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[03/17/11 - 11:30 PM]
Development Update: Thursday, March 17
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!
90210 (The CW) - Rebecca Sinclair is stepping down as showrunner of the netlet's soap. "It was a creative decision," she told Deadline.com. "I'm eager to write my own stuff. I'm going to try to write a novel - something I've been wanting to do since college - a pilot and a movie. Working on '90210' has been an incredible learning experience, like going to the most intensive school, and I feel I've come out ready to create my own show." No replacement has been named. The series, which is widely expected to get a fourth season, returns April 18 with its last five episodes of the season.
THE ASSISTANTS (CBS) - David Henrie ("How I Met Your Mother") has snagged a principal role on the comedy pilot, about four assistants who toil for a celebrity couple - Gale Meeks and Ali Vance (who are likened to Rob Riggle and Sarah Jessica Parker). He'll play Mike Beadle, the eager new house assistant. Emily Rutherfurd, Lamorne Morris and T.J. Miller co-star in the CBS Television Studios-based half-hour, from writer Tucker Cawley and director Pamela Fryman.
HERD MENTALITY (CBS) - Damon Wayans ("My Wife & Kids") has been tapped for the lead role on the comedy pilot, inspired by the life of ESPN radio personality Colin Cowherd. He'll play Nick Herd ("fortyish, confident, good looking and well-dressed, though he'd never admit he tries"), whose acerbic ways get him in trouble at home and at work. Bill Martin and Mike Schiff are behind the CBS Television Studios-based half-hour, to be directed by Andy Cadiff. Danny Comden also stars.
MY LIFE AS AN EXPERIMENT (NBC) - Donald Sutherland ("Pillars of the Earth") is the latest addition to the comedy pilot, about A.J. Wilder (Jon Dore), an immersion journalist whose unusual assignments frequently affect his home life in Brooklyn with his wife, Stacie (Paget Brewster), and two kids. He'll play Sam Bobkin ("pompous, arrogant"), Stacie's father, who is less than thrilled with her choice in a husband. Adam Campbell also stars in the Sony Pictures Television-based half-hour, from co-creators Cathy Yuspa and Josh Goldsmith.
POE (ABC) - Marco Grazzini is the newest addition to the pilot, a period drama which envisions famed author Edgar Allan Poe (Chris Egan) as the world's very first detective in 1840s Boston. He's set as Alexander Shelton ("handsome, wealthy, in a military uniform"), the current beau of Poe's childhood sweetheart Sarah Royster (Tabrett Bethell). Kevin McNally, Leslie Odom Jr. and Natalie Dormer also star in the Warner Bros. Television-based hour, from writer Chris Hollier and director Alex Graves. Separately, Grazzini is also guesting on The CW pilot "Awakening" in an unspecified role.
REVENGE (ABC) - Joshua Bowman (U.K.'s "Holby City") is the latest addition to the drama pilot, about Emily Thorne (Emily VanCamp), a mysterious young woman who comes to the Hamptons to exact revenge on the people who destroyed her family. He'll play her fiance, Daniel Grayson ("young 20s, all American, son of privilege"), whose parents (Madeleine Stowe, Henry Czerny) she blames for her father's death. Ashley Madekwe, Christa B. Allen, Connor Paolo, Gabriel Mann and Nick Wechsler also star. Phillip Noyce is directing the ABC Studios-based hour, which was penned by Mike Kelley.
THE RIVER (ABC) - Thomas Kretschmann and Paulina Gaitan have both boarded the drama pilot, about the search in the Amazon for Emmet Cole (Bruce Greenwood), a missing TV explorer, led by his wife Tess (Leslie Hope) and son Lincoln (Joe Anderson). Kretschmann will play Captain Reese Byrne ("a soldier's comportment, a boxer's economy of movement; dedication and efficacy rubbed deep into his skin"), the expedition's head of security. Gaitan then is set as Jahel Valenzuela - the daughter of the ship's engineer, Emilio - who's just as good a mechanic as her father. Eloise Mumford, Paul Blackthorne and Shaun Parkes also star. Jaume Collet-Serra is directing the ABC Studios-based hour from a script by Michael Green.
S.I.L.A. (NBC) - Jimmy Smits ("Outlaw") is returning to the Peacock as the actor has booked a role on the pilot, a drama depicting a complex web of crime, policework and politics in Los Angeles. He'll play Virgilio Zaragoza, the mayor of Los Angeles, who "cares deeply about his city, power, and women, perhaps in reverse order, and the nakedness of his need to be loved is part of his considerable charm." Also featured in the ensemble are Daniella Alonso, Danny Pino, Emma Dumont, Luis Chavez, Madchen Amick, Matthew Levy and Noah Emmerich. Stephen Gaghan is behind the hour, from 20th Century Fox Television.
