My husband was just on a Zoom call with a bunch of experts for a case he is working on related to this goddamned virus — because 2020 — and as they were signing off, one of the participants said, “have a good rest of your … what day is it again?” It’s Wednesday, dear reader. Today is Wednesday, July 15, and it has been 126 since Tom and Rita Day, the day when Shit Got Real. In good news, it is 111 days until Election Day.
Tick tock, motherfuckers.
Today is also Peacock Day, the day that NBCUniversal launches their streaming service designed to compete with Netflix, Disney+, Apple TV, HBO Max, and whatever else is out there. And not everyone is happy about it — namely, the NBC affiliates.
So, I’ve been SUPER EXCITED for the 30 Rock reunion special that NBC promised us a couple of months ago (a year ago? five years ago? WHO KNOWS) which is scheduled to air tomorrow night. But, funny joke, my local NBC affiliate won’t be airing it. In fact, stations owned by conglomerates Gray Television, Hearst, Nexstar, Tegna, and Sinclair Broadcast Group won’t be airing the special, accounting for somewhere around 60% of the country. It seems the companies view the special as one long promo for Peacock, which they consider direct competition since the streaming service will provide next day episodes of NBC shows.
But don’t drown your sorrows in night cheese just yet. The special will be available on Friday on NBC.com, NBCU cable networks like USA and E!, on-demand, and of course, on Peacock.
As noted, Peacock launches today, and if you scroll down to WATCH THIS!, you’ll find a list of original shows that are available right now. But what else will you find on the streamer? Well, it depends on whether you’re using the free ad-sponsored tier, the $4.99 a month ad-sponsored tier that gives you access to originals, or the $9.99 ad-free tier. The free tier will have 13,000 hours of programming on it; the subscription tiers will have 20,000 hours of programming.
With 13,000 – 20,000 hours of programming, I’m not going to be able to list everything available, but here are the shows and movies you’ll be able to access with the paid services. And this is very niche, but here are all the horror films you can watch for free on Peacock.
As of today, you can’t access Peacock on Roku or Amazon Fire, but I’m sure some sort of deal will be worked out soon. (Although it’s been over a month since HBO Max launched and it’s still not worked something out with Roku or Fire, so …)
And finally, don’t hold your breath for an Office reboot on Peacock. A reunion might be possible, but for now, the reboot ideas that have been kicked around for the past year or so are being shelved.
In non-Peacock news, Nick Cannon got his ass fired from ViacomCBS for making some completely bonkers anti-Semitic comments on a podcast.
Cannon said that people who have “the lack of pigment” are “a little less” than those who do, and have “a lack of compassion.”
He continued, “They’re acting out of fear. They’re acting out of low self esteem. They’re acting out of a deficiency. So therefore the only way they can act is evil. They have to rob, steal, rape and [unintelligible] in order to survive.”
Cannon also spoused anti-Semitic conspiracy theories about The Rothschilds and “the bloodlines that control everything, even outside of America.” He said that Black people are the “true Hebrews.”
Cannon has responded by demanding that ViacomCBS apologize and give him the rights to his show Wild ‘N Out. “I created a billion-dollar brand that expanded across a multitiered empire that is still Viacom’s biggest digital brand, touring business, talent discovery and incubation system and successful restaurant franchise. Based on trust and empty promises, my ownership was swindled away from me. For Viacom to be so deceptive is no surprise; they have been mistreating and robbing our community for years, underpaying talent on their biggest brands like Love & Hip Hop, all of BET programming and of course, Wild ‘N Out.”
MSNBC’s Joy Reid is being sued for defamation again.
OOOOH, the next batch of Unsolved Mysteries episodes is going to include a ghost story, my favorite. And going back to Peacock for a hot second: you can stream the original episodes over there now for free.
The Glee family is processing their grief over Naya Rivera’s death. Creators Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan released a statement saying they are heartbroken, and establishing a college fund for her son:
Going Viral
CBS is having to shuffle its fall schedule thanks to COVID production issues. Survivor can’t be filmed for obvious reasons, so S.W.A.T. is being moved from midseason to fill the spot.
Evel is not going forward at USA. Production shut down on the last day of prep because of COVID-19, and with star Milo Ventimiglia set to start production on This is Us next month, USA opted to not continue with the project. It will be shopped to other networks.
BBC is going to have to cut 520 jobs in their news department.
America: You’re disappointing Tom Hanks. Wear a damn mask. Wash your hands. Stay 6 feet apart. “You know how they say, ‘It’s the least you can do?’ It’s literally the least you can do.”
The Telluride Film Festival has canceled their 2020 event scheduled for Labor Day weekend.
In the ongoing category of “So How Is This Bullshit Administration Fucking This Up Today,” two things worth noting:
- The administration has ordered hospitals to send all their COVID information to Department of Health and Human Services from here on out, bypassing the Centers for Disease Control. What the fuck?
“Officials say the change will streamline data gathering and assist the White House coronavirus task force in allocating scarce supplies like personal protective gear and remdesivir, the first drug shown to be effective against the virus. But the Health and Human Services database that will receive new information is not open to the public, which could affect the work of scores of researchers, modelers and health officials who rely on C.D.C. data to make projections and crucial decisions.
