PRODUCTION & DEVELOPMENT
A reboot of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003) is in development at Fox 21 TV Studios. Monica Owusu-Breen (Midnight, Texas) is onboard as writer, EP and showrunner of the new version, which will “be richly diverse, and like the original, some aspects of the series could be seen as metaphors for issues facing us all today.” The original’s creator, Joss Whedon, will exec produce with original EPs Gail Berman, Fran Kazui and Kaz Kazui, as well as Joe Earley from The Jackal Group.
Shondaland series in the works at Netflix include The Warmth of Other Suns, based on the book of the same name, and a project based on the New York Magazine article, “How Anna Delvey Tricked New York’s Party People.” Said Cindy Holland, VP, original content for the streamer, “The Shondaland slate is shaping up to be something truly special.”
Production has begun on Freeform’s third original holiday film, The Truth About Christmas, from MarVista Entertainment, about a political consultant who suddenly can’t stop herself from telling the truth. Movie will premiere during the net’s “25 Days of Christmas” programming event.
Top 10 Weekend Domestic Box Office Estimates: July 20-22, 2018
The Equalizer 2 (Sony) $35.8 million, opening weekend
Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again! (Universal) $34.4 million, opening weekend
Hotel Transylvania (Sony) $23.2 million (week 2), cume revenue $91.1 million
Ant-Man and the Wasp (Buena Vista) $16.1 million (week 3), cume revenue $164.5 million
Incredibles 2 (Buena Vista) $11.5 million (week 6), cume revenue $557.3 million
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (Universal) $11.0 million (week 5), cume revenue $383.9 million
Skyscraper (Universal) $11.0 million (week 2), cume revenue $46.7 million
The First Purge (Universal) $4.9 million (week 3), cume revenue $60.2 million
Unfriended: Dark Web (BH Tilt) $3.5 million, opening weekend
Sorry to Bother You (Annapurna) $2.8 million (week 3), cume revenue $10.3 million
Source: comScore
NEW & RETURNING SERIES
PBS’ Independent Lens starts a new season Monday, October 29 with Young Men and Fire, a look at the lives of a western firefighting crew.
History hit Vikings will be back for mid-season five on Wednesday, November 28 at 9p, it was announced at Comic-Con. AMC’s The Walking Dead also got its debut date, for season nine: Sunday, October 7.
In more news from San Diego, series stars Mayim Bialik and Kumal Nayyar popped into the Big Bang Theory writers’ room panel to join the discussion about what’s ahead for season 12. Among the tidbits: Kathy Bates and Teller will be back as Amy’s parents.
New series Buddy’s Family Vacation, starring Cake Boss Buddy Valastro, launches on Discovery Family Saturday, August 18 at 8p.
DIGITAL
In blog post about YouTube’s efforts to help creators monetize their videos, CEO Susan Wojcicki said the service is streaming 180 million+ hours of videos a day to smart TVs and TV-connected devices, and viewer interactions have grown 60% year over year. Wojcicki also noted YouTube plans to expand its Stories feature to creators with over 10,000.
Facebook has temporarily suspended data analytics firm Crimson Hexagon, following a report in the Wall Street Journal that said Crimson had deals with clients including U.S. government agencies and an organization with ties to the Kremlin to analyze Facebook data. “We don’t allow developers to build surveillance tools using information from Facebook or Instagram. We take these allegations seriously, and we have suspended these apps while we investigate,” said Facebook. Crimson maintains it collects only publicly available social media data, not private.
On Saturday, ABC launched More in Common, a series about people across the country overcoming their difference, on Facebook Watch. Weekly series is the first to come from “Localish,” a digital-first meaid brand from ABC Owned Television Stations Group.
Netflix CEO Reed Hastings is writing a book about the streamer’s culture and his leadership strategy. Business writer Erin Miller will co-author the Penguin project.
COMING UP
Comedy special Just Another Immigrant: Romesh at the Greek, starring Romesh Ranganathan, premieres on Showtime Friday, July 27 at 11:30p.
Cozi TV will air an eight-hour “Lucy Nanny” marathon on Saturday, August 5 starting at 1p, featuring eight episodes of Here’s Lucy followed by eight of the “Lucy-est” eps of The Nanny. Stunt celebrates the opening of The National Comedy Center in Lucille Ball’s hometown of Jamestown, NY.
Don Cheadle (House of Lies) will guest star as Donald Duck’s voice, as the result of an inventive voice box, in the season finale of Disney Channel’s DuckTales, airing Saturday, August 18 at 9:30a. “You’ve got to do your homework and bring your a-game when you’re trying to voice Donald Duck,” said Cheadle.
ID special Bad Henry, sharing the story of 1990s serial killer Henry Louis Wallace, premieres Tuesday, July 24 at 9p.
GOING GLOBAL
CANAL+ and Fox Networks Group Europe & Africa struck a new co-production of War of the Worlds, based on the H.G. Wells classic. Produced by Urban Myth Films, in association with STUDIOCANAL, shooting is slated to begin in autumn 2018.
KIDS CORNER
Curiosity INK Media, a family-friendly entertainment provider, announced a multi-year partnership with promotional agency Visionworkz to leverage popular IP to heighten consumer awareness of individual characters and shows through consumer-facing alliances. Initially, Visionworkz will seek promotional partnerships for Lilly’s Monsters, a Curiosity Ink Media original animated property designed to entertain kids while endorsing positive social behaviors as a recurring theme.
CASTING
Tim Kang (The Mentalist) joins the cast of upcoming CBS reboot Magnum P.I.
Chris Klein (Election) signed on as a super villain Cicada for season five of CW’s The Flash, launching Tuesday, October 9 at 8p, while Ramona Young (Blockers) and Tim Wilson (The Informant) have been added to the season four cast of the net’s Legends of Tomorrow. Joining Supergirl is transgender activist Nicole Maines (Royal Pains) as a transgender superhero, April Parker Jones (Jericho) and David Ajala (The Dark Knight); and Jordan Calloway was upped to series regular on season two of CW’s Black Lightnin g. And Penelope Ann Miller ( Awakenings ) will play a district attorney on season three of Riverdale , arriving Wednesday, October 10.
