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[12/10/09 - 06:13 PM]
Development Update: Thursday, December 10
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!
AMERICA: THE STORY OF US (History) - Meryl Streep, Michael Douglas, Colin Powell, Brian Williams, Buzz Aldrin, Tommy Franks, Donald Trump, John Lasseter and Stevie Wonder have all been tapped to participate in the upcoming 12-part event, which will "focus on the elements that distinguish American democracy, the conflicts that shaped it and the myriad social and industrial innovations that have fueled the country's prosperity." Said talent will serve as on-camera commentators with Jane Root executive producing via her Nutopia production banner. "America" is due sometime in 2010.
DELTA BLUES (TNT) - Alfre Woodard ("Three Rivers") has joined the cast of the drama pilot, about Dwight Hendricks (Jason Lee), "a Memphis police officer who lives with his mother (Celia Weston) and moonlights as a tribute artist." She'll play "the formidable new lieutenant who tries to exercise her power over Dwight," a role presumably in second position to the hiatused "Rivers." Warner Horizon Television and Smokehouse Productions are behind the hour, which also stars Abraham Benrubi, DJ Qualls, Leonard Howz, Robyn Lively and Sam Hennings. Clark Johnson is directing from a script by Joshua Harto and Liz Garcia.
FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS (HBO) - Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement have announced via their web site their pay channel series won't be returning for a third season. "We've noticed the less we say about the future of the show, the more people want to talk about it, so in an effort to reverse this trend we are today announcing that we won't be returning for a 3rd season," said the statement. "We're very proud of the two seasons we made and we like the way the show ended. We'd like to thank everyone who helped make the show and also everyone who watched it. While the characters Bret and Jemaine will no longer be around, the real Bret and Jemaine will continue to exist." The show wrapped its second season back in March.
GLEE (FOX) - Tony-winning actress Idina Menzel ("Wicked") is reportedly in talks to recur on the back half of the show's freshman season. She would play the coach to glee club "Vocal Adrenaline," the McKinley High glee club's main competition. Menzel had already been the focus of a fan campaign to cast her as Rachel Berry's (Lea Michele) biological mother. Also signing on for a five to six episode arc is Jonathan Groff. He'll play the lead male vocalist of "Vocal Adrenaline" and a potential love interest for Rachel Berry. Groff co-starred opposite Michele in the Broadway production of "Spring Awakening."
KEEP HOPE ALIVE (FOX) - Kate Micucci ("Scrubs") has landed a role on the comedy pilot, about Jimmy (Lucas Neff), "a 25-year-old single parent raising an infant with the help of his quirky family after the mother of the baby -- with whom he had a one-night stand -- ends up on death row." She'll play Mike, "an unkempt, fairly oblivious cousin of Jimmy living in a tent in the laundry room of their great-grandmother's house." Said role was originally envisioned a male. Garrett Dillahunt, Kate Micucci, Martha Plimpton and Olesya Rulin also star in the 20th Century Fox Television-based half-hour, which Michael Fresco is directing from a script by Greg Garcia.
THE SIX (ABC, New!) - Merv Griffin Entertainment has landed a presentation order from the Alphabet for a new game show based on the Russian format "What? Where? When?" Said project, which has been running for 35 years in its home country, is being redubbed "The Six," after the number of contestants on the show. The late Vladimir Voroshilov created (and hosted) the series, which pits a panel of six knowledgeable persons against the viewing audience. Said experts are tasked with answering audience-submitted questions listed on a spinning horizontal wheel divided into segments. If the experts answer correctly in the allotted 60 seconds they receive a point, if they don't the audience receives a point with question's author also earning a prize. (Sample question: "They first appeared in 1908 in Mexico. There were two of them. Over time, they came closer and closer together, like wings of a black raven. Name them." Answer: "Frida Kahlo's eyebrows.") Exact format details however are still being worked out. Merv Griffin's Roy Bank is executive producing the project alongside Ukranian-born actor Alex Reznik, Jonathan Barry and Ron Ward. Dwight Smith and Michael Agbabian are the showrunners with Brian Veskosky serving as a co-executive producer.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
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[08/12/26 - 11:01 AM]
FX's "The Lowdown" Season Two Premieres October 14 on FX and Hulu
New episodes of the eight-episode second season will be available each following Wednesday.
