or


[03/01/04 - 12:00 AM]
Development Update: March 1
By The Futon Critic Staff (TFC)

CHICAGO (thefutoncritic.com) -- The latest development news, culled from recent wire reports:

Looking to keep track of all the various pilots and other projects in development? Be sure to check out our detailed production chart listings by clicking here.

CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE (CBS) - Melinda McGraw ("Living in Captivity") is the latest actor to join the cast of the comedy pilot, which centers on a family man (John Goodman) who tries to keep the peace with his extended Chicago family. McGraw joins the previously cast Goodman, Jean Smart and Diedrich Bader in the project, where she'll play the sister of Goodman's character.

CITY OF DREAMS (NBC) - The Peacock has pushed the Jimmy Smits-led drama pilot to midseason 2005 consideration as the network reportedly wants to give writer/producer David Mills ("Kingpin") more time to develop the project. "Dreams," which comes from Jerry Bruckheimer Television ("C.S.I.," "Without a Trace") and Warner Bros. Television, features Smits as a Los Angeles private investigator who fixes problems for the rich and famous.

COUNTDOWN (ABC) - Chi McBride isn't waiting for the axe to fall on "Boston Public" as the actor has joined the cast of the drama pilot, which chronicles the final 43 minutes of a crisis through the eyes of a S.W.A.T. team. McBride will play Capt. John Richardson in the Touchstone Television./FremantleMedia project, the commander of the aforementioned S.W.A.T. team. He joins the previously cast Jason O'Mara, Louis Mandylor, Salli Richardson and Adam Beach in the pilot, which comes from "Boomtown" creator Graham Yost.

THE DANA & JULIA SHOW (A.K.A. UNTITLED GOODMAN & WOLVO PROJECT) (WB) - The Frog's "Laverne & Shirley"-esque comedy pilot is scheduled to tape Friday, March 19 at 6:30 P.S.T. at Sony Pictures Studios.

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES (ABC) - Marcia Cross ("Everwood") is set as the fourth "housewife" in the drama pilot, a darkly humorous look at the secretive lives of four women living in an Anytown, U.S.A., cul-de-sac. She joins the previously set leads Eva Longoria, Teri Hatcher and Felicity Huffman in the Touchstone Television project, where she'll play Bree, a Martha Stewart-esque housewife.

EVERYDAY LIFE (NBC) - Rob Reiner has opted to move in front of the camera for his comedy pilot at the Peacock, as the actor/director, along with Mercedes Ruehl, have joined the cast of the project. They'll play the parents of Josh Radnor's character, a psychiatrist who along with his fellow shrink wife end up moving back in with his parents, who are also psychiatrists. Reiner signed on to appear in the Universal Network Television pilot after Alan Alda, originally approached for the role, ultimately passed. "Life" is scheduled to tape at Universal Studios on Tuesday, March 23.

FOSTER HALL (NBC) - Busy Phillips ("Freaks & Geeks," "Dawson's Creek") and Greg Germann ("Ally McBeal") have joined the cast of the comedy pilot, which comes from NBC Studios and Conan O'Brien's production company, Conaco Productions. Phillips will play the sister of Macaulay Culkin's character, Clark Hall, while Germann will play her husband. "Hall" centers on siblings (Culkin, Phillips) who reunite after years of being bumped from foster home to foster home.

THE FRIENDLYS (NBC) - Ana Gasteyer ("Saturday Night Live") has joined the cast of the comedy pilot, an offbeat comedy that revolves around a family's fight over a dead candy mogul's business. She'll play Bebe, the boozy widow of said candy mogul in the NBC Studios project, which also stars Dave Foley and Billy Gardell.

LUCKY US (FOX) - Jill Ritchie ("The Pool at Maddy Breaker's") is the latest to join the cast of the comedy pilot, which centers on a couple (Chyler Leigh, T.B.D.) who go out on a blind date and wind up with a kid. Ritchie will play the best friend of Leigh's character in the project, which comes from 20th Century Fox Television and Original Television. The pilot is currently scheduled to tape on Tuesday, March 23 at Fox Studios.

MAD MAD HOUSE (Sci Fi) - The cable channel will wrap the show's first season with a two-hour finale on Thursday, April 29 at 9:00/8:00c. Casting has already begun on a potential second season of the project (read the story), which debuts this Thursday at 9:00/8:00c.

ROBBING THE CRADLE (WB) - Ben Feldman ("Kissing Jessica Stein") has snagged the lead role in the Jamie Kennedy-produced comedy pilot, which revolves around a 24-year-old (Feldman) who moves back home with his mom and her 24-year-old boyfriend. Regency Television and Kennedy's Wannabe Producers are behind the project.

SUPER MILLIONAIRE (ABC) - ABC has picked up its "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" revival for a second cycle, set to unspool during May sweeps. According to ABC's press release about the news: "'Super Millionaire's' return to ABC's primetime schedule on Sunday, February 22, drew an average audience of 17.5 million viewers to rank as the most-watched television program that night. Also on its return, the show delivered the largest audience and highest young adult ratings for the 'Millionaire' franchise since May 2001. On each of its four telecasts so far, 'Super Millionaire' has been ABC's No. 1 show of the night among viewers and young adults. Versus ABC's delivery this season with entertainment programming in the time periods, 'Super Millionaire' is up by 5.2 million Total Viewers (14.3 million vs. 9.1 million), by 34% among Adults 18-49 (4.7/11 vs. 3.5/9) and by 54% among Adults 18-34 (4.0/11 vs. 2.6/7). On average, "Super Millionaire" builds on its lead-in by over 4 million viewers and gains audience during the course of its telecast."

