or


[10/27/09 - 04:33 PM]
Development Update: Tuesday, October 27
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!


DELTA BLUES (TNT) - The cable channel has commissioned a pilot for the drama project, about "an outstanding but unusual Memphis cop who moonlights as an Elvis impersonator and lives with his mother." Liz Garcia ("Cold Case") and Josh Harto penned the Warner Horizon Television-based hour and are executive producing alongside Smokehouse Pictures's George Clooney, Grant Heslov and Abby Wolf-Weiss. Casting is underway.


DRY (Showtime, New!)/THE NATURE OF FIRE (CBS, New!) - Augusten Burroughs ("Running With Scissors") has set up a pair of projects, including a comedy at Showtime and a drama at CBS. The former, dubbed "Dry," is based on the author's experience as an advertising executive struggling toward sobriety. The latter, "The Nature of Fire," will center on "a group of male firefighters whose world is rocked when they're joined by a female arson investigator." Burroughs is penning both efforts and executive producing alongside Created By's Vince Gerardis ("FlashForward") and Katalyst's Karey Burke, Ashton Kutcher and Jason Goldberg ("The Beautiful Life") for CBS Television Studios. As previously reported, Bryan Fuller and Bryan Singer are developing a small screen take on Burroughs's book "Sellevision" for NBC.


FAMILY GUY (FOX) - Microsoft has dropped out as the sole sponsor of the show's upcoming "Seth and Alex's Almost Live Comedy Show" special. Said development reportedly comes after the company's executives attending its October 16 taping and grew concerned over its content. "We initially chose to participate in the Seth and Alex variety show based on the audience composition and creative humor of 'Family Guy,' but after reviewing an early version of the variety show, it became clear that the content was not a fit with the Windows brand," said a Microsoft spokeswoman. "We continue to have a good partnership with Fox, Seth MacFarlane and Alex Borstein and are working with them in other areas. We continue to believe in the value of brand integrations and partnerships between brands, media companies and talent." The special will nevertheless continue with another, yet-to-be-named, sponsor when it airs on November 8.


FLASH FORWARD (ABC) - Paula Newsome ("Women's Murder Club") is the latest to land an arc on the freshman drama, Entertainment Weekly reports. She'll play a doctor in several upcoming episodes however details about her character weren't released.


GHOSTS/ALIENS (Comedy Central) - Joey Kern ("The Sasquatch Gang") has been tapped as the new lead of the comedy pilot, about "two potheads who set out on a quest to expose the truth about the existence of ghosts and aliens." He'll take over from Jonathan Sadowski as one of said men, Trey Hamburger. Keir O'Donnell, Allan McLeod, Kaylee DeFer, Keir O'Donnell, Nathan Barnatt and Rebecca Wisocky also star in the project, which Michael Patrick Jann is directing from a script by Phil Johnston.


GOSSIP GIRL (The CW) - Sherri Saum ("In Treatment") has booked a multi-episode arc on the series. She'll play Holland Kemble, "a powerful business executive-turned-Upper East Side trophy wife and could be trouble for Lily (Kelly Rutherford) and Rufus (Matthew Settle)." It's not clear when her first episode will air.


HOUNDS (Comedy Central) - Ron White is back in business with the cable channel as the comedian will lend his voice to a new animated comedy described as "a blue-collar Southern neo-gothic comedy." Chris Thompson ("Ladies Man") is behind the half-hour which White will also co-executive produce. As for specifics, White will voice Chicken, "a countrified Yoda with a bottle of Jack and a bag of weed, an opinionated Southern philosopher who considers himself the center of the universe." Earlier this year, White toplined a pilot presentation for the network in which he "looked at stories from across the country and ran them through his everyman perspective."


RAVENS PARISH (FOX, New!) - Feature writer Dan McDermott ("Eagle Eye") has scored a script commitment from the network about "a man and his teenage son who return to their rural Mississippi hometown in search of a fabled cavern hidden beneath a nearby swamp that allegedly holds hidden treasure." McDermott, who previously served as head of current programming at the network, will pen the hour and executive produce for 20th Century Fox Television. Generate's Peter Aronson and Jordan Levin are also attached as executive producers via their first-look deal with the studio.


Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [october 2009]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
    


· BEAUTIFUL LIFE, THE (CW)
· COLD CASE (CBS)
· DEVELOPMENT UPDATE (TFC)
· DRY (SHOWTIME)
· FAMILY GUY (FOX)
· FLASH FORWARD (ABC)
· GHOSTS/ALIENS (COMEDY CENTRAL)
· GOSSIP GIRL (CW)
· HOUNDS (COMEDY CENTRAL)
· IN TREATMENT (HBO)
· LADIES MAN (CBS)
· MEMPHIS BEAT (TNT)
· NATURE OF FIRE (CBS)
· RAVENS PARISH (FOX)
· RON WHITE SHOW, THE (COMEDY CENTRAL)
· SELLEVISION (NBC)
· WOMEN'S MURDER CLUB (ABC)





[12/18/25 - 10:15 AM]
Starz Acquires Action Drama "The Nowhere Man," Executive-Produced by and Starring "Power's" Naturi Naughton-Lewis, Set to Premiere January 16, 2026
In "The Nowhere Man," Lukas (Bonko Khoza), a former Special Forces mercenary crippled by PTSD, has turned his back on his violent past and is operating as a junk collector on the streets of Johannesburg.

