 |
 |
[02/02/09 - 06:26 PM]
Development Update: Monday, February 2
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!
ARRANGED MARRIAGE (CBS, New!) - Jane Lipsitz and Dan Cutforth ("Project Runway") have booked a series commitment from the Eye for a potentially controversial reality series in which four singles - all anxious to get married - enter into a marriage arranged by their friends and family. The series would then track their lives after said unions. The project marks the second series green light by the network's new reality chief Jennifer Bresnan (the first being "There Goes the Neighborhood"). Lipsitz and Cutforth are executive producing via their Magical Elves banner.
DATING IN THE DARK (ABC, New!) - The Alphabet has ordered a new reality series from Endemol USA in which participants go through all the usual mating rituals without ever actually setting eyes on each other. Production is set to begin on six episodes of the project, which is being co-produced by Talpa Content USA. It's understood "Dark" is based on the Netherlands format "Blind Love," in which scientifically matched singles go about the usual dating rituals in complete darkness. At the end of each self-contained episode, the participants are revealed to each other and must decide whether to move forward with a relationship. ABC reportedly ordered a pilot for "Dating" last year and are now moving forward with the series. Endemol's David Goldberg and Talpa Content's Jon de Mol are the executive producers.
FIRST & LAST (TNT, New!) - Phil Gurin and Marc Jansen are developing a new reality series at the cable channel which documents the first and last time people experience a particular event. For example, one installment may follow the first time a couple brings home their baby from the hospital then switch to a fireman's final day on the job upon retiring after 50 years. Emmy-winning filmmaker June Beallor ("Survivors of the Holocaust") is on board to serve as a co-executive producer on the project, which has a pilot commitment and is based on a European format, with Gurin and Jansen executive producing.
THE FISH TANK (CBS, New!) - Cathy Yuspa and Josh Goldsmith ("'Til Death") have scored a cast-contingent pilot order from the Eye for a new comedy about a teenager who finds himself living the dream when his parents give him the house to himself five days a week. Sony Pictures Television is behind the half-hour, which Yuspa and Goldsmith wrote and will executive produce.
HOUSE RULES (CBS, New!) - Producer Mark Gordon and writer Michael Seitzman have landed their second pilot commitment this season, this time for a new drama which follows a freshman class of congressmen as they begin their careers in Washington, D.C. Last week, the pair earned a green light from ABC for "Empire State" however "House Rules" is in first position for Seitzman, who penned the pilot. Gordon and Seitzman then are executive producing alongside Deborah Spera for ABC Studios.
HUMAN TARGET (FOX) - Simon West ("Keen Eddie") has been tapped to direct the drama pilot, about a mysterious security freelancer who assumes the identities of those in life-threatening danger. He'll work from a script by Jon Steinberg based on the DC Comics title of the same name. Steinberg and McG are executive producing for the latter's Warner Bros. Television-based Wonderland Sound and Vision.
KYLE XY (ABC Family) - The cable channel has confirmed the series will wrap after three seasons on Monday, March 16. "Kyle" opened its season to just 1.5 million viewers on January 12 (with a 0.4 rating among adults 18-49), despite a significant lead in from "The Secret Life of the American Teenager" (3.1 million viewers, 1.1 rating among adults 18-49). The news was announced as ABC Family unveiled its plans for the rest of 2009, including new seasons of "Greek" and "Lincoln Heights" as well as new series "Ruby and the Rockits," "Perfect 10" and "10 Things I Hate About You."
LOST IN THE '80S (NBC) - The Peacock has pulled the plug on the drama pilot despite the recent signings of P.J. Hogan to direct and Billy Campbell to star. "Lost," about a Midwestern family in the 1980s, was ordered to pilot back in September, prior to Angela Bromstad taking over the reigns of NBC Entertainment. Bob Brush was behind the hour, which was set up at the Sony Pictures Television-based Tantamout with Brush and Tantamount's Eric Tannenbaum, Kim Tannenbaum and Mitch Hurwitz executive producing.
A MARRIAGE (CBS, New!) - Marshall Herskovitz and Ed Zwick ("quarterlife") are once again returning to the small screen, landing a pilot order for a new drama described as a dissection of a marriage that works. The pair penned the pilot and will executive produce via their Bedford Falls banner with Zwick directing. No studio is currently attached.
NO HEROICS (ABC) - The Alphabet has ordered a pilot for the project, a domestic take on Drew Pearce's ITV single-camera comedy about four superhero friends balancing their B-list powers with their personal lives. Pearce and Jeff Greenstein ("Desperate Housewives") co-wrote the pilot and are executive producing alongside Tiger Aspect's Andrew Zein for ABC Studios.
PARKS & RECREATION (A.K.A. UNTITLED DANIELS/SCHUR PROJECT) (NBC) - The Amy Poehler-led comedy has been officially dubbed "Parks and Recreation," according to a promo for the series that ran during the network's Super Bowl coverage. It's understood the name "Public Service" was also considered but ultimately scuttled. "Can't make fun of public service!," NBC topper Ben Silverman told The New York Times. "Worried because we don't want to seem mean about it."
PSYCH (USA) - Creator/executive producer Steve Franks has inked a two-year overall deal with Universal Cable Productions. The pact covers his duties on the popular cable series through a potential fifth season as well as any development during the period. Meanwhile, fellow UCP staple Jace Alexander has signed a first-look deal with the studio. Alexander helmed the pilots to USA's "Burn Notice" and "Royal Pains" as well as Sci Fi's "Warehouse 13," all of which went to series. The deal gives UCP first crack at any of Alexander's projects.
REINCARNATIONIST (FOX) - Deran Sarafian ("K-Ville") has signed on to direct the drama pilot, about investigators who use the concept of reincarnation to solve mysteries in their clients' previous lives in order to resolve problems in the present. David Hudgins is behind the Warner Bros. Television-based hour and is executive producing alongside Lou Pitt and MJ Rose.
TRAUMA (NBC) - Jeffrey Reiner ("Friday Night Lights") has been tapped to helm the drama pilot, a high-octane emergency medical procedural set in the field. Reiner's involvement lifts the contingency off the pilot's production. Dario Scardapane penned the pilot script and is executive producing alongside Film 44's Peter Berg and Sarah Aubrey for Universal Media Studios.
UNDERCOVER BOSS (CBS, New!) - The Eye has commissioned a pilot for a new reality series in which an executive at a major corporation goes undercover at his or her own company in an entry level job. Stephen Lambert is behind the project, which is set up at his recently launched All3Media-based Studio Lambert. Britain and Australia have previously committed to the series, which like FOX's "Secret Millionaire," is designed to open the eyes of the participant. Lambert and Eli Holzman, the head of the company's U.S. arm, are executive producing.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
|
|
|
 [february 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.
|
|
|
|
