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[01/30/26 - 11:42 PM]
Development Update: Week of January 26-30
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 BLUE (HBO Max) - Actor Milo Ventimiglia and director David Ayer have both signed onto the drama pilot from Jeremy Carver: "American Blue centers on native son Brian "Milk" Milkovich (Ventimiglia) who returns to his hometown of Joliet, Illinois, to rescue a beleaguered police force while seeking redemption of his own. Ventimiglia's Milk is a quietly determined, natural-born leader hoping to find a second chance in the place he left behind." Brian Udovich and Neil Reynolds also executive produce alongside Carver with Ventimiglia as a co-executive producer and Russ Cundiff as a producer for Divide Pictures and Warner Bros. Television. (Deadline.com, 1/30)
BLOODAXE (Amazon) - Mads Reuther and Saku Taittonen are the latest bound for the period drama. Reuther plays Jarl Sigurd, "the Jarl of Hladir, a scheming Norwegian jarl and ally of Haakon (Levi Miller), the younger half-brother of Erik Bloodaxe (Xavier Molyneux)." And Taittonen is Knut, "one of the brothers of Gunnhild (Jessica Madsen) - a warrior struggling with conflicting loyalties to his sister and their father, King Gorm of Denmark (Rune Temte)." (Deadline.com, 1/27)
CHI, THE (Showtime) - Hannaha Hall's Tiff and Jason Weaver's Shaad have been promoted to regular for the series' eighth and final season. (Deadline.com, 1/29)
CUPERTINO (CBS) - Rachel Keller and Renée Elise Goldsberry are the latest additions to the Mike Colter-led newcomer. Keller will play Olivia, "a Midwestern recent law school grad who finds herself fired by a Silicon Valley start-up, and joins forces with Michael to form an underdog law firm to take on the tech giants." And Goldsberry is set as Renee, "a brilliant opposing attorney who has a professional and romantic history with Michael." (Deadline.com, 1/28)
DALZIEL AND PASCOE (BritBox, New!) - The streamer has commissioned a six-episode reboot of the 1996-2007 BBC series: "Based on the novels of the same name by Reginald Hill, "Dalziel and Pascoe" was a classic odd couple detective drama, pitting the blunt, old-school and frequently insensitive sleuthing style of detective superintendent Andrew Dalziel against the more methodical and modern techniques of his partner detective inspector Peter Pascoe. As many on-screen police pairings so often do, the duo - played by Warren Clarke (Dalziel) and Colin Buchanen (Pascoe) in the original - clashed, got on each others nerves and were embarrassed by one another, yet the partnership of their polar-opposite traits proved to be hugely effective at cracking cases." Colette Kane and Daisy Martey are behind the project with Kane, Jonathan Fisher, Ellie Birnie, and Ingrid Goodwin executive producing for West Road Pictures and All3Media. Isher Sahota is directing and Juliet Charlesworth is producing. (Variety.com, 1/28)
DIG (Peacock) - The Amy Poehler-led comedy series has added Kayvan Novak as Stavros, "a true romantic and the mayor of the small Greek village that houses the dig"; Bonita Friedericy as Dorothy, "the site's jack-of-all-trades cook, office manager, and nurse; and Jon Pointing as Gary, "the site manager at the dig and Clare's (Antonia Thomas) fiancé." (Variety.com, 1/28)
DO YOU WANT KIDS? (ABC) - The Rachel Bloom-led comedy pilot has added Stephnie Weir as Carol, "a sweet Orange County mom who is very excited to become a grandmother"; Caitlin Reilly as Michelle, "Alex's buttoned-up sister about to embark upon a late-in-life-Rumsrpinga; and Pete Gardner as Freddy, "the gruff patriarch of the Vasilescu family." Gardner replaces the previously announced Daniel Stern. (Deadline.com, 1/29)
ELSBETH (CBS) - Beanie Feldstein and Griffin Dunne are both bound for the series. Feldstein will appear in episode 15 as Rachel, "who attends and plans all of her friends' milestone celebrations: baby showers, bachelorette parties, weddings, gender reveals, you name it. But when it's finally time to celebrate her special day, her bestie isn't there for her. The next event in her calendar might just be a funeral." And Dunne is set for episode 16 as Elliott, "a world-famous novelist with a massive ego and a thin skin. When a childhood acquaintance and book critic points out the flaws in Elliott's latest opus, the plot turns deadly." (Deadline.com, 1/29)
