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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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[09/26/16 - 12:09 PM]
Viceland Sets Premiere for Its First-Ever Daily, Late Night Show "Desus & Mero"
The show will air Mondays-Thursdays at 11:00/10:00c beginning Monday, October 17.
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[09/26/16 - 11:33 AM]
Prepare to Be Scared with Syfy's Annual "31 Days of Halloween" Celebration
Among the highlights: "Channel Zero: Candle Cove," which will now premieres Tuesday, October 11 at 9:00/8:00c.
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[09/26/16 - 11:14 AM]
Raise a Glass to An All-New Season of Bravo Media's "Vanderpump Rules" Premiering Monday, November 7 at 9PM ET/PT
The new season of "Vanderpump Rules" once again partners Lisa with Jax Taylor, Stassi Schroeder, Scheana Shay, Tom Sandoval, Ariana Madix, James Kennedy, Katie Maloney, Tom Schwartz, Kristen Doute, and Lala Kent.
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[09/26/16 - 11:06 AM]
TNT Orders "Hinges" Pilot from Executive Producer/Writer Janine Sherman Barrois and Executive Producer John Wells
A series that provocatively and humorously dissects middle-class suburbia, "Hinges" follows two sets of neighbors whose lives are dramatically changed in the wake of a scandal that rocks the community.
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[09/26/16 - 11:01 AM]
History's New Unscripted Series "Lone Star Restoration" Premieres Monday, October 3 at 10 pm ET/PT
The network has teamed up with Texas based restoration expert, Brent Hull, and his company Hull Historical in a new eight episode series.
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[09/26/16 - 10:49 AM]
Nerdist's Kyle Hill Named Host of Science Channel's "MythBusters: The Search"
The all-new series features the next generation of fearless contenders with killer build skills, science smarts and nerves of steel, ready to be judged each week as they bust myths and vie for the win in becoming the next myth-busting superstars.
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[09/26/16 - 10:04 AM]
Science Channel Celebrates 20th Anniversary with Science Super Heroes
Recognizing the science superstars all around us, the new Science Super Heroes initiative recognizes individuals who are furthering science in local communities across the country.
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[09/26/16 - 09:51 AM]
FX Productions Lands Exclusive Overall TV Production Deal With Emmy(R) Award Winning Writer and Producer D.V. DeVincentis
DeVincentis won two Emmy awards on "The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story" (producer and writer).
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[09/26/16 - 09:49 AM]
Travel Channel's Jack Maxwell Discovers America's Unique Watering Holes in "Booze Traveler: Best Bars"
The two specials follow Jack Maxwell as he hunts down prohibition-style bars hidden from view, as well as bars with spectacular and unforgettable views.
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[09/26/16 - 09:42 AM]
Bravo Media Finishes 3Q with the Biggest On-Air and Online Growth Among the Top 10 Ad Supported Cable Entertainment Networks
Bravo spins the numbers for the quarter to date.
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[09/26/16 - 09:06 AM]
Video: "Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars" Releases Season 6 Supertease Featuring Brand New Cast!
On this groundbreaking season, shocking secrets spin Boot Camp out of control as five famous couples fight to save their broken relationships.
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[09/26/16 - 08:49 AM]
A&E Network's Emmy-Winning Docuseries "Born This Way" Renewed for a Third Season
In addition to the Emmy win, earlier this year the show was chosen as one of six honorees for the 2016 Television Academy Honors, an award that recognizes television programming that inspires, informs and motivates.
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[09/26/16 - 08:37 AM]
Sunday's Broadcast Ratings: "Sunday Night Football" Tops Charts on Night of Declines
FOX's "The Simpsons" is the only series to post year-to-year gains on the broadcast networks.
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[09/26/16 - 08:04 AM]
Soul Train Weekend 2016 to Take Over Mandalay Bay November 3-6
The four-day weekend of events will include intimate performances, electrifying concerts, an outdoor day party and exclusive late night parties - all leading up to the 2016 Soul Train Awards.
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[09/26/16 - 08:02 AM]
MTV Brings Back "TRL" for One Day Only as "Total Registration Live" to Encourage Voter Registration Tuesday, September 27 at 6:00PM ET/PT
The one-hour live show will simulcast on MTV.com, the MTV App, MTV's Facebook and YouTube pages, and ElectThis.com.
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