Tonight’s Finales
ABC: The Good Doctor at 10p
DIY: Maine Cabin Masters at 9p
For streaming premieres, go here.

IN THE NEWS

Changes are afoot for this year’s Emmy Awards amid the COVID-19 crisis. The dates for both the Creative Arts Emmys, September 12-13, and Primetime Emmys, September 20, remain unchanged for now, but the Television Academy is adjusting eligibility and voting deadlines for this year’s awards. The entry deadline is shifting from May 11 to June 5, and the phase 1 voting period segues from June 15-29 to July 2-13. The nominations announcement date is now July 28, a change from July 14. Additionally, hanging episodes must broadcast or post on an accessible platform by June 30, vs. the original May 31 date. All ‘For Your Consideration” events, whether live, streaming or recorded, remain suspended.

Business Not as Usual: In the latest corporate adjustments, ViacomCBS on Friday announced a $2.5 billion debt offering as it weathers the challenging coronavirus climate. The move, a day after the merged company withdrew prior guidance to its fiscal 2020 financial results, comprises the selling of two sets of senior notes—due in 2025 and 2031—each at $1.25 billion in aggregate principal. ViacomCBS said it intends to use the net proceeds for general corporate purposes, which may include repayment of outstanding indebtedness… AMC Networks withdrew Q1 and full year financial guidance provided earlier this year, and the company is not offering an updated fiscal outlook at this time. In an SEC filing the company said it’s experiencing lower ad sales due to suspended content production, and cannot predict the ultimate impact of the pandemic at this time. AMC Nets said at the end of 2019 it had $816 million in cash and cash equivalents on its balance sheet, as well as access to a $500 million revolving credit facility with no outstanding borrowing.

In the near term, digital ad spend is down 33 percent and traditional media is down 39 percent, according to an IAB survey of nearly 400 media buyers and brands on how COVID-19 is impacting near- and long-term ad spend. More than a third of advertisers are adjusting their in-market tactics and are increasing audience targeting by 38 percent and OTT/CTV device targeting by 35 percent. Among other key points:
* According to 74 percent of media buyers, planners and brands, coronavirus will have a bigger impact on advertising than the 2008 financial crisis.
* 70 percent of buyers already have adjusted or paused their planned ad spend; 16 percent are still determining what actions to take.
* 24 percent of respondents have paused all ad spend for the remainder of Q1 and Q2 while 46 percent have adjusted their ad spend for the same time period.
* 73 percent indicate the coronavirus will have an impact on the Upfront 2020-21 spend commitments and expect a 20 percent decrease in Upfront spend vs their original plan.
* The majority of advertisers already have changed messages they are touting in-market, increasing mission-based marketing by 42 percent and cause-related marketing by 41 percent.

Studios continue to get creative on ways to get their films in front of audiences. Parks & Recreation actress Retta hosted a Twitter watch party of Universal’s horror film The Invisible Man on Saturday. The studio hosted a similar event on Sunday for its Jane Austen film adaptation Emma, with Turner Classic Movies’ Alicia Malone on hosting duties. Both pics are breaking the traditional theatrical window… TruTV’s first feature film, Impractical Jokers: The Movie, is getting an early digital release, fittingly on April Fool’s Day, from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment… Focus Features teen drama Never Rarely Sometimes Always will be available on-demand for $19.99 for a 48-hour viewing period beginning Friday, April 3. Film made its world premiere at Sundance in January.

The $2 trillion coronavirus relief legislation, signed into law on March 6, will “hopefully help entertainment industry workers get through some of the hardships to come,” Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), said in an interview with Deadline. “I think we were very fortunate to get this language in the bill that does cover most of the entertainment industry workers who are freelancers, or who go from contract to contract, or just had a contract but it was canceled, or was about to start a show but the show was canceled or at least their continued work on it was postponed,” he said. The legislation expands the scope of unemployment benefits to include freelancers, gig workers and independent contractors. Benefits will be retroactive to January 27, and the legislation increases the size of the unemployment checks by $600 per week.

