In a time filled with terrific musicals, here’s some more good news … with a smattering of bad:
“West Side Story” (shown here), with seven Oscar nominations (including best picture) reaches Disney+ on March 2.
The bad news is for the notion of seeing films in movie theaters, where they belong. Steven Spielberg has turned this into a visual masterpiece. Read more…
The Paramount+ streaming service is ready to play with the big guys now.
That will be clear March 24, when the long-awaited (VERY long-awaited) “Halo” (shown here) arrives. Or May 5, when a new “Star Trek” series begins, shortly after two others return. Or sometime later, with new versions of “Frasier,” “Flashdance,” “Fatal Attraction” and more, including music-based “Grease” and “Urban Cowboy.”
“We’re taking some big swings,” said Nicole Clemens, the network’s president of original content.
And some little ones. At Television Critics Association sessions, the network said it’s renewing “SEAL Team,” “The Game” and “Mayor of Kingston”; that follows renewals of “Evil” and “The Good Fight.” Read more…
In a move that seems more like 2020 than 2022, Fox has delayed a major show for at least a half-year, blaming Covid.
The network had planned a big start for “Monarch,” a country-music drama starring Trace Adkins, Anna Friel and Susan Sarandon (shown heere). It would start right after the NFC championship game Sunday (Jan. 30), then settle into a spot at 9 p.m. Tuesdays. Read more…
Maybe this should become a tradition: Once every 55-plus years, people from Liverpool make a terrific movie called “Help.”
The first was in 1965, by the Beatles; it’s a delight that someone could watch over and over.
And the second debuted on British TV in September and reaches an American streamer (www.acorn.tv) on Monday (Jan. 31). It’s brilliantly crafted … and difficult to watch even once.
This “Help” was filmed mostly in Liverpool. It projects that city’s working-class feel, with Liverpool natives as its stars – Stephen Graham, Ian Hart and, especially, Jodie Comer (shown here). Read more…
TV viewers now have an answer to a frequent question: When will “The Masked Singer” return?
They also have the answer to a rarely asked question: When will there be a show about people toppling dominos?
Both will be March 9, as part of the Fox network’s spring makeover. That also puts the two “9-1-1” shows back together, returns some reality shows (“MasterChef Junior” and “Name That Tune”) and debuts a clever, offbeat comedy after “Call Me Kat.”
Read more…
In a year when laughs have been rare, here’s good news: CBS has renewed “Ghosts” (shown here), “The Neighborhood” and “Bob (Hearts) Abishola” for next season.
That follows the renewal of “Young Sheldon,” so there are only two CBS comedies to worry about – “The United States of Al” and “B Positive.” Read more…
You know life is promising when the news ranges from Abraham Lincon to Agatha Raisin, from Meat Loaf to Joe Exotic. All show up in recent announcements about TV; that includes:
— The “Tiger King” mini-series now has a starting date. The eight-hour film begins March 3 on Peacock, under the title “Joe vs. Carole.”
This is the scripted version of a true-life story originally told in a documentary that became a hit during stay-at-home stages, early in the pandemic. Kate McKinnon (shown here) of “Saturday Night Live” plays animal activist Carole Baskin, with John Cameron Mitchell as the self-named Joe Exotic, a private zookeeper eventually convicted of trying to hire someone to kill her. Read more…
PBS – once considered mostly a cozy place for classical music, British dramas and French cooking – is broadening its scope.
Paula Kerger, the network CEO, has announced projects for this fall, ranging from Harriet Tubman to Chuck D (shown here) and hip hop history. She also announced long-range efforts that, she said, “will elevate new voices … and amplify diverse perspectives.” Read more…
For the third straight year, an awards show is being delayed by COVID.
This time, it’s the Grammys. Originally scheduled for Jan. 31 in Los Angeles, it’s now been moved to April 3 in Las Vegas. Read more…
(Please note: This is anewsy TV brief, from information that’s EMBARGOED until 12:45 p.m. ET today. The “Station 19” info is embargoed until noon, the Jo Koy info until 12:45, so please don’t put this online or elsewhere until then.)
By Mike Hughes
Looking ahead to next season – one without “Black-ish” – ABC has ordered a comedy pilot with comedian Jo Koy (shown here).
It has also nenewed “Station 19” for its sixth year. “Grey’s Anatomy,” the show that spawned it, had already been renewed for its 19th year.
Read more…
