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[03/11/08 - 05:37 PM]
Development Update: March 10-11
By The Futon Critic Staff (TFC) |
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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
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[06/10/26 - 01:49 PM]
23.8M Viewers! ABC and ESPN Deliver Largest NBA Finals Game 3 Audience Since 1998
Through three games, the 2026 NBA Finals is ABC and ESPN's second most-watched ever, averaging 19.1M viewers.
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[06/10/26 - 12:01 PM]
Top 10 Most-Watched Prime Original Films & Series for the Week of June 1
"Off Campus," "Spider-Noir," "The Boys," "Clarkson's Farm," and "Citadel" led all original series worldwide.
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[06/10/26 - 11:00 AM]
Video: AMC Global Media Drops Thrilling Trailer for Season Three of "The Walking Dead: Dead City" Starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Lauren Cohan
In addition to Cohan and Morgan, season three also stars Jimmi Simpson, Raúl Castillo, Aimee Garcia, Logan Kim and Michael Emery.
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[06/10/26 - 10:29 AM]
Edgar Ramirez Joins "Task" Season 2
Reporting for duty.
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[06/10/26 - 10:21 AM]
NBC Reveals Season Two Cast for Hit Reality Adventure Series "Destination X"
The roster is inclusive of fan-favorite Bravolebs, Bombshells and reality competition superstars.
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[06/10/26 - 10:01 AM]
Video: "Worst Neighbor Ever" - Official Trailer - Netflix
You think you know your neighbors? Think again. This new series features firsthand accounts of violence, intimidation, and harassment that are more shocking than ever.
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[06/10/26 - 10:01 AM]
HBO Original Documentary "The Welcome Table" Debuts June 23
From the United States to the Caribbean, Italy, Kenya, Peru, Brazil, and Australia, the film traces the devastating human consequences of a changing climate - from hurricanes and floods to droughts, rising seas, and the impact of extractive industries on Indigenous communities.
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[06/10/26 - 09:58 AM]
Video: Starz Drops Pulse-Pounding First Teaser Trailer for Upcoming Crime Drama "Fightland"
"Fightland" premieres Friday, July 31 with new episodes available to stream weekly on Fridays only on the Starz app, and all Starz streaming and on-demand platforms.
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[06/10/26 - 09:31 AM]
Video: "Would You Rather: Decide to Survive" - Official Trailer - Prime Video
The series comes to Prime Video on the June 26.
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[06/10/26 - 09:08 AM]
NBC Sports Delivers 2nd-Largest Final Round Audience for U.S. Women's Open Since 2014
Coverage averaged 1.3 million viewers across NBC and Peacock.
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[06/10/26 - 09:01 AM]
Roku Originals Heats Up "Summer Sparks" Scripted Feature Starring Jesse Metcalfe and Kathryn Davis
"Summer Sparks" welcomes all to Camp Evergreen, where a summer cook-off means laughter, connection, and a little romance.
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[06/10/26 - 09:01 AM]
A Summer of Suspense, Seduction and Obsession Begins as FX's "The Shards" Premieres on August 5 on FX and Hulu
Set against the vivid backdrop of 1980s Los Angeles, the series follows a group of privileged high school seniors at an elite prep school as they navigate identity, sex, jealousy, obsession and the dangers lurking beneath the surface of American adolescence.
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[06/10/26 - 08:01 AM]
HGTV Heats Up Summer with New Series "Worst Yard on the Block" and "Extreme Buyers Club" and New Seasons of Popular Titles This July
Other premieres include "Renovation Resort Showdown," "Holmes on Homes: Building a Legacy," and "Ugliest House in America."
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[06/10/26 - 08:01 AM]
"Toy Story 30 Years and Beyond - A Special Edition of 20/20" Airs Friday, June 12, on ABC, Streams Next Day on Disney+ and Hulu
This new special charts the studio's journey from making shorts and TV commercials to becoming an animation-industry superpower - told by those who lived it.
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[06/10/26 - 07:31 AM]
Peacock to Exclusively Stream Colleen Hoover's "Reminders of Him" Beginning July 10
The unforgettable story of love, loss and the courage to start over stars Maika Monroe, Tyriq Withers, Rudy Pankow, Lainey Wilson and more.
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