TV News Roundup – September 2009 – Week 3
‘Chuck’ producer lands Western at Fox
Rosenbaum aims to introduce genre to a new generation
Described as an epic Western with a sci-fi twist, the show will revolve around “a gunslinger caught between worlds” and will feature a nod to “Planet of the Apes,” said Rosenbaum, who is executive producing with Wonderland’s McG and Peter Johnson.
Fringe Exclusive! The Observers are Coming!
“You’re gonna see more than one – this is an exclusive! You are going to see many Observers,” previews exec producer Roberto Orci of the new season’s eighth episode. “One of the things we’re doing, which we’ve been doing since Season 1, is that every four episodes or five episodes, if you’ve been watching the show and you’re a fan, you’re gonna get bigger answers than you ever got before. If you stay tuned to the fourth show, that eighth show, that 12th show, you will start to see a continuity that begins with The Observers.”
True Blood Star Blasts Emmy Snubs: “F–k Awards!”
“Excuse me, but f—k awards!” says Forbes, who plays the very evil but deliciously sexy Maryann Forrester in the hit vampire series. “That’s not where the glory is. The glory is in the audience,” she adds. “That’s who we tell the stories for. It’s not for, with all due respect, the critics and not for the awards shows, but for the audience.”
Two actors join ‘Moby’ mini
William Hurt, Ethan Hawke to star in retelling
The upcoming Teutonic retelling of “Moby Dick” has its Ahab: William Hurt has signed on to play the megamaniacal, peg-legged captain of the whaler Pequod, and Ethan Hawke has inked to play Starbuck, the first officer who is just about the only sailor who defies him. Based on Herman Melville’s 1851 novel, the miniseries is being produced by Herbert Kloiber’s Tele Munchen and is being called the most expensive project in the German company’s 40-year history. The budget is clocking at $25 million. The mini will wrap in fall 2010.
Huge Update On All Things Muppets!
Continuing with their YouTube videos such as Ode to Joy, look for more Muppet interpretations of songs like Bohemian Rhapsody, Stand By Me, Dust in the Wind, holiday songs and more. A new Muppets Halloween special will air next year on TV. Muppet pre-show designs will be updated for The Muppet*Vision 3-D attraction at Disney’s California Adventure.
College Life and Death on “Heroes”
“Heroes” stars Masi Oka (Hiro Nakamura) and Hayden Panettiere (Claire Bennet) spoke with reporters on a conference call. The actors spoke about college life, terminal illness, and the shorter season that begins September 21. “We’ve gone to the future and back again. We’ve gone to the past. We’ve gone all over the world. We’ve become good and bad,” Panettiere reflected. “I think there’s nothing but excitement that we all get from that. Especially being a show for four years, you want nothing but spontaneity and change.”
Bryan Fuller, Bryan Singer set NBC comedy
‘SelleVision’ takes place at a home-shopping channel
NBC is teaming with Bryan Fuller and Bryan Singer for “SelleVision,” a comedic one-hour set behind the scenes of a home-shopping cable channel. Fuller is writing the project, based on Augusten Burroughs’ novel. Singer is on board to direct. The two will executive produce with Galgos Entertainment’s Mark Bozek and Russell Nuce. Bozek was CEO for the Home Shopping Network as part of a 10-year stint at HSN and rival home-shopping giant QVC. He always felt the arena of home-shopping nets was ripe with great characters for film and TV.
BBC may sell Worldwide stake
Corporation would keep control after sale
Pubcaster topper Mark Thompson said a partial sale of BBC Worldwide, which reported revenues of around £1 billion ($1.6 billion) last year, is among options under consideration in a wide-ranging review. “One of the things we should look at is whether 100% ownership of Worldwide is essential,” he told the Guardian paper, published Monday, adding that the BBC must keep a controlling stake.
ABC Family orders up more ‘10 Things’
Network gives 10-episode renewal to ‘Hate’
ABC Family has given a 10-episode renewal to its laffer “10 Things I Hate About You.” The ensemble half-hour based on the 1999 feature of the same name has performed well for the cabler since its July 7 debut. The news was not as good for another original series that bowed on the cabler this summer, “Ruby and the Rockits.” Cabler will not renew the series that revolved around a pair of aging pop stars and their families.
Helen Hunt eyed as ‘Parenthood’ replacement
Maura Tierney dropped out of the role last week
Helen Hunt has been approached to join NBC’s upcoming drama series “Parenthood,” taking over the role played in the pilot by Maura Tierney. The Oscar and Emmy winner is said to be considering the offer, which would mark her return to series television and to NBC, where she starred on the comedy “Mad About You” for seven years before segueing into features.
U.K. set to lift product placement ban
Bradshaw brings Brit TV in line U.S. market
Blighty looks certain to lift its ban on product placement in locally made commercial TV shows following a government U-turn. Culture minister Ben Bradshaw, appointed this summer, is expected to use his speech Wednesday at the Royal Television Society’s biennial Cambridge Convention to announce a proposal that will bring British TV in line with the U.S. and many other Western markets.
Fall TV marketing campaigns get wild
Networks pull out the stops to get good starts
Near-naked stars in provocative ads, video clips placed in magazines, online equivalents of chain letters — fall TV marketing campaigns have grown wilder as networks fight to get viewers to sample their wares in an increasingly crowded market place.
Discovery launches ‘Curiosity’
Company kicks off new programming initiative
Discovery Communications has launched what it bills as its biggest programming initiative in company’s 25-year history. Discovery founder/chairman John Hendricks is spearheading the campaign, “Curiosity,” which will center around a 60-episode TV series that launches in January 2011. “Curiosity” will air over five years, with 12 episodes each year. Every episode will address questions in fields such as space, biology, geology, medicine, physics, technology, nature, the human mind and history.
Smithsonian acquires ‘Apocalypse’
Series comprises six one-hour episodes
The Smithsonian Channel has acquired U.S. pay TV rights to Gallic docu series “Apocalypse: The Second World War.” Comprising six one-hours, “Apocalypse” is made up of stock footage, restored, sometimes colorized, and rendered in HD, which delivers a graphic immediacy to World War II scenes. About half of the footage has not been seen before.
HBO channels historical miniseries
‘Tarbell’ comes from Winfrey’s Harpo Films
HBO is in early development on two historical miniseries, including a take from Oprah Winfrey on a femme pioneer in investigative journalism. “Ida Tarbell,” from Winfrey’s Harpo Films shingle, will center on the muckraking journo who exposed the unfair practices of John D. Rockefeller and his Standard Oil monopoly. Tarbell’s work was a contributing factor in the government’s eventual breakup of the company in 1911. The other project in the works at the pay cabler, “The Black Panthers,” looks at the history of the 1960s movement’s inner circle.
Bits and Pieces
- Maura Tierney drops out of ‘Parenthood’
- Two comedies land for Sony TV
- Eric McCormack lines up two projects
- Peggy Lipton joins ‘Crash’
- Brian Austin Green and Graham Greene go for Hallmark’s ‘Wild Girl’
- TBS renews ‘My Boys’
- David James Elliott moves in to Hallmark’s ‘Man of the House’
- U.K.’s web Five has acquired ‘Knight Rider’ and others
- BBC topper hits back at Murdoch
The Fine Print
This is by no means meant to be a comprehensive roundup of the entire weeks’ news. All stories are chosen by me for no other reason than that they got my attention and might capture yours. If something you think is more important chime in on the feedback; we’d love to hear comments and have a conversation about it.
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