Archive for category Casting alert
TCA: The CW Brings Musical Chairs to Your TV.
Posted by Melanie McFarland in Casting alert, Live Coverage, TCA Winter Press Tour 2012, The Pick-Up Game, Tune In Info, TV News on January 12th, 2012
People have accused the television industry of being creatively bankrupt and out of ideas.
There are plenty of examples to counter that argument. But today, The CW did not add one to that list. Instead, the network announced it was picking up ten episodes of “Oh Sit!”, a game show version of musical chairs.
You read right: musical chairs.
According to the network’s announcement at the Television Critics Association’s Winter Press Tour, each episode will challenge 20 contestants to run through five obstacle course-style elimination rounds, each attempting to claim a chair as a live band plays. The last contestant remaining wins a cash prize.
The CW has yet to select a host or a premiere date for “Oh Sit!” but the comments section of this blog is accepting suggestions.
Meanwhile, the official Twitter account for (the once real but currently non-existent) UPN confirmed that it has passed on picking up reality shows based on “Pin the Tail on the Donkey” or “Clothespin Drop.”
FX Picks Up “Unsupervised,” a Partner for “Archer”
Posted by Melanie McFarland in Casting alert, The Pick-Up Game, Tune In Info, TV News on September 15th, 2011
Amid all the fuss over “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia‘s” triumphant return tonight at 10pm on FX, we must not forget to mention that new episodes of “Archer” follow “Sunny”at 10:30.
Sure, “Archer” is only airing first-runs for three weeks, but are you going to complain about being served fresh half-hours of the funniest adult-themed animation on television?
Anyway, “Archer‘s” pairing with “Sunny” seems natural from the standpoint of maintaining ratings, but it also highlights what’s missing from FX’s schedule: more twisted animation.
Come January, that won’t be a problem. FX believes it has found a timeslot partner for Sterling Archer in “Unsupervised,” an animated series created by Rob Rosell, Scott Marder and David Hornsby, all writers and producers for “Sunny.” It has an initial 13-episode order.
“Unsupervised,” according to FX’s press release, follows best friends Gary and Joel, a pair of teenagers unhindered (and unprotected?) by parental oversight. Justin Long, Kristen Bell, Romany Malco, Fred Armisen, Kaitlin Olson and Alexa Vega are all signed on to the voice cast, along with Rosell and Hornsby.*
Hornsby, by the way, is starring in what we hope will be the short-lived CBS series “How to Be a Gentleman.”
*FX issued a clarification late on Thursday: Although Armisen’s voice is in the pilot, he is not a member of the regular cast.
TCA Day 5: The A in ABC Stands for Awkward
Posted by Melanie McFarland in Casting alert, Commentary, TCA Summer Press Tour 2010, Tune In Info on August 2nd, 2010
Kevin Brockman and friend address the TCA. Photo courtesy of ABC
You can assume it’s going to be an interesting day when the network you’re covering has lost its head…of entertainment programming. This kind of thing happens quite a bit. Usually lawyers get involved, as is the case ABC’s freshly ousted head of entertainment Steve McPherson.
Then there’s the question of handling the next guy, Paul Lee. Two days ago, Lee was the former head of entertainment programming for ABC Family, a.k.a. the guy who gave us “Kyle XY,” “The Secret Life of the American Teenager,” and “Pretty Little Liars.” Now the mothership’s programming lineup and overall reputation is in his hands.
ABC’s publicity department was quick to put the kibosh on any questions about McPherson, however. On Sunday morning publicity head Kevin Brockman came to the podium to welcome critics, accompanied a gigantic stuffed pink elephant. Talk about getting literal. Following brief announcements, he informed the room that last Tuesday’s statement on McPherson’s departure holds, and no further questions would be answered. With that, Lee took the stage and Brockman exited, taking Dumbo with him.
Generally a move like this would result in some sort of upheaval but frankly, people like Lee. A little more about him: He also breathed new life into BBC America and did some good work at Auntie Beeb before that. The guy seems straightforward and slightly in awe at the job that has fallen in his lap.
ABC Entertainment President Paul Lee talks to critics on Sunday.
“I think there’s a whole load of brand equity there,” Lee told critics, referring to the hits ABC has built over the past few years.
Yes, having new blood at the top can be a very good thing, unless you happen to be the producers and stars of one of the new shows premiering during 2010-2011. None of the new dramas and comedies set to premiere in fall or midseason, including “Mr. Sunshine” starring erstwhile “Friend” Matthew Perry (who experienced a legendarily awkward moment himself) are Lee’s babies.
