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[09/26/25 - 11:38 PM]
Development Update: Week of September 22-26
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!
AMERICAN HOSTAGE (MGM+) - Kristoffer Polaha is the latest to board the period drama as Dick Hall, "the president of Meridian Mortgage who is taken hostage by Tony Kiritsis (Giovanni Ribisi), who publicly accuses him on being a greedy and cutthroat monster. But the real human being is more complicated than that." (Deadline.com, 9/24)
BAD MONKEY (Apple TV+) - Yvonne Strahovski and Zavior Phillips have both joined the cast of the show's sophomore run. She'll play the role of County State Attorney Delaney; and he's set as Eddie, "a CPA investigating financial crimes." (Deadline.com, 9/22; Variety.com, 9/23)
BEL-AIR (Peacock) - Tyra Banks will drop by the show's final season as "a former college classmate with a big personality, with whom Viv (Cassandra Freeman) is reluctantly reunited. In the original series, Banks played Will's (Will Smith) ex-girlfriend from Philly, Jackie Ames." Banks previously guest starred on "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" in an unrelated role. (Deadline.com, 9/24)
BLIPPI'S JOB SHOW (Netflix) - Clayton Grimm, who plays the titular character, has signed a new multi-year overall talent deal with producer Moonbug Entertainment. (Deadline.com, 9/25)
CATFISH: THE TV SHOW (MTV) - The cable channel has pulled the plug on the series after nine seasons. (Variety.com, 9/22)
CROW GIRL, THE (Acorn TV) - Paramount+ U.K. & Ireland, the show's originator, has renewed the series for a second season: "Bristol Police Detective Jeanette Kilburn has ended her marriage and found herself in bed with enigmatic psychologist Dr. Sophia Craven. Jeanette's hunt for the killers of young male asylum seekers takes a shocking new turn when a mummified body, discovered in a church wall, and a body in a freezer reveal a chilling connection. As Jeanette digs deeper, Sophia begins to suspect Victoria Burkeman, her mysterious and unstable former patient who has previously been convicted of multiple murders, could be responsible. With the case growing darker, Sophia suspects Victoria is more familiar than she thought, and Jeanette must face the terrifying truth: the killer may be closer than she ever imagined." (THR.com, 9/24)
DAY OF THE JACKAL, THE (Peacock) - David Harrower has been tapped as lead writer for the series' second season. Creator Ronan Bennett "is stepping back from his writing duties due to other commitments but will continue to exec produce." (Variety.com, 9/22)
DIPLOMAT, THE (Netflix) - Allison Janney and Bradley Whitford will return as regulars for the series' previously ordered fourth season. (Deadline.com, 9/26)
DOWN BY THE RIVER (AMC, New!) - Writer/director Peter Landesman is developing a new drama at AMC Networks based on Charles Bowden's book of the same name: "Down by the River is a family saga that is equal parts crime procedural and conspiracy thriller. The murder of the brother of the DEA's Dallas chief Phil Jordan unravels into something so big it doesn't seem to have borders. Set mostly in high-society Dallas - at the nexus of oil money, politics, religion, and crime - solving his beloved brother's murder will take Jordan back to the streets, back across the border, back to an old alter-ego everyone, including him, had thought had been dead and buried." Scott Stuber will also executive produce. (Deadline.com, 9/24)
FOURTH WING (Amazon) - Meredith Averill has been tapped as the new showrunner of its Rebecca Yarros adaptation. She succeeds Moira Walley-Beckett. Jac Schaeffer was previously in talks to join the project but ultimately didn't sign on. Yarros, Michael B. Jordan, Elizabeth Raposo, Jonathan Nolan, Lisa Joy, Athena Wickham, Liz Pelletier, and Sherryl Clark also executive produce for Outlier Society, Kilter Films, Premeditated, and Amazon MGM Studios. Stefano Agosto will co-executive produce. (Variety.com, 9/24)
GHOSTING WITH LUKE HUTCHIE AND MATTHEW FINLAN (Peacock, New!) - The streamer has acquired both eight-episode seasons of Canadian reality series starring Luke Hutchie and Matthew Finlan to debut in October: "Joined by celebrity guests, the amateur ghost-wrangling duo will traverse the country, investigating stories of paranormal activity in Ontario, British Columbia, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia and the Yukon Territory. Their mission remains unchanged: to uncover the truth behind local ghostlore and deliver a verdict of "haunted" or "not haunted"." Hutchie, Finlan, Matthew Hornburg, Mark J.W. Bishop, Donna Luke, Jennifer Harkness, and Mitch Burman are among the executive producers for Blue Ant Studios and Luke Hutchie Productions. (Deadline.com, 9/26)
GOLF (Netflix) - Luke Wilson has been added to the Will Ferrell-led comedy series as "a pro golfer who rivals Lonnie, having beaten him for the tour championship twice." (Deadline.com, 9/26)
HIGH POTENTIAL (ABC) - James Roday Rodriguez has signed on to direct two episodes of the series this season. (Deadline.com, 9/23)
KILLER GRANNIES (Oxygen) - June Squibb is set to host the upcoming "true-crime series that chronicles the most shocking and unpredictable cases involving a killer no one would suspect: Grandma." (Variety.com, 9/24)
MONOPOLY (Netflix) - Studio Lambert, Wheelhouse, and Endemol Shine North America are among the finalists to produce the show's latest small screen take on the iconic board game as part of a large-scale bake-off. (Deadline.com, 9/26)
