Oh no, do I have to subscribe to Paramount+ now?

by Therese Odell, posted in Uncategorized

It’s a Thursday.

Here’s what 2,000 dolphins look like:

All Other TV News

As you certainly know by now if you keep up with this blog, the streaming service CBS All Access is rebranding on March 4 and becoming Paramount+. CBS All Access launched with original programming in 2017, and, at least to my mind, always felt like a half-hearted effort. Sure, there were the new Star Trek series and The Good Fight, but CBS All Access was never going to be able to compete with the likes of Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime. When Disney+, HBO Max, and even Peacock entered the fray, CBS All Access was shown to be woefully inadequate.

However, when the merger between CBS and Viacom was finally approved in late 2019, it cleared the way for Viacom to finally be able to compete with the other conglomerates. Based on the huge dump of new shows Paramount+ announced yesterday, it sounds like Viacom is finally ready to take streaming seriously. A ton of new shows were announced but without release dates. It is unclear which of these shows will debut with the service next week:

Dramas:
Comedies
Reality Shows
Kids & Family

Additionally, some movies will premiere exclusively on Paramount+, including Paranormal Activity‘s newest installment, Pet Semetary, and The In Between. Other Paramount films will debut on the streamer 30-45 days after their theatrical debut including A Quiet Place Part II, PAW PATROL: The Movie, and Mission: Impossible 7.

Sports
News
Documentaries

Additionally, CBS All Access original series No Activity; Star Trek: Discovery;  Star Trek: Lower Decks; Star Trek: Picard; Stephen Colbert Presents Tooning Out the News; The Good Fight and Why Women Kill will continue on Paramount+ (but not The Twilight Zone, see below), and some 2,500 movies from Paramount’s library will be available.

The premium, ad-free tier will cost $9.99 a month, with an ad-supported tier at $4.99. And I’ll be damned if they haven’t intrigued me.

At the TCAs yesterday, Kevin Feige, the Chief Creative Officer at Marvel Studios, hinted at some intriguing developments. Namely, that WandaVision, along with the other Marvel series, including Falcon and the Winter Soldier and Loki, could have more than one season (I mean, I already assumed as much since these shows have been marketed as “series” and not “limited series,” but I guess it’s good to get confirmation.)

He also gave a lifeline to the much-loved Marvel series that found life on Netflix, including Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Daredevil, and The Punisher: “I think we probably could do it, I think a lot of that stuff comes back to us. There’s always rumors online about things reverting, sometimes that’s true, sometimes it’s not, but I’m not exactly sure of the exact contracts but perhaps someday.”

James Poniewozik at The New York Times writes an insightful piece about WandaVision and what it says about television and our current weird world. It’s kinda remarkable to think that this series was made long before the pandemic hit — and in fact, its release was delayed because of it.

Alright, Eric Kripke. Settle down.

Sounds like Better Call Saul has — or is about to — begin production again, which means we likely won’t get new episodes until 2022.

This is an interesting long-form piece about how advertisers are trying to be creative in a universe where commercials are actually pretty avoidable thanks to DVRs and streaming services.

Say what you want about me, I will never get tired of this meme.

Y’all better give Lady Gaga back her French bulldogs, you monsters.

Black Lives Matter

Matt James has finally addressed The Bachelor controversy.

I have more thoughts about this whole mess, but I don’t want to spoil anything. Let’s just say that this sentence: “The reality is that I’m learning about these situations in real time, and it has been devastating and heartbreaking to put it bluntly,” is particularly telling and the “After the Final Rose” special should be … interesting.

E! has an insightful piece that discusses with Tayshia Adams and Mike Johnson what it is like to be a Black contestant on The Bachelor shows. And there are some staggering numbers showing the disparity between the number of Instagram followers White and Black Bachelor contestants have. I don’t think that is the show’s fault — but it does reflect some deep racial prejudices in our society in general.

Kevin Michael Richardson will replace Harry Shearer as the voice of Dr. Julius Hibbert on The Simpsons, and y’all, I had no idea Harry Shearer played that voice. Don’t weep for Shearer, he’s doing practically every other voice on the series. Matt Groening told the BBC that he had no problem with a White actor playing a Black character: “Times change, but I actually didn’t have a problem with the way we were doing it. All of our actors play dozens of characters each; it was never designed to exclude anyone.” How surprising that an older White guy wouldn’t see the problem with this.

Debra Wilson, the longest-serving original member of MADTV, left the show when she realized White male actors who came in after her were making more than she was and that the show refused to negotiate with her. Infuriating.

On this Black History Month, Latrice Royale is hopeful for the future. His mother’s advice is lovely:  “It’s not what you’re called, it’s what you answer to.” ❤️

Anthony Sparks, the showrunner of Queen Sugar, also has some good motherly advice: “Any room you walk into, assume you belong there.”

The NBC series Nurses has pulled an episode from their digital platforms after a storyline about an Orthodox Jew refusing a bone graft from an Arab donor sparked a backlash from the Orthodox Jewish community.

The DGA Inclusion Report that recently came out for the 2019-2020 television season shows that a third of TV episodes were directed by women and a third was directed by people of color, which is great! But: “Latinos and women of color, however, “continued to be severely underrepresented despite their sizable and growing presence in the population,” the guild said, noting that the employment of Asian American directors remained flat from the prior season.” So there’s still work to be done.