SECRET CIRCLE (The CW) - Shelley Hennig and Jessica Parker Kennedy have each snagged a role on the drama pilot, about Cassie Blake (Britt Robertson), a California teen who moves to her mom's hometown of New Salem, Maine and discovers that she comes from a family of witches. They'll play two more of the seven-member circle, a coven of young witches: Diana Meade ("smart, sexy, not overly done up"), who quickly befriends Cassie; and Melissa ("steely, disinterested"), who keeps her at arm's length. Phoebe Tonkin and Thomas Dekker also star while Liz Friedlander is directing from a script by Andrew Miller.
UNTITLED LIZ MERIWETHER PROJECT (FOX) - Damon Wayans Jr. ("Happy Endings") has joined the cast of the comedy pilot, about Jessica Day (Zooey Deschanel), an optimistic Midwestern woman who moves into a New York apartment with three juvenile guys. He'll play one of the trio, Coach, an out-of-shape trainer. Said role is in second position to his duties on the yet-to-debut ABC comedy. Hannah Simone, Jake M. Johnson and Max Greenfield also star. Liz Meriwether penned the half-hour for 20th Century Fox Television. Jake Kasdan is directing.
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[02/06/26 - 08:00 AM]
All Six Seasons of "Schitt's Creek" Arrive on HBO Max Tomorrow in the U.S.
The beloved comedy follows rich video-store magnate Johnny Rose, his soap-star wife Moira, and their two kids, son David and socialite daughter Alexis.
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[02/06/26 - 07:36 AM]
Peacock Exclusively Streams "Wicked: For Good" Beginning March 20
The feature's Peacock debut will be accompanied by a sing-along version of the film and a full collection of bonus content.
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[02/06/26 - 07:01 AM]
NHL on ESPN Networks: Viewership Up Nearly 40% Year-Over-Year Through First Four Months
Through 22 games, the NHL on ESPN networks is averaging 795K viewers, +39% YoY.
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[02/06/26 - 06:01 AM]
Video: "Strangers in the Park" - Official Trailer - Netflix
A former communist militant and a "live and let live" man form an unlikely friendship on a park bench, sharing their life stories with humor and heart.
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[02/06/26 - 12:31 AM]
Next on Netflix Thailand 2026: The Widest Variety of Thai Stories, All in One Place
Netflix is deepening its commitment to Thai storytelling with its most ambitious slate to date: three new series, four films, and Netflix's first local documentary feature.
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[02/05/26 - 04:01 PM]
Video: "Pavane" - Official Trailer - Netflix
Three lonely strangers meet at their department store jobs and find solace in each other's company while they explore connection and the nature of love.
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[02/05/26 - 02:03 PM]
Great American Media Signs Exclusive Multi-Picture Deal with Fan-Favorite Actress, Merritt Patterson
The company also announces the first film of the new deal is "Meet Me in the Margins," adapted from bestselling author Melissa Ferguson's novel of the same name.
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[02/05/26 - 12:42 PM]
"20/20" Ranks No. 1 in the Two-Hour Time Period Across the Board
Hitting new season highs on January 30, "20/20" grew from the previous week in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49.
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[02/05/26 - 11:31 AM]
Apple Original Films Lands Global Rights to Sundance Film Festival Selection "The Last First: Winter K2"
Director Amir Bar-Lev tells a complex, harrowing and moving story that unpacks the industry of extreme mountain climbing and its changing culture.
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[02/05/26 - 11:01 AM]
HBO Original "Murder in Glitterball City," A Two-Part Documentary, Debuts February 19
Inspired by the non-fiction book "A Dark Room in Glitter Ball City" by David Dominé, the film chronicles a 2010 murder case that starts with a 911 phone call that leads police to the gruesome discovery of a body buried in the basement of a Victorian mansion.
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[02/05/26 - 11:01 AM]
Video: ALLBLK Releases Trailer and Key Art for New Original Feature Film, "Deb Is Boss" Premiering Thursday, March 5
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[02/05/26 - 10:31 AM]
Nicolette van Dam and Bas Smit Present the Dutch Version of "Love Is Blind"
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[02/05/26 - 10:12 AM]
"Martha Graham Dance Company: We Are Our Time" Premieres March 27, 2026 on PBS
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[02/05/26 - 10:03 AM]
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[02/05/26 - 10:01 AM]
HBO Original Comedy Series "Rooster," Starring Steve Carell, From Bill Lawrence and Matt Tarses, Debuts March 8
A comedy set on a college campus centering on an author's (Carell) complicated relationship with his daughter (Charly Clive).
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