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[03/06/13 - 11:37 PM]
Development Update: Wednesday, March 6
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!
BAD TEACHER (CBS/Sony; W: Hilary Winston; D: TBA) - Sara Gilbert ("The Talk") has been cast in the single-camera comedy pilot, based on the Cameron Diaz-led feature about a foul-mouthed, gold-digging junior high school teacher (Ali Graynor). She'll play Irene ("a little uncomfortable in her own skin"), a shy introverted drama and English teacher, in the project, which also stars David Alan Grier and Ryan Hansen. (Deadline.com)
BETRAYAL (ABC/ABC Studios; W: David Zabel; D: Patty Jenkins) - Wendy Moniz, Elizabeth McLaughlin and Braeden Lemasters have all been cast in the drama pilot, about Sara Hayward (Hannah Ware), a beautiful but unhappily married photographer who begins a torrid affair with Jack McCutchen (yet to be cast), a lawyer for a powerful family. Moniz will play the latter's wife Elaine, the daughter of the real estate mogul Terence Karsten (James Cromwell). McLaughlin and Lemasters then are set as their kids, Valerie ("pretty, straight and sharp-witted") and Victor ("rugged, edgy, works out too much"). Chris Johnson and Henry Thomas also star. (Deadline.com)
BIG THUNDER (ABC/ABC Studios; T: Jason Fuchs; D: Rob Bowman) - British actor Alex Hassell (Anonymous) has booked a key role on the drama pilot, about a 19th century doctor who relocates his family from New York City to frontier town Big Thunder after a mysterious mining tycoon offers to fund his research only to discover all is not what is seems. He'll play the aforementioned tycoon, the seemingly immortal Abel White. Ana De La Reguera, Pierce Gagnon and Zahn McClarnon also star. (Deadline.com)
DO IT YOURSELF (TBS; W: Rob Long & Walt Becker; D: James Widdoes) - Ben Rappaport ("Outsourced") and Bill Engvall ("The Bill Engvall Show") have both been cast in the comedy pilot, about Nick Porter, a 20-something laid-off math teacher who finds himself thrust into the blue collar world when he gets a job at that most American of retail institutions: the big box home supply store. Rappaport has been tapped for said role while Engvall plays his co-worker Dale, "an executive with 30 years of experience who was once a senior vice president at Circuit City but has been reduced to minimum wage since his company went belly-up." The multi-camera project also stars Melora Hardin and Ryan McPartlin. (Deadline.com)
FRIENDS & FAMILY (FOX/Sony; W: David J. Rosen; D: TBA) - Kerri Kenney-Silver, Kurt Fuller and Ashlie Atkinson are the latest additions to the comedy pilot, about new lovers Gavin (Jason Ritter) and Stacey (Alexis Bledel) whose greatest challenge isn't their long distance status but their polarizing families' lives. The former will play Stacey's mom Gwen ("simple, cozy, and a little country"), whom she still lives with in Dillsburg, Pennsylvania. Fuller then is set as Gavin's dad Michael ("full of piss and balsamic vinegar") in New York; with Atkinson presumably as Nessa, Stacey's best friend. Dustin Ybarra also stars. (Deadline.com)
FRIENDS WITH BETTER LIVES (CBS/20th; W: Dana Klein; D: James Burrows) - Kevin Connolly ("Entourage") is the latest to be cast in the multi-camera comedy pilot, about six 30-something friends who each think the other has it better. He'll play gynecologist, modern father and devoted husband Bobby Lutz ("a good boy; responsible; rule follower; people-pleaser"), a former nerd who is now cute in an academic way. The ensemble also includes Brooklyn Decker, James Van Der Beek and Rick Donald. (Deadline.com)
