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EXCLUSIVE: There is a change at the helm of NBC‘s upcoming comedy series Animal Practice (formerly Animal Kingdom). Gail Lerner, who joined the show after the pilot as executive producer/showrunner, is departing, with Marco Pennette coming in as new showrunner. The gig is tied to a development deal for Pennette at Universal TV. To accommodate the change and give Pennette time to get up to speed, I hear that the series’ planned hiatus has been pushed up by a week. Animal Practice, which just wrapped Episode 3, was supposed to start Episode 4 right away and take a hiatus next week. It will take the week-long break now instead.
Created by feature writers Brian Gatewood and Alessandro Tanaka, Animal Practice is a single-camera office comedy centered on a “House”-like veterinarian (Justin Kirk) who loves animals but usually hates their owners (especially the new woman who runs the clinic). On the Universal TV/American Work-produced series, Pennette will serve as an executive producer alongside Gatewood, Alex Tanaka, Ravi Nandan, Scot Armstrong and the pilot’s directors Anthony and Joe Russo. UTA-repped Pennette is a sought-after showrunner who is credited with helping get ABC’s Ugly Betty off the ground and was a key writer-producer on Desperate Housewives. This past season, he created the ABC comedy pilot The Manzanis starring Kirstie Alley and has another comedy with the Cheers alumna in consideration at TV Land, which he will do if the script goes to pilot.
Animal Practice is a high priority for NBC, which previewed the pilot of the show the night of the closing ceremony of the London Olympics. The stunt angered some fans after NBC opted to air the pilot before the ceremony’s final performance by The Who. Animal Practice premieres on Sept. 26. This was the first showrunner gig for Will & Grace alumna Lerner, who recently served as a co-executive producer on ABC’s Happy Endings.
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Animal Practice is such a piece of crap. Next, Deadline post will be that the monkey wants off.
This show has zero chance. Zero
It is a Zoo nightmare on Animal Practice..
I watched the preview show… it was so bad I couldn’t believe it was going to be on air. Everything was wrong with it … this show needs more than a new show runner, it needs to be stopped, now.
Watched the sneak on Olympic night. Shocked at how horrible it was. This one’s dead in the water.
I was going to say this won’t make it to episode 10 but were talking about the network that renewed WHITNEY…
This will be the first cancellation of the fall season. It’s horrendous.
they should let the monkey take over.
I guess the only thing missing from Animal Practice was a snake so they brought in Marco.
My god, so true. I had hopes the gravy train was done after he blew up at Ugly Betty… one of the most political showrunners out there. It’d be nice if occasionally executives talked to the writers who worked for these guys.
Trust me, I’m no Marco fan, but Ugly Betty dropped off a cliff after he left. That said, he is a pretty generic voice. I don’t think he’s the showrunner to keep this series from sucking balls.
Also, too bad for Lerner. She a great person who probably shouldn’t have taken this job. NBC thought Animal Kingdom was going to be a hit and it surely won’t be. They’re probably starting to finally figure that out and someone had to take the fall. Poor Gail.
First there’s a news story about how the nets are shunning seasoned writers this development season for newbie with no experience but “fresh voices”. The very next week, two rookie showrunners are fired before their shows even premiere. Congratulations, networks! You’ve run your business even more into the ground!
Gail Lerner is amazing. NBC has no idea what they’re doing.
First off, if you’re basing a show’s ability to succeed on the pilot alone, you have no idea how shows are developed. The pilot for Cheers tanked and the series was in last place for the majority of its first season. So many shows that have gone on to become wildly successful had haters after their pilot – Seinfeld, The Office, Parks and Rec, etc… Pilots are written by one or two people, not a writing staff. You should reserve your judgement until episode six. At least then you’ll sound relatively informed.
According to your theory, we should reserve judgment on Free Agents, The Paul Reiser Sitcom, 100 Questions, How To Be A Gentlemen, and a dozen other shows because, after all, we never saw episode 6.
Keep tinkering with that theory…
Who has time to watch six episodes of a crappy show only to hope it gets better?
Marco is a very talented guy. They’re lucky to have him. First year shows are notoriously difficult to run, especially in these days of insane over noting. Better to have someone who has done it before so the show at least has a chance.
Geeez. Come on NBC. You have to keep this kind of thing quiet until your show actually airs. Granted 95 percent of the population won’t know there is a showrunner change, or even know what a showrunner is, but this just calls of desperation and problems with the show. Gail is a fine writer but she is not showrunner material. She is good in a room and a solid draft writer, but I was shocked when they gave her the position. Although, I forget what a salesman Scott Schwartz is, even though he is an awful awful human being. For all those claiming that Animal Practice was a horrible pilot, I can name you 5 or 6 worse pilots this season. Animal Practice was a mediocre pilot with potentential…and now that potential is gone. Sad. It has a solid cast. Justin Kirk deserves better. Guys With Kids will still be canceled first.
so the man who destroyed ugly betty… the man who killed samantha who… the man that did not help desp housewives… the man who created i’m with her, all about the andersons, crumbs… this guy keeps getting hired? wow
Crumbs was hilarious, even if it was a total ripoff of Titus. But it’s cancellation allowed Maggie Lawson to finally find success on Psych so that’s cool. I like Anne Dudek, but Lawson is way more suited for the role.
Completely agree on Anne Dudek. She was all wrong for that role.
This is such bs….the honey badger should have got his series first!
So glad they changed the name of this shite series to ANIMAL PRACTICE. It would be horrific to think someone might confuse this with 2010′s terrific Austrailan film ANIMAL KINGDOM.
Hmmm…… Here’s an idea….why don’t the Aussie characters from Animal Kingdom guest star on the first episode of Animal Practice and kill everybody ?
The AP trailer is the second worst trailer I have ever seen. Revolution is THE WORST.
Any chance this show had for success was killed when NBC screwed up the closing ceremony to air it!
Marco is a huge step up from Gail Lerner who hasn’t a clue. She tried to reinvent the wheel without the taste to back it up.
Gail Lerner is an incredible and gifted writer/producer. You are a person who comments on Deadline, and now because of your stupidity so am I.
You are correct, she is a gifted writer. However, she is not a gifted showrunner. I was on staff of her pilot, “Open Books”, and it was clear that she was in over her head. Writer/producer and showrunner are two very different jobs, and she has so far only shown that she’s proficient at the former.
Hopefully anyone who championed this is fired… NBC needs to clean house.
Huh. I enjoyed it. While I have found Two Broke Girls, Big Bang Theory, and Good Wife unwatchable. Maybe something that the people who enjoy those shows find terrible wouldn’t be such a bad thing.
Justin Kirk deserves so much better. This one’s dead in the water.
I had high hopes, but then NBC dashed those away with a truly shitty pilot. This would have been a much better show on cable a la Sunny in Philadelphia, but it’s so watered down to be on NBC that it sucks. Even with the Hangover 2 monkey in it.
What a shame to see Justin Kirk on such a piece of crap. He is so talented and likable. This is not the show for him… it’s a great gig for the monkey, though.