The Asian members of the Real Housewives franchises — all of whom were added just this year — have been using their new platforms to speak out against the wave of anti-Asian violence that has been taking place recently. And the WGA West’s Asian American Writers Committee is asking Hollywood to CUT IT OUT with the broad Asian stereotypes.

Me Too, Time’s Up, and the National Women’s Law Center have teamed up for the We As Ourselves initiative, designed to center Black survivors’ stories of surviving sexual assault and abuse and offer them support and a safe space where they will be believed.

Ray Fisher still has something to say:

Cherokee Nation has asked Jeep to pull the name “Cherokee” for their vehicles.

The New York Times is doing some soul-searching. They conducted an eight-month investigation into the culture and diversity at the paper and came up with a four-point plan to address its weaknesses.

The 75-year-old protestor who had his skull fractured when the cops shoved him for no good goddamned reason has filed a civil suit against the officers and police department after a grand jury dismissed criminal charges against them. Good. Make them pay.

A Black man walking home from work in last week’s winter storm here in Texas had the cops called on him and was arrested for “being a pedestrian in the roadway.” Y’all, this is fucking exhausting.

Going Viral

We are nearing 520,000 deaths by some counts and while the cases dramatically declined in the past few weeks, we are maybe also starting to plateau a bit — it could be a result of a lack of reporting due to the winter storm, but it’s something to keep an eye on, considering new variants are proliferating. In fact, a new variant is spreading and spreading quickly in New York. But in better news, deaths in nursing homes have plummeted.

California tried to set up a system that would give higher-risk communities access to the vaccine first but it will not surprise you to find out that rich people found their way around it.

Trisha Yearwood has tested positive, but Garth Brooks is negative.

Disneyland will partially open for retail and dining for a couple of weeks this spring.

One year ago today:

This video of a Fiji rugby team singing a song of thanks to the staff who took care of them while they were quarantined is quite lovely.

Renewals

  • Elite has been renewed for a fifth season at Netflix.

Cancellations

  • The Twilight Zone has been canceled at CBS All Access/Paramount+ after two seasons.

In Development

Casting News

Mark Your Calendars

Disney+ has announced its spring and summer dates:

  • The Falcon and the Winter Soldier: March 19
  • The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers: March 26
  • Big Shot: April 16
  • Star Wars: The Bad Batch: May 4
  • High School Musical: The Musical: The Series: May 14
  • Loki: June 11
  • Zenimation: June 11
  • The Mysterious Benedict Society: June 25
  • Monsters at Work: July 2
  • Turner & Hooch: July 16
  • Chip ‘N’ Dale: Park Life: July 23

The CW also announced their spring premiere dates:

  • Kung Fu: April 7
  • World’s Funniest Animals: Spring Fling: April 30
  • DC’s Legends of Tomorrow: May 2
  • Dynasty: May 7
  • In the Dark: June 9
  • The Republic of Sarah: June 14

 

  • Army of the Dead will premiere on Netflix on May 21.
  • Younger‘s final season will debut on Paramount+ sometime later this year. It will premiere on TV Land sometime later.
  • Solar Opposites will return on Hulu on March 26.
  • Intervention will return on A&E on March 22.
  • Delilah will premiere on OWN on March 9.
  • Uncensored returns on TV One on March 21.
  • Isabel will debut on HBO Max on March 12.

R.I.P.

WATCH THIS

Punky Brewster: Oh hey, it’s the revival of the series I guess someone was asking for. Series premiere. Peacock

Millennials: The Black sitcom gets a 21st-century update in this new sitcom.  ALLBLK

Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry: The rock star documentary, but with Billie Eilish this time. Premiere. Apple TV+

The Dark and the Wicked: This well-reviewed horror film follows a family dealing with illness, grief, and possibly some sort of demon or something. Premiere. Shudder

Late Night:

  • Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Eddie Murphy, Eve Hewson, the Kid Laroi
  • Late Night with Seth Meyers: David Spade, Jason Mantzoukas, Raghav Mehrotra
  • The Late Show with Stephen Colbert: Regina King, Vic Mensa featuring Wyclef Jean
  • The Late Late Show with James Corden: Jodie Foster, Holly Humberstone
  • Jimmy Kimmel Live: Steve Harvey, Michael Peña, Ava Max
  • The Daily Show: The Daily Social Distancing Show
  • Conan: Kevin James
  • Watch What Happens Live: Josh Groban, Soleil Moon Frye
  • A Little Late with Lily Singh: Randall Park
THUR 7:00 7:30 8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30
ABC Celebrity Wheel of Fortune
(new)		 The Chase
(new)		 The Hustler
(new)
CBS Young Sheldon
(new)		 B Positive
(new)		 Mom
(new)		 The Unicorn
(new)		 Clarice
(new)
CW Walker
(repeat)		 Legacies
(repeat)		 News/Local
FOX Hell’s Kitchen
(new)		 Call Me Kat
(new)		 Last Man Standing
(new)
NBC Mr. Mayor
(new)		 Superstore
(new)		 Law & Order Special Victims Unit
(new)		 Dateline

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