Television

Former NFL linebacker Spencer Paysinger’s senior year in high school as the captain of the Beverly Hills High School football team was an essential one to kick-start his professional football career. Since that time in his life was never dramatically halted by a deadly pandemic, and since the CW’s “All American” is inspired by his

The temperature in the tent reached fever pitch this season, and it wasn’t just chocolate mirror glazes that melted in the heat. Every season of “Great British Baking Show” (or “The Great British Bake Off” to folks across the pond) has included controversial eliminations, baking disasters and emotional highs, but season 11 was a tiered

“The Undoing” came to a shocking end on Sunday in a finale which not only had social media buzzing, but also delivered a large audience for HBO. According to the network, the finale drew a total of 3 million viewers across all platforms, which represents a 43% increase from the penultimate episode and more than

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court seemed deeply skeptical on Tuesday about whether five women should have been allowed to testify against Bill Cosby during his sexual assault trial. Cosby is serving a three-to-10 year sentence for sexually assaulting Andrea Constand in 2004. In his appeal, his attorneys have argued that the judge should not have allowed

Advertisers in next year’s Super Bowl are hoping they will get to party like it’s pre-pandemic 2020. Earlier this year, Fox Corporation took in about $600 million in advertising revenue for its broadcast of Super Bowl LIV and pre- and post-game coverage, Lachlan Murdoch, the company’s executive chairman, said earlier this year. The game itself,

NBCUniversal’s Telemundo Enterprises is restructuring its top management along content production and distribution lines, mirroring the overhaul implemented over the past few months at the rest of the company’s television units and at other media giants. Former Telemundo Networks programming chief Ronald Day has been elevated to president of entertainment and content strategy for NBCUniversal

SALES Distribution outfit Abacus Media Rights has announced sales on several documentary features and non-fiction series at the ongoing Asian Television Forum, which is part of the Singapore Media Festival. “Rhys Darby: Big in Japan,” “Griff’s Great Kiwi Road Trip,” “Griff’s Great Australian Rail Trip” and “The Helper” have been acquired by National Geographic, while

Facebook Watch is set to launch the first-ever interactive AI reality series, titled “Rival Peak,” on Dec. 2. Hailing from dj2 Entertainment, Pipeworks Studios, and Genvid Technologies, the series places twelve AI contestants in the Pacific Northwest where they must survive elimination and solve the mystery that brought them together. Viewers can observe, help, or

Spice Girl Mel B is set to host the second season of model search competition “The Fashion Hero.” Produced by BBC Studios-backed Rapid Blue (“X-Factor,” “Dancing With The Stars”), the show will be shot at South Africa’s Sun City Resort in the spring. Created to challenge the fashion industry’s preconceived standards of beauty, the first

WarnerMedia has confirmed a seven-episode second season of its HBO Asia original horror anthology series, “Folklore.” Each instalment will be directed by a local director from a different Asian territory. With production again headed by Singapore-based film maker Eric Khoo, the new season will begin filming early in 2021. The competed series will be carried

Canada-based global distribution group Blue Ant International has notched up sales of crime-themed content to several Asian platforms, coming into the Asian Television Forum (ATF) in Singapore. The ATF runs as part of the Singapore Media Festival. Pan-Asian linear network, A+E Networks Asia has picked up season five of Arrow Media and Saloon Media’s “See

In further growth in Europe, ViacomCBS’s Pluto TV, the U.S. media giant’s banner free ad-supported streamed TV linear service, is launching eight more channels in Spain, as it has unveiled data underscoring the impact of its Oct. 26 Spanish launch. Set to bow on today Tuesday Dec. 1, and bringing Pluto TV’s total portfolio count

Netflix is to create a Korean version of its own Spanish-language action thriller series “Money Heist” (“La Casa de Papel”). The production is to be a collaboration between BH Entertainment and Contents Zium. The Korean adaptation of “Money Heist” will be directed by Kim Hong-sun, who has helmed TV dramas like “The Guest,” “Voice” and

A new dramatic series revolving around China’s battle against the COVID-19 pandemic is featured in the market screenings of Singapore’s Asia TV Forum (ATF). The series takes pride of place as part of the Middle Kingdom’s most elaborate presence at virtual markets this year. “With You” is a 20-episode anthological drama series featuring 10 fact-based

SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not yet watched “Storia Americana,” the fourth season finale of “Fargo.” The Season 4 finale of “Fargo,” which aired Sunday night, was the second of two episodes that were — thanks to the coronavirus pandemic — short four months after the eight preceding episodes were forced to

