Too Much TV: Working Past The Hollywood Production Slump
Writer/showrunner Eric Rogers is using the Hollywood production slump to lean into his first love: horror.
Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Thursday, June 5th 2025:
PRODUCTION NOTES
A heads-up that tomorrow's newsletter will be jammed with reviews. Lots of interesting things premiering tomorrow, but nearly all of them with review embargoes. Plus, I'll have a review of the return of Phineas & Ferb. Disney sent me the premiere episode, but given that the entire eight-episode season is premiering tomorrow, I'll watch some more of the season and then write something tomorrow afternoon.
BTW, the difference between what I do and what someone at a bigger outlet does is best reflected by the trips they can make. I just read in Oliver Darcy's Status that he is headed this weekend to the Bloomberg Media Innovators conference in Zambia. I am headed on Saturday to some nearby garage sales. I'm joking, but I wanted to mention that I am able to participate or speak at conferences. And I honestly think some media conferences would benefit from having a wider diversity of ideas.
ONE WAY TO WORK PAST THE CURRENT HOLLYWOOD PRODUCTION SLUMP
Hundreds of writers working in Hollywood are doing great work that you probably love - even if you don't necessarily know their names.
Writer and showrunner Eric Rogers has a resume that includes writing for a wide range of shows, from NYPD Blue to Polly Pocket. He was a staff writer on Futurama and most recently was the creator and writer for the Prime Video animated series Angry Birds: Mystery Island.
And like a lot of talented people in Hollywood, Rogers is encountering a slowdown in available work right now. So he's taken the approach that this is a good time to try some new things and maybe take control of his destiny with some original works.
One way he's doing that is with the publication of The Dryer, a horror-themed work that is described this way by the publisher:
"When Tim and Mary decide to pull off the road and buy a used dryer from a mysterious old woman, the young couple gets much more than an appliance. After a simple use, they discover that the dryer not only dries clothes but also produces oranges at the same time – oranges that are so delicious that Tim and Mary decide to start a side hustle of selling the citrus to their neighbors. But word spreads fast, and soon, people from all over town are lining up to get in on the action. The supply can’t keep up with the demand… and some are willing to do whatever it takes to secure a clutch of the fruit. As Tim realizes that becoming orange dealers was a horrible mistake, Mary becomes addicted to them – so much so that everything else in life comes a distant second to doing nothing but eating oranges all day long.
A tale of greed, violence, and obsession, The Dryer is the story of what happens when a simple dream of financial freedom turns into a nightmare of human depravity."
On Wednesday, I spoke with Eric via Zoom about the book and the current state of Hollywood TV industry. The conversation has been very lightly edited for clarity (mostly mine).
I get the sense from your social media that this book and some other stuff you're working on was driven by just the sucky aspects of Hollywood right now.
Yeah, one of the biggest things that's been hard for me personally over the last several months is just the lack of any work at all. I've had down periods in my career, but I don't know if I've ever had a stretch where I haven't been paid as a writer for this long. We finished production on Angry Birds Mystery Island season one - season one, I say hopefully, there's a season two - last August.
And I have not worked. I have not been paid as a writer since then. I just today signed a contract to start doing some YouTube shorts for a company that I will talk about publicly soon.
But that launch call, that contract just came through literally today.
So you're talking about 10 months of just hitting the pavement. Looking everywhere for writing gigs and taking - if I'm being super honest - really lowering my standards just to take care of my family and pay my bills. I've applied for everything.
And I barely ever get anything more than the rejection email. I barely had any success getting past the initial, "Hey, check me out. Here are my writing credits. Here's my resume, whatever you want to call it."
So that being said, Rick, I've never been busier. I keep myself crazy busy working on all my own stuff.
Read the rest of the interview here. You can also find links to purchase the book there, which I highly recommend.
SOPHIA BUSH TALKS ABOUT ABUSE SUFFERED ON A SHOW WHICH MAY OR MAY NOT BE 'CHICAGO PD'
On the Monica Lewinsky podcast, actress Sophia Bush said she went through years of "physical hell" on set due to "someone old enough to be my father." While she didn't specify the show, based on various timelines, it seems very likely it was Chicago PD, which she had previously described as a "grueling experience" in other interviews:
Then I went to work on this other show that was on my bucket list and then I had this whole other trauma. I had a workplace ongoing trauma revolving around an unending situation with someone old enough to be my father. And I was like, what is happening?”
Lewinsky then asked if Bush was referring to an inappropriate relationship that was professional or romantic, and whether she meant emotional abuse or some other kind.
“Professional — and every kind of abusive,” Bush said. “When I look back at it, I had the opportunity after two years to go. And I did the thing I learned to do and said, ‘I will not have my integrity diminished by someone else’s behavior. I will be unflappable. I will come to work and do my job and I couldn’t.”
Continued Bush: “The next two years were like physical hell for me. And to go through spontaneous illness, wake up covered in hives, to have a really crazy weight fluctuations, to watching my hair fall out, to struggle with insomnia, to have crippling anxiety as an extrovert who loves people, to be hit with anxiety in a way that I could barely be out of the house. If people touched me in public, I would jump out of my skin. I couldn’t talk to strangers anymore. I couldn’t be looked at anymore … I had to go to work ready for war all the time. I had to learn how to block a scene in order not to be touched.”
Sometimes this is a horrible industry.