Lee has also proven that his love for his own discoveries does not blind him to the reality of ratings, which he cited himself when he professed his adoration for “The Middle Man,” a wonderful ABC Family series that was cancelled after one season. If he’s willing to do that with a show running on cable, where the stakes aren’t nearly as high as they are on network…well, let’s just say the new showrunners must be quaking in their boots. The ratings and creative development of every new show will be under scrutiny, but we’re betting Lee will be closely watching the following…
Day 2: All About Show Stealers: Laura Linney,”Episodes,” Maggie Q…and “Idol”?
Posted by Melanie McFarland in Casting alert, Commentary, TCA Summer Press Tour 2010, Tune In Info on July 30th, 2010
It’s a funny thing, TCA Press Tour. On the one hand, as Daily Beast editor Kate Aurthur pointed out in a tweet, the networks profess to hate it. The Tour costs them a lot of money, time, and sanity. They put on a show for us, and often get nothing but griping about their products in return.
Without Press Tour, however, think of all the wrangling they’d have to do when major TV news implosions occur. Phones would be ringing off the hook. Reporters would be jockeying for position and screaming if they don’t get the story angles they want when they want it. Mass hysteria.
Tour is also something of a mixed blessing for TV writers. Entertainment business news is breaking all the time, but it certainly seems to go nuclear when most of us are brought together in a hotel ballroom. Often the news is very inside baseball, such as the sudden resignation of ABC Entertainment head Steve McPherson on the first day of Tour, followed shortly by trade reports that he was the subject of a sexual harrassment probe. Critics care because McPherson’s the guy we talk to about ABC’s lineup, and as such, some of us like to imagine we have something of a relationship with him.
So things of this nature happen, we express shock! (Not really.) Alarm! (Actually, executives get spectacularly booted all the time. Right, Ben Silverman?) Then we sharpen our knives for the network’s executive session. Sadly, the word is that ABC isn’t having one. (UPDATE: On Friday ABC announced that ABC Family’s Paul Lee had officially been named as McPherson’s successor, so there will be a short session on Sunday after all.)
This news has very little impact on the typical viewer. As such, it was quickly swept under the rug when Fox’s (highly orchestrated?) “Idol” bombshell exploded late this afternoon in the form of a Variety story announcing Ellen DeGeneres‘ sudden and not altogether surprising exit, either by choice or by force. That, people care about.
But we’re getting ahead of ourselves a bit. “Idol” dominated the early evening news, but Showtime opened the day with four panels, three of them actually worth our time.
The day started with a tour of “The Big C,“ which stars Laura Linney and officially premieres August 16, although you can watch the pilot right now. In the half-hour dramedy, Linney plays a woman who receives a cancer diagnosis and decides to take what time she has left and live it to the fullest.
Whether the show becomes a hit depends largely on how much people are willing to spend time with a character who may be outlandish and hilarious, but is dying before their eyes. It’s a tough sell. But there’s no denying the cast’s chemistry and the absolute luminosity of Laura Linney. The entire panel was something of an eat-pray-love fest as the stars talked about the beauty of living in the now. After Oliver Platt asked, “Why do we start to live beautifully when we get a death sentence?” and Gabourey Sidibe pointed out, “whatever plan you have for your life, you are wrong a lot of times,” it was hard not to commit for at least a few installments.
Once that panel’s high wore off, though, I remembered a vexing truth about Showtime comedies: they’re not particularly funny. “Comedy” seems to be a term the premium cable channel uses because it’s more succinct than “half-hour oddity,” or “30-minute award nomination bait.”
Happily we were reminded of that by watching the clip for “Episodes,” an upcoming comedy about a disastrous American remake of a nice British series. The clip reel was genuinely hilarious, and what exchanges we saw between series star Matt LeBlanc and his British co-stars Tamsin Greig and Stephen Mangan were gut-busting.
Executive producers and writers David Crane (“Friends”) and Jeffrey Klarik (“The Class”) consistently made us giggle as they described the horrific sausage making process a series goes through as its churned through the Hollywood machine, which is precisely what “Episodes” is about. It’s a shame we have to suffer through a slew of substandard comedies this fall while we wait for it; “Episodes” premieres in January.
Keep reading for more details on “Dexter” and a breakdown of the CW panels.
