|
PRODUCTION & DEVELOPMENT
Amazon Studios purchased TV rights to I Hope You Get This Message, the debut novel from Farah Naz Rishi, which will be developed by Glasstown Entertainment. Rishi will adapt the book, which tackles topics including mental illness, race and queerness via a story line of three teens who find themselves on a collision course with fate – after an alien race says humans have seven days to live.
A family comedy starring comedian/actress/writer Iliza Shlesinger is in development at CBS. Project, from Shlesinger, Michelle Nader, Warner Bros. TV and CBS TV Studios, centers on a woman who returns home to Austin, TX, to help her mom and sister run their family business. It’s written by Nader and Shlesinger.
Jimmy Kimmel’s hidden camera prank show Revenge Of the Nerd (working title) got an eight-ep order from Discovery. Series, which hails from the Kimmelot Banner, will star former NASA engineer-cum-YouTube personality Mark Rober and be exec-produced by Kimmel and Rober. The duo will scour the planet to catch evil-doers in the act, and punish them using homemade technology and creative engineering.
The Story of Late Night, a doc series that will visit the history of late-night TV from its inception, is on the books at CNN. Conan O’Brien, Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg, Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, Lorne Michaels and Trevor Noah are among the contributors to the commissioned project, produced by Canada’s Cream Productions. The list of hosts and execs to be covered also includes Johnny Carson, Andy Cohen, Jay Leno and David Letterman.
Netflix and Mattel Television are producing CG animated series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, which reimagines the classic toy and is a brand companion for the streamer’s partnership with Mattel for anime series Masters of the Universe: Revelation.
Things are buzzing at the CW, which put into development action-drama series Infamous, from writers George Northy (Charmed) and Darren Stein (Jawbreaker), and Mike Tollin and his Tollin Productions. Written by Northy and Stein, project puts a satirical celeb spin on the spy drama oeuvre and is inspired by the true stories of famous actors, models and musicians—including Greta Garbo and Josephine Baker—who moonlighted as spies for the Allied Forces in WWII… The net also is developing a follow-up series to The Game, which was a cornerstone of the CW launch in 2006. Original series creator Mara Brock Akil and American Soul co-creator Devon Greggory are behind the new incarnation, and original cast members are being eyed for a return for the new plot, which will see a Game revival on the East Coast. Greggory will serve as showrunner.
HBO Max is developing drama The Beach , based on Melissa de la Cruz’s book Beach Lane. Series, from Erin Cardillo and Richard Keith and their In Good Company productions, Legacies creator/exec producer Julie Plec, Alloy Entertainment, Everheart Productions and Warner Bros. TV, follows three teens who work in NY’s Hamptons during a life-defining summer.
Entertainment One and indie production house Rumble Films formed a TV and film financing and development agreement. The companies jointly will finance new projects, and Rumble will have access to eOne’s distribution base in select territories, as well as Sierra/Affinity’s international sales force.
Fantasy dramedy Dead Spots, in development from Sony Pictures Television and based on the book by Melissa F. Olson, is the latest short-form title to join the Quibi roster. Plot follows a janitor in LA’s supernatural community who discovers she can render the powerful powerless. Jen Braeden will write and exec produce along with Kay Cannon and Laverne McKinnon, whose K&L Productions will produce.
Leslye Headland, co-creator of Russian Doll, inked a multiyear deal with Fox 21 Television Studios to create, develop and direct series. Russian Doll, which Headland co-created with Natasha Lyonne and Amy Poehler, won two Emmys for its first season on Netflix.
Lee Eung-bok is adapting Korean horror cartoon Sweet Home as a series for Netflix. The Mr. Sunshine director, who also helmed Goblin: The Lonely and Great God, will produce Carnby Kim and YoungChan Hwang’s web cartoon, based on the premise that people turn into monsters that reflect their own individual desires.
NEW & RETURNING SERIES
Hello, John Boy. MeTV is adding The Waltons to its lineup; series will air weekdays beginning Wednesday, January 1 at noon.
