Week of « Prev | Next »
1-20 of 129 items « Prev | Next »
TBS Cancels ‘King of the Nerds’ Reality Series
8 hours ago
TBS has pulled the plug on its reality-competition series “King of the Nerds” after three seasons.
The show produced by Electus featured “nerd off” competitions among teams of contestants vying for the ultimate title of “King of the Nerds.” Robert Carradine and Curtis Armstrong, stars of the 1984 comedy “Revenge of the Nerds,” served as hosts. Armstrong announced the cancellation via Twitter on Friday.
Dearest nerds! Deeply sorry to announce that @KingofNerdsTBS will not be returning for a 4th season. Hard to find words now. #nerdsrule
— Curtis Armstrong (@curtisisbooger) September 4, 2015
“Nerds” wrapped its most recent eight-episode run in March.
The departure of “Nerds” is no surprise as the new regime at Turner has vowed to make significant changes in the tone of TBS’ comedy programming. Earlier this week TBS began its promo push for the upcoming late-night talk show hosted by “Daily Show” alum Samantha Bee, “Full Frontal.”
»
- Cynthia Littleton
Al Jazeera America, DirecTV Settle Legal Fight, Renew Carriage Deal
10 hours ago
Al Jazeera America has struck a new carriage agreement with DirecTV after coming to terms on a lawsuit that DirecTV filed agains the all-news cabler last year.
The agreement calls for DirecTV to carry the soon-to-launch Al Jazeera America HD channel.
“We’re pleased to extend our partnership with DirecTV,” said Al Anstey, CEO of Al Jazeera America. “Al Jazeera America is committed to its mission of delivering in-depth, unbiased and trusted journalism of the highest quality. I look forward to continuing to work together to grow our audience and deliver more compelling news and remarkable stories that inform, educate and inspire audiences across America.”
DirecTV sued Al Jazeera last year, claiming the cabler had violated the terms of its previous carriage agreement, which originated under Al Jazeera America predecessor channel Current, by offering lower carriage fees to other distributors than it had to DirecTV. According to DirecTV, that was »
- Whitney Friedlander
‘Public Morals’: TNT Releases All of Episodes for Labor Day Binge
10 hours ago
TNT will release all remaining episodes of new cop drama “Public Morals” for Labor Day weekend viewing, the Turner-owned cable network announced Friday.
All ten episodes of the Edward Burns-starring period crime drama will air on TNT and its participating partners’ web and mobile options from noon Saturday through Monday night. This includes the first four episodes, which TNT had released on VOD the day after the Aug. 25 premiere.
This move is the latest trend in television. USA allowed for online binging episodes of its hit “Mr. Robot” before and after the show’s season finale, which aired earlier this week to steady ratings. Earlier in the summer, NBC released all episodes of Season 1 of its Charles Manson thriller “Aquarius” online after the premiere, marking the first broadcast network to try the binge model. The series eventually ended up moving to a Saturday timeslot on The Peacock’s schedule, »
- Whitney Friedlander
‘Arrow’ Season 4 Trailer Previews Constantine, Damien Darhk and Mr. Terrific
10 hours ago
The CW has unveiled the first trailer for “Arrow” season four, complete with a new-look costume for Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) and plenty of fresh faces.
Fans of NBC’s shortlived “Constantine” can get a glimpse of Matt Ryan reprising his titular role as the occult detective in the new footage, along with first looks at DC Comics characters Damien Darhk (Neal McDonough), Mr. Terrific (Echo Kellum) and Anarky (Alexander Calvert).
The footage opens with a thoroughly domesticated Oliver, who seems determined to give up the vigilante life to focus on his relationship with Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards). But things never stay quiet for long in Starling City — newly renamed Star City (as the locale is known in DC’s Green Arrow comics) in memory of Ray Palmer (Brandon Routh), who is believed to be dead following an explosion at his company in the season finale.
