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[03/13/14 - 11:42 PM]
Development Update: Thursday, March 13
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!


BABYLON FIELDS (NBC/20th; W: Gerald Cuesta & Michael Atkinson; D: Michael Cuesta) - S. Epatha Merkerson ("Law & Order") has snagged a role on the drama pilot, in which the dead are resurrected and try to resume their former lives. She'll recur as Pearl Montoya, Janine's (Meagan Good) stepmother. The project also stars Kyle Schmid, Ritchie Coster, Skeet Ulrich, Virginia Madsen and Yul Vazquez. (Deadline.com)


CUZ-BROS (CBS/CTS/Sony; W: David Caspe & Erik Sommers; D: Pamela Fryman) - Geoff Stults ("Enlisted") has been tapped for the lead role on the multi-camera comedy pilot, about a successful, suave ladies' man whose perfect life gets turned upside down when his mess of a cousin needs a place to stay. He'll play said fellow, Nick, in the project, with his involvement in second position to the FOX comedy. (Deadline.com)


DAMAGED GOODS (ABC/Warner Bros.; W: Lauren Iungerich; D: Declan Lowney) - Newcomer Kyle Jones has booked a role on the comedy pilot, about three damaged women and two damaged men who explore the minutiae of love and relationships. He's set as Kyle, "the group's loyal best friend who just might be gay, but if he is, he doesn't know it." Anna Camp, Ben Lawson, Jennifer Aspen, Justin Hartley, Kellee Stewart and Steve Talley also star. (Deadline.com)


IDENTITY (The CW/CBS; W: Corinne Brinkerhoff; D: Gary Fleder) - Manish Dayal ("Switched at Birth") is the latest to board the drama pilot, about Mia Lawrence (Ahna O'Reilly), a young New Yorker who is recruited by the CIA to infiltrate her recently discovered biological family, a wealthy and powerful dynasty in Texas suspected of having criminal alliances across the globe. He'll play Mia's boyfriend Mike Trenton, a freelance writer/stand-up comic. Matt Barr, Mehcad Brooks and Stephen Hagan also star. (Deadline.com)


JANE THE VIRGIN (The CW/CTS; W: Jennie Snyder Urman; D: Brad Silberling) - Justin Baldoni ("Single Ladies") has been cast in the drama pilot, about Jane Gloriana Garcia (Gina Rodriguez), a hardworking religious girl who, due to a series of outrageous events, is accidentally artificially inseminated. He'll play Rafael Solano, a former playboy who is forced to reexamine everything after his sperm is mistakenly used to impregnate Jane. Andrea Navedo, Brett Dier, Jaime Camil and Yael Grobglas also star. (Deadline.com)


MYSTERIES OF LAURA, THE (NBC/Warner Bros.; W: Jeff Rake; D: McG) - Janina Gavankar ("The Vampire Diaries") is the latest addition to the drama pilot, about Laura Diamond (Debra Messing), a female homicide detective who's great at her job but struggles to deal with her cheating husband and five-year-old identical twin boys. She'll play her rival, Meredith Martinez, a sexy, tightly-wound, perfectly coiffed and outfitted detective. Laz Alonso also stars. (Deadline.com)


ODD COUPLE, THE (CBS/CTS; W: Joe Keenan & Matthew Perry; D: TBA) - Thomas Lennon ("Sean Saves the World") is set to star opposite Matthew Perry in the comedy pilot, an updated take on Neil Simon's classic play, about two mismatched roommates, the messy Oscar Madison (Perry) and the neat freak Felix Unger (Lennon). Sarah Baker also stars in the multi-camera project. (Deadline.com)


ONE BIG HAPPY (NBC/Warner Bros.; W: Liz Feldman; D: Scott Ellis) - Brandon Smith ("So Random!") has scored a role on the comedy pilot, about Lizzy (Elisha Cuthbert), a lesbian, and Luke (Nick Zano), her straight male best friend, who get pregnant just as he meets and marries the love of his life, Prudence (yet to be cast). He's on board as Marcus, "a close friend of Luke and a star bowler who supplements his meager income by working at a local bowling alley." (Deadline.com)


PRO, THE (NBC/ABC Studios/Universal; W: Alex Gregory & Pete Huyck; D: Todd Holland) - Jared Gilman (Moonrise Kingdom) has been tapped for a role on the comedy pilot, about Ben Bertrahm (Rob Lowe), a former doubles champion who is reunited with his ex-partner Bobby Welch (Rob Riggle) after a public feud that left them both floundering in life. He'll play Than (short for Nathaniel), Margot Slocum's (Rebecca Romijn) geeky tween son who worships Ben. Andrea Savage, Colton Dunn and Rosa Salazar also star. (Deadline.com)


SAINT FRANCIS (ABC/ABC Studios; W: Christopher Moynihan; D: TBA) - Jeremy Luke ("Mob City") has joined the cast of the comedy pilot, about Francis Quinlan (Michael Imperioli), a blue-collar, no-nonsense Long Island cop and family man who butts heads with the modern, liberal world when his 29-year-old sister (Spencer Grammer) gets pregnant out of wedlock. He'll play Tommy, "Francis' easy-going younger brother who's very protective of his sister." The multi-camera project also stars Henry Simmons and Paget Brewster. (Deadline.com)


