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[10/21/09 - 06:29 PM]
Development Update: Wednesday, October 21
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!
BOYFRED (ABC, New!) - Newcomers Blake Silver, Jarrod Zimmerman, Alan Schmuckler and Michael Mahler have landed a script order from the Alphabet for a new comedy about six twentysomething friends who use a web site to keep in touch after one of them moves overseas. The project, which has a penalty attached, is based on a 15-minute presentation the quartet shot last summer for $6,000. Thomas Schlamme has subsequently come on board to executive produce the half-hour, which is set up at Sony Pictures Television. As for specifics, said effort revolves around Fred, "a Web designer in Chicago whose girlfriend goes overseas, so he creates a Web site for their circle of friends to keep in touch." In addition, "many of the show's characters are involved in Chicago's music scene, and their music blogs are central to the shared Web site, Boyfred.com." Silver directed the presentation with Schmuckler, Mahler and Zimmerman starring and Schmuckler and Mahler providing original music.
FLASH FORWARD (ABC) - Marc Guggenheim has stepped down as co-showrunner of the freshman drama. The move comes as production wraps on the show's original 13 episode order, which Guggenheim was brought in to supervise alongside co-creator David Goyer. Goyer then will fly solo for the remaining 12 episodes of its 25-installment freshman run. As for Guggenheim, he'll transition to development through his overall deal with producer ABC Studios.
I'M WITH STUPID (ABC, New!) - Judy Greer ("Miss/Guided") is set to topline a new multi-comedy at the network about Kas Sienkiewicz, "a Manhattanite who has a fling with a park ranger while on safari in South Africa" who returns home to find the ranger has tracked her down where his "limited intellectual capabilities" are ultimately revealed. Elaine Szewczyk, whose novel upon which the show is based, is penning the half-hour alongside Allan Loeb. Loeb, Steven Pearl and Richard Lewis then are executive producing the project, which has a script commitment, with Szewczyk serving as a co-executive producer. ABC Studios is producing the half-hour, which was originally developed by Lionsgate Television.
OLIVE PRODUCTIONS PROJECTS (Various, New!) - Steve Buscemi, Stanley Tucci and Wren Arthur's Olive Productions has booked a pair of projects around town. At HBO there's an untitled hour from Stu Zicherman ("Six Degrees") about "a brilliant, one-time powerful politician struggling to rebuild his career and relationships with his family and friends after being brought down by a scandal." Tucci is attached to play said role. Meanwhile, TBS has ordered "Good and Evel," an animated comedy about twin brothers Jack Good and Bo Evel who were "stolen by gypsy cab drivers at birth and taught how to behave and drive badly, Bo is a career petty criminal, and Jack bends over backward to mend his brother's ways and help his dysfunctional family." "Daria" co-creator Glenn Eichler penned said half-hour, which also comes from The Gotham Group's Lee Stollman and Ellen Goldsmith-Vein. Both projects are set up at Lionsgate Television where Olive has a first-look deal. Buscemi, Tucci and Arthur then will executive produce alongside the aforementioned creators.
UNTITLED PAUL RUST PROJECT (NBC, New!) - Paul Rust ("I Love You, Beth Cooper") is set to write and star in a new comedy at the Peacock based on his stint as a Wal-Mart employee. Universal Media Studios and Conan O'Brien's Conaco banner are behind the half-hour, which will track Rust's story of graduating from the U. of Iowa, returning to his hometown of LeMars, Iowa and taking a job at Wal-Mart (to be replaced by a fictional big-box store) - "only to find that his co-workers included his former high school principal." Rust, O'Brien and David Kissinger will then serve as executive producers.
WE ARE HERE (ABC, New!) - Hilary Winston ("My Name Is Earl") is developing a new comedy at the Alphabet about "four friends from the U. of Texas, all of whom still live in Austin, but deal with the arrival of adulthood in different ways." Anthony and Joe Russo ("Community") are also on board to executive produce the half-hour for Sony Pictures Television. The network has given a script commitment to the project with a penalty attached.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
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[08/06/25 - 11:03 AM]
All-New Season of "Ghost Adventures: House Calls" Premieres Wednesday, August 20 at 10PM ET/PT on Discovery
Overwhelmed by invasive, terrifying and unrelenting spirit activity that continues to escalate with no end in sight, distraught homeowners are desperate for the team's help.