The trailer also features »
- Laura Prudom
Zendaya & Raven-Symoné Unite Generations of Disney Viewers on ‘K.C. Undercover’ Special
12 hours ago
Raven-Symoné is heading back to her Disney Channel roots with a guest stint on the Sept. 7 episode of Zendaya’s “K.C. Undercover.”
“The View” host got her start on Disney in 2003 with popular sitcom “That’s So Raven,” of which Zendaya was an avid fan during her childhood. Raven also has long-term Disney fans from the “Zenon” and “Cheetah Girls” movies.
“I grew up watching ‘That’s So Raven,’ and that’s where I learned a lot of my comedy,” Zendaya tells Variety.
Disney Channel exec Adam Bonnett who developed both “That’s So Raven” and “K.C. Undercover” (in addition to Miley Cyrus’ “Hannah Montana,” Selena Gomez’s “Wizards of Waverly Place,” “Hilary Duff’s “Lizzie McGuire,” Shia Labeouf’s “Even Stevens,” the “Teen Beach Movie” franchise, plus Bella Thorne and Zendaya’s first Disney series “Shake It Up”) says that Raven’s return to the network was the perfect »
- Elizabeth Wagmeister
‘UnReal’ Adds New Exec Producer to Season 2; Marti Noxon to Remain Showrunner
14 hours ago
Lifetime’s “UnReal” has added Carol Barbee as an exec producer to its sophomore season, Variety has learned.
The “Touch” and “Hawaii Five-0” alum joins co-creator Marti Noxon who will continue to serve as exec producer and showrunner for season two.
Co-creator Sarah Gertrude Shapiro has been elevated to exec producer, alongside former co-exec producer Stacy Rukeyser who was also upped to Ep for the second season, which returns in 2016 with 10 new episodes. Robert M. Sertner and Sally DeSipio will return, as well, continuing on as exec producers.
The addition of Barbee and the elevated exec producing team will without a doubt help support Noxon’s work on the critically-acclaimed hit show, as she’s one the most in-demand showrunners, as of late.
Noxon will continue as showrunner on Season 2 of Bravo’s “Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce,” which she created, and will exec produce CBS’ upcoming medical drama “Code Black. »
- Elizabeth Wagmeister
Netflix’s Lemony Snicket Series Taps ‘True Blood’s’ Mark Hudis, Barry Sonnenfeld (Exclusive)
14 hours ago
Former “True Blood” showrunner Mark Hudis and director Barry Sonnenfeld have signed on to steer Netflix’s adaptation of the Lemony Snicket “A Series of Unfortunate Events” fantasy book series.
Hudis will serve as showrunner and exec producer of the series, while Sonnenfeld will direct and exec produce. Lemony Snicket creator Daniel Handler is also an exec producer for Paramount Television, which produced the 2004 feature rendition starring Jim Carrey in 2004.
Netflix billed the series as having multigenerational appeal to kids and parents when it announced the acquisition of the property in November. The “Unfortunate Events” series revolves around a trio of orphans who encounter the villainous Count Olaf and a host of other obstacles as they search for their rightful family fortune and the truth about their parents’ death.
The book series has sold more than 65 million copies since its debut in 1999.
There’s no word yet about a production timetable for the series. »
- Cynthia Littleton
Stephen Colbert’s Best ‘Late Show’ Pre-Premiere Promotional Stunts
14 hours ago
Stephen Colbert’s first night as host of CBS’ “Late Show” is Sept. 8, and the comedian and his staff have spent the better part of the summer finding interesting ways of reminding you of that. From puns to public television, Variety ranks our favorite campaigns, thus far.
Only in Monroe
In July, Colbert spent a day as host of a small-time public television program in Michigan titled “Only in Monroe.” His interview subjects include the real hosts of the program — one of whom he challenged to a fingernail-painting contest — and “a local Michigander who is making a name for himself in the competitive world of music,” Eminem.
