Re: TV news for Jan. 18-26, 2025

On 1/26/25 2:39 PM, Robin Miller wrote:

     ABC news
  ‘High Potential’ Renewed For Season 2 By ABC  (Jan. 21)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/high-potential-renewed-season-2-abc- kaitlin-olson-1236262722/

Another network show I never bothered with this season. It's anyone's guess as to whether I will sample it later or not...

‘Abbott Elementary’ Renewed For Season 5 By ABC  (Jan. 21)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/abbott-elementary-renewed-season-5- abc-1236260687/

No surprise here.

     CBS news
  ‘S.W.A.T.’ EP Shawn Ryan On Series’ Season 9 Prospects At CBS After 2 Surprise Renewals: “It’s All Uncertain”  (Jan. 26)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/swat-canceled-renewed-season-9-cbs-shawn- ryan-1236258166/

Yeah, yeah. Well, live by CBS, die by CBS!

‘The Young & The Restless’ Veteran Actress Colleen Zenk Departs CBS Sudser  (Jan. 24)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/the-young-and-the-restless-colleen-leaving- gone-jordan-howard-1236266745/

I just watched Thur's(?) Y&R ep today, and it did seem to be going in that direction.

‘FBI’ Spinoff With CIA Twist In Works At CBS  (Jan. 22)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/fbi-cia-spinoff-cbs-1236263981/

Considering how bad I think all of the Wolf "FBI" shows are, there's pretty much no chance I would watch a "CIA" show set in this universe...

     Fox news
  Vampire Comedy In Works At Fox  (Jan. 21)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/vampire-comedy-paul-wesley-victor-fresco- liz-friedlander-kapital-fox-1236250097/
 ["The untitled comedy, which landed at Fox for development in a competitive situation, centers on a determined 25-year-old vampire who struggles with running the family business for his murderous and suffocating vampire parents while trying to chase his dream to become an actor"]

They appear to be years too late with this!

     NBC news
  Anna Faris & Rick Edwards To Host ‘Love Takes A Village’ Dating Show Pilot For NBC  (Jan. 24)

Her house just burned down, and now she wants to host something like this?!

https://deadline.com/2025/01/anna-faris-rick-edwards-love-takes-a- village-nbc-1236266035/
 ["'Love Takes A Village' will see singletons go on a series of blind dates with people looking to win a second date. While the two people on the date know they’re on a dating show, what they don’t know is that the date, which they think is at a restaurant, is actually taking place inside a studio with a live audience watching in secret. At the end of the date, the couple find out who’s been watching them."]

This sounds ghastly - not even for Anna Faris!

‘Suits LA’ Trailer: Stephen Amell Teases Return Of Harvey Specter ­ Update  (Jan. 24)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/suits-la-trailer-stephen-amell-1236185988/

Suits!!

     Cable channel news
  ‘Alien: Earth’ Key Art Shares Terrifying New Look At Xenomorph [FX] (Jan. 26)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/alien-earth-xenomorph-key-art-teaser- trailer-1236267274/

Will watch this show, though I am skeptical...

‘The Righteous Gemstones’ To End With Season 4 On HBO  (Jan. 23)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/righteous-gemstones-ending-season-4- hbo-1236265155/

Probably not a surprise.

‘Yellowjackets’ Season 3 Trailer Teases Bloodbaths In Both Past & Present As Secrets Creep To The Surface — Watch [Showtime]  (Jan. 22)
 https://deadline.com/video/yellowjackets-season-3-trailer-showtime/

I really don't feel like getting dragged back into this show after the disastrous season #2 and its finale.

‘The White Lotus’ Renewed For Season 4 At HBO  (Jan. 22)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/the-white-lotus-renewed-season-4- hbo-1236264216/

[roll]

Rhona Mitra To Star Opposite Joel Kinnaman In TNT’s CIA Miniseries ‘Debriefing The President’  (Jan. 21)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/debriefing-the-president-rhona-mitra- tnt-1236262427/
 ["Delving into the 2003 interrogation of deposed Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, Debriefing the President explores a CIA analyst’s relentless search for truth, the complexities of justice on the global stage, and the deeply personal father-son connections woven into a turbulent period of history. Kinnaman’s Nixon is the first American official to positively identify and interrogate Saddam Hussein following his capture. The miniseries follows his journey as he grapples with the ramifications of the Iraq invasion, uncovering the far-reaching humanitarian and geopolitical consequences of Saddam’s removal from power. Set to premiere in 2025, the show marks TNT’s first scripted series greenlight since the Warner Bros.-Discovery merger of 2022."]