ETERNALLY YOURS (CBS) - Allegra Edwards will star opposite Ed Weeks in the comedy pilot as Liz: "Intelligent and worldly, Liz is a wife, mother, history professor... and vampire since 1526 AD. Liz and Charles, whose love was the stuff of romance novels, are now stuck in the fifth century of a mundane, interminable marriage. Unlike her stuck-in-his-ways husband, Liz wants to grow and change with the times, and she'll do whatever it takes to drag Charles into the 21st century." (Deadline.com, 1/28)
GOMORRAH - THE ORIGINS (HBO Max, New!) - The streamer has acquired the much-ballyhooed prequel series: "Set in Naples, Italy, in 1977 it follows tough city kid Pietro who, along with his friends, survives through petty theft and low-level crime with ambitions of becoming like the neighborhood 'king', Angela 'A' Sirena. He finds himself in the graces of the young boss and soon finds himself in a power game far beyond him. Pietro goes on to become Don Pietro Savastano, the godfather of the Camorra." Leonardo Fasoli, Maddalena Ravagli, and author Roberto Saviano are behind the project with Riccardo Tozzi and Nils Hartmann executive producing for Beta Film, Cattleya and Sky Studios. Original series actor/director Marco D'Amore helmed the first four installments while Francesco Ghiaccio directed the final two episodes. (Deadline.com, 1/29)
GREAT BRITISH BAKING SHOW, THE (Netflix) - Nigella Lawson has joined the competition series as a judge, succeeding Prue Leith who exited last week. (@britishbakeoff, 1/26)
GREY'S ANATOMY (ABC) - Jen Landon and Sara Paxton will both recur on the veteran drama beginning with its 11th episode this season. Landon's Dr. Toni Wright "joins Grey Sloan as a plastic surgeon attending. She has a resume of accolades and innovations, which intimidates all who anticipate meeting her. Though particular and precise in an operating room, Toni possesses a magnetic zest for life and exudes warmth with patients and her students. Outside of work, she's a charming and disorganized mess who says yes more than no." And Paxton will appear in "a two-episode arc as Leticia, a patient's relative." (Deadline.com, 1/29)
INNOCENT, THE (US) (Netflix, New!) - Robert Hull, Steven Lilien, and Bryan Wynbrandt will re-team for an English-language version of the Harlan Coben adaptation: "An accidental killing leads a man down a dark hole of intrigue and murder. Just as he finds love and freedom, one phone call brings back the nightmare." The book was previously adapted by Netflix into a Spanish-language series in 2021. Coben's company Final Twist is also producing. Hull is behind the upcoming Coben series "I Will Find You" and has since formed a new banner, StoryMath, with Lilien and Wynbrandt. (Deadline.com, 1/29)
LIFE UNEXPECTED (The CW) - Creator Liz Tigelaar has signed an overall deal with both Paramount TV Studios and CBS Studios. The latter was home to her 2010-2011 series. (Deadline.com, 1/27)
LIONESS (Paramount+) - Lev Gorn and Elizaveta Neretin will both recur on the upcoming third season. The former will play an "international Deputy Ambassador who has expensive taste"; while the latter is set as "an international operative who crosses paths with Joe (Zoe Saldaña)." (Deadline.com, 1/29; Variety.com, 1/30)
LOVE STORY (FX) - Erich Bergen and Michael Nathanson will recur on the series as Anthony Radziwill and Michael Berman, respectively. (Deadline.com, 1/26)
MOTHER DOOM (FX, New!) - Halle Berry will potentially star in a new drama at the network: "FX's Mother Doom centers on Riley who has been retired from the Special Forces for twenty years, but when her son is killed in the line of duty, she goes back into her past to find his murderer and get revenge." Matthew Sand is behind the project, which is based on a short story by Sean Lewis. Berry, Holly Jeter, and Nicole Tossou will also executive produce for HalleHolly and Project X. (Deadline.com, 1/27)
NCIS: ORIGINS (CBS) - Gina Lucita Monreal will exit the series as co-showrunner after its current third season to focus on development. Fellow co-showrunner David J. North will remain on board as the sole showrunner going forward. (Deadline.com, 1/28)
OFF WEEKS, THE (Apple TV) - Richard Gere has signed onto the limited series as Jonathan. No other character details were given. (Deadline.com, 1/26)
