 |
 |
[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 |
| | | | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
[12/10/25 - 04:01 PM]
Video: "Cashero" - Official Trailer - Netflix
An ordinary man who inherits super strength discovers a greater evil out to steal his power. The one catch? Every use drains money from his wallet.
|
[12/10/25 - 03:16 PM]
Peacock to Exclusively Stream National Coverage of Baltimore Ravens at Green Bay Packers on Saturday, Dec. 27, at 8 P.M. ET
Ravens-Packers marks the fourth Peacock exclusive NFL game.
|
[12/10/25 - 02:59 PM]
FOX NFL Scores Massive Week 14 Viewership
28 million viewers watched FOX Sports' Week 14 "America's Game of the Week," featuring the Green Bay Packers divisional win over the Chicago Bears.
|
[12/10/25 - 01:06 PM]
Paramount Sends Letter to Warner Bros. Discovery Shareholders
The letter "reiterates why Paramount's offer will deliver WBD shareholders with superior value and a faster, more certain path to completion than the Netflix transaction."
|
[12/10/25 - 12:08 PM]
NBCU's November to Remember Showcases the Power of Company's Programming
"All Her Fault" became the most-watched original series launch in Peacock history with 46 million hours.
|
[12/10/25 - 11:06 AM]
"LA Firestorm" Presents the Harrowing Heartbreaks and Heroics From Battles Against the Blazes that Burned Through Los Angeles Like a Blowtorch
The series premieres Sunday, February 1, 2026 at 8pm ET/5pm PT with all three parts airing back-to-back.
|
[12/10/25 - 11:01 AM]
Introducing - For the First Time in "The Masked Singer" History - America's Insider!
Singer, actress, dancer and social media personality Kylie Cantrall is unmasking pre-premiere and bringing fans along for the insane ride behind-the-scenes on the all-new season.
|
[12/10/25 - 10:03 AM]
All-New Season of "Moonshiners" Premieres Tuesday, January 6, 2026 at 8PM ET/PT on Discovery Channel
This season, history repeats itself as liquor prices skyrocket and trade wars cripple the legal market.
|
[12/10/25 - 10:01 AM]
"The Lincoln Lawyer" Season 4 - First Look & Date Announcement
Netflix's hit drama series returns for its fourth season on Thursday, February 5, 2026.
|
[12/10/25 - 10:01 AM]
Revisit the Beloved Classic Films from Academy Award-Winning Writer/Director/Producer James L. Brooks, Ahead of 20th Century Studios' Release of "Ella McCay," Coming to Theaters Friday
"Broadcast News," "Big," "Say Anything," "The War of the Roses," and "How Do You Know" are all available on Hulu.
|
[12/10/25 - 10:00 AM]
HBO Original Documentary "Music Box: Happy and You Know It" Debuts December 25
The film explores the underestimated and wildly popular genre, delving behind the scenes to tell the origin stories of some of the top names in the field.
|
[12/10/25 - 10:00 AM]
Celebrate Christmas Morning with "Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade," Thursday, Dec. 25, on ABC, Disney+ and Hulu
This year's special features performances by Gwen Stefani, Lady A, Bebe Rexha, Nicole Scherzinger, and more.
|
[12/10/25 - 09:54 AM]
ABC Unwraps Holiday Presentations of Fan Favorite Shows
"Dancing with the Holidays" was the top-performing holiday-themed special across the broadcast networks among Adults 18-49 in two years.
|
[12/10/25 - 09:07 AM]
Candace Cameron Bure, Aaron Ashmore, and Robin Dunne Star in, "Ainsley McGregor Mysteries: A Case for the Watchmaker," Streaming Exclusively on Great American Pure Flix, January 1
In the latest installment, Ainsley McGregor thought craft markets and book clubs, not corpses, would define her new life back home in Sweet River.
|
[12/10/25 - 09:02 AM]
Video: "Jake Paul vs. Anthony Joshua" - Official Trailer - Netflix
Boxing disruptor Jake Paul challenges heavyweight powerhouse Anthony Joshua live in a career-defining super fight from Most Valuable Promotions.
|
|
|
|
