Too Much TV: Your TV Talking Points For Wednesday, May 15th, 2024
Lots of upfront announcements from Warner Bros Discovery and Netflix.
Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Wednesday, May 15th, 2024:
SOME HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE NETFLIX UPFRONTS
Netflix had its upfront presentation on Wednesday and here are the highlights:
* After sprinkling characters from the original film in his recent movies like Jack and Jill, Little Nicky, and Hubie Halloween, Adam Sandler is set to star in Happy Gilmore 2.
* Keira Knightly will be starring in the movie The Woman In Cabin 10. Here is the official logline: "While on a luxury cruise for a travel assignment, a journalist witnesses a passenger tossed overboard late one night, only to be told that she must have dreamed it, as all passengers are accounted for. Despite not being believed by anyone onboard, she continues to look for answers, putting her own life in danger."
* The new series The Waterfront dives into the story of the flawed Buckley family as their attempts to retain control of their crumbling North Carolina fishing empire drive them to increasingly dangerous means to keep themselves afloat. Based on a true story, the series is written and executive produced by Kevin Williamson.
* Country singer Tim McGraw is set to star in a series about bull riding from creator, showrunner, and executive producer Brandon Camp (Love & Gelato). Here's the official logline: "The series follows a megastar champion played by Tim McGraw. He faces a life-or-death crossroads when confronted by the arrival of a fearless young rider whose very existence challenges his ways and unearths secrets that force him to reckon with his past."
* Netflix confirmed that 3 Body Problem is returning and it will be created, executive produced, and written by the returning trio of David Benioff and D.B. Weiss and Alexander Woo. But Netflix is being coy about how many new episodes there will be and/or whether the new order is for one, two or more seasons. My guess is that it will do what it has done with some other shows (and what Apple TV+ did with shows such as Slow Horses) and will shoot some number of episodes that it breaks into two separate seasons, even though it will all be shot back-to-back.
* The comedy series Nobody Wants This will premiere on September 26th. Formerly known as Untitled Erin Foster Show, the series was created by Erin Foster and centers on the unlikely relationship between an outspoken, agnostic woman, Joanne (Kristen Bell), and an unconventional rabbi, Noah (Adam Brody). The cast also includes Emily Arlook, who plays Noah's "perfect" girlfriend, as well as Justine Lupe, Timothy Simons, Stephanie Faracy, Tovah Feldshuh, Paul Ben-Victor, Michael Hitchcock, Jackie Tohn, Sherry Cola and Shiloh Bearman.
* Netflix is also "moving forward" with a new film from Kathryn Bigelow, although there aren't many details. The untitled film has actors in it and apparently is centered on the White House in a time of national turmoil.
* Will Ferrell and Ramy Youssef are co-creating Golf, a 190-episode comedy series which will follow Ferrell as a fictional golf legend. Youssef will also play a for-now undisclosed role. Josh Rabinowitz also serves a co-creator.
* Kate Hudson will star in Running Point, the new basketball comedy from Mindy Kaling. The series follows a woman named Isla Gordon (Hudson) who is unexpectedly appointed head of the family business — which happens to be one of the most famous professional basketball franchises in the country.
* Netflix has announced that it will be launching a new version of its Windows app – which will no longer support downloading content for offline viewing.
THIS IS PERFECTLY ON BRAND FOR X/TWITTER
An AI-written recap of the story, followed by a tweet from an account that is best known for posting a sentence or two of breaking news, without providing a link to the original story:
SOME HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE WARNER BROS DISCOVERY UPFRONTS
Here are a few of the more important announcements from Wednesday's Upfront presentation:
* John Cena will be this year's host of the Discovery Channel's Shark Week, which kicks off on Sunday, June 7th. New specials will include Great White Serial Killer: Sea Of Blood, which follows a great white shark wreaking havoc in a local village, Belly Of The Beast Part Two, which gives an up-close look at a great white shark feeding frenzy and Monster Hammerhead: Species X, which focuses on a potential new hammerhead species.
* In a move that is getting really close to the jumping the shark moment of the race to monetize IP, The Food Network will be airing Harry Potter: Wizards Of Baking, which will feature a range of cake creations based on the Harry Potter books and movies.
* The HBO film The Great Lillian Hall will premiere Friday, May 31st on HBO.
* And the answer to the question "Which new HGTV are you least interested in watching?," Flip Or Flop exes Tarek El Moussa and Christina Hall - and their new spouses - will compete against each other to see who can make the most profit flipping a house in the new series The Flip Off.
* CNN is picking up a second season of United States of Scandal With Jake Tapper, which will premiere in 2025.
* Conan O’Brien Must Go has been renewed for a second season on Max.
* The long-running UK comedy talk show series Have I Got News For You is being adapted for America and will air on CNN. It will premiere in the fall and it will air on Saturday nights, along side reruns of Real Time With Bill Maher.
ODDS AND SODS
* All 8 seasons of the Showtime original Dexter are coming to Netflix in the U.S. on June 19th.
* South Park predictably takes on Ozempic with South Back: End of Obesity. It premieres May 24th on Paramount+.
* The Coconino County Medical Examiner in Arizona has confirmed in an autopsy report that 25-year-old Garrison Brown of the TV show Sister Wives died from a gunshot wound to the head. His manner of death was ruled a suicide.
WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND TOMORROW
WEDNESDAY, MAY 15TH:
* Ashley Madison: Sex, Lies & Scandal (Netflix)
* Botched Bariatrics Series Premiere (TLC)
* C.H.U.E.C.O. (Disney+)
* Ghost Adventures Season Premiere (Discovery)
* In The Kitchen With Harry Hamlin Series Premiere (AMC)
* Killer Cases Season Premiere (A&E)
* Murder At the Motel Series Premiere (Investigation Discovery)
* Royal Rules Of Ohio Series Premiere (Freeform)
* The Amazing Race Season Thirty-Six Finale (CBS)
* Uncle Samsik Series Premiere (Hulu)
* United Gangs Of America Series Premiere (Vice)
THURSDAY, MAY 16TH:
* Bridgerton Season 3a Premiere (Netflix)
* Bronx Zoo '90: Crime, Chaos And Baseball (Peacock)
* Don't Forget The Lyrics Season Premiere (Fox)
* 59th Academy Of Country Music Awards (Prime Video)
* I Can See Your Voice Season Premiere (Fox)
* Law & Order Season Finale (NBC)
* Law & Order Organized Crime Season Finale (NBC)
* Law & Order: SVU Season Finale (NBC)
* Maestro In Blue (Netflix)
* Monster (Netflix)
* My Crazy Quince Series Premiere (Tubi)
* My Nanny Stole My Life (LMN)
* Outer Range Season Premiere (Prime Video)
* So Held Me Todd Season Two Finale (CBS)
* The Beauty Queen Killer: 9 Days Of Terror (Hulu)
* Worth The Hype Season Two Premiere (Tastemade)
* Young Sheldon Series Finale (CBS)
SEE YOU ON THURSDAY!