[12/18/25 - 10:11 AM]
Tubi's Original Film "Terri Joe: Missionary in Miami" Premieres Exclusively on Tubi on January 30
In this wild farce, Southern Belle Terri Joe ventures to Miami to outrun wacky criminals and find a new church where she can atone for her sins.

[12/18/25 - 10:01 AM]
"The Wonderfully Weird World of Gumball" Exclusive Holiday Art Debut & Two More Seasons Coming Soon
As a holiday gift to fans, Hulu has announced that "The Wonderfully Weird World of Gumball" will return for two more seasons.

[12/18/25 - 09:31 AM]
"Today's" Craig Melvin, Al Roker and Hoda Kotb Set to Host NBC's Live Coverage of the 137th Rose Parade Presented by Honda
Plus: For the first time ever, The Rose Parade will broadcast live from 8-10 a.m. PT on Telemundo with hosts Penelope Menchaca and Carlos Calderon from Telemundo's "Hoy Dia."

[12/18/25 - 09:12 AM]
New Norwegian Family Drama "Stayer," Season 1 Exclusive US Debut Thursday, January 15, 2026 on Viaplay
"Stayer" is a gripping, character-driven drama about an aging rock musician confronting his greatest challenge: the sudden death of the mother of his child.

[12/18/25 - 09:00 AM]
Adult Swim Renews "Haha, You Clowns" for Two Additional Seasons
The relentlessly wholesome animated comedy from creator Joe Cappa follows the Campbell family - three doting teenagers, and their tenderhearted, recently widowed dad - as they navigate life's awkward, funny, and emotional moments together.

[12/18/25 - 08:39 AM]
TV One Announces Return of "Uncensored" with All Star Lineup, Premiering February 19
Among those featured this season: Anthony Anderson, Blair Underwood, Keke Palmer, Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins, Shaunie Henderson, Tameka "Tiny" Harris, Kierra Sheard, Marlo Hampton, Rickey Smiley, Laz Alonso, Wood Harris, and Wendy Raquel Robinson.

[12/18/25 - 08:31 AM]
Harrison Ford to Be Honored with the 2025 SAG-AFTRA Life Achievement Award
Ford will be presented with the union's top tribute at The 32nd Annual Actor Awards Presented by SAG-AFTRA, which will stream live on Netflix Sunday, March 1, 2026, at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT from the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall.

[12/18/25 - 08:01 AM]
Video: Netflix Debuts the Trailer for "Tom Segura: Teacher"
Parenting fails. Blackout bar stories. Career regrets. Tom Segura explores the darkly funny side of life's most unpredictable lessons.

[12/18/25 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "Together" - Trailer - Hulu
Dave Franco and Alison Brie star in the film, which streams December 31.

[12/18/25 - 08:01 AM]
Apple TV Unveils First Look at "Imperfect Women" Created by Annie Weisman
Starring and executive produced by Elisabeth Moss and Kerry Washington, the eight-episode series will make its global debut on Apple TV with the first two episodes on Wednesday, March 18, followed by new episodes every Wednesday through April 29.

[12/18/25 - 07:53 AM]
TNT Sports to Exclusively Present 2026 Discover NHL Winter Classic - New York Rangers vs. Florida Panthers - Friday, Jan. 2 at 8 p.m. ET
South Florida will make hockey history bringing the traditional snow and ice elements of Winter Classic to loanDepot Park, home of the Miami Marlins.

[12/18/25 - 07:13 AM]
Father-Daughter Duo Transform Ordinary Objects in "Building Outside the Lines," Premiering December 30 on Magnolia Network
Innovative builder Jared "Cappie" Capp transforms inventive builds into beautifully designed structures with the most creative person he knows - his teenage daughter.

[12/18/25 - 07:11 AM]
CNN Renews "Have I Got News For You" for a Fourth Season Premiering Saturday, January 24 at 9PM ET/PT
"Thank goodness we've got season four of our show to make sense of this perfectly normal time we're in where everything is stark-raving normal. A time in which everything is fine and nothing is wrong. Amen," said Wood Jr., Ruffin and Black in a joint statement.

[12/18/25 - 07:01 AM]
British Drama "Coldwater" Debuts on Paramount+ January 9
Created and written by David Ireland, the series follows stay-at-home dad John (Andrew Lincoln), who relocates his family from London to the remote Scottish town of Coldwater after a violent incident at a playground triggers a personal crisis.