PATIENT, THE (HBO, New!) - Halle Berry is attached to star in a horror drama at the pay channel based on Jasper DeWitt's novella: "In the psychological horror story, ambitious young psychiatrist Parker attempts to make a name for himself by treating Josephine Todd (Berry), the famously incurable patient at his hospital. But as he unwinds the mystery of her history, and delves deeper into her troubled mind, terrible things start happening - is she a victim or a predator, cursed or the curse itself? As he gets closer to the truth, he realizes that treating her might cost him his own sanity, or much worse." Laeta Kalogridis is behind the hour with Berry, Holly Jeter, and Ryan Reynolds executive producing for HalleHolly, Maximum Effort, and Vertigo Entertainment. (Deadline.com, 1/27)
RABBIT, RABBIT (Netflix) - Will Poulter and Odessa Young have been cast alongside Adam Driver and Regina Hall in the upcoming drama. Young will play Driver's love interest while Poulter's role wasn't specified. (Deadline.com, 1/28)
REAL WOLF OF WALL STREET, THE (Paramount+, New!) - Maxine Productions, Bloomberg, and See It Now Studios are in production on a three-part series for the streamer, which "promises to unveil the true story of [Jordan] Belfort and his boiler room brokers at Stratton Oakmont, which is "even darker and more debauched than previously known." Mary Robertson, Anneka Jones, Jesse Sweet, Jason Leopold, Cassie Thornton, Amy Palmer, Michael Bloom, Susan Zirinsky, and Terence Wrong are the executive producers with Aysu Saliba and Cara Tortora as supervising producers. (Variety.com, 1/26)
SEX CRIMINALS (Amazon, New!) - Kumail Nanjiani, Emily V. Gordon, and Tze Chun are set to team for a small screen take on Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky's Image Comics series at Amazon MGM Studios: "Sex Criminals is centered around Suze, a normal girl with an extraordinary ability: when she has sex, she stops time. One night, she meets Jon, who has the same gift. And so they do what any other sex having, time stopping couple would do: they rob banks." The quintet will executive produce the eight-episode series alongside Margot Robbie, Tom Ackerley, Josey McNamara, Milan Popelka, Dani Melia, and Dani Gorin for LuckyChap Entertainment and Winter Coat Films with Louie Hayes as a producer. Nanjiani is expected to have an on-camera role. Fraction himself and Kelly Sue DeConnick were previously behind an effort to adapt the series at Universal Television in 2015. (Deadline.com, 1/29)
STORMLIGHT ARCHIVE, THE (Apple TV, New!) - Brandon Sanderson has closed a deal with the streamer to bring his fictional literary universe Cosmere to the small screen: "While the Cosmere books are set in various worlds and eras, the underlying premise concerns a being named Adolnasium who is killed by a group of conspirators. The being's power is broken into 16 shards, which are then spread out throughout many worlds by the conspirators, spreading many kinds of magic across the universe." Theresa Kang of Blue Marble is also on board to executive produce the project, which will be spearheaded by Sanderson himself. "Stormlight Archives'" first novel, "The Way of Kings," is "set in a world with magically powered storms, magically powered knights and monsters known as the Voidbringers." (THR.com, 1/28)
YOUTH (A.K.A. UNTITLED SHARON HORGAN PROJECT) (HBO) - Rupert Friend will star opposite Sharon Horgan in the comedy series, about "a 50-year-old divorcee's search for sex and love whilst juggling caring for her ailing parents and parenting her should-be grown up son." Friend's role was not specified. Horgan is behind the project with Faye Dorn, Jim Kleverweis, and director Dawn Shadforth also executive producing. (Deadline.com, 1/29)
ZERO F***S (Peacock, New!) - Halle Berry is also attached to star in a menopause-themed comedy at the streamer which "revolves around three menopausal best friends - one of them played by Berry - dealing with midlife BS who are forced to solve a murder of a friend they couldn't stand. But how do you solve a murder when you can't remember why you came into the room?" Liz Kruger and Carolyn Townsend are behind the project with Berry, Holly Jeter, Heather Kadin, Craig Shapiro, Barry Jossen, and Tana Jamieson also executive producing for HalleHolly and A+E Studios. (Deadline.com, 1/27)
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[04/23/26 - 03:13 PM]
"Euphoria" Season 3 Premiere Surpasses 20M Global Viewers, Up 68% vs. Season 2
Episode 2 matched the premiere with approximately 8.5 million U.S. viewers in its first three days.
