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[04/19/24 - 11:47 PM]
Development Update: Week of April 15-19
By The Futon Critic Staff (TFC)

LOS ANGELES (thefutoncritic.com) -- The latest development news, culled from recent wire reports:

Looking to keep track of all the various projects in development? Click here to visit our signature "Devwatch" section. There visitors can view our listings by network, genre, studio and even development stage (ordered to pilot, cast-contingent, script, etc.). It's updated every day!


ALIEN (FX on Hulu) - Sandra Yi Sencindiver is the latest addition to the film-turned-TV series as "a senior member of the Weyland-Yutani Corporation." (Deadline.com, 4/19)
ALL THAT GLITTERS (HBO, New!) - Orlando Whitfield's upcoming memoir - about his relationship with Inigo Philbrick, "the flamboyant art dealer jailed for committing more than $86M in fraud" - is being developed for TV by the pay channel. Bad Wolf is producing. No specific auspices were given. (Deadline.com, 4/18)
ANONYMOUS, THE (USA Network, New!) - Studio Lambert has landed an unscripted competition series at the cable channel: "The series is a game of social strategy where people are free to say what they really feel behind the safety of a mask. What would you say and do if nobody was watching you? It is played in two worlds: the real world, where players interact face to face, but also a digital world, where the players communicate behind a mask of anonymity, known as Anonymous Mode. Here in individual private hideouts, each player is free to say whatever they want to advance their game. The question is: Can they stay anonymous or will the other players guess their identity causing them to lose their power in the game?" Stephen Lambert, Jack Burgess, Tim Harcourt, Toni Ireland, Stephen Yemoh and Andy Cadman are the executive producers. (Deadline.com, 4/15)
BOOKIE (Max) - Dale Dickey will recur on the show's sophomore run as Sandra's (Andrea Anders) mother. (Deadline.com, 4/17)
BUTTERFLY (Amazon) - The Daniel Dae Kim-led drama has cast Sean Dulake as Hollis, "the right-hand man to Perabo's Juno who oversees the staff of her private intelligence company"; Kim Ji-hoon as Gun, "a brutally effective hitman who embraces the challenge of taking down a renowned agent like David Jung"; Charles Parnell as George Dawson, "the politician investigating Juno's private intelligence company"; Sung Dong-il as Dootae Kim, "a formidable Korean patriarch who runs a successful shipping company, his business connects him to friends in both high and low places"; Lee Il-hwa as "his wife, Jung's mother-in-law." (Variety.com, 4/18)
CHAIR COMPANY, THE (HBO) - Andrew DeYoung has been tapped to direct and executive produce the comedy pilot from Tim Robinson and Zach Kanin. (Deadline.com, 4/18)
CSI: VEGAS/SO HELP ME TODD (CBS) - The Eye has pulled the plug on the dramas after three and two seasons, respectively. (Deadline.com, 4/19)
DR. ODYSSEY (ABC) - Don Johnson and Phillipa Soo have both been cast opposite Joshua Jackson in the upcoming drama. No details about their roles were given. (Deadline.com, 4/16)
DYING FOR SEX (FX) - Jay Duplass, Kelvin Yu, Rob Delaney, David Rasche and Esco Jouléy have all landed roles on the Michelle Williams/Jenny Slate-led limited series. Duplass will play Steve, "Molly's husband." Yu will play Noah, "a talented musician with genuinely earnest, big feelings about his girlfriend Nikki that he isn't shy about sharing." Delaney plays Neighbor Guy, "Molly's strangely magnetic neighbor." Rasche portrays Dr. Pankowitz, "Molly's old-school oncologist with no bedside manner". And Jouléy is Sonya, "a palliative care social worker fresh out of grad school, who encourages and gives much needed guidance to Molly." (Deadline.com, 4/17; Variety.com, 4/18)
FBI (CBS) - Rick Eid is stepping down as showrunner of the series after the current season but will remain an executive producer. "After six years of running two, or more, shows, and CBS now picking up FBI for three more years, this was the perfect time for me to step back and focus my efforts on running Law & Order and developing new projects," Eid said in a statement. "I'm extremely proud of FBI, and couldn't be happier for the cast, crew and producers. While I will no longer be the day-to-day showrunner, I intend to remain involved with the show going forward." (Deadline.com, 4/19)
GOVERNMENT CHEESE (Apple TV+) - The David Oyelowo-led series has tapped Jahi Winston, Evan Alexander Ellison, Jeremy Bobb and Louis Cancelmi for unspecified roles. (Variety.com, 4/16)
JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE INTERNET (Hulu, New!) - Jon Eidson, Nick Smith and Jordan Dunn are set to team for an adult animated comedy at the streamer about "two brothers with the ability to warp inside the internet, where the magnificent hellscape of cyberspace has come to life." The project, which has a presentation order, will be executive produced by Eidson, Smith, Zack Waxenberg and Michael Rotenberg for 3 Art Entertainment and 20th Television. Dunn co-executive produces. (Deadline.com, 4/19)
LONG ISLAND COMPROMISE (Apple TV+, New!) - Taffy Brodesser-Akner's upcoming novel is being developed for TV by the streamer: "Long Island Compromise is set nearly forty years after a wealthy businessman was kidnapped and brutalized before his family paid ransom for his release. It examines the lasting impact of the ordeal on the man, his wife and their three grown children and spans the family's history, winding through decades and generations and confronting the mainstays of American Jewish life: tradition, the pursuit of success, the terror of history, fear of the future, old wives' tales, evil eyes, ambition, achievement, boredom, dybbuks, inheritance, pyramid schemes, right-wing capitalists, beta-blockers, psychics, and the mostly unspoken love and shared experience that unite a family forever." Brodesser-Akner will write and executive produce alongside Richard Plepler, Sarah Timberman, Carl Beverly and Susannah Grant for Eden Productions and Timberman/Beverly Productions. (Deadline.com, 4/18)
