Television

The “Cowboy Bebop” live-action series at Netflix has found the lion’s share of its main cast, Variety has learned. John Cho, Mustafa Shakir, Daniella Pineda, and Alex Hassell have all been cast in lead roles in the series, which is based on the anime series of the same name. Cho will star as Spike Spiegel, described

Comedy Central struck a new development deal with comedian and actor Roy Wood Jr. that encompasses a “first-look” relationship as well as a few other projects at the Viacom-owned media outlet. Wood, who has appeared on the network’s flagship “Daily Show” since 2015, will begin production on a pilot, “Jefferson Country: Probation,” in his hometown

April 4, 2019 8:16AM PT Andre Holland has been cast in a lead role for Damien Chazelle’s upcoming musical drama series “The Eddy,” Variety has learned. The Paris-set Netflix show will revolve around a club, its owner, the house band, and the chaotic city that surrounds them. The series is expected to start shooting on location in

April 4, 2019 8:00AM PT A&E and WWE Studios will partner to produce five documentaries about some of the most iconic wrestlers of all time in new installments of the “Biography” series. The two-hour original documentaries will profile “Macho Man” Randy Savage, “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, Booker T, Stone Cold Steve Austin, and Shawn Michaels. As

CBS News named Diana Miller executive producer of “CBS This Morning,” the news unit’s latest maneuver to shore up its signature morning program as it works to regain momentum in the ratings. Miller replaces Ryan Kadro, who stepped down from his role at the show earlier this year. “Diana is exceptionally positioned for this role,”

Discovery’s Food Network said it signed popular chef Alex Guarnaschelli to a new, exclusive deal that will encompass projects for both daytime and primetime as well as the cable outlet’s linear and digital extensions. The pact is just the latest in a series of new contracts recent set between Discovery and various members of its

April 4, 2019 2:11AM PT “London Kills” is coming home after the BBC picked up the series, which is an original for the U.S. streamer Acorn TV. Much like BBC America’s “Killing Eve,” the series launched outside the U.K. and has been acquired by pubcaster the BBC. “London Kills” follows an elite team of cops

April 4, 2019 12:30AM PT TV investor and distributor, The Story Lab has picked up international distribution rights to format, “The Sound” from China’s Hunan TV. The Story Lab will launch it at next week’s Miptv trade event in Cannes. “The Sound” is a studio-based entertainment series which sees celebrities compete weekly to showcase their voiceover

MADRID — Netflix’s “High Seas,” its fourth Spanish Original Series, produced by “Velvet’s” Bambú Producciones, initiated rehearsals in October. Netflix has yet to announce an exact release date this year. But, following on “Cable Girls,” Netflix’s first Spanish original and another Bambú production, “Elite,” and “Money Heist” (“La casa de papel”), expectation is high. Variety

As “Game of Thrones” nears its final season premiere date, the show is turning to Sin City to help usher in the countdown. HBO has teamed up with MGM Resorts on an immersive “GoT”-themed production at the iconic Fountains of Bellagio on the Las Vegas Strip. The new music and waterworks show, produced in collaboration

John Skipper, who resigned as president of ESPN in December 2017, commented on the events that led to his departure during his sit-down with Bill Simmons on his podcast. Skipper disclosed last year that an extortion attempt related to his purchase of cocaine led to his abrupt resignation from the sports behemoth. “Some of my

In today’s roundup, the cast for the first story in Shudder’s Stephen King anthology series “Creepshow” has been announced.  CASTING AMC Network’s premium streaming service Shudder announced initial casting for the upcoming anthology series “Creepshow” based on the 1982 Stephen King and George Romero film of the same name. Adrienne Barbeau, Giancarlo Esposito, and Tobin

A black-owned TV company sued Nexstar Media Group on Wednesday, accusing the company of sabotaging its efforts to operate independently. Marshall Broadcasting Group owns three Fox affiliates in Odessa, Texas; Shreveport, La.; and Davenport, Iowa. The company, owned by Pluria Marshall Jr., bought the stations from Nexstar in 2014, as Nexstar was looking to divest

Stephen Curry is set to swap out his preferred basketball for an altogether smaller one. The NBA star is teaming up with ABC to produce and star in “Holey Moley,” a mini-golf competition series which will showcase self-proclaimed mini-golf lovers from around the country as they compete head-to-head on the course. Curry will serve as

CBS News on Wednesday confirmed that “CBS This Morning” co-host Bianna Golodryga has left the program, a sign that the network has begun to reshape its morning show as it grapples to win new A.M. viewership. “Bianna Golodryga has decided to leave the network,” CBS News said in a statement.”We thank her for her many

