 |
 |
[01/16/09 - 06:09 PM]
Development Update: Friday, January 16
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!
ABC AT THE TCA - Alphabet chief Steve McPherson has confirmed the network won't be picking up "King of the Hill" after it completes its run on FOX. ABC flirted with the idea back in November, opening talks with producer 20th Century Fox Television to order addition scripts of the series. Meanwhile, Mike Judge's new animated comedy "The Goode Family" may not roll out until May while "In the Motherhood" is expected to bow in March, potentially as a lead out to "Dancing With the Stars." On the development side, McPherson said he hopes to shoot 10 comedy and drama pilots for next season with pick-ups set to begin as early as next week. And finally, fans looking for the remaining produced installments of axed dramas "Eli Stone," "Dirty Sexy Money" and "Pushing Daisies" will have to wait a bit longer - they could be burned off over the summer or streamed online at some point in the future.
LEGALLY MAD (NBC) - Hugh Bonneville ("Five Days") has booked the male lead in the drama pilot, about Brady Hamm (Charity Wakefield), a twentysomething woman who takes a job at her father's law firm. He'll play her father, Gordon Hamm, whom the casting notice details as follows: "Late 40s, any ethnicity. The firm's senior partner, part F. Lee Bailey, part Harold Hill of "The Music Man." Fun-loving, fast-talking, a little slick...it was either a career in law or used cars. He chose the law." Jon Seda and Kristin Chenoweth also star in the hour, which comes from Warner Bros. Television and creator David E. Kelley.
LEVERAGE (TNT) - The cable channel has quietly asked for six additional scripts of the series, which opened to 5.6 million viewers last month. The drama wraps its inaugural 13-episode run in February.
MAD MEN (AMC) - After months of negotiations, Matthew Weiner has finally closed a two-year, seven-figure overall deal with producer Lionsgate Television. The pact puts the writer/producer back at the helm of the Emmy-winning drama. He'll also develop new series projects for the studio, including a potential feature. It's understood AMC is helping fund Weiner's deal as is typical on the cable side. Production on the new season then is set to begin in time for a summer premiere.
PHIL ROSENTHAL PROJECTS (HBO, New!) - Emmy-winner Phil Rosenthal ("Everybody Loves Raymond") has lined up three projects at the pay channel - a comedy, a drama and a original movie. First up is "The Jeannie Tate Show," a comedy based on TheWB.com digital series created by Liz Cackowski and Maggie Carey about a neurotic soccer mom (Cackowski) who hosts a talk show from her minivan. Cackowski and Carey are penning the pilot and co-executive producing under Rosenthal's supervision with TheWB.com's Rich Rosenthal, Phil's brother, producing. Warner Bros. Television originally developed the project and remains a passive partner. Next is "Random Family," a drama based on the nonfiction book of the same name by Adrian Nicole LeBlanc and revolves around a multigenerational family in the South Bronx. LeBlanc and Chris Terrio likewise are writing the script and co-executive producing with Rosenthal and Neal Gabler serving as executive producers. And finally there's an original movie based on portions of Raymond Arsenault's book "Freedom Riders: 1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice." Wayne Kramer is in talks to write and direct the film, which "chronicles civil rights activists' harrowing ride on buses through the South that escalated to a point where segregationists threw Molotov cocktails at them." Rosenthal and Gabler are executive producing.
Separately, Rosenthal is now editing the feature-length documentary "Exporting Raymond," about his outrageous experiences while remaking his own show in Russia. The series, "Vse Lubyat Kostya" (Everybody Loves Kostya), was ordered to pilot by Russian broadcaster CTC using Rosenthal's original "Raymond" script and produced by local production company Lean-M. Sony Pictures Television International, Worldwide Pants and HBO Independent Productions are behind the export, with Rosenthal's film chronicling the casting, the prep and the shooting of the pilot in December and ending with CTC's decision on whether or not to move forward with the show. No distributor has been set for the film, although Sony is widely expecting to.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
|
|
|
 [january 2009]  |
S |
M |
T |
W |
T |
F |
S |
| | | | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
[06/30/26 - 01:01 PM]
UPtv to Debut the U.S Cable Television Premiere of "Hudson & Rex" Season Eight Aug. 6
The action-packed, family-friendly procedural continues to follow the adventures of Rex, an extraordinary K9 German Shepherd, and the dedicated team of the St. John's Police Department's Major Crimes Unit.
