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[09/20/18 - 11:50 PM]
Development Update: Thursday, September 20
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!


100 DAYS WITHOUT FEAR (FOX, New!) - Akiva Goldsman has sold a new drama to the network inspired by the life and blog of Michelle Poler, "who embarked on a personal journey of self-discovery, vowing to conquer 100 of her biggest fears in 100 days and chronicled her journey on her blog." 20th Century Fox Television is behind the hour, with Goldsman executive producing via his Weed Road Pictures banner. No writer was indicated. (Deadline.com)
AMERICAN HOUSEWIFE (ABC) - Kelly Ripa will lend her voice to at least two episodes of the series as Whitney, "a divorcée who is also Katie's (Katy Mixon) new boss at the event coordination company, Parties By Whitney." (Variety.com)
ARROW/THE FLASH/SUPERGIRL (The CW) - Jeremy Davies has been tapped as Arkham Asylum's Dr. John Deegan for the shows' annual crossover event. (@DCComics)
BLACK MONDAY (Showtime) - Kadeem Hardison will recur on the upcoming comedy as Spencer, "a neurosurgeon and husband to Dawn (Regina Hall), one of the series' central characters." (Variety.com)
CHICAGO FIRE (NBC) - Annie Ilonzeh, previously set for the recurring role of new paramedic Emily Foster, has since been promoted to series regular. (Deadline.com)
DEFENDING JACOB (Apple, New!) - Chris Evans is attached to star and executive produce an eight-episode limited series at the company based on William Landay's bestselling novel which "tells the story of a father dealing with the accusation that his son is a 14-year-old murderer." Mark Bomback and Morten Tyldum will write and direct the Paramount Television-based project, respectively, as well as executive produce alongside the aforementioned Evans and Anonymous Content's Rosalie Swedlin and Adam Shulman. (Deadline.com)
DEUCE (HBO) - Co-creator David Simon took to Twitter to reveal the pay channel has renewed the series for a third and final season. (@AoDespair)
DIETLAND (AMC) - The cable channel has opted to pass on a second season for the drama series. The show opened to 921,000 viewers (262,000 adults 18-49) in Live+3 on June 4, ultimately finishing with 537,000 viewers (158,000 adults 18-49) in Live+3 on July 30. (Deadline.com)
HISTORICAL ROASTS (Netflix, New!) - "Roastmaster General" Jeff Ross has scored a six-episode order from the streaming service for a half-hour comedy series in which Ross and "A-list comedians in period-appropriate garb and character to roast historical figures. The project stems from the popular live Los Angeles comedy club show that has been running since 2014." OBB Pictures' Michael D. Ratner will direct and executive produce with Scott Ratner, Eric D. Cohen, Ross and Thruline Entertainment's Amy Zvi. Frank Sebastiano, Miranda Sherman, Kfir Goldberg, A.J. Tesler and the live show's creators Eddie Furth, Ryan Pigg and Samee Junio will co-executive produce. Production begins this fall for a 2019 premiere. (Deadline.com)
RESIDENT ALIEN (Syfy) - Alan Tudyk has booked the title role while Sara Tomko, Corey Reynolds, Alice Wetterlund and Levi Fiehler have also been cast in Peter Hogan and Steve Parkhouse's comic-series-turned-drama pilot, about "a crash-landed alien named Harry Vanderspeigle (Tudyk) who, after taking on the identity of a small-town Colorado doctor, slowly begins to wrestle with the moral dilemma of his secret mission on Earth." Tomko will portray Asta Twelvetrees with Reynolds as Sheriff Mike Thompson, Wetterlund as D'arcy Morin and Fiehler as Ben Hawthorne. (Deadline.com)
SECOND CITY (USA) - Bethany Joy Lenz, Chantel Riley, Isabel Arraiza and Eli Goree have all been cast in the Gina Torres-led "Suits" spin-off. Lenz will play Keri Allen, taking over for Rebecca Rittenhouse from the show's backdoor pilot episode. Riley will play Angela Cook, "a certified Nursing Assistant and Jessica's cousin"; with Arraiza as Yoli Castillo, "Jessica's passionate assistant who will learn from the best how to most effectively channel her intensity"; and Goree as Derrick Mayes, "Bobby's young press secretary and a former journalist." Morgan Spector and Simon Kassianides also star as Bobby Golec and Nick D'Amato, respectively. (Deadline.com)
SINGLE PARENTS (ABC) - Naomi Ekperigin, Carla Jimenez, Quinta Brunson and Rebecca Creskoff will all drop by the newcomer. Ekperigin will play "a school teacher who attempts to provide structure for the kids and the parents, at times to no avail"; with Weedman, Jimenez and Brunson as "Poppy's friends at the Winebrary, a rag-tag group of hardened feminists who love drinking almost as much as they love reading"; and Creskoff as Big Red, "a beauty who exudes a 1950s style of elegance." (TVLine.com)
STARGIRL (DC) - Brec Bassinger has been tapped for the title role of Courtney Whitmore (aka Stargirl) on the streaming service's original series. (@TheDCUniverse)
STRONG JUSTICE (NBC, New!) - Wendy Calhoun has sold a new drama to the Peacock about the "FBI's first-ever mother-daughter duo, Special Agents Etta and Memphis Strong, who strive to be exceptional investigators despite sexist and racist hurdles. Both women tackle dangerous cases and fight for equality over two time periods, but their individual pursuits reveal truths that threaten to ruin their role-model legacy." Warner Bros. Television is behind the hour, which is inspired by real-life Special Agents/show consultants Marlo McGuire Graham and Ethel McGuire. Brownstone Productions' Elizabeth Banks and Max Handelman will also executive produce alongside Edgewood Place Entertainment's Calhoun. (Deadline.com)
SWITCH (FOX, New!) - Writer Joby Harold and director Len Wiseman are set to team for a new drama at the network billed as "an adrenaline-fueled procedural detailing the exploits of the FBI's newest undercover unit, the Switch Division, a task force created to allow an agent to go undercover inside the body of another human being." Safehouse Pictures' Harold and Tory Tunnell and Sketch Films' Wiseman are executive producing for Warner Bros. Television with Kaley Smalley Romo as a co-executive producer. (Deadline.com)
WHISKEY CAVALIER (ABC) - Bellamy Young will visit the Scott Foley-led midseason drama as Karen Pappas, "the gorgeous widow of a nefarious Greek shipping magnate who dazzles agent Will Chase (Foley), promising romance, espionage and more." (TVLine.com)





  [september 2018]  
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· 100 DAYS WITHOUT FEAR (FOX)
· AMERICAN HOUSEWIFE (ABC)
· ARROW (CW)
· BLACK MONDAY (SHOWTIME)
· CHICAGO FIRE (NBC)
· DC'S STARGIRL (CW)
· DEFENDING JACOB (APPLE TV PLUS)
· DEUCE, THE (HBO)
· DEVELOPMENT UPDATE (TFC)
· DIETLAND (AMC)
· FLASH, THE (CW)
· HISTORICAL ROASTS (NETFLIX)
· PEARSON (USA)
· RESIDENT ALIEN (USA)
· SINGLE PARENTS (ABC)
· STRONG JUSTICE (NBC)
· SUITS (USA)
· SUPERGIRL (CW)
· SWITCH (FOX)
· WHISKEY CAVALIER (ABC)





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