or


[07/13/06 - 12:00 AM]
HBO Sacks 'Rome,' Delays 'Sopranos' Until March, More
By Brian Ford Sullivan (TFC)

LOS ANGELES (thefutoncritic.com) -- HBO has firmed up its plans for the coming year as the network outlined its programming highlights for the 2006-07 season at the TCA Summer Press Tour on Wednesday.

The biggest news: the second season of "Rome" will likely be its swan song, despite solid ratings for its freshman go around. HBO chairman and CEO Chris Albrecht indicated its production budget - reportedly as high as $100 million - will be the biggest factor in its decision. The network currently shares the cost with its production partners, the BBC and Italy's RAI, who are only signed through its second season, which will launch on Sunday, January 7. Nevertheless, Albrecht said it's very possible the show could continue, telling reporters: "we may decide that the food in Rome is so good and figure out a way [to continue]."

Also announced:

-- HBO will try shifting movie premieres from Saturdays to Sundays this fall, ending a 15-year tradition. Said fall package, which includes "Fantastic Four," "Doom" and "Domino," will bump the fourth season of "The Wire" - set to begin on September 10 - from 9:00/8:00c to 10:00/9:00c. Albrecht however said the movie schedule will likely revert back to normal once "Rome" bows in January.

-- Also being tested: new episodes of "The Wire" and the revived "Russell Simmons' Def Comedy Jam" will be available six days before their premieres on the network's HBO on Demand service.

-- Production on the final "The Sopranos" episodes has been delayed a few weeks to accommodate co-star James Gandolfini's knee surgery. Said development will push the installments from a January to a March start.

-- January is being targeted as the return date for "Extras," whose new season includes cameos David Bowie, Orlando Bloom and Ian McKellen while next summer will see the return of "Big Love." Joining "Big Love" in June will be "sexLife," a new relationship drama from Cynthia Mort. Beyond the summer, HBO is close to giving series orders to David Milch's "John From Cincinnati" and Alan Ball's "True Blood," based on Charlaine Harris's "Southern Vampire" book series. No launch date however was given for the back half of "Entourage's" third season.

-- Albrecht also noted that a sixth season of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" is "pretty close" to being a done deal with the new season being targeted for late 2007.

-- Saturday, February 3 will see a new concert featuring pop star Kelly Clarkson, live from Wembley Arena in London.

-- And finally, HBO has teamed with Cingular Wireless to offer full-length episodes - segmented into chapters - of early episodes of "Entourage," "Sex and the City," "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and "Dane Cook's Tourgasm." Original mobisodes of "Entourage," focusing on Kevin Dillon's character, are also on tap, acted, written and produced by the cast and crew of the regular series.





  [july 2006]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
      


· BIG LOVE (HBO)
· CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM (HBO)
· DANE COOK'S TOURGASM (HBO)
· ENTOURAGE (HBO)
· EXTRAS (HBO)
· JOHN FROM CINCINNATI (HBO)
· ROME (HBO)
· RUSSELL SIMMONS PRESENTS: DEF COMEDY JAM (HBO)
· SEX AND THE CITY (HBO)
· SOPRANOS, THE (HBO)
· TELL ME YOU LOVE ME (HBO)
· TRUE BLOOD (HBO)
· WIRE, THE (HBO)





[08/05/26 - 08:05 AM]
Discovery Channel's "Expedition X" Returns for a Haunting New Season on Wed, August 19, Filled with Shocking Mysteries and Supernatural Encounters
Adventurer Josh Gates teams up with scientist Phil Torres and paranormal investigator Heather Amaro to investigate shocking stories where history, myth and the supernatural collide.

[08/05/26 - 08:01 AM]
HBO and BBC to Co-Produce New Drama Series "1536"
A darkly comic and terrifyingly relevant story about friendship, sisterhood, and a changing world, "1536" explores how the actions of a man in power changes the fate of working-class women on the edges of the country.

[08/05/26 - 07:03 AM]
Red Sox-Dodgers Averages 3.8 Million Viewers on NBC & Peacock, Marking First Time "Sunday Night Baseball" Has Topped 3 Million Viewers in Three Straight Games
Boston defeated Los Angeles, 8-4, this past Sunday night with a TAD of 3.8 million viewers on NBC and Peacock.

[08/05/26 - 06:01 AM]
Video: "Tyler Perry's Beauty in Black" Season 3 - Official Trailer - Netflix
Chaos rocks the Bellarie empire as Horace's wrath lands the family behind bars, Kimmie vies for power and hidden agendas lurk behind every ruthless move.

[08/05/26 - 03:00 AM]
AMC+ Releases New Images for Highly Anticipated Revenge Thriller "Kill Jackie" Starring Academy Award, BAFTA and Tony Award-Winning Actress Catherine Zeta-Jones
The new images give audiences a further look at the striking style and forthcoming high-octane world ahead of the series launching this fall with eight nail-biting episodes, exclusively on AMC+.

[08/05/26 - 01:05 AM]
Netflix Announces Season 2 of "Musafir Cafe"
As the world of Chander, Sudha and Preeti gets written once again, audiences can look forward to the relationships, emotions and unanswered questions that made the series so unforgettable.

[08/04/26 - 02:59 PM]
ESPN Delivers Its Second Most-Watched Regular Season WNBA Game Ever!
The Indiana Fever-Minnesota Lynx matchup averaged 2.5 million viewers on ABC on Sunday, August 2.

[08/04/26 - 02:29 PM]
FOX Saturday Baseball Delivers Second Best Performance This Season with 2.834 Million Viewers
Coverage reached a peak audience of 3,222,000 viewers from 9:15-9:30 PM ET.

[08/04/26 - 01:57 PM]
Jaw-Dropping New Medical Series "ER: Caught on Camera" Premieres on TLC on August 19
From cardiac arrests to runaway bee swarms, house fires and cosmetic disasters, the series shows authentic, self-documented footage from the patient's most vulnerable and traumatic moments.

[08/04/26 - 12:30 PM]
Video: "The X-Files: I Want to Believe - Vrach Frankenshteyn" Official Trailer and Key Art Revealed
This R-rated version represents the film Chris Carter always envisioned - a darker, frightening thriller exploring a real-life Dr. Frankenstein.

[08/04/26 - 12:15 PM]
NBC's "The Voice" Starts Production on All-New Eventized Season "The Voice: Celebrity" Airing in 2027
An extension of the longstanding series, this special season swaps undiscovered talent for a wide range of celebrities - actors, musicians,?influencers,?athletes, comedians, and reality television stars - competing to become the first "Voice" celebrity champion.

[08/04/26 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10: Week of July 27 - The Celebration Continues as Kevin Hart's "72 Hours" Holds No. 1 for a Second Week
"The Idaho Murders: College Nightmare" launched at the top of the English TV list with 18.2 million views.

[08/04/26 - 11:15 AM]
Amanda Hirsch Set as Official Host of Hulu's "Get Real" Podcast
Hirsch will ask all the juicy questions as she is joined each week by celebrity guests, pop-culture commentators and stars from the latest hit Hulu reality series.

[08/04/26 - 11:03 AM]
FX's "The Shards" Official Video Podcast Coming to Hulu
The video and audio podcast breaks down the series with stars Igby Rigney, Kaia Gerber, Homer Gere, Hayes Warner, Graham Campbell, Evan Rachel Wood, Wes Bentley and Jordan Roth.

[08/04/26 - 09:40 AM]
Hulu Greenlights Season 3 of Hit Australian Original Series "The Artful Dodger"
The high-octane Season 3 will be packed with more grit, bigger heists and bolder hijinks when it premieres on Hulu in the U.S.