Channel Surfing: Linda Hamilton Ups Chuck, Alfred Molina to Law & Order: LA, Felicia Day Gets Eureka, Burn Notice, and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing. It's the brief calm between the dual storms of Comic-Con and the TCA Summer Press Tour and there oh so much to do. Let's hit the headlines.

Chuck's executive producers Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak stunned audiences at San Diego Comic-Con this weekend by announcing that Linda Hamilton (Terminator 2: Judgment Day) would be playing Chuck's mama Mary Bartowski, the oft-mentioned missing mother of the Bartowski siblings who was briefly glimpsed in the season finale. Hamilton will recur throughout Season Four of Chuck, though producers are being cagey about saying just what Mary has been up to since she walked out on her family, though they do admit that espionage runs in the family. "Hamilton will appear throughout the season, leading Chuck to discover that her life was shrouded in secrets," said Warner Bros. Television in an official press release about the casting. "She was a spy, a CIA agent ... and that's just the beginning. Who is she today? One thing is certain: She's not the soccer mom who left her children so many years ago." (via press release)

[In other Chuck news, composer Tim Jones will take over scoring FOX action drama series Human Target for its second season, which launches this fall. Jones will replace Bear McCreary, who will himself move over to AMC's The Walking Dead, while--fret not!--Jones will also continue on Chuck as well.)

In a surprising twist, Alfred Molina has joined the cast of NBC's Law & Order: Los Angeles, where he will play a deputy district attorney on the latest incarnation of the long-running procedural, set in the City of Angels this time around. Molina is the second actor to join the production and will star alongside Skeet Ulrich in the Universal Media Studios-produced series, which launches September 22nd. (Hollywood Reporter)

Felicia Day (Dollhouse) has signed on to appear in ten episodes of Eureka, while Caprica's Polly Walker will appear on two episodes of Syfy's Sanctuary, where she will play Ranna, described as "a powerful foe who faces Helen Magnus (Amanda Tapping) after the team encounters her in the show's mid-season cliffhanger." No details of just who or what Day will be playing on Eureka were immediately available and the network seems to be keeping the lid on such details for now. [Editor: could it be that they're saving something for TCA? Hmm...] (Hollywood Reporter)

USA has ordered a telepic for its action series Burn Notice that will serve as a prequel focusing on Sam Axe (Bruce Campbell) in his final assignment as a Navy SEAL. No writer or director have been announced for the project, which will be shot between the fourth and fifth seasons of Burn Notice, nor were any other actors announced for the two-hour film. (Variety)

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that Melora Hardin (The Office) has signed on to recur on NBC's legal drama Outlaw, where she will play Claire Sax, described as "a powerful senior partner in an elite law firm and love interest to Garza." She replaces Gina Gershon, who played the role in the original pilot. Hardin has also signed on to appear in a multiple-episode story arc on The Office, where she will turn up once again as Jan Levinson for Steve Carell's potentially final season on the comedy series. (Deadline)

Elsewhere, Andreeva is also reporting that British actor Ben Whishaw (Brideshead Revisited) has been cast as the lead of Alan Ball's new HBO drama pilot All Signs of Death, based on Charlie Huston's novel "The Mystic Arts of Erasing All Signs of Death." Whishaw will play Webster Filmore Goodhue, described as "an inveterate twenty-something slacker who stumbles into a career as a crime scene cleaner, only to find himself entangled with a murder mystery, a femme fatale and the loose ends of his own past." (Deadline)

Indira Varma--most recently seen in BBC One's Luther--has joined the cast of FOX's Human Target as a series regular. Varma, best known for her roles on HBO's Rome and BBC's Torchwood, will play Ilsa, a wealthy widow who purchases the protection service company run by Mark Valley's Christopher Chance and becomes their new boss. (Hollywood Reporter)

E! Online has a full recap of yesterday's Glee panel at San Diego Comic-Con, including news that the series will feature a Rocky Horror Picture Show-inspired episode this season, there will be new love triangles (including an Artie-Tina-Mike Chang one), the Britney Spears episode will air in September, Idina Menzel will return, and more. (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Jonathan Sadowski (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) will replace Ryan Devlin on CBS' $#*! My Dad Says and will star opposite William Shatner in the Warner Bros. Television-produced comedy series. (Variety)

Sarah Carter (Dirty Sexy Money) has joined the cast of TNT's upcoming alien invasion drama Falling Skies, according to Deadline's Nellie Andreeva. Carter will star opposite Noah Wylie and Moon Bloodgood, and will play a member of a motorcycle gang who helps the heroes escape the aliens. (Deadline)

The Futon Critic is reporting that Stargate Universe and Sanctuary will move to Tuesday nights beginning in September. Both series will return with new seasons on September 28th. (Futon Critic)

The New York Times' Sarah Lyall has a great feature on Showtime/BBC's new comedy series Episodes, which stars Matt LeBlanc, Tamsin Greig, and Stephen Mangan. "It takes the whole Joey persona that I have and meets it head-on," LeBlanc told Lyall. "It’s really liberating. When you get pigeonholed as one character, people tend to think, 'That’s all he can do.' [...] The Matt LeBlanc in the show uses the fact that people assume I’m dumb because I played the dumb guy on Friends — he uses that to manipulate situations to his advantage. He manipulates the writers so that the show is more the way he wants it to be. Not that he’s right, but it exposes his insecurities about his ability." (New York Times)

Nickelodeon is transitioning animated series The Fairly OddParents into a live-action telepic to star Drake Bell, Cheryl Hines, and Jason Alexander next year. Pic, entitled A Fairly Odd Movie: Grow Up, Timmy Turner, will also feature Steven Weber and Daniella Monet. (Variety)

Producer Francie Calfo will succeed David Nevins as the president of Imagine Television. (Nevins has left to take over as entertainment president of pay cabler Showtime.) Calfo will report to Brian Grazer and will step into the role within the next fortnight. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Talk Back: What Are You Watching This Summer?

As the Summer Solstice has come and gone now, the hot months of summer are officially in full swing as the broadcast and cable networks bring out their slate of originals and burn-offs during the sweltering season.

While I'm sinking my teeth into quite a bit of programming this summer (including HBO's True Blood, Bravo's Top Chef, and my latest obsession, BBC America's upcoming Come Dine With Me) and catching up on some others (cough, Friday Night Lights, cough), I'm curious to know just what you are watching right now... and what you intend to watch this summer. Are you hooked on USA's dramedies? Can't wait for the return of Entourage? Trembling at the thought of more True Blood? Intrigued by Work of Art? Spooked by the thought of Syfy's Haven?

Head to the comments section to discuss what's on your season pass this summer, what's failed to click with you so far, and what new and returning television series you are most looking forward to over the next few months.

Channel Surfing: Julia Stiles Heads to Dexter, Doctor Who Writer Wants Lady Gaga, All Clear Given to Spartacus Star Whitfield, and More

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television update.

It's official: Julia Stiles (The Bourne Ultimatum) has signed on to appear in ten episodes of Showtime's serial killer drama Dexter next season. Stiles will play "a mysterious young woman who forms a unique relationship with Dexter (Michael C. Hall) in the wake of the death of his wife," according to Showtime. Production on Season Five of Dexter gets underway this month and is expected to premiere this fall. [Editor: any guesses on just who Stiles will be playing and just what her relationship is to Dexter? Let the speculation begin.] (via press release)

Could pop superstar Lady Gaga be heading to Doctor Who? If writer Gareth Roberts has his way, she would be. While Gaga hasn't signed on to appear in an episode of Who, Gareth maintains in an interview with OK! Magazine that he has already thought out a plotline for the "Bad Romance" singer to appear in. "She is no stranger to dressing up and would be more than a match for the Doctor," said Roberts in the interview. "It would be a real coup to get her." (via io9)

Good news for Spartacus' Andy Whitfield. Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that Whitfield, the star of Starz's period drama Spartacus, has been given a clean bill of health and is ready to return to work following his treatment for Stage 1 non-Hodgkin lymphoma. He's expected to appear in two episodes of Starz' upcoming six-episode prequel series starring Lucy Lawless and John Hannah and then segue directly into shooting Season Two of Spartacus afterwards. (Deadline)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Jesse Williams has been promoted to a series regular on ABC's Grey's Anatomy next season, citing unnamed sources. Fellow Grey's frosher Sarah Drew is also expected to return next season, though a deal has yet to be closed. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Take this news with a grain of salt: British comedian Matt Lucas (Little Britain) has reportedly signed on to appear in an upcoming episode of FOX musical-comedy Glee, according to British tabloid The Sun, where he will play a British teacher who conceals a hidden passion for musicals... and might even burst into song. FOX has yet to confirm the casting. (via Digital Spy)

Is Matthew McConaughey heading to FX? Sort of. His production company, J.K. Livin, has teamed up with the cabler to develop single-camera comedy pilot Kick Ass Militia, according to Deadline's Nellie Andreeva. Project will be written/executive produced by Marc Hyman, based on source material by JR Reed and will revolve around "two brothers whose divergent views are always pitting them against each other on their Malibu compound, one a survivalist and one a free-loving cult leader." (Deadline)

AMC will offer viewers a sneak peek of its upcoming drama series Rubicon on Sunday evening, immediately following the season finale of Breaking Bad. Series, which stars James Badge Dale, Miranda Richardson, and Arliss Howard, will officially launch on Sunday, August 1st at 8 pm ET/PT. (via press release)

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva reports that FOX drama pilot Breakout Kings, which failed to receive a series order at the network, may be heading to A&E as production entity Chernin Entertainment is said to be in talks with the cabler about picking up the crime procedural. Project was written by Matt Olmstead and Nick Santora and directed by Gavin Hood. "At A&E, Breakout Kings would fit into the character-driven procedural direction the channel is taking with the upcoming cop drama The Glades, which also is male-centered," writes Andreeva. (Deadline)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that John Seda (The Pacific) has signed on to guest star on USA's Burn Notice this season, where he will play Cole, described as "a disgruntled ex-Marine who now works as a killer for hire." Meanwhile, Garrett Dillahunt and Tim Matheson will reprise their roles as Simon and "Dead" Larry Sizemore on Burn Notice, Carlo Mendez is heading to Pawnee for a multiple-episode story arc on Parks and Recreation, and D.W. Moffett (Friday Night Lights) and Lauren Holly have been cast in USA's upcoming drama Covert Affairs. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

TVGuide.com's Robyn Ross has an interview with Lucy Hale, who stars in ABC Family's new mystery drama series Pretty Little Liars, which launches tonight. "In the first episode, you're introduced to these characters who have dark secrets that can basically ruin their lives," said Hale. "The series is figuring out what happened to Alison and who is threatening us, but also we have our everyday issues. I think that's what's going to hook people. It's got really cute boys, great love stories and you get to see some cool fashion as well." (TVGuide.com)

Gretchen Berg and Aaron Harberts have signed a two-year overall deal with ABC Studios, under which they will develop new projects for the studio and join the staff of Shonda Rhimes-executive produced medical drama Off the Map, where they will executive produce alongside Rhimes, Jenna Bans, and Betsy Beers. (Deadline)

