FIRST LOOK
http://www.eonline.com/news
ON TELEVISION (WEDNESDAY 3/8/23)
BRTIBOX: The Confessions of Frannie Langton (Premiere)
CNBC: Last Call (Premiere) at 7pm
DISNEY+: MPower (Premiere)
FOX: Farmer Wants a Wife (Premiere) at 9pm
MOTOR TREND: Texas Metal’s Loud and Lifted (Premiere) at 10pm
NETFLIX: MH370: The Plans That Disappeared (Premiere)
NETFLIX: Faraway (Premiere)
PARAMOUNT+: The Challenge: World Championship (Premiere)
BET: The Wine Down With Mary J. Blige (Finale) at 10pm
CW: Kung Fu (Finale) at 9pm
TBS: Power Slap: Road to the Title (Finale) at 10pm
Following the report that Tyler Perry is in early talks to acquire a majority stake in BET Media Group from Paramount Global comes word that Byron Allen, founder of Allen Media Group, is also interested in buying BET. “He will be pursuing the acquisition of the network,” said a rep for Allen.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Meta is planning to lay off thousands of employees, reports Bloomberg, after cutting 13% of its workforce – about 11,000 employees – in November. Last month, the company asked numerous managers and directors to move to individual contributor jobs as it worked to be more efficient, and appears to be pivoting away from the metaverse and toward generative artificial intelligence.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Gigi Sohn has withdrawn her name from consideration for the post of Commissioner of the FCC. After two years of delays in her confirmation, Sohn asked President Biden to withdraw her nomination, citing “unrelenting, dishonest and cruel attacks” on her character and career. Sohn faced criticism from Republicans that she leaned too far to the left to serve in the job.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Netflix handed a straight-to-series order for a comedy based on the Chilean feature documentary “The Mole Agent,” starring Ted Danson as a retiree who answers an ad to become a mole in a secret investigation. Mike Schur (“The Good Place”) and Morgan Sackett executive produce through Schur’s Fremulon, and David Miner via 3 Arts Entertainment. Maite Alberdi and Marcela Santibañez EP for Micromundo Producciones along with Julie Goldman and Christopher Clements for Motto Pictures.
(Source: Cynopsis)
“Hot Wheels: Ultimate Challenge” landed a series order from NBC. Hosted by Rutledge Wood (“Top Gear US,” “Floor Is Lava”), who will also serve as one of the show’s judges, the 10-episode series will give Hot Wheels superfans the opportunity to turn a nostalgic car from their past into a life-sized vehicle. The season-finale winning creation will become an official Hot Wheels die-cast car. The original format was developed and produced by Endemol Shine North America in association with Workerbee under license from Mattel Inc. Executive producers are showrunner Tim Warren, along with Andy Thomas, Sharon Levy, DJ Nurre and Michael Heyerman from Endemol Shine North America; Rick Murray and Chris Hale from Workerbee (a Banijay UK Company); and Fred Soulie and Phil Breman from Mattel Television.
(Source: Cynopsis)
ABC Signature is looking for a new home for “The Devil in the White City.” The limited series, which was to have been executive produced by Martin Scorsese, Rick Yorn, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Davisson, Stacey Sher, Sam Shaw, Lila Byock and Mark Lafferty, had been in development at Hulu with production slated to start this year.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Endeavor Group Holdings has made a strategic investment in nonscripted production company Asylum Entertainment Group, giving Asylum the financing and resources to increase its footprint through domestic and international M&A. Asylum, whose portfolio includes The Content Group, Texas Crew Productions, Big City TV, Breaklight Pictures, and Audity, will become part of Endeavor’s nonscripted content division, led by Rebecca Sanhueza, EVP of Content Strategy & Development; Head of Nonscripted Content at Endeavor. Asylum’s CEO Steve Michaels and President Jodi Flynn will report to Sanhueza.
(Source: Cynopsis)
wiip has optioned The Immortal King Rao, the dystopian novel by Vauhini Vara. Playwright and screenwriter Madhuri Shekar is adapting for television and will executive produce alongside Vara and wiip’s Paul Lee, Josh Stern and Gabe Fisher. Additional executive producers include Inimitable Pictures’ Nimitt Mankad and Lenore Entertainment’s Adam Berkowitz.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Circle Network has partnered with Nashville singer/songwriter Julia Cole (“Circle’s Ultimate Fan Fest”). Cole, who recently made her debut on the Grand Ole Opry stage, will first star in an episode of Circle Network’s series, “My Opry Debut.”
(Source: Cynopsis)
All four episodes of Disney+’s “Rennervations,” from Disney Branded Television, drop Wednesday, April 12. In the series, Jeremy Renner (“Mayor of Kingstown”) and his team of expert builders reimagine decommissioned vehicles and rebuild them into creations that serve communities around the world. Production on the show had wrapped before Renner was injured in January while trying to rescue his nephew.
(Source: Cynopsis)
TelevisaUnivision’s “Mas Moda Menos Filtro (More Fashion Less Filter) is hosted by Univision fashion and beauty expert Jomari Goyso. The new weekly fashion concept offers a two-part experience, streaming on ViX’s channel Noticas 24/7 Edicion Nocturna followed by “Menos Filtron” on Univision’s “Despierta America” the following day (today, March 8).
(Source: Cynopsis)
Season six of “The Eric Andre Show” will premiere Sunday, June 4 at midnight on Adult Swim. “The wait is finally over,” said Andre. “We broke a lot of hearts, sets, and famous people’s publicists to bring you our most chaotic season so far. We’ve barely recovered.”