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[04/23/26 - 02:50 PM]
Goal! ESPN Airs Two Most-Viewed First Round Game 2's on Cable Ever, Continuing Successful Start to 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs
Monday's Philadelphia Flyers-Pittsburgh Penguins matchup (Game 2, 7 p.m. ET) delivered 1.6 million viewers and Tuesday's Boston Bruins-Buffalo Sabres matchup (Game 2, 7:30 p.m.) delivered 1.2 million viewers, setting the new Game 2 record.
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[04/23/26 - 02:02 PM]
"The Cult of Natureboy," A New Four-Part Docuseries That Offers a Raw and Unfiltered Look Inside a Modern Cult, Premieres April 28 on Hulu
In 2016, a rising social media star named Eligio Bishop, also known as "NatureBoy," used his platforms to recruit followers into a group he called Carbon Nation, encouraging them to abandon their families and join his vision of a self-proclaimed Black utopia.
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[04/23/26 - 01:03 PM]
Apple TV Sets New Comedy Series, Elizabeth Banks to Star and Executive Produce
The series is set to begin production in Los Angeles this year.
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[04/23/26 - 12:19 PM]
USA Sports Delivers Most-Watched Match in LOVB Volleyball History to Cap Inaugural Season of Record Viewership on USA Network
The first Finals match on Thursday, April 16, which Salt Lake won 3-2 in a closely-contested fifth set, averaged 163,000 viewers, ranking as the most-watched LOVB game of all-time.
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[04/23/26 - 12:01 PM]
FOX Renews Hit Competition Series "Fear Factor: House of Fear" for Season Two
Johnny Knoxville returns to lead the high-stakes competition, where one contestant will conquer their fears, claim the grand prize, and earn the right to proclaim, "Fear Is Not a Factor!"
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[04/23/26 - 12:00 PM]
A24's "The Moment" Begins Streaming Exclusively on HBO Max May 29
A rising pop star navigates the complexities of fame and industry pressure while preparing for her arena tour debut.
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[04/23/26 - 11:08 AM]
Rule of Culture #2026: "Las Culturistas Culture Awards" to Air Simultaneously on Bravo and Peacock on June 17 at 9 P.M. ET/PT
The show will tape Saturday, May 30 in Los Angeles at The United Theater on Broadway.
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[04/23/26 - 11:05 AM]
A New Season of "Deadliest Catch" Returns Friday, May 8 at 8PM ET/PT on Discovery Channel
With a new king crab population appearing far north, the fleet relocates 225 miles to St. George Island, facing colder weather and more extreme seas than any season before as they work to sustain their livelihoods in rapidly changing waters.
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[04/23/26 - 10:01 AM]
Season Two of the Max Original Documentary Series "On the Roam," Starring Jason Momoa, Debuts May 14
The six-episode season will debut new episodes weekly leading up to the season finale on June 18.
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[04/23/26 - 09:30 AM]
AMC Global Media's May Highlights Include "The Audacity," "Devil in Silver," "You're Killing Me," "Tales From the Crypt" and More
Also featured next month is the return of Acorn TV's annual "Murder Myster May" celebrating the best in murder mysteries with a lineup of new premieres every week.
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[04/23/26 - 09:08 AM]
Video: "The Great American Baking Show" Season 4 - Official Trailer - The Roku Channel
Casey Wilson and Andrew Rannells welcome eight of the nation's best aspiring bakers to the tent.
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[04/23/26 - 09:01 AM]
Prime Video Welcomes Cynthia Cooper, Lindsey Harding, Kara Lawson, LaChina Robinson, Teresa Weatherspoon, and Ty Young to Lineup for Expanded WNBA Coverage
Today, Prime announced additions to its on-air talent lineup ahead of the league's 30th season.
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[04/23/26 - 08:31 AM]
"The Chi" Sets May 22 Premiere Date for an Unforgettable Final Season on Paramount+
Produced by 20th Television, the 10-episode final season will roll out weekly every Friday.
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[04/23/26 - 08:01 AM]
"A Different World" Sequel Wraps Production in Atlanta Adding Cliff "Method Man" Smith and More to Cast
The show will explore the lives and loves of a new generation at the iconic fictional HBCU, Hillman College.
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