Vanessa Marcil will return to ABC daytime soap General Hospital, where she will reprise her role as Brenda, for which she won a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in 2003, beginning August 11th. "We are so thrilled to welcome Vanessa Marcil home to General Hospital," said executive producer Jill Farren Phelps. "Vanessa is a wonderful, talented actress and her portrayal of Brenda makes her a force of nature in Port Charles." (SOAPnet)

Universal Media Studios has signed a two-year overall deal with Outsourced co-executive producer Michael Pennie, under which he will focus on NBC's Outsourced and develop new projects for the studio. "UMS are willing to take some chances," Pennie told The Hollywood Reporter. "Outsourced is an example of their willingness to try something different in a year where there's a lot out there that feels like versions of stuff I've seen before, and that's definitely something I'm attracted to." (Hollywood Reporter)

Katy Perry will host and perform on the Teen Choice 2010 awards show, scheduled to air on Monday, August 9th on FOX. (via press release)

Former Bachelor contestant Melissa Rycroft has been tapped to host ABC spinoff series Bachelor Pad alongside Chris Harrison. Series, which features past contestants from The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, is set to launch August 9th at 8 pm ET/PT. (Variety's On the Air)

Kevin Hooks (Prison Break) has signed on to executive produce ABC's drama series Detroit 1-8-7 and will direct at least two episodes of the series' initial thirteen-episode order. (Hollywood Reporter)

Rob Schiller (The King of Queens) will direct two of CMT's comedy pilot presentations, The 30 Percent and Working Class. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Starz Gets Spartacus Prequel, ABC Pulls Happy Town, Burt Reynolds to Burn Notice, Sarah Silverman Axed, and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing.

Starz is heading back to Spartacus, ordering six episodes of a prequel series that will be set before Season One of the gladiator drama series, which wrapped its run last month. The six-episode prequel, as yet untitled, will revolve around the House of Batiatus and its champions and will star John Hannah and Lucy Lawless, as well as Peter Mensah, Manu Bennett, Antonio Te Maihoha, Nick E. Tarabay, and Lesley-Ann Brandt, and feature a brief appearance by Andy Whitfield, who is currently undergoing treatment for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. Production will begin this summer, with the pay cabler eying a January 2011 launch, clearly an effort to keep the franchise humming until a second season can be produced. "The prequel story maintains the excitement and entertainment value of the first season of Spartacus, giving audiences the engaging experience they've come to expect," said Starz President and CEO Chris Albrecht in a statement. "We look forward to continuing the Spartacus story." (via press release)

Bad news for Happy Town: ABC has opted to pull the supernatural drama series from its schedule beginning next week. The series, produced by ABC Studios, will return on Wednesday, June 2nd at 10 pm ET/PT to begin burning off its remaining five installments, wrapping up its run on Wednesday, June 30th. Happy Town's current timeslot will be filled by an episode of Primetime: What Would You Do? next week and the network broadcast premiere of Transformers on May 26th. (TVGuide.com)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Burt Reynolds will guest star on an upcoming episode of USA's Burn Notice, where he will play Paul Anderson, described as "a legendary operative, now retired and cast out of the CIA, who serves as somewhat of a cautionary tale for Michael (Jeffrey Donovan)." Reynolds is slated to appear in the fourth season of Burn Notice, which launches June 3rd. "Things have not gone well for him since he left the spy service," creator Matt Nix told Ausiello. "He’s now working as a bartender under an assumed name, and he gets into trouble with some very nasty Russian guys... He’s not precisely like Michael. He’s Michael should Michael succumb to some of the demons that haunt ex-spies." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that Comedy Central has cancelled The Sarah Silverman Program after three seasons after it failed to earn a renewal, despite a Twitter campaign to save the series, which had in its last season been bumped to a midnight timeslot. (Deadline.com)

Alan Ball and Oprah Winfrey's Harpo Films have pacted to produce an HBO original telepic based on Rebecca Skloot's book, "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks," about a Baltimore mother of five children who died of cervical cancer at age 31 in 1951. However, the cancerous cells removed from her body led to major breakthroughs in medical research, including leading to the cure for polio and AIDS treatments. No screenwriter is currently attached to the project, which will be produced by Ball, Winfrey, Kate Forte, and Peter Macoissi. (Variety)

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that NBC is preparing to give comedy Perfect Couples a series order and the network has authorized writers Scott Silveri and Jon Pollack to begin staffing the writing team for the series. Meanwhile, NBC is said to still be high as well on comedy Friends with Benefits and is said to be looking for a showrunner for the series. Drama Garza--which stars Jimmy Smitts--will likely be retooled for midseason. (Deadline.com)

Sir Derek Jacobi (Gosford Park) has been cast in a multiple episode story arc on Showtime's upcoming period drama The Borgias, where he will play Cardinal Orsini, described as "a nemesis to Pope Alexander (Jeremy Irons)" in several episodes. Elsewhere, Richard Griffiths (Harry Potter, History Boys) has been cast in the pay cabler's comedy series Episodes, where he will play a version of himself, "a brilliant British actor deemed 'too sophisticated' by an American TV network to star in a fictional comedy pilot who instead is replaced by Matt LeBlanc." (Hollywood Reporter)

Christopher Eccleston (Doctor Who) and Mackenzie Crook (Pirates Of The Caribbean, The Office) will star in BBC One's six-part drama Accused, created by Jimmy McGovern (The Street), each episode of which will follow an individual man accused of a crime and lead to court to hear his fate. "In the time it takes to climb the steps to the court we tell the story of how the accused came to be here," said McGovern in a statement. "We see the crime and we see the punishment. Nothing else. No police procedure, thanks very much, no coppers striding along corridors with coats flapping. Just crime and punishment – the two things that matter most in any crime drama. It's great to work with Chris again and I've often tried in the past to get Mackenzie into something of mine. And needless to say, it's wonderful to reunite the team that made The Street." (BBC)

E! Online's Drusilla Moorhouse has an interview with The Amazing Race's Jet and Cord McCoy, who sadly failed to come in first place this season. "I don't know if it was that one single act that cost us the race," said Jet about Jordan's queue-jumping move at the Shanghai airport. "It was more about the principle than it was anything. We were standing in a marked line of three people, and [Jordan] thinks that's where he wants to play his ace or whatever. Me and Cord were just kinda blown away. My goodness." And those of you wondering whether we'll see the cowboys on television again should take note of the fact that Cord's fiancee wants him to do Dancing with the Stars. (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Universal Media Studios has signed a new two-year overall deal with Friday Night Lights executive producer David Hudgins, under which he will remain aboard the drama series as co-showrunner (a title he shares with Jason Katims) until the series' end and will develop new projects for the studio. (Variety)

Spike has promoted Sharon Levy to EVP of original series and animation. She will continue to report to Kevin Kay. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Two-Season Renewal for Burn Notice, Patton Oswalt Out of Beach Lane, Anatasia Griffith to Royal Pains, and More

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing. I still have to get caught up on last night's telly as I was out rubbing elbows with the cast and crew of Doctor Who at a BAFTA/LA screening, Q&A, and cocktail party. (Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, Steven Moffat, and former showrunner Russell T Davies were all in attendance and all very chatty.)

Burn Notice fans will be very happy this morning: USA has announced that it has renewed the drama series for a fifth AND sixth season even before Season Four of Burn Notice has even launches. The two additional seasons will run at least a respective 15 and 18 episodes, with Season Five set to begin shooting in about a year. "Once Saturday Night Live makes fun of you,' how can you not commit to extra seasons?" Jeff Wachtel, USA's president of original programming, told Variety. It also helps that USA will begin stripping the series in October 2011, following a deal with studio Fox Television Studios for the off-net rights. (Variety)

The Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd is reporting that Patton Oswalt has departed NBC comedy pilot Beach Lane, just days after being cast alongside Matthew Broderick and Kristen Johnston. Move comes after Tuesday's table read, though it was immediately unclear just what Oswalt's status on the pilot was. "One source added that producers have offered Oswalt another part instead," writes Hibberd, "but it's unclear at this time if Oswalt is interested in staying on the show in a different role." (The Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Anastasia Griffith (Trauma) is joining the cast of USA's Royal Pains when the series returns for its second season on June 3rd. Griffith will recur as Dr. Emily Peck, described as "a no-nonsense MD and a potential business rival of Hank’s (Mark Feuerstein)." Ausiello also has the spoilery details about just how Griffith's Emily becomes entangled in Hank's world: "Griffith’s doc will be introduced during the USA Network hit’s second season (premiering June 3) when Boris (Campbell Scott) hires her to temporarily fill in for an MIA Hank." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

SPOILER! E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos has the skinny on a surprising twist (or not too surprising, if you pegged it from the start) coming up on FOX's Glee, which just happens to involve Lea Michele and Idina Menzel. (Guessed it yet?) Regardless, the two will duet on Lady Gaga's "Poker Face" later this season and co-creator Ryan Murphy teased a link between the two characters. "Lea and Idina Menzel will do an acoustic version of 'Poker Face' that [Lady Gaga] blessed and that she wanted us to do," Murphy told Dos Santos. "It's sort of like a stripped-down mother-daughter 'Poker Face' that Lady Gaga was involved in." [Editor: ahem!] (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Debra Winger is said to be in talks to come aboard HBO's In Treatment as a series regular next season, where she would play "a patient of Gabriel Byrne's psychotherapist character Paul [who is] a former big star who is battling insecurity and fear about her career," according to Deadline.com's Mike Fleming. (Deadline.com)

E! Online's Megan Masters interviews Smallville showrunner Brian Peterson about what's coming up on the rest of season for the CW superhero drama. Asked if Lois will learn Clark's secret, Peterson said, "What I can say is that this year we've really explored the tough duality of Lois having one relationship with this hero, the soldier of duty relationship, and one romantic love relationship with Clark, and so that just drives all the way through episodes 19, 21 and the finale. Everything that's been going on with that love triangle converges." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Fancast's Matt Webb Mitovich is reporting that Tim Matheson will not only direct the Season Two opener for USA's White Collar, but will also guest star in the episode as "a hedge fund manager who likes to dip into other folks‘ funds – as a part-time bank robber." Season Two of White Collar is set to launch in July. (Fancast)

FOX has announced launch dates for Hell's Kitchen and new culinary competition series Masterchef, with the new season of Hell's Kitchen set to start on Tuesday, June 1st, when it will air two-hour episodes until Masterchef takes over at 9 pm on Tuesday, July 27th. (via press release)