The CW Shapes Up for Fall 2010
Posted by Melanie McFarland in Cancellations, Casting alert, Commentary, The Pick-Up Game, Tune In Info on May 19th, 2010
Jessica Lowndes, AnnaLynne McCord, and Jessica Stroup return in "90210."
The CW will not officially reveal its schedule until Thursday morning, which is when yours truly will be on a plane. Not to worry; the blog will be updated with the official schedule soon after it is released. Besides, enough information has trickled into the trades for us to talk about a few important details and make some educated guesses as to where new series will land on the schedule. Or, we should say, the first version of its schedule, because almost every network tweaks its lineup once the upfronts come to a close.
Before we get to the new stuff, here’s a round-up of the current news: “One Tree Hill” was officially picked up earlier this week, joining previously announced CW renewals “90210,” “Life Unexpected,” “The Vampire Diaries,” “Gossip Girl,” “America’s Next Top Model,” “Supernatural,” and “Smallville.” Additionally, the CW confirmed today that “Smallville’s” 10th season will be its last.
Gone from the schedule (thereby proving there is a Higher Power that cares for us all) are “Melrose Place,” “High Society,” “Fly Girls” and this season’s “here today, gone tomorrow” prizewinner, “The Beautiful Life: TBL,” which barely made it out of the gate. Their departure from the TV landscape will doubtless be mourned by…someone.
On the other hand, if they hadn’t been cleared away, The CW wouldn’t have any place to put its new additions, “Nikita” and “Hellcats.”
“Nikita” is a reboot of the franchise that began with Luc Besson’s (freaking awesome) cult action film “La Femme Nikita,” which was remade for American audiences as the awful “Point of No Return” starring Bridget Fonda. The character of Nikita resurfaced in a Canadian-produced action drama that ran for about five seasons on USA Network, and was played by Peta Wilson. Maggie Q takes over the role in the new version, which also has her going rogue.
The first TV version of “La Femme Nikita,” it must be mentioned, was part of a late-’90s, early ’00s girl power trend on television that included “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Xena: Warrior Princess,” and “Alias.” Considering that we live in a time in which Paris Hilton, the Kardashians and “Girls Gone Wild” are celebrated pop culture fixtures, returning “Nikita” to TV is — in concept — a breath of fresh air.
On the other hand, it’s on The CW. If someone doesn’t screw it up, there’s still the question of whether it’ll pull the ratings to survive. With McG as an executive producer, there is hope.
“Nikita” is joined on the schedule by “Hellcats,” a drama about competitive cheerleading starring Aly Michalka and Ashley Tisdale. If “Nikita” is a nod to what The CW used to be (in its previous incarnations, UPN and the WB), “Hellcats” seems to fit in perfectly with what the tiny broadcast network is now.
Question is, where will they appear on the schedule? Currently there are two obvious opportunities, one on Wednesday nights, and one on Fridays, where “Smallville” has been able to hold on to its audience. The CW’s schedulers have been known to slide veterans into different timeslots in the hope of finding a perfect pairing so really, it’s foolish to guess what the network’s lineup will look like. But why should that stop us?
Keep reading after the jump for our scheduling guesswork.
Life’s Too Short: The CW Yanks “The Beautiful Life: TBL”
Posted by Melanie McFarland in Casting alert, Commentary, Tune In Info on September 26th, 2009
Zac Posen to model-in-waiting: "Wait...wait...never mind, show's over."
Oh Mischa Barton, we were so looking forward to seeing you on our TV screens again. Just not in this tragedy.
The CW decided to spare us more episodes of “The Beautiful Life,” the Ashton Kutcher-produced series about models pursuing their big break. That makes “TBL” the first casualty of the 2009-2010 season, and makes me glad that I didn’t put money into an office pool. Having seen Fox’s “Brothers,” which makes its hideous debut this evening, I thought for sure that it would win that honor. But alas, “TBL” couldn’t even survive long enough for other U.S. viewers to make that discovery for themselves.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, Wednesday night’s “TBL” episode, its second (and last), only attracted about 1 million viewers. Now, in seasons past, low opening numbers weren’t enough to make The CW cancel a show so early on…but Kutcher has nearly 3.7 million devoted followers on Twitter. Clearly the math was never going to add up. The announced pick-up of “Fly Girls,” the reality series following Virgin Air flight attendants, and a docu-soap following the life of celebutante Tinsley Mortimer, didn’t help “TBL’s” situation either.
Besides, the network’s higher-ups appear to be throwing their mojo behind the “Melrose Place,” which is struggling in the ratings as well. But as of this week, the new “MP” hooked Heather Locklear for a guest star arc that starts November 17, in the midst of sweeps.
