 |
 |
[03/11/08 - 05:37 PM]
Development Update: March 10-11
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 signature "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!
DRIVING AROUND WITH JONI (HBO, New!) - Jhoni Marchinko ("Men in Trees") has scored a pilot commitment from the pay channel for a new comedy about an eccentric, successful 40-year-old widow who spends her days driving around Los Angeles with her French bulldog, looking for meaning in her life after the sudden death of her husband. The project was originally set up at Warner Bros. Television where Marchinko had an overall deal prior to its termination during the WGA strike. Marchinko then will pen and executive produce "Joni" while Warner Bros. will still retain a piece of the show but not be creatively involved.
ELEVENTH HOUR (CBS) - Marley Shelton ("Grindhouse") has been tapped as the female lead in the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced drama pilot, about Jacob Hood (Rufus Sewell), a special science adviser to the government who - with his feisty female bodyguard Rachel Young (Shelton) in tow - saves people from the worst abuses of science. Ashley Jensen originated Shelton's role in the U.K. version. Danny Cannon is directing the hour from a script by Mick Davis with the pair executive producing alongside Bruckheimer and Jonathan Littman for Granada International and Warner Bros. Television.
HARPER'S ISLAND (CBS, New!) - Feature writer Ari Schlossberg ("Hide and Seek") has booked a pilot presentation order from the Eye and CBS Paramount Network Television for a new horror-themed drama that unfolds during the course of a season as a group of friends meet on an island off the Seattle coast for a destination wedding. "Jericho's" Jon Turteltaub is on board to direct and executive produce alongside his Junction Entertainment partners Karim Zreik and Dan Shotz. The latter pair then will serve as co-executive producers, as will Schlossberg.
MY BEST FRIEND'S GIRL (CBS) - Josh Cooke ("Big Day") is set to star opposite Tim Peper in the multi-camera comedy pilot, about two best friends who own a bike shop and whose relationship becomes complicated when one (Peper) starts dating the ex-wife of the other (Cooke). Mike Sikowitz is behind the half-hour, which is set up at Sony Pictures Television.
THE SAINT (New!) - Barry Levinson, Tom Fontana, Jorge Zamacona, Bill Macdonald, Roger Moore and Geoffrey Moore are set to team to produce an independently financed two-hour TV movie/backdoor pilot based on Leslie Charteris's famed novels about debonair international thief Simon Templar. Zamacona and Macdonald previously set up the project at TNT last season (read the story) but it didn't move forward. The rights subsequently reverted back to them, after which Fontana and Levinson came aboard. Nehst Studios is behind the project while James Purefoy ("Rome") in talks to topline. Production then is set to begin next month with filming in Budapest, Hungary, New York and Puerto Rico. Since the 1997 feature starring Val Kilmer, both UPN (director John McTiernan and producer ATG in 2000) and ABC (writer Stephen Nathan and producer FremantleMedia North America in 2004) have taken stabs at developing a new small screen take.
UNTITLED NICK LACHEY PROJECT (MTV, New!) - Nick Lachey is developing a "Fame"-esque reality series set at his alma mater, the School for Creative and Performing Arts in Cincinnati. The untitled project then would track its students, blending their performances with a narrative about what takes place in the school. Marc Platt and Russell Heldt are executive producing alongside Lachey.
WORST WEEK (CBS) - Erinn Hayes ("The Winner") has landed the female lead in the comedy pilot, about a guy named Sam (Kyle Bornheimer) and his rocky relationship with the parents of his fiancee (Hayes) during a family holiday. Her character, Melanie "Mel" Cook, is further detailed in the casting notice as follows: "30. Sam's fiancee. She's a beautiful, warm woman who is unaffectedly striking, even when she's not wearing any make-up. Currently in her first trimester of pregnancy, Mel is throwing up on a regular basis and just trying to soldier on until she's feeling better. Very attached to Sam, she's hoping that his visit for Dick's birthday will sweeten up her parents and set the stage for their announcement of Mel's pregnancy and engagement. However, Sam's surreal string of blunders, gaffes and boneheaded misfortunes make it very hard for Mel to convince her folks that Sam is indeed Mr. Right." Jay Malone also stars in the half-hour, which comes from Universal Media Studios and executive producers Jimmy Mulville, Marc Buckland and Matt Tarses.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
|
|
|
 [march 2008]  |
S |
M |
T |
W |
T |
F |
S |
| | | | | | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
[04/22/26 - 05:30 PM]
Hulu's Second-Annual Get Real House Event Brings Together the Biggest Names in Reality TV and Delivers Major Announcements
The ultimate crossover event gathered over 150 unscripted TV icons and creatives, including Khloé Kardashian, Travis Barker, Lisa Vanderpump, Heidi Klum, Maura Higgins and more.