Stage actress Lynn Blackburn has been cast in a recurring role for Season Five of Friday Night Lights, where she will play Laurel, described by Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello as "a smart, tough, and dedicated teacher at East Dillon who befriends [SPOILER ALERT!] the school’s newest hire, Tami." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Casting update: Emily Rios (Men of a Certain Age) has been cast in a multiple-episode arc on DirecTV/NBC's Friday Night Lights, where she is set to play Epyck, described as "a rebel goth girl"; Austin Highsmith (Big Love) will guest star on CBS' Criminal Minds; Sunny Mabrey has been cast in a recurring role on TNT's upcoming drama series Memphis Beat; Janel Parrish (Heroes) will recur on ABC Family's Pretty Little Liars; and Warren Kole (24) has been cast in CW drama pilot Nomads, where he will play Ryker. (Hollywood Reporter)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello talks to Desperate Housewives executive producer Bob Daily about the drama's May 16th season finale and has five hints about upcoming twists, from money problems and an explosion to a birth and a death. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Elsewhere, TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck is reporting that a former series regular of ABC's Desperate Housewives will return to Wisteria Lane in the season finale this May. "I've promised the show that I'd keep the actor's identity a secret," writes Keck, "but the way they re-introduce this character is genius and sets the stage for some major awkwardness in Season Seven. (TV Guide Magazine)

Spike has ordered a pilot for comedy Playing With Guns, which will star Danny Masterson (That '70s Show) and Joey Kern (Super Troopers). Project--from writers Bob Castrone, Brian Levin, and Jason Zumwalt and executive producers Brian Robbins and Sharla Sumpter Bridgett--revolves around two "childhood best friends who become police officers in their hometown for the everyday perks." (Hollywood Reporter)

Bill Irwin will reprise his role as Nate Haskell on CBS' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation for the season's final two episodes, according to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello. "Nate knows who Dr. Jekyll is, which is kind of interesting since he’s been in prison for the last 11 years," executive producer Carol Mendelsohn told Ausiello. "The [May 20] season finale is all about what it will take to get him to give them a name." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

HBO has renewed Real Time with Bill Maher through 2011 and has bumped its episodic order to 35 episodes per season. The current season is set to end in November, with Season Nine expected in February. (Variety)

CBS Television Studios has signed a two-year overall deal with Lost co-executive producer Paul Zbyszewski, under which he will develop new drama projects for the studio and will become a co-executive producer on Hawaii Five-O, should it be ordered to series. (Deadline.com)

The Wrap's Josef Adalian has issued a request of ABC: to let the final credits for Lost's series finale run unadorned by promos, bugs, or spots for The Bachelorette. "Specifically, what if ABC actually just aired the closing credits to Lost unadorned, as Darlton intended them, and with the haunting closing score viewers hear only if they watch the show on DVD, on demand or via syndication?" writes Adalian. "A nation of Lost fans whose minds will (hopefully) have just been blown and heartstrings tugged will appreciate the time to let what they've just seen sunk in." (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

Discovery Channel has ordered a sixth season of Cash Cab. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Sheen Could Leave "Men," "Modern Family" iPad Love, S. Epatha Merkerson to Leave "Law & Order," Sidibe to Host "SNL," and More

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing.

Charlie Sheen might just walk away from his role on CBS' Two and a Half Men. Citing a People report, The Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd is reporting that Sheen has rejected a contract renewal offer and is looking to leave the CBS comedy series, which is produced by Warner Bros. Television. "This report came as news to CBS and studio Warner Bros., with some insiders thinking the news might simply be a negotiation tactic," writes Hibberd. "Yet sources tell THR that the People report is no April Fools joke and that Sheen is indeed serious about currently wanting to leave." (Hollywood Reporter)

Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed has the scoop from Modern Family co-creator Christopher Lloyd about why the ABC comedy series' use of the iPad this week wasn't product placement but was in fact just a story-driven plotline. "In fact, there was no product placement," Lloyd explained. "This was widely assumed, and everybody was wrong. We wanted to do a show about Phil getting very excited about a new product and it seemed the perfect one to use, since it was debuting [April 1]. We approached Apple about getting their cooperation (using the product, for example, and they are notoriously secretive about their products prior to their being launched) and they agreed and gave us a few other small concessions. But there were no stipulations as with normal product placement, i.e. we give you X dollars and you have to feature our product such-and-such a way and say such-and-such nice things about it. We are not angels -- we have made those agreements with other companies. But that was not the deal with Apple. It was all story-driven." (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)

Meanwhile, The Wrap's Josef Adalian calls for an end to the Modern Family "non-troversy" over the iPad inclusion, following several attacks on the series by CNET and the Hollywood Reporter, among others. "Dudes: Chill!" writes Adalian. "It's one thing to find a plotline unfunny or subpar. There's also nothing wrong with making note of the timing of the episode, or of raising the question of whether a company paid to have its product integrated into a show. Hot TV shows generate buzz, both positive and negative. We get it -- and we're not trying to condemn anyone for identifying something interesting about a show. But until somebody uncovers evidence to the contrary, this was simply a case of writers trying to make a 2010 half-hour comedy relevant to a sophisticated audience." [Editor: amen.] (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that S. Epatha Merkerson will depart Law & Order after a staggering 16 years and talks to the actress about her decision to leave the Dick Wolf-executive produced procedural at the end of the current season. "It’s a graceful way to go," Merkerson told Ausiello. "It’s the end of my contract this year, and the storyline has been so perfect. I’ve given it my best for 16 years. It’s time to move on. I’m doing other things and this will be a great way to leave what has been an extraordinary gig." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Precious star Gabourey Sidibe is among the hosts on tap for Saturday Night Live this month. Also taking to the historic stage during the month of April: Tina Fey, who will be joined by musical guest Justin Bieber, Ryan Phillippe (with Ke$ha), and Sidibe, who will host with musical guest MGMT on April 24th. (Variety)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello has gotten a hold of some of the casting notices for Season Four of AMC's Mad Men, including three potentially recurring roles. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

E! Online's Megan Masters has an exclusive look at Showtime's upcoming reality series The Real L Word and breaks down the real-life lesbians who have been assembled in Showtime's "rare, fly-on-the-wall look into the lives of attractive and successful L.A. lesbians." The series is set to launch on Sunday, June 20th at 10 pm on Showtime. (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Casting update: Chad Lowe (24) has been cast in ABC Family's upcoming drama series Pretty Little Liars, where he will replace Alexis Denisof, who played the role in the pilot; Gina Torres has signed on to play Dr. Dorothy Rand in ABC Family's other upcoming series, Huge; Riki Lindhome (Gilmore Girls) will star opposite Jack Carpenter and Kristin Kreuk in Josh Schwartz and Matt Miller's CBS comedy pilot Hitched; Greg Germann (Ally McBeal) and Damon Gupton (Deadline) have come on board FOX comedy pilot Strange Brew; and Robbie Jones (One Tree Hill) and Heather Hemmens (The Candy Shop) have joined the cast of the CW's Hellcats. (Hollywood Reporter)

SPOILER! TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck is reporting that Season Six of FX's It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia will feature a storyline involving Dennis (Glenn Howerton) getting married... and divorced. (TV Guide Magazine)

Julie Gonzalo has been cast as a guest star in a May sweep episode of ABC's Castle, where she will play "a beautiful and dynamic restaurateur who finds herself mixed up in [a] murder investigation" that takes revolves around the contestants of a Top Chef-esque culinary competition series. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

CONFIRMED: Syfy has announced that Robert Knepper (Heroes) and Julie McNiven (Mad Men) have joined the cast of the cabler's Stargate Universe for its second season. Knepper will appear in six episodes as Simeon, described as a "member of the Lucian Alliance," while McNiven has joined the cast in a five-episode story arc where she will play Ginn, also a member of the Lucian Alliance. The second half of SGU's freshman season premieres tonight on Syfy. (via press release)

ABC shows are heading to the iPad. Disney has signed a deal with Apple to create an application that will stream--for free--full-length episodes of series from ABC, ESPN, and Disney. (Variety)

NBC series, meanwhile, will NOT be heading to the iPad as NBC executives have opted to "prohibit iPad viewing of full episodes at this time," according to The New York Times' Brian Stelter. (New York Times' Media Decoder)

USA has announced return dates for two of its original series, with Burn Notice and Royal Pains returning to the schedule on Thursday, June 3rd, when they will air back-to-back beginning at 9 pm ET/PT. July, meanwhile, will bring the return of White Collar and Psych and the launch of Covert Affairs. (Broadcasting & Cable)

E1 Entertainment and Tijuana Entertainment have teamed up to develop reality series They Call Me Crazy, featuring NBA player Ron Artest that will enable him to "make amends for past transgressions," and help struggling musicians through his music label. Series will be executive produced by Artest, along with John Moryaniss, Tara Long, Troy Searer, and John Foy. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: "Parks" and Procreation for Poehler, Diane Farr to "Desperate Housewives," "FlashForward," Gordon Finds "Prisoners of War," and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing.

The mystery behind Parks and Recreation's early renewal, said to be due to a production-related issue, has been revealed: star Amy Poehler is pregnant again and the Universal Media Studios-produced comedy will film its third season early in order to accommodate Poehler's pregnancy. "We'll continue production of Season Three as soon as production of season two concludes," an NBC spokesperson told E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos. "And we'll be back next season with new episodes." Which means: Season Three will launch this fall and the cast and crew will likely take a hiatus later than usual... and it means that Poehler's Leslie Knope will not be pregnant on the series. (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck is reporting that Diane Farr (Rescue Me) has been cast in an upcoming episode of ABC's Desperate Housewives "as a character who interacts with the ladies of Wisteria Lane." Farr's episode is slated to air in late April but her details about her character, who will be the focal point of this episode, are being kept under wraps. Keck cites an unnamed source who indicated that Farr's character "is part of a special episode (involving) things that happen in the suburbs... evil kind of things." Read into that however you will. (TV Guide Magazine)

E! Online's Jenna Mullins has a look at what to expect from the return of ABC sci-fi drama FlashForward, which returns tonight with twelve new episodes, and she gets the cast to tease some details about upcoming storylines, which involve answers. "How and why did this happen? Who's the dude in the stadium? Is John Cho gonna live? And who's that shirtless dude on the couch?" teased Jack Davenport. "All of those things will obviously be answered. They have to be or people would be pissed. I would be!" (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

24 executive producer Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa (also of 24) have teamed up with Gideon Raff developing a US adaptation for Israeli drama series Prisoners of War for 20th Century Fox Television; no network is currently attached to the project. According to Variety's Michael Schneider, the US version will "center on two soldiers who were captured soon after the war on terror began in the wake of 9/11; they're finally released a decade later from their captors. But a third POW died -- and his demise becomes a mystery. The show will also center on suspicions that one of the returning soldiers may have turned rogue -- and could be a terrorist threat himself." Gordon and Gansa will executive produce with Raff (who created the original) and Avi Nir of Israeli television network Keshet. (Variety)