Fox Business parted ways with host Trish Regan. Two weeks ago the net put Trish Regan Primetime as well as the show Kennedy on hiatus, noting the demands of evolving coronavirus coverage. Regan also had drawn backlash for controversial comments she made about the virus on March 9, when she accused Democrats and the “liberal media” of targeting President Trump and overhyping the pandemic compared with previous outbreaks. “FOX Business has parted ways with Trish Regan – we thank her for her contributions to the network over the years and wish her continued success in her future endeavors,” said FBN. “We will continue our reduced live primetime schedule for the foreseeable future in an effort to allocate staff resources to continuous breaking news coverage on the Coronavirus crisis.” Said Regan, “I have enjoyed my time at FOX and now intend to focus on my family during these troubled times. I am grateful to my incredible team at FOX Business and for the many opportunities the network has provided me. I’m looking forward to this next chapter in my career.”

James Dolan, executive chairman/CEO of the Madison Square Garden Co. and New York Knicks owner, has tested positive for coronavirus. The Knicks over the weekend via Twitter said Dolan has been in self-isolation and is “experiencing little to no symptoms… He continues to oversee business operations.”

Delayed: The 2020 Essence Festival of Culture, scheduled to take place July 1-5 in New Orleans, has been postponed to “closer to the fall” due to concerns about the virus outbreak, the fest tweeted Friday… Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World Resort will now remain closed until further notice, announced parent Disney, which also said it would extend paying hourly parks and resorts cast members through April 18.

The Palais des Festivals in Cannes, which in another year would be prepping for MIPTV, has shifted to become a shelter for the town’s homeless during the coronavirus lockdown. “We have between 50 and 70 people here every night,” Cannes official Dominique Aude-Lasset told Reuters. The Cannes Film Festival was due to take place in April and has postponed, at least for now, until late June… Renowned West Hollywood hotel and gathering place Chateau Marmont reportedly terminated nearly its entire staff. According to Local 11, the union for Southern California hospitality workers, management notified employees March 19.

Viewers who can’t get enough of Joe Exotic are in luck. UCP is developing a limited series starring and exec-produced by Kate McKinnon based on Joe Exotic, the second season of Wondery’s Over My Dead Body podcast—who happens to be in the spotlight in Netflix’s massively popular current doc Tiger King. In the UCP series, when big cat enthusiast Carole Baskin (played by McKinnon) learns Joe Exotic is using his big cats for profit, she sets out to shut down his venture and incites the now legendary rivalry. Wondery’s Hernan Lopez and Marshall Lewy also are exec producers. No network is lined up yet; suitors are lining up.

Who do you think should play Joe Exotic on TV? Weigh in in the Cynopsis poll: https://www.cynopsis.com/#cynmore.

Ryan Reynolds is in talks to produce and star in a live-action feature adaptation of ‘80s videogame Dragon’s Lair for Netflix. Chapter Two producer Roy Lee will produce under his Vertigo Entertainment shingle along with Trevor Engelson of Underground, Don Bluth, Gary Goldman, and Jon Pomeroy. Screenplay comes from Daniel and Kevin Hageman.

Also talking with Netflix are Matt Lucas and David Walliams, creators/stars of BBC sketch series Little Britain, who told BBC Radio 2 they’re in discussions about rebooting the comedy that concluded more than 14 years ago. “It might happen,” said Lucas. “We had a conversation with them a while ago and so the seed was planted in our head. We’d love to bring it back in some way and at some point.”

LeBron James doc I Promise and Will Arnett’s comedy series Memory Hole join the launch roster for short-form service Quibi. I Promise, produced by SpringHill Entertainment in association with RYOT Films and Blowback Productions, follows James’ I Promise School, a partnership between the James Family Foundation and Akron Public Schools. Archive series Memory Hole looks at cringe-worthy pop culture events. It was created by Patriot Act with Scott Vrooman and produced by Shout! Studios, Do Things! and Arnett’s Electric Avenue in association with Quibi.

In more Quibi news, meteorologist Liana Brackett will be the weekend host for the series Weather Today by the Weather Channel. Part of the Quibi essentials slate, show launches April 6. Brackett has been on-camera meteorologist for the net’s Weekend Recharge.

What’s shutting down: Amid the health crisis, ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy canceled production for the rest of its 16th season. Word of the cancellation follows the show’s move more than two weeks ago to suspend production after it wrapped episode 21 of 25; it was among one of the first series to do so. The last produced ep will air April 9… Also shutting down production until the pandemic is over is TLC’s My 600lb Life.