GOTHICA (ABC/ABC Studios; W: Matt Lopez; D: Anand Tucker) - Melissa George ("Hunted") is the latest to board the drama pilot, about Grace Van Helsing (Janet Montgomery), a woman who discovers the likes of everyone from Victor Frankenstein (Tom Ellis) to Dorian Gray (Chris Egan) exist in modern-day San Francisco while searching for her own identity. She'll play Fiona Hunter ("a striking beauty; emanates power"), the head of a holding company that acquires the Van Helsings' newspaper at the behest of Clayton Drax née Vlad Drakul. Emma Booth, Raza Jaffrey, Seth Gabel and Tracie Thoms also star. (Deadline.com)
I AM VICTOR (NBC/Universal; W: Mark Goffman; D: TBA) - Matthew Lillard (The Descendants) has been cast in the drama pilot, about Victor Port (Stamos), a high powered divorce attorney with a unique view of relationships. He'll play Elliot Mote, Victor's high-strung investigator who is taking his latest breakup extra hard. Megan Dodds also stars. (Deadline.com)
JOHN MULANEY SHOW, THE (NBC/Universal; W: John Mulaney; D: TBA) - Elliott Gould and Martin Short have both closed their deals to join the multi-camera comedy, based on the life of the stand-up comedian and his efforts to be a good person, much to the annoyance of everyone around him. The former will play Alfred ("wise New York gay man, doesn't care what you think of him"), John's neighbor; while the latter is now officially on board as Lou Cannon, a game show host whom John writes jokes for that barely tolerates him. (Deadline.com)
KEEP CALM AND KAREY ON (ABC/20th; W: Andrea Abbate; D: Gail Mancuso) - Kelly Preston has snagged the title role on the comedy pilot, about the clean-nosed black sheep in a family of petty thieves, drug addicts and narcissists who decides to raise her prison-bound brother's kids along with her adopted black son and give them the normal lives they deserve. She'll play said woman, Karey ("funny, vibrant and vulnerable"), with the previously cast Majandra Delfino as her sister Penny and Jane Seymour as her mother Dotty. (Deadline.com)
LIST, THE (FOX/20th; W: Paul Zbyszewski; D: Ruben Fleischer) - Gary Cole has snagged a role on the drama pilot, about Dan Soto (Michael Peña), an Inspector with the U.S. Marshal Service who's tasked with finding the person who stole a file with the secret identities of every member of the Witness Security Program. He's on board as his boss Chief Inspector Bob McKinnon, "a stand-up, loyal guy who goes to bat for Soto when his maverick inspector gets into hot water, yet again." Also starring are Charity Wakefield, Jessica Szohr and Richard T. Jones. (Deadline.com)
OXYGEN (The CW/CTS; W: Meredith Averill; D: Gary Fleder) - Natalie Hall ("Pretty Little Liars") is the latest to join the pilot, a sci-fi drama about a high school pilot program in which humans and a select group of aliens are desegregated. She'll play Taylor ("Alt-Girl Cool"), the tastemaker of the sophomore class who's not thrilled by Emery's (Aimee Teegarden) newfound friendships with the alien Orions. Grey Damon, Malese Jow, Matt Lanter and Titus Makin Jr. also star. (Deadline.com)
RECKLESS (ABC/ABC Studios; W: Chris Black; D: Martin Campbell) - Lyndon Smith ("90210") has been cast in the drama pilot, about a resourceful engineer (Patrick Fugit) who will do anything - legal or otherwise - to get back his doctor wife (Eloise Mumford) after she's trapped in East Myanmar during a military coup. She'll play Allie Harrison, the sister of Mumford's character, who recently received her MBA and works for their father at Harrison Manufacturing. Ashton Holmes, Ernie Hudson, Lou Taylor Pucci, Naveen Andrews and Parminder Nagra also star. (Deadline.com)
RETURNED, THE (ABC/ABC Studios; W: Aaron Zelman; D: Charles McDougall) - Nicholas Gonzalez has been cast in the drama pilot, about a family that gets caught up in a worldwide event in which loved ones return from the dead exactly as they last were in life. He's on board as Connor Cupit ("intense, sexy"), one of Sheriff Fred Garland's (Matt Craven) deputies who dates his daughter, Gail (Devin Kelley). The show's ensemble also includes Frances Fisher, Sam Hazeldine and Samaire Armstrong. (Deadline.com)
