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[10/21/09 - 06:29 PM]
Development Update: Wednesday, October 21
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!
BOYFRED (ABC, New!) - Newcomers Blake Silver, Jarrod Zimmerman, Alan Schmuckler and Michael Mahler have landed a script order from the Alphabet for a new comedy about six twentysomething friends who use a web site to keep in touch after one of them moves overseas. The project, which has a penalty attached, is based on a 15-minute presentation the quartet shot last summer for $6,000. Thomas Schlamme has subsequently come on board to executive produce the half-hour, which is set up at Sony Pictures Television. As for specifics, said effort revolves around Fred, "a Web designer in Chicago whose girlfriend goes overseas, so he creates a Web site for their circle of friends to keep in touch." In addition, "many of the show's characters are involved in Chicago's music scene, and their music blogs are central to the shared Web site, Boyfred.com." Silver directed the presentation with Schmuckler, Mahler and Zimmerman starring and Schmuckler and Mahler providing original music.
FLASH FORWARD (ABC) - Marc Guggenheim has stepped down as co-showrunner of the freshman drama. The move comes as production wraps on the show's original 13 episode order, which Guggenheim was brought in to supervise alongside co-creator David Goyer. Goyer then will fly solo for the remaining 12 episodes of its 25-installment freshman run. As for Guggenheim, he'll transition to development through his overall deal with producer ABC Studios.
I'M WITH STUPID (ABC, New!) - Judy Greer ("Miss/Guided") is set to topline a new multi-comedy at the network about Kas Sienkiewicz, "a Manhattanite who has a fling with a park ranger while on safari in South Africa" who returns home to find the ranger has tracked her down where his "limited intellectual capabilities" are ultimately revealed. Elaine Szewczyk, whose novel upon which the show is based, is penning the half-hour alongside Allan Loeb. Loeb, Steven Pearl and Richard Lewis then are executive producing the project, which has a script commitment, with Szewczyk serving as a co-executive producer. ABC Studios is producing the half-hour, which was originally developed by Lionsgate Television.
OLIVE PRODUCTIONS PROJECTS (Various, New!) - Steve Buscemi, Stanley Tucci and Wren Arthur's Olive Productions has booked a pair of projects around town. At HBO there's an untitled hour from Stu Zicherman ("Six Degrees") about "a brilliant, one-time powerful politician struggling to rebuild his career and relationships with his family and friends after being brought down by a scandal." Tucci is attached to play said role. Meanwhile, TBS has ordered "Good and Evel," an animated comedy about twin brothers Jack Good and Bo Evel who were "stolen by gypsy cab drivers at birth and taught how to behave and drive badly, Bo is a career petty criminal, and Jack bends over backward to mend his brother's ways and help his dysfunctional family." "Daria" co-creator Glenn Eichler penned said half-hour, which also comes from The Gotham Group's Lee Stollman and Ellen Goldsmith-Vein. Both projects are set up at Lionsgate Television where Olive has a first-look deal. Buscemi, Tucci and Arthur then will executive produce alongside the aforementioned creators.
UNTITLED PAUL RUST PROJECT (NBC, New!) - Paul Rust ("I Love You, Beth Cooper") is set to write and star in a new comedy at the Peacock based on his stint as a Wal-Mart employee. Universal Media Studios and Conan O'Brien's Conaco banner are behind the half-hour, which will track Rust's story of graduating from the U. of Iowa, returning to his hometown of LeMars, Iowa and taking a job at Wal-Mart (to be replaced by a fictional big-box store) - "only to find that his co-workers included his former high school principal." Rust, O'Brien and David Kissinger will then serve as executive producers.
WE ARE HERE (ABC, New!) - Hilary Winston ("My Name Is Earl") is developing a new comedy at the Alphabet about "four friends from the U. of Texas, all of whom still live in Austin, but deal with the arrival of adulthood in different ways." Anthony and Joe Russo ("Community") are also on board to executive produce the half-hour for Sony Pictures Television. The network has given a script commitment to the project with a penalty attached.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
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[11/05/26 - 01:00 PM]
FOX Entertainment Studios Signs First Look Deal with Cottage Industry Entertainment
The deal encompasses a slate of scripted television series and feature films based on both original projects and literary adaptations, including "The Whittiers," the New York Times bestselling novel by Danielle Steel, which FOX has recently optioned for television adaptation.