Returning the Favor, hosted by Mike Rowe , is back for a fourth season on Facebook Watch starting January 13. Rowe and his team will continue to surprise people creating positive change within their neighborhoods.
AXS TV’s original series The Very VERY Best Of The 70s returns Thursday, January 23 at 8p with eight eps featuring a rotating panel of guests sharing thoughts on the decade’s definitive pop culture moments. Guests include Christopher Knight (The Brady Bunch), Dawn Wells (Gilligan’s Island), Nicole Sullivan (MadTV) and Perez Hilton.
Bravo sets sail on the newest iteration of its Below Deck franchise with Below Deck Sailing Yacht, premiering Monday, February 3 at 9p. New series is set on a luxury sailing yacht with a new crew and equally demanding charter guests.
Comedy series Mythic Quest: Raven’s Banquet will debut globally Friday, February 7, on Apple TV+. Series follows a team of video game developers as they navigate the challenges of running a popular video game.
OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network unfurled a trailer for its new original anthology drama Cherish the Day, created and exec-produced by Ava DuVernay (Queen Sugar, When They See Us). Slated for a February 2020 premiere, series chronicles the stirring relationship of one couple, with each ep spanning a single day.
COMING UP
The CW will air the iHeartRadio Jingle Ball special tonight (December 19) at 8p. Lineup features Taylor Swift, Lizzo, Jonas Brothers, Camila Cabello, Halsey, 5 Seconds of Summer, Niall Horan and more.
The 16th annual Christmas with The Tabernacle Choir holiday specia l, produced by BYUtv, airs tonight (December 19) at 7p on BYUtv. Special features the Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square with actress and singer Kristin Chenoweth.
Speaking of Kristin Chenoweth, ABC will air an encore presentation of CMA Country Christmas on Tuesday, December 24 at 9p. Trisha Yearwood hosts and performs during the special with additional performances by Dierks Bentley, Chenoweth, Lady Antebellum, Rascal Flatts and others.
ABC News’ two-hour special The Year: 2019, which showcases the year gone by, airs Sunday, December 22 at 9p on ABC with host Robin Roberts and colleagues.
Nat Geo is saying goodbye to 2019 by airing some of its biggest hits from the year—from Free Solo to The Hot Zone to Running Wild With Bear Grylls—beginning Monday, December 23.
Call the Midwife pops up on PBS Wednesday, December 25 at 9p with a holiday special featuring Mother Mildred and the Nonnatus House team going to the Outer Hebrides for Christmas. Series will return for its ninth season in March 2020.
Antics from Bravo’s The Real Housewives of Dallas will be parsed in the two-part reunion airing consecutive Wednesdays, January 1 and January 8 at 9p. Host Andy Cohen will sit down with Brandi Redmond, D’Andra Simmons, Kameron Westcott, Kary Brittingham, LeeAnne Locken and Stephanie Hollman.
LMN rings in the New Year with the return of its annual Deadly Resolutions themed programming, featuring 11 new movies, airing every Thursday and Friday at 8p beginning January 1. Vivica A. Fox hosts the monthlong stunt, which will include the premiere of her latest thriller, The Wrong House Sitter.
Food Network and British photographer and cookbook author Mary McCartney are whipping up new on-demand cooking classes for the Food Network Kitchen app and a special—Mary McCartney Serves it Up—to air on the network Sunday, January 5.
Friday, January 17 is the premiere date for the latest stand-up special from comedian Russell Peters, on Amazon Prime Video. Russell Peters: Deported was recorded in front of a sold-out audience in Mumbai.
ID will air a three-hour special beginning Monday, January 20 at 9p about Aaron Hernandez, who fell from status as a member of the New England Patriots to being convicted of murder.
