX pilot "Boldly Going Nowhere." Adam Resnick created the half-hour, which comes from 20th Century Fox Television.


EMPIRE STATE (ABC) - Tammy Blanchard and Mel Raido are the latest additions to the pilot, a drama about a blue-collar man falling in love with a wealthy girl. Blanchard will play the man's cousin and close friend, a successful attorney, with Raido as the girl's ruthless and manipulating brother. Jeremy Podeswa is helming the ABC Studios-based hour from a script by Michael Seitzman.


LIMELIGHT (ABC) - Robbie Jones and Shannon Woodward are both on board the drama pilot, about the students and faculty at a performing-arts college. They'll play two students, an inspired percussionist and a talented actress, respectively. David Semel is helming the K.J. Steinberg-penned hour for Warner Bros. Television.


LITTLE PEOPLE: JUST MARRIED (TLC, New!) - The cable channel has ordered 13 episodes of the series following strong numbers for its backdoor pilot special on Monday, January 19 at 10:00/9:00c. Reality house LMNO Productions is behind the project, which follows newlyweds Bill Klein and Jen Arnold, a pharmaceutical salesman and pediatrician, respectively. It's understood "Married" will roll out on Monday, May 25 at 10:00/9:00c following the fifth season premiere of "Jon and Kate Plus 8." LMNO is also behind two other recent backdoor pilot specials at the network: "Amazing Love Stories" and "Incredible Weddings," both of which aired Sunday, February 15.


MAGGIE HILL (FOX) - Luke Mably, Gbenga Akinnagbe and Anna Rose Hopkins have all joined the cast of the drama pilot, about Maggie Hill (Christina Cole), a brilliant surgeon with schizophrenia. Mably will play her "real" boyfriend, a handsome doctor, while Akinnagbe is set as her rival, an arrogant surgeon. Hopkins then will play Maggie's younger sister. Ian Biederman is behind the 20th Century Fox Television-based hour, to be directed by Stephen Hopkins.


MELROSE PLACE (The CW) - Ashlee Simpson-Wentz is the latest to book a role on the "Melrose" revival. She'll play Violet, "a bright-eyed but shrewd small-town girl and recent L.A. transplant who has come to town with a secret." Michael Rady and Katie Cassidy also star in the hour, which comes from executive producers Darren Swimmer and Todd Slavkin. Davis Guggenheim directs.


MIAMI TRAUMA (CBS) - Lana Parrilla ("Swingtown") has joined the cast of the medical drama, a pilot set in a Miami trauma center. She's on board as "a brilliant surgeon who becomes the leader of the trauma team." Jeffrey Lieber is behind the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced hour, which is set up at Warner Bros. Television.


NO HEROICS (ABC) - "Scrubs" co-star Eliza Coupe has joined the cast of the comedy pilot, about four B-list superheroes living among us. She'll play Callie (a.k.a. "Crossfade"), a bad girl who can turn invisible. Drew Pearce and Jeff Greenstein co-created the half-hour, which is set up at ABC Studios.


RUNAWAY SQUAD (A&E) - The cable channel is set to order eight additional episodes of the series, about Joe Mazzilli, "a decorated former undercover detective in New York who searches for runaway kids and brings them back to their families on a pro bono basis." 1.2 million viewers tuned into the original backdoor pilot special on December 22. Granada Television is producing.


THREE RIVERS (CBS) - Justina Machado ("ER") has booked a role on the drama pilot, about organ transplants as seen through the eyes of the doctors, donors and recipients involved. She'll play an operating assistant on the hour, which comes from executive producers Carol Barbee and Curtis Hanson.


THE UNKNOWN (ABC) - Rupert Penry-Jones has been cast in the drama pilot, about a team of dedicated amateur detectives working on cases of unidentified victims. He'll play their leader, "a former cop whose 11-year-old daughter was kidnapped three years ago with no leads." Danny Cannon is helming the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced hour from a script by Mark Friedman. Warner Bros. Television is the studio attached.


V (ABC) - "Firefly" alum Morena Baccarin has been tapped as Anna, the leader of the Visitors, in the Alphabet's revival of the cult '80s franchise. Yves Simoneau is directing the Warner Bros. Television-based project from a script by Scott Peters.


VAMPIRE DIARIES (The CW) - Nina Dobrev ("Degrassi: The Next Generation") has been cast as the female lead in the drama pilot, about a tragic heroine who is the object of passion for two vampire brothers. She'll play said girl, Elena, in the hour, which comes from co-creators Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec. Marcos Siega is directing.


THE WONDERFUL MALADYS (HBO) - Nate Corddry and Molly Parker are set to join Sarah Michelle Gellar in the comedy pilot, about the three dysfunctional siblings in New York who lost their parents at a younger age. Corddry will play Alice Malady's (Gellar) younger brother Neil, a bookish grad student, with Parker as her older sister Mary, a therapist. Alan Taylor has also come aboard to direct from a script by Charles Randolph.


Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [march 2009]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S


· BOLDLY GOING NOWHERE (FOX)
· CHUCK (NBC)
· COP HOUSE (FOX)
· DEVELOPMENT UPDATE (TFC)
· EMPIRE STATE (ABC)
· ER (NBC)
· FIREFLY (FOX)
· FORGOTTEN, THE (ABC)
· JON & KATE PLUS 8 (TLC)
· LIMELIGHT (ABC)
· LITTLE COUPLE, THE (TLC)
· MAGGIE HILL (FOX)
· MELROSE PLACE (CW)
· MIAMI MEDICAL (CBS)
· NO HEROICS (ABC)
· RUNAWAY SQUAD (A AND E)
· SCRUBS (ABC)
· SWINGTOWN (CBS)
· THREE RIVERS (CBS)
· V (ABC)
· VAMPIRE DIARIES, THE (CW)
· WONDERFUL MALADYS, THE (HBO)





[01/06/26 - 12:31 PM]
"TMZ Investigates: The Reiner Murders: What REALLY Happened" Premieres Friday, January 9 at 8/7c on FOX
Harvey Levin, Ryan Regan, Charles Latibeaudiere and Jess Fusco serve as executive producers with co-executive producer Shevonne Sullivan.

[01/06/26 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10: Week of December 29 - "Stranger Things 5" Concludes Right Side Up at No. 1 in This Week's Top 10
At No. 2 on the English TV list with 12.7 million views is the new Harlan Coben mystery series "Run Away," centered on a father desperate for clues about his missing daughter while a string of related murders heightens the urgency to find her.

[01/06/26 - 11:33 AM]
Mark Silverman Wraps Tenure at FOX Sports
Silverman joined FOX Sports in 2018 and previously was the President of Big Ten Network (BTN) since its formation in 2006.

[01/06/26 - 11:06 AM]
Grammy Award Winner Mary J. Blige Extends Lifetime Relationship with New Three-Picture Deal, Launching with "Mary J. Blige Presents Be Happy"
NAACP Image Award-winners Tisha Campbell and Mekhi Phifer and SAG Award nominee Russell Hornsby are set to star.

[01/06/26 - 11:00 AM]
FOX Entertainment Studios Strikes Development Deal with Golden Globe-Winning and Emmy-Nominated Multi-Hyphenate Tracee Ellis Ross and Her Joy Mill Entertainment
Under the partnership, Ross will serve as executive producer and creative originator on a cross-genre scripted slate spanning comedy, drama and animation, as well as unscripted and reality television programming formats.

[01/06/26 - 10:42 AM]
CNBC's "Warren Buffett: A Life and Legacy" to Premiere on Tuesday, January 13 at 7PM ET
The two-hour special features exclusive, never-before-seen interviews with Warren Buffett about his views on business, philanthropy, and life, and how his philosophies have evolved over the decades.

[01/06/26 - 10:31 AM]
Video: "Hidden Assets" - Season 3 Official Trailer - Acorn TV
When investigative reporter Olatz Alzola and her family are brutally murdered in Bilbao, DS Claire Wallace is drawn into a case that links their killings to a CAB raid in Ireland that ended in tragedy.

[01/06/26 - 10:01 AM]
Netflix's "Star Search" Adds Jelly Roll, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Chrissy Teigen as Judges
"Star Search" premieres live on January 20 hosted by Emmy and Golden Globe nominated actor Anthony Anderson.

[01/06/26 - 10:01 AM]
Video: "Molly-Mae: Behind It All" Series 2 Part 2 - Official Trailer - Prime Video
The wait is almost over. Step back into her world of unfiltered moments and new beginnings.

[01/06/26 - 09:34 AM]
Video: "Fear Factor: House of Fear" - Special Premiere This Sunday on FOX!
The series will then regularly air Wednesdays at 9:00/8:00c on FOX.

[01/06/26 - 09:03 AM]
Bravo's "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City" Three-Part Reunion Begins Tuesday, Jan. 13 at 8 P.M. ET/PT
Host Andy Cohen sits down with Lisa Barlow, Mary Cosby, Heather Gay, Angie Katsanevas, Meredith Marks, Bronwyn Newport, Whitney Rose and Britani Bateman to rehash and attempt to find resolve for the women after a turbulent season.

[01/06/26 - 08:36 AM]
ESPN's Extensive MegaCast Presentation Features 20+ Offerings of College Football Playoff Semifinal Showdowns Slated for Thursday and Friday, Jan. 8-9
The penultimate round of the College Football Playoff will be presented with the main telecast on ESPN and additional viewing options on ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNEWS, SEC Network, ACC Network, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes and ESPN Unlimited.

[01/06/26 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "Agatha Christie's Seven Dials" - Official Trailer - Netflix
When a lavish country house party ends in murder, a witty young aristocrat sets out to solve the mystery in this adaptation of Agatha Christie's novel.

[01/06/26 - 06:11 AM]
New Cast Confirmed by Amazon MGM Studios for "Tomb Raider" Series
Martin Bobb-Semple, Sigourney Weaver, Jason Isaacs, Jack Bannon, John Heffernan, Bill Paterson, Paterson Joseph, Sasha Luss, Juliette Motamed, Celia Imrie, and August Wittgenstein officially join the previously announced Sophie Turner as Lara Croft.

[01/06/26 - 06:00 AM]
Netflix Becomes Official Home of WWE Library in United States
This follows the January 2025 launch of WWE on Netflix, where "Monday Night Raw" has become a weekly staple in the global English Top 10.