ABC was at the TCAs yesterday, and broke a LOT of news on us:
ABC has announced its next live production: Young Frankenstein Live! It is going to be based on the Broadway adaptation of the movie, and Mel Brooks is producing. It will air sometime in the fall. Start dream casting now! (I could see David Harbour as The Monster, Paul F. Tomkins as Dr. Frankenstein, and then in a mini-Pitch Perfect reunion, Anna Camp as Inga and Anna Kendrick as Elizabeth.)
Modern Family‘s series finale will air on April 8. The show will take the family on vacation to Paris before it ends, and the creators say there are no plans for a spinoff at this time. American Housewife will eventually take Modern Family‘s time slot on Wednesday nights, and Shark Tank will move to Friday nights in American Housewife and Fresh Off the Boat‘s hour.
The Connors will have a live episode on February 11, the same night as the New Hampshire primary, and the episode will, in fact, deal with politics. Also, Shameless‘ Noel Fisher will guest start on the series as Dan’s half-brother. As for Jackie’s son Andy, looks like he never actually existed.
How to Get Away with Murder will air its series finale on May 14 after returning on April 2.
The Emmys will air on September 20, and ABC is considering employing a host. However, there is still not going to be a host for the Oscars.
The Baker and the Beauty will premiere on April 6:
The very worst part of every episode of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, the music, is getting its own series. The Bachelor: Listen to Your Heart has been ordered straight-to-series, and here’s the description:
20 single men and women — talented musicians or people whose lives and work revolve around music — search for love through music, singing well-known songs, both individually and as couples. They will meet and explore their relationships while living together and going on Bachelor-style dates that focus on music.
Jesus Christ, NO. Is this just a way to get that loser Guitar Guy back on TV? Because NO ONE WANTS HIM BACK.
Other new shows coming to ABC:
- thirtysomething(else), a sequel to thirtysomething. Ken Olin, Mel Harris, Timothy Busfield, and Patty Wettig will all revise their roles, and the show will focus on their characters’ children who are now in their thirties.
- The Brides, a sexy vampire drama from the Riverdale folks.
- A revival of Supermarket Sweep hosted by Leslie Jones (!).
- Who Wants to Be a Millionaire: Celebrity Edition hosted by Jimmy Kimmel (this is going to be a limited thing, kinda like this week’s Jeopardy! special).
And then there are odds and ends:
Dancing with the Stars will probably be renewed; they’d love a season 18 of Grey’s Anatomy; ABC would love another Marvel superhero series; they are considering turning Revenge into an anthology series; and no, they don’t blame Constance Wu for the end of Fresh Off the Boat. I mean, OK.
In other TV news
This is only tangentially a television story, but it is worth noting that Prince Harry and former Suits star Meghan Markle are peacing out of the Royal Family. GOOD FOR THEM. The British media has been brutal towards Markle and they don’t owe anyone anything.
Meghan Markle and “her husband.” I’M DEAD.
Meghan Markle and her husband say they're stepping back as senior members of the Royal Family and will "work to become financially independent."
They'll split their time 50/50 between the UK and North America. pic.twitter.com/h3csuwSs3n
— AJ+ (@ajplus) January 8, 2020
Northwestern graduate moving closer to home after spending time abroad https://t.co/TZ18eIOXdQ
— Chicago Tribune (@chicagotribune) January 8, 2020
Former Suits star to return to North America https://t.co/njTb7tnSl8
— Vulture (@vulture) January 8, 2020
And Y’ALL! Harry and Meghan didn’t clear this with the Queen before making their announcement. From the Royal Family:
“Discussions with The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are at an early stage. We understand their desire to take a different approach, but these are complicated issues that will take time to work through.”
American Divorcées: 2
House of Windsor: 0— Scott Bixby (@scottbix) January 8, 2020
As for how this will play out on The Crown — sad news, it probably won’t. BUT IT SHOULD. They should just jump ahead to their wedding and cover alllll this.
First, it was announced that he wouldn’t appear in the Empire series finale, and now he has to hand over his Google data to investigators. Been a rough week for Jussie Smollett.
AT&T’s Audience Network is going to shut down this spring and become a preview channel for HBO Max. As for its original programming — Mr. Mercedes; Loudermilk; You Me Her; and Condor — there’s no word what happens next. I can see a scenario where they end up on HBO Max, too.
Prince will receive a Grammy tribute show featuring performances by Alicia Keys, John Legend, Beck, Usher, Chris Martin, H.E.R., St. Vincent and others. When it will air has not been announced but it will certainly be broadcast at some point.
Here’s more about that Quibi platform I keep mentioning here. Turns out episodes will all run 10 minutes or less (hence “Quick Bites” or Quibi); it’s specifically designed to be viewed on your phone; it will cost $4.99 or $7.99 depending on whether you with ads or ads-free; and it will launch on April 6.
What it looks like when a country doesn’t have freedom of expression.
The Mandalorian as a spaghetti western:
drunk chris evan sounds and acts like charlie day from it's always sunny in philadelphia pic.twitter.com/RtYW3JTwDC
— △⃒⃘ (@iatemuggles) January 6, 2020
Facebook has murdered another great website with their bullshit metrics.
