 |
 |
[03/07/11 - 10:49 PM]
Development Update: Monday, March 7
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!
AWAKENING (The CW) - Meredith Hagner ("Lights Out") is set to star opposite Lucy Griffiths in the drama pilot, about two combative sisters who come of age amid the beginning of a zombie uprising. She'll play younger sister Jayce Lestrade ("high energy, eyes too bright, seldom knows anything about her"), who's far more comfortable with her zombie status than eldest Jenna (Griffiths). Her casting is in second position to the struggling FX drama. David Van Ancken is directing the Warner Bros. Television-based hour, from co-creators Bill Laurin and Glenn Davis.
COOPER & STONE (The CW) - Riley Smith ("Drive") has joined the cast of the drama pilot, about two female detectives - Angela Stone (yet to be cast) and Jenna Cooper (Alexandra Breckenridge) - in Chicago's Northside who specialize in pop culture knowledge and solving homicides. He's set as Danny Kovacs, a brash, hot-shot vice detective who went to the academy with Stone. John Dahl is helming the CBS Television Studios-based hour off a script by Laurie Arent.
FREE AGENTS (NBC) - Hank Azaria ("Huff") has been tapped to star in the comedy pilot, about "the attraction between two quirky PR executives working together who both are on the rebound - one from divorce, the other from the loss of a fiance." He'll play one of the pair, the divorced Alex, the casting of which lifts said contingency off its production. Universal Media Studios is behind the half-hour, which Todd Holland will direct from a script by John Enbom.
GRACE (ABC) - Sherri Saum ("Gossip Girl"), Chris Carmack ("The O.C.") and Robert Hoffman ("Step Up 2: The Streets") have all scored roles in the drama pilot, about Michael Grace (Eric Roberts), a famous choreographer whose womanizing ways have produced three daughters - Sarah (Abigail Spencer), a lawyer; Shay, a photographer; Eden (Anabelle Acosta), a teenager - all with different mothers. Saum will play middle child Shay ("beautiful, bright, talented and irreverent"), an artist, making a meager living as a photographer in Venice Beach. Carmack then is set as Dylan Doran ("a sexy man-child"), Shay's on-and-off musician boyfriend, who's also the father of her 14-year-old son, Joseph. And Hoffman is believed to be playing Javier DeRenzio ("a rippling wall of hotness"), a dancer who creates some sparks with the married Sarah. ABC Studios is behind the hour, from director Lesli Linka Glatter and writer Krista Vernoff.
HAIL MARY (CBS) - Brandon T. Jackson ("Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son") is set to star opposite Minnie Driver in the drama pilot, about Mary Beth Baker (Driver), a suburban single mom in Atlanta who opts to become a private investigator following her son's murder. He'll play KZ, her late son's best friend ("a small-time con artist with a quick wit and a fast mouth"), whom she takes on as a partner. Enrique Murciano and Stephen Tobolowsky also star in the Warner Bros. Television-based project, from writer Jeff Wadlow and director Brad Silberling.
HART OF DIXIE (The CW) - Nancy Travis ("The Bill Engvall Show") has booked a role on the drama pilot, about Zoe Hart (Rachel Bilson), a young big-city doctor who inherits a medical practice in an oddball southern town. She'll potentially recur as Emmeline Hattenbarger (a.k.a. "Mrs. H"), a no-nonsense nurse that befriends Zoe. Jaime King and Wilson Bethel also star in the project, from Warner Bros. Television. Jason Ensler is directing from a script by Leila Gerstein.
HOGOBLIN (HBO, New!) - Michael Chabon ("Wonder Boys") and Ayelet Waidman ("Bad Mother") are reportedly set to team for a potential drama at the pay channel about "a group of con men and magicians who battle Hitler and the Nazis during WWII." No other specifics or auspices were given.
HOMEGROWN (CBS) - Shane McRae ("Four Kings") is the latest addition to the comedy pilot, about Joe Reilly, "a blue-collar guy who wrestles with how to parent his unmarried grown daughter, Eileen (Becki Newton), and her 12-year-old son, Jimmy, while sharing a house with them as well as his wife, Barb, and recently widowed mother." He'll play Gabe, Jimmy's father, a handsome firefighter. Jackie and Jeff Filgo are behind the half-hour, to be directed by Andy Ackerman for Warner Bros. Television.
MAGIE EYE (NBC, New!) - Tony Oller and Chris Tavarez are set to star in Walmart and Procter & Gamble's latest co-production, about Tyler McFarland (Oller), "the captain of the high school football team who is expected to lead his school to victory but must make the difficult decision to tell the coach about teammates Nick and Alex (Tavarez) bullying a mysterious new kid in school, Cory." Said title refers to a camera with magical properties that Tyler's little sister discovers which may hold the key to Cory's past. Gregg Champion will direct the telefilm from a script by Wesley Bishop while David A. Rosemont, Brian Wells and Jeff Grant are executive producing. Production is set to begin this week for an expected June 11 premiere on the Peacock.
MY FRICKIN' FAMILY (ABC) - Mo Gaffney has scored a role on the comedy pilot, about Anna (Ellen Woglom) and Raj (Ravi Patel), a couple with a new baby and the culture clashes between its four very different grandparents. She's on board as Maureen, Anna's mother, "a margarita-loving Baptist travel agent who has never been east of the Mississippi." Christopher Rich and Harish Patel also star in the project, from ABC Studios and creator Erica Rivinoja. Tristram Shapeero is directing.
REVENGE (ABC) - Former "Brothers & Sisters" co-star Emily VanCamp has been tapped for the lead role on the drama pilot, about a mysterious young woman who comes to the Hamptons to exact revenge on the people who destroyed her family. She'll play Emily Thorne ("a brown-eyed, auburn haired beauty"), said woman, in the ABC Studios-based hour. Phillip Noyce is directing from a script by Mike Kelley while Ashley Madekwe also stars.