Meh, the casting makes me interested in this, but the premise sounds political and looks to ruin it.

‘Miss Austen’ Trailer: Keeley Hawes & Rose Leslie Star In TV Adaptation For Masterpiece On PBS  (Jan. 21)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/miss-austen-trailer-keeley-hawes-rose- leslie-masterpiece-on-pbs-1236261784/
 ["Set in 1830, 'Miss Austen' takes a literary mystery — Cassandra Austen (Hawes) notoriously burning her famous sister Jane’s letters — and reimagines it as a heart-breaking story of sisterly love."]

I saw an ad for this and it confused me.

     Streaming service news--Disney+
  Jonas Jonasson Lifts The Lid On Disney+ Original ‘Whiskey On The Rocks’; Ronald Reagan & Leonid Brezhnev Face Off In Swedish Cold-War Submarine Satire  (Jan. 20)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/jonas-jonasson-on-whiskey-on-the-rocks- swedish-cold-war-submarine-satire-1236259701/

Pass.

     Streaming service news--Hulu
  Everything We Know About ‘Only Murders In The Building’ Season 5 So Far (Jan. 23)
 https://deadline.com/feature/only-murders-in-the-building-season-5-news- everything-we-know-1236163661/

Yikes - this is pretty threadbare news on the Hulu front!

     Streaming service news--Max
  Michael Keaton Comedy ‘Goodrich’ Sets Max Premiere Date  (Jan. 22)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/goodrich-streaming-premiere-date- max-1236263754/
 ["follows Andy Goodrich (Keaton), whose life is upended when his wife and mother of their nine-year-old twins enters a 90-day rehab program, leaving him on his own with their young kids. Thrust into the world of modern parenthood, Goodrich leans on his daughter from his first marriage, Grace (Mila Kunis), as he ultimately evolves into the father Grace never had."]

Because it's a movie, and not a series, this is a "maybe".

     Streaming service news--Netflix
  Tim McGraw Exits Netflix’s Bull Riding Drama Series Due To Surgery (Jan. 25)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/tim-mcgraw-leaving-netflix-series-back- surgery-1236267460/

More Netflix TV series shenanigans.

‘The Night Agent’: Season 1 Star To Return For Season 3 After Break (Jan. 25)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/the-night-agent-fola-evans-akingbola- return-season-3-chelsea-1236268103/

Wow, they didn't even keep Kari Matchett around?! Makes it much less likely that I will ever sample/watch this show.

‘The Diplomat’: Bradley Whitford Joins Allison Janney For ‘The West Wing’ Reunion On Season 3  (Jan. 24)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/the-diplomat-bradley-whitford-cast-allison- janney-season-3-1236266206/

[roll]

‘Sweet Magnolias’ Trailer: A Tragedy, A Town Crisis & A Fierce Storm Confront The Magnolias In Season 4 ­ Update  (Jan. 23)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/sweet-magnolias-season-4-premiere-date- netflix-trailer-1236238118/

Another one - Why is this show still on?!!

Netflix Stock Hits New Heights After Spectacular Earnings Report  (Jan. 22)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/netflix-stock-hits-new-heights-earnings- wall-street-1236263451/

Well, it will all come crashing down soon enough!

‘Emily In Paris’: Lucien Laviscount To Return As Series Regular In Season 5  (Jan. 22)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/emily-in-paris-lucien-laviscount-return- season-5-alfie-1236262639/

And that news pretty much guarantees that I won't ever bother to pick this series back up again!

Netflix Raising Prices On Subscription Plans In U.S.; Ad Tier Will Now Cost $7.99 A Month  (Jan. 21)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/netflix-price-hike-subscription-plans- us-1236262796/
 ["The Standard plan, which is the most popular, will now be $17.99, up from $15.49. The top-level Premium plan is rising $2 to $24.99. There will be no change to the $6.99 charge to add another subscriber to the ad tier as part of the company’s paid password sharing plan."]

Wow - the 4k tier is now $25 a month! It's amazing that Netflix thinks anyone is going to pay that on a regular basis!