SELFIE (ABC/Warner Bros.; W: Emily Kapnek; D: Julie Anne Robinson) - John Cho (Star Trek Into Darkness) has booked the male lead on the comedy pilot, about Eliza Dooley (Karen Gillan), a self-obsessed 20-something woman who enlists the help of Henry Higenbottam, a marketing expert at her company to help repair her tarnished image after she becomes the subject of a viral video. He's set as the aforementioned Henry in the project, which also stars Allyn Rachel, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, David Harewood and Tim Peper. (Deadline.com)


TEXAS RISING (History; W: Ted Mann; D: Roland Joffé) - Christopher McDonald and Trevor Donovan are the latest additions to the mini-series, which will detail the Texas Revolution against Mexico and the rise of the legendary Texas Rangers. The former will play Henry Karnes, "a grizzled, tough taskmaster of the ranging company"; with Donovan as Kit Acklin, "a handsome, wise-ass, expert horseman whose chivalry and equestrian skills are matched only by his gun-fighting prowess." Bill Paxton, Brendan Fraser, Ray Liotta, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Thomas Jane, Olivier Martinez, Chad Michael Murray, Michael Rapaport and Max Thieriot also star. (Deadline.com)


UNTITLED RICHARD LAGRAVENESE PROJECT (ABC/ABC Studios; W: Richard LaGravenese; D: Taylor Hackford) - Oded Fehr ("Covert Affairs") is the latest to be cast in the drama pilot, about the love and rivalry between Philip Fitzgerald Julien (Rufus Sewell) and Margot Worth Cole (yet to be cast), two equally matched, powerful socialites who play out their obsessive attraction and seduction of each other through their manipulation of others. He'll play Anderson Cole, "Margot's ex-husband and one of the Forbes 500 whose power has resulted in expanding a multimillion-dollar company into a multibillion-dollar corporation." Katie Holmes and Daphne Rubin-Vega also star. (Deadline.com)


UNTITLED WALL STREET PILOT (CBS/CTS; W: Ben Cavell, John Cusack, Kevin McCabe & Taylor Elmore; D: Niels Arden Oplev) - David Morse and Sophie Okonedo have both booked roles on the drama pilot, about Jackson Holliday (Charlie Cox), a smart, sophisticated, hedge fund trader trying to keep his integrity in the world of Wall Street power and money. He'll play J.D. Conklin, "a powerful and authoritative hedge fund genius, worth billions himself and always planning his next move to consolidate his power and wealth"; while she's set as Alicia Bryce, "an Assistant Attorney General who's deeply committed to her work of heading a task force investigating Wall Street." Maggie Grace also stars. (Deadline.com)


YOUR FAMILY OR MINE (TBS/Sony; W: Greg Malins; D: Gail Mancuso) - Kyle Howard, Danny Comden and Kat Foster have all been cast in the pilot, a family comedy with an unusual structure: each episode focuses on a different side of the family. Howard will play Oliver, who's geeky-attractive, prone to panic and a gadget freak, with Foster as his wife Kelli, who's cute with a quick wit. Comden then is set as Oliver's brother Jason, the middle son, cocky, smart but really doesn't give a shit about anyone but himself. Andrew Lees also stars. (THR.com)


AND IN OTHER NEWS... - Ben Koldyke has joined the cast of NBC's upcoming comedy "Mr. Robinson" as a gym teacher at the school (Deadline.com); Emily Bergl's Sammi Gallagher is being upped to series regular for the fifth season of "Shameless" (Deadline.com); Andrea Bogart will recur on "Ray Donovan" as the wife of FBI agent Volcheck (Kip Pardue), who also will return as recurring (Deadline.com); John Kapelos and Lindsey Haun are both bound for the new season of USA's "Graceland" (Deadline.com); "The Big Bang Theory" showrunner Steve Molaro has inked a massive three-year overall deal with producer Warner Bros. Television (THR.com); and Jorge Garcia's Jerry Ortega likewise has been named a regular on CBS's "Hawaii Five-0" beginning next season (THR.com).






  [march 2014]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
      


· BABYLON FIELDS (NBC)
· BIG BANG THEORY, THE (CBS)
· COVERT AFFAIRS (USA)
· CUZ-BROS (CBS)
· DAMAGED GOODS (ABC)
· DANGEROUS LIAISONS (ABC)
· DEVELOPMENT UPDATE (TFC)
· ENLISTED (FOX)
· GRACELAND (USA)
· HAWAII FIVE-0 (CBS)
· IDENTITY (CW)
· JANE THE VIRGIN (CW)
· LAW & ORDER (NBC)
· MOB CITY (TNT)
· MR ROBINSON (NBC)
· MYSTERIES OF LAURA, THE (NBC)
· ODD COUPLE, THE (CBS)
· ONE BIG HAPPY (NBC)
· PRO, THE (NBC)
· RAY DONOVAN (SHOWTIME)
· SAINT FRANCIS (ABC)
· SEAN SAVES THE WORLD (NBC)
· SELFIE (ABC)
· SHAMELESS (SHOWTIME)
· SINGLE LADIES (CENTRIC)
· SO RANDOM (DISNEY)
· SWITCHED AT BIRTH (FREEFORM)
· TEXAS RISING (HISTORY)
· UNTITLED WALL STREET PILOT (CBS)
· VAMPIRE DIARIES, THE (CW)
· YOUR FAMILY OR MINE (TBS)





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