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[03/30/09 - 06:08 PM]
Development Update: Monday, March 30
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!
ACE IN THE HOLE (CBS) - Newcomers Skylar Astin and Darien Provost have joined the cast of the Adam Carolla-led comedy pilot, which stars Carolla as a husband and father who works as a driving instructor. Provost will play his nine-year son while Astin is set as his teenage stepson. Carolla and Kevin Hench co-created the half-hour, which is set up at CBS Paramount Network Television.
DIAMONDS (ABC, New!) - The Alphabet has picked up the broadcast rights to a new four-hour mini-series from Alchemy Television. The ensemble drama, featuring Judy Davis, James Purefoy, Derek Jacobi, Louise Rose and Joanne Kelly, tells five storylines linked to the "personal and political effects of the blood diamond trade on a global scale." Sienna Films is behind the $15 million production, which was originally filmed in South Africa and Canada for the CBC and the U.K. It's understood it will turn up here in late May following the sweeps period. As for specifics, Davis stars as "a U.S. senator who travels to Africa to find out why her daughter was killed at a diamond mine in Sierra Leone." Andy Wilson helmed the project from a script by David Vainola wrote.
HAPPINESS ISN'T EVERYTHING (CBS) - Mary Steenburgen ("Joan of Arcadia") is returning to the small screen, this time on the comedy front. She's been cast as Audrey Veill, the mother of Jason Biggs's character in the comedy pilot, about adult siblings (Biggs, Ben Schwartz) and their parents (Dreyfuss, Steenburgen) who are overly involved in one another's lives. James Vallely and Mitch Hurwitz are behind the project, which comes from the Sony Pictures Television-based Tantamount banner.
THE SHARK TANK (ABC) - The network has ordered seven episodes of the series, in which aspiring entrepreneurs pitch their business ventures to five multimillionaire tycoons each week. Mark Burnett is behind the project, which is based on a Japanese format. BBC America currently airs its U.K. incarnation, "The Dragon's Den." Production was completed on a pilot last fall, which featured such beefed up elements as "a huge auditorium and placing the investors behind an intimidating desk." Burnett however admits said changes took away from "the interpersonal tension between ambitious entrepreneurs struggling to convince five strangers to part with their money" and will now be dialed down. On board as "the sharks" then are Robert Herjavec (focus: internet), Kevin Harrington (infomercials), Barbara Corcoran (real estate), Kevin O'Leary (venture capitalist) and Daymond John (clothing). No air date has been set.
STATE OF ROMANCE (NBC) - "Mad TV" alum Bobby Lee has joined the cast of the comedy pilot, which is described as a modern day "Pride and Prejudice" set in Chicago. He'll play Andrew, an unspecified character. Barbara Wallace and Tom Wolfe are behind the half-hour, which is based at Universal Media Studios.
UNTITLED JUSTIN ADLER PROJECT (NBC) - Leslie Bibb ("Kings") and John Michael Higgins ("Kath & Kim") have both joined the cast of the comedy pilot, about adult siblings and their controlling mother. Bibb is set as Vanessa, the eldest child, a perfect domestic goddess. Higgins, whose casting is in second position to "Kath & Kim," then will play Charles, her husband, a wealthy professional polo player. Justin Adler penned the half-hour, which comes from the Sony Pictures Television-based Tantamount.
UNTITLED ANITA RENFROE PROJECT (ABC) - "The Drew Carey Show" alum Ryan Stiles is set to star opposite Anita Renfroe in the comedy pilot, about a couple raising kids. He'll play her husband Paul, the pastor of their town. Amy Welsh and Rob Hanning are behind the project, which likewise comes from the Sony Pictures Television-based Tantamount.
WAITING TO DIE (CBS) - T.J. Miller ("Carpoolers") and comedian Nick Thune have been tapped for the lead roles on the comedy pilot, about two simple guys who are happy with their lives - no matter how bad things might look from the outside. They'll play Lonnie Ponce and Jeff Helmut, respectively. Will Sasso and Chad Kultgen co-created the half-hour, which again comes from the ever-busy Sony Pictures Television-based Tantamount.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
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[03/19/26 - 10:01 AM]
Netflix Announces Limited Series "Enigma Variations" Starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson
The series, based on André Aciman's novel, tells the story of a man remade by the lovers who ignite and undo him over the course of 10 transformative years.
