or


[03/16/06 - 12:00 AM]
Development Update: March 16
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 newly branded "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!

THE 12TH MAN (FOX) - Barry Bostwick (Mayor Randall M. Winston, Jr. on "Spin City") has joined the cast of the comedy pilot, about a benchwarmer (Brian Thomas Smith) on an NBA team. Bostwick will play the team's general manager in the 20th Century Fox Television-based project, which also stars Andrew Katz, Julius Carry, Jodi Lyn O'Keefe and Natalie Garza. Dan Fogelman is behind the half-hour, which Chris Koch is directing. Tim Story also serves as an executive producer.

60 MINUTE MAN (ABC) - Newcomers Kenny Baumann and Candice Bailey have joined the cast of the drama pilot, about a suburban man (David James Elliott) who doesn't remember what he did for one hour each day, driving him to figure out whether he's part of a major national conspiracy. They'll play the children of Elliott's character in the Touchstone Television-based hour, which comes from executive producers Graham Yost, Bert Salke and Chris Brancato. Alex Fernandez, Colm Meaney, Erika Alexander, Gabriel Casseus, Orla Brady and Sarah Jones also star while Jon Avnet is directing.

GAME SHOW MARATHON (CBS) - Ricki Lake ("The Ricki Lake Show") and Stuart Krasnow ("The Weakest Link") have signed on as host and showrunner respectively of the upcoming game show, in which celebrities compete as contestants in recreations of classic formats of the past and present. The initial seven-episode run will be devoted to "The Price Is Right," "Let's Make a Deal," "Match Game" (featuring panelists Betty White and George Foreman), "Card Sharks," "Press Your Luck," "Beat the Clock" and "Family Feud" with Leslie Nielsen, Tim Meadows, Lance Bass, Kathy Najimy, Paige Davis and Adrienne Curry on board as participants. Additional guests are expected to be announced in the coming weeks. In addition, Lake has signed a development deal with "Marathon" producers FremantleMedia North America and Granada America to develop unscripted projects. Krasnow will also serve as an executive producer alongside Fremantle's Cecile Frot-Coutaz and Granada's Curt Northrup and Paul Jackson.

HELP ME HELP YOU (ABC) - Jere Burns (Brian Goodman on "All of Us") is the latest addition to the comedy pilot, about a disparate group of people connected through therapy. He'll play Michael, who's detailed in the casting notice as: "50s, Caucasian or African-American, An attorney. He's a commanding presence with a hair-trigger temper who can explode into rage in an instant. Michael is in Bill's group because the court ordered him into an anger-management program after he threw a phone at his assistant. He has no emotional connection to the group and doesn't want to be there-his snarky comments make this evident. The only upside to the group is the on-going secret affair he's having with fellow group member, Darlene." Charlie Finn, Darlene Hunt, Jim Rash, Lolita Davidovich, Suzy Nakamura and Ted Danson also star in the Regency Television-based half-hour, which comes from creators Alexandra Rushfield and Jennifer Konner. Brian Dannelly directs.

THE JEFF GARLIN PROGRAM (TBS) - Dan Castellaneta (Homer Simpson on "The Simpsons"), Bob Einstein (Larry on "Arrested Development"), Jackie Hoffman (Group Leader on "Starved") and Marla Garlin (Sharon on "The Comeback") have all joined the cast of the comedy pilot, about a fictional variety show hosted by Jeff Garlin and the events of the past week that inspired that particular installment. Castellaneta will play a snippy bank teller with Hoffman as an annoying neighbor and Einstein as the uncle of Garlin's wife (Marla Garlin, playing a version of herself). Garlin himself is behind the half-hour, which he co-wrote with Leo Benvenuti and Steve Rudnick. David Miner and Philip Rosenthal (who has a recurring role) also serve as executive producers.

