
Eli Stone co-creator Marc Guggenheim has set up an event-type serialized drama project at ABC with writer Jennifer Robinson and director-producer Gary Fleder. Meanwhile, Sam Raimi has sold a pitch to CBS in the first development season since Stars Road Entertainment, his company with Joshua Donen, focused on primetime TV with a first-look deal at Sony TV. Both projects have gotten script commitments.
The Guggenheim/Robinson project, which the two are co-writing, follows the White House Office of Crisis Management as they tackle one huge global crisis per season. The first season would chronicle a crisis with a ticking clock on board the international space station. Producing alongside Guggenheim and Robinson are Gary Fleder and Mary Beth Basile via their ABC Studios-based Mojo shingle. If the project goes to pilot, Fleder will also direct. Under his overall deal with ABC Studios, which is producing the new project, Guggenheim is currently a consulting producer on the studio’s new drama series for ABC No Ordinary Family. He also co-wrote the upcoming Warner. Bros. feature Green Lantern.
The Raimi-produced CBS project, from writer Andrew Lipsitz (CSI, CSI:NY) is titled Lancaster and centers on a Scotland yard detective who joins the LAPD. The project reunites Stars Road’s top TV executive Robert Zotnowski with CBS where he previously served as SVP drama.
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Know both Guggenheim and Lipsitz. Two outstanding and smart writers. Great news and the shows sound very cool.
Lancaster seems interesting but fox tried something like that called Keen Eddie and it didn’t end well. Not saying that the fish out water procedural is dead. (e.g Life, Burn Notice, Justified, etc) Just hope they know where going in the first season. The first season of life got cut in half due to the write strike. It wasn’t until the season 2 finale the show found its true tone. So I always wonder if Life season 1 had got a full season if it would still be going.
Keen Eddie was an American detective in London, dude. Wholly different.
“West Wing: part 2″ and a cop show. I’m so glad Hollywood is overflowing with “creatives.”
I’m looking forward to “24: part 2″ and the return of “The Addams Family.”
Good for him! Worked with Marc on the Eli Stone pilot. A super talented writer and a great guy!
Was the Guggenheim project pitched as ’24′ meets the ‘West Wing’?
Don’t you hate when you pitch a nuanced and interesting show and it gets boiled down to a logline that others feel free to criticize based on only that alone? Congrats to all the writers mentioned in the article. Good luck with the projects!
Marc and Gary are amazingly talented, and great guys. Very excited about this!