“I wanted to cut it down to the length of show that we would do on CBS, which is a little bit over 40 minutes, but there’s another 20,” Colbert told reporters at “Late Show’s” Television Critics Assn. panel, which happened a few weeks after the broadcast. »
- Whitney Friedlander
Espn to Tackle Late-Night Crowd With Scott Van Pelt’s Midnight ‘SportsCenter’
15 hours ago
When Scott Van Pelt comes on the set of his new show at midnight at the tail end of Labor Day, he won’t have many of the trappings one might expect. There will be no in-studio band, and he won’t stand up in front of a microphone and spout a series of one-liners about whatever was trending on social media during the day.
Why would he? This is a sports-news program on Espn.
And yet, when Van Pelt greets viewers tuning into a new midnight edition of “SportsCenter” as Labor Day melts back into the working week, he may offer a few elements that would make his program a distant cousin, perhaps, to the antics-filled shows seen elsewhere at that time from Jimmy Fallon or Jimmy Kimmel. This “SportsCenter” arrives with ideas for segments like a bit of Van Pelt’s signature commentary, or “Best Thing I Saw Today, »
- Brian Steinberg
Disney Channel Orders Latino Family Sitcom Toplined by ‘Jane the Virgin’ Star (Exclusive)
16 hours ago
Disney Channel has ordered new series “Stuck in the Middle,” starring “Jane the Virgin’s” Jenna Ortega, Variety has learned exclusively.
The comedy is slated to debut in spring 2016 with production beginning this November.
The family sitcom marks a move toward Latino-targeted programming for the kids’ cabler. The single-cam series is centered around the Diaz family, and is told from the perspective of the middle child, Harley, played by Ortega, whom Disney Channel is grooming to be their next big star.
Ortega’s character is an engineering whiz who uses her inventions to navigate life as the middle child in a large family of seven kids. Harley’s overlooked status proves to be both a blessing and a curse, as she maneuvers her way through the everyday antics that come with being part of a big family.
The siblings are played by a mish-mosh of familiar Disney faces and newbies to the network. »
- Elizabeth Wagmeister
‘Game of Thrones’ Casts ‘UnREAL’ Star Freddie Stroma for Season 6
16 hours ago
“Game of Thrones” has added Freddie Stroma, star of Lifetime’s “UnREAL,” for season six, Variety has confirmed.
Stroma will play Dickon Tarly, brother of Samwell (John Bradley), in the HBO series’ upcoming season. We’re expected to meet the rest of Sam’s family, including his father, the ruthless Randyll Tarly, in the new season.
In addition to his breakout role as Adam Cromwell on the Lifetime drama — which has already been renewed for a second season — Stroma is best known for playing Cormac McLaggen in the “Harry Potter” franchise.
»
- Laura Prudom
‘Fear the Walking Dead’ Viewership Grows 43% With Time-Shifted Numbers
17 hours ago
The ratings tally for the second outing of AMC’s “Fear the Walking Dead” grew by a whopping 3.5 million viewers with three days of time-shifted viewing factored in.
Total viewership climbed to 11.7 million with Nielsen’s live-plus-3 ratings, up from 8.2 million for Sunday’s premiere. In adults 18-49, the L3 numbers brought in another 2.4 million for a total of 7.6 million, a 46% gain from Sunday’s live-plus same-day numbers.
The second installment saw a slight uptick in time-shifted viewing compared to the Aug. 23 premiere. That 90-minute episode opened to 10.1 million viewers and added 3.2 million in the L3 measure.
AMC will serve up reruns of the first two “Fear” episodes this coming Sunday because of the Labor Day holiday weekend. The next fresh episode will air Sept. 13. Here’s a glimpse of “The Dog.”
»
- Cynthia Littleton
Espn Benches Curt Schilling for Duration of Baseball Season
19 hours ago
Espn will keep baseball analyst Curt Schilling off the network for the duration of the current Major League Baseball season, the Walt Disney-owned outlet said Thursday, an extension of a punishment meted out after the broadcaster sent out a dispatch on Twitter in August comparing Muslim extremists to Nazis.