LOW LIFE (Hulu, New!) - The streamer will roll out a new Korean drama next year starring Ryu Seungryong and Yang Sejong from writer/director Kang Yunsung: "Set in 1970s Korea, the story follows a fisherman as he discovers a treasure lost for generations at the bottom of the ocean. Taking a small part of it home for himself, word soon begins to spread about the vast fortune waiting to be claimed by those brave enough to risk the depths. Desperate to escape his depressing life, Oh Heedong (Yang) partners with his uncle Oh Gwanseok (Ryu) in an attempt to reach the treasure before the rest of the world." (Deadline.com, 4/15)
NCIS: ORIGINS (CBS) - The prequel series has tapped the following to recur: Daniel Bellomy as Granville "Granny" Dawson, "a young probationary agent, who's cutting his teeth as the Evidence Custodian's assistant, all the while itching to work his way up the ranks to field agent"; Caleb Martin Foote as Benjamin "Randy" Randolf, "the agency's all too lovable golden boy. He's been tasked with showing the newly minted Agent Gibbs the ropes, so thankfully, this father of young twins is practiced in patience"; and Robert Taylor as Jackson Gibbs, "the hard-nosed father of Leroy Jethro Gibbs, originally played by Ralph Waite in many episodes of NCIS." (Deadline.com, 4/18)
OFFICE, THE (REBOOT SERIES) (NBC) - Sabrina Impacciatore and Domhnall Gleeson have both signed onto the reboot series "set in the same universe, meaning it would likely be set in a different office setting with all new characters." No character details were given. (Variety.com, 4/19)
POWER BOOK III: RAISING KANAN (Starz) - Sibongile Mlambo and Paul Ben-Victor will recur on the show's fourth season. Mlambo will play Imani Okoye, "a smart, confident and business-savvy executive at a boutique record label." And Ben-Victor will play Phil Russo, "Jersey's new crime boss accustomed to garnering respect, deference and other men's fear. He suffers no fools and handles business negotiations with stoic confidence." (Deadline.com, 4/17)
RANSOM CANYON (Netflix) - Meta Golding will recur on the newcomer as Paula Jo: "Tougher than the toughest nail. A force to be reckoned with. Davis' fiery ex-wife and Reid's mom Paula Jo rolls into Ransom Canyon in her red Porsche and matching red-bottomed heels determined to make waves." (Deadline.com, 4/19)
SENSITIVE KIND, THE (FX) - Sterlin Harjo's pilot for the cable channel has cast Killer Mike, Kaniehtiio "Tiio" Horn, Cody Lightning, Michael Hitchcock and Ryan Kiera Armstrong in yet-to-be-revealed roles. (Deadline.com, 4/18)
SNOWFLAKES (FX) - Lucy Freyer, Malik Elassal, Owen Thiele, Amita Rao and Jack Innanen are set to star in the comedy pilot, "a twenty-something ensemble comedy following a group of codependent housemates - Billie (Freyer), Samir (Elassal), Anton (Thiele), Issa (Rao) and Paul Baker (Innanen) - trying to be good people, despite being neither "good" nor "people" yet." (Deadline.com, 4/16)
SOMEBODY SOMEWHERE (HBO) - Olafur Darri Ólafsson will recur on the series as Iceland, "the new renter of Sam's (Bridget Everett) family farm." Filming on the seven-episode third season recently wrapped in Chicagoland. (Deadline.com, 4/18)
SUITS: L.A. (NBC) - John Amos, Victoria Justice and Kevin Weisman will guest star on the much-ballyhooed pilot. Amos is "playing himself as a client at Ted's firm who also has a longstanding friendship with Ted." Justice is playing Dylan Pryor, "a young movie star who's confident and ambitious. She's on the way up and looking to be represented by Ted." And Weisman is playing Lester Thompson, "a smart and powerful man who is used to getting his way. He's just been charged with murder and has to listen to others to stay out of prison." (Deadline.com, 4/18)
SUITS (USA Network) - MyNetworkTV has acquired the broadcast rights to the original series for its Monday-through-Friday syndicated programming block beginning this fall. (Deadline.com, 4/15)
UNTITLED AMANDA KNOX PROJECT (Hulu) - Margaret Qualley has bowed out of the limited series for scheduling reasons. The role will now be recast with filming still scheduled to start in October. (Deadline.com, 4/16)
UNTITLED MOLLY SHANNON PROJECT (HBO, New!) - Molly Shannon is attached to star in a proposed comedy series at the pay channel: "This is a story about a woman (Shannon) deeply addicted to celebrity news and gossip. After friends and family finally confront her, she agrees to get help. Where? The same place where the stars get help - a fancy celebrity rehab in Malibu. Instead of confronting her demons, she behaves as if it's the Four Seasons. Once there, she connects with her favorite young starlet and must decide whether to return to her family or join her in Hollywood." Steve Koren is penning the project and will executive produce alongside Shannon and her longtime manager, Steven Levy. (Deadline.com, 4/19)
WEDNESDAY (Netflix) - Steve Buscemi is bound for the show's second season as "the new principal of Nevermore Academy." (Variety.com, 4/16)
YOUR FRIENDS & NEIGHBORS (Apple TV+) - Eunice Bae will round out the cast of the Jon Hamm-led series in an unspecified role. (Deadline.com, 4/18)





