or


[04/15/05 - 12:00 AM]
Development Update: April 15
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!

AMBUSH MAKEOVER (Syndication) - Twentieth Television has pulled the plug on the syndicated makeover series as the distributor has confirmed the series will wrap its run by Monday, September 12. Originally rolled out last season for a regional test run on several Fox owned-and-operated stations, "Ambush" expanded to national syndication in the fall where it currently averages a modest 1.1 household rating. Twentieth and producer Banyan Productions nevertheless are hoping to sell its nearly 300-episode run (which cost a relatively cheap $75,000 per half-hour) as a library product to both broadcast and cable networks.

THE BREAK (FOX) - The drama pilot, about an engineer (Wentworth Miller) who inserts himself into a prison he designed to help his brother (Dominic Purcell) - a death row inmate who insists he is innocent - escape, has been greenlit to series as FOX has committed to 12 episodes of the project in addition to its pilot. The news marks the first series order by the broadcast networks for the 2005-06 season. FOX hasn't specified however if the series will debut this summer or later during the broadcast networks' usual fall rollout, although the former is more likely the case. Sarah Wayne Callies, Peter Stormare, Amaury Nolasco, Marshall Allman, Robin Tunney and Wade Williams all star in the project, which could also feature both Jessalyn Gilsig and Stacy Keach in recurring roles. Paul Scheuring, Dawn Parouse, Marty Adelstein, Neal Moritz and Brett Ratner (who directed the pilot) are the executive producers of the series, which is set up at 20th Century Fox Television, Adelstein/Parouse Productions and Rat Television. A search for a showrunner currently underway.

CAROL POTTER GETS A LIFE (ABC) - Jenna Von Oy ("The Parkers") and Kevin Dunn ("All the King's Men") have both joined the cast of the comedy pilot, about a middle-aged woman (Brenda Blethyn) who leaves her picture-perfect family life for a divorce and a job. Dunn will play her ex-husband with Von Oy as her uptight daughter. Eugene Byrd and Erin Hershey Presley also star in the project, which comes from NBC Universal Television, Touchstone Television and Conaco Productions. Holly Hester, Conan O'Brien, A.J. Morewitz and Jeff Ross are the executive producers.

FILMORE MIDDLE (NBC) - Deon Richmond ("Sister, Sister") has joined the cast of the comedy pilot, about disillusioned teachers at a rundown public school. He'll join the previously cast Justin Bartha, Sarah Alexander and Phil Hendrie in the NBC Universal Television-based project, which comes from creator Matt Tarses.

LIFETIME'S ORIGINAL MOVIES (Lifetime) - The ever-busy Aisha Tyler, whose duties this season have included roles on "24," "C.S.I.: Crime Scene Investigation" and the CBS drama pilot "Ghost Whisperer," is set to star opposite Raven Symone in the original movie "For One Night." The project, which comes from von Zerneck/Sertner Films in association with RES IPSA Media Inc., centers on a black teenager (Symone) who, with the help of a newspaper reporter (Tyler), braves decades of segregation to stage the first interracial high school prom in the history of their small town. Gary Lennon is writing and directing "Night," which begins production next month in New Orleans. Also in the works are "The Marilyn Gambrell Story," about the life of a former parole officer who helps the children of jailed parents get their lives on track and the previously announced Kathy Bates-led "Ambulance Girl," about the true story of how former food writer Jane Stern conquered clinical depression after becoming a paramedic.

LIFETIME'S SERIES DEVELOPMENT SLATE (Lifetime) - The cable channel added two new drama projects to its development slate during its upfront presentation yesterday. Former CBS and PAX programming chief Jeff Sagansky and Paul Stupin ("Dawson's Creek") are behind "The Harbinger," which asks: "If you had only 24 hours to live and knew you could travel to your past, present or future to change the course of your life, what would you do?" Stupin will executive produce the project with Sagansky co-executive producing. Also new at the network is "Scarlett," about an Anne Rice-esque New Orleans-based gothic horror writer whose fictional characters mysteriously come to life. Bruce Willis' Cheyenne Productions (USA's "Touching Evil") is behind the project, with Robert Wolfe ("The 4,400") and Hans Beimler ("The Twilight Zone") executive producing.

