or


[10/27/09 - 04:33 PM]
Development Update: Tuesday, October 27
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!


DELTA BLUES (TNT) - The cable channel has commissioned a pilot for the drama project, about "an outstanding but unusual Memphis cop who moonlights as an Elvis impersonator and lives with his mother." Liz Garcia ("Cold Case") and Josh Harto penned the Warner Horizon Television-based hour and are executive producing alongside Smokehouse Pictures's George Clooney, Grant Heslov and Abby Wolf-Weiss. Casting is underway.


DRY (Showtime, New!)/THE NATURE OF FIRE (CBS, New!) - Augusten Burroughs ("Running With Scissors") has set up a pair of projects, including a comedy at Showtime and a drama at CBS. The former, dubbed "Dry," is based on the author's experience as an advertising executive struggling toward sobriety. The latter, "The Nature of Fire," will center on "a group of male firefighters whose world is rocked when they're joined by a female arson investigator." Burroughs is penning both efforts and executive producing alongside Created By's Vince Gerardis ("FlashForward") and Katalyst's Karey Burke, Ashton Kutcher and Jason Goldberg ("The Beautiful Life") for CBS Television Studios. As previously reported, Bryan Fuller and Bryan Singer are developing a small screen take on Burroughs's book "Sellevision" for NBC.


FAMILY GUY (FOX) - Microsoft has dropped out as the sole sponsor of the show's upcoming "Seth and Alex's Almost Live Comedy Show" special. Said development reportedly comes after the company's executives attending its October 16 taping and grew concerned over its content. "We initially chose to participate in the Seth and Alex variety show based on the audience composition and creative humor of 'Family Guy,' but after reviewing an early version of the variety show, it became clear that the content was not a fit with the Windows brand," said a Microsoft spokeswoman. "We continue to have a good partnership with Fox, Seth MacFarlane and Alex Borstein and are working with them in other areas. We continue to believe in the value of brand integrations and partnerships between brands, media companies and talent." The special will nevertheless continue with another, yet-to-be-named, sponsor when it airs on November 8.


FLASH FORWARD (ABC) - Paula Newsome ("Women's Murder Club") is the latest to land an arc on the freshman drama, Entertainment Weekly reports. She'll play a doctor in several upcoming episodes however details about her character weren't released.


GHOSTS/ALIENS (Comedy Central) - Joey Kern ("The Sasquatch Gang") has been tapped as the new lead of the comedy pilot, about "two potheads who set out on a quest to expose the truth about the existence of ghosts and aliens." He'll take over from Jonathan Sadowski as one of said men, Trey Hamburger. Keir O'Donnell, Allan McLeod, Kaylee DeFer, Keir O'Donnell, Nathan Barnatt and Rebecca Wisocky also star in the project, which Michael Patrick Jann is directing from a script by Phil Johnston.


GOSSIP GIRL (The CW) - Sherri Saum ("In Treatment") has booked a multi-episode arc on the series. She'll play Holland Kemble, "a powerful business executive-turned-Upper East Side trophy wife and could be trouble for Lily (Kelly Rutherford) and Rufus (Matthew Settle)." It's not clear when her first episode will air.


HOUNDS (Comedy Central) - Ron White is back in business with the cable channel as the comedian will lend his voice to a new animated comedy described as "a blue-collar Southern neo-gothic comedy." Chris Thompson ("Ladies Man") is behind the half-hour which White will also co-executive produce. As for specifics, White will voice Chicken, "a countrified Yoda with a bottle of Jack and a bag of weed, an opinionated Southern philosopher who considers himself the center of the universe." Earlier this year, White toplined a pilot presentation for the network in which he "looked at stories from across the country and ran them through his everyman perspective."


RAVENS PARISH (FOX, New!) - Feature writer Dan McDermott ("Eagle Eye") has scored a script commitment from the network about "a man and his teenage son who return to their rural Mississippi hometown in search of a fabled cavern hidden beneath a nearby swamp that allegedly holds hidden treasure." McDermott, who previously served as head of current programming at the network, will pen the hour and executive produce for 20th Century Fox Television. Generate's Peter Aronson and Jordan Levin are also attached as executive producers via their first-look deal with the studio.


Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [october 2009]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
    


· BEAUTIFUL LIFE, THE (CW)
· COLD CASE (CBS)
· DEVELOPMENT UPDATE (TFC)
· DRY (SHOWTIME)
· FAMILY GUY (FOX)
· FLASH FORWARD (ABC)
· GHOSTS/ALIENS (COMEDY CENTRAL)
· GOSSIP GIRL (CW)
· HOUNDS (COMEDY CENTRAL)
· IN TREATMENT (HBO)
· LADIES MAN (CBS)
· MEMPHIS BEAT (TNT)
· NATURE OF FIRE (CBS)
· RAVENS PARISH (FOX)
· RON WHITE SHOW, THE (COMEDY CENTRAL)
· SELLEVISION (NBC)
· WOMEN'S MURDER CLUB (ABC)





[07/08/26 - 01:00 PM]
"The Cheetah Girls: Next Gen" Is Ready To Take Center Stage in Africa With Official Greenlight for Disney Channel and Disney+
A new cast of talented young actresses stars in the movie, including Leah Sava' Jeffries as Galleria's daughter Faith, Carmen Sanchez as Chanel's sister Dior, Kaileen Chang as Ruby, and Sophie Lennon as Brooklyn.

[07/08/26 - 12:01 PM]
Top 10 Most-Watched Prime Original Films & Series for the Week of June 29
"Elle," "Off Campus," "Every Year After," "Clarkson's Farm," and "Spider-Noir" led all original series worldwide.

[07/08/26 - 11:36 AM]
Warner Bros. Television Group Receives 52 Nominations for the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards
Highlights include an Outstanding Drama Series nomination for "The Pitt," and Comedy Series nods for "Abbott Elementary" and "Shrinking," and a Lead Actor nomination for Steve Carell's role in "Rooster."

[07/08/26 - 11:31 AM]
The Walt Disney Company Earns 125 Emmy Award Nominations
"The Beast in Me" and "The Oscars" led the company with nine nominations each.

[07/08/26 - 10:19 AM]
HBO Max Receives the Most Emmy Nominations with 122 Nods
"The Pitt" received 26 nominations including Outstanding Drama Series; while "Hacks" was given 25 nominations, including Outstanding Comedy Series.

[07/08/26 - 10:00 AM]
Championship June Drives Big Viewership Increases for ESPN Studio Shows
Events including the NBA Finals and Draft, the Stanley Cup Final, the Men's and Women's College World Series, FIFA World Cup and more captured the June sports scene and drove the content and discussion in ESPN's studio shows.

[07/08/26 - 09:31 AM]
Meredith Hayden Is Coming to Netflix with a New Video Podcast
"Wishbone Kitchen," a new weekly video podcast from Meredith Hayden, is coming to Netflix in August.

[07/08/26 - 08:31 AM]
78th Emmy Awards Complete Nominations List
"The Diplomat," "The Gilded Age," "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms," "Paradise," "The Pitt," "Pluribus," "Slow Horses," and "Your Friends & Neighbors" will compete for Outstanding Drama Series.

[07/08/26 - 08:16 AM]
Video: "You+Me - Against the World" - Official Teaser - Prime Video
The adaptation of the book by Emma Green with Vittoria Di Savoia and Lucas Barski is coming September 18 on Prime Video.

[07/08/26 - 08:06 AM]
New Nova Series "Evolution," A BBC Studios Production with Nova and GBH for PBS and BBC, Traces the History of Life Itself
The series will premiere Wednesdays, October 14 - November 11 at 9pm ET/8c on PBS (check local listings) and stream at pbs.org/nova, NOVA on YouTube, and the PBS App.

[07/08/26 - 07:31 AM]
Video: We TV and All Reality Unveil Key Art and Trailer for New Original Unscripted Series "Age Inappropriate"
The new unscripted series explores the real lives of modern age-gap relationships.

[07/08/26 - 07:02 AM]
Heartstopper: "Ending on a Hi" Behind-the-Scenes Special - on Netflix July 24th
Through candid interviews and fan voices, it charts the show's creative journey, cultural impact, and lasting legacy - a love letter to the community it brought together.

[07/08/26 - 07:01 AM]
"Beyond Society", Created by J.A. Bayona, Arrives on Netflix in 2026
The story of Flight 571 did not end on the day the survivors were rescued from the Andes.

[07/08/26 - 06:31 AM]
Video: "Elize: Shadows of a Woman" - Official Trailer - Netflix
In this retelling of a real case, a former escort discovers her wealthy husband's infidelity and struggles to cope as betrayal poisons their marriage.

[07/08/26 - 06:01 AM]
Optum Golf Channel Games - Featuring Rory McIlroy And Scottie Scheffler - Return this December on Golf Channel and USA Network
Scheffler and McIlroy - the No. 1 and No. 2 men's players in the world - will return as playing team captains at the 2026 Optum Golf Channel Games, following Team Scheffler's narrow victory over Team McIlroy last year.