UNTITLED ISAAC MIZRAHI PROJECT (Syndication, New!) - NBC's syndication arm, NBC Enterprises, has signed designer Isaac Mizrahi to an overall development deal. The pact calls for the company to develop a project to be hosted by Mizrahi, who recently appeared on the Peacock's "The Apprentice." Mizrahi is no stranger to hosting as the prolific designer headlined Oxygen's "The Isaac Mizrahi Show" for three years.

WANTED (CBS) - Yancey Arias ("Kingpin") is set to star alongside Scott Glenn in the drama pilot, which revolves around the fugitive-apprehension team of the L.A.P.D. He'll play a member of the team, a zealous cop, in the CBS Productions/Warner Bros. Television/25C Productions project.

Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [march 2004]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
 


· ALLY MCBEAL (FOX)
· APPRENTICE, THE (NBC)
· BOOMTOWN (NBC)
· BOSTON PUBLIC (FOX)
· CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE (CBS)
· CITY OF DREAMS (NBC)
· COUNTDOWN (ABC)
· CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION (CBS)
· DANA & JULIA SHOW, THE (WB)
· DAWSON'S CREEK (WB)
· DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES (ABC)
· EVERWOOD (WB)
· EVERYDAY LIFE (NBC)
· FOSTER HALL (NBC)
· FREAKS & GEEKS (NBC)
· FRIENDLYS, THE (NBC)
· KINGPIN (NBC)
· LIVING WITH FRAN (WB)
· LUCKY US (FOX)
· MAD MAD HOUSE (SCI FI)
· POOL AT MADDY BREAKER'S, THE (FOX)
· UNTITLED ISAAC MIZRAHI PROJECT (SYNDICATION)
· WANTED (CBS)
· WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE (ABC)
· WITHOUT A TRACE (CBS)





[05/09/24 - 11:38 AM]
"Law & Order: Organized Crime" Moves to Peacock for Upcoming Fifth Season
John Shiban is returning as showrunner for season five.

[05/09/24 - 11:01 AM]
Video: "Exploding Kittens" - Official Trailer - Netflix
Earth sucks, so God (Tom Ellis) gets fired and sent to Earth to reconnect with humanity. The catch? He's trapped in the body of a chubby house cat.

[05/09/24 - 11:00 AM]
Video: AMC Networks Releases Official Trailer for Riveting Sci-Fi Thriller "Orphan Black: Echoes" Premiering Sunday, June 23
Set in the near future, "Orphan Black: Echoes" takes a deep dive into the exploration of the scientific manipulation of human existence.

[05/09/24 - 10:13 AM]
Hulu Teases First Peek at Dame Jilly Cooper's "Rivals" Coming in 2024
Alex Hassell, Aidan Turner, Nafessa Williams, Katherine Parkinson, Bella Maclean and David Tennant star in the eight-part series, based on the celebrated novel by Dame Jilly Cooper.

[05/09/24 - 10:04 AM]
ABC News Studios Announces New True-Crime Docuseries "The Beauty Queen Killer: 9 Days of Terror," Streaming Only on Hulu Beginning Thursday, May 16
The new true-crime docuseries delves into the harrowing stories of the women who survived rampaging killer Christopher Wilder.

[05/09/24 - 10:02 AM]
FX's "The Bear" - Season Three Premieres June 27 Exclusively on Hulu
The first teaser for Season 3 was also released today and is available here - along with a first-look image.

[05/09/24 - 10:01 AM]
Video: "Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trial" - Official Trailer - Netflix
This six-part documentary series from director Joe Berlinger explores the shocking rise and fall of Hitler and his enablers who were fueled through propaganda, censorship and a campaign of antisemitism.

[05/09/24 - 09:59 AM]
Video: Starz Releases Jaw Dropping Trailer and Key Art for Fourth and Final Season of "Power Book II: Ghost"
Part one of "Power Book II: Ghost" debuts on Friday, June 7, at midnight ET on the Starz app, coinciding with the 10th Anniversary of "Power's" debut on Starz.

[05/09/24 - 09:59 AM]
The CW New Series "The Big Bakeover" Premieres June 14
Bakery expert, business professional and author Nancy Birtwhistle is on a mission traveling across America to save struggling bakeries.

[05/09/24 - 09:48 AM]
Special Episode of "Cold Justice" Airs Sunday, May 12 at 8:00PM ET/PT on Oxygen True Crime
The all-new special episode will follow prosecutor Kelly Siegler as she shares exclusive updates on past cases, answers burning questions, and catches up with victims' family members and fan-favorite cops, to bring audiences an inside look into the justice they're bringing to the victims.

[05/09/24 - 09:41 AM]
Peacock's Record-Breaking Comedic Prequel Series "Ted" Scores a Second Season Renewal
Following its January 11 launch, season one broke records as Peacock's most-watched original title to date and was the #1 Original Streaming Comedy in the U.S. for more than two consecutive months (per Nielsen).

[05/09/24 - 09:00 AM]
HBO Original Documentary "Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes" Debuts August 3
The film will have its world premiere at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.

[05/09/24 - 09:00 AM]
Prime Video Releases First-Look Images and Announces Premiere Date for New Animated Series "Batman: Caped Crusader"
From Bruce Timm, J.J. Abrams and Matt Reeves, the series premieres all episodes August 1 on Prime Video.

[05/09/24 - 08:02 AM]
A&E to Premiere "Find My Country House" Hosted by Trish Suhr on Saturday, June 15 at 12pm ET/PT
Hosted by Trish Suhr, "Find My Country House" follows couples as they search for their piece of paradise by trying to find the perfect country home.

[05/09/24 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "Dancing for the Devil: The 7M TikTok Cult" - Official Trailer - Netflix
A group of prominent TikTok dancers are trapped in a cult masquerading as a management company called 7M.