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[03/19/26 - 09:14 AM]
New Season of "Storied Spaces" Premieres March 28 on Magnolia Network
Escape to beautifully designed and curated spaces, seen through the eyes of the families that breathed life into them.
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[03/19/26 - 09:04 AM]
Video: "O11CE: New Generation" - Trailer - Disney+
Same team, new dream. The Hawks take the field in "O11Ce: New Generation," now streaming on Disney+.
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[03/19/26 - 09:01 AM]
Season Two of "Hazardous History with Henry Winkler" Set to Premiere Sunday, April 19 at 9/8c on The History Channel
Each one-hour episode of this nostalgia-drenched series tells the stories of the things we did for fun, for money, or out of plain boredom that you can't do anymore.
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[03/19/26 - 09:01 AM]
HBO to Debut Comedy Special "Josh Johnson: Symphony" This Spring
Said Josh Johnson: "I'm excited to have my breakout piece be with a company that nurtures vision like HBO does. I'm grateful to them, and you, for watching."
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[03/19/26 - 09:01 AM]
Cody Johnson, Lainey Wilson, and Riley Green to Perform at the 61st Academy of Country Music Awards
The 61st ACM Awards will stream live exclusively for a global audience across 240+ countries and territories on Prime Video on Sunday, May 17, 2026, at 8 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. CT / 5 p.m. PT from the world-renowned MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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[03/19/26 - 08:34 AM]
Must-See April U.S. Debuts from Viaplay - German Conspiracy Thriller, Award-winning Film
Highlights include "Dangerous Truth," inspired by real events surrounding the faulty intelligence that helped justify the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
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[03/19/26 - 08:12 AM]
Apple Original Films' "What Happens at Night" from Martin Scorsese, Starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence, Begins Principal Photography
Hailing from Apple Studios, and made in partnership with STUDIOCANAL, the dream-like story follows a married American couple who travel to a small, snowy European town to adopt a baby.
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[03/19/26 - 08:11 AM]
Netflix Canada Announces New Series "This Summer Will Be Different"
Based on the beloved novel by Carley Fortune, the series is a simmering, sun-soaked romance set across multiple summers on Prince Edward Island about Lucy, a young woman navigating her 20s and her first real love with her best friend's brother, the one person she was never supposed to fall for.
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[03/19/26 - 08:01 AM]
Barry Bonds Joins Netflix's Star-Studded Lineup of MLB Analysts and Commentators
Bonds joins three-time NL MVP Albert Pujols and World Series Champion Anthony Rizzo at the pregame and postgame desk, hosted by Elle Duncan.
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[03/19/26 - 08:01 AM]
"Zootopia 2" Roars to #1 on Disney+ with 32M Views Globally in Its Premiere Week
Its arrival on service builds on the enduring popularity of the franchise: together, "Zootopia," "Zootopia+," and "Zootopia 2" have been streamed over 885 million hours globally to date.
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[03/19/26 - 08:01 AM]
Video: Prime Video Releases Teaser and Announces Premiere Date for "Off Campus"
Based on the international bestselling book series from Elle Kennedy, and created for television by Louisa Levy, all episodes of the series will be available on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide on May 13, 2026.
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[03/19/26 - 08:00 AM]
HBO Renews Original Late-Night Series "Neighbors" for a Second Season
The series is averaging over 2.9 million global cross-platform viewers per episode since its debut.
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[03/19/26 - 07:31 AM]
Video: "The Truth and Tragedy of Moriah Wilson" - Official Trailer - Netflix
An intimate, arresting portrait of cyclist Moriah Wilson - raised by a fierce, loving family - whose singular drive becomes her superpower, carrying her to athletic brilliance and, devastatingly, toward a life cut short by murder.
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[03/19/26 - 07:15 AM]
AMC+ and Shudder to Debut "The Terror: Devil in Silver," A New Installment of the Acclaimed Horror Anthology Series "The Terror," Thursday, May 7
The six-episode limited series is executive produced by Ridley Scott, writers and showrunners Chris Cantwell and Victor LaValle, author of the celebrated novel on which the season is based, and Emmy nominee Karyn Kusama, who directs the first two episodes.
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