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PRIMETIME PILOT PANIC: CBS Edition

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday May 12, 2012 @ 5:30pm PDTTags: Baby Big Shot, CBS, Friend Me, Partners, Ralph Lamb
Nellie Andreeva

2ND UPDATE 5:30 PM: This is a mini-shocker. Word is that CBS is passing on the Nick Stoller comedy pilot ENTRY LEVEL. There has always been concern whether CBS would schedule a single-camera comedy in its blocks of all-multi-camera sitcoms but the network had expressed commitment to the genre. However, while Entry Level was received well and was an early frontrunner, it looks like CBS will again stick to all-multi-camera comedies next season. I also hear that APPLEBAUM is now dead too, along with Oh Fk, It’s You. That leaves only  Elementary, Ralph Lamb, Baby Big Shot, Golden Boy, Friend Me, Partners and possibly Martin Lawrence in contention. UPDATE 9PM: I’ve confirmed that the Marin Lawrence comedy is not going forward, so here you have it: ELEMENTARY, RALPH LAMB, BABY BIG SHOT, GOLDEN BOY, FRIEND ME and PARTNERS appear to be CBS’ picks for next season.

PREVIOUS SATURDAY AM: Rumors are flying that most of the other CBS pilots are dead, including TROOPER, WIDOW DETECTIVE, DORF/FALCONE and SUPER FUN NIGHT. Information on OH FK, IT’S YOU has been conflicting, with some saying it’s dead and others suggesting that could still be a possibility for midseason.

PREVIOUS FRIDAY PM: And we’re down to the last network that is yet to pick up its new and returning series for next season — CBS. As usual, the Fort Knox of networks this time a year is keeping things close to the vest and dragging on the final pickup decisions until the very last minute. The Sherlock Holmes reboot ELEMENTARY continues its march to the fall schedule. The ambitious period drama RALPH LAMB is considered a major swing and departure from CBS’ comfort zone but, with its execution and the caliber of talent involved, including star Dennis Quaid, it continues to be considered a frontrunner. Among the three procedurals with a female lead, the legal drama BABY BIG SHOT looks like the frontrunner at the moment, and I hear it has begun making offers to writers. Of the other two, APPLEBAUM, which has had support from CBS’ Nina Tassler, has an outside chance, while TROOPER doesn’t seem to be going. Among the rest of the drama field, GOLDEN BOY is heating up again. On the comedy side, two buddy multi-camera comedies, PARTNERS and FRIEND ME, are getting the most buzz, both making writer offers, with the single-camera NICK STOLLER project in contention and the MARTIN LAWRENCE project a possibility, maybe for midseason. 

On the renewal front, following the ratings increase for Unforgettable‘s season finale on Tuesday, the renewal chances of the freshman drama also seem to have gone up. Veteran utility player Rules of Engagement also looks good at the moment, while A Gifted Man is unlikely to continue and Rob has been very quiet. Things are still murky around the two CSI spinoffs (the mothership series has been renewed). The drumbeat early on that one of the two will definitely go away has quieted down, and with Jerry Bruckheimer’s pilot Trooper not going, there is speculation that the CSI franchise may cheat death and come back intact. Both sequels are profitable for CBS as they have off-network syndication deals and are big international sellers, along with the main CSI series. Only a week ago, the three CSIs were recognized as the three most watched drama series in the world by the Monte-Carlo TV Festival.

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PRIMETIME PILOT PANIC: The Early Buzz

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Sunday April 8, 2012 @ 9:00am PDTTags: Animal Kingdom, Arrow, Elementary, Hannibal, Karyn Usher, Kevin Williamson, Malibu Country, Midnight Sun, Mistresses, Ralph Lamb, Save Me, The Carrie Diaries, The Selection
Nellie Andreeva

(RE-POSTED FROM FRIDAY): Back by popular demand: Deadline’s Pilot Buzz lists. We’re earlier than normal this year while pilots have generally been late, with only a handful of them having cuts by now and the vast majority still in various stages of production. Therefore, everything on this list has to be taken with a gigantic grain of salt as a lot could change between a table read and a final cut. Take NBC’s comedy pilot SAVE ME for example. After some mixed and even negative chatter early on, mostly related to the tone of the show, originally developed for Showtime, the tide changed completely over the last two days when people saw the completed pilot, which is getting high marks. The list also doesn’t cover every pilot as some of them have not gotten into production yet or feedback has been insufficient:

The network already has one new scripted series on tap for next season, HANNIBAL, which I hear may go for midseason. With the network in such bad shape after years of neglect and bad decisions by previous regimes, NBC seems to have cast a very wide net this season, developing a vast range of projects that are all over the map, making it harder to handicap. On the drama side, mystery MIDNIGHT SUN and the Jekyll & Hyde-esque DO NO HARM are getting some solid early buzz. The Jason Katims/Jason Ritter medical drama COUNTY, which just wrapped, also has been getting positive feedback. Western-esque THE FRONTIER, which is shooting in Australia, is getting notices for its rich look. Comedy-wise, ANIMAL KINGDOM is hot, as is White House family comedy 1600 PENN, despite a last-minute recasting, as well as the Matthew Perry starrer GO ON and Greg Daniels’ FRIDAY NIGHT DINNER. The network also is high on a couple of multi-camera comedies, the untitled KARI LIZER and JIMMY FALLON projects, with TABLE FOR THREE also looking encouraging so far. The Ryan Murphy/Ali Adler blended family comedy THE NEW NORMAL is still shooting but, with the auspices involved, it is considered a strong contender. NBC brass seem to like the SARAH SILVERMAN pilot, which had an early order, but Silverman is considered acquired taste, so a lot will depend on testing.