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[08/12/26 - 10:01 AM]
Neal Huff, Gaby Hoffmann and Sky Yang Join Cast of "The Best of Us" (FKA "9/12") for Paramount+
"The Best of Us" dramatizes a landmark case that reshaped the fight for accountability: a relentless legal war that stretched nearly a decade to secure almost $1 billion in compensation for first responders who fell gravely ill in the wake of 9/11.
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[08/12/26 - 10:01 AM]
NBC Uncloaks First-Ever All-Civilian Cast for Reality Competition Series "The Traitors: New Blood"
Emmy-winning host Alan Cumming is opening the doors to his now-infamous castle in the Scottish Highlands to 22 everyday Americans, hand-selected from a nationwide search resulting in over 80,000 hopeful applicants.
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[08/12/26 - 09:31 AM]
Video: Peacock Debuts Season 2 Trailer and Key Art for Comedy Series "The Paper"
All 10 episodes will premiere September 9 on Peacock.
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[08/12/26 - 09:01 AM]
"The Detour with David Chang" Premieres Sunday, September 20 at 9pm ET/PT
Produced by Majordomo Media and Tremolo Productions, the six-episode CNN series follows the acclaimed chef, restaurateur and author in his pursuit of no-frills but unforgettable eats on the open road.
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[08/12/26 - 09:00 AM]
Meet the Cast of the 39th Season of "The Amazing Race"
Host Phil Keoghan kicks off the Race from Vancouver, Canada, where he immediately surprises the teams with the first twist of the season: for the first time in "The Amazing Race" history there are 13 Express Passes in play.
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[08/12/26 - 08:01 AM]
Video: MGM+ Debuts Official Trailer for "A Tale of Two Cities," Starring Kit Harington, Francois Civil and Mirren Mack
The limited series will premiere on Sunday, September 6, followed by a weekly release on MGM+.
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[08/12/26 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "Prime Video Releases "Neagley" Official Trailer, Starring Maria Sten
Upon the "Reacher" season four finale, all eight episodes of Neagley will be released on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide.
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[08/12/26 - 07:01 AM]
Video: "Crew Girl" - Official Trailer - Netflix
New school, new rules, same dream.
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[08/12/26 - 07:01 AM]
Video: "Adults" - Season 2 Official Trailer - FX
FX's "Adults" is an ensemble comedy series about a group of twenty-somethings in New York trying to be good people, despite being neither "good" nor "people" yet.
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[08/12/26 - 07:01 AM]
Video: Apple TV Unveils Trailer for Season Five of Award-Winning Series "Stillwater"
Based on the bestselling Scholastic "Zen" book series by Jon J Muth, "Stillwater" follows a wise panda who teaches three young siblings about the world and each other.
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[08/12/26 - 06:01 AM]
Video: "Animals" - Official Teaser - Netflix
Directed by and starring Ben Affleck, with Kerry Washington, Steven Yeun, Gillian Anderson, Adriana Paz and Luis Gerardo Méndez, "Animals" is in select theaters and on Netflix October 9.
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[08/12/26 - 02:01 AM]
Live from London, It's Saturday Night! "Saturday Night Live UK" Returns on September 12
The first six brand-new episodes will bring a fresh season of unpredictable, must-watch Saturday night television, with additional shows planned in early 2027.
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[08/12/26 - 01:38 AM]
Video: "Pyaar Prema Kalyanam" - Official Trailer - Netflix
When a bride refuses to leave her family home after marriage, her husband must find out if he can adjust to life under his in-laws' roof.
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[08/11/26 - 07:01 PM]
Video: "Four Hands, Two Sonatas" - Official Trailer - Netflix
When two young pianists from completely different worlds meet at an elite music high school, the melodies of their lives become intimately intertwined.
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