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[03/04/16 - 11:32 PM]
Development Update: Friday, March 4
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!
24: LEGACY (FOX/20th; W: Evan Katz & Manny Coto; D: Stephen Hopkins) - Dan Bucatinsky, Coral Pena and Charlie Hofheimer have all landed roles in the drama pilot, which will revolve around military hero Eric Carter's (Corey Hawkins) return to the U.S. and the trouble that follows him back - compelling him to ask CTU for help in saving his life, and stopping what potentially could be one of the largest-scale terror attacks on American soil. Bucatinsky will play Andy, "a communication analyst at CTU who has enjoyed Rebecca's (Miranda Otto) trust and is unhappily paired with bright, young, self-taught computer analyst Gia (Pena)." Hofheimer then is Marcus, "Eric's former partner in the Army Ranger unit, now suffering PTSD." (Deadline.com)
CHARITY CASE (FOX/ABCS/20th; W: Robert Padnick; D: James Griffiths) - Diona Reasonover ("Clipped") has scored a role on the Courteney Cox-led comedy pilot, about Hailey (Cox) who inherits her late billionaire husband's charity and quickly finds that changing the world is far less glamorous than she had imagined. She'll play Kara, "Hailey's new assistant at the charity foundation's headquarters." (Variety.com)
DEATH OF EVA SOFIA VALDEZ, THE (ABC/ABCS; W: Charise Castro Smith; D: TBA) - Gina Torres ("Suits") has booked the title role in the pilot, a sexy revenge drama with a supernatural twist about a Cuban-American family on the rise as they navigate multiple business ventures in Miami, familial rivalries and dark secrets from the past that come back to haunt them. She'll play Eva Sofia Valdez, "an immigrant who rose from rags to riches and is a celebrated Miami entrepreneur and a champion for immigrant rights. But the success of this modern-day Havana-born Cleopatra is fueled by an insatiable ambition that could destroy her family, a vendetta against the lover who betrayed her, and ghosts from the past who threaten to reveal the dark sacrifices Eva Sofia made to attain the American Dream." (Deadline.com)
DREAM TEAM (ABC/WBT; W: Bill Wrubel & Kari Lizer; D: Marc Buckland) - Comedian Wanda Sykes has signed onto the single-camera comedy pilot, about champion soccer coach Marty Schumacher (Justin Long), who now has to start from scratch with a diverse group of eight-year-olds and their disparate parents. She's set as Leslie, "a competitive ob-gyn who has a passion for sports. The character is excited to help her daughter, Miley, land a spot on a nationally ranked soccer team - and is upset that her wife, the artsy Michaela (Lindsey Kraft), doesn't share her same enthusiasm and is trying to dissuade Miley from playing." (THR.com)
ENDORSED (Amazon, New!) - The streaming service is developing a potential reality series billed as a "behind-the-scenes look at celebrity endorsements." Jason Carbone's Good Clean Fun is behind the project, which stars supermodel Cindy Crawford. "Each episode will focus on pairing a celebrity looking for a brand attachment with a budding business. Crawford, who knows a thing or two about choosing such partnerships and lent her image to endorse products and brands, will meet with a team of leading business and branding moguls to evaluate each celebrity's needs. They'll narrow the field of options down to two businesses. Then begins the process of coming up with an ideal match." (Deadline.com)
ENFORCERS, THE (FOX/WBT; W: Ellen Kreamer & Sherry Bilsing-Graham; D: Gail Mancuso) - Ryan Hansen has been tapped for a role on the single-camera comedy pilot, about M.J. (Niecy Nash) and Nora (Christine Woods), two wildly different single mothers with dreams of being police officers who find themselves partnered as inspectors in the Code Enforcement Department. Instead of fighting crime, they have been relegated to handling petty code breaking, like noise complaints, tree trimming and water misuse. He'll play Sean, "a sexy, charming senior "code cop" in the office who doesn't take the job too seriously." (THR.com)
FURST BORN (A.K.A. UPPER MIDDLE BOGAN) (CBS/ABCS/CTS; W: Dan O'Shannon, Robyn Butler & Wayne Hope; D: Todd Holland) - Kelli Goss ("The Young and the Restless") has been tapped for a role on the single-camera comedy pilot, a domestic take on the Australian comedy about a wife and mother who learns she was adopted and that her birth parents (John Carroll Lynch, Katey Sagal) are a flamboyant but loving family of drag-racers. She'll play Brianna, "the youngest of the three legitimate children of Wayne and Julie, who can add glitz and glitter to a public event just by showing up." (Deadline.com)
HAIL MARY (ABC/ABCS/Sony; W: Brian Gallivan; D: Julie Anne Robinson) - Retta ("Parks and Recreation") and Sarah Baker ("Go On") are the latest to be cast in the single-camera comedy pilot, about Mary Wolf (Casey Wilson), a young small-town mayor who has dysfunctional siblings, a dying father, disgruntled citizens, a nearly bankrupt town and the mafia breathing down her neck. Retta will play Ruthie, Mary's friend; with Baker as "Mary's older sister, Janice, an upbeat mess who doesn't realize she's a mess. She's also highly dramatic." (THR.com)
I'M NOT YOUR FRIEND (CBS/CTS; W: Jackie Filgo & Jeff Filgo; D: James Burrows) - Matt Cook and Grace Kaufman have both been cast in the multi-camera comedy pilot, about Adam (Matt LeBlanc), a contractor who learns that raising his kids is more challenging than expected when his wife goes back to work. He'll play Lowell, "a sweet, offbeat intellectual dad at Adam's (LeBlanc) school who is drawn to his alpha male vibe"; with Kaufman as Kate, Adam and Andi's oldest child, a bright but hormonal teenage girl who initially is delighted when Adam takes over as the main caregiver of their family. She quickly learns that if she thinks Adam is going to be the pushover she expected, she has another think coming." (Deadline.com)
