Just weeks after departing CBS Entertainment’s alternative programming division, Sharon Vuong has boarded NBC as senior vice president of alternative programming and development, Variety has learned. Vuong spent nearly a decade at CBS, producing major reality franchises such as “Survivor,” “The Amazing Race,” and “Big Brother,” and rising to senior vice president of CBS’ alternative
Television
In today’s TV news roundup, HBO released the first look at its “Lovecraft Country” adaptation, and ABC revealed its lineup of stars for “The Disney Family Singalong: Volume II,” coming May 10. DATES Quibi has detailed all of the bite-sized shows coming to the platform in the month of May. In addition to the previously
Desus and Mero have a message for anyone who played for the NBA in the 1990s: You have a standing invitation to be a guest on the duo’s late-night series on Showtime. The hosts of “Desus and Mero” joined Variety this week for a live webcast interview that touched on everything from ESPN’s buzzy docu-series “The
As the world faces a global pandemic, another major television event has been canceled: the Television Critics Assn. summer press tour. While the TCA board members are working with networks to explore virtual alternatives to the usual in-person, ballroom-setting press panels, any such option would likely not take place during the usual July-August time frame
Podcast and now Showtime series hosts, Desus & Mero spoke with Variety about adjusting to life in quarantine, working from home, and some of the perks that have come with their newfound fame — one being the opportunity to lend support to those in need during the coronavirus pandemic that’s resulted in many lost jobs
The “Bitch Sesh” podcaster and “Black Monday” actor joined the Variety After-Show, presented by National Geographic, to break down the latest “Real Housewives of New York.” Wilson rated the episode a nine out of ten, saying: “I was just laughing… I love these women. To what do we owe the pleasure that we’re back at fashion
Warner Bros. Television presidents Susan Rovner and Brett Paul hosted a conference call Wednesday evening to share information about the studio’s current thinking on production after weeks of coronavirus-imposed shutdowns. The call was attended by the studio’s showrunners, executive producers and line producers, as well as by people from production companies with whom WBTV and
HBO has renewed “Insecure” for a fifth season. The premium cabler made the announcement Friday. Season 4 of the comedy series, which consists of 10 episodes, debuted on April 12 with three episodes having aired to date. The season finale is set to air in mid-June. Series co-creator Issa Rae heads the ensemble cast, which
The “Parks and Recreation” reunion episode on Thursday night has raised $2.8 million for Feeding America’s COVID-19 Response Fund. The half-hour television special follows Amy Poehler’s character Leslie Knope as she catches up virtually with her former Parks department co-workers to see how they are holding up under shelter in place and social distancing regulations. The
James Corden has committed to paying the salaries of about 60 furloughed staffers on “The Late Late Show” after their paychecks from CBS come to an end this week. Corden has been hosting and producing “The Late Late Show” from his garage in Los Angeles since April 14. CBS covered eight weeks of salary for
Annie Weisman, known for producing “Desperate Housewives” and “The Path,” has inked an overall deal with Apple. As part of the multi-year deal, Weisman will develop TV projects exclusively for Apple TV Plus, adding to her aerobics upcoming dramedy “Physical,” which was landed at the streamer earlier this year. Weisman was previously under an overall
In this week’s International TV Newswire “Creepshow” sells major territories abroad, Movistar TV Colombia adds Atreseries International, Brazil’s “Big Brother” breaks world records and Sky Studios inks a deal with writer-director Philipp Leinemann. Dynamic Television Sells Shudder’s “Creepshow” Abroad Global production, financing and distribution company Dynamic Television has announced a first round of international sales
People are eager to return to the old normal, and the fate of awards shows is not the top priority, but it is a concern. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences on April 28 addressed the question of eligibility in a time of coronavirus, and the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. did the same.
SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not yet watched the “Parks and Recreation” virtual reunion special. Last television audiences saw Nick Offerman, he was playing a tech CEO named Forest in FX on Hulu’s limited series “Devs.” But in March he did a complete 180-degree character turn to step back into the shoes of
Remote production is getting better and better. “Saturday Night Live’s” second installment during the ongoing quarantine was noticeably more elegantly done than the first. Newscasts and late-night shows, though not quite seamless, are looking less cobbled-together. And “Parks and Recreation’s” reunion special, intended to raise funds for and bring awareness to the food-insecure population during
ESPN’s Michael Jordan docuseries “The Last Dance” has captured the attention of just about every basketball fan around the globe, except for documentarian Ken Burns. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Burns reveals that he hasn’t watched “The Last Dance” and he fundamentally disagrees with how it was made. Michael Jordan’s production company,
Fox announced Thursday that it has greenlit a new unscripted series titled “Celebrity Watch Party.” Debuting May 7 at 8 p.m. ET/PT, the hour-long show will feature celebrities and their families filming themselves in their own homes and reacting to the week’s most interesting television shows and events. Guests in the premiere episode will include
NBC has partnered with Byron Allen’s Entertainment Studios and Funny or Die to air a two-hour comedy special on Sunday, May 10, benefiting Feeding America, a hunger-relied organization. “There’s nothing more important right now than doing everything we can to make sure everyone affected by this pandemic is able to feed themselves and their families,”
The SAG-AFTRA Executive Committee has approved an unspecified number of staff furloughs and reductions of staff hours in response to the current and anticipated production shutdowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The committee announced the moves Thursday as part of a vote to overwhelmingly approve a fiscal year 2021 (May 1, 2020-April 30, 2021) of $96
Josh Gad won’t say he’s in love with the idea of Ariana Grande playing Meg in the upcoming “Hercules” live-action remake, OK, maybe he will. Grande recently belted out Meg’s swooning love ballad during ABC’s “Disney Family Singalong,” and Gad, who of course has plenty of clout in the Disney universe, would certainly not be
In today’s TV news roundup, Netflix released the trailer for Jerry Seinfeld’s new comedy special, and ABC announced its new game show “Don’t.” RENEWALS HBO, RAI and Fremantle have announced the renewal of drama series “My Brilliant Friend” for a third season, titled “My Brilliant Friend: Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay.” Just like
“Dare Me” won’t be cheering any longer. USA Network has canceled the cheerleader drama after a single season, Variety has confirmed. However, the show’s producer UCP is looking to shop it around, hoping to resurrect the drama elsewhere, according to sources with knowledge of the situation. The series centers around the cutthroat world of competitive high school
“The Daily Show” host Trevor Noah is keeping a safe social distance from his crew, but still trying to do right by them. Variety has learned that Noah is personally paying the salaries of 25 furloughed members of “The Daily Show” crew amid the industry-wide production shutdown prompted by the coronavirus pandemic. Noah has informed
With the “Parks and Rec” cast reuniting for a scripted special benefitting Feeding America, both original fans and those who binge-watched the show via streaming are surely in for a treat. Almost all cast members will be in character for the half-hour reunion, including Amy Poehler, Nick Offerman, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Pratt, Aziz Ansari, Rashida
Amazon earnings fell far below expectations when the e-commerce giant reported first-quarter results after the market close Thursday. Though some on Wall Street had expected the Seattle-based tech giant to benefit from the increase in online shopping amid the ongoing coronavirus outbreak that has been keeping people at home, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said that
The ownership group of the San Antonio Spurs is selling a minority stake in the team, people familiar with the matter told Sportico. The team has retained Guggenheim Partners to manage the process, said the people, who were granted anonymity because the matter is private. Guggenheim’s chief executive officer is Mark Walter, who is the
Nascar is trying to get live sports back on the road. The racing association, which backs the Nascar Xfinity Series and the Nascar Cup and has rights deals with NBCUniversal and Fox Corp., intends to launch the first of seven races over an 11-day time frame at two different race tracks. Nascar said its new
UPDATE — Hollywood’s major studios and the Writers Guild of America have agreed to start negotiations, as planned, on May 11. The WGA has also agreed to extend its contract expiration two months to June 30. Both sides are expected to exchange proposals on Friday — even though studios did not agree to the WGA’s request
The Hollywood Reporter has named veteran journalist Nekesa Mumbi Moody as its new editorial director. She has served as global entertainment and lifestyles editor at The Associated Press since 2012. Moody will relocate from New York to Los Angeles and starts the job on June 15. Prior to her role as global entertainment and lifestyles
Looks like Ramy might have finally found someone to help him be a better Muslim. Hulu has released the first trailer for “Ramy” season 2, which sees the sex and self-obsessed central character turn to Mahershala Ali’s sheikh for spiritual guidance. The Oscar and Emmy-winning Ali is a new player for season 2, and the