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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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[12/06/19 - 04:01 PM]
Video: Amazon Original "The Boys" Reveals First Look of Season 2
Fans at CCXP in Brazil were given a first look of the highly anticipated second season.
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[12/06/19 - 02:30 PM]
Video: Super Trailer - VH1's "Love & Hip Hop: New York" - Premiering Monday, December 16 at 8PM
VH1 celebrates the city that ignited a cultural phenomenon with its 10th season.
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[12/06/19 - 01:33 PM]
National Geographic and Fox 21 Television Studios Release First Look Photo of Cynthia Erivo as the Queen of Soul in "Genius: Aretha"
The eight-part limited series will premiere on National Geographic in May 2020 in 172 countries and in 43 languages.
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[12/06/19 - 01:02 PM]
HBO Gives Series Order to "The Untitled Lakers Project," with Adam McKay's Hyperobject Industries Producing
The fast-break drama series chronicles the professional and personal lives of the 1980s Los Angeles Lakers, one of sports' most revered and dominant dynasties - a team that defined its era, both on and off the court.
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[12/06/19 - 11:30 AM]
Comedy Central and Refinery29 Announce Digital Content Deal Showcasing Female Comedians on the Rise
"CC x R29: Taking the Stage" is a short-form stand-up series featuring a curation of showcase clips from the lineup of comedians, and "CC x R29: Speak Up" is a short-form storytelling series in which the comedians will share stories about speaking up and being heard.
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[12/06/19 - 10:02 AM]
NBC Begins the Year in Full Bloom with Live Telecast of "131st Rose Parade"
Al Roker and Hoda Kotb will co-host NBC's high-definition coverage.
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[12/06/19 - 09:30 AM]
Quibi Greenlights "Reno 911!" Season Seven from Comedy Central Productions
The ensemble comedy was created by and stars Robert Ben Garant, Kerri Kenney-Silver and Thomas Lennon, all of whom are attached to write and star in the new season.
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[12/06/19 - 09:05 AM]
Maureen McCormick of "A Very Brady Renovation" and Alison Victoria of "Windy City Rehab" to Co-Host HGTV's "White House Christmas 2019" on Sunday, Dec. 15
This year's theme, The Spirit of America, is a tribute to the traditions, customs and history that shape our nation and celebrates the courageous individuals who have kept the American spirit alive.
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[12/06/19 - 09:02 AM]
Leonardo DiCaprio to Present Robert De Niro with 2019 SAG Life Achievement Award
DiCaprio co-starred with De Niro in This Boy's Life as Toby, the only son of a single mother in 1950's Washington state.
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[12/06/19 - 09:01 AM]
Video: Showtime(R) Debuts Trailer and Official Poster for the Final Season of "Homeland"
As previously announced, the show's swan song kicks off Sunday, February 9 at 9:00/8:00c.
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[12/06/19 - 08:15 AM]
HBO Presents an "Axios" Interview Special with Former Vice President Joe Biden, Airing This Sunday, December 8
Mike Allen catches up with the top-tier candidate for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in Storm Lake, Iowa, for a candid and wide-ranging conversation.
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[12/06/19 - 08:12 AM]
Thursday's Broadcast Ratings: FOX Wins Big with "Thursday Night Football"
The Cowboys/Bears showdown delivers for the network in all categories.
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[12/06/19 - 06:02 AM]
Performers Announced for West Coast Celebration of "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2020"
Host Ciara, along with Paula Abdul, Kelsea Ballerini, Blanco Brown, Dan + Shay, Green Day, Dua Lipa, Ava Max, Megan Thee Stallion, Anthony Ramos, Salt-N-Pepa and SHAED, will all perform on the West Coast celebration.
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[12/05/19 - 11:32 AM]
"Girl Scout Cookie Championship" Celebrates Nation's Girl Scout Cookie Obsession by Transforming Iconic Treats Into Spectacular Dessert Creations
Alyson Hannigan hosts the Food Network series, premiering Monday, February 3 at 8:00/7:00c.
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[12/05/19 - 10:22 AM]
Video: "Ronny Chieng: Asian Comedian Destroys America!" Trailer Debut
The stand-up special drops Tuesday, December 17 on Netflix.
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