September 11, 2019 8:48PM PT Ava DuVernay (“When They See Us”), David Mandel (“Veep”) and Bruce Miller and Kira Snyder (“The Handmaid’s Tale”) were among those honored at the Television Academy’s Emmy nominees writers reception on Tuesday night in North Hollywood. There, ceremony hosts, “Escape at Dannemora” star Eric Lange and “Veep’s” Sam Richardson, kept the
Television
In today’s TV news roundup, OWN’s Emmy-winning series “Super Soul Sunday” premieres Sept. 15 and Boomerang teases its new animated series “Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?” FIRST LOOKS Boomerang has released a sneak-peek of the Sept. 12 season premiere of “Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?,” featuring Kenan Thompson. The animated series follows Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby-Doo
Sterling K. Brown and his Indian Meadows Productions banner have found a potential home for their “Washington Black” series, based on Esi Edugyan’s award-winning novel. Hulu has given a script commitment plus penalty to the Brown-produced limited series, meaning the Disney-owned platform will be forced to pay a penalty if the project doesn’t go to pilot.
September 11, 2019 2:30PM PT An amateur sleuth drama from Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain is in the works at CBS, Variety has learned exclusively. The untitled one-hour project follows four women who, fed up with feeling unseen after a neighbor mysteriously disappears from their tranquil Florida community, band together to find her by turning their
It looks like Pam and Angela might be finally getting along. Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey, who play Pam and Angela, respectively, in the famous NBC sitcom, have teamed up for an “Office”-related podcast. In “Office Ladies,” which premieres Oct. 16 on Stitcher’s comedy network Earwolf, the former “Office” stars and real-life best friends will
Liv Tyler has been cast as the lead opposite Rob Lowe in Fox’s “9-1-1” spinoff, Variety has confirmed. The new entry to the budding franchise follows a sophisticated New York fireman (Lowe) who, along with his son, re-locates to Austin, Texas, and must try to balance saving those who are at their most vulnerable with solving the
Sean Hayes and Todd Milliner’s Hazy Mills Productions has partnered with Test Pattern Media to launch a branded content division. The new initiative comes after Hazy Mill’s recent branch into branded content, winning awards for their Orbitz campaign, and partnering with other clients such as Lucasfilm, Amazon, Showtime, Starbucks, Capital One, TNT, TBS, Lincoln, P&G,
“Fargo” Season 4 has cast Uzo Aduba, Variety has confirmed. She joins previously announced cast member Chris Rock, who will lead the upcoming season of the critically-acclaimed FX series. The exact nature of Aduba’s role is being kept under wraps at this time. Aduba is best known for her role in the Netflix series “Orange
September 11, 2019 11:02AM PT Both “The Kelly Clarkson Show” and Tamron Hall’s self-titled talk show debuted to strong ratings in syndication this week. The “American Idol” and “Voice” coach’s NBCUniversal show scored a 1.9 household metered market rating and a 6 share in the 56 metered markets, which represents the highest debut for a
Of the major broadcasters, few are making any radical changes to their linear schedules for the fall Nielsen season, which begins Sept. 23. They’re relying instead on mostly established hits. No doubt the nets are looking to stanch the bleeding of linear viewers to digital and streaming platforms by providing continuity from season to season.
Despite the catastrophic crash that opens the series, it takes some time for “Undone” to reveal its story’s surprising depths. It seems at first to just be about Alma (Rosa Salazar), a San Antonio woman who spends just about every waking hour trudging through her own depressive fog, hoping that one day something extraordinary might
Fox has settled its long-running profits litigation over the crime show “Bones,” during which an arbitrator accused top Fox executives of lying on the witness stand. The arbitrator, Peter Lichtman, issued a blistering ruling in February, in which he accused Dana Walden, Gary Newman and Peter Rice of engaging a “reprehensible” cover-up of Fox’s behavior.