JURY, THE (ABC/ABCS/Sony; W: Mark Bianculli & V.J. Boyd; D: Neil Burger) - Brian Howe and Jayne Taini are the latest to be cast in the drama pilot, which follows a single murder trial a season as seen through the eyes of the individual jurors, exploring the biases and experiences that influence the jurors' judgment, and how their preconceptions change along the way. Howe will play Reverend Jim Pyken, "who is obviously a religious man, the kind to say Grace before eating his morning bagel or to reference Scripture in his arguments"; while Taini is set as Maria, "a maternal grandmother who seems a bit dotty and irrelevant, but when people start listening to her, they notice she's a lot sharper than they assumed and makes some more enlightening revelations in the case." (Deadline.com)
MIRANDA'S RIGHTS (NBC/Universal; W: Katie Lovejoy; D: Jennifer Getzinger) - Monique Coleman and Noel Fisher are both bound for the drama pilot, about an idealistic group of lawyers who not only work together but live together at their start-up firm. She'll play Emily Ellison, "one of the founding partners and attorney at YLG (Young Law Group), described as friendly, warm and even-keeled, the resident peace keeper"; while he's set as Jacob Mizrahi, "another partner with YLG. Described as no-nonsense, curt, and the eternal straight-man, he does what he has to in order to rein in his rage (even if that means sitting on zafu pillows and striking meditation bowls)." (Deadline.com)
PEARL (ABC/ABCS; W: Andrew Reich; D: Jim Field Smith) - Richard Masur and Kathleen Rose Perkins have booked roles on the Candice Bergen-led single-camera comedy pilot, about a larger-than-life family matriarch who, after she finds out she has cancer, becomes intent on controlling and orchestrating every aspect of her family's life before she dies. He'll play Len, "Pearl's second and current husband, a retired plastics engineer, a sweet nerd who is interested in everything and everyone he meets. He clearly adores Pearl and is in total denial that she's got six months to live." Perkins then is set as Virginia, "Pearl's daughter who has the not-so-easy task of trying to get along with her mother, given the news about her health." (Deadline.com)
PLEASE DON'T GO (ABC/ABCS; W: Meaghan Oppenheimer; D: TBA) - Blair Underwood, Charity Wakefield and Thad Luckinbill are the latest bound for the drama pilot, about the personal and professional life of Gemma, a ruthless divorce attorney in Dallas, which begins to unravel when her emotionally damaged, love-addicted sister resurfaces triggering self-destructive tendencies and exposing long-hidden family secrets. Underwood will play James, "Gemma's boss and sometime-lover. Gemma's law professor and mentor for years, who instilled in her a sense of cutthroat ambition, he is the one person unafraid to belittle her." Wakefield then is set as Jules, "Gemma's younger sister. Described as manic, emotionally unstable, and lacking any trace of a filter, Jules is the epitome of loneliness gone wrong." And Luckinbill is Oliver, "Gemma's trophy fiance, the preppy trust fund kid with classic good looks. He would be detestable if he weren't such a nice guy." (Deadline.com)
RIVERDALE (The CW/WBT; W: Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa; D: TBA) - Mädchen Amick has booked a role on the drama pilot, a bold, subversive take on Archie (K.J. Apa), Betty (Lili Reinhart), Veronica (Camila Mendes) and their friends from the comics, exploring the surreality of small-town life as well as the darkness and weirdness bubbling beneath Riverdale's wholesome facade. She's set as Alice Cooper, "editor of the local paper, described as a steely perfectionist who places exceedingly high expectations on her daughter, Betty." (Deadline.com)
SECOND FATTEST HOUSEWIFE IN WESTPORT, THE (ABC/ABCS; W: Sarah Dunn; D: Ruben Fleischer) - Diedrich Bader has been cast in the single-camera comedy pilot, about Katie (Katy Mixon), a (slightly) larger wife and mother raising her flawed family of three in a wealthy town filled with perfect wives and their perfect offspring. He'll play Jeff Otto, "Katie's husband and father of teenagers Taylor and Harrison and 5-year-old Anna-Kat. Jeff adores Katie and has absolutely no problem with the fact that she's a larger sized woman. He is always reasonable, the voice of logic, and often the only barrier between the rest of the world and Katie's somewhat ill conceived plans." (Deadline.com)
SOLDIER GIRLS (HBO, New!) - Helen Thorpe's non-fiction book, subtitled "The Battles of Three Women at Home and at War," is being developed as a mini-series at the pay channel. Said effort "tells the real-life story of three women who enlist in the National Guard and serve their country during the Afghanistan and Iraq Wars, which leads them to form life-long friendships." Nicole Riegel is set to pen the adaptation and serve as a co-producer. Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Brad Hall are executive producing. (Deadline.com)
AND IN OTHER NEWS... - Rob Corddry's Adult Swim comedy "Childrens Hospital" will end after its current seventh season (Deadline.com); Freeform has passed on a second season of its former ABC Family series "Kevin from Work" (Deadline.com); Patrick Fischler and David Dastmalchian are among the latest faces set to visit Showtime's "Twin Peaks" revival (Deadline.com); Lady Gaga will return for season six of "American Horror Story" (Z100.com); Matchbox 20's Rob Thomas will guest on his fellow namesake Rob Thomas's "iZombie" as himself the show's season finale (TVInsider.com); and Jet Jurgensmeyer has been cast in Nickelodeon's "Legends of the Hidden Temple" as Dudley, "the youngest brother in the family who has the ability to talk to animals" (Variety.com).
