or


[06/22/05 - 12:00 AM]
Development Update: June 21-22
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 revamped "Series in Development" charts. Visitors can now filter our listings by network, genre and even development stage (ordered to pilot, cast-contingent, script, etc.). It's updated every day!

ABC FAMILY ORIGINAL SERIES (ABC Family) - The cable channel has quietly rescheduled its upcoming original series "Venus & Serena: For Real" and "Beautiful People." The former will now launch on Wednesday, July 20 at 10:00/9:00c while the latter will still debut on Monday, August 8 but now air at 9:00/8:00c.

ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT (FOX) - Brothers Joe and Anthony Russo, who helmed the initial installments of the series, have signed a two-year, seven-figure deal with Touchstone Television to direct and produce series for the studio. The pair, who recently completed a one-year deal with 20th Century Fox Television, directed the pilot to Touchstone's "What About Brian" this past development season and were also responsible for the pilots for NBC's "LAX" and FX's "Lucky." The new deal with Touchstone (which won't affect their development of "City Hall" and "Motel Novella" at HBO) calls for the brothers to direct at least one pilot project per season in addition to their own projects.

BEAUTY AND THE GEEK (The WB) - In addition to Tuesday's second season renewal (read the story), the Frog has also committed to a reunion special for the hit reality series. The special, which is expected to feature all the season one cast members, will air on Wednesday, July 13 in the show's regular 8:00/7:00c time period. "Geek" itself will wrap its six-week run on July 6.

COMMITTED (NBC) - RonReaco Lee, who played Nate's (Josh Cooke) wheelchair-bound nemesis Todd on the short-lived comedy, has inked a talent holding deal with NBC Universal Television. Under the terms of the pact, which runs through June of next year, NBC will cast Lee in one of its current projects or develop a new one around the actor.

FX ORIGINAL SERIES (FX) - FX's new summer comedies "Starved" and "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" have been slated to premiere on Thursday, August 4 at 10:00/9:00c and 10:30/9:30c respectively. According to the network's press materials, "Starved" follows "the misadventures of four 30-something friends - a bulimic cop, an obese writer, a commodities broker and an anorexic bisexual songwriter - as seen through the country's obsession with food and the loneliness of single life" while "Philadelphia" tracks "a diverse group of friends who own a bar in Philadelphia," one of whom reveals he has cancer in the first episode.

THE HOWARD STERN SHOW/PARTY AT THE PALMS (E!) - Howard Stern has confirmed "The Howard Sterm Show's" 11-year run on the cable channel will wrap on Friday, July 8 (featuring highlights of his July 1 radio broadcast). E!'s decision to bow out of the bidding to renew "Stern" likely means fellow suitor Spike TV has snagged the series however no official announcement has been made. The series, which has averaged 793,000 total viewers (494,000 in adults 18-49) to date this year, won't disappear from E!'s lineup however as repeats will continue to run in its regular weekday 11:00/10:00c slot. Meanwhile in other E! news, a solid 2.2 million viewers tuned into the premiere of "Party at the Palms," a new "Wild On!"-esque series hosted by Jenny McCarthy, last Wednesday.

INTO THE WEST (TNT) - After opening to 6.47 million viewers on June 10, week two of the six-week limited series fell by nearly 26% to 4.8 million viewers. The installment nevertheless bested most of its broadcast and cable competition, including movies on FOX (4.1 million) and UPN (1.23 million) and comedies on both ABC (3.5 million on average) and the WB (1.59 million on average).

LAS VEGAS (NBC) - TNT is expected to announce this week it has landed the off-network rights to NBC's hit Monday drama "Las Vegas," in a deal valued at $450,000 per episode. The pact includes the rights to the 88 episodes or so likely to be produced through the show's fourth season as well as the right to repurpose NBC's run eight days after its original airing. The repurposing will kick off this fall with its weekday run beginning in the fall of 2007. In addition, TNT has asked for the video-on-demand rights as part of the license fee, a first for the industry. The expected $40 million pact is more than double what TNT paid for "Alias" ($200,000 per episode), but pales in comparison to TNT's off-network purchases of "Cold Case" ($1.4 million per episode) and "Without a Trace" ($1.35 million per episode). TNT will begin running "Alias" weekdays this fall while "Trace" will expand from its current once-a-week run in the fall of 2006. "Cold Case" then will join TNT's lineup once a week starting this fall with its five-a-week expansion due in the fall of 2007.

RAY ROMANO & KEVIN JAMES: MAKING THE CUT (HBO) - The one-hour special, which featured the comedians as they competed in the PGA's famed Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, drew just 761,000 viewers for its initial broadcast this past Saturday.

THE SHOWBIZ SHOW WITH DAVID SPADE (A.K.A. GONE HOLLYWOOD) (Comedy Central) - The cable channel has given a 13-episode order to a new weekly half-hour "The Daily Show"-esque series hosted by comedian David Spade. The project is a reworked version of the previously completed pilot "Gone Hollywood," a potential weekday strip hosted by Greg Giraldo and executive produced by Spade. Like the previous incarnation, "Showbiz" is seen as an expanded version of Spade's "Hollywood Minute" vignettes from "Saturday Night Live" in which he skewed celebrities and the media. Comedy Central is said to have approached Spade to host the series after "8 Simple Rules" got the axe last month with the promise of a 13-episode order. Spade will continue to executive produce "Showbiz" (which will launch in September) along with creator Hugh Fink, Pariah's Gavin Polone and the Brillstein-Grey Co.

