CHICAGO (thefutoncritic.com) -- The latest development news, culled from various wire reports each morning:
1-800-MISSING (Lifetime) - The cable channel has given a 13 episode order to the drama pilot. The series, based on Meg Cabot's novel "1-800-Where R U," stars Gloria Reuben ("ER") as an F.B.I. agent whose partner (Catherine Scorsone) uses psychic powers to solve crimes. Lions Gate TV is behind the project, which is expected to bow in August, possibly as part of the network's new Saturday night lineup.
BETTER DAYS (A.K.A. THE FLANNERYS) (ABC) - Kevin Falls' legal drama has a new title. The series revolves around a recovering alcoholic who gives up his big-firm job to become a store-front lawyer.
EXIT 9 (WB) - Newcomer Julie Gonzalo ("Greetings From Tuscon") has been cast in the comedy pilot, about a family with two very different siblings. She will play the family's niece. Gonzalo.
FOLLOW THE LEEDS (Lifetime) - Elizabeth Densmore has been cast in the drama pilot, about two women private investigators. She plays the angst-ridden daughter of one of them (Sharon Lawrence).
GATED WORLD (A.K.A. UNTITLED PHIL HENDRIE PROJECT) (NBC) - Radio personality Phil Hendrie's comedy pilot at the Peacock finally has a title. Hendrie plays a former city cop who moves to a gated community, where he encounters the crazy residents as its new head of security.
LUIS (A.K.A. UNTITLED LUIS GUZMAN PROJECT) (FOX) - Luis Guzman' comedy pilot at FOX now has a title. He starts as the owner-operator of a donut shop in New York's Spanish Harlem.
THE LUNCHBOX CHRONICLES (CBS) - Rachael Harris ("The Daily Show") has landed a guest-starring role in the comedy pilot as Andy Richter's wife.
MR. ED (FOX) - FOX's revival of the talking horse comedy has been pushed back to midseason.
OTHER PEOPLE'S BUSINESS (A.K.A. DICKS) (WB) - The Frog's dramedy about four young private investigators has a new title.
ONE TREE HILL (A.K.A. RAVENS) (WB) - The drama pilot, about two estranged brothers who live in the same small town, has a new title.
OPPOSITE SEX (A.K.A. UNTITLED EVE PROJECT) (UPN) - Rapper Eve's untitled comedy pilot at UPN now has a title.
RUBBING CHARLIE (CBS) - Jenna Fischer has been cast in the CBS comedy pilot, which stars Scott Wolf as an insecure doctor. She will play a masseuse who claims to have quasi-psychic abilities and constantly offers Wolf her insights.
STUCK IN THE MIDDLE WITH YOU (NBC) - Newcomer Ellary Hume Porterfield has been added to the cast of the comedy pilot, about a family struggling to stay a part of the middle class. Porterfield will play the family's teen daughter, who attempts to scam her classmates with get-rich-quick plans.
SUSPENCE (NBC) - The Peacock's half-hour anthology series pilot, hosted by Dennis Hopper, is being considered for the network's fall 2003 schedule. David Koepp ("Hack") and Gavin Polone ("Gilmore Girls") are producing the series for Pariah TV.
TOUCH 'EM ALL MCCALL (NBC) - Courtney Peldon ("Boston Public") has been cast in the Peacock's comedy pilot starring Tom Selleck as a former baseball player who returns to his hometown. Peldon will play the flirtatious 20-year-old daughter of McCall's best friend.
TRUE CALLING (A.K.A. HEROINE) (FOX) - Rob Cohen and Jon Feldman's drama pilot for FOX has a new title. Eliza Dushku stars as a woman who graduates from college and discovers that she's able to save lives by changing the course of events.
THE UNSOLVED (A.K.A. COLD CASES) (CBS) - Jerry Bruckheimer's latest has a new title. The drama stars Kathryn Morris as the head of a cold-case squad.
UNTITLED JENNY MCCARTHY PROJECT (ABC) - Rachael Harris ("The Daily Show") is set to guest as a party planner in Jenny McCarthy's comedy pilot for ABC.
WILD CARD (Lifetime) - Rae Dawn Chong ("Mysterious Ways") has been added to the cast of the drama pilot, which has been given a 13 episode order by the cable channel. Joely Fisher ("Baby Bob") stars as a Las Vegas blackjack dealer who becomes an insurance fraud investigator after she looks into a car crash that claims her sister's life. The project, from Fireworks Entertainment, is expected to debut in August possibly as part of the network's new Saturday night lineup.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
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