Espn decided to prolong Schilling’s sit-down in the wake of an emailed statement he sent to sports-news site Awful Announcing offering more thoughts about the tweet he made, then deleted. The two parties had additional exchanges, and Espn seemed less than pleased.
“At all times during the course of their engagement with us, our commentators are directly linked to Espn and are the face of our brand. We are a sports media company. Curt’s actions have not been consistent with his contractual obligations nor have they been professionally handled; they have obviously not reflected well on the company,” the network said in a statement. »
- Brian Steinberg
Showtime Sets Teddy Roosevelt Limited Series in Development (Exclusive)
3 September 2015 3:52 PM, PDT
Showtime is developing a limited series revolving around Teddy Roosevelt, Variety has learned exclusively.
The project, in early development, will be penned by “American History X” screenwriter David McKenna, who will also serve as an exec producer.
Hailing from Electus and Authentic Talent and Literary Management, the limited series will also be exec produced by Electus’ Ben Silverman and Sean Canino, plus Authentic’s Jon Rubinstein and Jason Egenberg.
Insiders tell Variety that the series will be a “brilliant take” on Roosevelt’s life, presented as a big epic. McKenna is said to be adapting “the real-life heroic story” of the 26th U.S. president for television in a moment in time when there is significant interest in larger-than-life political figures.
The creative team have their eye on someone for the lead role who will also serve as an exec producer, but no actor is formally attached yet.
The project, »
- Elizabeth Wagmeister
Director Paul Quinn, Brother of Aidan Quinn, Dies at 55
3 September 2015 3:19 PM, PDT
Paul Quinn, writer and director of “This Is My Father,” died in his New York home on Sept. 2 after a long battle with cancer. He was 55.
Quinn collaborated with his brothers Aidan and Declan when he directed his debut and most notable feature, 1998’s “This Is My Father,” which screened at the Sundance and Toronto film festivals. The award-winning film stars Aidan, and Declan served as d.p.
Quinn achieved accolades along the festival circuit for the second feature he directed, “Never Get Outta the Boat,” in 2002.
His latest directorial work, “Good Ol’ Boy,” is set to premiere in competition at the 2015 Woodstock Film Festival. The contemporary adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Henry IV” stars Keith David and Angus Macfadyen.
Paul Quinn was also an actor who appeared in “Leaving Las Vegas,” “Bob Roberts” and “Avalon,” and he directed episodes of the NBC comedy “Scrubs.”
Quinn, who trained at Chicago’s Piven Theater Workshop, »
- Mannie Holmes
Photo: ‘Arrow’s’ David Ramsey Teases Diggle’s New Costume
3 September 2015 2:49 PM, PDT
It’s about time John Diggle got some respectable attire around Starling City.
The CW has released the first photo of “Arrow” actor David Ramsey sporting his character’s new crime-fighting duds. Complete with a leather jacket and a protective, yet stylish, helmet, Oliver Queen’s former bodyguard seems better protected as he prepares to defend the newly renamed Star City.
Diggle isn’t the only one of CW’s returning heroes to get a new look. “Arrow’s” Stephen Amell debuted his character’s new superhero suit at Comic-Con. And Grant Gustin’s Barry Allen will also have a “flashier” new costumefor Season 2 of “The Flash.”
All the new costumes will be featured in the shows’ season premieres. “The Flash” is back Oct. 6 at 8 p.m. on The CW and “Arrow” returns Oct. 7 at 8 p.m.
»
- Whitney Friedlander
Heidi Klum, ‘UnReal’ Stars Added to Creative Arts Emmy Presenter List
3 September 2015 2:01 PM, PDT
The list of presenters at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards includes reality stars … and those who pretend to work on a reality show.
