or


[04/14/05 - 12:00 AM]
Development Update: April 14
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 newly revamped "Series in Development" charts. Visitors can now filter our listings by network, genre and even development stage (ordered to pilot, cast-contingent, script, etc.). It's updated every day!

ABC'S 2005-06 SEASON PILOTS (ABC) - The Alphabet has confirmed various pilot title changes as well as given monikers to several untitled projects: the Brenda Blethyn-led, Holly Hester-produced comedy pilot about a middle-aged woman (Blethyn) who leaves her family life for a divorce and a job now features the title "Carol Potter Gets a Life"; Freddie Prinze Jr.'s comedy pilot at the network is now simply being called "Freddie"; Chris Kattan's workplace comedy has been branded "Enough About Me"; Mark Torgrove and Paul Kaplan's couples comedy "Play Mates" is now titled "Play Dates"; Fred Goss and Nick Holly's previously untitled comedy presentation, about siblings dealing with their respective families, has been titled "Sons & Daughters"; and the untitled Peter Dinklage-led comedy pilot now runs under the title "Testing Bob."

FOX'S 2005-06 SEASON PILOTS (FOX) - FOX has confirmed a trio of name changes for its 2005-06 season pilots: the Lonely Island Guys sketch comedy presentation has been titled "Awesometown"; the Chris O'Donnell and Adam Goldberg-led legal drama pilot "Crazy Lawyers" is now called "Head Cases"; and Paul Scheuring's prison break drama pilot has been shortened to just "The Break." In addition, FOX has apparently passed on two of its sketch comedy pilots ("The Barenaked Ladies Variety Show" and "The Davey Gee Show") while drama pilot presentation "Anatomy of an Affair" has reportedly been scrapped.

MASTERS OF DOOM (Showtime, New!) - Writer/producer Naren Shankar ("C.S.I.: Crime Scene Investigation") is developing an original movie about John Carmack and John Romero, the creators of the video game phenomenon "Doom." David Kushner's book "Masters of Doom" will serve as the basis of the project, which Shankar will adapt and executive produce. The telefilm then is expected to track the pair's rags-to-riches story as well as how the game changed the gaming industry with its release in 1993 and the controversies that followed.

MY LIFE WITH FRED DURST (New!) - Bischoff-Hervey Entertainment and producer Scott Sternberg have pacted with Limp Bizkit front man Fred Durst to develop a one-hour hybrid talk show/docu-soap around the recording artist/sometimes actor ("Revelations"). The project, which will begin formal pitches at various networks next week, will feature Durst conducting interviews with celebrities as well as his life as a father, businessman and musician. Eric Bischoff, Jason Hervey, Patrick Panzerella and Sternberg then will serve as executive producers of the project, additional details of which weren't specified.

NBC'S 2005-06 SEASON PILOTS (NBC) - Dan Mazer's untitled comedy pilot presentation, which takes a look at everyday America, has now been titled "American Lives"; the Janeane Garofalo-led comedy pilot about the life of poker champ Annie Duke has been retitled once more to "Deal"; both Tina Fey's and Dave Flebotte's comedy pilots (the latter of which is now titled "Goody's") have had filming pushed back to June and are now targeted for midseason slots; and Fred Goss and Nick Holly's other comedy pilot presentation (which also comes from NBC Universal Television and Lorne Michaels & JoAnn Alfano's Broadway Video), a partly improvised show about three families living on cul-de-sac, has been branded "The Weekend."

SOUTH BEACH (UPN) - Sara Foster ("D.E.B.S.") has joined the cast of the drama pilot, about three young adults whose dreams and aspirations lead them to Miami. No details however were given about her character. Vanessa L. Williams and Marcus Coloma also star in the project, which is set up at Nuyorican Productions, Flame Television and Paramount Network Television and comes from executive producers Philip Levens, Jennifer Lopez, Tony Krantz, Simon Fields and Matt Cirulnick.

THE STUDIO (A.K.A. THE LOT) (UPN) - The drama pilot, about a group of twentysomething assistants with big dreams working on a Hollywood studio backlot, is now being developed under the title "The Studio." Gina Gershon, Jessica Lucas and Kelly Overton all star in the Warner Bros. Television/Silver Pictures-based project, which is executive produced by Dana Baratta, Joel Silver, Jennifer Gwartz and Danielle Stokdyk.

UNTITLED RICH APPEL PROJECT (CBS) - The comedy pilot, about a divorced couple who remain best friends and share custody of their kids, has reportedly been shelved by CBS. No reason was given for the decision or if it will be shot later this year for possible midseason 2006 consideration. Rich Appel ("King of the Hill") is behind the project, which is set up at 20th Century Fox Television.

THE WB'S 2005-06 SEASON PILOTS (The WB) - The Frog has revealed two title changes from its 2005-06 pilot slate: the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced drama pilot "Dog Town Laywers," which stars Don Johnson and Jay Baruchel, has now been branded "Just Legal"; and the Liz Tuccillo-produced drama pilot about four adults sisters in New York City has been retitled from "Sisters" to "Related."

Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [april 2005]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
     


· ANATOMY OF AN AFFAIR (FOX)
· AWESOMETOWN (FOX)
· BARENAKED LADIES VARIETY SHOW, THE (FOX)
· CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION (CBS)
· DAVEY GEE SHOW, THE (FOX)
· DEAL (NBC)
· DOG BITES MAN (COMEDY CENTRAL)
· ENOUGH ABOUT ME (ABC)
· FREDDIE (ABC)
· GOODY'S (NBC)
· HEAD CASES (FOX)
· JUST LEGAL (WB)
· KING OF THE HILL (HULU)
· MARSHA POTTER GETS A LIFE (ABC)
· MASTERS OF DOOM (USA)
· MY EX-LIFE (CBS)
· PLAY DATES (ABC)
· PRISON BREAK (FOX)
· RELATED (WB)
· REVELATIONS (NBC)
· SONS & DAUGHTERS (ABC)
· SOUTH BEACH (UPN)
· STUDIO, THE (UPN)
· TESTING BOB (ABC)
· WEEKEND, THE (NBC)





[03/19/26 - 09:01 AM]
Season Two of "Hazardous History with Henry Winkler" Set to Premiere Sunday, April 19 at 9/8c on The History Channel
Each one-hour episode of this nostalgia-drenched series tells the stories of the things we did for fun, for money, or out of plain boredom that you can't do anymore.

[03/19/26 - 09:01 AM]
HBO to Debut Comedy Special "Josh Johnson: Symphony" This Spring
Said Josh Johnson: "I'm excited to have my breakout piece be with a company that nurtures vision like HBO does. I'm grateful to them, and you, for watching."

[03/19/26 - 09:01 AM]
Cody Johnson, Lainey Wilson, and Riley Green to Perform at the 61st Academy of Country Music Awards
The 61st ACM Awards will stream live exclusively for a global audience across 240+ countries and territories on Prime Video on Sunday, May 17, 2026, at 8 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. CT / 5 p.m. PT from the world-renowned MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

[03/19/26 - 08:34 AM]
Must-See April U.S. Debuts from Viaplay - German Conspiracy Thriller, Award-winning Film
Highlights include "Dangerous Truth," inspired by real events surrounding the faulty intelligence that helped justify the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

[03/19/26 - 08:12 AM]
Apple Original Films' "What Happens at Night" from Martin Scorsese, Starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence, Begins Principal Photography
Hailing from Apple Studios, and made in partnership with STUDIOCANAL, the dream-like story follows a married American couple who travel to a small, snowy European town to adopt a baby.

[03/19/26 - 08:11 AM]
Netflix Canada Announces New Series "This Summer Will Be Different"
Based on the beloved novel by Carley Fortune, the series is a simmering, sun-soaked romance set across multiple summers on Prince Edward Island about Lucy, a young woman navigating her 20s and her first real love with her best friend's brother, the one person she was never supposed to fall for.

[03/19/26 - 08:01 AM]
Barry Bonds Joins Netflix's Star-Studded Lineup of MLB Analysts and Commentators
Bonds joins three-time NL MVP Albert Pujols and World Series Champion Anthony Rizzo at the pregame and postgame desk, hosted by Elle Duncan.

[03/19/26 - 08:01 AM]
"Zootopia 2" Roars to #1 on Disney+ with 32M Views Globally in Its Premiere Week
Its arrival on service builds on the enduring popularity of the franchise: together, "Zootopia," "Zootopia+," and "Zootopia 2" have been streamed over 885 million hours globally to date.

[03/19/26 - 08:01 AM]
Video: Prime Video Releases Teaser and Announces Premiere Date for "Off Campus"
Based on the international bestselling book series from Elle Kennedy, and created for television by Louisa Levy, all episodes of the series will be available on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide on May 13, 2026.

[03/19/26 - 08:00 AM]
HBO Renews Original Late-Night Series "Neighbors" for a Second Season
The series is averaging over 2.9 million global cross-platform viewers per episode since its debut.

[03/19/26 - 07:31 AM]
Video: "The Truth and Tragedy of Moriah Wilson" - Official Trailer - Netflix
An intimate, arresting portrait of cyclist Moriah Wilson - raised by a fierce, loving family - whose singular drive becomes her superpower, carrying her to athletic brilliance and, devastatingly, toward a life cut short by murder.

[03/19/26 - 07:15 AM]
AMC+ and Shudder to Debut "The Terror: Devil in Silver," A New Installment of the Acclaimed Horror Anthology Series "The Terror," Thursday, May 7
The six-episode limited series is executive produced by Ridley Scott, writers and showrunners Chris Cantwell and Victor LaValle, author of the celebrated novel on which the season is based, and Emmy nominee Karyn Kusama, who directs the first two episodes.

[03/19/26 - 07:01 AM]
Video: "Alpha Males 5" - Official Trailer - Netflix
Solo living comes with chaos - and now the women in their lives are pursuing their own reinventions. Could man-only housing solve the friends' issues?

[03/19/26 - 07:01 AM]
ESPN Unveils More Major League Baseball Game Selections and Dates for Reimagined Exclusive Schedule
ESPN's reimagined schedule will focus on the core summer months with 23 of the 30 exclusive national games taking place across June, July and August.

[03/19/26 - 07:01 AM]
"Breaking Glass: The Pat Summitt Story" to Premiere Wednesday, March 25, on Hulu, Sunday, March 29, on ESPN2 and Sunday, April 5, on ESPN
Pat Summitt, the Hall of Fame women's basketball coach who made history and inspired generations of women, is the subject of a new documentary.