THE LATEST TWIST IN THE JONATHAN JOSS STORY
When I first reported on the murder of Jonathan Joss earlier this week, I cautioned that this was likely to be a confusing story. The day after the murder, Joss' husband posted a long message on Facebook claiming the murder was the result of an apparent hate crime. Then yesterday, the San Antonio Police issued a statement saying they were continuing to investigate the shooting, but so far hadn't found any evidence that the shooting was the result of a hate crime.
Today, the San Antonio police reversed course, with Chief William P. McManus retracting the police statement on Thursday:
"Shouldn’t have done it. [It] was way too soon before we had real information, and I will own that," McManus said. “It was way too early in the process for any statement of that nature to be issued.”
"We understand that many in the LGBTQ+ community are feeling anxious and concerned. A lot of it has to do with that premature statement that we released, and again, I own that. Shouldn’t have done it," he continued.
McManus went on to talk about the ongoing encounters Joss is said to have had with neighbors, and hinted that there were concerns about Joss's mental health:
McManus said Thursday that over the past two years, there have been 70 calls involving neighborhood-type disturbances. Sometimes, Joss is the caller, and other times, the neighbors are calling on him.
The police’s mental health unit had "extensive engagements with Mr. Joss, making repeated efforts to remediate conflicts and connect him with services he may have needed," the police chief said.
As I have said, this is a very confusing story.
FROM MY SPONSORS
ODDS AND SODS
* I had no idea there was something called the "Monty Hall Problem."
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* Surviving Ohio State tells the story of the male victims of Dr. Richard Strauss, a sports medicine physician and serial sex abuser employed by The Ohio State University (OSU) from 1978 to 1998. It premieres Tuesday, June 17th on HBO. Here is the official logline: "Bravely told by the student-athletes and others who concealed their trauma for years, the film builds on the efforts of whistleblowers and journalists who exposed the scandal in 2018. It also examines the culture that allowed the abuse to continue unchecked for nearly two decades at OSU, as well as the survivors’ present-day fight to hold the school accountable." And here is the first look trailer.
* Season nineteen of The Real Housewives Of Orange County will premiere Thursday, July 10th on Bravo.
* BET+ has renewed the courtroom series Ms Pat Settles It for a third season. Production will begin in late June.
* The Stephen King series The Institute will premiere July 13th on MGM+. The official logline: "The eight-episode series follows the story of teen genius Luke Ellis (Joe Freeman) who is kidnapped and awakens at The Institute, a facility full of children who all got there the same way he did, and who are all possessed of unusual abilities. In a nearby town, haunted former police officer Tim Jamieson (Ben Barnes) has come looking to start a new life, but the peace and quiet won’t last, as his story and Luke’s are destined to collide."
* The Twisted Tale Of Amanda Knox, the new limited series starring Grace Van Patten as Amanda Knox will premiere Wednesday, August 20th on Hulu. Here is a first look at photos from the series.
* Apple TV+ & Major League Baseball have announced the Friday Night Baseball match-ups for July.
* Trainwreck: The Cult Of American Apparel premieres Tuesday, July 1st on Netflix. Here is the official logline: "In the early 2000s, American Apparel becomes one of the United States’ most successful fashion brands, known for its colourful casual clothing, ethical production and its sexually provocative advertising campaigns. For young staffers it’s an exciting time; a chance to be part of a cult-like company revolutionising the fashion industry, and an opportunity to learn from American Apparel’s charismatic CEO and founder, Dov Charney. But as the brand quickly expands, the young employees begin to realise that American Apparel’s shiny surface is hiding a darker reality. Charney’s chaotic management starts to hit the company’s finances, and he is accused of sexual harassment by female employees. As problems mount and the company begins to implode, staff members are forced to come to terms with the toxic work environment Charney has created." And here is a first look at the trailer.
WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND TOMORROW
THURSDAY, JUNE 5TH, 2025:
Barracuda Queens Season Two Premiere (Netflix)
Bea's Block (Max)
Chespirito: Not Really On Purpose Series Premiere (Max)
Ginny & Georgia Season Premiere (Netflix)
House On Fire Series Premiere (BET+)
Leverage: Redemption Season Finale (Prime Video)
100 Days To Indy Season Three Finale (Fox Nation)
Phineas & Ferb Season Premiere (Disney)
Surreal Estate Season Three Finale (Syfy)
The First 48 Presents: Critical Minutes Season Three Finale (A&E)
The Killer Clown: Murder On The Doorstep (Sundance Now)
Tires Season Two Premiere (Netflix)
FRIDAY, JUNE 6TH:
BMF Season Premiere (Starz)
City Confidential Season Premiere (A&E)
Killer Cases Season Premiere (A&E)
K.O. (Netflix)
Late To The Party: Coming Out Later In Life (ABC)
LOL Live! (Hulu)
Mercy For None Series Premiere (Netflix)
Predator: Killer Of Killers (Hulu)
Resident Alien Season Four Premiere (Syfy/USA)
Secret Life Of My Other Wife (LMN)
Soaring To Life: The Making of How To Train Your Dragon (NBC)
Stanley Pup (truTV)
Straw (Netflix)
The Survivors (Netflix)
Wylde Pak Series Premiere (Nickelodeon)
SEE YOU ON FRIDAY!
Thanks for sharing the Monty Hall problem.