Jordan Weiss, the creator and writer behind the forthcoming comedy “Dollface,” first wrote the series while in school at USC. Now, the 10-episode series has been produced by Margot Robbie’s production company Luckychap Entertainment for Hulu, and stars bold-faced names such as Kat Dennings, Shay Mitchell and Brenda Song, “I wrote it as my writing sample
Toronto-bowed “Savages,” the kinetic, taut political thriller from Vivendi’s Canal Plus, imagines a French Obama – Idder Chaouch, of Algerian descent, played by a stately Roschdy Zem – poised in Paris to rule France as its first Maghrebi president. If he survives an assassination attempt. Yet, created and co-written by novelist Sabri Louatah and cineast
French thriller writer Maxime Chattam’s “Predateurs” is being adapted for TV by a powerhouse team of producers and by Alexandre Charlot and Franck Magnier, the writing duo behind “Welcome to the Sticks,” the highest-grossing film ever in French history. The series will be set in a near future when the world is on the brink
September 10, 2019 7:40PM PT Bruce Beresford-Redman, an ex-producer of the reality television show “Survivor,” has been released from a Mexican prison after serving time for his wife’s murder. Beresford-Redman was sentenced to 12 years in prison after he was convicted of killing his wife Mónica Burgos in 2010 while on a family vacation at
In today’s TV news roundup, Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow are among the celebrity contestants on “25 Words or Less.” Also, Ruby Rose, Sarah Snook and Dacre Montgomery will be honored at the Australian in Film Awards. CASTINGS Fox TV announced Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Chelsea Handler, Jane Lynch and Rick Fox are among the
September 10, 2019 5:25PM PT With its bitter stalemate with agents in its fifth month, the Writers Guild of America is broadening its outreach to managers to make deals for members. “The WGA is expanding its online services to include connecting management companies with WGA members who are looking for new representation,” said an email
Mrs. Fletcher isn’t married — at least not anymore. The title character of HBO’s new limited series, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival Sept. 10 ahead of an October 27 bow, hasn’t gotten around to changing her name yet, either because it’s a final fraying thread tying her to her otherwise disconnected college-age
September 10, 2019 4:00PM PT John C. Reilly has joined the HBO pilot about the 1980s Showtime Lakers in a recasting. Reilly will play the role of former Lakers owner Jerry Buss, replacing Michael Shannon, who exited the project over creative differences. The character is described as a self-made millionaire whose success has only amplified
September 10, 2019 3:15PM PT Maz Jobrani’s life could be coming to the small screen as an animated comedy. Variety has learned exclusively that Fox has commissioned a pilot presentation and script for an animated comedy based on Jobrani and his family. The series would follow three generations of immigrants adjusting to life in America
As artists in the film and television industry who also happen to be deaf, Shoshannah Stern and Joshua Feldman know first-hand how hard it can be to see themselves reflected on-screen. So they created their own series, “This Close,” which returns for its second season on Sept. 12. But in taking the reins of a
Apple released the official trailer “See” starring Jason Momoa on Tuesday. “See” takes place in the distant future, after a deadly virus decimated humankind. Those who survived emerged blind. Jason Momoa stars as Baba Voss, the father of twins born centuries later with the mythic ability to see. He must protect his tribe against a
French programs brought in 276 million euros ($304.7 million) from international sales and foreign investment through co-productions in 2019. It marked the third highest performance in the last 25 years, according to a study unveiled by the CNC and TV France International. Sales of French programs alone accounted for $190 million (compared with 205 million
TV’s fall season is only just getting into gear, but at least one major network battle is growing louder. Just days after “Good Morning America” usurped rival “Today’s” position as the dominant morning program among the viewers advertisers care about most, “Today” has, for now, elbowed its ABC counterpart out of the ratings category –
Norman Lear has been named the Variety‘s first-ever Creative Conscience Award recipient in the field of television. The prolific producer will receive the award at Variety‘s annual showrunners’ dinner, taking place Sept. 17 in Los Angeles, Calif. “For nearly 40 years, Norman Lear’s People For the American Way has stood for social justice, compassion and transparency
“The Umbrella Academy” is bringing in three new cast members for season 2. Ritu Arya, Yusuf Gatewood and Marin Ireland are all set to join returning cast members Ellen Page, Tom Hopper, David Castañeda, Emmy Raver-Lampman, Robert Sheehan, Aidan Gallagher, and Justin H. Min for the Netflix show’s sophomore outing. Arya, best known for her
David E. Kelley, fresh off his stint on “Big Little Lies,” and “Lost” director Jack Bender are teaming up to bring Stephen King’s latest novel “The Institute” to the screen. Spyglass has won the rights to the book and plans to adapt it into a limited series with Kelley in place to write and executive
Local TV stations are working to tune in a new methodology for counting viewers of the 6 p.m. news and morning talk shows. The TVB, the trade organization that represents more than 800 TV stations and TV broadcast groups, is pressing Madison Avenue to start using viewer impressions as a base for striking ad deals
No paper scripts or call sheets. Only hybrid cars for transportation to set. Biodegradable eating utensils. The set of Robert and Michelle King’s new fall drama “Evil,” like many of its CBS brethren, is a fully green production, working with sustainability consulting firm Earth Angel to assess the production’s waste levels and ultimately lower its