WITHOUT A TRACE (CBS) - Writer/producer Ed Redlich has exited the hit CBS/Warner Bros. Television drama after signing a new two-year, seven-figure overall deal with Paramount Network Television. The pact calls for Redlich, who served as "Trace's" showrunner for its first two seasons (and opted for reduced role last season), to develop and produce series projects for the studio. Redlich spent the past development season behind the failed CBS/Warner Bros. Television pilot "Conviction," which starred Sally Field.

Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters





  [june 2005]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
   


· ALIAS (ABC)
· ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT (NETFLIX)
· BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE (ABC FAMILY)
· BEAUTY AND THE GEEK (CW)
· CITY HALL (HBO)
· COLD CASE (CBS)
· COMMITTED (NBC)
· CONVICTION (CBS)
· EIGHT SIMPLE RULES (ABC)
· INTO THE WEST (TNT)
· IT'S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA (FXX)
· LAS VEGAS (NBC)
· LAX (NBC)
· LUCKY (FX)
· MOTEL NOVELLA (HBO)
· PARTY AT THE PALMS (E)
· SHOWBIZ SHOW WITH DAVID SPADE, THE (COMEDY CENTRAL)
· STARVED (FX)
· VENUS & SERENA: FOR REAL (ABC FAMILY)
· WHAT ABOUT BRIAN (ABC)
· WITHOUT A TRACE (CBS)





[12/20/24 - 11:33 AM]
Season Finale of NBC Drama "Brilliant Minds" Will Now Air as a Special Event with Back-to-Back Episodes on Monday, Jan. 6
The original season finale date was a week later on January 13.

[12/20/24 - 11:04 AM]
ID's New Series "The Curious Case Of..." to Premiere with Explosive, Expanded Episode Focused on Former "Jackass" Star Bam Margera's Controversial Legal Guardianship
Featuring "The Curious Case of Natalia Grace" legal analyst Beth Karas, the series will dive into some of the most shocking true crime cases and unbelievable scandals.

[12/20/24 - 10:32 AM]
FOX Sports Films, SMAC Entertainment, BZ Entertainment and NFL Films Announce "The Madden Cruiser: A Bayou Adventure with Bill Belichick" Airing Super Bowl Sunday on FOX
The one-hour special features eight-time Super Bowl champion Bill Belichick as he travels in the iconic "Madden Cruiser" bus of Hall of Fame legend John Madden on an unforgettable road trip through Louisiana's football country with a host of special guests.

[12/20/24 - 10:02 AM]
Onyx Collective Presents Winter Premiere Dates and First Looks for Documentary Film "SLY LIVES! (aka The Burden of Black Genius)" and New Comedy Series "Deli Boys"
The former premieres Thursday, February 13 while the latter launches on Thursday, March 6.

[12/20/24 - 09:27 AM]
MTV's "Teen Mom" Celebrates Its Sweet 16 with a New Season of "Teen Mom: The Next Chapter" on Thursday, January 30th at 8PM ET/PT
The groundbreaking docu-series that has never shied away from authentic, unfiltered narratives will return for its milestone 16-year anniversary with Amber Portwood, Ashley Jones, Briana DeJesus, Catelynn Baltierra, Cheyenne Davis, Jade Cline, Leah Messer, Maci McKinney and Mackenzie McKee.

[12/20/24 - 09:01 AM]
Video: "Bandidos" Season 2 - Official Trailer - Netflix
Lilí and Miguel's peaceful escape is shattered when she's forced into a risky quest for the Tear of Fire diamond, risking everything to save her friends.

[12/20/24 - 08:31 AM]
Video: New Netflix Sports Promo Highlights Upcoming Sports Programming
Netflix continues to expand its sports slate, offering members a wide variety of sports programming across series, films and live events, including the recent record-breaking Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul fight and the upcoming NFL Games on Christmas Day and the debut of "WWE Raw" on Netflix next year.

[12/20/24 - 07:31 AM]
"Stranger Things 5" - That's a Wrap!
Production on the fifth and final season has officially wrapped, set to premiere in 2025.

[12/20/24 - 06:01 AM]
Netflix Secures U.S. Rights to the FIFA Women's World Cup 2027 and 2031
The agreement covers all languages, with studio shows and top-tier talent planned with a dual telecast for both English and Spanish language broadcasts in the U.S.

[12/20/24 - 02:01 AM]
Video: "Lisabi: A Legend Is Born" - Official Trailer - Netflix
The epic tale of the birth and rise of legendary folk hero Lísàbí Agbongbo-Akala, destined to save the Egba people in the face of a treacherous leader.

[12/20/24 - 01:01 AM]
Video: "Love Is Blind: Germany" - Official Trailer - Netflix
The experiment comes to Germany as local singles seek true love and a commitment that lasts a lifetime, all before meeting each other face-to-face.

[12/19/24 - 08:01 PM]
Video: "Incognito" - Official Trailer - Netflix
The mission? Lock target and finish the job.

[12/19/24 - 01:33 PM]
HBO Original Film "For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story" to Debut on Max Friday, December 20
In celebration of the Kennedy Center honoring Arturo Sandoval and prior to this Sunday's airing of the ceremony, Max will be bringing the 2000 multiple Emmy-nominated HBO original film to Max for the first time.

[12/19/24 - 01:01 PM]
The Holiday Cheer Will Be in Houston as Pentatonix Performs the National Anthem During NFL Christmas Gameday on Netflix
Plus: The Steelers will honor the U.S. armed forces with a special National Anthem performance by Voices of Service.

[12/19/24 - 12:59 PM]
HBO Renews "Dune: Prophecy" for a Second Season
Across Max territories, the first episode has amassed approximately 15 million viewers.