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[03/27/26 - 03:16 PM]
Official Trailer for HBO's Harry Potter Series, "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone," Shatters Records as HBO and HBO Max's Most-Watched Ever by More Than Double, Amassing +277 Million Organic Views in 48 Hours
The series will debut Christmas 2026 on HBO and will be available to stream exclusively on HBO Max.
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[03/27/26 - 01:01 PM]
Hugely Popular "Chicago" Series Set to Return to NBC in the Fall
"Chicago Fire" will begin its 15th season in the fall, "Chicago P.D." its 14th and "Chicago Med" its 12th.
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[03/27/26 - 10:01 AM]
Netflix Rounds Out Cast of "Kennedy" with Production Underway in London
The new drama series based on Fredrik Logevall's book, "JFK: Coming of Age in the American Century, 1917-1956," will explore the triumphs and tragedies of the Kennedy family from Chernin Entertainment.
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[03/27/26 - 09:48 AM]
FOX Sports Assembles Top-Tier Roster for 2026 Major League Baseball Regular Season Coverage
Entering their fifth season together, first-ballot Hall of Famer John Smoltz and Emmy Award-winning play-by-play announcer Joe Davis call FOX Sports' top regular season and playoff games.
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[03/27/26 - 09:46 AM]
ABC News Is #1 in Total Viewers in Late-Night, Friday Night and Sunday Morning
"20/20" scored its best Adults 25-54 performance in 11 months.
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[03/27/26 - 09:21 AM]
"The Morning Show" News Incoming - Sean Hayes Joins the Cast of Season 5
Apple TV confirmed the news on social media this morning.
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[03/27/26 - 08:01 AM]
HBO Original Documentary Series "The Dark Wizard" Debuts April 14
The four-part documentary series is an up-close and unflinching portrait of Dean Potter, one of the world's most influential and controversial climbers, BASE jumpers, and highline walkers.
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[03/27/26 - 07:01 AM]
ESPN Original "Why Not Us: UMES Volleyball" to Premiere March 30
Presented by Andscape and produced by Sport & Story, the latest installment follows the inspiring journey of the newly formed men's volleyball team at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore - the first men's volleyball program at a Division I HBCU.
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[03/26/26 - 02:05 PM]
"The Madison" Marks Taylor Sheridan's Biggest Debut Season Launch with 8 Million Views Globally for Paramount+
The debut of the six-part series also marks the biggest freshman season launch for the prolific creator among women 35+.
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[03/26/26 - 12:49 PM]
Apple Original Films Lands New Sci-Fi Thriller "Liminal"
Starring Vanessa Kirby and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, the feature will be directed by Louis Leterrier.
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[03/26/26 - 12:01 PM]
"After the Flood" Returns to BritBox: Tensions Rise in High-Stakes Season Two Premiere
Other April highlights include "A Taste For Murder," "Silent Witness," and "Death in Paradise."
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[03/26/26 - 12:00 PM]
ESPN NBA Schedule Update: Atlanta Hawks vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Added on April 8
The game replaces the previously scheduled Milwaukee Bucks vs. Detroit Pistons matchup.
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[03/26/26 - 11:30 AM]
BET and Paramount+ Announce the Sixth Season Renewal of Multi-Emmy-Nominated Comedy "The Ms. Pat Show"
The upcoming season will be among the first BET originals to stream on Paramount+, which becomes the new streaming home for BET content beginning in June, bringing the beloved series to a global platform with nearly 80 million subscribers.
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[03/26/26 - 11:01 AM]
"Saturday Night Live" Springs Into April with Back-to-Back Episodes
Jack Black and Colman Domingo will host on April 4 and April 11, respectively.
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[03/26/26 - 10:03 AM]
Sony Pictures Television Advertiser Sales Heads Into 2026 Upfront Bringing Advertisers Branded Content Opportunities Within High Volume of Originals and a Safe Harbor of Entertainment Programming
The studio continues to elevate its media investment opportunities for advertisers through Game Show Network, a top 10 cable network and a top five general entertainment network.
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