‘Narnia’ Imax Release Not A Change To Netflix’s Theatrical Strategy, Ted Sarandos Says  (Jan. 21)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/netflix-narnia-imax-release-theatrical- strategy-1236262867/

I forgot Netflix was behind that - I weep for C.S. Lewis...  :(

     Streaming service news--Paramount+
  The Dutton Family Prepares For War In First Trailer For ‘1923’ Season 2 (Jan. 19)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/1923-season-2-first-trailer-duttons-defend- ranch-1236260975/

I still have to get to those two prequel series, and also "Landman"!

     Streaming service news--Peacock
  Colin Firth’s Sky/Peacock Series ‘Lockerbie: A Search For Truth’ Criticized As “Tragedy Porn” By Distressed Victims Of Pan Am Disaster
 (Jan. 24)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/colin-firth-sky-peacock-lockerbie-a-search- for-truth-criticized-victims-1236265223/

Interesting, though I'm not sure anything will satisfy the families.

Zoe Lister-Jones & Sofia Rosinsky Join Peacock’s ‘The Miniature Wife’ (Jan. 24)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/zoe-lister-jones-sofia-rosinsky-peacock- the-miniature-wife-1236266833/
 ["Based on the short story written by Manuel Gonzalez, 'The Miniature Wife' is a high-concept marital comedy examining the power (im)balances between spouses, Lindy (Elizabeth Banks) and Les (Matthew Macfadyen), after a technological accident induces the ultimate relationship crisis."]

OK...

     Streaming service news--Prime Video
  Prime Video Orders ‘Rise Of The Empress’ Series Based On Books With Gemma Chan, Viola Davis & Forest Whitaker Among EPs  (Jan. 22)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/rise-of-the-empress-tv-series-amazon-gemma- chan-1236263148/
 ["'Rise of the Empress' is described as 'dark and mystical East Asian fantasy reimagining of The Evil Queen legend.' In it, a fantastical ancient Asian Empire is on the verge of destruction, torn apart by insidious rivalry. The only hope: a marriage between the handsome Heir to the Throne and a Princess from one of its feuding Kingdoms. As the competition to win the Prince’s hand heats up, chaos reigns when a dazzling peasant girl named Xifeng is thrown into the romance wars by a vengeful sorceress. In this fairytale of love and power, will Xifeng be able to save not only herself…but the whole Empire?"]

If the Chi Comms are involved in this production at all, I'm out!!

Max-Starz Bundle Launches On Prime Video  (Jan. 22)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/max-starz-streaming-bundle-prime- video-1236263549/

:|

     Streaming service news--Other services
  Roku Channel To Stream ‘This Time Next Year’ Rom-Com Starring Lucien Laviscount

And Sophie Cookson!

For Free Ahead Of Valentine’s Day  (Jan. 22)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/this-time-next-year-movie-streaming-roku- valentines-day-1236263480/

OK?...

‘The Z-Suite’ Comedy Starring Lauren Graham, Nico Santos & Madison Shamoun Gets Tubi Premiere Date & Trailer  (Jan. 21)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/the-z-suite-lauren-graham-trailer-premiere- date-tubi-1236262774/

Skeptical that this can work on Tubi...

     Syndicated series news
  ‘Matter Of Fact With Soledad O’Brien’ To End After Current Season  (Jan. 23)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/matter-of-fact-with-soledad-obrien- cancelled-1236265164/

Good.

     Series in development
  Cooper Raiff Has Plotted Out More Seasons Of Indie Series ‘Hal & Harper,’ Says Cooper Hoffman Pic ‘The Trashers’ Won’t Move Forward ­ Sundance Studio  (Jan. 25)
 https://deadline.com/video/cooper-raiff-the-trashers-hal-and-harper- sundance-interview/
 ["The show spans a decade in the life of Hal (creator-director Raiff) and Harper (Lili Reinhart) — a pair of siblings who consider their codependence a feature, not a bug — as well as their father, played by Mark Ruffalo. A unique aspect to the series is that it has Raiff and Reinhart playing their childhood selves, as part of an examination of the ways in which these siblings were forced to grow up too fast."]

Wow. Just, wow.

