or


[01/30/06 - 12:00 AM]
Development Update: January 30
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 branded "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!

13 GRAVES (FOX) - Matthew Lillard ("Scooby Doo") and Dominic Sena ("Swordfish") have both signed onto the drama pilot, about an ex-treasure hunter whose search for his missing brother puts him in the hunt for Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizzaro's fabled Incan gold. Lillard will play the lead role of Matthew McQueen in the project, which comes from 20th Century Fox Television and creator J.H. Wyman. Sena then is on board to direct the hour from a script by Wyman.

A DAY IN THE LIFE (ABC) - Josh Goldsmith and Cathy Yuspa's ("The King of Queens") comedy project for the Alphabet has been given the green light to produce a pilot. The half-hour project, which comes from Sony Pictures Television, is described as a "real-time" comedy about a young couple's wedding day. Goldsmith and Yuspa will write and executive produce the half-hour, which previously received a put pilot commitment.

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS (NBC) - Kyle Chandler ("Early Edition") is the first to be cast in the drama pilot, a small screen take on the 2004 movie of the same name. No specific details however were given about his character. Sarah Aubrey, Peter Berg, John Cameron, Brian Grazer and David Nevins are behind the hour, a co-production of NBC Universal Television, Imagine Television and Film 44.

THE HASKETT CHRONICLES (NBC, New!) - Tony Award nominated playwright Willie Reale ("A Year With Frog and Toad") has booked a pilot order from NBC and Conan O'Brien's NBC Universal Television-based Conaco Productions for a new drama about a politician who is murdered but given a chance to come back to the physical world (albeit, this time as a drug addict who lives in a halfway house) in order to save his soul. Reale will write and executive produce the hour along with O'Brien and Conaco's Jeff Ross, A.J. Morewitz and David Kissinger.

HELP ME HELP YOU (ABC, New!) - Jenni Konner and Alexandra Rushfield ("The Nanny Diaries") have landed a pilot order from ABC and Regency Television for a new single-camera comedy about an unusual group of people who meet through group therapy. The pair will write and executive produce the half-hour, additional details of which weren't given.

IN CASE OF EMERGENCY (ABC, New!) - "According to Jim" executive producer Howard J. Morris has snagged a blind six-episode commitment from ABC and Touchstone Television for a new comedy about four thirty-something friends in Los Angeles who are reunited after one of them goes through a crisis and realize that their lives have not gone according to plan. Said development comes as the result of a bidding war between the Alphabet and NBC for the half-hour project, which has also received an order of 12 additional scripts. Morris will write the pilot script and executive produce along with Emile Levisetti (via his Bushwacker Productions).

NOTES FROM THE UNDERBELLY (ABC, New!) - The Alphabet has given a pilot order to a new comedy based on Risa Green's novel of the same name. Stacy Traub ("Kitchen Confidential") is behind the half-hour project, about a married couple about to have a baby and their friends. Traub will write and executive produce the pilot along with Warner Bros. Television-based producers Eric and Kim Tannenbaum ("Two and a Half Men").

SEX, POWER, LOVE & POLITICS (CBS) - Current "Desperate Housewives" guest star Jay Harrington has joined the cast of the comedy pilot, about four underachieving staffers in their mid-30s who work on Capitol Hill and live next to each other. No details were given about Harrigton's character in the project, which comes from Sony Pictures Television. Pamela Fryman is directing the pilot from a script by creator Greg Malins.

UGLY BETTY (A.K.A. BETTY LA FEA) (ABC) - America Ferrera ("The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants") has been tapped for the lead role in the drama pilot, about an unattractive girl who's hired by a Vogue-esque fashion magazine to stop her new boss's habit of sleeping with his attractive assistants. She'll play the title role of Betty Suarez, who's described in the casting notice as: "24, Latina, with a busy unibrow, coke-bottle glasses and hairspray caked bangs, Betty is a bright, spirited, optimistic, good-natured, patient young college graduate with a passion for the publishing world, particularly magazines. Determined to one day own her own glossy publication, she inadvertently lands a cushy job as assistant to the Editor-in-Chief at a fashion magazine. Clearly, an outsider, made to feel very unwelcome, and even manipulated into quitting at one point, Betty is a good-hearted, no-nonsense and very creative gal who's willing to do what it takes to realize her dreams." Ferrera's involvement lifts the cast-contingency off the pilot's production. Salma Hayek, Silvio Horta, Ben Silverman and Jose Tamez are the executive producers of the project, which comes from Touchstone Television, Reveille and Ventanarosa.

UNDER PRESSURE (CBS, New!) - Feature writers J.P. Donahue and Kevin Polay ("Torque") have scored a pilot order from the Eye and CBS Paramount Network Television for a new drama loosely based on Robert Kurson's book "Shadow Divers." Said project centers on a modern-day "Indiana Jones"-esque character who takes on mysteries from the past and the present. John Chatterton and Richie Kohler, the deep wreck divers on which "Shadow Divers" is based, are also understood to be attached as consultants to the hour.

Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [january 2006]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S


· 13 GRAVES (FOX)
· ACCORDING TO JIM (ABC)
· BIG DAY (ABC)
· DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES (ABC)
· EARLY EDITION (CBS)
· FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS (DIRECTV)
· HASKETT'S CHANCE (NBC)
· HELP ME HELP YOU (ABC)
· IN CASE OF EMERGENCY (ABC)
· KING OF QUEENS, THE (CBS)
· KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL (FOX)
· NOTES FROM THE UNDERBELLY (ABC)
· SEX, POWER, LOVE & POLITICS (CBS)
· TWO AND A HALF MEN (CBS)
· UGLY BETTY (ABC)
· UNDER PRESSURE (CBS)





[03/27/24 - 01:43 PM]
FOX Entertainment Unveils New Structure with Three-Pillar Focus on Global Studio Operations, Linear & Streaming Platforms and Worldwide Sales & Licensing
The new FOX Entertainment will consist of three primary business segments, including FOX Entertainment Studios, the FOX Television Network and FOX Entertainment Global.

[03/27/24 - 01:03 PM]
Video: "Big Mood" - Official Trailer - A Tubi Original
Best friends Maggie and Eddie have lived in each other's pockets for ten years. But with the future looming, can their relationship survive?

[03/27/24 - 12:32 PM]
This April, Series "Mud Madness" Debuts on Discovery Channel, Alongside All-New Seasons of "Ghost Adventures: House Calls" and "Contraband: Seized at the Border"
"Mud Madness" is a brand-new series that follows the off-road subculture of extreme Big-Tire UTV mud racing and the passionate characters that drive the sport.

[03/27/24 - 12:25 PM]
Ten American Bakers Travel to Paris for Food Network's Ultimate Pastry Competition "Next Baking Master: Paris"
Premiering Monday, May 6, the series demands that competitors prove their mettle in the pillars of great baking and pastry: technique, artistry, flavor, innovation, and inspiration.

[03/27/24 - 12:00 PM]
Video: HBO Releases Official Teaser for "The Jinx - Part Two," Debuting April 21
In Part Two, the filmmakers continue their investigation for the next eight years, uncovering hidden material, Robert Durst's prison calls, and interviews with witnesses who had not come forward until now.

[03/27/24 - 12:00 PM]
Backstabbery Is Back as E! Announces Conniving New Cast of "House of Villains" Season Two, Premiering This Fall
Season one cast member Tiffany "New York" Pollard returns for a chance at redemption.

[03/27/24 - 10:02 AM]
Lifetime Greenlights "Gaslit By My Husband: The Morgan Metzer Story" Starring Jana Kramer and Austin Nichols
Kramer, who has openly spoken about domestic abuse, will film a new a PSA for Lifetime's Stop Violence Against Women initiative to align with the subject matter of this movie.

[03/27/24 - 10:00 AM]
"The Steve Wilkos Show" Renewed for 18th Season in National Syndication
The show is hosted by Steve Wilkos, the straightforward, tough-talking former Chicago police officer and United States Marine.

[03/27/24 - 09:59 AM]
Starz's Hit Drama Series "Power Book III: Raising Kanan" Scores Early Season Five Renewal
The third installment in the "Power" franchise, "Raising Kanan" recently concluded its explosive third season and is currently filming season four in New York.

[03/27/24 - 09:30 AM]
Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively Officially Reuniting for Paul Feig-Helmed Sequel, "A Simple Favor 2"
The highly anticipated sequel is a co-production with Lionsgate and follows the studio's 2018 release of "A Simple Favor," which was a critical and commercial success, earning more than $97 million at the worldwide box office and achieving Certified Fresh status on Rotten Tomatoes.

[03/27/24 - 09:17 AM]
FOX Nation Partners with Martin Scorsese for New Docudrama "Martin Scorsese Presents: THE SAINTS"
Slated for November, the series will encompass eight one-hour episodes exploring the remarkable stories of eight men and women who risked everything to embody humanity's most noble and complex trait - faith.

[03/27/24 - 09:00 AM]
Academy Award Winner and Tony Award Nominee Ariana DeBose Returns to Host "The 77th Annual Tony Awards," Airing Live Sunday, June 16, on CBS and Paramount+
DeBose will also serve as producer and choreograph the opening number for this year's show.

[03/27/24 - 08:58 AM]
"NKOTB" Bandmate Jonathan Knight Returns for Season Three of Hit HGTV Series "Farmhouse Fixer" on Tuesday, April 23, at 9 p.m. ET/PT
The series, which attracted more than 15 million viewers to its previous season, will follow Jon, best known as a member of the Grammy-nominated band New Kids on the Block, and his go-to designer Kristina Crestin, as they take on a slew of risky renovations.

[03/27/24 - 07:01 AM]
Video: "Good Times" - Official Trailer - Netflix
In this edgy, irreverent reimagining of the TV classic, a new generation of the Evans family keeps their heads above water in a Chicago housing project.

[03/27/24 - 06:01 AM]
Hulu on Disney+ Launches Today in the U.S. for Disney Bundle Subscribers
Bundle plans are available starting at $9.99/month, while Disney+ and Hulu each remain available as standalone offerings.