EXCLUSIVE: Castle executive producer/co-showrunner Rene Echevarria has departed the ABC dramedy series after not being able to reach a new deal with producer ABC Studios. Echevarria co-ran Castle with creator/executive producer Andrew W. Marlowe this season, which saw the quirky mystery show establish itself as ABC’s most promising new hourlong series in years. Castle’s ratings rise in the current second season earned the Nathan Fillion starrer an early renewal for next fall. Marlowe will now be the series’ sole showrunner. Echevarria, who co-created/executive produced USA’s 4400 and executive produced Medium when it ran on NBC has several projects in the hopper, including the MTV pilot Teen Wolf, on which he serves as an executive producer.
Icahn Extends Lionsgate Offer By 10 Days
Today was supposed to be the deadline for Carl Icahn’s $7 per share tender offer made to Lionsgate stockholders. But stockholders were cold to the proposal: only 6.55 million shares have been tendered so far. I don’t think the … Read More »
Showtime Sets Summer Premiere Dates For ‘The Big C’, ‘Weeds’, & ‘The Real L Word’
Showtime’s new dark comedy series The Big C, starring Laura Linney as a woman diagnosed with terminal cancer, will premiere Monday, Aug. 16 and will air at 10:30 p.m. It will follow the network’s comedy Weeds whose sixth season also debuts Aug. 16.
Showtime also has set June 10 as premiere … Read More »
Producer Jamie Tarses Re-Ups At Sony TV
EXCLUSIVE: Jamie Tarses is staying at Sony Pictures Television with a new two-year overall deal. Tarses is among the studio’s most prolific non-writing producers. She exec prods two Sony series, TBS’ My Boys and TNT’s Hawthorne as well as four buzzed-about … Read More »
With Kick-Ass Helmer X’d Out, Fox Zeroes In On Filmmakers For ‘X-Men: First Class’
WriteThru: So here is the latest on 20th Century Fox’s efforts to lock in a director for X-Men: First Class, which will begin production late summer or early fall. I’m told that Samuel Bayer, who directed the weekend’s top grossing film … Read More »
Ed Wilson Out At Tribune Co & B’casting
CHICAGO, April 30 — Ed Wilson, who has served as Tribune Company’s chief revenue and sales officer since 2009 and as president of Tribune Broadcasting since 2008, announced today that he will step down from both positions effective immediately and be retained as a consultant to the company. “The
More From Conan O’Brien’s ’60 Minutes’ Interview: ‘I Didn’t Get Screwed’
CBS News released more excerpts from the Sunday interview with Conan O’Brien on 60 Minutes.
Asked to comment on NBC statements that The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien was losing money, O’Brien said, “I honestly don’t see how that’s possible. It’s really not possible. It isn’t possible.”
Regrets?
“I don’t regret anything. I … Read More »
Warner Bros Sets ‘Batman 3′ Release Date
Warner Bros has set Batman 3 for release on July 20, 2012, according to an internal email just sent by distribution chief Dan Fellman. There is no official start of production date at this point because Chris Nolan just completed Inception, … Read More »
EXCLUSIVE: Allen Shapiro Behind Planned Deal To Buy ‘American Idol’ Parent CKX
EXCLUSIVE: It’s been kept completely secret — until now. But I’ve learned that savvy media investor and entertainment programmer Allen Shapiro is the wizard behind the curtain of this One Equity Partners deal-in-the-making to purchase CKX. Sources tell me that the many weeks … Read More »
MTV Goes Scripted with New Animated Series & Live-Action Pilot
EXCLUSIVE: MTV is adding two projects to its scripted slate. The cable network is close to a 12-episode order to Good Vibes, an animated comedy from The Pineapple Express director David Gordon Green. Additionally, it has ordered a comedy pilot tentatively … Read More »
RATINGS RAT RACE: Networks Rebound & ‘Survivor’ Wins Sweep Opener
It may have been the NFL draft after all. After a miserable ratings performance with across-the-board series lows last Thursday against ESPN’s telecast of the NFL draft, the broadcast networks rebounded last night, the opening night of the May sweep.
On CBS, Survivor (4.0 rating/13 share in adults 18-49), once again … Read More »
Oliver Stone In 4th Place Pay Channel Deal
UPDATE: Epix is probably the 4th place pay channel right now, behind HBO, Showtowm, and Starz. But Oliver Stone just signed a development deal to turn Bruce Wagner’s novel Still Holding into a series pilot with Epix which is furiously trying … Read More »
‘ALL THE POPE’S PRIESTS’? Deal To Develop Catholic Church Scandal Film From POV Of Boston Globe Journalism Team
The producers intend to frame the movie in the vein of All The President’s Men. One of the planned film’s hooks is that some of the journalists are themselves Catholic and were conflicted as they researched and wrote their stories. This journalism angle seems a fascinating way to approach the … Read More »
ITV Studios Names Kevin Lygo To Top Job
As predicted, Channel 4 television director Kevin Lygo has been appointed managing director of ITV Studios. Current ITV Studios boss Lee Bartlett will continue to oversee its overseas business. There is no word yet on when Lygo will start. But his … Read More »
Online Movie Stores Go Out of Business
Forty two online movie stores went out of business last year, according to research firm Screen Digest. Online movie stores that have disappeared over the past few years include Movielink, Lycos, Guba, AOL and BitTorrent. So much for that … Read More »
Excuse Me, Do You Speak Ben Silverman?
Here is Ben Silverman’s recent keynote speech at the MIPTV market in Cannes. I’ve watched this video 3 times now and still have no idea what he’s talking about: “Hyper-globalisation is a comment on every moment but clearly adapted in localisation”? “Full circle is where culture really can manifest”? “How do you … Read More »
‘NCIS’ Cast Update: McCallum Set To Return
NCIS co-star David McCallum earlier tonight closed a deal to continue on the hit CBS crime drama. He plays medical examiner Donald “Ducky” Mallard. McCallum was one of four original cast members whose future on the show became uncertain over a … Read More »
Todd McCarthy Lands At IndieWire
Hollywood will be pleased to know that longtime Variety lead film critic Todd McCarthy, who was laid off by the trade two months ago, has found an outlet for his reviews at IndieWire. He “will not be silenced,” the … Read More »
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