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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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[11/02/26 - 03:48 PM]
Video: Peacock Debuts Official Fall Sizzle for "Days of Our Lives"
Featuring drama, romance, mystery, and suspense, "Days" follows the lives, loves, and conflicts of the Horton, Brady, DiMera, Kiriakis, and Hernandez families and their many friends and colleagues.
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[11/02/26 - 03:01 PM]
Video: "Quiztopia" - Official Trailer - Netflix
Win: any wish granted. Lose: forced labor. When a bitter girl and rebels target a national quiz show's iconic host, an alternate Japan spirals into chaos.
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[11/02/26 - 01:31 PM]
HBO Renews Original Comedy Series "Youth," from Sharon Horgan, for a Second Season
The series follows a 50-year-old divorcee's search for sex and love whilst juggling caring for her ailing parents and parenting her should-be grown up son.
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[11/02/26 - 12:04 PM]
Video: "The 12 Dates of Christmas" - Official Trailer - Hulu
Christina Walker (Lucy Hale), a successful shop owner who has devoted her energy to her career at the expense of her dating life, goes on 12 dates in the 12 weeks leading up to Christmas hoping to find Mr. Right.
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[11/02/26 - 11:01 AM]
Video: "One Last Order" - Official Trailer - Netflix
After 37 years of turning drive-thru orders into personal connections, Sighle Williams expects a quiet farewell from a Florida burger joint - but her town has other plans.
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[11/02/26 - 09:03 AM]
Video: MGM+ Debuts Official Trailer and Key Art for "Secret Service"
Adapted from Tom Bradby's bestselling novel, "Secret Service" follows senior MI6 officer Kate Henderson (Gemma Arterton), whose covert investigation uncovers evidence that a high-ranking UK politician may be working as a Russian asset.
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[11/02/26 - 09:00 AM]
The History Channel to Premiere "Mission to Honor: A 250th Salute to American Veterans" on Veterans Day at 10PM ET/PT, in Partnership with the White House and Freedom 250
Created in partnership with the White House and Freedom 250, the special honors the service and sacrifice of U.S. veterans through their own words and personal accounts.
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[11/02/26 - 09:00 AM]
Video: Official Trailer For Season 3 of "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" Unleashes a Perilous New Quest
Season three will premiere with two episodes on November 20, followed by two episodes dropping each week on Disney+ and Hulu.
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[11/02/26 - 08:32 AM]
Investigation Discovery Reimagines Its Iconic True Crime Franchise with "Deadly Women 2.0," Premiering November 10 at 9PM ET/PT
Guided by criminal psychologist Dr. Michelle Ward and criminal and forensic psychologist Dr. Rachel Toles, the series covers shocking cases from femme fatales to love triangles and scandalous affairs and the psychology behind them and their perpetrators.
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[11/02/26 - 08:01 AM]
HBO Original Documentary "The Buffalo Miracle" Debuts November 24
The film tells the extraordinary true story of total strangers who found life-saving shelter, friendship, and an unexpected Christmas miracle inside a McDonald's that refused to close when a once-in-a-generation blizzard devastated Buffalo, New York.
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[11/02/26 - 07:01 AM]
Netflix and Druski Announce Multi-Year Deal to Develop and Produce Original Series, Starting December 1 with "Collect & Praise"
The series is built around the comedian's viral megachurch character, expanding one of his most popular internet personas into a longform television production.
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[11/02/26 - 07:01 AM]
Video: "The Man with the Bag" - Official Trailer - Prime Video
Naughty, meet Nice. "The Man with the Bag" premieres December 2.
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[11/02/26 - 06:04 AM]
Freeform's "25 Days of Christmas" Unwraps a Month of Holiday Favorites
It's a very merry Thriftmas as "That Thrifting Show with Lara Spencer: Holiday Edition - Sleigh the Family Room!" premieres December 3.
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[11/01/26 - 10:01 PM]
Video: "Style Wars" - Main Trailer - Disney+
Just purely relying on fashion instincts.
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[11/01/26 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "My Best Friend" - Official Trailer - Netflix
When empty nest syndrome hits, two BFFs follow their teen daughters to Portugal and find love, fun and a whole new meaning of friendship along the way.
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