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[11/05/26 - 12:01 PM]
HBO Original Documentary "The Hotline" Debuts November 18
The film offers an unprecedented look inside an overdose prevention helpline Never Use Alone (NUA), which connects people using opioids with compassionate operators, acting as a fragile tether between life and death.
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[11/05/26 - 10:31 AM]
Video: HBO Max Unveils Official Trailer for HBO Original Documentary Series "The Killing of the Golden Rooster" Debuting November 12
All three episodes will be available on HBO Max beginning November 12.
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[11/05/26 - 10:31 AM]
"Clarkson's Farm" Star Kaleb Cooper Headlines New Series "Kaleb Off the Farm," Coming to Prime Video January 8
The show follows Kaleb's adventures Down Under as he heads from Diddly Squat Farm to the Outback, in search of farming gold in Australia.
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[11/05/26 - 10:01 AM]
NBC Releases "The Rockford Files" Premiere Date & (760) JIM-ROCK Hotline
The premiere episode will air Saturday, Jan. 2 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT immediately following NBC's NFL telecast.
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[11/05/26 - 10:01 AM]
HBO Original Docu-Comedy Series "Oobah: Scams for a Better Tomorrow" Debuts November 22
Known for his viral stunts, including creating London's #1-rated fake restaurant, Oobah Butler sets his sights on the world's biggest industries and most powerful institutions.
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[11/05/26 - 09:30 AM]
"Yaga" Is the #1 Exclusive Series Launch in the History of AMC+
The series also charted as the #1 social drama across all U.S. TV and streaming on its premiere day.
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[11/05/26 - 09:21 AM]
Video: "Get Huge: Looksmaxxing to Death" - Official Trailer - Hulu
What happened to Leo Longevity? From Academy Award winner Adam McKay comes a Hulu original documentary.
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[11/05/26 - 09:01 AM]
Video: "Style Wars" - Official Trailer - Hulu
72 fashion fanatics face off on a stage where looks, age, profession, experience, and fame mean nothing compared to the fit. Who will rise to the top?
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[11/05/26 - 09:01 AM]
Hallmark Christmas Cruise 2027 to Set Sail Aboard Celebrity Reflection
With overwhelming fan demand leading to sold-out cruises every year since its inaugural sailings in 2024, the Hallmark Christmas Cruise is a can't-miss holiday tradition with joyful fun and immersive programming that create lasting memories.
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[11/05/26 - 09:01 AM]
Video: Andrew Yancy Is Back in New Trailer for "Bad Monkey" Season Two
It will make its global debut on Apple TV with one episode on Wednesday, December 2, 2026, followed by one new episode every Wednesday through February 3, 2027.
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[11/05/26 - 09:00 AM]
Chris Pratt to Receive King of Comedy Award at "CBS Presents Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards (KCAs)"
Pratt will receive the coveted Silver Blimp in celebration of his career, before facing Nickelodeon's iconic slime.
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[11/05/26 - 08:31 AM]
Record Breaking Comedian Nate Bargatze Sets Fourth Netflix Stand-Up Special "Good for Nathan"
The special, premiering November 24, was filmed in Fort Worth, Texas.
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[11/05/26 - 08:01 AM]
Jonathan Pryce, James D'Arcy, Lena Olin, Camille Cottin, Alun Armstrong, Jessica Raine and Paul Ready join Sky Original "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"
Produced by Left Bank Pictures, the eight-part mystery thriller is a timely evolution of one of the world's most celebrated literary thriller franchises, with the Millennium novels having sold more than 100 million copies worldwide.
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[11/05/26 - 08:01 AM]
Video: Witness a Savage Homecoming in the Final Season of "Yellowjackets" Premiering November 20
"Yellowjackets" is the saga of a team of wildly talented high school girls soccer players who become the (un)lucky survivors of a plane crash deep in the remote northern wilderness.
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