SECOND SIGHT (CBS/CTS; W: Gerald Cuesta & Michael Cuesta; D: Michael Cuesta) - Derek Luke ("Hawthorne") has scored a role on the drama pilot, about Ross Tanner (Jason Lee), a New Orleans detective suffering from Azoors Syndrome, an ocular eye disorder that saddles him with regular hallucinations but also opens up his subconscious in a way that aids his job. He's on board as new detective Paul Giroux ("somewhat self-consciously hip and full of himself"), who is always trying to impress Tanner. Also starring are Erik Jensen, Kim Dickens and Madison Moellers. (Deadline.com)
TOGETHERNESS (HBO; W/D: Jay Duplass & Mark Duplass) - Steve Zissis (Jeff, Who Lives at Home) has scored a role on the comedy pilot, about two couples living under the same roof who struggle to keep their relationships alive while pursuing their individual dreams. He's on board as the semi-autobiographical Alex Pappas, "a 30-something actor who has been trying to make it in Los Angeles for almost 20 years and he's just been left homeless with only one friend in the world." It's understood he'll also serve as consulting producer on the single-camera project, which also stars Melanie Lynskey. (Deadline.com)
TWO WRONGS (FOX/20th; W: Michelle Morgan; D: TBA) - Jake Hoffman ("Luck") has booked the male lead on the comedy pilot, about a couple whose friends and family don't think they are right for each other. He's set as Nick Meyer, one half of said couple, whom Jenny Tuscadero (Kelli Garner) left at the altar eight years ago, has since reconciled and now plans to marry again. (Deadline.com)
UNTITLED BOUNTY HUNTER DRAMA (TNT; W: Amy Berg & Scott Prendergast; D: Dean Devlin) - Scott Bakula ("Men of a Certain Age") is back in business with the cable channel as the actor has joined the cast of the Geena Davis-led drama pilot, about an unconventional bail bondswoman and bounty hunter whose eccentric personality and unusual tactics give her an advantage in a tough and unpredictable business. He'll play her ex-husband Pete, a cop, in the project, which also stars Enrico Colantoni, Gloria Reuben and Marsha Mason. (Deadline.com)
WELCOME TO THE FAMILY (NBC/Sony; W: Mike Sikowitz; D: TBA) - Joey Haro and Justina Machado will round out the cast of the comedy pilot, about two teens - nervous over-talker Junior Hernandez and prickly feminist Molly Yoder (Ella Rae Peck) - whose disparate families are bonded together after they fall in love and get pregnant. He'll play said boy, Junior, with Machado and the previously cast Ricardo Chavira as his parents, Lisette and Chuey. Machado's involvement is in first position to her duties on the USA pilot "Paging Dr. Freed." Aramis Knight also stars as Junior's brother Demetrio while Mary McCormack and Mike O'Malley play Molly's parents. (Deadline.com)
AND IN OTHER NEWS... - Jeffrey Wright has joined the cast of "Boardwalk Empire" as Valentin Narcisse, "Doctor of Divinity, philanthropist, student of culture and the man who runs Harlem" (Deadline.com); Josh Bycel and Jonathan Fener have inked a two-year overall deal with Universal Television where they'll serve as executive producers on the studio's NBC pilot "Assistance" (Deadline.com); Anders Holm has booked a four-episode arc on "The Mindy Project" as "a charismatic, altruistic, and popular Lutheran pastor" (Deadline.com); Manolo Cardona will recur on "Covert Affairs" as "an enigmatic Colombian rebel leader" (Deadline.com); Roy Wood Jr. and Ahmed Ahmed have been upped to series regulars on "Sullivan & Son" (THR.com); and Hope Davis will guest on "Law & Order: SVU" as "a mother who confronts the possibility that her 10-year-old son is just... wired wrong" (THR.com).
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