or


[10/30/09 - 06:09 PM]
Development Update: Friday, October 30
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!


AIRPLANE REPO (Discovery) - Craig Piligian ("Dirty Jobs") has booked yet another series at the cable channel in which repossessor Nick Popovich and his team re-acquires jets and helicopters from delinquent owners around the world, including Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Finland. Eight episodes are set to roll out early next year from Piligian's Pilgrim Films & Television banner. Popovich and Bill Rancic ("The Apprentice") are executive producing alongside Piligan.


APOSTLE PROJECTS (Various, New!) - Denis Leary and Jim Serpico's Sony Pictures Television-based Apostle Films has lined up a half-dozen series projects around town. At CBS, the company is redeveloping its Michael Rapaport-led drama about "a social worker who's good at helping others with their problems, but not necessarily his own." Peter Ocko ("Pushing Daisies") is taking over scripting duties from Bryan Goluboff. Over at FOX, Apostle continues to shepherd "Extended Family" from John Beck and Ron Hart ("According to Jim"). The multi-camera comedy is based on Beck's experiences growing up in a family that also made room for foster kids.

Newly revealed are an untitled hour for FX set in the world of televangelists. David Folwell ("Medium") is writing the project, which is set up at FX Productions. At Spike TV there's "The Rebel League," loosely based on Ed Willes's book of the same name (subtitled "The Short and Unruly Life of the World Hockey"), about "the startup of a contemporary hockey league and its out-of-control managers and players." Stephen Engel ("The Big Bang Theory") is writing the half-hour. Meanwhile, USA is developing "Partners in Crime" from Janine Sherman-Barrois and "Scales of Justice," from New York playwright Joe Sutton. The former revolves around ex-husband and wife private eyes while the latter is a New Orleans-set drama about "an overweight ex-cop who enlists his overeaters support group to fight crime." Lastly, the company is looking to bring the feature film "Gattica" to the small screen. Gil Grant ("NCIS: LA") is penning the hour, a police procedural set in the future, which will go out to networks soon.


COUGAR TOWN (ABC) - "The Unit" alum Scott Foley has landed a three-episode arc on the freshman comedy, Entertainment Weekly reports. He'll play a client of Courteney Cox's realtor character whom she begins dating. It's not clear when his first episode will air.


THE FOLLOWER (HBO, New!) - Jason Starr's novel of the same name is set to be the focus of a potential new drama at the pay channel. Said hour, which is set up at Lionsgate Television, is "described as a dark social satire chronicling the dating lives of a group of twentysomething New Yorkers as seen through the eyes of a stalker." Bret Easton Ellis ("American Psycho") is penning the adaptation with Jason Blum ("Paranormal Activity") and Vertigo Films partners Doug Davison and Roy Lee and Media Talent Group's Geyer Kosinski also executive producing. Vertigo's Gabriel Mason is likewise attached as a co-executive producer with Steven Schneider serving as an associate producer. Vertigo has a first-look deal with Lionsgate.


JOSH HEALD PROJECTS (Various, New!) - Feature writer Josh Heald (the upcoming "Mardi Gras" and "Hot Tub Time Machine") has sold a pair of projects, multi-camera comedies at NBC and FOX. The Peacock effort, "Sausagefest," is about "two very different twentysomething best friends whose lives are complicated by their clingy dads, one a thrice-divorced misogynist who means well and the other a gentle widower." Norm Macdonald is already attached as the former dad. The FOX project, "Sequestered," then revolves around "12 strangers forced to live together when they are sequestered for a lengthy jury trial." BermanBraun's Gail Berman and Lloyd Braun are executive producing the Universal Media Studios-based "Sausagesfest" while The Chernin Co.'s Peter Chernin and Katherine Pope are likewise executive producing the 20th Century Fox Television-based "Sequestered."


NCIS (CBS) - Rena Sofer ("Heroes") is set to appear on an upcoming episode of the veteran CBS drama. She'll play a no-nonsense attorney with mysterious motives, a role which is potentially recurring.


RIZZOLI (TNT) - Sasha Alexander, Bruce McGill, Jordan Bridges and Lee Thompson Young have all joined the cast of the drama pilot, based on Tess Gerritsen's popular Jane Rizzoli mystery novels about the crime-solving team of Boston police detective Rizzoli (Angie Harmon) and medical examiner Maura Isles. Alexander will play the latter role with McGill as "the gruff but lovable Detective Vince Korsak, Jane's former partner who is a bit hurt that she had taken the likable but green Barry Frost (Young), as her new partner." Bridges then is set as Franke Rizzoli Jr., "Jane's younger brother, a Boston patrol officer who worships her and hopes to make detective someday." Janet Tamaro penned the hour and is executive producing alongside Bill Haber.


Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [october 2009]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
    


· ACCORDING TO JIM (ABC)
· AIRPLANE REPO (DISCOVERY)
· APPRENTICE, THE (NBC)
· BIG BANG THEORY, THE (CBS)
· COUGAR TOWN (TBS)
· DEVELOPMENT UPDATE (TFC)
· DIRTY JOBS (DISCOVERY)
· EXTENDED FAMILY (FOX)
· FOLLOWER, THE (HBO)
· HEROES (NBC)
· MEDIUM (CBS)
· NCIS (CBS)
· NCIS: LOS ANGELES (CBS)
· PARTNERS IN CRIME (USA)
· PUSHING DAISIES (ABC)
· REBEL LEAGUE, THE (SPIKE TV)
· RIZZOLI & ISLES (TNT)
· SAUSAGEFEST (NBC)
· SCALES OF JUSTICE (USA)
· SEQUESTERED (FOX)
· UNIT, THE (CBS)
· UNTITLED DAVID FOLWELL PROJECT (FX)
· UNTITLED MICHAEL RAPAPORT PROJECT (CBS)





[04/08/26 - 08:01 AM]
"Bridgerton" Adds New Members of the Ton in Season 5
Tega Alexander, Jacqueline Boatswain, and Gemma Knight Jones are among the latest additions.

[04/08/26 - 07:08 AM]
Golden Globe Winner Uma Thurman to Reprise Her Role as "Charley" in Season Two of "Dexter: Resurrection" for Paramount+
Thurman will reprise her role as "Charley," the former Special Ops officer who served as Leon Prater's right-hand woman.

[04/08/26 - 07:01 AM]
Video: "Remarkably Bright Creatures" - Official Trailer - Netflix
While working nights at a small-town aquarium, a widow bonds with a clever octopus and an adrift young man in this moving drama based on the bestseller.

[04/08/26 - 07:01 AM]
BYUtv's Viral Sketch Comedy "Studio C" Premieres Season 22 with Special Guest Star Rainn Wilson
Additionally, seasons 23 and 24 will be in production this spring and summer in front of studio audiences and on location with special guest stars and returning members of the "Studio C" family.

[04/08/26 - 06:31 AM]
Video: "Lainey Wilson: Keepin' Country Cool" - Official Trailer - Netflix
The film captures a pivotal moment in her career, exploring the country icon's personal journey and chronicling her struggles and triumphs as she captivates fans on stage across the country.

[04/08/26 - 06:30 AM]
Official Poster Revealed for "My Two Cents," the New Animated Series Created, Written and Directed by Zerocalcare
Zero and Cinghiale run a small business, but financial struggles, misunderstandings, and increasingly complicated personal lives begin to take their toll.

[04/08/26 - 06:23 AM]
Sophie Cunningham Joins USA Sports' WNBA Coverage as an Athlete Contributor
Currently a free agent, Cunningham played last season with the Indiana Fever after spending her first six WNBA seasons with the Phoenix Mercury.

[04/08/26 - 06:01 AM]
Video: Apple TV Unveils Trailer for the Second Season of "Criminal Record"
The eight-episode second season will premiere globally on Wednesday, April 22 on Apple TV with the first episode, followed by one episode weekly through Wednesday, June 10.

[04/08/26 - 05:01 AM]
Video: Tyson Fury vs. Arslanbek Makhmudov - Conor Benn vs. Regis Prograis - Official Trailer - Netflix
One Night, Two Battles. Heavyweight icon Tyson Fury takes on Arslanbek Makhmudov & Conor Benn takes on Regis Prograis in London on Saturday April 11.

[04/07/26 - 04:11 PM]
2026 College Basketball Crown Scores Big on FOX and FS1
The championship averaged 950,000 viewers on FOX, peaking with 1.18 million viewers.

[04/07/26 - 03:15 PM]
The Actor Awards Sets Dates for 2027 and 2028
The 33rd Annual Actor Awards Presented by SAG-AFTRA will stream live on Netflix on Sunday, February 28; while The 34th Annual Actor Awards Presented by SAG-AFTRA will take place on Sunday, February 20, 2028.

[04/07/26 - 03:05 PM]
ESPN Scores Second Most-Watched NCAA Women's Final Four on Record
Said coverage averaged 9.9 million viewers and peaked at 10.7 million viewers.

[04/07/26 - 02:31 PM]
Date Announcement: Hulu Original "Lisa Ann Walter: It Was An Accident"
The comedy special will premiere Friday, May 15 on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+ for bundle subscribers in the U.S., and on Disney+ internationally.

[04/07/26 - 02:01 PM]
The Academy and ABC Announce Show Dates for 99th and 100th Oscars
The 99th Oscars will take place Sunday, March 14, 2027, and the 100th Oscars will take place Sunday, March 5, 2028.

[04/07/26 - 01:32 PM]
Lifetime Adds Two New Movies to Join Previously Announced Films as Part of Spring "Love of a Lifetime" Romance Slate
Haley Ramm, Luke Benward and Mary Hollis Inboden star in "Faith & Forgiveness: A Duck Dynasty Love Story"; while Jana Kramer, Tyler Johnson, John Schneider and Charlene Tilton lead "Where the Heart Lands."