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[10/27/09 - 04:33 PM]
Development Update: Tuesday, October 27
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!
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
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[04/24/26 - 12:00 PM]
What's New on HBO Max This May
Highlights include season two of "On The Roam," comedy special "Josh Johnson: Symphony," documentary series "U.S. Against The World: Four Years With The Men's National Soccer Team," new episode of "The Yogurt Shop Murders," and documentary "The A List: 15 Stories From Asia And Pacific Diasporas."
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[04/24/26 - 11:16 AM]
"Wuthering Heights" Begins Streaming Exclusively on HBO Max May 1
The Emerald Fennell film stars Margot Robbie as Cathy and Jacob Elordi as Heathcliff, whose forbidden passion for one another turns from romantic to intoxicating in an epic tale of lust, love and madness.
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[04/24/26 - 09:01 AM]
Zizians Documentary Series Set at HBO
The multi-part documentary series explores the Zizians, an enigmatic group of young technologists who garnered national attention in 2025 after law enforcement linked members of the group to a series of violent crimes across the country.
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[04/24/26 - 08:59 AM]
NBA Playoffs Return to NBC Sports Delivers Big Viewership Gains Over First Three Nights
NBC Sports' first six NBA Playoff games averaged 4.9 million viewers, up 38% vs. comparable coverage last year and the most-watched for the first Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday nights of the playoffs since 1994.
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[04/24/26 - 08:01 AM]
Video: New Featurette - Hulu Original Series "Rivals" Season 2
Ahead of the highly anticipated second season of the Emmy and BAFTA award-winning "Rivals," Hulu has released a new recap featurette.
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[04/24/26 - 08:00 AM]
La La Anthony, Rutina Wesley, Taylor Polidore Williams, DeVaughn Nixon and Alexxis Lemire Join Season 4 of Hulu's Hit Legal Drama "Reasonable Doubt" as Recurring Guest Stars
Morris Chestnut, Joseph Sikora and Brandee Evans also return as recurring guest stars.
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[04/24/26 - 07:01 AM]
"Scooby-Doo: Origins" Starts Production in Atlanta
A modern reimagining of the iconic mystery-solving group of teens and their very special dog.
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[04/24/26 - 06:01 AM]
Video: "Gordon" - First Look - Netflix
Based on the novel by Marcelo Larraquy, "Gordon" arrives on Netflix in 2026.
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[04/23/26 - 11:41 PM]
Prime Video Unleashes UK's Biggest Digital Stars in Highly Anticipated Comedy Reality Series, "Would You Rather: Decide to Survive"
The series will launch exclusively worldwide on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories in June 2026.
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[04/23/26 - 09:00 PM]
The Vampire Lestat's Gritty Cover of Billy Idol's Legendary Song "Dancing with Myself" Is Now Available on All Digital Platforms
AMC Global Media and Lakeshore Records released the single on the Vampire Lestat artist profile pages at major digital music services, including Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon Music.
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[04/23/26 - 03:13 PM]
"Euphoria" Season 3 Premiere Surpasses 20M Global Viewers, Up 68% vs. Season 2
Episode 2 matched the premiere with approximately 8.5 million U.S. viewers in its first three days.
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[04/23/26 - 02:50 PM]
Goal! ESPN Airs Two Most-Viewed First Round Game 2's on Cable Ever, Continuing Successful Start to 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs
Monday's Philadelphia Flyers-Pittsburgh Penguins matchup (Game 2, 7 p.m. ET) delivered 1.6 million viewers and Tuesday's Boston Bruins-Buffalo Sabres matchup (Game 2, 7:30 p.m.) delivered 1.2 million viewers, setting the new Game 2 record.
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[04/23/26 - 02:02 PM]
"The Cult of Natureboy," A New Four-Part Docuseries That Offers a Raw and Unfiltered Look Inside a Modern Cult, Premieres April 28 on Hulu
In 2016, a rising social media star named Eligio Bishop, also known as "NatureBoy," used his platforms to recruit followers into a group he called Carbon Nation, encouraging them to abandon their families and join his vision of a self-proclaimed Black utopia.
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[04/23/26 - 01:03 PM]
Apple TV Sets New Comedy Series, Elizabeth Banks to Star and Executive Produce
The series is set to begin production in Los Angeles this year.
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[04/23/26 - 12:19 PM]
USA Sports Delivers Most-Watched Match in LOVB Volleyball History to Cap Inaugural Season of Record Viewership on USA Network
The first Finals match on Thursday, April 16, which Salt Lake won 3-2 in a closely-contested fifth set, averaged 163,000 viewers, ranking as the most-watched LOVB game of all-time.
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