[01/13/12 - 10:49 PM] Development Update: Friday, January 13 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!
COUNTER CULTURE (A.K.A. UNTITLED STEPHNIE WEIR PROJECT) (ABC) - The Stephnie Weir-penned comedy, about "three aging sisters running their family diner together in West Texas who find that sibling dynamics are always getting in the way of getting the job done," has snagged a pilot order at the Alphabet. Claudia Lonow is on board to supervise the multi-camera project, which is being co-produced by ABC Studios and Sony Pictures Television. (Deadline.com)DO NO HARM (NBC, New!) - David Schulner has booked a pilot order at the Peacock for a new "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde"-esque medical drama about "a brilliant neurosurgeon who wrestles with his dangerous alter-ego that threatens to wreak havoc on his personal and professional life." Peter Traugott and Rachel Kaplan are executive producing alongside Schulner for Universal Television. (Deadline.com)THE FRONTIER (NBC) - Shaun Cassidy's period drama has been greenlit to pilot by the Peacock. Said hour, from Sony Pictures Television and Prospect Park, "chronicles the journey of a group of disparate travelers from Missouri to the West Coast in 1840." Thomas Schlamme is attached to direct and executive produce alongside Cassidy and Josh Barry. (Deadline.com)THE GILDED LILYS (ABC) - K.J. Steinberg's period drama, billed as "an epic love story that follows the opening of the first luxury hotel in the New York City and the intermingling of love, treachery and disdain between the classes" in 1895, is moving forward to pilot. Steinberg penned the hour and will executive produce alongside Shonda Rhimes and Betsy Beers for their ABC Studios-based Shondaland banner. (Deadline.com)LADYFRIENDS (NBC) - Kari Lizer's comedy at the Peacock, about "two friends, Nicole and Jen, who lead vastly different lives who can't live without one another," has been ordered to pilot. The multi-camera project, in which "Nicole has a perfect family and a trouble-free pregnancy, while Jen has a strained relationship with her family, trouble with men and gained weight while on a diet," comes from Warner Bros. Television. (Deadline.com)MIDNIGHT SUN (A.K.A. PILLARS OF SMOKE) (NBC) - The Peacock's import of the Israeli series "Pillars of Smoke" has been ordered to pilot. Lisa Zwerling penned the hour, about "an FBI investigation of a group of people living in an Alaskan commune who disappear without trace," for Universal Television with Peter Traugott, Rachel Kaplan and Alon Aranya also serving as executive producers. (Variety.com)AND IN OTHER NEWS... - Syfy is finalizing a deal to pick up seven additional episodes of "Warehouse 13," bringing its season total to 20 (Deadline.com); Merritt Wever is set to recur on "The Good Wife" as Will's (Josh Charles) younger sister Audra who shows up on his doorstep determined to repair his personal life (TVLine.com); Justin Hartley is bound for "Hart of Dixie" as a charming Southerner and war hero who becomes a potential love interest for Rachel Bilson's Zoe (TVLine.com); Steven Pasquale has booked a four-episode arc on "Up All Night" as Reagan's (Christina Applegate) new boss and a potential new love interest for Maya Rudolph's Ava (TVGuide.com); and Cassidy Freeman will guest on "The Vampire Diaries" as sexy and fearless woman whose "allure is felt by the Salvatore brothers as well as by the Original family" (TVLine.com).
