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[01/26/15 - 11:55 PM]
Development Update: Monday, January 26
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!


BROAD SQUAD (ABC/ABCS; W: Bess Wohl; D: TBA) - Bess Wohl's 1978-set drama - "a fictionalized account of the graduating class of Boston's first female patrol officers" - is heading to pilot at the Alphabet. Kapital Entertainment's Aaron Kaplan and Fake Empire's Josh Schwartz, Stephanie Savage and Len Goldstein are the executive producers with Wohl as a co-executive producer and Alexandra Lydon producing. (Deadline.com)


CASANOVA (Amazon, New!) - Stu Zicherman ("The Americans") has set up a drama pilot at Amazon Studios which "chronicles a little-known period in the life of one of world history's most famous libertines and playboys. After Giacomo Casanova's wicked escapades run afoul with the inquisitors in his native Venice, he is sent to prison. The drama focuses on what happens next -- after escaping, the once-materialistic and womanizing Casanova moves to Paris with nothing, determined to start his life over." Electus' Ben Silverman is also executive producing. Portions of the pilot will be filmed in and around Paris. (Deadline.com)


CATCH, THE (A.K.A. THE LONG GAME) (ABC/ABCS; W: Jennifer Schuur; D: Julie Anne Robinson) - Shonda Rhimes and Betsy Beers have scored a pilot commitment for a new drama about a gutsy female forensic accountant who exposes fraud for a living and has finally found fulfillment both at work and in love until a case comes along that threatens to turn her world upside down. Jennifer Schuur penned the hour, based on an idea by novelist Kate Atkinson, while Julie Anne Robinson is attached to direct. Helen Gregory and Atkinson will serve as co-executive producers with the rest executive producing. (Deadline.com)


CHEV & BEV (A.K.A. UNTITLED CHASE & D'ANGELO PROJECT) (ABC/ABCS; W: Brad Copeland; D: TBA) - The Chevy Chase and Beverly D'Angelo-led comedy - about "two baby boomers who are fun, relevant and living a selfish retirement when their world is turned upside down and they are suddenly left to raise their grandchildren" - has been issued a pilot commitment. Kapital Entertainment's Aaron Kaplan is also executive producing for ABC Studios. (Deadline.com)


CHICAGO FIRE (NBC) - Nick Gehlfuss ("Shameless") is the first to be cast in the show's potential "Chicago Med" spin-off. He'll initially recur on the parent series as Jay Halstead's (Jesse Lee Soffer) brother Ryan, "a bit of a playboy and a successful doctor, but always off to the next good time," before transitioning to the new series should it move forward. Dick Wolf, Matt Olmstead, Michael Brandt and Derek Haas are all behind the project. (Deadline.com)


CLAN OF THE CAVE BEAR, THE (Lifetime/Fox 21/Lionsgate; W: Linda Woolverton; D: TBA) - Millie Brady (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies) has booked the lead role on the drama pilot, based on Jean M. Auel's book which takes place at a time in prehistory more than 25,000 years ago when Neanderthals shared the Earth with the first early modern humans and a band of cave dwellers adopt blond and blue-eyed Ayla, a child of the "Others." She'll play Ayla, who as she matures into a young woman of spirit and courage, must fight for survival against the jealous bigotry of Broud, who will one day be clan leader. (Deadline.com)


FAMILY OF THE YEAR (A.K.A. UNTITLED DAN SAVAGE PROJECT) (ABC/ABCS; W: Casey Johnson & David Windsor; D: TBA) - A comedy loosely based on the life of boundary-pushing columnist Dan Savage has been ordered to pilot by the Alphabet. Originally set up as a multi-camera effort in 2013 with Joshua Sternin and Jennifer Ventimilia at the helm, the project has since switched to single-camera and is written by Casey Johnson and David Windsor. ABC Studios remains behind the half-hour - about "a picture perfect family that is turned upside down when the youngest son comes out of the closet" - with Savage, Hypomania Content's Brian Pines and Di Bonaventura Television's Dan McDermott also executive producing. (Deadline.com)


JOE TIME (A.K.A. THE GOOD LIFE) (CBS/WBT; W: Bill Wrubel; D: TBA) - Bill Wrubel's multi-camera - about Joe, a family man who struggles with the fact that everyone around him is pursuing their dreams and enjoying life more than he is - has been greenlit to pilot at the Eye. Wrubel penned the script and is executive producing via his Warner Bros. Television-based Here Comes Scrappy banner. (Deadline.com)


RUSH HOUR (CBS/WBT; W: Bill Lawrence & Blake McCormick; D: TBA) - Bill Lawrence and Blake McCormick's small screen take on the film franchise - about a stoic, by-the-book Hong Kong police officer (Jackie Chan) assigned to a case in Los Angeles, where he's forced to work with a cocky black LAPD officer (Chris Tucker) who has no interest in a partner - has been ordered to pilot by the Eye. Arthur Sarkissian, Brett Ratner and Jeff Ingold are also among the executive producers for Warner Bros. Television. (Deadline.com)


SHARING (NBC, New!) - Jeremy Bronson has scored a pilot order for a new single-camera comedy at the Peacock. Eight Million Plus Productions' Jimmy Fallon and Rick Schwartz will also serve as executive producers on the Universal Television-based half-hour with Damian Lanigan, who conceived the story with Bronson, as a co-executive producer. The longline reads as follows: "A workplace comedy about the different groups of people working side by side in a shared office space."


