5 Mar 2015
We will be providing briefs of what comes out of the studios or independent project development on a daily basis and summarizing them in daily posts. These will be a quick way to attempt to keep everyone updated on movement of projects. This post is updated throughout the day. So check back for the latest updates.
NON-SPECIFIC (NOT SPECIFIC TO A GIVEN ENTITY)
- BREAKING NEWS: A PLANE IN VENICE CALIFORNIA HAD A CRASH LANDING, CRITICALLY INJURING ACTOR HARRISON FORD
- Deadline Ratings: Empire Extends Record Ratings Growth Streak to 8 Weeks, CSI: Cyber Starts OK
- THR Box-Office Milestone: Fifty Shades Crosses a Sexy $500M Worldwide
- Deadline Ratings: Nightline, Late Night Claim February Sweep Victories
- Deadline: UTA Signs Helmer Gavin Hood
- Los Angeles’ deputy film czar, Rajiv Dalal announced on Wednesday that he would be resigning his post in order to run for California’s 43rd Assembly District. The 43rd Assembly District includes numerous entertainment industry businesses and residents in the east end of San Fernando Valley. Mike Gatto, the Democrat who has been holding the seat that Dalal seeks in the 2016 election, will be termed out. Dalal was instrumental in helping push through and getting passed a bill co-authored by Gatto, AB 1839 which increased California State incentives to retain and attract movie and television production to the State. The increase was from $100 Mil to $330 Mil for each of the next five years. “But we can’t stop there,” said Dalal. “Our industry is in the midst of tremendous change. With new technologies reshaping our business, we need a voice that grasps the future and makes government part of the solution. Unlike most other industries,” said Dalal, “Hollywood lacks a representative in Sacramento who has worked in our industry and understands our business needs.”Dalal, who seems very focused on a single issue will have to also come up to speed and make important decisions on education, transportation and many other legislative issues. But his list of accomplishments are impressive, launching the Greenlight Hollywood campaign, putting into place a city infrastructure plan to eliminate red tape for film and television productions, serving as executive director of the Tom Sherak MS Hope Foundation, former executive director for Time Warner’s corporate affairs division in Asia-Pacific, and was strategic counsel and managing director (India) for the MPAA. He began his legal career at Dorsey & Whitney, where he had an opportunity to work with Senator Ted Kennedy on the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee that held hearings on Napster. Dalal is married Disney’s marketing exec, Divya Khanna Dalal.
- Variety: Tribeca Festival Adds Mary J. Blige, Cannibal Cop and a Schwarzengger Zombie Movie
- THR Exclusive: Stylist Shake-Up: Rachel Zoe Studio Losing Top Duo For Major Stars
- Deadline Review: DIG Review: USA Network Event Series Not Very Deep, Says Dominic Patten
- Variety: Neil Patrick Harris Doubts He Will Ever Host Oscars Again
ABC/DISNEY/AMC FAMILY/LIFETIME
- ABC has just cast Martha Plimpton (Raising Hope) in a new Dan Savage single-camera comedy, Family of the Year. Penning the script are ABC Studios’ David Windsor and Casey Johnson, who will both executive produce along with Savage, Brian Pines and Dan Merdermott. Todd Holland will direct. Plimpton joins other castmates Jay R. Ferguson, Noah Galvin, Bebe Wood, Matthew Shively and Mary Hollis Inboden. Family of the Year is about how a picture perfect family is turned upside down when their youngest son, Kenny (Galvin) comes out of the closet. What the family learns is that they can now stop pretending to be perfect and actually become real. Plimpton plays Eileen O’Neill, Kenny’s mother who has a rocky marriage to Pat (Ferguson) and is liberated when she comes clean about her efforts to be perfect.
AMC NETWORKS/AMC ENTERTAINMENT/A&E
CBS/CW/CBSFILMS/SHOWTIME/Pop
DIGITAL DISTRIBUTION (AOL, AMAZON, HULU, NETFLIX, YAHOO)
- Netflix scored getting a deal with FremantleMedia International for the Carlton Cuse 10-episode drama The Returned, which is to debut on March 9 on A&E. In the deal Netflix members will be able to stream the episodes within 24 hours of the North American airing on A& E for territories outside of North America. Next year it will add North America to the portfolio. Cuse is executive producing the series for Carlton Cuse Productions with Raelle Tucker for Angry Annie Productions and Thom Beers, Craig Cegielski and Stefanie Berk for FremantleMedia North America. The Returned is produced by FremantleMedia North America in association with Haut et Court TV. The cast includes:Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Mark Pellegrino, Jeremy Sisto, India Ennenga, Sandrine Holt, Agnes Bruckner, Sophie Lowe, Tandi Wright, Mat Vairo, Kevin Alejandro, Dylan Kingwell, Aaron Douglas, Dakota Guppy, Leah Gibson, Michelle Forbes, Rhys Ward, Scott Hylands, Terry Chen and Roger Cross.The Returned, based on Les Revenants created by Fabrice Gobert, is a story about small town residents whose lives are turned upside down when several local people, who have long been presumed dead, suddenly reappear, bringing with them both detrimental and positive consequences. As families are reunited, the lives of those who were left behind are challenged on a physical and emotional level, examining interpersonal relationships with intrigue and depth as strange phenomena begin to occur.
