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[01/22/20 - 11:27 PM]
Development Update: Wednesday, January 22
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!
ALEX CROSS (Amazon, New!) - James Patterson's literary hero, the focus of 29 books, is set to be the focus of a drama series at the streaming service. Amazon Studios and Paramount Television are behind the project, full details of which were not specified. Morgan Freeman played the character in the films "Kiss the Girls" and "Along Came a Spider" while Tyler Perry most recently assumed the role in 2012's "Alex Cross." James Patterson Entertainment's Patterson and Bill Robinson will executive produce alongside Skydance Television's David Ellison, Dana Goldberg and Marcy Ross. (Variety.com)
AMERICAN CRIME STORY (FX) - Billy Eichner has been cast as Drudge Report founder Matt Drudge in the upcoming "Impeachment" installment of the anthology series. In addition, Richard Shepard has been tapped to serve as a director and executive producer. (Deadline.com)
AT THAT AGE (NBC) - Malcolm D. Lee's drama - billed as the exploration of an African-American family's legacy - has been ordered to pilot by the network. Lee will direct from a script by Carla Banks-Waddles with the duo executive producing via his Blackmaled Productions banner for Universal Television. Debra Martin Chase will also executive produce. (Deadline.com)
BRASSIC (Hulu, New!) - The streaming service has acquired the Sky comedy series, about Vinnie (Joe Gilgun), "a man from the north of England with bipolar disorder and his best mate Dylan (Damien Molony), whose girlfriend Erin (Michelle Keegan) decides to leave town. Dylan is faced with the impossible decision between a fresh start with the love of his life or staying behind with his inseparable gang of mates that he can't live without." Dominic West also stars. Gilgun and Danny Brocklehurst created the project, which comes from Calamity Films. (Deadline.com)
DMZ (HBO Max) - Rosario Dawson has booked the lead role on the pilot, a small screen take on Brian Wood's comic book series of the same name. She will play fierce medic Alma Ortego, "who goes on a harrowing journey of saving lives while desperately searching for her lost son. As she contends with the gangs, militias, demagogues and warlords that control this lawless no man's land, she becomes the unlikely source of what everyone here has lost... hope." (Deadline.com)
ECHO (NBC, New!) - J.J. Bailey has scored a pilot order from the Peacock network for a new high-concept drama "revolving around a team of investigators who solve the highest-profile crimes by sending our heroes into the past... in the body of the victim. They assume the victim's identity and must race against time to prevent the crime before it happens." Davis Entertainment's John Davis and John Fox also executive produce for Universal Television. (Deadline.com)
EXTRAPOLATIONS (Apple TV+, New!) - Scott Z. Burns is spearheading a potential anthology series at the company which "will tell intimate stories of how the upcoming changes to our planet will affect love, faith, work and family on a personal and human scale." Media Res is behind the project, with its principal Michael Ellenberg executive producing alongside Burns. (Variety.com)
FEAR AGENT (Amazon, New!) - Rick Remender and Tony Moore's comic book series is getting the small screen treatment at the streaming service. Its logline: "Interstellar invaders. Time travel. Clones of clones of clones, and lots of whiskey. Whether he's battling the scourge of space, going back in time to stop the alien invasion that changed Earth forever, or winning his ex-wife back, there's nothing that Heath Huston won't do to try to right the wrongs and gets his family back. He is, after all, the last Fear Agent." Writer Matt Tolmach and director David F. Sandberg are spearheading the project for Amazon Studios with Remender, Moore and Lotta Losten as well as Point Grey Productions' Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and James Weaver also executive producing. (Deadline.com)
GOLD DIGGER (Acorn TV, New!) - The Julia Ormond-led BBC drama has been cleared in the U.S. on the streaming service this summer. Ormond stars as Julia Day, "an older woman who falls in love with Benjamin, a younger man, played by Ben Barnes." Alex Jennings, Jemima Rooper and Sebastian Armesto also star in the project, from Mainstreet Pictures. (Deadline.com)
HARLEM'S KITCHEN (A.K.A. RICE) (ABC) - Zahir McGhee's drama - set in a fine dining restaurant in Harlem - has received a pilot order from the Alphabet. Marcus Samuelsson, Laurie Zaks, Todd Lieberman and David Hoberman also serve as executive producers for Mandeville Television and ABC Studios. Its logline is as follows: "An ensemble family drama set in a fine dining restaurant in Harlem. Ellis Rice, Executive Chef and patriarch, runs a successful restaurant with his wife and three daughters. But an unexpected death thrusts the family into turmoil and puts the restaurant's future in jeopardy as long-buried secrets are revealed." (Deadline.com)
