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[09/24/09 - 06:04 PM] Development Update: Thursday, September 24 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!
24 (FOX) - Stephen Root ("True Blood") is the 16th addition to the show's massive season eight ensemble, due in January. He'll play Ben Prady, an officer of the Department of Corrections looking into a parolee gone missing, in a multi-episode arc.
AMERICAN IDOL (FOX) - The network and Simon Cowell are reportedly in talks to import his U.K. series "The X Factor." Said development comes as negotiations continue with the judge to extend his current pact, which ends after the upcoming season. The "Idol" portion of the deal is said to be valued in the nine-figure range to return for two more seasons while "Factor" could net just as much per season. Cowell's existing "Idol" deal prohibited him from bringing "Factor" to the U.S., hence the added pressure to either keep Cowell exclusive or fold "Factor" under the FOX tent.
THE BILL ENGVALL SHOW (TBS) - The cable channel has pulled the plug on the sitcom after three seasons. In a statement released to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, the network said: "TBS has cancelled The Bill Engvall Show after three seasons. We had a great experience working with Bill and the cast. Bill is a terrific comic, and we have tremendous respect for him. While the show didn't attract the audience we need to renew it for another season, we're proud of the work of everyone involved."
THE CAPE (NBC, New!)/THE MYSTERIES OF OAK ISLAND (FOX, New!) - Tom Wheeler ("Empire") has landed script commitments - with penalties attached - for new dramas at FOX and NBC. The former, the Warner Bros. Television-based "The Mysteries of Oak Island," revolves around "a single mom and her two children who inherit a 200-year-old lighthouse on [a] mysterious island off the coast of Nova Scotia known for numerous quests to find treasure believed to be buried there." Meanwhile, "The Cape" centers on "a former cop framed for a crime he didn't commit who becomes the Cape, a masked hero, to clear his name and reunite with his son." Said hour, set in the fictional Jefferson City ("a Los Angeles-type city where corrupt private industries are taking over everything"), comes from Universal Media Studios and fellow executive producers Lloyd Braun and Gail Berman.
HOUSE (FOX) - Entertainment Weekly reports Jennifer Morrison is departing the series later this season. Said development is being billed as "a creative decision on the part of producers." It's understood Morrison's character, who will say goodbye during an episode in November, won't be killed off but rather exit for other reasons. Producers nevertheless reportedly will leave the door open for future appearances.
LAWMAN (FX) - "Dirty Sexy Money" alum Natalie Zea has joined the cast of upcoming drama, about "a modern-day, 19th-century-style lawman (Timothy Olyphant) enforcing his brand of justice." She'll play the ex-wife of said character after guest starring in the pilot. Sony Pictures Television and FX Productions are behind the hour, which rolls out early next year.
SKY JOCKEYS (FOX, New!) - RDF Media and UKTV, a joint venture between BBC Worldwide and Virgin Media, are set to team for a potential new animated comedy set inside an airport. Anil Gupta (U.K.'s "The Office") and Richard Pinto ("Mutual Friends") are behind the half-hour, the pilot of which has been sold to FOX. The project is a result of RDF Media's new script-development deal with UKTV's digital outlet Dave which calls for the company to develop three half-hour scripts, including "Sky Jockeys," at least one of which will be picked up for broadcast sometime in late 2010. No other details about "Jockeys" however were released.
UNTITLED JIM BREUER PROJECT (NBC, New!) - "SNL" alum Jim Breuer is set to topline a new multi-camera comedy at the Peacock about "a father who decides to stay home and raise his three daughters and at the same time take care of his elderly parents." Wil Calhoun ("What I Like About You") is penning the half-hour for Sony Pictures Television. It's understood the project, which has a script commitment, is inspired by Breuer's recent documentary "More Than This," which followed the comedian as he embarked on a stand-up tour with his father. Breuer and Calhoun then will executive produce alongside Brian Robbins and Sharla Sumpter of Varsity Pictures and Judi Brown-Marmel of Levity Entertainment Group.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
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[12/11/25 - 08:01 AM] Video: Prime Video Releases Official Trailer and Key Art for Season Two of "The Night Manager" The first three episodes will debut on Sunday, January, 11, 2026, on Prime Video, with one new episode releasing every Sunday, until the season finale on Sunday, February 1.
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[12/11/25 - 07:01 AM] Video: "His & Hers" - Official Trailer - Netflix Two estranged spouses - one a cop, the other a news reporter - compete to solve a murder case in which each believes the other is a prime suspect.
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[12/11/25 - 06:31 AM] Video: "NFL Christmas Gameday 2025" - Kelly Clarkson - Announcement - Netflix Unwrap an NFL doubleheader with Cowboys vs. Commanders, then Lions vs. Vikings - along with special live performances and lots of holiday cheer.
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[12/11/25 - 06:15 AM] Journey Through the Planet's Most Extreme Environments in National Geographic's New Series "Pole to Pole with Will Smith" The seven-part docuseries premieres January 13 on National Geographic worldwide and streams next day on Disney+ globally and Hulu in the U.S.
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[12/11/25 - 06:02 AM] "Tyler Perry's Beauty in Black" Renewed for Third and Final Season Ahead of Season 2 Part 2 Debut Season 2 Part 2 will premiere on March 19, 2026.
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[12/11/25 - 06:01 AM] The Second Part of "One Hundred Years of Solitude" Will Arrive in August 2026 After the armistice and signing of the treaty of Neerlandia, peace still does not reach Macondo.
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[12/11/25 - 06:01 AM] Video: Apple TV Debuts Gripping Trailer for Season Two of "Hijack" Created by George Kay and Jim Field Smith, the eight-episode second season will premiere globally on Wednesday, January 14, 2026, with the first episode, followed by one episode weekly until March 4.
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[12/11/25 - 04:02 AM] "High Tides": Netflix Shares Release Date Final Season The entire third season will be available worldwide (excluding Belgium) on Netflix from April 3, 2026.
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[12/11/25 - 04:01 AM] Video: "Alpha Males" Season 4 - Official Trailer - Netflix Pedro, Luis, Raúl and Santi are four friends who feel lost in a new world of empowered women, each trying to adjust in their own bumbling way.
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[12/11/25 - 01:01 AM] Video: "Love Is Blind: Germany" - Season 2 - Official Trailer - Netflix A new group of singles arrives for the ultimate dating experiment: finding true love and long-lasting commitment without being able to see each other.
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[12/10/25 - 04:01 PM] Video: "Cashero" - Official Trailer - Netflix An ordinary man who inherits super strength discovers a greater evil out to steal his power. The one catch? Every use drains money from his wallet.
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[12/10/25 - 03:16 PM] Peacock to Exclusively Stream National Coverage of Baltimore Ravens at Green Bay Packers on Saturday, Dec. 27, at 8 P.M. ET Ravens-Packers marks the fourth Peacock exclusive NFL game.
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[12/10/25 - 02:59 PM] FOX NFL Scores Massive Week 14 Viewership 28 million viewers watched FOX Sports' Week 14 "America's Game of the Week," featuring the Green Bay Packers divisional win over the Chicago Bears.
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[12/10/25 - 01:06 PM] Paramount Sends Letter to Warner Bros. Discovery Shareholders The letter "reiterates why Paramount's offer will deliver WBD shareholders with superior value and a faster, more certain path to completion than the Netflix transaction."
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[12/10/25 - 12:08 PM] NBCU's November to Remember Showcases the Power of Company's Programming "All Her Fault" became the most-watched original series launch in Peacock history with 46 million hours.
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