TV SALES
ABC has ordered AGENT CARTER, a Captain America spin-off, straight to series. The series will follow Peggy Carter who becomes a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent during WW2 after her boyfriend, Steve Rogers (Captain America) is feared dead in an explosion.
ABC has also picked up multi-cam comedy pilots for CRISTELA and FRESH OFF THE BOAT. CRISTELA stars Cristela Alonzo as an aspiring lawyer trying to toe the line between her family’s traditional culture and her ambition. “Fresh” follows a Taiwanese family makes their way in America during the 1990s.
NBC will be doing a live production of THE MUSIC MAN, similar to the live production of “The Sound of Music.” They are also planning a production of “Peter Pan.” “Music Man’ centers on a con man who poses as a boys’ band organizer and leader, selling band equipment and uniforms to naive Iowa residents and promises to train them as members of a new band.
SundanceTV has ordered BABYLON to series. The Danny Boyle cop satire centers on an ambitious, young American public relations professional who is brought in to bring the London Metropolitan Police into the new age of media.
TV RENEWALS
ABC renews musical drama NASHVILLE for a third season. The series stars Connie Britton and Hayden Panettiere as a fading country music star and a rising teen star who butt heads.
ABC is also renewing comedy series LAST MAN STANDING for its fourth season. The series stars Tim Allen as a married father of three tries to maintain his manliness in a world increasingly dominated by women.
CBS has renewed veteran crime procedural THE MENTALIST for a seventh season.
NBC has renewed PARENTHOOD for a sixth and final season. The family drama stars Lauren Graham, Dax Shepard and Monica Potter as part of a dysfunctional but caring family of characters.
TBS has renewed COUGAR TOWN for what will become its sixth and final season. The Courteney Cox comedy originally aired on ABC but moved to TBS after its third season.
TBS has also renewed CONAN through 2018.
TV CANCELLATIONS
CBS is cancelling rookie shows INTELLIGENCE (starring Josh Holloway), THE CRAZY ONES (starring Robin Williams and Sarah Michelle Gellar), FRIENDS WITH BETTER LIVES (starring James Van Der Beek and Kevin Connolly), BAD TEACHER and limited event series HOSTAGES (starring Dylan McDermott and Toni Collette).
FXX has cancelled sophomore comedy LEGIT which follows the raunchy adventures of Jim Jefferies, an expat Australian comedian living in California with his divorced best friend and his best friend’s brother, a quadraplegic with MS. FX has cancelled freshman animated series CHOZEN, a comedy about a gay white rapper straight out of prison.
NBC has cancelled freshman drama DRACULA. The show starred Jonathan Rhys Meyers who starred as the famous vampire.
TBS has cancelled MEN AT WORK after three seasons. The half hour comedy follows four friends and co-workers as they help each other navigate relationships and friendships. The show stars Danny Masterson, James Lesure, Michael Cassidy and Adam Busch.
TV ATTACHMENTS
Upcoming Fox series EMPIRE has gained a showrunner in Ilene Chaiken. The newly picked up series is set in the world of hip hop and was written by Danny Strong and Lee Daniels. Chaiken is repped by WME and 3 Arts.
Jeffrey Lieber will join CBS crime drama NCIS: NEW ORLEANS as executive producer. Lieber has previously created and executive produced “Miami Medical” for the network. He is repped by CAA and Madhouse Entertainment.
TV GREENLIGHTS
The CW is going to try again to develop a “Supernatural” spin-off next season, a project which didn’t quite make it into development this time around.
HBO develops a Kareem Abdul-Jabbar documentary, following the LA hoops legend who won multiple championships with the Lakers and UCLA Bruins, leading to the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Showtime will develop YANK, a comedy centering on a young man who ventures out of his sheltered, ultra-orthodox Jewish community in Brooklyn to pursue his passion of becoming a stand-up comedian. The series was created by “Sex and the City’s” Elisa Zuritsky and Julie Rottenberg.
Showtime is also developing WORLD’S END with Jonathan Ames. The project is an adaptation of the Icelandic dramedy and centers on a high school English teacher, struggling with life, love and his disaffected students, who spins out of control and winds up committed to a mental institution where he becomes the leader of an institution-wide revolt.
SundanceTV is developing modern Rip Van Winkle drama CRACK IN THE SKY. The drama comes from E. Max Frye and will combine elements of Don Draper with Rip Van Winkle, centering on a man who falls asleep in 1962 and wakes up in 2012.
Rodney Barnes is developing an animated TV series based on the Alan Robert comic KILLJOY. The horror/comedy tells the story of a group of murderers who accidentally unleash an ancient voodoo curse on New York. Barnes and Robert will stay on the project as executive producers. Barnes is also writing the script for the pilot.
TV DEALS
Shonda Rhimes has signed a new four year overall deal with ABC Studios. Rhimes has created three series for ABC and ABC Studios: “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Scandal,” and “Private Practice.” She is repped by ICM and Michael Gandler.
