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[01/06/12 - 10:07 PM]
TCA: NBC Confirms Episode, Pilot Orders
By The Futon Critic Staff (TFC)

LOS ANGELES (thefutoncritic.com) -- A recap of NBC's various announcements not covered in the flood of press releases today:

-- "The Voice" and "Smash" will both air 15 weeks of originals. Executive producer Mark Burnett says they'll also add a results show for the talent competition on Tuesday nights in the spring, presumably shrinking "The Biggest Loser" to an hour.

-- We've confirmed "Harry's Law," "Parks & Recreation" and - even with its late start - "30 Rock" each have 22-episode orders. Earlier this week, the Peacock announced "30 Rock" will double up on January 26 (with episodes at 8:00/7:00c and 9:00/8:00c), the first of various stunts to make sure all 22 installments air. As for "The Office," its episodic commitment is still being hammered out.

-- Other locked in/reaffirmed orders include "Awake" (13 episodes, via Kyle Killen), "Fear Factor (10 hours, meaning a few will be left for later this year), "Fashion Star" (10 episodes, via Jane Lipsitz), "Bent" (six episodes, via Tad Quill), "The Firm" (22 episodes, via Lukas Reiter), "Who Do You Think You Are?" (12 episodes, via press release) and "Are You There, Chelsea?" (12 episodes, via Tom Werner; not including the original pilot).

-- And finally, the Peacock released official descriptions of its five pilots ordered to date with more due in the coming weeks:

BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE is an imaginative and thematically rich ensemble "what if" drama set 10 minutes in the future where families of mechanical human beings exist to service the human population -- that is until some of the mechanicals begin to "awaken." Michael McDonald ("Cougar Town," "MADtv") is the writer and executive producer, Robert M. Sertner ("Revenge," "No Ordinary Family") is the executive producer and Stephen Hopkins ("Californication," "Shameless") directs the pilot. "Beautiful People" is from Universal Television and ABC Studios.

From writer-executive producer Bryan Fuller ("Pushing Daisies," "Heroes"), THE MUNSTERS is an imaginative reinvention of "The Munsters" as a visually spectacular one-hour drama from Universal Television. Bryan Singer ("X-Men: First Class," "House") is the director of the pilot and an executive producer; John Wirth ("Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles") also is an executive producer.

THE SARAH SILVERMAN PROJECT (working title) is a single-camera comedy in which series star Sarah Silverman ("The Sarah Silverman Program") returns to her old life after a breakup, ready to pick up where she left off and finds it's not as easy as she thought because those around her have moved on. The project is from Twentieth Century Fox Television and Imagine Television. Silverman, Dan Sterling ("The Sarah Silverman Program," "King of the Hill") and Jon Schroeder ("Bob's Burgers," "The Sarah Silverman Program") are writers and executive producers; Oscar winner Ron Howard ("A Beautiful Mind," "Frost/Nixon," NBC's "Parenthood"), Oscar winner Brian Grazer ("A Beautiful Mind," "Frost/Nixon," NBC's "Parenthood") and Francie Calfo ("Scoundrels") also are executive producers. Ken Kwapis (NBC's "The Office") is the director.

ISABEL is a comedy centering on an otherwise normal middle-class family that wrestles with the challenges of everyday life while raising a daughter (Sophia Mitri Schloss, "Grimm") who has magical abilities. Abigail Mavity and Skyler Gisondo also star. Howard Busgang ("The Closer," "Boy Meets World") and Tom Nursall ("Single White Spenny") are the executive producers and writers. Todd Holland ("Malcolm in the Middle") directs the pilot and is an executive producer. Karey Burke ("Free Agents"), Aaron Kaplan ("Terra Nova") and Jocelyn Deschenes also are executive producers. "Isabel" is produced by Universal Television, Kapital Entertainment and Sphere Media.

SAVE ME (cast contingent) -- A woman who lets herself go while in a broken marriage goes through a transformation where she becomes the best version of herself and creates miracles along the way. The single-camera project is from Sony Television and Original Film & Television. John Scott Shepherd ("The Days") is the writer-executive producer and Scott Winant ("Breaking Bad," "True Blood," "Californication") is the director and executive producer. Neal Moritz ("The Big C," "Prison Break") and Vivian Cannon ("The Big C") also are executive producers.





  [january 2012]  
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· 30 ROCK (NBC)
· ARE YOU THERE, CHELSEA? (NBC)
· AWAKE (NBC)
· BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE (NBC)
· BENT (NBC)
· BIGGEST LOSER, THE (USA)
· FASHION STAR (NBC)
· FEAR FACTOR (MTV)
· FIRM, THE (NBC)
· HARRY'S LAW (NBC)
· ISABEL (NBC)
· MOCKINGBIRD LANE (NBC)
· OFFICE, THE (NBC)
· PARKS & RECREATION (NBC)
· SAVE ME (NBC)
· SMASH (NBC)
· SUSAN 313 (NBC)
· VOICE, THE (NBC)
· WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? (NBC)





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