On Monday, NBC will hold its upfront presentation with advertisers, and reveal the pilots they’ll pick up this fall, as well as the returning shows. Early industry buzz says that things are looking great for a third season of Chuck, and a second for Amy Poehler’s Parks and Recreation. There is also some buzz beginning on which pilots are at the top of the list of shows the network will run this fall.
On the comedy side of things, it’s looking good for a pilot called Community, starring Joel McHale as a guy who enrolls in community college after his degree is deemed invalid. Chevy Chase has been signed on to co-star in this series, making it the first series Chase will be a regular cast member on in his 40 year career (though we have seen him guest star lately on both Brothers and Sisters, and Chuck). Fans of E!’s The Soup can rest easy, though, as McHale’s rep has said that if the pilot does get picked up, it will not interfere with McHale’s hosting duties. Also gaining a great deal of praise late Thursday was 100 Questions for Charlotte Payne, an ensemble comedy about a woman searching for Mr. Right who goes to a dating service and has to answer 100 questions about herself in order to find her soul mate. The lying, and the laughing, ensues as Charlotte Payne navigates life in New York City. Sophie Winkleman has been cast as Charlotte Payne and David Walton as one of her friends who’s just been cut off by his billionaire father.
The waters are much murkier on the drama side of the fence. Although stalled somewhat, as execs dealt with the death of drama Vice President, Nora O’Brien, who was on a location shoot for the pilot Parenthood. Despite the unfortunate incident, it looks as though Parenthood is a shoe-in for next fall, and is simply waiting for the official nod. Parenthood will be a reboot, of sorts, of the 1989 film staring Steve Martin. ImagineTV is producing this one, and the cast list includes veterans of many canceled shows. Peter Krause (Dirty Sexy Money) and Maura Tierney (ER) have been cast in the leading roles. Others include Erika Christensen (Six Degrees), Mae Witman (Arrested Development), and Sarah Ramos (Runway).
Other drama contenders include Trauma and Mercy. Trauma is a medical procedural about a team of EMTs that stars Derek Luke and Kevin Rankin. Mercy is a series that revolves around three nurses bound together in friendship by the highs and lows of their personal and professional lives. The series will be written and executive produced by Liz Heldens of Friday Night Lights.
Off to a rough start was Legally Mad from David E. Kelley (yes, the guy is doing ANOTHER legal dramedy), and Dick Wolf’s Lost and Found. Both shows were said to have received mixed reviews from execs at NBC. Legally Mad is a legal drama about Skippy Pylon, who is a very intelligent lawyer who joins her father’s law firm. The only problem is that she also happens to be psychologically damaged, manic, and has flashes of psychosis where she acts more like a teenager than a lawyer. Kristin Chenoweth of Pushing Daisies fame (among other shows) is set to star as Skippy.
Dick Wolf’s Lost and Found is another female lead procedural that has Katee Sackhoff, Battlestar Galactica’s Starbuck, in the lead role. Katee will play an “offbeat” detective at the LAPD who ruffles too many feathers and gets sent into the bowels of the police station to work on John Doe cases. While both of these shows have received mixed ratings from execs at the screenings, neither should be counted out completely mostly due to the names of the creators alone. Kelley has a fan following with shows like Doogie Howser M.D., Ally McBeal, Chicago Hope, The Practice, and, of course, Boston Legal under his belt. While Wolf has the Law and Order empire and a great relationship with NBC, not to mention a great lead star in Katee Sackhoff. Lost and Found would also cost considerably less to make, and is the kind of inexpensive procedural NBC is looking for in these tough times. How many pilots NBC ultimately decides on will depend on how many of their existing shows return next season.
NBC’s upfront presentation will be this coming Monday, where they will unveil the pilots they’re picking up, as well as the returning series, however they won’t reveal their full fall schedule until May 18.
Source: Hollywood Reporter
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Tags: 2009, Chuck, NBC, Upfront presentation
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2 Responses to “NBC’s Fall 2009 Pilot Players and Chuck Renewal Buzz”
Karen says:
May 2, 2009 at 12:44 am
I hope this is true for all of us dedicated Chuck fans. We will use next season to try and convert everyone we know to “Chuckdom’. It’s a beautiful place to be.
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Kripke Owns Me says:
May 2, 2009 at 8:25 am
I’ll give Katee Sackhoff’s show a shot, but, really, I think her considerable talent is being wasted on a procedural.
If Chuck doesn’t get renewed AND Katee Sackhoff is on a procedural, I need to start reading Revelations, because it seems those might be signs of the end times. Addicted to TV? Me? Nah!
In the truly spectacular category is Joel McHale being given his own show AND continuing with The Soup. He is a comedy genius, and I cannot wait to see what this show brings!
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