‘Mayan M.C.’s Debra Moore Muñoz Developing Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Novel ‘The Daughter of Doctor Moreau’ For TV  (Jan. 22)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/silvia-moreno-garcia-novel-the-daughter-of- doctor-moreau-tv-adaptation-1236263733/
 ["'The Daughter of Doctor Moreau' is a retelling of the classic Island of Dr. Moreau by H. G. Wells from the perspective of his coming-of-age daughter, Carlota — a sheltered girl raised to believe her father is a genius. When the charming son of Moreau’s patron, Eduardo, arrives at their estate, he threatens to upend the long-simmering feelings between Carlota and the estate’s overseer, Montgomery Laughton, and causes Carlota to question everything she’s been told — forcing her to reckon with some dark truths about her father and his work? "]

Yikes.

Everything We Know About The ‘Fourth Wing’ TV Show So Far  (Jan. 21)
 https://deadline.com/feature/fourth-wing-tv-show-everything-we- know-1236019668/
 ["Not long after Rebecca Yarros’ 'Fourth Wing' took the reading world by storm when it arrived in May 2023, the book was optioned for a television series adaptation. ... 'Fourth Wing' follows twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail as she leaves the life of a Scribe behind at her mother’s demand that she become a dragon rider. At the order of her mother, who is a General in the military of Navarre, Violet enters the brutal ranks of Basgiath War College, which trains up-and-coming riders through the Graduate or Die method."]

I could see this working on Prime.

     The business of TV
  Stay In LA: 6,000+ Including LeVar Burton & Alison Brie Sign Petition Calling For More Incentives To Bring Back Production After Wildfires
 (Jan. 24)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/stay-in-la-petition-bring-back-production- wildfires-1236266671/

Good luck with that! - No one wants to be in L.A.!!

Mark Rylance Took “Significant” Pay Cut On ‘Wolf Hall’ After Streamers Rejected Series, Says Director  (Jan. 24)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/mark-rylance-took-pay-cut-wolf-hall-bbc- peter-kosminsky-1236266262/
 ["He said 'Wolf Hall' was indicative of a wider reticence among U.S. streamers to invest in British storytelling. The BBC and others have said that the shrinking pool of co-production finance is contributing to a funding crisis in UK scripted content."]
  BBC Sounds Alarm Over UK Scripted Funding Crisis: “Multiple Productions Are Stuck In Limbo”  (Jan. 24)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/bbc-alarm-uk-scripted-funding-crisis- productions-stuck-in-limbo-1236266257/

None of which is our problem.

CNN To Launch New Streaming Service As It Sets Sights On Digital Future; About 200 Jobs To Be Cut In Restructuring  (Jan. 23)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/cnn-layoffs-streaming-service-1236264641/

Idiots.

Comcast Xfinity Launches Sports & News Package For $70 A Month In Latest Embrace Of Slimmer Pay-TV Options  (Jan. 23)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/comcast-xfinity-launches-sports-and-news- tv-1236264843/

Bring on "skinny bundles"!!

‘South Park’ Streaming Brawl: Trial Looms As Paramount Loses Motion To Dismiss Unjust-Enrichment Claim ­ Update  (Jan. 22)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/south-park-lawsuit-warner-bros-paramount- streaming-1235438590/

I'm glad - Paramount deserves to lose this trial, and badly!

Meteorologists At Allen Media Group TV Stations Give Emotional Farewells After Nationwide Layoffs  (Jan. 22)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/meteorologists-allen-media-group-tv- stations-layoffs-1236264301/
 ["Deep cuts at the company have forced all local meteorologists to be eliminated or reassigned and replaced by a feed beamed to individual stations from The Weather Channel. In all, at least 50 meteorologists in roughly two dozen local television stations from Massachusetts to Hawaii are affected, CNN reported, citing a person familiar with the matter. "]

Sounds like local stations are starting to fail for real now...

     Obituaries
  Francisco San Martin Dies: ‘Days Of Our Lives’ Actor Was 39  (Jan. 20)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/francisco-san-martin-dead-days-of-our- lives-actor-1236262007/

I barely remember him. But another person (much) younger than me dying lately...  :/

     Other News
  Chris Brown Slaps Warner Bros. Discovery With $500M Defamation Suit Over Sexual Assault Claims In “Sensationalized” Docuseries  (Jan. 21)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/chris-brown-sues-over-docuseries- assault-1236263169/

Fuck him! I hope the judge takes all of his money!!

2025 Premiere Dates For New & Returning Series On Broadcast, Cable & Streaming  (Jan. 21)
 https://deadline.com/2025/01/2025-tv-premiere-dates-1235811038/

Robin's list continues!!