or


[01/19/10 - 07:33 PM]
Development Update: Tuesday, January 19
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!


ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A 5TH GRADER? (Syndication) - Twentieth Television has cleared the syndicated incarnation of the game show for a second season. The series is a go in the top five markets, including WPIX New York, KTTV/KCOP Los Angeles and WFLD/WPWR Chicago. Mark Burnett and Zoo Productions are behind the project.


BODY OF EVIDENCE (ABC, New!) - Chris Murphey ("Dead Lawyers") has snagged a pilot order from the Alphabet for a new drama about Megan Hunt, "a former neurosurgeon-turned-medical examiner who brings a unique and crime-solving perspective to the ME's office that often puts her at odds with her superiors." Murphey penned the hour and is executive producing alongside Matt Gross, on whose idea the project is based. ABC Studios is producing.


HAPPY ENDINGS (ABC, New!) - Newcomer David Caspe has booked a pilot commitment from the network for a new single-camera comedy about "a couple that breaks up at the altar, forcing them and their group of friends to figure out how to maintain their friendships after the split." Sony Pictures Television is behind the half-hour, which is executive produced by Jamie Tarses and her studio-based FanFare Productions banner.


NEVERMIND NIRVANA (FOX, New!) - Ajay Sahgal is once again developing the multi-camera comedy, about "two brothers from a traditional Indian background - one defies his family's expectations by dating a Caucasian woman, while the other agrees to enter an arranged marriage." FOX has ordered a pilot for the 20th Century Fox Television-based project, the third time it has received such a commitment. NBC originally took a stab back in the spring of 2004 with Kal Penn and Judy Greer in the lead roles. David Schwimmer helmed the half-hour, which didn't make the cut for the 2004-05 season. The producers then opted to reshoot the pilot that summer with Sahgal himself as the male lead but the Peacock passed on that incarnation as well. FOX topper Kevin Reilly shepherded both versions while at NBC, making its revival not much of a surprise. Sahgal won't topline the FOX version, which is likewise based on his experiences as the son of Indian immigrants who eventually married a Caucasian woman (actress Kelli Williams). It's not clear if original executive producers Schwimmer, Jamie Tarses and Karey Burke will be involved in the update.


THE ODDS (CBS, New!) - Feature writer/director Jeff Wadlow ("Never Back Down") has scored a pilot order from the Eye for a new drama billed as "a buddy cop show set in Las Vegas where the cops are just as outrageous as the crimes they solve." Wadlow penned the Warner Bros. Television-based hour and is executive producing alongside Joel Silver with Beau Bauman producing. No other specifics were given.


OFF THE MAP (ABC) - The Alphabet has greenlit production on Jenna Bans's ("Grey's Anatomy") drama pilot, about "three doctors, each anxious for a fresh start, [who] leave the comfort of the States to work at an isolated tropical clinic, where they face both exotic and unusual medical challenges as well as personal ones." ABC Studios is behind the hour, which is set up at Shonda Rhimes's studio-based Shondaland banner. Bans and Rhimes then will executive produce alongside Betsy Beers.


THE STRIP (A.K.A. UNTITLED THOMAS LENNON PROJECT) (NBC) - The Thomas Lennon led comedy has received a pilot order from the Peacock. The multi-camera half-hour revolves around "a former child star (Lennon) who now owns a Hooters-type restaurant in a strip mall on the outskirts of Vegas." Lennon and Robert Ben Garant co-wrote the script to the Universal Media Studios-based project, which Garant will also co-star in a supporting role. The duo will also executive produce alongside Peter Principato and Paul Young.


TORCHWOOD (FOX) - Russell T. Davies is developing a U.S. incarnation of the "Doctor Who" spin-off about "a covert group that investigates and fights alien activity." BBC America currently holds the broadcast rights to the original incarnation, which wrapped its third season last summer. The Hollywood Reporter suggests co-star John Barrowman may be part of the new version, however the project is still in the early stages of development. Davies, Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter are the executive producers attached for BBC Worldwide Productions.


UNTITLED BROADWAY MUSICAL PROJECT (Showtime) - Theresa Rebeck ("Canterbury's Law") has been tapped to pen the potential drama, which "chronicles the development of an original Broadway musical, from the inception of the idea through the opening night and everything in between." Storyline Entertainment's Craig Zadan and Neil Meron and DreamWorks Television's Steven Spielberg, Daryl Frank and Justin Falvey are all behind the hour, which would spawn an actual Broadway musical at the end of the first season. Also on board are Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman as songwriters, who are expected to receive an executive producing credits.


Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [january 2010]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
     


· ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A FIFTH GRADER? (SYNDICATION)
· BODY OF PROOF (ABC)
· CANTERBURY'S LAW (FOX)
· DEAD LAWYERS (SYFY)
· DEVELOPMENT UPDATE (TFC)
· DOCTOR WHO (BBC AMERICA)
· GREY'S ANATOMY (ABC)
· HAPPY ENDINGS (ABC)
· NEARLY NIRVANA (NBC)
· NEVERMIND NIRVANA (FOX)
· ODDS, THE (CBS)
· OFF THE MAP (ABC)
· SMASH (NBC)
· STRIP, THE (NBC)
· TORCHWOOD (STARZ)
· TORCHWOOD (FOX)





[05/23/13 - 01:47 PM]
"The Americans" Scores - Ties As Most-Watched First Season of Any FX Drama
FX further spins the numbers for the season to date.

[05/23/13 - 01:34 PM]
VH1 Is Back on the Therapist's Couch with Season 3 of "VH1 Couples Therapy" on Wednesday June 12th at 10 PM ET/PT
Joe Francis & Abby Wilson, Flavor Flav & Elizabeth Trujillo, Chingy & Temple Poteat, Dustin Zito & Heather Marter and Caitlin Lowell & Tyler Baltierra are on tap.

[05/23/13 - 01:28 PM]
ESPN and ESPN3 Present 2013 Scripps National Spelling Bee Finals
ESPN will mark its 20th year of televising the event by presenting 14 hours of the competition live beginning Wednesday, May 29.

[05/23/13 - 12:43 PM]
Hollywood's Hottest Talent Added to Spike TV's "Guys Choice" Lineup
Seth MacFarlane, Mark Wahlberg, Vin Diesel, Jeff Bridges, Jason Sudeikis, Jackie Chan, Andrew Luck, Chrissy Teigen, Katherine Webb and Joseph Gordon-Levitt are slated to appear.

[05/23/13 - 12:30 PM]
ACC College Football Games Added to ESPN's 2013 Schedule
The season kicks off with a Thursday ESPN College Football Primetime telecast pitting North Carolina at the SEC's No. 8 South Carolina on August 29, at 6 p.m. on ESPN.

[05/23/13 - 12:12 PM]
FX Connects "The Bridge" to Viewers July 10th
Demian Bichir and Diane Kruger star in the 13-episode series, airing Wednesdays at 10:00/9:00c.

[05/23/13 - 11:37 AM]
Video: New Bar Anthem from the Cast of TBS's "Sullivan & Son"
Look for the show's second season to debut on Thursday, June 13 at 10:00/9:00c.

[05/23/13 - 11:18 AM]
TNT's Exclusive Coverage of the 2013 NBA Eastern Conference Finals Game 1 Delivers 5.3 U.S. HH Rating & 8.2 Million Total Viewers
TNT spins the numbers for Wednesday, May 22.

[05/23/13 - 10:50 AM]
The CW Moves Up the Second Season Premiere of Ballet Docuseries "Breaking Pointe" to Monday, July 22
The series will return for a sophomore season one week earlier than previously announced.

[05/23/13 - 10:28 AM]
Jay Leno and Jimmy Fallon Dominate with "Tonight's" Biggest 18-49 Audience Since December and "Late Night's" Best Since New Year's Week
NBC spins the late-night numbers for the week of May 13-17.

[05/23/13 - 10:27 AM]
Video: First Look at CBS New Fall Series
The Eye releases full trailers for "Mom," "We Are Men," "The Millers," "The Crazy Ones" and "Hostages."

[05/23/13 - 10:04 AM]
USA Network to Air Academy Award(R)-Winning Film "Milk" with Special Introduction by Emmy(R)Award-Winner and Activist Neil Patrick Harris
"Milk" will be featured in commemoration of Pride Month, with limited commercial interruptions, on Saturday, June 1 at 8:00/7:00c.

[05/23/13 - 10:03 AM]
Lucky and the Gang Help a Newspaper Delivery Girl Adopt a Pup on "Pound Puppies," Saturday June 1
Eric McCormack, Yvette Nicole Brown, John DiMaggio, Michael Rapaport and Alanna Ubach are all back with new episodes.

[05/23/13 - 10:03 AM]
"Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer," the Story of the Controversial Russian Feminist Art Collective and the Trial That Rocked a Nation, Kicks Off HBO Documentary Films' Summer Series June 10
An official selection of the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, the film received the World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Punk Spirit.

[05/23/13 - 10:00 AM]
ABC Family Continues to Grow Its Original Programming and Greenlights a New Comedy Series, "Spell-Mageddon"
It will join the network's Wednesday night comedy line-up on Wednesday July 24 at 9:00/8:00c.