The pair join the network's previously announced dramas in development: "The Hunters," about a family of spies who freelance for the C.I.A., from executive producer Efrem Seeger; an untitled project from executive producer Larry Sanitsky and co-executive producer Adriana Trigiani that follows a group of urban women from their wild days as singles to marriage and motherhood; "The Look," which explores corruption, back-biting and manipulation at a fashion magazine from John Tinker and co-executive producers John Murray, Peter Barsocchini and Wally Nicita; "The Gumm Sisters," about three overweight siblings - a dessert chef charged with a crime, a lawyer who defends her and an actress - from David Janollari, Kathy Najimy and writer/producer James Myhre; and Lions Gate Television's "Gravity" from Gale Anne Hurd and co-executive producer Charlie Craig, about astronauts stranded on a space station 200 miles from Earth and their interaction with the people who run Houston's Mission Control. The latter series is understood to be the furthest along in development and is being targeted as a limited-run series.

Comedies still in the works include: Jon Avnet and Ellen Williams's "Tripping the Prom Queen," a sitcom adaptation of Susan Shapiro's non-fiction book about a group of women who compete fiercely over everything from a job opening to the right school for their kids; "Dirty," about a ruthless woman trying to wrest control of a cosmetics company from her husband from Gale Anne Hurd and co-executive producer J. Paul Higgins; and "Thicker Than Water," a semi-autobiographical series from comedian Carol Leifer about a comedy writer who must cope with a dysfunctional family: her TV-sex-therapist mother, a dentist brother who can't settle down and two sex-obsessed sisters.

THE SHOW WITH A.J. CALLOWAY (UPN) - Justine Bateman ("Out of Order") has joined the cast of the comedy pilot, a fictionalized look at the life of BET personality/talk show host A.J. Calloway. She'll play Calloway's new confident, capable and sexy producer in the Sony Pictures Television/Handprint Entertainment-based project, which comes from executive producers David Goetch, Benny Medina, Jeff Pollack and Evan Weiss. Kel Mitchell also stars.

THE SIMPLE LIFE (FOX) - With a fourth season a near certainty, FOX is reportedly searching for a replacement for co-star Nicole Richie. Chief among the rumored replacements is Kimberly Stewart, the daughter of singer Rod Stewart. While both Richie and Paris Hilton have inked deals to star in at least five seasons of the series, FOX has yet to pick up their options beyond the current edition. A decision nevertheless is expected shortly with production beginning in late spring or early summer for a premiere date later this year.

THREE (CBS) - Newcomer Jama Williamson has booked the female lead in the comedy pilot, about a newly single guy (Zachary Levi) who suddenly finds himself the third wheel in the relationship between his best friend (James Van Der Beek) and the friend's wife (Williamson). Andrew Reich and Ted Cohen are behind the project, which is set up at Paramount Network Television.

THE TOM JOYNER SHOW (Syndication) - Litton Entertainment has cleared the weekend comedy/variety show in over 80% of the country, including stations in New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Dallas, Washington, D.C., Atlanta and Detroit as well as 38 of the top 40 U.S. markets. Reach Media - which also syndicates Joyner's radio program, "The Tom Joyner Morning Show" - is producing the series, with Litton serving as distributor.

Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [april 2005]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
     


· 24 (FOX)
· 4400, THE (USA)
· AMBULANCE GIRL (LIFETIME)
· AMBUSH MAKEOVER (SYNDICATION)
· CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION (CBS)
· DAWSON'S CREEK (WB)
· DIRTY (LIFETIME)
· FIGHTING THE ODDS: THE MARILYN GAMBRELL STORY (LIFETIME)
· FOR ONE NIGHT (LIFETIME)
· GHOST WHISPERER (CBS)
· GRAVITY (LIFETIME)
· GUMM SISTERS, THE (LIFETIME)
· HARBINGER, THE (LIFETIME)
· HUNTERS, THE (LIFETIME)
· LOOK, THE (LIFETIME)
· MARSHA POTTER GETS A LIFE (ABC)
· OUT OF ORDER (SHOWTIME)
· PARKERS, THE (UPN)
· PRISON BREAK (FOX)
· SCARLETT (LIFETIME)
· SHOW WITH AJ CALLOWAY, THE (UPN)
· SIMPLE LIFE, THE (E)
· TEACHERS (NBC)
· THICKER THAN WATER (LIFETIME)
· THREE (CBS)
· TOM JOYNER SHOW, THE (SYNDICATION)
· TOUCHING EVIL (USA)
· TRIPPING THE PROM QUEEN (LIFETIME)
· TWILIGHT ZONE, THE (UPN)





[10/02/23 - 03:30 PM]
ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" Jumps to 6.50 Million Total Viewers After Three Days of Cross-Platform Viewing
The season premiere jumped to 6.50 million Total Viewers and hit a 1.08 rating among Adults 18-49.