“Project Runway’s” Heidi Klum and “UnReal” stars Shiri Appleby and Constance Zimmer are among the final list of talent who will be presenting during the ceremony.
The list also includes past and current nominees Scott Aukerman, who was part of the “Between Two Ferns With Zach Galifianakis” team that took home the 2014 Emmy for outstanding short-format live-action entertainment program; “House of Cards'” Reg E. Cathey, who is nominated for his second year in a row in the guest actor in a drama series category; and “Big Bang Theory” co-creator Chuck Lorre.
The final list of presenters also features Pamela Adlon (“Louie”), Sasha Alexander (“Rizzoli & Isles”), Kristen Schaal (“The Last Man on Earth”), Billy Eichner (“Billy on the Street,” “Difficult People”), Aasif Mandvi (“The Brink”), Katharine McPhee »
- Whitney Friedlander
‘Marvel’s Luke Cage’ Casts Mahershala Ali as Cottonmouth
3 September 2015 2:00 PM, PDT
“Marvel’s Luke Cage” has tapped “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay” star Mahershala Ali to play Cornell “Cottonmouth” Stokes in the upcoming Netflix series, the studio announced Thursday.
Stokes, a Harlem nightclub owner, will become an unexpected foe in the life of Luke Cage (Mike Colter) when Stokes’ criminal activities threaten Luke’s world.
Other rumored cast additions for “Luke Cage” include Alfre Woodard as a powerful politician who impacts Luke’s life (possibly as an iteration of the comic book character Black Mariah); Theo Rossi as street criminal Shades, aka Alvarez; Simone Missick, who may be playing Marvel comic book character Misty Knight, and Rosario Dawson, who is expected to reprise her role as Claire Temple following appearances in “Daredevil” and “Jessica Jones.”
In addition to his “Hunger Games” role as Boggs, Ali has also appeared in series such as “Treme,” “The 4400” and Netflix’s “House of Cards. »
- Laura Prudom
Ratings: USA’s ‘Mr. Robot’ Steady in Finale, Ends As Cable’s No. 2 New Summer Drama
3 September 2015 1:25 PM, PDT
A softer lead-in and a week off seemed to impact same-night ratings for the finale of “Mr. Robot,” but the first new USA drama in years to have pop culture buzz still had a solid finish and ends summer among the top-rated new cable series in key advertising demos.
USA is expected to release additional ratings info next week when three-day DVR playback tallies are included, but Wednesday’s 74-minute finale of “Mr. Robot” averaged a 0.46 rating in adults 18-49 and 1.21 million viewers overall in Nielsen’s “live plus same-day” estimates. It was the No. 1 scripted original on cable Wednesday in 18-49 and 25-54.
In 18-49, it matched its June 24 premiere and was a bit below both its prior episode of two weeks ago (0.49) and its season average (0.48).
The “Robot” finale had been delayed a week by USA because the episode includes a scene with similarities to the real-life murders that occurred Aug. »
- Rick Kissell
Cmt Greenlights Series for Viral Sensation Comedy Group ‘Dude Perfect’
3 September 2015 12:10 PM, PDT
Cmt has greenlighted a series for web stars Dude Perfect, the sports and comedy viral sensation composed of five best friends and a panda mascot, who have amassed more than 1 billion online video views, among their 23 million digital fans and followers.
“The Dude Perfect Show,” which marks the group’s first-ever TV series, hails from Rob Dyrdek’s Superjacket Productions. It is slated for a 2016 debut.
Dude Perfect announced the news of their Cmt show today with a video message, which was also shared via their popular social-media channels (watch below).
The series will combine comedy and live-action stunts and follow the lives of Dude Perfect, as they dream up their next viral video, work with famous athletes and celebrity guests, prep performances, meet fans at live events or create hilarity in their Dallas, Texas, headquarters. “The Dude Perfect Show” will showcase exactly how the group comes up with their next idea. »
- Elizabeth Wagmeister
1-20 of 129 items « Prev | Next »