Rockmond Dunbar, an original member of Fox’s ‘9-1-1,’ has exited the show over his refusal to get a COVID-19 vaccine, Variety has confirmed. His character, Michael Grant, was written off Monday evening’s show due to differences about new COVID protocols on the show. The show, produced by 20th Television, now requires actors to be vaccinated.
Television
Lizzy Caplan is set to star in upcoming limited series ‘Fleishman Is In Trouble,” FX confirmed to Variety. It is believed that she has been cast as Libby, the narrator of the nine-episode series, which will stream on FX on Hulu. Adapted from Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s novel of the same name, “Fleishman Is In Trouble” follows
The “Party Down” revival has officially been ordered to series at Starz, Variety has confirmed. In addition, original series stars Adam Scott, Jane Lynch, Ken Marino, Martin Starr, Ryan Hansen and Megan Mullally have all signed on to return to the six-episode limited series. Lizzy Caplan is not expected to return due to scheduling conflicts, with
Amazon Prime Video’s new television series “The Wheel of Time,” based on the series of novels by Robert Jordan, draws upon a rich, deep history. Or so this viewer, unfamiliar with Jordan’s work, was left to presume when the show began with Rosamund Pike explaining the backstory and the stakes in rushed voice-over. There’s nothing
Paramount Television Studios has promoted Jenna Santoianni, Cheryl Bosnak, and Erika Kirkwood. Jenna Santoianni has been upped to executive vice president of Paramount Television Studios after previously serving as executive vice president and head of development. She will continue to lead development at PTVS but will now also oversee daily operations at the studio. Bosnak,
The original Hogwarts wizarding trio are reuniting to recount their adventures from two decades ago. Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson will join filmmaker Chris Columbus and other cast members from all eight “Harry Potter” films for the first time in an HBO Max retrospective special to celebrate the anniversary of the franchise’s first
The “Avatar: The Last Airbender” live-action series at Netflix has cast three key roles, with production on the series now underway. Paul Sun-Hyung Lee (“Kim’s Convenience,” “The Mandalorian”) will play Uncle Iroh, a retired Fire Nation general and the wise and nurturing mentor to his hot-headed nephew, Prince Zuko. Lim Kay Siu (“Anna and The King,”
An adaptation of the forthcoming novel by “Brick Lane” author Monica Ali is in the works at the BBC, Variety can reveal. Sources indicate that All3Media-owned production company New Pictures is in early development on “Love Marriage” with the corporation. The book is set to be published in February by Virago Press in the U.K. and
Starz announced that upcoming series “Shining Vale” will premiere on March 6, 2022 at 10 p.m. Led by Courteney Cox and Greg Kinnear, the series is a horror-comedy set in the small town of Shining Vale, Conn. Pat (Cox) and Terry Phelps (Kinnear) spend their life savings to move from a Brooklyn apartment to a
Julie Bowen, the actor who starred as Claire Dunphy in “Modern Family,” has signed a first-look deal with Universal Television for her production company Bowen & Sons. She is partnered with Rachael Field, who associate produced “Modern Family,” on the banner. Under the deal, Bowen has a put pilot commitment for a currently untitled single-camera
Bron Media Corp. has named executive Josh Miller to a top new role in the non-scripted space. Miller will serve as a senior vice president at Bron Life, a vertical at the award-winning company dedicated to unscripted film and television. He will report to Bron president Brenda Gilbert and be responsible for growing and managing
The IATSE Basic Agreement ratification passed on Monday by the narrowest of margins, with a few hundred votes in two guilds deciding the outcome. A bare majority of the 40,000-odd members of the 13 West Coast locals voted to reject the agreement — with 50.4% voting no and 49.6% voting yes. But the union’s contracts
British superstar Adele’s powerhouse voice reached 9.92 million listeners (and viewers) during CBS’ “Adele: One Night Only” special on Sunday night, making it the most-watched entertainment special since the Oscars seven months ago, although below the numbers snagged by “60 Minutes” and NBC’s football broadcast in the evening. The time-zone adjusted Live+Same Day fast national
COMMISSION U.K. broadcaster ITV has commissioned Fremantle U.K. to produce a documentary film on British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently awaiting trial in a U.S. jail over her alleged involvement in the crimes of which Jeffrey Epstein was accused. Maxwell faces trial this year on charges of sex trafficking and the abuse of underage
Industrial Media has entered into an overall deal with House of NonFiction, Alex Stapleton’s new unscripted production company. Stapleton is an Emmy-winning filmmaker who is currently directing two projects for HBO. She recently completed the docu-series “Pride” for FX, which chronicles the American LGBTQ+ civil rights movement. Other recent credits include “Hello Privilege. It’s Me,
Paramount Plus has released the first trailer for the live-action “Halo” series. The show is expected to debut on the streamer in 2022. Pablo Schreiber stars as the iconic Master Chief from the long-running and beloved Xbox video game series. In the teaser, he suits up in his instantly recognizable armor and puts on his
“SAS: Rogue Heroes,” the new, six-part limited series from “Peaky Blinders” creator Steven Knight, will bow on MGM’s premium network Epix in the U.S. Epix acquired the series from global distributor Banijay Rights. The deal was negotiated by Matt Creasey, EVP sales, co-productions and acquisitions at Banijay Rights. This is the first international deal for
Hulu announced that “The D’Amelio Show” has been renewed for a second season. The unscripted series follows social media stars Dixie and Charli D’Amelio and their parents Marc and Heidi as the family navigates the transition from a normal life into overnight celebrity status. Season 1, which debuted Sept. 3, saw the family settle into
Lena Waithe’s Hillman Grad Productions — the company the actor/writer/producer founded with Rishi Rajani — now has an exclusive, multi-year deal with Warner Bros. Television Group. At WBTVG, Waithe and Rajani will develop television projects for, according to the announcement, “all platforms, including WarnerMedia’s HBO Max, external streaming services, cable and the five broadcast networks.”