MR. NICE GUY (ABC) - Diedrich Bader (Tommy Barnett on "Center of the Universe") has joined the cast of the comedy pilot, about a hapless fellow who always ends up looking bad while trying to do the right thing. He'll play Guy, the lead role in the project, who's described in the casting notice as: "Early-mid 30's. The people who know Guy well love him: he's smart, he's funny, and deep down he's really nice. Unfortunately, he is predisposed to say and do inappropriate things that invariably make him look like an ass. In fact, the harder he tries, the more he winds up sticking his foot in his mouth. Despite this, Guy is determined to get through a single day without saying or doing something that pisses someone off. Having to cope with his new out-of-his-league wife, his needy best friend and his crazy sister make this almost impossible." Kevin Weisman and Cara DeLizia also star in the Touchstone Television-based half-hour, which comes from creator Jeff Astrof, director Andy Cadiff and executive producer Peter Traugott. (Note: The original report incorrectly identified Weisman's character as Guy, the title role.)

PRODIGY/BULLY (NBC) - Josh Flitter ("Big Mamma's House 2") is the first to be cast in the comedy pilot, about a family whose genius son uses his smarts to get what he wants. He'll play Henry Tammer in the project, which comes from creators Hank Perlman and Steve Elliott. John Wells, Jon Harmon Feldman and Paris Barclay also serve as executive producers on the half-hour, which is based at Warner Bros. Television.

RUNAWAY (The CW) - Leslie Hope (Melanie Blackston on "Commander in Chief") is the first to sign onto the drama pilot, about a family that, after the husband/father's murder conviction, decide to become fugitives in the hopes that they can buy him enough time to prove his innocence. Hope will play the mother of said family in the Sony Picutres Television-based project, which comes from executive producers Chad Hodge, Darren Star and Ed Zuckerman.

SPLIT DECISION (The CW) - Jessy Schram (Hannah on "Veronica Mars") and Vanessa Lengies (Roxanne Bojarski on "American Dreams") have both joined the cast of the drama pilot, a coming-of-age story about a teenage girl navigating the high school social scene with a "Sliding Doors" twist. Schram will play the lead role in the Spelling Television-based project, with Lengies as an unspecified character. Liz Tigelaar is behind the hour, which also comes from executive producers Aaron Spelling, E. Duke Vincent and Todd Garner. Simon West is expected to direct.

THE UNSUCCESSFUL THUG (HBO) - Mike Epps's ("The Honeymooners") comedy project for the pay channel has been given a green light to produce a pilot. The project centers on the actor/comedian's early days as a small-time criminal with Brad Kaaya, Russell Simmons and Stan Lathan serving as executive producers. Kaaya penned the pilot script, additional details of which weren't released.

UNTITLED CHRIS SHERIDAN PROJECT (NBC) - Jana Marie Hupp (Nancy Burton on "Ed") and Virginia Williams (Claudia on "How I Met Your Mother") have both joined the cast of the comedy pilot, about two brothers (Eddie McClintock, Bruno Campos) on opposite sides of the law who live next door to each other. They'll play the wives of said brothers in the 20th Century Fox Television-based half-hour, which comes from creator Chris Sheridan.

Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [march 2006]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
   


· 12TH MAN, THE (FOX)
· 60 MINUTE MAN (ABC)
· ALL OF US (CW)
· AMERICAN DREAMS (NBC)
· ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT (NETFLIX)
· CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE (CBS)
· COMEBACK, THE (HBO)
· COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF (ABC)
· ED (NBC)
· FAMILY FEUD (SYNDICATION)
· GAMESHOW MARATHON (CBS)
· GREAT MALONES, THE (NBC)
· HELP ME HELP YOU (ABC)
· HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER (CBS)
· JEFF GARLIN PROGRAM, THE (TBS)
· LET'S MAKE A DEAL (NBC)
· MR. NICE GUY (ABC)
· PRODIGY/BULLY (NBC)
· RICKI LAKE (SYNDICATION)
· RUNAWAY (CW)
· SIMPSONS, THE (FOX)
· SPIN CITY (ABC)
· SPLIT DECISION (CW)
· STARVED (FX)
· UNSUCCESSFUL THUG, THE (HBO)
· VERONICA MARS (HULU)
· WEAKEST LINK, THE (NBC)





[11/04/24 - 04:01 PM]
Video: "Zombieverse 2: New Blood" - Official Trailer - Netflix
The groundbreaking K-zombie series returns bolder than ever, with enhanced zombies, new members and wilder quests full of non-stop thrills and laughter.