What’s coming back: ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! returns tonight (March 30) with new remotely produced episodes, but will continue to air at 12:05a vs. its traditional 11:35p time slot, at least through the week. Kimmel’s show swapped slots with Nightline on March 17, one day after Kimmel suspended production, and the move has benefited ratings for both… After being shut down on March 14, The Talk is returning to CBS daytime today, this time via eps filmed at the homes of its roundtable talent. Series, now dubbed The Talk@Home, will feature its hosts live via Zoom technology. The Talk Chat Room, which launched after live production was curtailed, will continue to run on Instagram Live… In syndication, talk show Tamron Hall returns today after two weeks, with new segments originating from her home. New content will be focused on the latest news surrounding COVID-19, followed by encore segments from previous eps. The Kelly Clarkson Show, which has been airing original eps filmed before production shutdown, will be back April 6 with new originals filmed from the host’s home in Montana.

HBO is pushing the production start dates for Barry and Succession amid the swell of coronavirus. “We are looking forward to resuming preproduction when it is safe and healthy for everyone working on our shows to do so,” HBO said in a statement about the decision to suspend preproduction.

NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, which has been airing closer to midnight the past few weeks as local NBC stations extended their 11p newscast coronavirus coverage, returns tonight to its usual time slot. Fallon’s show also will replace recent encore and hybrid episodes with a mostly new slate of bookings.

NEW & RETURNING SERIES

HBO Latin America’s dramedy Series Todxs Nosotrxs (He, She, They) premiered in the US on Friday and will roll out a new episode weekly. The eight-part Brazilian production, which features a cast of trans and/or non-binary people, deals with the reality of the LGBTQIA+ universe.

Experts weigh history with hoax, and fact with fiction in a new season of Forbidden History, debuting on Sunday, April 5 at 9p on Science Channel. New topics under the lens include a lost Japanese treasure hidden from the Allies at the end of WWII and a mission by the Monuments Men to retrieve holy relics taken by the Nazi’s from across Europe.

Killer news for fans clamoring for new Eve. The season 3 premiere of Killing Eve has been bumped up two weeks, to Sunday, April 12, and will be simulcast on BBC America and AMC. Said Sarah Barnett, president of AMC Networks Entertainment Group and AMC Studios: “We know how adored this series is and we know how keen people are for great content right now.”

On tap from A&E: Ghost Hunters returns for season 2 with a two-ep premiere Wednesday, April 8 at 8p. This time around, the team investigates reports of paranormal phenomena in remote locations around the US. The two-fer will be followed by the return of Celebrity Ghost Stories at 10p. Each one-hour ep follows psychic-medium Kim Russo as she brings entertainment personalities back to the sites of their previous paranormal experiences. Paula Abdul, Terry Bradshaw and Taye Diggs are onboard this season. Next up is Accused, Guilty or Innocent, debuting Tuesday, April 21 at 10p. Series follows the inside stories, as they unfold, of people facing trial for serious crimes they are alleged to have committed.

Oxygen’s Deadly Cults returns for season 2 on Sunday, April 26 at 7p. Series recounts the homicide cases where cult leaders executed manipulative control to sway followers within the group to kill.

Schedule shift: New HGTV series Selling the Big Easy, originally slated to premiere April 10, is now TBD.

COMING UP

Noting “science is more important now than ever,” Nat Geo tonight is dropping two new eps of Cosmos. “The Search for Intelligent Life on Earth” episode airs at 8p, followed by “The Sacrifice of Cassini” at 9p.

The Tuesday, March 31 season finale of USA Network’s The Biggest Loser at 9p will be preceded by a nine-hour full season marathon. The lead-up also will include bonus footage, pop-up factoids and digital workout tutorials featuring host Bob Harper and trainers Steve Cook and Erica Lugo.

CBS is teeing up a new live special featuring Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood. Husband and wife will perform an intimate concert live from their home recording studio in “Garth & Trisha Live!” on Wednesday, April 1 at 9p. Brooks will share details about how viewers can make song requests for the special today on his weekly Facebook Live show, “Inside Studio G.” Special was spurred after Brooks and Yearwood hosted a home concert from Studio G on Monday, March 23 that was viewed by more than 5.2 million people.

Investigation Discovery is ramping up daytime content with marathons of fan-favorite true crime programming. The seven-ep blocks of ID classic shows include Web of Lies, Deadly Women, People Magazine Investigates, Body Cam and Evil Lives Here. Additionally, ID’s social media platforms launched the hashtag #BestofID across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, outlining the upcoming mini-marathons and unlocked digital content for daytime viewers.

