 |
 |
[12/26/08 - 06:43 PM]
Development Update: Week of December 22-26
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 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!
BITCHES (FOX, New!) - Feature writer Michael Dougherty ("Superman Returns") has scored a hefty script commitment from the network for a new drama about a quartet of female friends in New York who are werewolves. The project, which has a penalty attached should it not move forward to pilot, is set up at Warner Bros. Television. Writer/producers Gretchen Berg and Aaron Harberts ("Pushing Daisies") have been tapped to supervise Dougherty and executive produce. No other specifics were given.
GILMORE GIRLS (The CW) - One day after filing a lawsuit against CBS over "Two and a Half Men" (see below), Warner Bros. Television itself has been sued by producer Gavin Polone over "Gilmore Girls." The breach-of-contract lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, claims the vertically integrated Time Warner companies Warner Bros. Television and The WB "have colluded to defraud the originator of hit 'Gilmore Girls' television series with a scheme that rivals the greed and bravado of any story line defendants could script." Hofflund/Polone, Polone's company with Judy Hofflund, alleges the "modified adjusted gross," the money the show earns after costs are deducted, for "Gilmore's" first six seasons was modified by the studio - through "collusion among defendants to set below-market license fees" and a series of improper charges - which cut into Hofflund/Polone's profits as a result. A third-party audit commissioned by Hofflund/Polone in October 2006 alleges that number was understated by $45.5 million and the company has asked for "tens of millions of dollars" in damages as a result. Warner Bros. has yet to comment on the suit.
LOST & FOUND (NBC) - Australian actor Damon Herriman ("All Saints") has joined the cast of the drama pilot, which centers on Tessa Cooper (Katee Sackhoff), an offbeat LAPD detective who, after butting heads with higher-ups, is sent as punishment to the basement to work on John and Jane Doe cases. He'll play Anthony Yeckel, an oddball civilian consultant to the police's lost-and-found department who has an obsessive love of old detective TV shows. Brian Cox and Josh Cooke also star in the Universal Media Studios/Wolf Films-based hour, which Michael Engler is directing from a script by creator Chris Levinson.
TWO AND A HALF MEN (CBS) - Warner Bros. Television filed a $49 million breach of contract lawsuit against CBS on Tuesday. Said suit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, claims the network owes Warner Bros. additional fees toward the production deficit carried by the studio. The "deficit recoupment" was understood to be tied to "Men" hitting certain ratings milestones as specified by the show's original four-year license agreement signed in 2003. The suit indicates the studio incurred a $61.1 million deficit over the course of the first four years of the show (for instance CBS paid $750,000 per episode during "Men's" first season while Warner Bros. actual cost to produce the show came in at $1.22 million), a cost which CBS would cover should "Men" finish as a top 10 show. Additionally, should "Men" finish in the top five in its fourth season, CBS would pay an additional $650,000 more per episode in the fifth and sixth seasons (with a downward scale from there). "CBS has reaped the benefits of the tremendous success of 'Two and a Half Men" but wants to deny Warner Bros. the right to its agreed-upon share," Warner Bros. said in a statement. CBS countered with simply, "Wow, I wonder what they got the other networks for Christmas."
UGLY BETTY (ABC) - "Dexter" co-star Lauren Velez has booked a multi-episode arc on the Thursday dramedy. She'll play Elena, a nurse that enters the lives of the Suarez family, whom reports speculate will be linked to a major plot development. It's not clear when her first episode will air.
UNTITLED MARIA BELLO PROJECT (HBO, New!) - Maria Bello ("The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor") is set to topline a potential new drama at the pay channel about a woman who's forced into a life of crime to support her three teenage sons after her husband is killed. Gary Lennon ("The Shield") is penning the hour, which sees the woman using her sons as henchmen, leading them all down a destructive road. Bello herself will executive produce alongside Lennon, Gavin Polone and John Carrabino.
Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters
|
|
|
 [december 2008]  |
S |
M |
T |
W |
T |
F |
S |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
[11/22/24 - 09:01 AM]
Apple Original Films' "Fly Me to the Moon" to Premiere December 6, 2024
Since its debut in theaters worldwide, the film has received the Verified Hot certification on Rotten Tomatoes by fans.
|
[11/22/24 - 08:03 AM]
Peacock Exclusively Streams Blumhouse's "Speak No Evil" Beginning December 6
The psychological horror thriller stars James McAvoy, Mackenzie Davis, Aisling Franciosi, Alix West Lefler, Dan Hough, Scoot McNairy, and more!
|
[11/22/24 - 07:35 AM]
2024 "Emirates NBA Cup" Championship Game Exclusively on ABC and ESPN+ December 17
In addition, ESPN platforms will exclusively present a semifinal game and a quarterfinal game as part of its 2024 Emirates NBA Cup Knockout Round coverage.
|
[11/22/24 - 07:12 AM]
Peacock and Sky's Original Hit Drama Series "The Day of the Jackal" Scores Second Season Renewal
In the US it ranked #1 on Peacock's Top 10 TV Shows on its platform and was a Top 5 streaming original in the US for its opening weekend (according to preliminary Nielsen data).
|
[11/22/24 - 06:31 AM]
Video: "Chef's Table" Volume 7 - Official Teaser - Netflix
Meet five world-class chefs who redefine culinary boundaries with delicious, innovative dishes honoring their diverse cultures and personal philosophies.
|
[11/22/24 - 05:41 AM]
"They Call It Late Night with Jason Kelce" Set for January 2025 on ESPN
Airing on Friday nights/early Saturday mornings, the new personality-driven, one-hour program will take its inspiration from traditional late-night television, emphasizing a comedic approach throughout all five scheduled episodes which run in conjunction with the finale of the NFL regular season and playoffs.
|
[11/22/24 - 03:01 AM]
Video: "Ad Vitam" - Official Trailer - Netflix
After escaping an attempted murder, Franck Lazarev (Guillaume Canet) must find his wife Léo, who has been kidnapped by a mysterious group of armed men.
|
[11/21/24 - 04:01 PM]
"Rugged Rugby: Conquer or Die" Premieres December 10: A Battle for Supremacy Begins
In the shadows of Korea's rugby world, seven teams engage in a fierce battle of strength, strategy, and teamwork - all vying to be crowned champion.
|
[11/21/24 - 04:00 PM]
ABC Presents a Two-Night Special Event To Commemorate the Diamond Anniversary of "Mary Poppins"
First, "The Untold Story of Mary Poppins: A Special Edition of 20/20," a two-hour special from ABC News Studios chock full of rarely seen footage, photos and stories from the film's living legends, airs Wednesday, November 27 on ABC and streams next day on Hulu and Disney+.
|
[11/21/24 - 01:32 PM]
2024 International Emmy Nominees on Hulu
Check out these Emmy-worthy international series streaming on Hulu.
|
[11/21/24 - 01:12 PM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Semifinals Is Top Program of the Night in Adults 18-49 and All Key Women Demographics
The spectacular season 33 penultimate episode grew over the previous week's 500th episode celebration in both Total Viewers (5.19 million vs. 5.13 million) and Adults 18-49 (0.75 rating vs. 0.71 rating), hitting a season high in Total Viewers.
|
[11/21/24 - 01:05 PM]
NBC Orders Five Additional Episodes of Its Friday Night Comedy Hit "Happy's Place"
The "Happy's Place" premiere has hit 14 million viewers across all platforms.
|
[11/21/24 - 12:14 PM]
NBCUniversal Syndication Studios and Believe Entertainment Group's "Billion Dollar Babies: The True Story of the Cabbage Patch Kids" Is Now Available to Rent on Amazon Prime
The feature-length documentary captures the incredible true story of the dolls, leaving nothing untouched, including the fundamental dispute over who originated the idea.
|
[11/21/24 - 12:14 PM]
MGM+ Renews Sci-Fi Horror Series "From" for Season Four
The series is set to return to production in Nova Scotia in 2025, and premiere in 2026.
|
[11/21/24 - 12:00 PM]
What's New on Max This December
Watch the debuts of HBO originals "Hard Knocks: In Season with the AFC North," "Nature of the Crime," and "Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story," Max originals "Creature Commandos," "Fast Friends," "Rose Matafeo: On and On and On," and season two of "Bookie," and Warner Bros. film "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice."
|
|
|
|