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[08/06/25 - 10:02 AM]
FOX Enlists a New Group of All-Star Celebrity Recruits for the Fourth Season of "Special Forces: World's Toughest Test"
The fourth season of FOX's ultimate celebrity social experiment premieres Thursday, September 25.
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[08/06/25 - 09:02 AM]
Video: Paramount+ Debuts Official Teaser and Key Art for "Tulsa King" Starring Oscar Nominee Sylvester Stallone
The third season of the hit original series will premiere on Sunday, September 21.
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[08/06/25 - 09:01 AM]
Video: "The Wrong Paris" - Miranda Cosgrove and Pierson Fode - Official Trailer - Netflix
Dawn thinks she's joining a dating show in Paris, France, only to land in Paris, Texas. She has an exit plan - until sparks fly with the cowboy bachelor.
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[08/06/25 - 07:13 AM]
Joanna Gaines Invites Viewers Into Her Kitchen, with "Magnolia Table: At the Farm"
For the first time, fans old and new will get episodes concurrently on Magnolia Network and Food Network, as well as streaming on HBO Max the same day.
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[08/06/25 - 07:03 AM]
Video: Tubi Debuts Trailer for New Naomi Osaka Documentary, "Naomi Osaka: The Second Set" Premiering Exclusively on Tubi Sunday, August 24
The documentary film will deliver an intimate look into the life of Osaka as she navigates balancing her career with first-time motherhood and is described as a love letter to her daughter, Shai.
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[08/06/25 - 07:00 AM]
Tamsin Greig and Rish Shah Join Ella Purnell as Filming Commences on the Second Season of Darkly Comic Sky and Starz Original Thriller "Sweetpea"
Killer wallflower Rhiannon Lewis is back in Season 2 of the iconically brazen and darkly comic thriller.
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[08/06/25 - 06:01 AM]
Jelly Roll, Jonas Brothers, Cece Winans, Dan + Shay, and More Unite in Nashville for Stand Up to Cancer's Fundraising Special
The special will also include pre-taped segments featuring Kevin Bacon, Jamie Foxx, Tim McGraw, Zoe Saldaña, Keith Urban, and Reese Witherspoon.
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[08/06/25 - 03:31 AM]
ESPN and the NFL Reach New Agreements to Extend NFL Draft Rights and Add NFL Content and Features to ESPN's Upcoming Direct-to-Consumer Service
Beginning with the 2026 NFL Draft, Disney+ and Hulu will also stream ESPN, ABC, and ESPN Deportes' trio of Draft presentations.
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[08/06/25 - 03:16 AM]
ESPN's Direct-to-Consumer Service and Enhanced App Launching August 21
ESPN DTC will offer two plans, including an unlimited plan for $29.99/month that gives fans access to all of ESPN's linear networks.
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[08/06/25 - 03:01 AM]
ESPN, WWE Reach Landmark Rights Agreement as ESPN Platforms Become Exclusive U.S. Domestic Home of All WWE Premium Live Events, Including WrestleMania, Starting in 2026
The ESPN DTC service will stream all WWE PLEs annually, in their entirety, with select simulcasting on ESPN linear platforms.
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[08/06/25 - 01:02 AM]
Video: HBO Max Releases Official Trailer for the Max Original Documentary Series "Most Wanted: Teen Hacker"
The four-episode series, debuting Friday, September 5 on HBO Max, tells the unbelievable true story of a boy once named by the FBI as one of the most dangerous hackers in the world.
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[08/05/25 - 05:01 PM]
ESPN to Acquire NFL Network and Other Media Assets from the NFL in Exchange for a 10% Equity Stake in ESPN
In addition to the sale of NFL Network, the NFL and ESPN are also entering into a second non-binding agreement, under which the NFL will license to ESPN certain NFL content and other intellectual property to be used by NFL Network and other assets.
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[08/05/25 - 01:01 PM]
Molly Shannon Joins Will Ferrell in Netflix's "Untitled Will Ferrell Golf Series"
The series stars Will Ferrell, in his first TV comedy series, as a fictional golf legend.
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[08/05/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of July 28: "Happy Gilmore 2" Continues to Swing Big at No. 1 in This Week's Top 10
The Yosemite National Park-set thriller "Untamed" maintained the No. 1 spot on the English TV List for a third week with another 12.2 million views added to its accumulated 59.6 million total.
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