November 2nd, 2009 | 2 Comments
TNT has picked up Southland from NBC. The critically acclaimed cop drama was canceled a week before it’s second season premiere, a casualty of Jay Leno’s primetime talk show. TNT will re-air the John Wells series’ original seven episodes NBC broadcast, plus the six new hours that NBC ordered but chose not to air.
Depending on ratings, TNT will order more. By only committing to airing episodes that have already been produced, the deal minimizes TNT’s financial risk and allows the cable network to evaluate the success of the show before investing in a re-start of production. The network plans to run the tough cop drama Tuesday nights at 10:00 PM/ET, opposite The Jay Leno Show. Southland will make its TNT debut on Tuesday, January 12.
October 26th, 2009 | 0 Comments
Bravo is extending its Top Chef franchise into the dessert genre with a new reality competition. Trying to capitalize on the recent success of TLC’s foray into Food Network’s dessert space with Cake Boss and Ultimate Cake-Off, Bravo is launching Top Chef: Just Desserts. The entry in the Top Chef franchise will have pastry chefs competing in a series of challenges. The series will launch in 2010 and is from Top Chef producers Magical Elves.
October 23rd, 2009 | 0 Comments
NBC has picked up full seasons of Thursday-night comedies Community and Parks and Recreation, as well as its Wednesday night medical drama Mercy. All three have shown stability in their time periods in recent weeks. Absent from the pickup list: Monday night medical thriller Trauma.
Community, Parks and Recreation and Mercy have been modest performers, but this back-nine order gives the shows some breathing room to potentially improve. NBC, the final broadcaster to order additional episodes of their new shows this fall, also has a limited inventory of scripted content to fill any open slots. The network has Chuck ready, which has been speculated might replace Trauma should NBC pull the medical thriller.
NBC has Parenthood and Day One for set midseason.
October 20th, 2009 | 0 Comments
NBC has ordered Losing It With Jillian, a companion series for The Biggest Loser starring trainer Jillian Michaels. She will travel the country showing weight-challenged Americans that they can get the same results as contestants on The Biggest Loser without attending the show’s immersive fitness boot camp. The show also will feature celebrity chef Curtis Stone, who will offer the families a nutritional plan and cooking tips.
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October 12th, 2009 | 0 Comments
ABC has picked up FlashForward for a full season. The show has been a solid performer on Thursday night, boosting ABC’s 8:00 PM/ET time period 32 percent over last year. Even more impressive, its premiere episode was the first regular program since Friends to beat Survivor in the 18-49 demo. New DVR numbers reveal the Joseph Fiennes starrer picked up 2 million viewers for a total of 14.5 million in its Sept. 24 premiere. Rating increased from a 4.1 to 4.9. Last Thursday, ABC picked up comedies Modern Family, The Middle and Cougar Town.
October 8th, 2009 | 0 Comments
ABC has picked up freshman comedies Modern Family, Cougar Town and The Middle for full seasons. The shows have performed strong against significant competition during the latter hour of ABC’s comedy block.
No word yet on back-nine pickups for fellow shows FlashForward, Hank, Eastwick, and The Forgotten.
Continue reading ABC Picks Up Modern Family, Cougar Town And The Middle »