A&E has two music-infused Biography documentaries on tap. Biography: Dolly, premiering Sunday, April 12 at 8p, traces Dolly Parton’s journey from her childhood spent in poverty, early days in Nashville, stardom and recent 50th anniversary celebration at The Grand Ole Opry. Biography: Kenny Rogers, debuting Monday, April 13 at 9p, chronicles the life of the country music star who passed away March 20, with performances, behind-the-scenes moments and interviews Parton, Lionel Richie, Chris Stapleton, Reba McEntire and more.

But wait, there’s more music… also due from A&E are specials Willie Nelson: American Outlaw, Sunday, April 12 at 10p, and Merle Haggard: Salute To a Country Legend, Monday, April 13 at 11p.

The Gene, a new PBS doc from exec producers Ken Burns and Pulitzer Prize winner Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee, airs on consecutive Tuesdays, April 7 and 14, at 8p on PBS. Special unravels the history of the human genome and explores the breakthroughs for diagnosis and treatment of genetic diseases.

CONNECTING IN A COVID-19 WORLD

ABC News tonight (March 30) at 9p will air its third live primetime COVID-19 special. America Rising: Fighting the Pandemic – A Special Edition of 20/20, anchored by David Muir, will highlight work by healthcare workers on the front lines, as well as communities, volunteers and celebrities who are stepping up to help.

NBCUniversal launched a COVID-19 “The More You Know” PSA campaign starring Kelly Clarkson, Andy Cohen, Ted Danson & Mary Steenburgen, Savannah Guthrie and dozens more. Spots for the English- and Spanish-language campaign, created in partnership with the Ad Council, the CDC, the US Department of Health and Human Services and the White House, were shot on mobile devices and cameras in the talent’s homes and produced remotely. They include messages focused on social distancing, mental health, parenting and risk factors. Among brand and tech partners donating services to help share the message are Acxiom, Cadent, Canoe, Comcast/NBCU, Crossix, Epsilon, Experian, Facebook, Panera Bread, ShareThis, Snap, The Trade Desk, T.J.Maxx, Marshalls & HomeGoods, and Vizio-Inscape.

Beginning March 31, NBC News will take over the 10p Tuesday time slot to air a series of live primetime specials on the coronavirus crisis. NBC News Special Report: Coronavirus Pandemic will air for three consecutive weeks across NBC, MSNBC and streaming outlet NBC News Now. Timeslot was freed up with the move by New Amsterdam to 9p, the spot vacated by This Is Us, which wrapped last week. Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb will anchor the first special; Lester Holt will anchor subsequent editions.

Kristen Bell will host #KidsTogether: The Nickelodeon Town Hall, an hourlong special offering a kid’s-eye view of life amid COVID-19, tonight (March 30) at 7p. Special, which features a performance by Alicia Keys, will address kids’ questions and concerns, and will include insights from medical experts on ways to be healthy, engage in social distancing and make changes in everyday lives. #KidsTogether will simulcast across Nickelodeon, TeenNick and Nicktoons, and will be available on Nick On Demand, Nickelodeon YouTube, the Nick App and the Nick Pluto TV channel following the premiere.

A series of new interstitial messages from Disney Channel talent seeks to provide reassurance and a sense of community. PSAs, which launched Friday and air on Disney Channel and Disney Channel YouTube, feature more than 35 Disney Channel stars from series including Bunk’d, Just Roll With It and Raven’s Home, who each filmed messages from their homes and around their neighborhoods.

CNBC will host a 90-minute live-streamed event, CNBC@Work: Leadership & Management Amid Crisis, on the CNBC website and Twitter page on Thursday, April 2 at noon. Hosted by CNBC’s Tyler Mathisen, special will feature leaders from Cisco, Google, Harvard, MIT, author Daniel Pink and others in conversation about how to protect the wellbeing of workers while maintaining business continuity and determining the path forward. CNBC’s @Work franchise has postponed its NY summit, previously scheduled for April 2, to fall 2020.

The Association of National Advertisers (ANA) formed a coalition of CMOs to help the marketing community manage the ongoing global crisis posed by the pandemic. “This new group’s mission is both clear and urgent. It is to help chief marketers shape intelligent practices and provide functional guidance through this unprecedented time,” said ANA CEO Bob Liodice. “Through the combined networks of the ANA, Cannes Lions, and our extended partners, we will be able to reach the worldwide marketing community with the speed and precision needed to have meaningful impact.”