NBC, Donald Trump, and Mark Burnett are resurrecting the original Apprentice format, bringing The Apprentice back to the airwaves, albeit with a slight twist. This iteration, set to air during the 2010-11 season, will feature 14 candidates who have all been affected by the economic turndown in the country. They'll range in ages and could be those who lost their jobs, those who are working jobs that they hate, and recent college graduates who are unable to land their first job... and the eliminated candidates will all receive some form of career coaching from Trump himself. "I am very excited to return to the original premise of The Apprentice," said Trump in a statement. "We've got to do something about the economy and this is a terrific way to provide jobs as well as business lessons along the way. NBC, Mark Burnett and I hope this economic downturn can begin a turnaround, and we'll do our best with The Apprentice to see that it starts happening. I'm proud to be putting people back to work, and to positively changing the psychology of America." (via press release)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that The Wire's Robert Wisdom--most recently seen on Supernatural--as been cast in at least six episodes of Burn Notice next season. He'll play Vaughn, described as "a veteran spy handler who works for the group that burned Michael" and who possesses "an impressive combination of high-end book smarts and real-world experience; he’s smart, world-weary, and ruthless." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Jason Clarke (Brotherhood) has been cast as the lead in Shawn Ryan's FOX cop drama pilot Ride-Along. Clarke will play Detective Jarek Wysocki, described as "one of the city's toughest cops... a local legend and outsized character with a wicked sense of humor who struggles to clean up the town's violence and corruption." Move marks the second casting of a Brotherhood lead this pilot season; Jason Isaacs will star in FOX drama pilot Pleading Guilty. (Hollywood Reporter)

In other pilot casting news, Josh Cooke (Big Day) has been cast as the male lead in ABC's untitled Shanna Goldberg-Meehan comedy pilot, where hew will play Ben, half of an unmarried couple whose seemingly perfect life together is thrown into chaos when Maddie (Jennifer Finnigan) discovers that her younger sister (Joanna Garcia) is pregnant and engaged. Elsewhere, Skyler Stone (Con) has been cast in Greg Garcia's FOX comedy pilot Keep Hope Alive, which is in the process of recasting several roles. Stone will play Mike, the messy cousin of Jimmy (Lucas Neff); role was played by Kate Micucci in the original pilot, though it was initially written for a man. (Hollywood Reporter)

Congratulations to FX, which saw huge opening numbers for its scripted drama series Justified, which launched with 4.1 million viewers, the highest-rated FX premiere since The Shield in 2002. (Variety)

Showtime has unveiled its summer schedule, which includes programming on Thursday, Sunday, and Monday evenings. Penn & Teller: Bullshit! returns on Thursday, June 10th at 10 pm ET/PT, where it will lead into new comedy series The Green Room with Paul Provenza. The pay cabler's new reality series The Real L Word will launch on Sunday, June 20th at 10 pm ET//PT. And Monday, August 16th sees the return of Weeds at 10 pm ET/PT and the launch of the Laura Linney-led comedy series The Big C at 10:30 pm ET/PT. (via press release)

CBS has ordered a pilot for culinary competition series Beat the Chefs from RelativityReal and executive producer Tom Forman (Extreme Makeover: Home Edition). Format will feature amateur chefs and their friends and families competing against professional chefs as they each attempt to make their version of a particular dish, which will then be judged by a panel of judges for a cash prize. (Hollywood Reporter)

Private Practice's Amy Brenneman is slated to return to the ABC drama series on April 1st, after she missed filming three episodes due to a "planned surgery to fix a chronic health issue," according to Brenneman's rep Stephen Huvane. She's already back at work, according to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello, and the last episode to be shot sans Brenneman's Violet will air next week. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

iCarly star Miranda Cosgrove has signed a new deal with Nickelodeon that's said to be in the low- to mid-seven-figure range under which she will film an additional 26 episodes of the comedy series, which was renewed late last year. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Syfy Eyes "BSG" Spin-off and "Three Inches," More "Glee," Mia Maestro Gets "Cutthroat," Paula Abdul to ABC, and More

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing.

Syfy is said to be exploring the possibility of spinning off its Battlestar Galactica franchise once more and is said to be developing another spin-off series--besides for the currently airing Caprica--that would this time be set in space. "We're looking for other ways to spin off Battlestar beyond Caprica," Syfy's Mark Stern told The Hollywood Reporter. "That world is so rich. We're sitting down with (executive producer) Ron Moore and his team. It would not necessarily be a traditional series." No other details were available. The cabler also ordered a 90-minute pilot for drama Three Inches, from writer Harley Peyton and executive producer Bob Cooper. Project, from Fox Television Studios, revolves around a slacker who can move objects three inches with his mind and who teams up with other people who have useless superpowers. (Hollywood Reporter)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that FOX is said to be close to signing a deal to expand Glee's second seasons to a lengthier 25 installments next season. "Season 2 will be much bigger and much longer," Glee co-creator Ryan Murphy told EW. "We are talking about doing 25 episodes as opposed to [the customary] 22." Murphy also indicated that he wants to take the Glee characters on the road, with the club perhaps competing in New York. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Recasting is underway on ABC drama pilot Cutthroat, from executive producers Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters, as Mia Maestro (Alias) is said to be in advance talks to come aboard the 20th Century Fox Television-produced pilot and replace Roselyn Sanchez (Without a Trace). No reason was given for the recasting on the pilot, which is being directed by Bronwen Hughes (White Collar). (Hollywood Reporter)

Former American Idol judge Paula Abdul is close to signing a deal with ABC to appear in the network's revival of Star Search, where she would serve as something akin to a blend of host and judge, according to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello. "The Alphabet network had been wooing Abdul since last summer when she officially announced her departure from Idol," writes Ausiello. "There was talk of her joining Dancing With the Stars in some capacity, but a deal never came to fruition. It’s not clear if Abdul’s Star Search gig would preclude her from joining former colleague Simon Cowell as a judge on the forthcoming US version of his UK monster hit, The X Factor, which is slated to debut on Fox in the fall of 2011. (Star Search is being targeted for this summer.)" (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos has confirmed reports that Katherine Heigl will leave ABC's Grey's Anatomy. "A source in Katherine Heigl's camp tells me that the actress was never given a call time to return to work on the Grey's Anatomy set after her family leave ended earlier this month," wrote Dos Santos in an update. "According to this source, Heigl's 'calls weren't returned' when she phoned in asking when to report back. I'm also hearing that a statement may be made regarding this matter later this week." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Season Three of HBO's True Blood will launch on Sunday, June 13th at 9 pm ET/PT. (Televisionary)

Pilot casting update: Treat Williams (Everwood) will star opposite Katee Sackhoff (24) in Richard Hatem's ABC drama pilot Boston's Finest; Donnie Wahlberg (Runaway) and Len Cariou (Damages) have been cast as the leads in CBS' untitled Burgess/Green cop drama pilot (a.k.a. Reagan's Law); Melissa Sagemiller (Raising the Bar) has joined the cast of NBC drama pilot Rockford Files; and Anthony Ruivivar (Traveler) has come aboard ABC drama pilot The Whole Truth. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stephen Lang (Avatar) has been cast in ABC drama pilot Matadors, where he will play Victor Galloway, a high-powered defense attorney who is called "The King of Acquittal." Elsewhere, former My Name is Earl star Ethan Suplee has been cast in FOX comedy pilot Nevermind Nirvana. (Variety)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Carrie Preston (True Blood) has signed on for a multiple-episode story arc on CBS' The Good Wife this season, where she will play Elsbeth Mann, described as "a member of Peter's (Chris Noth) legal team." Just don't read too much into the casting. "Arlene isn’t a major presence in the third book," a True Blood insider told Ausiello. "A lot of the action takes place outside of Bon Temps, so [Carrie] probably had some free time on her hands." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Italian actress Elisabetta Canalis has been cast in a five-episode story arc on Season Three of TNT drama series Leverage, where she will play "an intriguing woman with an unknown agenda" known only as The Italian. (via press release)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Amy Pietz (Caroline in the City) has been cast in a top-secret role on NBC's The Office, where she will appear in a multiple-episode story arc. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

20th Century Fox Television has signed an overall deal with Brannon Braga (FlashForward), under which he will develop new series projects for the studio and will likely be placed on a new or existing series next season. Braga has been based at the studio for the last few seasons working on 24 but co-created ABC's FlashForward. "He's known for his ability to write genre programming, and as a studio, we love that programming," said 20th Century Fox Television chairman Gary Newman. "It takes advantage of all the new opportunities the digital world gives you to connect with your rabid fanbase." (Variety)

BBC One has commissioned four-part drama Siege, about a botched kidnapping attempt at a London secondary school, that it will air over four consecutive nights. Script is written by Kate Brook and hails from Big Talk, Nira Park's production company which was behind such television series and films as Spaced, Shaun of the Dead, and Hot Fuzz. (Guardian)

Retired Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens (Seabiscuit) has been cast in HBO's horseracing drama pilot Luck, where he will play a "down-and-out jocket who attempts to make a comeback, both personally and professionally," in the pilot which is executive produced by David Milch, Michael Mann, and Carolyn Strauss. (Variety)

Discovery has ordered six episodes of reality series Worst Case Scenario, which will feature Bear Grylls demonstrating how best to survive disasters from shark attacks to falling elevators. Series, from Pilgrim Films & TV, is expected to launch this spring. (Hollywood Reporter)

Bravo has renewed docusoap Millionaire Matchmaker for a fourth season, which will move Patti Stanger from Los Angeles to New York as she expands her business and prepares for her own wedding. (Hollywood Reporter)

Nestor Serrano (The Good Wife) will guest star on an upcoming episode of USA's Burn Notice next season. He'll play Tony, described as "a ruthless, ambitious crime boss who runs things in Miami for a New York-based criminal syndicate. He's a suspect in seven murders but always manages to keep his hands clean of evidence that could put him away. He leads a group of thugs who shake down the dock workers and steal from them on a daily basis." Burn Notice returns in June. (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

VH1 will debut celebrity reality dating series What Chilli Wants, which will follow former TLC member Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas as she attempts to find love with the help of relationship expert Tionna Smalls, on Sunday, April 11th at 10:30 pm ET/PT. Series, from FremantleMedia North America, will have its first episode offered as a sneak peek on VH1's website beginning March 29th. (Variety)

Elsewhere, MTV has announced that it will premiere its new scripted comedy series The Hard Times of RJ Berger on June 6th at 11 pm ET/PT, immediately following the MTV Movie Awards. It will move to its regular timeslot of Mondays at 10 pm beginning June 14th. (Hollywood Reporter)

The CW has opted to flip its new Wednesday night reality programming block, with High Society moving to 9:30 pm ET/PT and newcomer Fly Girls airing at 9 pm ET/PT. (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: "Fringe" to Go on Hiatus in February, FOX Announces Midseason Schedule, "Lie to Me" Gets Full Season, "Burn Notice" Renewed, and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing. Just a few headlines to get through today as the Hollywood PR machine begins its annual shutdown for Thanksgiving.