|
[04/22/26 - 05:01 PM]
Video: "The WONDERfools" - Official Teaser - Netflix
A goofy group of townies stumbles into superpowers and fights rising evil as doomsday panic grows in this wild, turn-of-the-century action comedy.
|
[04/22/26 - 04:46 PM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Expands Hit Franchise with a New Competition Series, "Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro," Coming to ABC and Hulu
The series will premiere July 13, 2026, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC, with episodes available the next day on Hulu.
|
[04/22/26 - 01:00 PM]
ESPN Opens NBA Playoffs with Most-Watched Playoff Game of Opening Weekend
Saturday's Houston Rockets vs. Los Angeles Lakers matchup on ABC averaged 5.2 million viewers, peaking at 6.4 million viewers during the 11 p.m. ET quarter hour.
|
[04/22/26 - 12:01 PM]
HBO Original Film "Miss You, Love You," Starring Allison Janney and Andrew Rannells, Debuts May 29
A blunt, grieving widow, Diane Patterson (Allison Janney) is forced to plan her husband's funeral with a total stranger: her estranged son's assistant, Jamie Simms (Andrew Rannells).
|
[04/22/26 - 11:17 AM]
USA Sports Announces 2026 WNBA on USA Network Schedule, Highlighted by Wednesday Night Doubleheaders, Marquee Matchups and 2026 WNBA Finals Games
The WNBA on USA Network schedule tips off on Mother's Day, Sunday, May 10, as 2025 WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson and the defending champion Las Vegas Aces visit Cameron Brink, Kelsey Plum and the Los Angeles Sparks at 6 p.m. ET from Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
|
[04/22/26 - 11:11 AM]
NBC Sports Announces Its Complete 2026 WNBA Regular-Season Schedule Across NBC, Peacock, and NBCSN
NBC Sports' 2026 WNBA slate of 22 regular season games begins with the reigning WNBA Champion Las Vegas Aces visiting the Atlanta Dream on Sunday, May 17 at 1:30 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock.
|
[04/22/26 - 11:07 AM]
NBC Sports' Manchester City-Arsenal Is Most-Watched Premier League Match in U.S. History
Coverage averaged 2.6 million viewers across NBC, Peacock, Telemundo and NBC Sports Digital platforms this past Sunday.
|
[04/22/26 - 11:06 AM]
ESPN, ABC Announce 2026 WNBA Regular Season Schedule
ESPN, which has televised the WNBA since the league's inaugural season in 1997, will tip off its 30th consecutive season on Saturday, May 9, with expanded coverage across ESPN, ABC, Disney+ and ESPN Deportes.
|
[04/22/26 - 11:03 AM]
Video: "We'll Be Fine" - Trailer - Hulu
Some love stories don't just consume you... they undo you.
|
[04/22/26 - 10:03 AM]
"In the Eye of the Storm: Chasers" - New Docu-Series Premieres Sunday, May 17 on Discovery Channel
The six-part series captures raw, harrowing encounters as storm chasers, outfitted with their own camera rigs and advanced weather tech, race into the American Midwest during one of the most active tornado seasons in decades.
|
[04/22/26 - 09:32 AM]
Record Setter! ESPN Opens 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs with Three Most-Watched First Round Games on Cable Ever, Excluding Game 7's
The Philadelphia Flyers-Pittsburgh Penguins matchup (Saturday, 8 p.m. ET) drew 2.1 million viewers, becoming the most-viewed First Round Playoff game ever on cable (excluding game 7's).
|
[04/22/26 - 09:29 AM]
Stage Set in the Steel City: ESPN's "College GameDay Built by The Home Depot" to Air Live from the NFL Draft in Pittsburgh
The Draft marks ESPN's first major event of the 2026 football season, culminating with ESPN's first-ever Super Bowl on February 14, 2027.
|
[04/22/26 - 09:11 AM]
Video: Jaw-Dropping Official Trailer for Highly Anticipated Drama "The Vampire Lestat" Released
The wild and captivating next chapter in Anne Rice's Immortal Universe follows Lestat as the world's first immortal rock star on an electric multi-city tour, while he's haunted by "muses" from his rebellious past.
|
[04/22/26 - 09:01 AM]
Start Your Engines... "RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars" Season 11 Unveils Its Iconic Cast Ahead of Friday, May 8 Premiere on Paramount+
With the return of the high-stakes "Tournament of All Stars" format, the competition reaches new heights across 12-episodes packed with jaw-dropping runway looks, unforgettable performances, and the kind of drama only Drag Race can deliver.
|
|
|
|
