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[12/26/08 - 06:43 PM]
Development Update: Week of December 22-26
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!
BITCHES (FOX, New!) - Feature writer Michael Dougherty ("Superman Returns") has scored a hefty script commitment from the network for a new drama about a quartet of female friends in New York who are werewolves. The project, which has a penalty attached should it not move forward to pilot, is set up at Warner Bros. Television. Writer/producers Gretchen Berg and Aaron Harberts ("Pushing Daisies") have been tapped to supervise Dougherty and executive produce. No other specifics were given.
GILMORE GIRLS (The CW) - One day after filing a lawsuit against CBS over "Two and a Half Men" (see below), Warner Bros. Television itself has been sued by producer Gavin Polone over "Gilmore Girls." The breach-of-contract lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, claims the vertically integrated Time Warner companies Warner Bros. Television and The WB "have colluded to defraud the originator of hit 'Gilmore Girls' television series with a scheme that rivals the greed and bravado of any story line defendants could script." Hofflund/Polone, Polone's company with Judy Hofflund, alleges the "modified adjusted gross," the money the show earns after costs are deducted, for "Gilmore's" first six seasons was modified by the studio - through "collusion among defendants to set below-market license fees" and a series of improper charges - which cut into Hofflund/Polone's profits as a result. A third-party audit commissioned by Hofflund/Polone in October 2006 alleges that number was understated by $45.5 million and the company has asked for "tens of millions of dollars" in damages as a result. Warner Bros. has yet to comment on the suit.
LOST & FOUND (NBC) - Australian actor Damon Herriman ("All Saints") has joined the cast of the drama pilot, which centers on Tessa Cooper (Katee Sackhoff), an offbeat LAPD detective who, after butting heads with higher-ups, is sent as punishment to the basement to work on John and Jane Doe cases. He'll play Anthony Yeckel, an oddball civilian consultant to the police's lost-and-found department who has an obsessive love of old detective TV shows. Brian Cox and Josh Cooke also star in the Universal Media Studios/Wolf Films-based hour, which Michael Engler is directing from a script by creator Chris Levinson.
TWO AND A HALF MEN (CBS) - Warner Bros. Television filed a $49 million breach of contract lawsuit against CBS on Tuesday. Said suit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, claims the network owes Warner Bros. additional fees toward the production deficit carried by the studio. The "deficit recoupment" was understood to be tied to "Men" hitting certain ratings milestones as specified by the show's original four-year license agreement signed in 2003. The suit indicates the studio incurred a $61.1 million deficit over the course of the first four years of the show (for instance CBS paid $750,000 per episode during "Men's" first season while Warner Bros. actual cost to produce the show came in at $1.22 million), a cost which CBS would cover should "Men" finish as a top 10 show. Additionally, should "Men" finish in the top five in its fourth season, CBS would pay an additional $650,000 more per episode in the fifth and sixth seasons (with a downward scale from there). "CBS has reaped the benefits of the tremendous success of 'Two and a Half Men" but wants to deny Warner Bros. the right to its agreed-upon share," Warner Bros. said in a statement. CBS countered with simply, "Wow, I wonder what they got the other networks for Christmas."
UGLY BETTY (ABC) - "Dexter" co-star Lauren Velez has booked a multi-episode arc on the Thursday dramedy. She'll play Elena, a nurse that enters the lives of the Suarez family, whom reports speculate will be linked to a major plot development. It's not clear when her first episode will air.
UNTITLED MARIA BELLO PROJECT (HBO, New!) - Maria Bello ("The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor") is set to topline a potential new drama at the pay channel about a woman who's forced into a life of crime to support her three teenage sons after her husband is killed. Gary Lennon ("The Shield") is penning the hour, which sees the woman using her sons as henchmen, leading them all down a destructive road. Bello herself will executive produce alongside Lennon, Gavin Polone and John Carrabino.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
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[11/15/25 - 03:31 PM]
I Do Think So, Honey! The "Las Culturistas Culture Awards" Returns to Bravo in 2026
This marks the second consecutive year the network will televise the event and fifth year overall of the award show.