(Source: Cynopsis)
After its first season resulted in four convictions of sexual predators,the team at Safe from Online Sex Abuse multiplies that number in season two of ID’s “Undercover Underage,” premiering Monday, May 1 at 9p.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Freevee comedy “Jury Duty” makes its debut Friday, April 7. The series stars James Marsden as an alternate version of himself, going through a trial that he doesn’t realize is fake.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Anticipation is heating up for “Succession” as the HBO comedy-drama heads into its fourth and final season on March 26, reports Whip Media. Some stats:
· “Succession” had a 29% spike in daily new followers in the 3 days after the show’s latest trailer was released on March 2.
· Following creator Jesse Armstrong’s announcement on February 23 that the show would be ending with season four, “Succession’s” average new daily follower count surged 39% in the 10 days following the announcement.
·“Succession” cracked Whip Media’s list of the top five most anticipated returning shows.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Also headed for a fourth and final season is HBO’s “Barry.” The dark comedy starring Bill Hader returns Sunday, April 16 at 10p. “It’s been an amazing journey making this show, and it’s bittersweet that the story has come to its natural conclusion,” said Hader, also the show’s co-creator, writer and EP.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Top cowboys from the first three seasons of “Ultimate Cowboy Showdown” will make up an all-star cast for season four of the INSP competition series. Trace Adkins will return as host. The premiere date is TBD, but EVP of Programming Doug Butts promises, “Without giving too much away, viewers are in for an unexpected twist in the final episode. Even the production crew didn’t see it coming!”.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Showtime Sports Documentary Films “Catching Lightning,” a four-part docuseries chronicling infamous mixed martial arts fighter ‘Lightning’ Lee Murray and his role in one of the largest cash heists in history, premieres Friday, April 7 on all streaming and on-demand platforms for Showtime subscribers before making its linear debut on Sunday, April 9 at 8p.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Football fans won’t have to be Prime members to catch the first Black Friday NFL game, set for November 24, 2023 on Prime Video. “We’re excited to expand our relationship with the NFL and build a new holiday tradition for our customers,” said Jay Marine, VP of Prime Video and global head of Sports. “We’re so very proud of our ‘Thursday Night Football’ production and all the teams in front of and behind the camera. As families look to spend time together over the holiday weekend, we are excited to provide an opportunity for everyone to enjoy this new day of NFL action.”
(Source: Cynopsis)
FOX Sports is set to begin its presentation of the 2023 Big East Men’s Basketball Tournament, running today, March 8 to Saturday, March 11 at Madison Square Garden. Lead play-by-play announcer Gus Johnson joins Bill Raftery to call the tournament’s Thursday night quarterfinals before teaming with NBA veteran Jim Jackson for the semifinals and championship. Play-by-play announcer Tim Brando calls Wednesday’s first-round games with Raftery and Thursday’s afternoon quarterfinals with Jackson. Kristina Pink also serves as sideline reporter for all ten games.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Netflix has renewed two sports docuseries for second seasons: golf series “Full Swing” and tennis-focused “Break Point.” “These shows quickly appealed to core fans of golf and tennis, and also recruited brand new fans from all around the world,” said Brandon Riegg, VP, Unscripted and Documentary Series, Netflix. “Like so much of our growing sports slate, the compelling characters, competitive stakes, and vibrant storytelling reveal sides of the game you’ve never seen before.”
(Source: Cynopsis)
Fight Life will now be exclusively on FITE+. It’s the first wrestling promotion from the New England region to benefit from FITE+’s global reach. “For years I have watched some of my favorite indy wrestling, boxing, and MMA events on FITE and have genuinely become a fan of the service and promotions involved. Thanks to this new partnership, Fight Life will be available on any device, smart tv, etc., and will reach a global combat sports audience!” said Fight Life founder Frankie Sbacchis. “I am so honored to be the only New England-based promotion currently on the service.”
(Source: Cynopsis)
FanDuel Group and NESN inked a multi-year sponsorship, designating FanDuel as the premiere sportsbook partner of NESN’s Red Sox and Bruins game day coverage. The sponsorship teams the gaming destination with New England’s sports network, which is home of the Bruins and Red Sox broadcasts. The deal includes commercials, in-game sponsorship integrations, and pre-game features highlighting FanDuel.
(Source: Cynopsis)
The first round of performers announced for the 10th annual iHeartRadio Music Awards include P!NK, Kelly Clarkson, Keith Urban, Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo, Muni Long, Cody Johnson and Coldplay. P!NK will be honored with the iHeartRadio Icon Award, and Taylor Swift will accept the iHeartRadio Innovator Award. The show airs live on FOX on Monday, March 27 at 8p from LA.
(Source: Cynopsis)
Meanwhile, stars continue to line up for the Oscars. Halle Bailey, Antonio Banderas, Elizabeth Banks, Jessica Chastain, John Cho, Andrew Garfield, Hugh Grant, Danai Gurira, Salma Hayek Pinault, Nicole Kidman, Florence Pugh and Sigourney Weaver have been added as presenters for the ceremony, just four days away on ABC.
(Source: Cynopsis)
“The Young and the Restless 50th Anniversary Celebration,” an “Entertainment Tonight” special, premieres Monday, March 27 at 8 on CBS. “ET” co-host Nischelle Turner hosts from the soap’s set.
(Source: Cynopsis)
The eighth episode of HBO’s “The Last of Us” drew a series high 8.1 million viewers on Sunday, up 74% from the series debut. The season finale airs Sunday.
(Source: Cynopsis)
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