NCIS: ORIGINS (CBS) - Philip Winchester will recur on the prequel series as Mason Franks, "the older brother of Mike Franks (Kyle Schmid), a Texas-tough cowboy who has recently hit rock bottom. Mason is an honorable man who has fallen on hard times and is desperately trying to keep from losing the family ranch. His desperation leads him to seek help from his estranged little brother." (Deadline.com, 9/22)
NOT SUITABLE FOR WORK (Hulu) - Jay Ellis will round out the cast of the comedy series as Bill Gibson, "a charismatic, successful investment banker who is admired for being his firm's highest-earning managing director." (Deadline.com, 9/24)
PAGANS (Netflix, New!) - Joshua Zetumer has scored a straight to series order from the streamer for a new drama: "Pagans follows a man who becomes the sole caretaker of his two children after the tragic loss of his wife. While his son is typical, his daughter, Alice, is anything but. What starts as a strained father-daughter relationship soon evolves into something far more sinister. Equal parts emotional, horrifying and humorous, Pagans uses genre to unearth all the dark thoughts that parents have, the kind of thoughts mom and dad are never supposed to talk about... " Entertainment 360's Guymon Casady will also presumably executive produce. (Deadline.com, 9/23)
PLURIBUS (Apple TV+) - Creator Vince Gilligan has signed a four-year exclusive deal with Sony Pictures Television, home to his High Bridge Productions banner. (Deadline.com, 9/24)
RANSOM CANYON (Netflix) - Eoin Macken's Davis Collins and Andrew Liner's Reid Collins will not return as regulars for the show's second season. (Deadline.com, 9/22)
SAVANT, THE (Apple TV+) - The streamer has opted to postpone the Jessica Chastain-led drama from its September 26 launch: "After careful consideration, we have made the decision to postpone The Savant," a spokesperson said in a statement. "We appreciate your understanding and look forward to releasing the series at a future date." (Deadline.com, 9/23)
SULLIVAN'S CROSSING (The CW) - Fuad Ahmed, Jonathan Silverman, Colby Frost, Emerson MacNeil, and Marcus Rosner have all joined the cast of the show's fourth season. Ahmed plays Amir Malik; Silverman portrays Quincy Carlson; Frost plays Ben Nelson; MacNeil is Tracy; and Rosner plays Liam Davies, having first appeared in the season three finale. (Deadline.com, 9/25)
THINGS WE NEVER GOT OVER (Amazon) - Eric Charmelo and Nicole Snyder are now spearheading Amazon MGM Studios' small screen take on Lucy Score's novel: "Things We Never Got Over follows Naomi Witt, who is on the run, not just from her fiancé and a church full of well-wishers, but from her entire life. When she finds herself in rural Virginia coming to the aid of her hot mess of a twin, she falls for the small town and a sexy local, who helps her rediscover herself." They'll succeed Amy Rardin, who was part of the original sale in 2023, and presumably Lynley Bird and Patrick Moran. Gina Girolamo of Strega Stories will now executive produce alongside Charmelo and Snyder with Score serving as co-executive producer. (Deadline.com, 9/26)
UNTITLED MARC CHERRY PROJECT (Netflix, New!) - Marc Cherry has sold an untitled project to the streamer set in Charleston, South Carolina: "The series follows four couples - bound by family, marriage, and fate - who sit at the center of Charleston's most powerful legacy families. With insider access to Charleston's elite and high society, the show explores the tension between old money tradition, hidden scandals, and the pressures of contemporary life." Jason Owen, Marcy Ross, and Tara Roy will also executive produce for Sandbox Studios. (Deadline.com, 9/25)
UNTITLED MARSHAWN LYNCH PROJECT (Amazon, New!) - Former NFL star Marshawn Lynch is attached to star in a potential new comedy at Amazon MGM Studios: "Currently untitled, the show stars Lynch as a version of himself who, in refusing the typical life of a retired athlete, dives into a new career as a Las Vegas private eye - teaming with a tough, veteran female PI in a partnership as unpredictable as the cases they take on." Max Searle is behind the half-hour with Lynch, Luke Dillon, Luke Maxwell, Will Arnett, Marc Forman, Bryon Sheng, and Diaunte Thompson also executive producing for 3 Arts Entertainment, Electric Avenue, and Beastmode Productions. (Deadline.com, 9/23)
UNTITLED WITNESS PROTECTION PILOT (FX) - Aidan Gillen will guest on the Alison Brie-led drama pilot as Carl Milliken III, "a business executive who identifies more with his workface than the military contractors he interacts with, sources close to production reveal." (Deadline.com, 9/22)
WALKING DEAD, THE: DEAD CITY (AMC) - Jimmi Simpson has signed onto the show's third season as Dillard, an unspecified new series regular. (Deadline.com, 9/24)
WITCHER, THE (Netflix) - Peter Mullan has been added to the show's fourth season as Vesemir, "a veteran monster hunter and father figure to Geralt." He replaces Kim Bodnia, who originated the role in season two. As previously announced Liam Hemsworth is taking over the titular role, succeeding Henry Cavill. (EW.com, 9/25)
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[12/06/25 - 04:01 PM]
Video: "The Boys" Explosive Final Season Premiere Date & Teaser Drop at CCXP Brazil
The fifth and final season will premiere exclusively on Prime Video on April 8, 2026.