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[11/15/25 - 12:12 PM]
Video: "The Traitors" Makes BravoCon Debut with Traitor de Force Panel and Season 4 Tease
Season four returns January 8 and is hosted by the impossibly stylish and devastatingly witty Emmy Award-winning Alan Cumming.
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[11/14/25 - 09:31 PM]
Video: "Dining With The Kapoors" - Trailer - Netflix
This special offers a rare glimpse into the Kapoors, Hindi cinema's first family, over an afternoon of conversation, nostalgia and homemade delicacies.
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[11/14/25 - 02:31 PM]
Video: "Kevin Hart: Acting My Age" - Official Trailer - Netflix
Older, wiser - and still hilarious. Kevin Hart opens up about his midlife mishaps, from intimacy pills to the perils of unexpected injuries.
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[11/14/25 - 01:02 PM]
Bravo Is Turning on the Mic as It Greenlights "Still Flipping Out (wt)"
In his new Bravo series, Jeff Lewis is as outspoken as ever, but this time the mic is always on.
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[11/14/25 - 12:11 PM]
Video: Bravo's "The Real Housewives of Potomac" Season 10 Midseason Trailer Brings Shocking Revelations and the Return of the Grande Dame
The tease reveals Andy Cohen's visit with Karen Huger in Potomac at her home for a deeply personal and reflective conversation that will air in the season finale.
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[11/14/25 - 12:10 PM]
Bravo Picks Up New Seasons of the "Below Deck" Franchise
Bravo has picked up "Below Deck" for a 13th season and "Below Deck Mediterranean" for an 11th season.
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[11/14/25 - 12:01 PM]
Video: The Actor Awards - Official Announcement - Netflix
The only awards show exclusively for actors enters a new era! The Screen Actors Guild Awards (SAG Awards) has a new name.
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[11/14/25 - 10:32 AM]
Bravo's New Series "The Valley: Persian Style" Premieres Jan. 8 at 9 P.M. ET/PT
A spinoff of "The Valley," this series follows a tight-knit group of Persian friends who have traded Beverly Hills for suburban life in the Valley.
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[11/14/25 - 10:30 AM]
"High Potential" Season 2 Premiere Scores Over 21 Million Total Viewers Across 35 Days
Season to date, the powerhouse drama continues to dominate, ranking as the No. 1 original broadcast series for the second season in a row among Adults 18-49 (2.42 rating), based on Nielsen cross-platform rankings.
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[11/14/25 - 10:05 AM]
AMC Networks' Sports Docuseries, "Rise of the 49ers," to Debut as a Limited Series Event on Sunday, February 1 and Monday, February 2 on AMC and AMC+
The limited series event explores the dramatic and iconic run of the San Francisco 49ers during the '80s and early '90s.
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[11/14/25 - 10:00 AM]
NBC's Annual "Christmas in Rockefeller Center" Celebrates the Holiday Season with Star-Studded Performances on Dec. 3
Audiences can expect a star-studded evening of festive performances from many musical guests, including Marc Anthony, Halle Bailey, Michael Bublé, Kristin Chenoweth, Laufey, New Edition, Brad Paisley, Carly Pearce, the Radio City Rockettes and Gwen Stefani.
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[11/14/25 - 09:35 AM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Rises Week to Week with 6.67 Million Total Viewers as Show Heads to Semi-Finals
This marks the show's best performance for its last episode before the semi-finals among Total Viewers in six years and among Adults 18-49 in eight years.
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[11/14/25 - 09:31 AM]
Video: "Squid Game: The Challenge" Season 2 - Finale Trailer - Netflix
Featuring new, unpredictable challenges and high-stakes games from the hit series, this reality competition brings the "Squid Game" phenomenon to life.
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[11/14/25 - 09:31 AM]
"Wicked: One Wonderful Night" Shines for NBC
Across all platforms, the special drew 3.6 million viewers, which was up 64% from last year's "Defying Gravity: The Curtain Rises on Wicked" special.
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