 |
 |
[12/10/10 - 08:33 PM]
Development Update: Friday, December 10
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!
ALCATRAZ (FOX) - Sam Neill ("Happy Town"), Parminder Nagra ("ER") and Robert Forster ("Heroes") have all joined the cast of the drama pilot, about a group of missing Alcatraz prisoners and guards who reappear in the present day and the efforts of a team of FBI agents to track them down and unravel the mystery behind their disappearance 30 years prior. Neill will play Emerson Hauser, "the head of a government agency who radiates authority and piercing intelligence"; with Nagra as his lab technician, Lucy; and Forster as Ray Archer, "a retired detective who is now owner/bartender of a cop hangout bar." Sarah Jones, Jorge Garcia, Jonny Coyne and Jason Butler Harner also star in the hour, which comes from the Warner Bros. Television-based Bad Robot Productions. Bryan Burk, Elizabeth Sarnoff and J.J. Abrams are among the executive producers. Danny Cannon directs.
AMERICAN WORK PROJECTS (NBC, New!) - Scot Armstrong and Ravi Nandan's American Work has booked six new projects at the Peacock via their first-look deal with the network. The group joins previously announced efforts "Life Is Good" and "I'm with Russell," also at NBC, as well as "Ambulance Chasers" at FX and "Single at 40" at FOX. The new additions include "A Lot Like Us," from Liz Feldman, about "an alternative LA family, centering around an expectant lesbian couple and their donor who lives with them"; "Join the Club," from Thomas Moffett, about "a disenchanted 30-year-old joins his step-grandfather's men's club and finds an unlikely group of friends where he least expected"; and "Shanked It," from Mike Arnold, about "three couples, their lives, and the golf course in the middle of it all."
Rounding out the lineup is "Brothers," from John Blickstead and Trey Kollmer, about "three brothers from three different mothers who try to avoid their father's mistakes"; an untitled effort from Lennon Parham and Jessica St. Clair, about a woman (St. Clair) who "moves back in with her best friend (Lennon) only to find out he's now living with her boyfriend"; and another untitled project from Sonny Lee and Patrick Walsh about "a self-centered, once-hot internet entrepreneur and his would-be think tank as he tries to maintain the illusion he's a Sean Parker-like CEO." All six are presumably co-produced by Universal Media Studios.
BRAXTON FAMILY VALUES (WE tv, New!) - The cable channel is set to roll out a new reality series about personal and professional foibles of Atlanta-based singer Toni Braxton and her four sisters - Toni, Tamar, Trina, Towanda. It's understood the newcomer, which also feature their mother Evelyn, will air on Tuesday nights in April following the runs of "Joan & Melissa: Joan Knows Best?" and "A Stand-Up Mother," both of which launch Tuesday, January 25 starting at 9:00/8:00c.
BIRD DOG (TNT) - Eric Mabius ("Ugly Betty") has landed a role on the drama pilot, about Gail McGrath (Ashley Williams), "a patrolling officer whose new partner is her cop dad Sam McGrath (Gerald McRaney)." Mabius will play Tim Burke, "the boyishly handsome County Sheriff who is secretly attracted to Gail." Suzy Nakamura, William Ragsdale and Wynn Everett also star in the Mike Robe project, which comes from Warner Horizon Television.
DANNI LOWINSKI (The CW) - Carla Gallo ("Men of a Certain Age") is the latest addition to the drama pilot, about "a scrappy hairdresser (Amanda Walsh) who graduates from law school but is brushed off by law firms and sets up her own practice in a shopping mall kiosk." She's on board as "her best friend Kaz who is brassy, a little slutty and fiercely protective of Danni." Jennie Snyder Urman is behind the CBS Television Studios-based hour, to be directed by Richard Shepard. Neal Bledsoe also stars.
PLAYBOY (NBC, New!) - Chad Hodge ("Runaway") is developing a period drama at the Peacock about "a group of women working as Playboy bunnies in the [now defunct] New York club" in the 1960s. 20th Century Fox Television and Imagine Television are behind the hour, formerly known as "Bunny Tales." Imagine's Brian Grazer and Francie Calfo will executive produce alongside Hodge. It's understood said effort was rolled from last season when a different writer was attached.
THE SEARCH FOR JUSTICE (Investigation Discovery, New!) - The cable channel has ordered a new three-episode series detailing the FBI's Civil Rights Unit and its chief, Cynthia Deitle. Filmmaker Keith Beauchamp is behind the project, due to launch in February. Each installment will "reopen cold cases from our country's past, and seeks to solve the crimes once and for all."
