or


[01/24/13 - 11:09 PM]
Development Update: Thursday, January 24
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!


ADVOCATES, THE (CBS) - Pilot wunderkind David Nutter has signed on to direct and executive produce the drama, about "a female lawyer and a male ex-con who team up as victim advocates, going to the edge of the law to right wrongs and fight for the underdog." Nutter, who has delivered 17 of his 18 pilots to series, will work from a script by Bruno Heller for Warner Bros. Television. (Deadline.com)


BROWSERS (Amazon) - Newcomers Dustin Ingram, Constance Wu, Bridgette Davidovici, Marque Richardson and Chris Wood have all been cast in the pilot, a musical comedy set in contemporary Manhattan that follows four young people as they start their first jobs at a news website. Details on their roles weren't given. Bebe Neuwirth also stars in the half-hour, from writer David Javerbaum and director Don Scardino. Amazon Studios is producing. (Deadline.com)


ENLISTED (A.K.A. UNTITLED KEVIN BIEGEL PROJECT) (FOX) - Kevin Biegel's comedy - about "three very different brothers working together in the Army at a small base in Florida" - has been given a pilot commitment by the network. 20th Century Fox Television is behind the single-camera project with Mike Royce also expected to serve in some capacity alongside Biegel. (Deadline.com)


GATES (NBC) - Ken Marino and Aasif Mandvi are the latest to board the comedy pilot, about the hijinks that ensue when parents drop off and pick up their kids at school each day. The former will play Mark Baxley, "a loveable, sweet, well-meaning, puppy-dog of a guy, a type B, or C, maybe even D to his wife's (Kathleen Rose Perkins) type-A personality." Mandvi then is set as another dad at the school, Trevor Palmer, "a super-driven, competitive Yale-educated lawyer who's one of these comedically intense guys who pushes his kids way too hard." Christina Kirk, Diana Maria Riva, John Grisetti and Justin Chon also star in the 20th Century Fox Television-based project, from director Marc Buckland and writers Cathy Yuspa and Josh Goldsmith. (Deadline.com)


JACK JOHNSON (HBO, New!) - Beau Willimon ("Ides of March") is spearheading a new four to six part mini-series at the pay channel about the storied life of the first African-American world heavyweight champion. Ken Burns and Playtone's Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman are on board to executive produce the project, which will be based on Geoffrey C. Ward's book "Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson." Burns, who was behind the Emmy-winning documentary of the same name, will also direct while Willimon will serve as a co-executive producer. (Deadline.com)


TOGETHERNESS (HBO, New!) - Mark and Jay Duplass ("Jeff, Who Lives at Home") have likewise booked a single-camera comedy pilot at the pay network about "two couples living under the same roof who struggle to keep their relationships alive while pursuing their individual dreams." Said duo penned the half-hour and will direct and executive produce with production eyed for an April start. Stephanie Langhoff also serves as a co-executive producer for their Duplass Brothers Productions banner. (Deadline.com)


TWO WRONGS (A.K.A. UNTITLED MICHELLE MORGAN PROJECT) (FOX) - Michelle Morgan has received a pilot commitment from the network for her comedy, about "a couple whose friends and family don't think they are right for each other." The single-camera effort is set up at the 20th Century Fox Television-based Chernin Entertainment with Peter Chernin and Katherine Pope as well as Kaplan Perrone Entertainment's Aaron Kaplan and Sean Perrone executive producing alongside Morgan. (Deadline.com)


UNTITLED ANDREW GURLAND PROJECT (FX, New!) - Andrew Gurland ("The Last Exorcism") has scored a pilot order from the cable channel for a comedy about "a married man who is given permission by his wife to get a mistress in order to save their marriage." Said effort is set up at FX Productions with Paul Young and Peter Principato executive producing alongside Gurland. Salamo Levin will serve as a producer. (Deadline.com)


UNTITLED CRAIG ROBINSON PROJECT (NBC) - The Craig Robinson-led comedy - about "a talented musician with rough edges who adjusts to his new life as a music teacher in a big-city middle school, where he encounters teacher politics and the temptations of single moms" - has scored a pilot order at the Peacock. Owen Ellickson penned the single-camera project and is executive producing alongside Greg Daniels, Tracy Katsky, Howard Klein and Mark Schulman for Universal Television. Robinson will also receive a producer credit. (Deadline.com)


AND IN OTHER NEWS... - Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese's small screen take on "Zombieland" reportedly has found a new home at Amazon (Deadline.com); John Pyper-Ferguson will guest on "Once Upon a Time" as "a widower who wants nothing more than to help his young son heal from the loss of his mother" (EW.com); Sean Patrick Flanery and Charlotte Rampling have both landed roles on the upcoming season of "Dexter" as "the ex-cop owner of a private investigation company in Miami" and "a neuro-psychiatrist who specializes profiling criminals in unorthodox ways," respectively (Deadline.com, EW.com); Larry Manetti is bound for "Hawaii Five-0" as a local lounge legend who assists the team with a case (TVGuide.com); and Sendhil Ramamurthy soon-to-debut ADA Gabe Lowen has been upped to series regular on "Beauty and the Beast" (THR.com).