Futon Critic yesterday broke the story that Fringe will go on a seven-week hiatus beginning February 11th in order to accommodate the seven-week run of reincarnation drama Past Life. Fringe will return for the remainder of its run on April 1st and will air all-new episodes for the rest of the season. Sadly, FOX has opted to keep Fringe in its Thursday night berth rather than move it out of the line of fire. (Futon Critic)

FOX announced its full midseason schedule yesterday afternoon, which included news that Glee will be returning with new episodes in April after wrapping up its initial thirteen-episode commitment in December. (Televisionary)

In other FOX-related news, the network has given sophomore drama series Lie to Me a full season order, bringing the episodic total this season to 22 installments. News comes after FOX ordered three additional scripts for the Shawn Ryan-produced series but there's no indication as of yet when Lie to Me will return to the schedule or in what timeslot. (Hollywood Reporter)

USA has renewed Burn Notice for a fourth season, according to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello, who is reporting that despite press reports in July about a renewal, a deal for Season Four only came together on Monday. Burn Notice's fourth season would likely launch in summer 2010. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Lea Thompson has been cast in ABC Family's Greek, where she will play April, the free-spirited mother of Scott Michael Foster's Cappie. (24's Jim Abele will play his father Tobias.) Thompson and Abele are set to appear in the latter half of Greek's next ten-episode cycle, which kicks off on January 25th. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Carolina Lightcap has been named president of Disney Channels Worldwide effective immediately. Lightcap replaces Rich Ross, who left the division last month to become become chairman of Walt Disney Studios. (Hollywood Reporter)

TiVo has signed a deal with Virgin Media in the UK to roll out a set-top box that will be co-branded and allow broadband delivery. "TiVo’s proven track record of innovation, strength of its patented technology and experience in developing best in class user environments, make it an ideal strategic partner for Virgin Media as we move aggressively to bring our next generation TV service to market," said Virgin's CEO Neil Berkett. "The superiority of our fibre optic network combined with TiVo’s capabilities, will allow us to offer consumers the most significantly advanced and compelling TV service available in the UK, and we believe will do to the TV market what Virgin Media has done to the high speed broadband market." (Broadcast)

CMT has ordered Posse: The Young Guns of PBR, a one-hour special that follows eight pro bull riders as they travel across the US looking to become the next Professional Bull Rider champion. Special will air on December 12th. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Zooey Deschanel Could Guest Star on "Bones," FOX Slates First "Glee" Soundtrack, NBC to Get "More Colorful," and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

It seems like the stars are finally aligning. Producers on FOX's Bones are in talks with Zooey Deschanel to guest star on the procedural crime drama in December as the cousin of real-life sister Emily Deschanel's Brennan, according to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello. "We’ve been looking for an opportunity to get the Deschanel girls together," said Bones creator/executive producer Hart Hanson, "but Zooey’s rockin’ career kept getting in the way... We alluded to [her] having a cousin in Minnesota two seasons ago. I’d very much like to meet her in the Christmas episode." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

As previously reported on this site, 20th Century Fox Television is teaming up with Columbia Records on a series of soundtracks for FOX's upcoming series Glee. The first release, "Glee: The Music, Volume 1," will contain seventeen tracks from the series' first season (including Queen's "Somebody to Love," Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline" and Kanye West's "Gold Digger") and will debut on November 3rd. (Hollywood Reporter)

NBC has unveiled its new marketing slogan, "more colorful," which is reportedly intended to "reference both NBC's Peacock heritage and the net's famous '60s-era bumpers, which promised 'the following program is brought to you in living color on NBC,'" according to Variety's Michael Schneider. The new tagline will launch on September 14th, the same day that the Peacock will premiere Jay Leno's new 10 pm weeknightly series. (Variety)

So Twitter. FOX will use Twitter later this week during repeat broadcasts of both Glee and Fringe, during which cast members and producers will use the social networking platform to tweet live updates during the telecasts that will be displayed on-air in a scroll at the bottom of the screen. Fringe's Joshua Jackson, John Noble, Jeff Pinkner, and J.H. Wyman will participate, while Glee's Lea Michele, Kevin McHale, Mark Salling, Cory Monteith, Amber Riley, and Chris Colfer are all set to join them when FOX repeats the pilot of Glee on Friday evening. (Variety)

Casting alert! Kate Mulgrew (Star Trek: Voyager) has been cast in NBC's medical drama Mercy, where she will play Jeannie Flanagan, the mother of Taylor Schilling's Veronica. Elsewhere, Jesse Williams (Greek) will appear in a multiple-episode story arc on ABC's Grey's Anatomy, though producers are keeping details about his character firmly under wraps. Matthew Levy will star opposite Tyler Labine in FOX's midseason comedy Sons of Tucson as the eldest of the three brothers, Joshua Leonard (Humpday) will recur on Season Two of Showtime's United States of Tara as "boho-trustifarian" Ricky, and Mido Hamada (Path to 9/11) will recur on FOX's 24 as "Mehran, the leader of a group of operatives in an Islamic country working against their president." (Hollywood Reporter)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Garret Dillahunt (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) will guest star in USA's Burn Notice, where he will play Simon, described by Ausiello as "a scary-smart new client of Michael’s (Jeffrey Donovan) — and perhaps the first person to outsmart him." Dillahunt's episode, which also features John Mahoney, is slated to air this winter. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Brenda Blethyn (Atonement) will star in Hidden Depths, a new murder mystery series on UK's ITV based on the novel by Ann Cleeves. Blethyn will play Vera Stanhope, a detective inspector in Northumberland who is on the trail of a murderer who left the bodies of two young people in the water. Project will be adapted by Paul Rutman and executive produced by kate Bartlett. (Guardian)

It's the end of the rainbow. PBS has announced that long-running children's series Reading Rainbow aired its final episode on Friday, after a run that began in 1983. (Hollywood Reporter)

Supernatural creator Eric Kripke told Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello that he is sticking to his five-year plan for the drama series and intends to wrap up the storyline at the end of next season. But there's a rather big catch. "I did set out [to] tell a five-season storyline," said Kripke. "Quite frankly, I never expected [the show] to make it to five years. But now that we’re in our fifth year, I have every intention of ending the story with a bang and not drawing it out or watering it down.... That having been said, I’m looking at this season as the last chapter in this particular story. That doesn’t mean there can’t be a new story. Buffy did it. The X-Files did it. You close a chapter on a big mythology storyline and then you begin a new one." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

ABC has given a script order to an untitled multi-camera comedy project from writer/executive producers Matt Williams (Roseanne), Carmen Finestra, and David McFadzean and ABC Studios about a sports psychologist who runs his practice out of his house and tries to juggle his career with his role as a father of three and a husband. (Hollywood Reporter)

BBC Three has announced three new commissions including drama Lip Service, about the "sex lives and love affairs of twenty-something lesbians living in contemporary Glasgow" from Harriet Braun (Mistresses), comedy Mouth to Mouth, about the "complicated and sometimes funny issues of personal identity, following the year-in-the-life story of six young people," and news-based entertainment series Russell Howard's Good News, in which Howard draws conclusions from the top news stories as well as smaller stories which may not have gotten any ink (digital or otherwise). (BBC)

TLC has ordered twelve episodes of docusoap King of the Crown, which will follow Cy Frakes, professional beauty queen coach as he trains his clients "how to perfect their walk, style hair, and smile on cue." The cabler will debut the series, from Five Five Prods. and Discovery Studios, on Wednesday, September 30th. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Elizabeth Mitchell Talks "Lost" and "V," Gabrielle Union Gets "FlashForward," USA Renews "Burn" and "Pains," and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing. I had an amazing time at the Mighty Boosh's secret show at the Roxy last night and found myself singing "Nanageddon" as I tried to go to sleep.

E! Online's Watch with Kristin has an exclusive interview with Lost star Elizabeth Mitchell, who toplines the upcoming remake of V on ABC. Describing her character on V, Mitchell said: "Erica is a federal agent doing counter-terrorism. She deals with finding sleeper cells and basically eradicating them as much as possible. She's smart and intelligent and all the things that you would want someone who is protecting our country to be. I must have a hero complex—I keep gravitating toward these roles. She has a son, and she's in love with her son, and her son is in love with the Visitors. She has to deal with the fact that she has to save him for the most part. Her husband just left her, so she's a brokenhearted counterterrorist detective." Mitchell also discusses the final season of Lost, Juliet's relationship with Sawyer, and what her V role means for Juliet's presence on Lost's sixth season. (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Gabrielle Union (Ugly Betty) has been cast on ABC's fall drama series FlashForward in the recurring role of Zoey, described in press materials as "a criminal defense attorney who will have a romantic arc" on the series' freshman season. "We're thrilled that Gabrielle is joining our cast," said FlashForward executive producer David S. Goyer. "When we met with her, we immediately knew she was our Zoey. She's witty, soulful and beautiful. I've been wanting to work with her for a long time." (via press release)

In a move that will surprise no one, USA has renewed summer drama series Burn Notice and Royal Pains, with Burn Notice getting a fourth season order and Royal Pains getting a sophomore season. Both series landed in the top 20 programs on ad-supported cable for the month of July. (Hollywood Reporter)

Alfre Woodard (Desperate Housewives) has joined the cast of CBS' medical drama Three Rivers, where she will play female lead Sophia Jordan, the head of surgery at Three Rivers Hospital, a role originally played by Julia Ormond in the original pilot. In other recasting news, Heather Stephens (Saved) has replaced Reiko Aylesworth in ABC drama series The Forgotten, where she will play Lindsay, an amateur sleuth whose husband is jailed for unknown crimes and who must care for her baby on her own. (Hollywood Reporter)

FX has given a thirteen-episode series order to Lawman, starring Timothy Olyphant. Series, from Sony Pictures Television and FX, is based on an Elmore Leonard short story and is written and executive produced by Graham Yost (Boomtown). Series is expected to launch in spring 2010. (Televisionary)

Robert Knepper (Prison Break) has been promoted to series regular on NBC's Heroes, where next season he plays Samuel, the "charismatic but evil Earth-moving ringleader of a traveling carnival who recruits people with special powers for a mysterious purpose." (Hollywood Reporter)

Starz has ordered ten episodes of half-hour dark comedy Failure to Fly from Eric Schaeffer (Starved) and Jill Franklyn (Seinfeld) about a support group for people who once tried to kill themselves but are now relishing their second chance at life. Schaeffer will star and executive produce in the series, which is expected to launch in spring 2010. Also on tap at Starz: one-hour coming-of-age drama Waterloo from writer/executive producer Rob Thomas (Veronica Mars) about a rock band; Jonah and the Whale, from executive producers Matthew McConaughey, Mark Gustawes, and Chad Mountain, about a man's efforts to find his own life outside the shadow of his famous and disapproving father; an untitled interracial romance from executive producer Martin Lawrence and writer Michael Scoccio; and an untitled drama about a female fashion photographer from executive producers Chris Albrect and Rob Lee. (Variety)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello talks with CSI executive producers Carol Mendelsohn and Naren Shankar about the previously reported return of Jorja Fox to the seires for five episodes next season. "We had several major characters departing over the last year and a half, and it felt like the family had disintegrated a little bit," said Shankar. "We had people off in their own bubbles, and that suggested a theme for this season, which is really about family. We wanted to restore that balance of the family. And that initial creative impulse led to the notion of Jorja coming back and helping to assist with that." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

TBS has announced that George Lopez' latenight talk show Lopez Tonight will launch on November 9th at 11 pm ET/PT. (Variety)

The Beautiful Life's Elle Macpherson and Corbin Bleu have been upped to series regulars on the CW fall drama after they guest starred in the pilot episode in recurring roles; Macpherson played a former supermodel who now owns a top agency in Manhattan while Bleu played a male model. (Hollywood Reporter)

Animal Planet is launching a series of quarterly-scheduled investigative documentaries that explore controversial animal-related issues. First up is Dogfighting: An Animal Investigates Special that will launch in January; future installments will explore animal testing, exotic pets, gang dogs, cloning, and slaughterhouses. (Variety)

TV Guide Network has hired Carrie Ann Inaba (Dancing with the Stars) and Chris Harrison (The Bachelor) as their on-air red-carpet correspondents, replacing Lisa Rinna and Joey Fatone. Their first appearance is set for the Primetime Emmy Awards on September 20th. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Bryan Fuller Leaves "Heroes" Again, Cross, Jonze, and Arnett Team Up, "Doctor Who," Justin Kirk Talks "Weeds," and More

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing.