Renewals
- Technically this should wait until tomorrow for the FX TCA report, but what the hell: American Horror Story has been renewed for THREE more seasons on FX. Insanity.
- Star Trek: Discovery has been renewed (quietly) by CBS All Access for a fourth season.
In Development
- Last of the Mohicans from Cary Joji Fukunaga has been set at HBO Max.
- Love is Blind, a dating show hosted by Nick and Vanessa Lachey, has been ordered by Netflix.
- High & Low, a comedy travel show, has been ordered at Quibi.
- Martha MacCallum has signed a multi-year deal at Fox News.
- Dave Holstein and Roberto Benabib have signed a first-look deal at Showtime.
- CW Seed has acquired the streaming rights for 14 BBC series.
Casting News
- Britt Baron, Anna Lore, Benedict Samuel, Anna Akana, Sachin Bhatt, and Ally Maki will star in Into the Dark: My Valentine on Hulu.
- Kristen Welker has been named the new co-host of Weekend Today on NBC.
Mark Your Calendars
Hey, here are a bunch of Fox Winter Preview videos from the TCAs:
- Outmatched will debut on Fox on January 23. 30-second pitch: The Big Bang Theory with kids.
- October Faction will debut on Netflix on January 23.
- Marriage Boot Camp: Hip Hop Edition will return on We TV on February 6.
- The 28th Annual Bounce Trumpet Awards will air on Bounce on January 12. Wanda Sykes will host.
R.I.P.
Buck Henry, Legendary screenwriter of The Graduate, creator of Get Smart, and frequent host of Saturday Night Live
Buck Henry, guys. A brilliant talent and a really lovely guy. RIP
— Michael McKean (@MJMcKean) January 9, 2020
R.I.P. Buck Henry. Buck hosted 10 times during the show’s first initial five years and was the kind of guy who could get accidentally sliced in the head by Belushi’s sword, finish the sketch by jumping out a windows and still carry on with the rest of the show. Truly incredible. pic.twitter.com/ctMqccJyvl
— That Week In SNL (@ThatWeekInSNL) January 9, 2020
RIP Buck Henry. Belushi's Samurai sword drew blood in an early SNL sketch. By the end the whole cast was wearing bandages. pic.twitter.com/FTr0zVPajU
— Kyle Colvett (@KColvett) January 9, 2020
Loved your scripts for Owl and the Pussycat, What’s up, Doc? and so many others. Rest in peace. https://t.co/Al2LboawkU
— Barbra Streisand (@BarbraStreisand) January 9, 2020
R.I.P. Buck Henry. His performance as Dick Lemon on 30 Rock delivered one of the greatest jokes in TV history. pic.twitter.com/nMwDE8t9yk
— Juan Escalante🔴⚫️💀 (@nerdwich_) January 9, 2020
WATCH THIS
Superstore: The Cloud 9 acquisition creates issues. Winter premiere. 7 p.m., NBC
Young Sheldon: Mary plans a wedding. Winter premiere. 7 p.m., CBS
The Good Place: The group works with Sean and the judge on a plan. Winter premiere. 7:30 p.m., NBC
The Unicorn: Will seeks his daughters’ approval in the winter premiere. 7:30 p.m., NBC
Will & Grace: Will meets with a potential surrogate. Winter premiere. 8 p.m., NBC
Mom: Tammy faces a difficult decision in the winter premiere. 8 p.m., CBS
Truth & Lies: The Jeffrey Epstein Story: Epstein’s accusers open up about their experiences in this new special. 8 p.m., ABC
Carol’s Second Act: Carol tries to get a patient into ICU. Winter premiere. 8:30 p.m., CBS
Perfect Harmony: Arthur tries to not show favoritism. Winter premiere. 8:30 p.m., NBC
Evil: David fights off death in the winter premiere. 9 p.m., CBS
Law & Order: SVU: A father takes justice in his own hands. Winter premiere. 9 p.m., NBC
Late Night:
- Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Will Smith, Patti Smith
- Late Night with Seth Meyers: Larry David, Caitlin Kalafus
- The Late Show with Stephen Colbert: Josh Gad, Tamron Hall
- Jimmy Kimmel Live: Michael B. Jordan, January Jones, Cigarettes After Sex
- The Daily Show: Jimmy Butler
- Lights Out with David Spade: Tig Notaro, Nikki Glaser, Tony Rock
- Watch What Happens Live: Tiffany Haddish, Salma Hayek
- A Little Late with Lily Singh: Brett Gelman, Rosanna Pansino
| THUR | 7:00 | 7:30 | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 |
| ABC | Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time (new) |
Truth & Lies: The Jeffrey Epstein Story (new) |
| CBS | Young Sheldon (new) |
The Unicorn (new) |
Mom (new) |
Carol’s Second Act (new) |
Evil (new) |
| CW | Supernatural (repeat) |
Legacies (repeat) |
News/Local |
| FOX | Last Man Standing (new) |
Deputy (new) |
News/Local |
| NBC | Super-store (new) |
Perfect Harmony (new) |
The Good Place (new) |
Will & Grace (new) |
Law & Order: SVU (new) |
College Humor took literal days out of my studying time in college. RIP you beautiful SOB