In today’s TV news roundup, Jake Choi has joined the cast of ABC comedy “American Housewife,” and HBO Max unveiled the official trailer for “My Gift: A Christmas Special from Carrie Underwood.” CASTING Jake Choi has joined the cast of ABC sitcom “American Housewife,” Variety has learned exclusively. He will play J.D., a recent divorcee and

Disney Plus has made good on its promise to deliver a varied and ambitious original programming lineup in Latin America where it launched on Nov. 17. More than 70 original productions are in various stages of development and production in Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Colombia, Disney’s four biggest markets. One of them, doc-series “Sobrevolando,” is

History Channel is developing a pair of drama miniseries, including one executive produced by “Vikings” creator Michael Hirst. The first is titled “The Plague Year,” which hails from writer Coleman Herbert with Hirst executive producing. The series is described as a portrait of 1665 London, during one of the all-time worst outbreaks of the Bubonic

Apple has given a straight-to-series order to a drama series starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Variety has learned. The series is titled “Surface” and hails from writer and executive producer Veronica West. Plot details on the series are being kept under wraps except to say that it is a psychological thriller. It will consist of eight episodes with

“Euphoria” and its Emmy-winning star Zendaya are back. It may not be the full-fledged sophomore season of the HBO original series, but the first trailer for a pair of special episodes released on Monday. The first episode is titled “Part 1: Rue” and will stream on HBO Max on Dec. 6 at 9 p.m. The

Brat TV announced the renewal of “Attaway General” for Season 2, with filming already underway. The series, which is known for featuring young talent — including TikTok stars like Dixie D’Amelio — follows a group of teenagers who volunteer at the Attaway General Hospital in hopes of preparing for future medical careers. The first season

AMC Networks has appointed its first ever chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer. The company has hired Aisha Thomas-Petit in the new role, which will see her look to build on the AMC’s current diveristy, equity and inclusion foundation. Thomas-Petit will play an integral role in developing and retaining a diverse and inclusive community of

“The Mandalorian” has officially become the first Disney Plus series to make an appearance on Nielsen’s recently-launched streaming top 10 list. The “Star Wars” series jets in at number three for the week of Oct. 26, placing only behind “The Queen’s Gambit” and “The Office” on Netflix. According to Nielsen, the show’s 9 episodes (including

Erin Kellyman, Cailee Spaeny, and Ellie Bamber are negotiating to star in the “Willow” series at Disney Plus, Variety has confirmed. Details on the characters the three would play are being kept under wraps. The show will take place years after the original and will introduce new characters to the world originally established in the 1988 film.

Welcome back to Tune In: our weekly newsletter offering a guide to the best of the week’s TV. Each week, Variety’s TV team combs through the week’s schedule, selecting our picks of what to watch and when/how to watch them. As many across the country continue to practice self-isolation due to coronavirus, why not while away

BBC Studios is adding an inclusion rider underlining its commitment to representation across all new BBC and third-party U.K. commissions. Effective immediately, the rider sets a minimum target of 20% for BBC Studios’ on-screen talent and production teams who come from a Black, Asian or minority ethnic background, have a lived experience of a disability,

During the first episode of Netflix’s “Selena: The Series,” about the titular Tejano music superstar, the patriarch of the family, Abraham Quintanilla Jr. (Ricardo Chavira), strums his guitar as his 8-year-old daughter Selena (Madison Taylor Baez) sings the popular 1970s song “Feelings” like any gifted little girl would. “The notes are good, you’re just not…”

U.K. production and distribution powerhouse BBC Studios has reduced its gender and minorities pay gap to below 10%, the outfit’s 2019/20 U.K. Pay Gap Report reveals. The report shows that the company has narrowed the difference between the median pay for men versus women to 9%, down from 10.3% in the previous year. The report

HBO series “The Undoing,” starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Grant, has proven to be a success for Comcast’s U.K. pay TV operation Sky Atlantic, with the opening episode reaching a cumulative 28-day audience of over 2.78 million viewers, marking a bigger launch than “Game of Thrones” in 2011. The first three episodes have recorded audiences

In today’s Global Bulletin, Channel 5 announces Season 2 of “All Creatures Great and Small,” BAFTA backs Indian talent, CJ ENM commissions format deals for “I Can See Your Voice” and Newen hires a new distribution executive. COMMISSION Channel 5 in the U.K. has commissioned a second season of its hit period drama “All Creatures