Pushing Daisies creator Bryan Fuller has left his position as consulting producer on NBC's Heroes, just a few months after he rejoined the writing staff of the NBC drama. The reason behind the departure: to focus on developing new series for the network (he has an overall deal with Universal Media Studios), rather than creative differences with Heroes creator Tim Kring. "I'm crafting two pilots right now and it's a lot of work," Fuller told Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello. "It was just too hard to [juggle] Heroes and my development; something had to give." Meanwhile, Fuller told Ain't It Cool News' Herc, ""Development was really starting to heat up, And it appears like I may be writing multiple pilots for NBC so that wasn't leaving a ton of room for Heroes, unfortunately. We crafted some really great arcs for the season that I'm excited to see come to fruition. I love that cast dearly and am sad to go, but the plate -- she was over-flowing." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files, Ain't It Cool News)

Holy comedy legends: David Cross has written a comedy pilot entitled The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret for UK's Channel 4 with Extras' Shaun Pye that will star Arrested Development's Will Arnett, Being Human's Russell Tovey, and director Spike Jonze (who appeared on-screen in feature film Three Kings). The pilot, produced by RDF Media, is slated to air this winter. "I shot a pilot for Channel 4," Cross told The Los Angeles Times. And it’ll air, I believe, in December. When we picture-lock on Friday, it will be almost two years to the day that I was first approached by those guys. The cast is a crazy dream team." As for the plot, here's the official description from the RDF Media site: "American Todd Margaret (David Cross) bluffs his way into an apparently great job opportunity, heading up the sales team in his employer’s London office. All he has to do is sell several thousand energy drinks before his boss visits him in a week. Simple. Apart from the fact that he knows nothing about British culture and nothing about sales. This is further complicated when he lies continuously to cover his ignorance and spectacularly fails to impress Alice the first beautiful girl he meets. Dave his British co-worker, soon takes full advantage of Todd’s situation and chaos ensues." (Los Angeles Times, via /Film)

BBC has denied reports made by British paper The Mirror, which claimed that the channel would air an "all-Doctors reunion" installment of Doctor Who during this year's Children in Need charity campaign. According to The Mirror, David Tennant would reprise his role as the Doctor and call upon every other incarnation of his character (including Matt Smith's upcoming Eleventh Doctor) in order to help him retrieve a missing piece of Time Lord paraphernalia... and that William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, and Jon Pertwee would also appear on the series via archival footage. (All three, who played the Doctor's first three incarnations are all deceased.) "Nothing has been finalised yet, although there is discussion of a Children in Need Doctor Who special," said a BBC spokesperson. "It is too early to say what." (Digital Spy)

Weeds' Justin Kirk dishes about Alanis Morrisette, Kate del Castillo, Andy's relationship with Nancy, and Jennifer Jason Leigh's Jill. And, oh, a familiar face from the past is set to return this season. (Hmmm.) "I don't know what's going to happen," said Kirk of Andy's relationship with Nancy (Mary-Louise Parker). "But I like exploring that world. I would like that relationship to go on. I think their relationship, whether it's consummated or not, remains to be seen. But it's one that is a lot of fun to do, and I like working with Mary-Louise, so I hope it goes on. Sometimes it's heartbreaking and sometimes it's funny." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

USA's Burn Notice will definitely be having a presence at this year's Comic-Con next month, according to The Chicago Tribune's Maureen Ryan. Executive producer Mikkel Bondesen announced that Burn Notice would be hosting a panel next month via Twitter that will include creator Matt Nix, though Ryan says that the network has confirmed the panel but hasn't yet confirmed the date. (Chicago Tribune's The Watcher)

VH1 has given a series order to RDF USA's docuseries The Price of Beauty, which will feature Jessica Simpson traveling the world "to meet every day women as well as some local pop culture icons" and "study local fashions, dietary fads and beauty regimes and even participate in some of the extreme practices she discovers." The series, which will begin shooting next month, is executive produced by Jessica Simpson, Joe Simpson, Chris Coelen, Claire O'Donohoe, Greg Goldman, Jeff Olde, Jill Holmes, Alex Demyanenko, and Sean Boyle. (Hollywood Reporter)

Bravo's weekly topical, interactive series Watch What Happens: Live, hosted by Andy Cohen, will launch on Thursday, July 16th at midnight ET/PT. The series will feature Cohen talking to guests from Bravo's stable of series as well as celebrities from other areas of entertainment to "chat about what has transpired on-air and in pop culture that week for a live half-hour full of viewer interaction." The network also promises that viewers will be able to interact "via email, phone, video, Twitter and Facebook." Series is produced by Embassy Row and executive producer Michael Davies. (via press release)

NBC's launch of British acquisition Merlin reached an average of five million viewers on Sunday, less than that for the US Open golfing championship but more than those who tuned in for ABC's mini-series Impact, which only garnered 4.7 million viewers. (New York Times)

Despite the announcement that series stars Jon and Kate Gosselin will be divorcing, TLC has confirmed that docusoap Jon & Kate Plus 8 will continue. "The show must go on," said Kate Gosselin on camera. (Variety)

Actress Kathryn Hahn is said to be developing a pilot script at Sony Pictures Television with her husband, writer Ethan Sandler, which will be a potential starring vehicle for Hahn. Details about the script's plot are being kept firmly under wraps. (Hollywood Reporter)

Robbie Coltrane, Helena Bonham Carter, Rob Brydon, James Corden, John Hurt, and Tom Wilkinson will lend their voices to one-off animated Christmas special The Gruffalo, based on Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler's children's book, which BBC One will air this winter. (BBC)

Former Dominant Pictures executive Ben Spector has been hired by Tollin Prods, as EVP of television, where he will develop scripted projects for the shingle, overseen by produced Mike Tollin. (Variety)

FOX has hired Ron Taylor as VP of diverse programming and content, where he will identify and develop scripts that contain diversity-based themes or are written by minorities, as well as advise producers of scripted projects at the network about how to "expand a diversity presence to those comedies and dramas." Taylor will report to Matt Cherniss. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Katee Sackhoff Clocks in for "24," Dominic Monaghan Presses "Flash Forward," "Earl" Could Live on TBS, and More

Welcome to your (very early) Tuesday morning television briefing.

In a rather major casting coup, FOX's 24 has cast former Battlestar Galactica star Katee Sackhoff as a series regular in Day Eight, where she will play Dana Walsh, a "highly respected and down-to-earth data analyst at the new and improved New York branch of CTU" who is romantically involved with Freddie Prinze Jr.'s Davis Cole and has a "skeleton in her closet she's trying desperately to keep hidden." Sackhoff joins such Day Eight players as Prinze, Mykelti Williamson, Jennifer Westfeldt, Chris Diamantopoulous, John Boyd, and Anil Kapoor. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

It's now believed that Lost's Dominic Monaghan will be joining the cast of ABC's Flash Forward this fall. IGN's Eric Goldman is reporting, citing reports from an undisclosed insider, that Monaghan will be joining Flash Forward and that the actor, who played Charlie Pace on Lost, will "likely have a major role" on the series. Still, ABC isn't commenting at this time. "There is a lot of speculation out there right now," said an ABC spokesperson, "but we're not confirming any casting at this point." (IGN)

Reports of My Name is Earl's demise may have been premature. Variety's Cynthia Littleton is reporting that studio 20th Century Fox Television is in discussions with cabler TBS about a possible thirteen-episode run. "The talks for new episodes are said to be in the very preliminary stages," writes Littleton, "and it's far from certain that a deal will be reached, insiders cautioned." (Variety)

Rufus Sewell (Eleventh Hour), Ian McShane (Kings), Matthew Macfadyen (Spooks), Sarah Parish (The Holiday), Eddie Redmayne (The Other Boleyn Girl), Hayley Atwell (Brideshead Revisited), and Donald Sutherland (Dirty Sexy Money) have signed on to star in Tandem and Muse's eight-hour international mini-series Pillars of the Earth, based on Ken Follett's novel of the same name. Shooting begins June 22nd for a launch date in the later part of 2010. So far, no US or UK broadcast networks have come on board to co-produce though the production has a US DVD sales deal with Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. (Hollywood Reporter)

USA is launching Season Four of Psych and Season Eight of Monk (the series' last) on August 7th while Burn Notice will wrap the first half of its season on August 6th before returning in early 2010. (Futon Critic)

In other Burn Notice news, producers are trying to lure Sharon Gless' former Cagney & Lacey co-star Tyne Dale to guest star in an episode slated to air in early 2010, according to Michael Ausiello. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

David Letterman is said to be in talks about remaining at the helm of CBS' Late Show for three more years, through the 2011-12 season, though the series will see a reduction in license fee. (Variety, Hollywood Reporter)

Lifetime is launching original drama series Drop Dead Diva, starring Brooke Elliott, Margaret Cho, Jackson Hurst, Kate Levering, April Bowlby, and Josh Stamberg, on Sunday, July 12th at 9 pm ET/PT. Series, created/executive produced by Josh Berman (Bones), hails from Sony Pictures Television. (via press release)

More recasting on NBC's comedy series 100 Questions, which will see the roles played in the pilot by Elizabeth Ho and Joy Suprano recast. The news comes on the heels of the announcement that Amir Talai would be recast as well, which leaves only three of the series regulars--Sophie Winkleman, David Walton, and (creator) Christopher Moynihan--on board. Meanwhile, Alex Hardcastle (Krod Mandoon and the Flaming Sword of Fire) has come on board 100 Questions as the house director and will likely also retain some sort of producer credit. (Hollywood Reporter)

Daytime syndicated talk show Rachael Ray has been renewed through the 2011-12 season. (Hollywood Reporter)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that producers on CBS' Ghost Whisperer are considering moving the series's storyline five years in the future, in order to "introduce Jim and Melinda's son as a pre-schooler instead of as a newborn," said Ausiello, citing an unnamed insider. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Season Three of The Bill Engvall Show will kick off on Saturday, July 18th at 9 pm ET/PT. (via press release)

Former Crown Media Holdings President/CEO Henry Schleiff has been named president and general manager of fledgling cabler Investigation Discovery. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Team Darlton Talk "Lost" Series Finale, Pasdar Says Quinto Not Going Anywhere, Shenkman Joins Cast of "Burn Notice," and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing.