Other late-breaking news on Friday: Vincent D’Onofrio confirms that he’s leaving “Law & Order: Criminal Intent.”
TCA Quick Hits: Set visits to “NCIS: Los Angeles,” “Dollhouse”
Posted by Melanie McFarland in Casting alert, Commentary, TCA Summer Press Tour 2009, Tune In Info, TV News on August 3rd, 2009
This post was originally going to be titled “Quick Shots of False Hope,” in both homage to comedienne Laura Kightlinger’s entertaining essay collection, and in acknowledgment that even good TV news amounts to so much dust in the wind when one takes the industry’s 80 percent-plus failure rate into account. But pretty much all of what you’ll read here is good news, or at the very least interesting, so we’ll save the false hope for this week, when the broadcast networks present. Let the good times start a-rolling with…
– Pauley Perrette is guest starring on the second episode of “NCIS: Los Angeles,” in a cameo that executive producer Shane Brennan characterized as being “directly involved in helping us solve the case. Pauley is very excited to be joining us, and I think it’s something that the fans are going to absolutely really enjoy.”
On a side note, Brennan delivered this news from the ground floor of the “NCIS: Los Angeles” set, built to resemble an old Spanish mission but, to TV viewers, looks all too much like the courtyard on “Melrose Place.”
Brennan explained that since the original ops center was compromised (in part 2 of the “NCIS” crossover episodes) they had to find another undercover location. So from the outside it looks like a charming piece of old California, but inside and upstairs is state-of-the-art equipment specially built for the unit (and actually, the series itself) by technology giant Lockheed Martin. This includes a gigantic touch-interactive screen that critics were allowed to play with by waving are hands across it and pretending we were in Minority Report. We discovered fake identification for one character in an upcoming episode, to be played by former “Six Feet Under” star Mathew St. Patrick.
– On the same day we visited “NCIS: LA” we headed over to the Fox lot to see Joss Whedon in the “Dollhouse.” This may be a comfort to “Dollhouse” fans: Whedon shared that when season two opens, Echo (Eliza Dushku) will be deeply impacted by Alpha downloading all of her personalities into her at once, which means she’ll actually have a persona instead of being a passive blank slate. Although lacking a personality is central to being a “doll,” that feature made it nearly impossible for viewers to connect to Echo. When I brought that up during the session, Whedon acknowledged a major correction was due.
“We will see that she has a cohesiveness and a mission that make every engagement mean a great deal more to her and she has, as Echo, her own agenda which is something she didn’t quite have,” Whedon explained, “and we did sort of build to that in Omega where she had been dumped with all the personalities and we heard her say her name. At the end this episode we are going to see how far she’s come and it’s a little further than the people around her know.”
So, I asked to establish complete clarity, even after each episode’s wipe she is going to have a distinct personality?
“We are going to see her as we know her, and then we are going to see something very different,” Whedon said. “And that is pretty much all I can say.”
–After the main session Whedon confirmed to me and a few others that Alan Tudyk would be returning for several episodes over the course of season two. Whedon said he couldn’t confirm an exact number because Tudyk does not like to be pinned down in any particular series. To wit: He has a fairly substantial role in the pilot for ABC’s midseason series “V.” Whedon also hinted that this season would head outside of the main Dollhouse to, perhaps, visit other branches. Hmm….
– While walking out a Fox publicist dashed past and told us the big “Futurama” news we hope you already know, which is that all of the original cast had signed on for its resurrection.
Up next: CBS.
“Dexter” Gets a New Playmate
Posted by Melanie McFarland in Casting alert, The Pick-Up Game, TV News on June 10th, 2009
John Lithgow. Courtesy of Wire Image/Dimitrios Kambouris.
When the TV news cameras come calling, people tend to describe any serial killers discovered to be living in their area as polite, private but personable, a guy seemingly incapable of hatcheting humans into ground chuck. No, not in a million years, they say, and to think all that was happening two doors down? Shocking.
That’s why it makes perfect sense for “Dexter’s” producers to have tapped the ever-so-pleasant John Lithgow to portray a man with the same grisly hobby as our favorite Miami Police Department blood-spatter analyst. Lithgow is set to appear in all 12 of season four’s episodes.
According to Showtime’s press release, Lithgow will play Walter Simmons, “an unassuming, mild-mannered suburbanite who has been living a dual life as one of America’s most prolific and deadliest serial killers. Dubbed the “Trinity Killer” because of his proclivity to kill in threes, he relocates to Miami after being tracked by F.B.I. Special Agent Frank Lundy (Keith Carradine).”
