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LOS ANGELES (thefutoncritic.com) -- The latest development news, culled from recent wire reports:
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HARPER'S ISLAND (CBS) - Jon Turteltaub has re-upped his overall deal at CBS Television Studios for another two years. The pact keeps his Junction Entertainment banner at the studio where he'll develop new series projects. Already in the works are three such efforts: "Deliverance Dane," from Ilene Chaiken ("The L Word") and based on the Katherine Howe's bestseller "The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane" about "a young woman who realizes she descends from a long line of witches dating back to 1692 Salem"; an untitled buddy cop show from Cormac and Marianne Wibberley ("National Treasure") about "two homicide detectives who clash to such an extent in their long partnership that they're sent to a marriage counselor"; and an untitled family law show from Michael Reisz ("Boston Legal") about "a dysfunctional clan of lawyers who all work at the same firm." Turteltaub is expected to direct any of the resulting projects and executive produce alongside his company's principals Dan Shotz and Karim Zreik.
SONY PICTURES TELEVISION PROJECTS (New!) - Sony Pictures Television has added five drama projects to its development roster. The quintet is in addition to small screen takes on "St. Elmo's Fire" and "Heathers" at ABC and FOX, respectively, and an untitled legal drama from David Zabel at NBC. The newcomers include hours from Peter Tolan and Ed Redlich at CBS, both of which have script commitments with hefty penalties. The former (currently untitled) centers on "an eccentric professor (also working as a detective) in the vein of Steve Carell's character from 'The 40 Year Old Virgin,'" while the latter (dubbed "The Remembrer") tracks "a female FBI agent who remembers everything, helping her career but makes for turmoil in her personal life." Tolan is executive producing with Michael Wimer while Redlich will do this same with his wife, Sarah Timberman, and her producing partner Carl Beverly.
The remaining trio is set up at ABC: "Montagues and Capulets," from Jack Orman, "centers on two long-feuding families, one of which populates the Chicago district attorney's office and the other in the city's most influential private law firm"; "Merrimac Circle," from Kevin Falls, described as a "a suburban mystery set outside D.C., where most families work for the U.S. intelligence agencies, [who] are rattled when an enigmatic man moves into the neighborhood"; and an untitled hour from Josh Berman, which "centers on two female homicide detectives who are at crossroads in their personal lives." Berman's drama has received a script commitment with penalty attached should it not go to pilot while Falls and Orman's efforts have put pilot orders.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
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