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[12/06/25 - 02:46 PM]
Paramount and UFC Announce New Seasons of "Dana White's Contender Series" and "The Ultimate Fighter"
Beginning in 2026, Paramount+ in the U.S., Latin America, and Australia will become the exclusive home for all episodes of both series.
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[12/06/25 - 02:27 PM]
Video: "School Spirits" Returns - Paramount+ Drops First Look at Season Three Premiering January 28
The date was unveiled alongside first look images at today's Paramount+ CCXP panel in São Paolo, Brazil featuring series lead and executive producer Peyton List.
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[12/06/25 - 02:12 PM]
Video: Oscar-Nominee Paul Giamatti Surprises Fans at CCXP and Reveals Exclusive Scene from "Star Trek: Starfleet Academy"
The series will premiere globally with two episodes on Thursday, January 15 on Paramount+, and in Japan on Tuesday, January 23.
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[12/06/25 - 10:47 AM]
Hulu Debuts First-Look Images from "The Testaments" Out of Brazil Comic Con
"The Testaments," a new chapter from the showrunner and executive producers of "The Handmaid's Tale," is coming in April 2026 to Hulu.
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[12/06/25 - 10:31 AM]
Video: Date Announcement & Teaser Debut - Hulu's "Paradise" Season 2
The second season of the Emmy Award-nominated series premieres Monday, February 23 with three episodes, followed by new episodes weekly on Hulu and Hulu and Hulu on Disney+ for bundle subscribers in the US and Disney+ internationally.
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[12/05/25 - 03:31 PM]
ABC News' "Nightline" Ranks No. 1 in Total Viewers
"Nightline" improved on the previous week in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, hitting nine-week highs in both measures.
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[12/05/25 - 03:30 PM]
In Anticipation of "Avatar: Fire and Ash," ABC News to Premiere Two New Specials This December
First up: "Avatar: A New Era - Special Edition of 20/20" premieres Friday, December 12 on ABC.
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[12/05/25 - 02:05 PM]
ESPN Networks Deliver Best College Football Regular Season Since 2011; "College GameDay Built by The Home Depot" Scores Most-Watched Season Ever
ESPN networks aired the most-watched game in 34 of 42 key Saturday windows, including seven of 14 noon windows, 13 of 14 late afternoon windows and all 14 prime windows.
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[12/05/25 - 12:35 PM]
2025 CFB Viewership Surges on FOX & FS1
The 2025 regular season wrapped with big numbers for "Big Noon Saturday," "Big Noon Kickoff" and more - including year-over-year gains across the board.
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[12/05/25 - 11:00 AM]
CBS Premiere Week Episodes Post Gains and Lead In Live Plus 35-Day Multiplatform Viewership
"Tracker" delivered 17.3 million viewers, up +6% versus its year-ago premiere.
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[12/05/25 - 10:05 AM]
"Landman" Booms Into a Third Season Renewal and Breaks Viewing Records on Paramount+
The second season is set to be a top three series among all original content the week of November 17 and a top two series for the week of November 24 according to Nielsen preliminary data.
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[12/05/25 - 09:45 AM]
Video: "Taylor" - A CW Documentary Special - Trailer
The special - airing Saturday, December 13 - explores the global phenomenon of Taylor Swift and digs deep across the musician's 20-year career, a period that has seen her transcend the realm of pop star to become a cultural icon like no other.
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[12/05/25 - 08:45 AM]
ESPN Delivered Most-Watched Women's College Volleyball Season on Record
Said coverage averaged 190,000 viewers, up 36% from the 2024 season.
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[12/05/25 - 08:31 AM]
Peacock Exclusively Streams Monkeypaw Productions' "Him" Beginning December 19
The film stars Marlon Wayans, Tyriq Withers, Julia Fox, Tim Heidecker, Jim Jefferies and more.
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