or


[07/13/09 - 06:29 PM]
Development Update: Monday, July 13
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!


AMERICAN IDOL (FOX) - Host Ryan Seacrest has inked a new pact with producer 19 Entertainment to keep the multihyphenate on the series through the 2012 season. The deal, reportedly valued at $45 million over three years (and triple his current paycheck), also calls for Seacrest to develop broadcast projects with the CKX-based company. Said agreement won't overlap with Seacrest's overall deal with Comcast Entertainment Group, which is for his cable-related services. As for "Idol's" judges, both Simon Cowell and Randy Jackson are still under contract for next season while negotiations are underway with Paula Abdul and Kara DioGuardi.


PARENTHOOD (NBC) - Co-star Maura Tierney has divulged the health issue which is postponing production on the freshman drama. "In an effort to guard my privacy, it seems that the wording of NBC's press release has unfortunately caused some confusion and undue alarm about my health. I have discovered a tumor in my breast which requires surgery," Tierney said in a statement. "I will not know either my exact diagnosis or course of treatment until that surgery is performed. My doctors have all assured me this is a very treatable condition. I'm very optimistic as to the outcome and want to thank everyone who has sent positive thoughts and support. I look forward to going back to work soon." The aforementioned delay is said to be for eight weeks, forcing the series to be held back for midseason.


REVELATION (Showtime, New!) - "Dirty Sexy Money" creator Craig Wright has booked a script order from the pay channel for a new drama about "an unconventional minister who moves to a Texas church with his two teens after his wife suddenly dies." Wright, himself a former minister, will pen and executive produce the hour alongside David Janollari with CBS Television Studios producing. No other specifics were given.


YOU DON'T KNOW JACK (A.K.A. BETWEEN THE DYING AND THE DEAD) (HBO) - Susan Sarandon and John Goodman are set to star opposite Al Pacino in the pay channel's biopic of Jack Kevorkian. Goodman will play Nicol, "a friend and co-worker of Kevorkian since 1961 and a steadfast supporter of the right to die," with Sarandon as Janet Good, "an activist with the Hemlock Society who becomes one of Jack's staunchest supporters, working side by side with him to make humane suicide available to the terminally ill and suffering." Barry Levinson is helming the project from a script by Adam Mazer based on Neal Nicol and Harry Wylie's book "Between the Dying and the Dead: Dr. Jack Kevorkian's Life and the Battle to Legalize Euthanasia." Levinson then is also executive producing alongside Steven L. Jones, Lydia Dean Pilcher and Glenn Rigberg.


Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [july 2009]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
   


· AMERICAN IDOL (ABC)
· DEVELOPMENT UPDATE (TFC)
· DIRTY SEXY MONEY (ABC)
· PARENTHOOD (NBC)
· REVELATION (SHOWTIME)
· YOU DON'T KNOW JACK (HBO)





[04/22/26 - 01:00 PM]
ESPN Opens NBA Playoffs with Most-Watched Playoff Game of Opening Weekend
Saturday's Houston Rockets vs. Los Angeles Lakers matchup on ABC averaged 5.2 million viewers, peaking at 6.4 million viewers during the 11 p.m. ET quarter hour.

[04/22/26 - 12:01 PM]
HBO Original Film "Miss You, Love You," Starring Allison Janney and Andrew Rannells, Debuts May 29
A blunt, grieving widow, Diane Patterson (Allison Janney) is forced to plan her husband's funeral with a total stranger: her estranged son's assistant, Jamie Simms (Andrew Rannells).

[04/22/26 - 11:17 AM]
USA Sports Announces 2026 WNBA on USA Network Schedule, Highlighted by Wednesday Night Doubleheaders, Marquee Matchups and 2026 WNBA Finals Games
The WNBA on USA Network schedule tips off on Mother's Day, Sunday, May 10, as 2025 WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson and the defending champion Las Vegas Aces visit Cameron Brink, Kelsey Plum and the Los Angeles Sparks at 6 p.m. ET from Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

[04/22/26 - 11:11 AM]
NBC Sports Announces Its Complete 2026 WNBA Regular-Season Schedule Across NBC, Peacock, and NBCSN
NBC Sports' 2026 WNBA slate of 22 regular season games begins with the reigning WNBA Champion Las Vegas Aces visiting the Atlanta Dream on Sunday, May 17 at 1:30 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock.

[04/22/26 - 11:07 AM]
NBC Sports' Manchester City-Arsenal Is Most-Watched Premier League Match in U.S. History
Coverage averaged 2.6 million viewers across NBC, Peacock, Telemundo and NBC Sports Digital platforms this past Sunday.

[04/22/26 - 11:06 AM]
ESPN, ABC Announce 2026 WNBA Regular Season Schedule
ESPN, which has televised the WNBA since the league's inaugural season in 1997, will tip off its 30th consecutive season on Saturday, May 9, with expanded coverage across ESPN, ABC, Disney+ and ESPN Deportes.

[04/22/26 - 11:03 AM]
Video: "We'll Be Fine" - Trailer - Hulu
Some love stories don't just consume you... they undo you.

[04/22/26 - 10:03 AM]
"In the Eye of the Storm: Chasers" - New Docu-Series Premieres Sunday, May 17 on Discovery Channel
The six-part series captures raw, harrowing encounters as storm chasers, outfitted with their own camera rigs and advanced weather tech, race into the American Midwest during one of the most active tornado seasons in decades.

[04/22/26 - 09:32 AM]
Record Setter! ESPN Opens 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs with Three Most-Watched First Round Games on Cable Ever, Excluding Game 7's
The Philadelphia Flyers-Pittsburgh Penguins matchup (Saturday, 8 p.m. ET) drew 2.1 million viewers, becoming the most-viewed First Round Playoff game ever on cable (excluding game 7's).

[04/22/26 - 09:29 AM]
Stage Set in the Steel City: ESPN's "College GameDay Built by The Home Depot" to Air Live from the NFL Draft in Pittsburgh
The Draft marks ESPN's first major event of the 2026 football season, culminating with ESPN's first-ever Super Bowl on February 14, 2027.

[04/22/26 - 09:11 AM]
Video: Jaw-Dropping Official Trailer for Highly Anticipated Drama "The Vampire Lestat" Released
The wild and captivating next chapter in Anne Rice's Immortal Universe follows Lestat as the world's first immortal rock star on an electric multi-city tour, while he's haunted by "muses" from his rebellious past.

[04/22/26 - 09:01 AM]
Start Your Engines... "RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars" Season 11 Unveils Its Iconic Cast Ahead of Friday, May 8 Premiere on Paramount+
With the return of the high-stakes "Tournament of All Stars" format, the competition reaches new heights across 12-episodes packed with jaw-dropping runway looks, unforgettable performances, and the kind of drama only Drag Race can deliver.

[04/22/26 - 09:01 AM]
Video: "Send Help" - Trailer - Hulu
Rachel McAdams and Dylan O'Brien star in the film, which streams on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+ May 7.

[04/22/26 - 08:51 AM]
"High Potential" Shoots to Six-Week High with Season Two Finale
On linear over seven days, the show earned 8.71 million Total Viewers and a 0.61 rating among Adults 18-49, also marking a six-week high in both measures and standing as the No. 1 show of the night.

[04/22/26 - 08:18 AM]
Cara Banks Named Lead Play-by-Play Voice for NBC Sports' Coverage of LPGA Tour
Banks debuts in her new role at this weekend's Chevron Championship - the first major championship of the 2026 LPGA Tour season.