TECH TALK
Eight-year-old Ryan Kaji, star of the Ryan’s World channel, is once again the highest earner in the YouTube universe this year. The channel saw a haul of $26 million, according to the annual YT creator earning estimates from Forbes, which tracked gross income from June 2018-June 2019. Kaji and his family have a deal with digital company Pocket.watch, which landed a deal with Nickelodeon for TV show Ryan’s Mystery Playdate.
Berlin-based streaming guide JustWatch launched apps on Apple TV, Fire TV and Android TV. The move enables users to discover and track availability of content across a variety of services.
Technicolor and its former CEO Frederic Rose were indicted in France on charges of fraud and breach of trust related to their role in the bankruptcy of Tarak Ben Ammar’s postproduction group, Quinta Industries.
STREAMING SNIPPETS
Killing Eve is the BBC’s most-streamed series of 2019 . The second season of the Sid Gentle Films drama generated 40.4 million requests for the BBC’s online video service iPlayer. In second place is the fifth season of Line Of Duty, which garnered 27.4 million streams, followed by season 5 of Peaky with 26.6 million requests.
Mobile streaming service Ficto is prepping to go live in April 2020 with a spate of new content partnerships and plans for more than 50 shows. Content ranges from lifestyle series to unscripted shows to sports and comedy, with shows running about 30 minutes and eps clocking in at five to seven minutes.
ADVERTISING & BRANDS
GroupM will close 2019 with billings surpassing $50 billion for the first time. This, according to According to COMvergence, which also projects GroupM will count three agencies– Mindshare, MediaCom and Wavemaker—in the top five of global media agency networks based on billings at year end. GroupM also had the largest industry market share at 17.2 percent and 30.2 percent intra-Big 6 group share. Further, GroupM’s m/SIX was also one of three networks that increased billings by double digits (14.8 percent) over the last year on a global level.
PODCAST POSTS
Charles Barkley and Ernie Johnson are behind the mic for The Steam Room podcast, a weekly, long-form conversation that tackles topics including current events, pop culture and even local news alongside their longtime Inside the NBA executive producer Tim Kiely. Podcast is produced by Turner Sports, with new eps releasing Thursdays.
CASTING
Morfydd Clark (His Dark Materials) scored a lead role in Amazon Studios’ Lord of the Rings series… Showtime drama pilot Yellowjackets added four additional cast members: Ava Allan (Pretty Little Liars), Courtney Eaton (Line of Duty), Briana Venskus (Sorry for Your Loss) and Liv Hewson (Bombshell)… Netflix series Shadow and Bone added seven cast members: newcomer Calahan Skogman, Zoe Wanamaker (Killing Eve), Kevin Eldon (Game Of Thrones), Julian Kostov (Treadstone), Luke Pasqualino (Snatch), Jasmine Blackborow (School’s Out Forever) and Gabrielle Brooks (Young Vic Theatre’s Twelfth Night, Regents Park Theatre’s Midsummer Night’s Dream)… Victoria Justice, Karen Allen, Colin Ford, Alex Fitzalan, James Ransone, Emily Hampshire, Elizabeth Reaser, Rory Culkin, Warren Christie, Danay Garcia and William B. Davis joined the cast of Quibi horror series 50 States of Fright.
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Endemol Shine India is creating a web series based on Neelam and Shekhar Krishnamoorthy’s book Trial By Fire: The Tragic Tale of the Uphaar Fire Tragedy. Prashant Nair will helm the series; the Story Ink’s founder Sidharth Jain will be a producer. The book is a first-hand account of the Uphaar Cinema fire in Delhi in 1997. Neelam and Shekhar Krishnamoorthy fought for justice for 19 years for their children, who were among the 59 people killed in the incident.
Lionsgate Play is launching in India after Bharti Airtel struck a deal with Lionsgate and Starzplay. The new alliance gives customers of the telco access to Lionsgate’s feature film portfolio.
Hemisphere Media Group reached a multiyear agreement with Dish Network to restore WAPA Television, WAPA Deportes and US cable network WAPA America, to its service.
|