  [january 2013]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
  


· ADVOCATES, THE (CBS)
· BEAUTY & THE BEAST (CW)
· BROWSERS (AMAZON)
· DEVELOPMENT UPDATE (TFC)
· DEXTER (SHOWTIME)
· ENLISTED (FOX)
· GATES (NBC)
· HAWAII FIVE-0 (CBS)
· MARRIED (FX)
· MR ROBINSON (NBC)
· ONCE UPON A TIME (ABC)
· TOGETHERNESS (HBO)
· TWO WRONGS (FOX)
· UNRULY (HBO)
· ZOMBIELAND (AMAZON)





[04/17/26 - 03:01 PM]
ABC News Is #1 on Sunday Morning and Friday Night
For the third week in a row, "20/20" built on its year-ago telecast in all key target demos: Total Viewers, Adults 25-54 and Adults 18-49.

[04/17/26 - 01:03 PM]
Fourteen Elite Survivalists Compete for National Pride and the Ultimate Cash Prize in "Naked and Afraid: Global Showdown"
Divided into seven pairs representing their homelands, survivalists' skills will be tested by three brutal and unpredictable ecosystems in South Africa's Zululand.

[04/17/26 - 11:31 AM]
A Magical Cast Summoned for the "Wizards Beyond Waverly Place" Final Season
Jennifer Stone, Gregg Sulkin, Maria Canals-Barrera, and Selena Gomez are among the featured talent.

[04/17/26 - 10:10 AM]
TNT Sports Announces Commentators for 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs Presented by Geico First Round Games on Sunday, April 19
TNT Sports will drop the puck on its coverage of the 2026 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs featuring up to 28 First Round games.

[04/17/26 - 09:31 AM]
2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs Presented by Geico Begin Saturday on ESPN
In all, 16 First Round games will play out over the first ten days on ESPN and ESPN2.

[04/17/26 - 09:04 AM]
Video: "Glory" - Official Trailer - Netflix
In a small-town boxing hub, two brothers investigate a shocking murder while navigating a troubled reunion with their father, a renowned coach.

[04/17/26 - 09:00 AM]
Hulu Adds "Handsome," "The Mess Around," "Prison Breaking," and "That Was Us" to Podcast Slate Beginning This Month
These new licensed additions join a growing slate of companion podcasts tied to Disney+ and Hulu's most popular series.

[04/17/26 - 07:15 AM]
TNT Sports Acquires Multi-Year U.S. Broadcast Rights to FIA World Endurance Championship Races
A new era of endurance racing arrives in the U.S. as truTV airs three premier events in full: the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo, and Lone Star Le Mans in Austin, Texas.

[04/17/26 - 06:31 AM]
Bokeem Woodbine and Nona Parker Johnson Join Season Two of "Dexter: Resurrection" for Paramount+
In addition to Woodbine and Johnson's casting, Paramount+ recently announced that Brian Cox will join this season as "The New York Ripper," Uma Thurman will reprise her role as Charley and Dan Stevens will play "The Five Borough Killer."

[04/17/26 - 06:14 AM]
All Roads Lead to Rome: Eternal City Tip-Off Featuring Notre Dame vs. Villanova Launches 2026-27 NCAA College Basketball Season on FOX & FS1
The contest between the two Catholic college basketball powerhouses promises to be an electric start to the 2026-27 season on FOX, with coverage highlighting the incredible atmosphere surrounding the event.

[04/16/26 - 05:01 PM]
A Turn-of-the-Century Superpower Adventure of Goofy Misfits: "The WONDERfools" Premieres May 15
Set in 1999, "The WONDERfools" is an adventure comedy series about a group of neighborhood misfits who unexpectedly gain superpowers and must band together to take on villains threatening world peace.

[04/16/26 - 01:11 PM]
"Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" Renewed for Season 28 by NBC
The network confirmed the news on social media this afternoon.

[04/16/26 - 12:01 PM]
NBC Sports Adds to Game and Studio Teams for WNBA Coverage Beginning May
Zora Stephenson, Noah Eagle, and Michael Grady will call games as the play-by-play voices, with LaChina Robinson as both studio host and game analyst, and Sarah Kustok as a game analyst.

[04/16/26 - 12:01 PM]
Next on Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN - May 2026
Highlights include "Travis Japan Summer Vacation!! in the USA," "The Punisher: One Last Kill," and "The Nightmare Upstairs: What Happened to Ty and Bryn."

[04/16/26 - 10:36 AM]
"American Idol" Rocks to a 5-Week High
Among Adults 18-49, "American Idol" grew over the prior week, delivering its best performance in 7 weeks.