The KEVIN WILLIAMSON project was very strong at the script stage, got even stronger with the casting of Kevin Bacon and James Purefoy, and seems to be sailing through production. Meanwhile the untitled KARYN USHER teen-spy drama, which also was an early standout during the script phase, then hit a speed bump in casting the lead, which took a very long time, now appears to be in great shape, with newcomer Saxon Sharbino getting strong reviews. The Williamson and Karyn projects seem to be the top drama contenders at the moment, Read More »

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‘Terra Nova’s Jason O’Mara To Co-Star Opposite Dennis Quaid In Ralph Lamb Pilot

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Monday March 19, 2012 @ 7:45pm PDTTags: Big Deals TV, CBS, Jason O'Mara, Ralph Lamb
Nellie Andreeva

Jason O'Mara Ralph Lamb PilotEXCLUSIVE: CBS‘ untitled Ralph Lamb drama pilot has added another prominent member to its all-star cast. Terra Nova star Jason O’Mara has been tapped to co-star in the project, joining Dennis Quaid, Michael Chiklis and Carrie-Anne Moss. For O’Mara, the pilot is in second position to prehistoric drama Terra Nova, which is still alive as talks between series producer 20th Century Fox TV and Netflix about a second season continue. O’Mara has fielded multiple pilot offers since Fox cancelled Terra Nova two weeks ago. Set in the 1960s, the untitled Ralph Lamb project, written by Goodfellas writer Nicholas Pileggi and Greg Walker and directed by James Mangold, chronicles the true story of Ralph Lamb (Quaid) – rodeo cowboy turned longtime Sheriff of Las Vegas – and Johnny Savino (Chiklis), a Chicago mob fixer whose entrepreneurial vision for transforming Las Vegas collides with the law-and-order mandate of Sheriff Lamb. O’Mara will play Ralph Lamb’s younger brother Frank, the diplomat in the family.

Also cast in the pilot in guest-starring roles are Ralph LambMichael Reilly Burke, Michael O’Neill and James Russo. Burke will play A.D.A. Katherine O’Connel’s (Moss) boss, D.A. Reynolds, an alpha prosecutor with a burning ambition for power. O’Neill will play Vegas Mayor Bennett, a man with a vision. He has been bucking the state’s Governor, who wants to move Vegas’s power and money up north to Reno. Russo will play Big Tuna, an old-world gangster who runs Vegas for his Chicago bosses. Read More »

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Carrie-Anne Moss Joins Ralph Lamb Pilot

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Tuesday March 6, 2012 @ 4:02pm PSTTags: Carrie-Anne Moss, CBS, Ralph Lamb
Nellie Andreeva

EXCLUSIVE: CBS’ untitled Ralph Lamb drama pilot continues to assemble an all-star cast. The Matrix star Carrie-Anne Moss is set as the female lead opposite Dennis Quaid and Michael Chiklis in the project written by Goodfellas writer Nicholas Pileggi and … Read More »

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Dennis Quaid & Michael Chiklis Set To Star In CBS’ Ralph Lamb Period Drama Pilot

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Thursday February 23, 2012 @ 8:30pm PSTTags: CBS, Dennis Quaid, Michael Chiklis, Ralph Lamb
Nellie Andreeva

Dennis Quaid-Michael Chiklis In Talks For Las Vegas Drama Pilot
After lengthy negotiations, Dennis Quaid and Michael Chiklis have closed deals to star in CBS’ untitled Ralph Lamb drama pilot, written by Goodfellas writer Nicholas Pileggi and Greg Walker and directed by James Mangold. In his TV series debut, Quaid will play the title role in the project, set in the 1960s and centered around the true story of Ralph Lamb (Quaid) – rodeo cowboy turned longtime Sheriff of Las Vegas- and Johnny Savino (Chiklis), a Chicago mob fixer whose entrepreneurial vision for transforming Las Vegas collides with the law-and-order mandate of Sheriff Lamb. In addition to starring, Quaid and Chiklis, both repped by WME, will serve as co-executive producers on the Ralph Lamb project, which is executive produced by Pileggi, Mangold, Walker, Cathy Konrad and Arthur Sarkissian. CBS TV Studios is producing. Read More »

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Dennis Quaid & Michael Chiklis In Talks To Star In CBS’ 1960s Las Vegas Drama Pilot

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Tuesday February 21, 2012 @ 6:25pm PSTTags: Dennis Quaid, Michael Chiklis, Ralph Lamb
Nellie Andreeva

Dennis Quaid is testing the series series waters. The feature actor is in negotiations for the lead in CBS’ untitled Las Vegas period drama pilot (form. Ralph Lamb). Because of … Read More »

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