MAGICIANS, THE (Syfy) - Co-creator Sera Gamble has signed a multi-year overall deal with Universal Content Productions, the studio behind the series. The pact has a carve-out that will allow her to continue as showrunner on "You," which was recently renewed for a third season. (THR.com)
MOST DANGEROUS GAME (A.K.A. LIAM HEMSWORTH QUIBI PROJECT) (Quibi) - The Liam Hemsworth-led drama has formally been titled "Most Dangerous Game." The project is expected to be one of the streaming service's first entries. Christoph Waltz, Sarah Gadon, Zach Cherry, Aaron Poole, Christopher Webster, Billy Burke and Natasha Bordizzo also star. (Deadline.com)
RIPLEY (Showtime) - Johnny Flynn has been cast opposite Andrew Scott in the Tom Ripley series as Dickie Greenleaf. In the series, "Tom Ripley (Scott), a grifter scraping by in early 1960s New York, is hired by a wealthy man to try to convince his vagabond son, Dickie Greenleaf (Flynn), who is living a comfortable, trust-funded ex-pat life in Italy, to return home." (Deadline.com)
TROUBLE WITH MAGGIE COLE, THE (PBS, New!) - The broadcaster has acquired the U.S. rights to the ITV drama, which stars Dawn French and "delves into what happens when idle gossip escalates out of control." No other details were given about the project, formerly known as "Glass Houses." (Deadline.com)
UNDERGROUND RAILROAD, THE (Amazon) - Lily Rabe is the latest to recur on Barry Jenkins's upcoming drama as Ethel Wells, "Martin's (Damon Herriman) wife and the mother of their daughter." (Deadline.com)
UNITED STATES OF AL, THE (CBS) - Dean Norris has signed onto the multi-camera comedy pilot as Art, "a veteran whose son, Riley (Parker Young), a former Marine, and daughter Lizzie (TBD), still live with him. Art understands the close bond Riley shares with Al (Adhir Kalyan), his Afghan translator, and warmly welcomes Al into his home." (Deadline.com)
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[12/17/25 - 02:06 PM]
Apple TV Expands "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters" Universe with New Spin-Off Series
The thrilling new untitled Young Lee Shaw prequel stars Wyatt Russell, reprising his role as Colonel Lee Shaw.
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[12/17/25 - 01:46 PM]
CBS Celebrates the Life and Legacy of a Hollywood Legend in "CBS News: Rob Reiner - Scenes from a Life" to Be Broadcast Dec. 21, 8:30 PM, ET/8:00 PM, PT
The one-hour special replaces the previously announced holiday-themed episodes of "Hollywood Squares," which move to Monday, December 22 at 10:00/9:00c.
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[12/17/25 - 01:30 PM]
ABC News' "Nightline" Ranks #1 in Total Viewers
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[12/17/25 - 01:00 PM]
CBS Media Ventures Adds Three Titles to Their Distribution Slate for Fall 2026
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[12/17/25 - 12:00 PM]
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[12/17/25 - 11:59 AM]
Video: Official Season 8 Trailer - "The Rookie"
On Tuesday, January 6 on ABC, get ready for a season premiere with explosive action, unexpected alliances, and cases that stretch across continents.
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[12/17/25 - 11:30 AM]
FOX Entertainment Studios Signs Producer Jeffrey Levine and His Bronson Canyon Pictures to Multi-Year First-Look Deal
Under the agreement, Levine will develop and produce scripted television series for the studio across broadcast, streaming, and emerging digital storytelling platforms.
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[12/17/25 - 10:16 AM]
Versant Announces Long-Term Partnership Extension with Rory McIlroy and Launch of New Production Venture
Under the agreement, which extends through 2038, Rory McIlroy will continue to serve as the global face and partner of GolfPass, reinforcing the platform's premium positioning and its commitment to best-in-class golf experiences.
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[12/17/25 - 10:05 AM]
Video: "Scars of Beauty" - Second Season Confirmed - HBO Max
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[12/17/25 - 10:05 AM]
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[12/17/25 - 10:00 AM]
"Hollywood Squares" Kicks Off Season 2 with Star-Studded Celebrity Lineup
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[12/17/25 - 10:00 AM]
AMC Networks' January Highlights Include "Gangs of London," "Sanctuary: A Witch's Tale," "My Life Is Murder," "Planet Earth: Kingdom" and More
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[12/17/25 - 09:46 AM]
Netflix Announces Series Adaptation of Liz Moore's "The God of the Woods"
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[12/17/25 - 09:43 AM]
The Academy Partners with YouTube for Exclusive Global Rights to the Oscars and Other Academy Content Starting in 2029
The multi-year deal begins in 2029 with the 101st Oscars ceremony and runs through 2033.
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[12/17/25 - 09:34 AM]
ESPN to Debut "MNF Playbook with Next Gen Stats" Dec. 22, An NFL Data-Cast Aimed at Avid Fans; Complements "Monday Night Football" and ESPN NFL Postseason Slate
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