Two of the highest-profile independents on the Spanish-language movie scene, Colombia’s 64-A Films and Spain’s Latido Films, are teaming to develop, produce and distribute premium TV and platform series. Playing to their complementary expertise, Latido and 64-A will co-develop and co-produce titles, with 64-A overseeing physical production and Latido spearheading distribution. Much of 64-A and
ATX Television Festival has set June 2-5 as its 2022 dates, planning to return to in-person events but still provide a virtual attendee option. Additionally, the festival announced that submissions for its annual pitch competition are now open and will be through Jan. 30, 2022. This will be the festival’s 11th year overall, but its
A three-part documentary about Barney the Dinosaur has started production at Peacock, the streamer announced Monday. The project will examine the meteoric rise of Barney, the beloved children’s character who captured the hearts of millions of children and then became the target of hate and rage across pop culture, the early internet and playgrounds around
The fifth and final season of Neapolitan mob series “Gomorrah” was unveiled Monday during an emotionally charged Rome event saluting the end of the gritty, groundbreaking show. As Nils Hartmann, senior director of Sky Italia original productions, put it during the press conference, in Italian TV “there is a before and after ‘Gomorrah.’” The hyper-realistic
ESPN, which has seen some of its top executives charged with overseeing documentary and investigative work depart in recent months, said it had named news veteran Marsha Cooke as vice president and executive producer of its ESPN Films unit as well as its venerable “30 for 30” documentary unit. Cooke, who spent 24 years at
“A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks,” borrows the title of the pioneering photographer and filmmaker’s autobiography to explore his legacy as a visual artist. Director and producer John Maggio weaves together stories of contemporary Black photographers and filmmakers with Parks’ life story, tracing his journey from childhood poverty in Kansas to staff photographer
“Sesame Street” is making history by introducing its first Asian American muppet. On Monday, the popular kids show welcomed Ji-Young, a seven-year-old Korean American, to its family of puppet characters. Sesame Workshop puppeteer Kathleen Kim performs the historic character. “Sesame Street” also announced a new TV special that celebrates the diversity of the Asian and
SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not watched the series premiere of Showtime’s “Yellowjackets.” The women of “Yellowjackets” have a problem. In the 1990s-set storyline on the new Showtime drama, a group of teenage soccer stars who have the world in front of them are jolted when their plane crashes on the way
After Ted Cruz called Big Bird “government propaganda” on Twitter because that fictional character’s account tweeted about the COVID-19 vaccine, “Saturday Night Live” saw an opportunity to create a fictional new kids’ show from the senator. Titled “Cruz Street” and hosted by Aidy Bryant as Cruz, that sketch opened the Nov. 13 episode of NBC’s
Jennifer Garner is now set to headline the upcoming Apple drama series “The Last Thing He Told Me,” Variety has confirmed. Garner takes over the role from Julia Roberts, who reportedly pulled out due to a scheduling issue. The series is based on the book of the same name by Laura Dave. “The Last Thing He
The Netherlands imposed a partial lockdown Friday, amid a surge in COVID-19 infections, but the entertainment business has escaped unscathed, with movie theaters remaining open, and documentary festival IDFA set to run as an in-person event as planned. The 34th edition of IDFA will run Nov. 17 to 28 in Amsterdam. In a statement released