|
[06/30/26 - 12:21 PM]
Starz Wins Development on "Bone Parish" After Bidding War, An Adaptation of the Chilling, Supernatural Crime Graphic Novel, Executive Produced by Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson
In the dark underworld of New Orleans, the Winters family builds an empire around a powerful new drug - crafted from the ashes of the dead - that grants users vivid, haunting visions of the past.
|
[06/30/26 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10: Week of June 22 - The Search Continues as "I Will Find You" Holds at No. 1 for a Second Week
The second season of "Avatar: The Last Airbender" launched in the No. 2 spot on the English TV list with 8.7 million views, and the first season reentered the list in the No. 3 spot with 3 million views.
|
[06/30/26 - 11:05 AM]
Mark Harmon to Return as Gibbs in Season 3 of CBS Original Series "NCIS: Origins" in a Season-Long Mystery This Fall
Harmon will appear in all episodes this season as part of a present-day mystery tied to his '90s Camp Pendleton days in an action-packed story that unfolds all season long.
|
[06/30/26 - 09:48 AM]
TikTok LIVE and Food Network Launch Cooking Series Bringing Together Creators With Chefs, Beginning Wednesday, July 8
The inaugural LIVE, TikTok LIVE x Food Network Presents: Tomato Season, will feature Chef Antonia Lofaso and Creator @jose.elcook cooking with one of summer's most popular ingredients.
|
[06/30/26 - 09:01 AM]
Starz Acquires High-Octane Crime Drama "S.W.A.T. Exiles," Starring and Executive-Produced by Shemar Moore, Set to Premiere September 25
In the new series, Moore reprises his role as Sergeant Daniel "Hondo" Harrelson of the Los Angeles Police Department's Special Weapons and Tactics (S.W.A.T.) Division.
|
[06/30/26 - 09:01 AM]
"Wonka's The Golden Ticket" Opens Its Factory Gates on September 23
Netflix invites audiences into a thrilling new competition based on Roald Dahl's book "Charlie & the Chocolate Factory" and inspired by one of the most iconic worlds in cinematic history.
|
[06/30/26 - 09:00 AM]
Jerry O'Connell Joins "Big Brother: Unlocked" as Celebrity Panelist Alongside Returning Winners Taylor Hale and Derrick Levasseur
This season, "Big Brother" will make television history as the first primetime series ever to reach 1,000 original episodes (date of the 1,000th episode to be announced).
|
[06/30/26 - 08:01 AM]
Netflix Renews "Nemesis" for Season 2
"Nemesis" is the story of two men on either side of the law, the tale of what happens when an unstoppable force (an expert criminal) meets an immovable object (a brilliant police detective).
|
[06/30/26 - 08:01 AM]
Prime Video Reveals First-Look Images and Premiere Date for Debut Series "Neagley," Starring Maria Sten
Upon the "Reacher" season four finale, all eight episodes of "Neagley" will be released on Wednesday, September 16, 2026.
|
[06/30/26 - 07:31 AM]
Peacock Exclusively Streams Global Box Office Smash "The Super Mario Galaxy Movie" Beginning July 30
The film debuted at #1 at the global box office and became the first movie of 2026 to cross $1 billion.
|
[06/30/26 - 07:00 AM]
Nickelodeon Declares July 14 "SpongeBob Day"
Timed to coincide with SpongeBob SquarePants' birthday within the animated series, the inaugural "SpongeBob Day" will feature a cross-platform slate of activations designed to bring the world of Bikini Bottom to audiences of all ages everywhere.
|
[06/29/26 - 12:55 PM]
ESPN Films' "The Day Diego Returned to the Azteca" Is Now Streaming on Disney+ and Premieres on ESPN July 3
The film tells the extraordinary and little-known story of Diego Armando Maradona's only return to Estadio Azteca after leading Argentina to the 1986 FIFA World Cup title.
|
[06/29/26 - 11:31 AM]
Netflix's Upcoming Comedy Series "A Hundred Percent" Rounds Out Cast with Tiffany Boone, Lisa Gilroy and Diane Lane
They'll join the previously announced stars Nick Kroll, Sam Richardson, Jason Mantzoukas and Vanessa Bayer.
|
[06/29/26 - 11:30 AM]
ESPN to Provide Extensive Coverage of the 2026 NBA Summer League Beginning July 9
The 11-day event begins Thursday, July 9, and concludes with the Championship Game on Sunday, July 19, live on ESPN, with games throughout the event airing on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU.
|
|
|
|