[10/02/23 - 01:38 PM]
Global Megastar Selena Gomez Invites Four Culinary Superstars to Her Home in "Selena + Chef: Home for the Holidays"
This year she has invited all-star chefs Eric Adjepong, Alex Guarnaschelli, Michael Symon, and Claudette Zepeda to bring their favorite dishes and culinary wisdom to her home kitchen so they can cook up perfect holiday meals to share with friends and family.

[10/02/23 - 01:16 PM]
Chiefs-Jets Thriller on NBC and Peacock Is Most-Watched Sunday Show Since Super Bowl LVII, Averaging 27 Million Viewers
The Average Minute Audience for last night's live stream via Peacock, NBC Sports Digital platforms, and NFL Digital platforms, was 1.85 million viewers - marking NBC Sports' largest streaming audience ever for a regular-season Sunday NFL game.

[10/02/23 - 12:54 PM]
Nova "Ancient Earth," A BBC Studios Production with Nova for PBS and the BBC, Takes Audiences on an Astonishing Journey Through the Epic 4.5-Billion-Year Story of Our Planet
The new five-part series tells the epic story of our planet, featuring the most dramatic events in Earth's 4.5-billion-year history, from its birth to the emergence of humanity.

[10/02/23 - 12:01 PM]
ABC Releases Frightfully Festive October Programming Lineup
On Sunday, October 22, and Sunday, October 29 (10:00-11:00 p.m.), two new special episodes of "The Great Halloween Fright Fight" will send shivers up your spine!

[10/02/23 - 11:08 AM]
New Season of BBC America's "The Graham Norton Show" to Air Weekly on Thursdays Beginning October 5
This week, Graham welcomes queen of pop Kylie Minogue, BAFTA-nominated actor Stephen Graham, actor and writer David Mitchell, comedian Mawaan Rizwan, and singer-songwriter Mae Muller.

[10/02/23 - 10:00 AM]
"Crush" to Premiere on Paramount+ on Tuesday, October 17
The two-part docuseries is a spine-tingling account of what happened when a Halloween night of celebration turned into a nightmare.

[10/02/23 - 09:01 AM]
Video: Trailer Debut - Hulu Original "Black Cake"
Based on The New York Times-bestselling book by Charmaine Wilkerson, "Black Cake" is a family drama wrapped in a murder mystery with a diverse cast of characters and a global setting.

[10/02/23 - 09:00 AM]
HBO Original Documentary Series "Navajo Police: Class 57" Debuts October 17
Set against the sweeping backdrop of the Navajo Nation, the three-part documentary series follows a group of recruits over the course of one year, as they fight their way through the Navajo Police Training Academy and out into the field, where they must contend with rising crime and centuries of neglect to hold their community together.

[10/02/23 - 09:00 AM]
Ring in the New Year with "New Year's Eve Live: Nashville's Big Bash" When the Star-Studded Entertainment Special Returns to CBS on Sunday, Dec. 31!
The first performers announced to appear live from downtown Nashville to ring in 2024 include Thomas Rhett, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Lainey Wilson.

[10/02/23 - 08:30 AM]
Paramount+ Announces Greenlight of New Documentary Spotlighting Boy Bands
The documentary will dig deep into the love, pain and tears of joy in the frenetic boy band era with inside information and anecdotes from the key players.

[10/02/23 - 07:33 AM]
2023 MLB Wild Card Series Presented by Hankook Tire Exclusively on ESPN Platforms
ABC, ESPN and ESPN2 will combine to broadcast all four, best-of-three series.

[10/02/23 - 06:04 AM]
Official Key Art Revealed for New Paramount+ Original Series "Frasier"
The new series follows Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer) in the next chapter of his life as he returns to Boston with new challenges to face, new relationships to forge and an old dream or two to finally fulfill.

[10/02/23 - 05:01 AM]
Video: "Leave the World Behind" - Official Teaser - Netflix
A family's (Julia Roberts and Ethan Hawke) vacation is upended when two strangers (Mahershala Ali and Myha'la) arrive at night, seeking refuge from a cyberattack that grows more terrifying by the minute, forcing everyone to come to terms with their places in a collapsing world.

[10/02/23 - 05:01 AM]
Video: Apple TV+ Reveals Trailer and Announces October 11 Premiere Date for Highly Anticipated New Documentary Event "Messi Meets America"
The series is set to premiere globally on October 11 with the first three episodes.