At UTA’s second annual showrunners panel Tuesday night, several of the people behind series suchas “The Twilight Zone,” “Vida,” and “SWAT” discussed the challenges and horrible experiences they faced in writers’ rooms, as well as how they set a better, more inclusive tone in their own. When asked about her first experience in a writers’

Melissa Leo and Rosie O’Donnell have joined the cast of the HBO limited series “I Know This Much Is True,” along with Archie Panjabi, Imogen Poots, Juliette Lewis, and Kathryn Hahn. HBO has given a production commitment to the six-episode drama, which stars and is executive produced by Mark Ruffalo. The family drama follows the

NBC is bringing pint-sized competition show “Small Fortune” to the small screen, Variety has learned exclusively. The network has put out a six-episode order from Youngest Media for the series, which will be based on the popular U.K. format that launched on ITV in February.  “Small Fortune” will see teams of three friends compete in tiny challenges

CBS’s latest procedural stays in what’s become the network’s very particular comfort zone: The world of military court. In the wake of the naval-justice franchise “NCIS” (itself a spinoff of long-ago CBS standby “JAG”), the network perhaps most closely adherent to formula has put together “The Code,” a deeply familiar-feeling product. On “The Code,” lawyers

Jason Alexander, who is best known for his nine-year stint as the iconic character George Costanza on “Seinfeld,” has boarded the Fox single-camera comedy pilot “Richard Lovely,” Variety has learned. The project follows the title character, who is the disgruntled author of the best-selling children’s book series, “Mr. Mouse.” Richard doesn’t hate children, but rather just everything about

Thank you for being a friend: The entire 180-episode run of “The Golden Girls” is currently available to binge on Hulu, and “Broad City” stars Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer have been diving in. “I’ve been watching from the pilot,” Glazer told Variety‘s “My Favorite Episode” podcast. “It’s the best. I am finding myself f—ing

In the tricky business of ranking the most-watched TV series in the world, two CBS shows seem to perennially appear near, or at the top, of everyone’s estimations: “NCIS” and “CSI.” “No one knew [“CSI”] was going to be the juggernaut it became — we just all knew it was unique and beautifully produced and

Australian broadcaster Network Ten went from bankruptcy proceedings in 2017 to a rebirth last year after CBS swooped in to acquire the network.CBS Global Distribution Group leader Armando Nuñez Jr. spearheaded the deal. He was well-versed in Network Ten’s history, having sold American television shows to the broadcaster for more than 25 years. Nuñez knew

Over his long career in international sales, Armando Nuñez Jr. has handled just about every kind of TV program, from game-changing primetime dramas, to daytime soaps, to trashy talk shows. Some were big hits right out of the box, some were sleepers, and one show was so bad that a top foreign buyer left the

CBS global distribution CEO Armando Nuñez Jr. went on the record with his career goals at a young age. As a teenager in New York City in the early 1970s, Nuñez and his mother were out shopping one day when they were stopped by the New York Daily News’ Inquiring Photographer columnist. He asked Nuñez

Ricky Gervais’ bleakest show yet is returning for a second season, Variety has learned. Netflix has announced it is renewing “After Life” for a six-episode season 2, which will launch in 2020. The first season debuted in March, 2019. “I have never had a reaction like this before. It’s been insane. And heartwarming. But now I

Early on its first season, the seemed to be on the verge of scoring a pop-culture touchdown. An initial broadcast on CBS featuring games between the  San Diego Fleet and the San Antonio Commanders, and the Atlanta Legends against the Orlando Apollos notched nearly 3 million viewers and fared quite well against an NBA telecast

April 3, 2019 7:00AM PT The TCM Classic Film Festival will pay tribute to Turner Classic Movies founder Ted Turner during a special presentation on April 11, the opening night of the four-day festival now in its 10th year in Los Angeles. Turner was an architect of the modern media landscape with his pioneering efforts

The final months of Marilyn Monroe’s life are set to be dramatized in a new series from BBC Studios that will explore her relationship with Hollywood studios and with public figures such as JFK and Bobby Kennedy. BBC Studios, the BBC’s production and commercial arm, has teamed up with Dan Sefton and Simon Lupton’s U.K.

April 3, 2019 1:43AM PT Endemol Shine Group has acquired the format rights for hit Japanese cookery show “The Rolling Kitchen” from Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation. It will represent the title outside Japan and launch the format at Miptv in Cannes next week. “The Rolling Kitchen” is a studio-based cooking series from the director of “Iron