SMOTHERED (ABC) - Marcia Gay Harden and John C. McGinley are set and Adam Arkin is in talks to join the cast of the comedy pilot, about a young couple - Zach (Kyle Howard) and Gillian (yet to be cast) with a one-year-old daughter who find themselves smothered by their two very different sets of parents - his are pretentious and disengaged while hers are scrappy and exuberant. Harden and Arkin would play Zack's folks, Fran ("early sixties, pretentious") and Alan ("mid-sixties, dry, disengaged"); with McGinley and the previously cast Julie White as Gillian's, Skip ("mid-fifties, exuberant") and Patty ("early fifties, scrappy"). Andy Ackerman is directing the Warner Bros. Television-based half-hour, which comes from co-creators Andrew Reich and Ted Cohen.
UNTITLED DAN GOOR PROJECT (NBC) - Andrew J. West ("Greek") has scored the lead role on the comedy pilot, about a young doctor who spends as much time taking care of his parents as he does his patients. He'll play the man in question, Adam Foote, in the half-hour, which also stars Jean Smart. Dan Goor penned the project for Universal Media Studios.
UNTITLED PETER KNIGHT PROJECT (CBS) - Larry Wilmore ("The Daily Show With Jon Stewart") is the first to be cast in the comedy pilot, about a group of assistants and junior executives as they juggle love, friendship, and the corporate ladder. He'll play Julian, a managing partner at the show's venture capital firm. Peter Knight penned the half-hour for Sony Pictures Television and CBS Television Studios. Neil Patrick Harris is directing.
|
|
|
 [march 2011]  |
S |
M |
T |
W |
T |
F |
S |
| | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
[06/27/25 - 02:29 PM]
"Live with Kelly and Mark" Gears Up for Summer Rising Week to Week in All Key Measures
Wednesday, June 11, was the most-viewed day of the week among Total Viewers (2.164 million).
|
[06/27/25 - 12:18 PM]
ABC News Studios Announces Three Chilling New True-Crime Docuseries to Premiere in July, Streaming Exclusively on Hulu
On tap are "Her Last Broadcast: The Abduction of Jodi Huisentruit" (Tuesday, July 15); "Trophy Wife: Murder on Safari" (Monday, July 21); and "Mr. & Mrs. Murder" (Wednesday, July 30).
|
[06/27/25 - 10:40 AM]
Amazon MGM Studios Casts Levi Miller in the Role of Haakon in the New Original Series "Bloodaxe"
"Bloodaxe" is an epic historical drama that chronicles the rise of one of history's most famous Viking warriors, Erik Bloodaxe, and his formidable wife, Gunnhild, Mother of Kings.
|
[06/27/25 - 10:31 AM]
"Jimmy Kimmel Live" Tops Late-Night in Adults 18-49 for Third Week in a Row
Winning three of five nights in Kimmel's final week before summer guest hosts, Thursday, June 19, was the show's strongest night among Adults 18-49 (0.35 rating).
|
[06/27/25 - 10:07 AM]
Oxygen's "Buried in the Backyard" Returns for Season Six on Saturday, July 12 at 8 P.M. ET/PT with Special Two-Hour Premiere
The series unearths the tragic stories of ordinary people fallen prey to unthinkable crimes - dark deeds left hidden and concealed by the perpetrator, hoping to never to be discovered.
|
[06/27/25 - 10:02 AM]
ESPN Major League Baseball Schedule Update: New York Mets Visit the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday, July 9
The Mets-Orioles matchup is in addition to the network's weekly Sunday offerings.
|
[06/27/25 - 10:00 AM]
FOX to Debut Powerful Three-Week Biblical Event Series "The Faithful" Sunday, March 22
The series, which begins production this summer in Rome and Matera, Italy, will air throughout the Easter and Passover season on FOX and the next day on Hulu.
|
[06/27/25 - 09:33 AM]
Video: "Robot Chicken: Self-Discovery Special" - Official Trailer - Adult Swim
The show's 20th anniversary special premieres July 20 on Adult Swim, next day on Max.
|
[06/27/25 - 09:03 AM]
Paramount+ to Debut New Groundbreaking Docuseries "Hip Hop Was Born Here" Executive Produced and Co-Created by LL Cool J and Peyton Manning
Hosted by LL Cool J, the series will chart the creation, evolution and ongoing legacy of Hip Hop not just as a genre but as a culture.
|
[06/27/25 - 09:00 AM]
HBO Original Comedy Series "The Comeback" Returns for a Third and Final Season
Season three will begin production this summer and will debut on HBO and HBO Max in 2026.
|
[06/27/25 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print" - Official Trailer - HBO
Ms. wasn't just a magazine-it was a revolution. Told through the lens of three directors and the covers that made history.
|
[06/27/25 - 07:31 AM]
Peacock Exclusively Streams "Drop" Beginning July 11
Directed by Christopher Landon, the action-thriller film stars Meghann Fahy, Brandon Sklenar, Violett Beane and Jeffery Self.
|
[06/27/25 - 07:01 AM]
Video: "Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano" - Official Trailer #2 - Netflix
Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano headline a historic all-women's boxing mega-event from Madison Square Garden. Presented by Most Valuable Promotions.
|
[06/27/25 - 06:01 AM]
HBO Max Celebrates Pride Month with the Release of Gay HBO Max Song - A New Track by Trixie Mattel Featuring HBO Max's Most Iconic Quotes
As part of the Pride Month celebrations, the music video is available now on YouTube.
|
[06/27/25 - 05:32 AM]
Video: "The Family Man" Season 3 - Official Announcement - Prime Video
The wait is over. New season. New mission.
|
|
|
|