WarnerMedia committed more than $100 million for crews of productions shuttered by the pandemic. “As things evolve, we’ll continue to evaluate how we can best respond to the challenges we face as an industry as a result of this pandemic,” John Stankey, WarnerMedia CEO and AT&T COO, noted in a staff memo.

IATSE established IATSE C.A.R.E.S. to support the union’s at-risk, elderly and disabled members during the coronavirus crisis. The joint effort between the union’s Young Workers Committee and Disaster Response Committee is a buddy system through which members in need may sign up to have a volunteer check in with them.

The Hollywood Support Staff COVID-19 Relief Fund has raised more than $500,000 to help assistants, coordinators and other support staff who’ve been laid off or are working reduced hours. The fund was created by the #PayUpHollywood organization, the ScriptNotes podcast and the nonprofit YEA!

The WGA West is stepping up to answer the steep rise in requests from Actors Fund members since the virus outbreak. “While the Actors Fund typically processes an average of 60 grants per week, in the last two weeks it has scaled up and is providing 150 grants per day,” WGA West leaders informed members in a call for contributions to the fund. The org thus far has contributed $590,000 million to the fund from levies it collects from foreign countries.

In a different take on fund-raising, music artist Post Malone is staging a virtual beer pong tournament via video chat. Taking part in the “Ballina Cup” are Kansas City receiver Travis Kelce, former Patriot turned WWE spokesman Rob Gronkowski, and music artists Machine Gun Kelly and Kane Brown, among others. Each team will pay an entry fee; money is earmarked for charities fighting COVID-19.

STREAMING SNIPPETS

With more people home in front of the TV, True Royalty TV debuted a plan offering 50 percent off for new subscribers and rolled out new curated collections. The SVOD service also added the doc Harry and Meghan: What Next? New subscribers can opt for the 50-percent-off offer during the next 30 days.

Sony Pictures Television, Warner Bros and Singapore’s Singtel are bidding farewell to subscription streaming service Hooq. Hooq filed for voluntary liquidation last Friday, with Singtel, which has more than a 76 percent share in the venture, noting the liquidation is not expected to have any material impact on its net tangible assets or earnings per share. Hooq launched in 2015 and operated in Indonesia, India, the Philippines. Singapore and Thailand.

TECH TALK

Creative Tech Studio Glow Up Games is launching its premier title—a free-to-play mobile game based on Issa Rae-created and -starring HBO series Insecure. Produced in partnership with HBO, Insecure: The Come Up Game brings the friendships, drama and misadventures of the series to life. The initial chapter is a rap word game in which players to take the pen from Rae to create their own rhymes in front of the mirror and share them with friends.

PODCAST POST

The next History This Week podcast episode, posting this morning (March 30), will explore first reporting of the 1918 Spanish Flu. The episode, “The Deadliest Pandemic in Modern History,” delves into coverage of the influenza outbreak that would go on to kill at least 50 million people worldwide.

GOING GLOBAL

Love Productions is delaying filming on the 11th season of The Great British Bake Off amid the coronavirus pandemic. The Channel 4 show was slated to begin production next month.

UK entertainment union Equity pledged $1.2 million to its Benevolent fund to support those of its 500,000 members who are struggling with industry disruption due to coronavirus. The money hails from funds earmarked for union campaigns and the union’s reserve.

BBC Studios notched a deal with Chinese technology company Huawei. The BBC’s commercial arm will supply Huawei Video with 300 hours of content to be available on mobile devices in 26 countries, including in China, the Middle East, Russia, Hong Kong and Latin America. Included in the deal are Call The Midwife, Inside No 9 and Wonders of The Solar System.

Answer to Our Last Trivia Question
Which was the first prime time TV medical drama in the US to feature a recurring lesbian couple, and a lesbian as a main character? HeartBeat (1988-89). Kudos to: Paul Blutter-Walk and Talk Production Rentals/Burbank; David Garber-Loyola Marymount University/Playa Vista, CA; Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/LA; Susan Nessanbaum-Goldberg-M and S Entertainment/LA; Lorrie Shilling/El Segundo, CA; David Westberg-SAG*AFTRA Credit Union/Burbank

Today’s Trivia Question
What was the first major television series to feature Sir David Attenborough? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company, city and time zone. Unofficial rules: a limit of four.)