With the 100th episode of Lost set to air tonight on ABC, many are already looking to the series' next milestone: the all-important series finale, set for May, 2010, and viewers are bound to have high expectations when creators Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse wrap up the series. "We can't let those expectations terrify us," said Lindelof in an interview with Variety's Shawn Malcom. "The reality is, we've known what the series finale is going to be for a while now." In fact, the real variable is how the series' characters wind up at the end point charted by Lindelof and Cuse. "The path that we take to the end still has some room for surprises and changes and discoveries along the way (in terms of) the characters' journeys and how their relationships evolve," said Cuse. While the duo wouldn't reveal any specifics about the finale, they did say that fans will be left wanting more. "When we say more, we don't mean answers," said Lindelof, "because hopefully, the show will wrap up in an incredibly satisfying way, both mythologically and emotionally." (Variety)

Wondering if Zachary Quinto will be sticking around NBC's Heroes next season? "Zach [Quinto]'s not done. There's Nathan, there's Sylar, and there's the point of view that you have to factor in. If I look up into the mirror, who would I see?" said Heroes' Adrian Pasdar, who teased an epic battle between Nathan and Sylar in Season Four of the series. "Who's going to be able to control the actions of the body? Like one of those computers that self-teaches, the longer he stays in my body and the longer he assimilates my physical structure and DNA, the more control I get. So it becomes a battle of who's in charge." (TVGuide.com)

Ben Shenkman (Grey's Anatomy) has been cast in at least four episodes of Season Three of USA's Burn Notice. Shenkman will play Tom Strickler, a "smooth-talking, gregarious freelance spy broker who offers to cancel Michael's (Jeffrey Donovan) burn notice in exchange for an unspecified -- and potentially lethal -- job." Look for Shenkman to first turn up about halfway through the season. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Sasha Roiz (Unthinkable), who played the brother of Joseph Adama (Esai Morales) in the backdoor pilot for Sci Fi's Caprica as a guest star, has been upgraded to series regular on the series. Elsewhere, Callard Harris (Roommates) has joined the cast of FX's Sons of Anarchy, where he will play an Irish gun trafficker in the second season of the drama series. (Hollywood Reporter)

Former General Hospital actor and "Jesse's Girl" singer Rick Springfield will play himself in four episodes of the upcoming third season of Showtime's Calfornication. Springfield was cast on the series after producers posted a casting call looking for "an actor who experienced huge fame in the 80's to play themselves as a now down-on his-luck-ex-celebrity waiting tables to get by." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Looking for more Lost goodies on the day of the 100th episode? Variety takes you behind the scenes of the writers' room in Burbank, far away from the lush jungles of the series' set in Oahu, Hawaii. The Hollywood Reporter offers a look back at journey of Lost over the last 100 episodes, offering a timeline of the series's real-life history and discussing making the original pilot. ("The fact that no one believed 'Lost' was going to be successful in the beginning was enormously liberating," Cuse says. "So we set out to make 12 episodes of what we thought was the coolest TV show we could come up with and in so doing we violated a lot of the traditional rules of television narrative. We had characters who were murderers and had done very bad things. We had incredibly complex serialized storytelling. We had lots of intentional ambiguity, leaving the audience lots of room for interpretation and those things that sort of violated the rules of television were the very things that the audience ended up responding to.") Variety also talks to script coordinator Gregg Nations, who maintains the series' gargantuan bible.

Stargate Universe co-creator Robert C. Cooper has confirmed that the upcoming Sci Fi series is influenced by Joss Whedon's short-lived FOX drama Firefly. "The concept is that we wanted to shoot this a little bit like a documentary crew would shoot a ride-along to a space ship out in the universe - that maybe we could get audiences to embrace the science fiction elements and the characters in a realistic way if we shot the show using the 'language' of documentary and reality," Cooper told crowds gathered at this weekend's Stargate convention. "It's not intended to be style for style's sake, or to emulate any other show. Although, to be honest with you, one of the shows we love that we did look at and say, 'That's a style we would love to try and approach' is Firefly. That's how Firefly was shot. There's a lot of handheld stuff. Cameras were placed in places that were non-traditional or [not] typical of filmmaking." (Gateworld)

MTV will be continuing docusoap The Hills without Lauren Conrad. The cabler ordered a ninth season of the reality hit, which will air new episodes this fall. While Conrad is departing the series, fans can expect to see more of Heidi, Audrina, Spencer, Brody, Stephanie, Lo, and Justin Bobby this fall. MTV also announced a slew of new series including The Alexa Chung Show, The Buried Life, DJ and the Fro, The Stylist, Ultimate Parkour Challenge, Pranked, Popzilla, Gone Too Far, and Disaster Date. (via press release)

NBC has given a seven-episode series order to Steve Schirripa-hosted reality series Face the Ace, in which contestants--who are found via an online search--battle it out against poker players in Las Vegas. Series, from Poker Prods., will launch on August 1st at 9 pm and, after two airings, will then run during Saturday afternoons in September. (Variety)

Eighteen years after seminal drama series thirtysomething went off the air, fans will finally get to purchase the DVD of the first season of Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick's series. Season One will be available for purchase on August 25th, with a new DVD volume planned for the series every six months after that. The delay was once again caused by expensive music clearances but Garson Foos, president of Shout! Factory, now says, "It doesn't look like we'll be cutting any music from the show." (Los Angeles Times)

RDF USA has hired former E! staffer Jennifer Danska as SVP of development and current, named former Painless Prods. exec Kevin Shinnick as VP of production, promoted Andy Lennon to CFO, and promoted Miranda Wang to VP of business and legal affairs. (Variety)

Elisabeth Murdoch's Shine Group has purchased Nordic production company Metronome Film & Television AB for approximately $88 million. "It has always been my intention to expand the existing Shine Group companies with the finest creative and entrepreneurial minds from the key markets we have identified, and each Metronome company more than meets this criteria," said Murdoch. "Their addition gives us an unrivalled presence in a market with a well-earned reputation as the birthplace of so many successful international formats." (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: NBC Dethrones "Kings" Until June, Team Darlton Talks "Lost," ABC Circles "Old Christine," and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing.

NBC has pulled freshman drama Kings from its schedule, effective immediately. The drama was originally set to air on Thursday evenings but the Peacock shifted it to Sundays, where it aired four low-rated episodes before being pushed to the graveyard on Saturday nights. NBC has once again managed to surprise, this time by pulling Kings from its lineup altogether, although the network has pledged to return Kings to the schedule on June 13th, when it will begin to burn off the remainder of the series' unaired installments on Saturday nights at 8 pm. In the meantime, NBC will air repeats of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Southland, and Law & Order on Saturdays. (Hollywood Reporter)

Variety's Season Pass has a brand-new Q&A with Lost executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse as they look back at the five seasons that have gone by and the final season yet to come. "I think our hope is that looking back on the entire run of the show, that people remember the EXPERIENCE of watching it — what it actually felt like to be mystified and frustrated and surprised — as opposed to just where it landed storywise," said Lindelof. "When all is said and done, we’ll have consumed six years of our fans’ lives and our greatest wish is that they look back on that time and feel that it was all worth it. As far as whether we’ll want to revisit Lost 20 years from now, the answer is probably no… though it would be pretty cool to see what someone else might come up with!" Team Darlton also talks about the death of Mr. Eko, an aborted Sawyer plotline with Joelen Blalock, and which works of literature have most directly influenced them. (Variety's Season Pass)

ABC is making eyes at Old Christine. The Alphabet has made it clear that they are looking to pickup comedy series Old Christine once again, should CBS opt not to renew the Warner Bros. Television-produced series starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus. According to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello, who claims that unnamed sources close to production have told him that "WB execs are engaged in active discussions with ABC about picking up the four-year-old comedy, which once again finds itself on the dreaded bubble at CBS." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Meanwhile, ABC has pulled struggling comedies Samantha Who? and In the Motherhood from its schedule much sooner than anticipated. Both were slated to air one final episode this Thursday evening but ABC has opted instead to pull both series and instead and air a repeat of Grey's Anatomy in the 8 pm ET/PT hour. It's not expected that ABC will renew In the Motherhood, but Samantha Who? is said to have decent chances of returning next season. (Variety)

Lifetime will debut the long-delayed sixth season of reality competition series Project Runway on Thursday, August 20th at 10 pm ET/PT, followed by half-hour behind-the-scenes spin-off Models of the Runway at 11 pm. The network also announced launch dates for new scripted dramedy Drop Dead Diva on July 12th and the third season of Army Wives on June 7th. (Variety, Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider)

The Washington Post talks to former Wire star Idris Elba--currently appearing in a multiple-episode story arc on NBC's The Office--about his career as an actor and DJ/musical artist, The Wire's Stringer Bell, working on The Office, and being a sex symbol. Of the latter, Elba said, "It's weird because, you know, I've been just the ordinary chap for 30 odd years and suddenly, I'm going into this [situation]: "Oh my God, all the ladies love you!" And I'm like, "Huh? Me? It doesn't make any sense!" I didn't grow up like some sort of sex symbol. It does make a gentleman walk with a stride in his step, believe me." (Washington Post)

ABC's Ugly Betty has locked The View hosts Elisabeth Hasselbeck and Joy Behar for guest roles on the May 21st episode, in which Daniel Meade (Eric Mabius) appears on The View to "discuss his management of Mode magazine (because that always happens), but instead becomes the target of their daily 'Hot Topics' segment." (The episode will also, according to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello, feature Rachel Dratch in a guest role as a Mode staffer.) (TVGuide.com)

Elsewhere, Embeth Davidtz (In Treatment) has been cast in a ten-episode story arc on Season Three of Showtime's Californication, where she will play the wife of Peter Gallagher's character, the dean at the college where David Duchovny works. And Alicia Witt (Law & Order: Criminal Intent) will also guest star on Californication as a gyneocologist whom Duchovny's Hank falls for, while Michael Weston (House) will guest star on an upcoming episode of USA's Burn Notice, where he will play a mentally unbalanced MIT grad who uncovers a scheme to sell the names of undercover spies. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Food Network has ordered three new primetime series, including Chefs vs. City, in which chefs Chris Cosentino and Aaron Sanchez face off against local foodies in various cities each week, which launches in July; Extreme Cuisine With Jeff Corwin, which launches in September, and Worst Cooks in America, which follows chefs Anne Burrell and Beau MacMillan as each train six woeful home cooks and attempt to transform them into top chefs in ten days' time. The latter is slated to launch in January 2010. Also on tap for next year: mini-series Foods That Changed the World, hosted by Alton Brown, which will debut in third quarter 2010. (Hollywood Reporter)

FTVS has signed a first look deal with Initial A's Andrew Lau (Infernal Affairs) and Andrew Loo and Zinc Media's Zach Sherman in an effort to jointly develop new English-language programming for FTVS that could be produced in Southeast Asia and then sold back into the US and globally, much like the studio is doing with such drama series as Mental, Persons Unknown, and Defying Gravity. (Variety)

A federal judge has denied disgraced former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich's request to travel to Costa Rica in order to participate in NBC's upcoming reality series I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, refusing to loosen Blagojevich's travel restrictions. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Freddie Prinze Jr. Dons Cape for "No Heroics," Bloodgood Subs in for Esposito, Sherry Stringfield Gets "Back," "Rome," and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing.