[11/04/24 - 02:01 PM]
"Outer Banks" Renewed for Fifth and Final Season Following Fan Celebrations at Poguelandia and Multi-Country Pogue Tour
The news comes two days after the second Poguelandia: An Outer Banks Experience, held November 2 at The Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California.

[11/04/24 - 01:31 PM]
Acorn TV's Hit Detective Crime Drama "Dalgliesh" Returns with All-New Episodes Monday, December 2
Season 3 is made up of three distinct mysteries, each two episodes long.

[11/04/24 - 12:01 PM]
NBC Unveils Lineup of New and Returning Beloved Holiday Programming
New programming for 2024 includes "Jimmy Fallon's Holiday Seasoning Spectacular" and "A Motown Christmas," hosted by Smokey Robinson and Halle Bailey.

[11/04/24 - 11:01 AM]
The Final Bell: Production Begins for the Third and Final Season of "Heartbreak High"
In Season 3, it's time for Hartley High's graduating class to say 'goodbye' to school, and 'hello' to adulthood!

[11/04/24 - 11:01 AM]
NBC's "The Voice" Taps Music Icon Sting and Multi-Hyphenate Jennifer Hudson as Season 26 Mega Mentors
Hudson joins Michael Bublé and Reba McEntire while Sting joins coaches Snoop Dogg and Gwen Stefani to mentor the remaining artists as each team prepares for the Knockouts, beginning Monday, November 11.

[11/04/24 - 10:31 AM]
Aussie Luke Hemsworth Joins the Cast of Prime Video's Global Hit Series "Deadloch" Season Two
Hemsworth will join lead cast members Kate Box, Madeleine Sami, Nina Oyama and Alicia Gardiner.

[11/04/24 - 08:32 AM]
Netflix Announces Release of the Documentary "Avicii - I'm Tim" and Avicii's Last Show from Ibiza's Ushuaia
The documentary "Avicii - I'm Tim" and "Avicii - My Last Show" will launch globally on Netflix on December 31.

[11/04/24 - 08:31 AM]
Video: "Countdown: Paul vs. Tyson" - Narrator Announcement, Sneak Peek & Key Art Debut
Ice T will narrate the three-part follow-doc leading up to the Netflix and MVP's heavyweight boxing mega-event.

[11/04/24 - 08:02 AM]
"La Liberacion" Will Premiere Exclusively on Prime Video on January 17
The unique series created and directed by noted filmmaker Alejandra Márquez Abella premieres January 17 on Prime Video.

[11/04/24 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenet Ramsey" - Official Trailer - Netflix
On December 26, 1996, John and Patsy Ramsey woke up the morning after a loving family Christmas to discover their youngest child, six-year-old JonBenét, was missing, a chilling ransom note left downstairs.

[11/04/24 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "The Night Before Christmas in Wonderland" - Official Trailer - Hulu
St Nick (voiced by Gerard Butler) receives a delayed letter on Christmas Eve from the Princess of Hearts.

[11/03/24 - 07:30 PM]
Video: AMC Networks Releases a First Look at Season Three of "The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon"
Starring Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride as the beloved characters "Daryl Dixon" and "Carol Peletier," the new season is set to premiere in 2025 on AMC and AMC+.

[11/02/24 - 06:12 PM]
Video: "Outer Banks" Season 4 - Part 2 Official Trailer - Netflix
Buried secrets surface as the Pogues race to find a legendary artifact - with a dangerous gang of rival treasure hunters hot on their trail.

[11/01/24 - 03:15 PM]
ABC News Studios Announces "Price of Fame: The Liam Payne Story - A Special Edition of 20/20," Airing Nov. 3 at 10 P.M. EST on ABC
The one-hour special explores Liam Payne's meteoric rise to celebrity as a member of boy band One Direction and his personal journey, including his struggles with mental health and the pressures of stardom, as well as his efforts to reinvent himself as a solo artist.