Naturally dear Dexter, a murderer who takes pride in his work, is bound to feel a special connection and fascination with Mr. Simmons.
One also wonders if the “trinity” business is part of a larger theme for season four, what with Dexter on the verge of fatherhood, and his dad’s spirit looming large in his thoughts. Father, son, unholy ghost…and the Trinity Killer? Can’t wait to see what happens.
“Dexter’s” fourth season kicks off on Sept. 27 on Showtime.
ABC Reveals Fall Line-up; “Castle”, “Better Off Ted”, “Scrubs” to Return
Posted by Heather Campbell in Cancellations, Casting alert, The Pick-Up Game, Tune In Info, TV News on May 19th, 2009
Nathan Fillion stars in "Castle" (photo credit: ABC)
ABC held its upfront presentation this afternoon, introducing 11 new programs that will fill out the schedule alongside the network’s 17 returning series.
Four series that were considered to be on the bubble can now be counted among the returning shows: “Castle“, “Better Off Ted“, “Scrubs” and “True Beauty“.
Items that stood out: Neither “Cupid” or “The Unusuals” were not mentioned at all, making it pretty safe to assume they will not be returning next year. Christina Applegate’s “Samantha Who?” was previously announced as not returning. “Ugly Betty” will be relocated from its prime Thursday real estate to make room for “Flash Forward”.
ABC led off their presentation by sharing the first act of new show “Flash Forward”, the Ralph Fiennes thriller/mystery centered on an mysterious event during which every person in the world blacks out, each seeing 2:17 of their future during that time. The show creators came in with complete show bible, meaning that like “Lost“, the entire story has been created in advance, ensuring a defined roadmap for the future of the show’s story.
The pilot episode of the new Steven Levitan and Christopher Lloyd produced sit-com “Modern Family” was shown in its entirety, giving a first glance into the sort-of-scripted, sort-of-not feeling show that follows the dynamics of 3 families via faux-documentary footage and interviews.
Check out ABC’s fall schedule after the jump:
“Celebrity Apprentice”: Now With Actual Celebrities!
Posted by Melanie McFarland in Casting alert, Commentary, Tune In Info, TV News on January 4th, 2012
This writer has never voluntarily followed Trump’s series in any of its incarnations, and never planned to. The less time spent paying attention to Donald Trump, in my opinion, the better. So I was prepared to go on with life and refrain from caring about the latest cast beyond knowing which names made the list, thereby informing my decision as to how closely I’ll need to follow “The Soup” over the next few months.
The names that had already leaked to the press included Michael Andretti, Teresa Giudice, Cheryl Tiegs, Victoria Gotti, Debbie Gibson and Clay Aiken. Ho, hum. Joining them are Dayana Mendoza, Aubrey O’Day, Patricia Velásquez, Arsenio Hall, Dee Snider and Paul Teutul, Sr., but I’m surprised they haven’t been on “Celebrity Apprentice” already.
But the name that made me sit up and take notice was… George Takei. George. Takei.
Oh no. I may actually have to watch this thing.
Now. If the lightning-witted Mr. Takei were the only genuinely interesting celebrity appearing on this coming season, that would not be enough to get my attention. The sci-fi icon conveys a strong presence, but he alone cannot counteract the dark matter radiating from Gotti or a Jersey Housewife. Instead, what sealed the deal was the idea of Takei either teaming up with — or squaring off against — fellow contestants Lisa Lampanelli, Lou Ferrigno, Adam Carolla and Penn Jillette. And Tia Carrere. Could happen. Oh please, let it happen.
Not in a thousand years did I think I would make this statement to refer to “Celebrity Apprentice,” but… this sounds like an interesting cast. It had better be, since The Donald is expected to use this season as a platform to launch his run for the White House. Yeah, there’s that.
Even so, the fifth “Celebrity Apprentice” cast: Intriguing enough to turn a “never” into a strong “maybe.”
The latest installment of “The Celebrity Apprentice” premieres 9 pm ET/PT on February 12. Check out the latest photos.
adam carolla, clay aiken, Debbie Gibson, dee snider, Donald Trump, George Takei, lisa lampanelli, lou ferrigno, Michael Andretti, penn jillette, Star Trek, Sulu, teresa giudice, The Apprentice, the hulk, tia carrere, victoria gotti
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