NBC Keeps Eye on "Watch"

Following the network upfront announcements last week, NBC has very quietly lifted the director contingency from one-hour drama pilot The Watch this week.

The Watch, from Sony Pictures Television, revolves around a group of neighborhood watch volunteers willing to do anything--including murder--to keep their tree-lined suburban paradise safe. Project, from writers Ed Decter and John J. Strauss (There's Something About Mary), was originally ordered to pilot back in January but was put on hold until a suitable director could be found.

Charles McDougall, who directed the pilots of next season's Big Shots, as well as The Tudors and Desperate Housewives, as been hired to helm The Watch, lifting the project's contingency.

Personally, The Watch was one of my least favorite drama pilot scripts this season, so I'm slightly baffled as to why NBC wouldn't wait until August to reevaluate it alongside several other scripts in contention for pilot orders. Stay tuned.