“’Historically, C.D.C. has been the place where public health data has been sent, and this raises questions about not just access for researchers but access for reporters, access for the public to try to better understand what is happening with the outbreak,’ said Jen Kates, the director of global health and H.I.V. policy with the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation.
“’How will the data be protected?’ she asked. ‘Will there be transparency, will there be access, and what is the role of the C.D.C. in understanding the data?’”
- Peter Navarro, the director of the Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy, wrote an op-ed in USA Today attacking Dr. Fauci entitled, and I’m not kidding: “Anthony Fauci has been wrong about everything I have interacted with him on.” The White House claims he wrote it without their clearance, and that it’s not reflective of President Hydroxychloroquine’s opinions but come the fuck on. They have been whispering to the press for the past week that they were going to push back on Dr. Fauci; President Twatter retweeted Chuck Woolery’s attack on Dr Facui and other scientists; and if they were REALLY upset about Navarro’s editorial, they’d fire him. I’m going to sit here and hold my breath until that happens.
Black Lives Matter
CBS has entered into a multi-year partnership with the NAACP as part of its efforts to diversify its programming.
The Real Housewives of Atlanta‘s Porsha Williams was arrested at a Breonna Taylor protest. Porsha was on Watch What Happens Live last month along with W. Kamau Bell, discussing racial issues and as someone who only knows her from her reality show appearances, I was impressed by her involvement in civil rights movements, which just reveals more about my own ignorance than anything about her.
Michaela Coel and Cynthia Erivo will headline the BBC’s online event, Creative Diversity Xperience.
Idris Elba is all for labeling racist movies and shows rather than erasing them from the record.
Renewals
- The Last Drive-In With Joe Bob Briggs has been renewed at Shudder.
Cancellations
- Kidding has been canceled after two seasons on Showtime.
In Development
- Michael Che is getting his own sketch show on HBO Max.
- Player vs. Player with Trevor Noah is moving forward at Quibi.
- Nyle Dimarco is getting his own comedy series about being a deaf man in America.
- Mrs. Everything is being developed for TV.
Mark Your Calendars
- The Andy Cohen Diaries will premiere on Quibi on July 20.
- La Révolution will premiere on Netflix in October.
- World’s Toughest Race: Eco-Challenge Fiji will premiere on Amazon on August 14.
- Alta Mar/High Seas will premiere on Netflix on August 7.
- Tyson vs. Jaws: Rumble on the Reef will debut during Shark Week on Discovery on August 9.
- Alex Rider will premiere on IMDb on November 13.
- Santiago of the Seas will debut on Nickelodeon on October 9.
R.I.P.
Maurice Roëves, Actor who appeared in many TV shows, including Baywatch and Cheers, and movies like Last of the Mohicans and Judge Dredd
WATCH THIS
Peacock Day!
NBC launches its streaming service, Peacock, today. In addition to a bunch of old NBC favorites, the platform will launch a handful of new originals:
Psych 2: Lassie Come Home: Shawn and Gus are back in this feature-length film.
Brave New World: A series based on the classic Aldous Huxley novel about a dystopian future. No reason. Series premiere.
The Capture: Famke Janssen and Ron Perlman co-star in this conspiracy thriller. Series premiere.
Curious George: Series premiere.
Cleopatra in Space: Series premiere.
Where’s Waldo?: Series premiere.
In Deep with Ryan Lochte: They’ve given that idiot Ryan Lochte his own show. WHY.
Intelligence: David Schwimmer stars in this workplace comedy. Series premiere.
Lost Speedways: Dale Earnhardt Jr. hosts this series about racetracks. OK. Series premiere.
United We Fall: Will Sasso and Christina Vidal star in this new family comedy. Series premiere. 7 p.m., ABC
Forged in Fire: Summer premiere. 8 p.m., History
Snapped: Betty Broderick: If you’re sad that Dirty John is over, here’s the Snapped look at Betty Broderick’s story. 7 p.m., Oxygen
Married at First Sight: Why are we still doing this? Season premiere. 7 p.m., Lifetime
Late Night:
- Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: James McAvoy, Stacey Abrams, My Morning Jacket
- Late Night with Seth Meyers: Charlize Theron
- The Late Show with Stephen Colbert: Ricky Gervais, W. Kamau Bell
- Jimmy Kimmel Live: Kelly Ripa, Ryan Seacrest, J.J. Watt, guest host Sebastian Maniscalco
- The Daily Show: The Daily Social Distancing Show
- Conan: Chris Redd
- Watch What Happens Live: Dakota Fanning, Erika Jayne
| WEDS. | 7:00 | 7:30 | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 |
| ABC | United We Fall (new) |
United We Fall (new) |
The Conners (repeat) |
American Housewife (repeat) |
Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (new) |
| CBS | Tough As Nails (new) |
Game On! (new) |
SEAL Team (repeat) |
| CW | The 100 (new) |
Bulletproof (new) |
Local |
| FOX | MasterChef (repeat) |
Ultimate Tag (new) |
News/Local |
| NBC | Chicago Med (repeat) |
Chicago Fire (repeat) |
Chicago P.D. (repeat) |
No, not Kidding! That was one of the sweetest shows on TV