  [april 2024]  
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· ALIEN: EARTH (FX ON HULU)
· ALL THAT GLITTERS (HBO)
· ANONYMOUS, THE (USA)
· BOOKIE (MAX)
· BUTTERFLY (AMAZON)
· CHAIR COMPANY, THE (HBO)
· CSI: VEGAS (CBS)
· DEVELOPMENT UPDATE (TFC)
· DOCTOR ODYSSEY (ABC)
· DYING FOR SEX (FX)
· FBI (CBS)
· GOVERNMENT CHEESE (APPLE TV PLUS)
· JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE INTERNET (HULU)
· LONG ISLAND COMPROMISE (APPLE TV PLUS)
· LOW LIFE (HULU)
· NCIS: ORIGINS (CBS)
· POWER BOOK III: RAISING KANAN (STARZ)
· RANSOM CANYON (NETFLIX)
· SENSITIVE KIND, THE (FX)
· SNOWFLAKES (FX)
· SO HELP ME TODD (CBS)
· SOMEBODY SOMEWHERE (HBO)
· SUITS (USA)
· SUITS LA (NBC)
· UNTITLED AMANDA KNOX PROJECT (HULU)
· UNTITLED DANIELS & KOMAN PROJECT (PEACOCK)
· UNTITLED MOLLY SHANNON PROJECT (HBO)
· WEDNESDAY (NETFLIX)
· YOUR FRIENDS & NEIGHBORS (APPLE TV PLUS)





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