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[10/30/09 - 06:09 PM]
Development Update: Friday, October 30
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!
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
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[09/16/25 - 04:46 PM]
Apple's Global Hit Drama "The Morning Show" Renewed for Season Five
Said renewal comes ahead of the season four premiere due tomorrow, Wednesday, September 17.
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[09/16/25 - 03:39 PM]
"College GameDay Built by The Home Depot" and College Football on ESPN/ABC Both Off to Stellar Starts in 2025
ABC is off to its best three-week start ever, averaging 7.8 million viewers per game.
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[09/16/25 - 03:02 PM]
"20/20" Is the No. 1 Program Across Broadcast and Cable on Friday Night
"20/20" ranked as the No. 1 broadcast program on Friday night in Total Viewers (2.457 million).
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[09/16/25 - 03:01 PM]
ABC News' "Nightline" Ranks No. 1 in Total Viewers, Adults 25-54, and Adults 18-49, Leading CBS' "After Midnight" and NBC's "Late Night with Seth Meyers" in All Three Measures
For the 2nd week in a row, "Nightline" improved on the previous week in Total Viewers, Adults 25-54 and Adults 18-49.
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[09/16/25 - 02:45 PM]
FOX NFL Smashes All-Time Viewership Records with Week 2 Super Bowl Rematch
A massive 33.8 million viewers delivers FOX Sports its best-ever regular season Sunday telecast, most-watched Week 2 NFL telecast on record and more all-time viewership highs!
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[09/16/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of September 8: "Canelo vs. Crawford" Packs a Punch, "Wednesday" Season 2 Joins Most Popular List
In movies, "KPop Demon Hunters" danced its way back to No. 1 on the English Film list with 22.6 million views.
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[09/16/25 - 11:01 AM]
NFL Christmas Gameday Is Back with a New Line-Up of On-Air Booth Talent in Washington, D.C. and Minneapolis, Minnesota
Netflix's NFL Christmas Gameday 2024 reached 65 million U.S. viewers, according to Nielsen.
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[09/16/25 - 11:00 AM]
Prime Video Announces October 23 Premiere Date for "Allen Iv3rson"
The three-part docuseries is about the captivating life of basketball legend and global sensation Allen Iverson, whose authentic voice and unapologetic expression of style paved the way for future generations and revolutionized the culture of the NBA.
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[09/16/25 - 10:01 AM]
HBO Original Documentary "Prime Minister" Debuts September 30
The film had its world premiere at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award for World Cinema Documentary.
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[09/16/25 - 09:56 AM]
Daytime Emmy-Nominated "The Jennifer Hudson Show" Comes to Streaming Audiences for Free on Tubi
Starting today, fans can stream each episode of season four of "The Jennifer Hudson Show" for free on Tubi the day after it airs on linear television.
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[09/16/25 - 09:30 AM]
"On the Bench" -- NBC Sports Introduces Dedicated Team Analysts Seated Courtside for Peacock NBA Monday Throughout 2025-26 NBA Season
Rather than sitting next to the play-by-play voice, the analysts will be positioned near the assistant coaches of their assigned team during the action, listening in on huddles and timeouts, and delivering information straight from the bench.
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[09/16/25 - 09:01 AM]
"Superman" Soars Onto HBO Max Exclusively on September 19
HBO Max will feature an in-app "Superman" takeover offering viewers a transformed homepage and unique user experience.
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[09/16/25 - 09:01 AM]
Video: "Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Deathwatch" - Official Trailer - Netflix
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[09/16/25 - 09:01 AM]
Bravo Embarks on the Ultimate Fish-Out-of-Water Social Experiment When "Wife Swap: The Real Housewives Edition" Premieres Tuesday, Oct. 14 at 9 P.M. ET/PT
"The Real Housewives" featured are Angie Katsanevas (Salt Lake City), Emily Simpson (Orange County), Melissa Gorga (New Jersey) and Dr. Wendy Osefo (Potomac).
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[09/16/25 - 08:45 AM]
ESPN and the NWSL Announce Supplemental Media Rights Agreement
Under the agreement, ABC and ESPN networks will carry 16 more regular-season games each year, increasing the total number of NWSL matches available on The Walt Disney Company networks from 17 to 33 per season.
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