SUPER CLYDE (CBS, New!) - The Eye has commissioned a new pilot for Greg Garcia's single-camera comedy, about a meek, unassuming fast food worker who decides to become a super hero. Rupert Grint, Stephen Fry, Tyler Labine and Justine Lupe starred in the original incarnation, directed by Michael Fresco. Garcia will once again executive produce via his CBS Television Studios-based Amigos de Garcia Productions. (Deadline.com)


TELENOVELA (NBC/Universal; W: Chrissy Pietrosh & Jessica Goldstein; D: TBA) - Amaury Nolasco, Jencarlos Canela and Diana Maria Riva have all joined the cast of the Eva Longoria-led comedy, which was ordered directly to series earlier this month. Longoria plays the willful but popular diva Ana Maria, star of Latin America's most beloved telenovela who strives to stay on top in a world where the drama on-camera is nothing compared to the drama off-camera. Nolasco then is set as Rodrigo, the villain; with Riva as Mia, Ana Maria's best friend; and Canela as Xavier, "a Latin heartthrob and telenovela superstar." (THR.com)


UNTITLED DANA KLEIN PROJECT (A.K.A. THE BAD STANLEYS) (FOX/20th; W: Dana Klein; D: TBA) - Dana Klein's multi-camera comedy - now about "a working mom who is in constant competition with her perfect, stay-at-home sister-in-law" - has landed a pilot commitment from the network. Kapital Entertainment's Aaron Kaplan will also executive produce for 20th Century Fox Television. (Deadline.com)


UNTITLED MONICA POTTER PROJECT (NBC/WBT; W: Sherry Bilsing-Graham & Ellen Kreamer; D: TBA) - The Monica Potter-led multi-camera comedy has been ordered to pilot by the Peacock. A Very Good Production's Ellen DeGeneres and Jeff Kleeman are executive producing alongside writers Sherry Bilsing-Graham and Ellen Kreamer with Potter receiving a producing credit. Its logline is as follows: "A woman juggles her busy family life as well as her three ex-husbands, which proves to be difficult when she starts dating again."


WRECKED (TBS; W: Jordan Shipley & Justin Shipley; D: TBA) - The ensemble cast has been set for the single-camera comedy pilot, about "a group of extremely diverse survivors of a plane crash on a remote island who must adjust to life in a dangerous new world that poses unique threats - mostly brought upon themselves." Zach Cregger will star as Owen, "a flight attendant who only took this job out of college to travel and avoid starting his life"; with Ginger Gonzaga as Emma, "who's on her way to Thailand with her friend, Florence, after having decided to drop out of medical school"; Jessica Lowe as Florence, "intellectually pretentious and a feminist in theory, she spouts complex, forward-thinking social ideas on which she's too lazy or scared to act"; Asif Ali as Pack, "a sports agent who's tied to his iPhone like it's an umbilical cord"; Ally Maki as Jess, "who is traveling to Thailand with her handsome douchebag boyfriend Todd, with whom she struggles to get along"; Will Greenberg as Todd, Jess's boyfriend; Brooke Dillman as Karen, "a vice president of Google competitor Bing, who's a passenger on the plane"; James Scott as Liam, "seemingly the most handsome man in the world (even after a plane crash), Liam's done 10 years with British Special Forces before that and now campaigns for human rights for child war refugees"; George Basil as Chet, "a drunk guy who's passed out on the plane and doesn't even realize when it crashes"; Rhys Darby as Steve, "a cheerful, good-natured guy who's traveling on the plane with his enormous dog Brimlow"; and Brian Sacca as Danny "who wants to be a cop - a profession neither his physique nor work ethic would allow - and is going to Thailand to essentially sow his wild oats before he enrolls in the police academy." Production in underway in Puerto Rico. (Deadline.com)


AND IN OTHER NEWS... - FOX is reportedly in negotiations to develop an "X-Men" series, inspired by the comic book series first published in 1963 and subsequent mega-hit film franchise (TVInsider.com); Colm Feore has been cast as the mentioned-but-yet-to-be-seen villain The Dollmaker in "Gotham" (Deadline.com); Leland Orser is bound for "Ray Donovan" as "a cleric who is investigating the homicide of the predatory priest that Ray shot in the head in Season 1's penultimate episode" (TVLine.com); and Zachary Quinto won't return for NBC's "Heroes Reborn" revival (@KateAurthur).






  [january 2015]  
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M
T
W
T
F
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· AMERICANS, THE (FX)
· BROAD SQUAD (ABC)
· CASANOVA (AMAZON)
· CATCH, THE (ABC)
· CHEVY (ABC)
· CHICAGO FIRE (NBC)
· CHICAGO MED (NBC)
· CLAN OF THE CAVE BEAR (LIFETIME)
· DEVELOPMENT UPDATE (TFC)
· GOTHAM (FOX)
· HAPPY LIFE (CBS)
· HELLFIRE (FOX)
· HEROES (NBC)
· RAY DONOVAN (SHOWTIME)
· REAL O'NEALS, THE (ABC)
· RUSH HOUR (CBS)
· SHAMELESS (SHOWTIME)
· SHARING (NBC)
· SUPER CLYDE - 2013 VERSION (CBS)
· SUPER CLYDE - 2015 VERSION (CBS)
· TELENOVELA (NBC)
· UNTITLED DANA KLEIN PROJECT (FOX)
· UNTITLED MONICA POTTER PROJECT (NBC)
· WRECKED (TBS)





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