- Netflix picked up another scripted drama series, The OA which comes from Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij , a first TV series of both who have previously co-written Sound of My Voice and The East. Plan B’s Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner will executive produce along with Anonymous Content’s Michael Sugar. The OA premise is being kept under wraps, but Marling will star and co-write alongside Batmanglij who will direct the series. It will premiere in 2016.
- THR: Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: TV Review
DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS (DISCOVERY CHANNEL)
DREAMWORKS /DREAMWORKS ANIMATION
- DreamWorks Studios’ The BFG, a Steven Spielberg-directed adaptation of Roald Dahl’s 1982 children’s novel, has just made a deal with Walden Media to come on board, co-financing and co-producing the project. Learn More
FOX ENTERTAINMENT GROUP/FOX SEARCHLIGHT/NEW REGENCY
- Deadline Exclusive The Expendables Event Series in Works at Fox with Sylvester Stallone Producing
- Jenny Slate will be appearing in only four of the ten episodes of Season 2’s Married. She is switching from being a cast regular to a recurring status in the comedy series as she is currently being eyed by FX to topline her own pilot. Details have not yet been put forth on the pilot, but it is likely being written by Slate, Gillian Robespierre and Elisabeth Holm, co-writers behind the 2014 Sundance comedy Obvious Child.Sara Burns is joining Married as a series regular and will be introduced as Abby, a new character that is a quirky single mother desperate for approval and is always getting in trouble. Created by Andrew Gurland, Married stars Nat Faxon (Russ), Linda Bowman (Judy), Brett Gelman (AJ) and Slate (Jess). Gurland executive produces with Peter Principato and Paul Young. The premise of Married is about being miserably in love.
MGM, ORION, UNITED ARTISTS
NBC/UNIVERSAL STUDIOS/USA NETWORK/COMCAST/E!/SyFy
- THR Exclusive: Errol Morris’ Book A Wilderness of Error Lands at Blumhouse
- Deadline Exclusive: NBC Picks up Sniper Miniseries The Reaper from Weinstein Co.
LIONSGATE
- The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part2 has Lionsgate partnering with Disney’s Buena Vista International for release in Russia and several Soviet countries in Eastern Europe. Mockingjay 2 will release in the Eastern Europe/Russian region on November 19, 2015 The first three Hunger Games franchise film releases to that region were through Volga. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part2 is about Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) in a full-scale war with the naiton of Panem, in a final showdown with President Snow (Donald Sutherland). Returning are Liam Hemsworth, Sam Clafin and Josh Hutcherson. “Mockingjay 2 is the next thrilling chapter of an incredible global franchise, and we look forward to creating a singular motion picture event for Russian audiences,” said David Kornblum, Buena Vista’s international distribution head, in a statement on Thursday.
SONY/TRISTAR/COLUMBIA
TIME WARNER/WARNER BROS./HBO/ TURNER/TNT/TBS/NEWLINE
- Deadline Ratings: Conan in Cuba Clocks 2 Mil Viewers on Opening Night – Update
- Emmy-winner Alec Baldwin will star and executive produce a joint Untitled political drama series for NBC Productions and HBO. Scripted by Wells Tower, Cary Brokaw and Baldwin will executive produce the series. The Untitled project will be ab out Joe Byrne (Baldwin) who is a billionaire real estate developer, philanthropist, and celebrated socialite/tabloid fixture, who is unexpectedly rocketed into New York City politics after the incumbent mayor suffers a tragedy and he is drafted to replace him.
- Andrew Haas Joins ‘The Big Bang Theory’s’ Johnny Galecki’s Alcide Bava Production Company
VIACOM/COMEDY CENTRAL/PARAMOUNT/MTV
- Samantha Bee is leaving The Daily Show to executive produce and host her own series which according to a Time Warner statement is where Bee can “apply her smart and satirical point of view to current and relevant issues.” Bee will move to TBS to host her new show. Stay tuned…
- Variety: Layoffs Hit Viacom’s TV Land; Esquire, E! Consolidate Marketing Posts
- Deadline: Harve Bennett Dies: Producer of Star Trek Movies & TV Classics Was 84
INDIE
- Deadline Exclusive: Midnight Meat Train Scribe Jeff Buhler Sells Spec Script Descendant to Lotus Entertainment
- THR Exclusive: Lakeshore Ramping Up International Arm, Hires Sales Chief
- Variety Exclusive: IFC Films Acquires Sundance Drama The Stanford Prison Experiment