TWO BROKE GIRLS (CBS, New!) - "Sex and the City" writer/director Michael Patrick King and comedian Whitney Cummings are set to team for a potential multi-camera comedy at the Eye about "two 22-year-old girls who tackle life in New York: two broke girls, one expensive city." Warner Bros. Television, where King's overall deal is based, is behind the half-hour, which has a pilot production commitment following a heated bidding war. King and Cummings, who also have separate projects at NBC, co-wrote the script on spec with King executive producing and Cummings serving as a co-executive producer.
|
|
|
 [december 2010]  |
S |
M |
T |
W |
T |
F |
S |
| | | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
[04/02/26 - 12:31 PM]
Paramount+ Greenlights New Reality Series, "Team Moms," Executive Produced by Kim Kardashian and Love Island Producers, ITV
"Team Moms" launches viewers into the world of nationally competitive youth baseball via immersion into the Legendary Prep Academy in Scottsdale, Arizona's first and only baseball prep school.
|
[04/02/26 - 12:01 PM]
Jamie Bell and Charlie Heaton Lead a New Generation of "Peaky Blinders" and First Look of Bell as Duke Is Revealed
Jessica Brown Findlay, Lashana Lynch, and Lucy Karczewski are also on board.
|
[04/02/26 - 12:01 PM]
"Wizards Beyond Waverly Place" Returns for One Last Spell This Summer on Disney+ and Disney Channel
Executive producer Selena Gomez to make her directorial debut with the premiere episode.
|
[04/02/26 - 11:44 AM]
First-Ever "American Idol" Simulcast on ABC and Disney+ Surges Double Digits
Season to date, "American Idol" averages 5.11 million Total Viewers and stands as one of the few shows to notch year-over-year gains this season.
|
[04/02/26 - 11:11 AM]
Sarah Drew and Eric Johnson to Headline "When I Said I Do" (wt), The New Movie Inspired by Clint Black and Lisa Hartman Black's Beloved Duet of the Same Name
The movie is set to premiere Saturday, May 23 at 8/7c as part of the network's upcoming spring "Love of a Lifetime" original movie slate.
|
[04/02/26 - 11:07 AM]
Thursday Night Heats Up as "9-1-1: Nashville" and "9-1-1" Soar to Best Performance of the Season
On linear over three days, "9-1-1" earned 5.94 million Total Viewers, also nearly matching the show's previous season high in January.
|
[04/02/26 - 11:05 AM]
Hulu's Critically Acclaimed Comedy Series "Deli Boys" Returns for a Second Season on May 28
Andrew Rannells and Kumail Nanjiani join as recurring guest stars for the second season, alongside series regulars Asif Ali, Saagar Shaikh, Poorna Jagannathan and Fred Armisen.
|
[04/02/26 - 10:58 AM]
ESPN to Present WNBA Expansion Draft Friday, April 3
Malika Andrews will host the special, joined by analysts Carolyn Peck and Monica McNutt.
|
[04/02/26 - 10:31 AM]
Louis C.K. to Headline the Hollywood Bowl May 5 as Part of Netflix Is a Joke Fest
This summer, his newest stand-up special, "Ridiculous," will premiere globally on Netflix.
|
[04/02/26 - 10:01 AM]
HBO Original Comedy Special "Ramy Youssef: In Love" Debuts April 17
Whether it's his marriage, being a dog parent, AI, or religion, Ramy comes at everything with his own brand of heart and humor.
|
[04/02/26 - 09:36 AM]
Netflix Wins Hot Package "The Corrections"; Orders Limited Drama Straight-to-Series Starring Meryl Streep
The series - from Paramount Television Studios - will be directed by Cord Jefferson, and written and adapted by author Jonathan Franzen.
|
[04/02/26 - 09:10 AM]
Video: "Smiling Friends" - Final Episodes Trailer - Adult Swim
Watch the final two episodes of "Smiling Friends" on Sunday, April 12.
|
[04/02/26 - 09:01 AM]
"Sofia the First: Royal Magic" Premieres May 25 on Disney Jr. with the First 8 Episodes Streaming Next Day on Disney+
It was also announced today that Moana, Rapunzel, Jasmine, Cinderella, Aurora and Elena of Avalor will make special appearances throughout the series, offering guidance, wisdom and support when Sofia needs it the most.
|
[04/02/26 - 08:35 AM]
New Faces Join "The Chi" Ensemble Cast for Its Final Season on Paramount+
Daryl Dunning II, Biko Eisen-Martin, Akilah A. Walker, Laila Odom, Liza Jessie Peterson, and Anthony B. Jenkins are among the latest additions.
|
[04/02/26 - 08:35 AM]
Great American Media Sets "An Accidental Arctic Christmas," Reuniting Beloved Fan Favorites Cameron Mathison and Jill Wagner, From Executive Producer Candace Cameron Bure
Maya Rose Skabar also stars in the film, which will premiere as part of the upcoming all-star Great American Christmas on Great American Pure Flix, Great American Family, and GFAM+.
|
|
|
|