Freddie Prinze Jr. (Freddie) has been cast as one of the leads in ABC's US remake of UK comedy series No Heroics. In the ABC Studios-produced pilot, Prinze will play Bradley (a.k.a. Ultimatum), a cocky celebrity superhero with no shortage of women, arrogance, or grade-school quips. He joins the already cast Paul Campbell, Eliza Coupe, and Arielle Kebbel. (Hollywood Reporter)

Just days after announcing that Samantha Who? star Jennifer Esposito had been cast in USA's Burn Notice, the actress has dropped out of the role. No reason was given for Esposito's departure from the series, where she was to have played Miami police detective Michelle Paxon, a new adversary for Jeffrey Donovan's Michael Weston. Stepping in to replace Esposito: Moon Bloodgood (Journeyman), who will assume the role of Michelle. Production on Burn Notice's third season is currently underway. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Sherry Stringfield (ER) has been cast opposite Skeet Ulrich in the CBS drama pilot Back, where she will play Cheryl, the former wife of Ulrich's Richard, a man reported missing after 9/11 who suddenly returns home and has to reconnect with his family. For Cheryl, Richard's homecoming is fraught with complication as she is remarried to Tom, a firefighter. (Hollywood Reporter)

Former Rome star Ray Stevenson says that a feature film based on the HBO series is currently being developed and could shoot as early as six months from now, with the script being written by Rome creator Bruno Heller (The Mentalist). "The script is in full development," said Stevenson. As you are probably aware, this is a pretty strange process. We could go into production in a year, or it could be as quick as six months. Who knows? It will happen. At least it is no longer a rumor. From what I have heard, they are nearing the end of script development. We shall see. We shall see." (Movieweb)

In other TV-to-feature film news, Dan Shotz, the co-executive producer of CBS' Jericho says that a feature adaptation of that series is also in development. "It's not just wishful thinking," said Shotz. "We've ... been developing a feature to hopefully make, because we would love to. I mean, ... Jericho is so built in a way, ... especially where we left off season two, to create a feature. So our hope is to launch this comic-book series and then, with the development at the same time of the feature, hopefully get that launched as well." (SCI FI Wire)

CBS has renewed The Big Bang Theory and Two and a Half Men for two and three additional season, respectively. (Televisionary)

Pilot casting alert: Eric McCormack (Trust Me) has been cast in ABC's untitled multi-camera comedy from writer/executive producer Tad Quill. Also cast in the pilot: Reno Wilson (Blind Justice), Jolie Jenkins (Desperate Housewives), and Constance Zimmer (Entourage). McCormack will play Dean, a heart surgeon whose wife (Jenkins) has just had a baby, while Wilson will play Seth, a contractor with an empty nest. Zimmer will play Seth's wife. For McCormack, the pilot is in second position to his TNT drama series Trust Me, which is not expected to return. (Hollywood Reporter)

Elsewhere, Lindsay Sloane (Help Me Help You), Mary Elizabeth Ellis (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia), and Charlie Finn (Help Me Help You) have been cast in ABC comedy pilot Pulling, a US remake of the British comedy series, while Holly Robinson Peete (Love Inc.) and Josh Braaten (The Ex List) will star opposite Lauren Graham in ABC comedy pilot The Bridget Show. (Hollywood Reporter)

Heather Locklear has turned down an offer to star in CW's revival of Melrose Place. (Televisionary)

NBC has ordered eight-episodes of reality competition series The Sing Off, in which a cappella groups will face off against one another for a Sony Music recording contract. Series, from Outlaw Prods. and Sony Pictures Television, will be executive produced by Joel Gallen. NBC/Universal Media Studios' Paul Telegdy called The Sing Off "a fantastic feel-good series." No airdate has been announced. (Variety)

One guest star too many? Clay Aiken is slated to appear on the May 14th season finale of NBC's 30 Rock. (TV Week)

SCI FI Wire talks to Caprica star Esai Morales about the Battlestar Galactica prequel series. "I think he's the moral spine [of the story]," said Morales of his character, Joseph Adama. "He's somebody who came from the wrong side of the tracks, ... or the galaxy, or solar system, so to speak. They're from a planet that's more oppressed. He and his brother came from Tauron and establish their roots here, but they're still a minority. There are still ethnic tensions. So I'm a [civil liberties] lawyer who's trying to work on the right side of the tracks, and my brother is a gangster. It's like a Rich Man, Poor Man issue meets The Godfather meets Brave New World." (SCI FI Wire)

"We are all Cylons. And every one of us is a Colonial." Speaking of Battlestar Galactica, The Washington Post has a fantastic story about the series' recent appearance at the UN, where the cast and creators discussed issues like human rights, torture, and security issues. "Suddenly we are presented with this false dichotomy of security versus human rights," said Craig Mokhiber, deputy director of the New York branch of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights. "That slippery slope shows up so much in the show, and so much in real life." (Washington Post)

HBO has acquired the rights to eight-episode autobiographical documentary series The Neistat Brothers, which follows filmmaker siblings Casey and Van Neistat. All of the episodes were shot on consumer-grade cameras and edited by the Neistats using Apple's iMovie. HBO has yet to announce an airdate for the project, executive produced by Tom Scott. (Variety)

The New York Times' Brian Stelter takes a look at pay cabler Starz, which is looking to stand out from among the glut of movie channels by broadening its original series offerings, which include Rob Thomas' comedy Party Down, Crash, and Head Cases, as it looks to build a new identity for itself. "We’re the new guys on the block, even though we’re 15 years old," said Bill Myers, president of Starz Entertainment. (New York Times)

Suspense drama series Harper's Island, launching in the US next month on CBS, has been acquired by BBC Three, which plans to air the series later this year. "This is truly exciting event television," said BBC Three's Sue Deeks, Head of Series, BBC Programme Acquisition, "a suspenseful, contemporary take on the classic murder mystery with more than a dash of horror – think Agatha Christie meets Scream and you will get the idea!" (BBC)

VH1 has revived reality staple Behind the Music, ordering ten episodes that will air later this year. So far the network has signed Lil Wayne and Scott Weiland to appear in installments. "It felt like the time is right," said Jeff Olde, EVP of original programming. "There's all sorts of new artists on the scene who have emerged and have these great stories. And there's other artists that we always wanted to do the first time around." (Hollywood Reporter)

USA has promoted Jeff Wachtel to president of original series. As EVP of original programming, Wachtel helped launch such series as The 4400, Monk, and Burn Notice. "As head of original programming, Jeff’s leadership has inspired the team responsible for one of the most successful slates in all of television," said Bonnie Hammer, president of NBC Universal Cable Entertainment and Universal Cable Productions. "His creative intellect, impeccable taste and production savvy are among the best in the business, and we look forward to having his stamp of originality on all future successes here at USA." (TV Week)

National Geographic has renewed Dog Whisperer for a sixth season, ordering 30 episodes that will air later this year. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Jennifer Esposito Gets "Burn Notice," Chevy Chase Finds "Community" Spirit at NBC, "Top Model" Riot, and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

Samantha Who?'s Jennifer Esposito has been cast in a multiple-episode story arc on USA's Burn Notice, where she will play Michelle Paxon, "a Miami PD detective who becomes obsessed with uncovering the truth about Michael." Esposito is expected to first turn up at the start of Season Three of Burn Notice, scheduled to debut in June. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Chevy Chase, who'll be seen later this season on NBC's Chuck, has been cast as one of the leads in NBC's comedy pilot Community, where he will play a community college student who has been married five times, opposite Joel McHale. Pilot will be directed by Joe and Anthony Russo (Arrested Development). (Hollywood Reporter)

Richard Dreyfuss (Tin Man) and Jason Biggs (The Pleasure of Your Company) will star in CBS comedy pilot Happiness Isn't Everything, about adult siblings and their parents who are "overinvolved" in each other's lives. Dreyfuss will play the family patriarch while Biggs will play one of the sons, along with Ben Schwartz. Project, from Sony Pictures Television and CBS Paramount Network Television, is executive produced by Mitch Hurwitz. (Hollywood Reporter)

Pilot casting news: Beau Garrett (Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer) and Mike Vogel (Cloverfield) will star in ABC drama pilot Empire State; Sophie Winkleman (Peep Show) will play the titular character in NBC comedy pilot 100 Questions for Charlotte Payne; Matthew Lillard (Scooby Doo) and Janet Varney (Chocolate News) will play the leads in ABC's untitled Jeff Strauss comedy pilot; Paul Campbell (Battlestar Galactica) has landed the lead role in ABC's US remake of comedy No Heroics; Warren Christie (October Road) and Denzel Whitaker (All That) have joined the cast of CBS drama pilot House Rules; Tim Peper (Carpoolers), Stephanie Lemelin (Cavemen), and Baron Vaughn (Teachers) will star in ABC comedy pilot Canned; Lindsey Broad (Ghost Whisperer) has snagged the female lead on NBC drama pilot State of Romance; Jaime Lee Kirchner (Just Legal) will star in NBC medical drama pilot Mercy; Rachel Nichols (Alias) and Laz Alonso (One on One) have joined the cast of CBS' untitled U.S. Attorney drama pilot; Archie Panjabi (Life on Mars) will co-star in CBS' drama pilot The Good Wife; and Larry Joe Campbell (According to Jim) has been added to ABC comedy pilot The Law. (Hollywood Reporter)

Former pro football player Michael Strahan has been cast in FOX comedy pilot Brothers, where he will play a retired NFL player who returns to his hometown and reconnects with his wheelchair-bound brother (Daryl "Chill" Mitchell), injured after a car accident. Project, from Sony Pictures Television and Tantamount. is written by Don Reo and will be directed by Ted Wass. (Variety)

Spike has ordered twelve episodes of sports-themed comedy Blue Mountain State, about three freshmen who attend a football powerhouse state university and have to "adapt to college life while juggling football, women, classes and nonstop hazing." Series, from Lionsgate Television and Varsity Pictures, is set to launch this summer, along with Matt Walsh comedy Players, and stars Darin Brooks, Chris Romano, Sam Jones III, Ed Marinaro, Alan Ritchson, and Gabrielle Dennis. (Hollywood Reporter)

In a bizarre twist, auditions over the weekend for the next cycle of CW's America's Next Top Model turned into pandemonium, with six women receiving medical treatment and three people arrested on charges of inciting to riot and disorderly conduct. Reuters cited a report from a local radio station, which reported that "chaos erupted outside a midtown Manhattan hotel after a car belching smoke pulled up near the line of women late in the afternoon, leading to a cry of "fire" that sparked panic. Witnesses told the station the situation was compounded when a man leapt from a car and began grabbing women's purses." (Reuters)

NBC will once again meet with advertisers before the traditional upfront period at the end of May, scheduling meetings with advertisers on May 4th and 5th in New York, Chicago on May 7th, and Los Angeles on May 12th. The Peacock will not be offering another multi-media NBC Experience as it did in 2008 and is said to be looking at its plans for the actual upfront week, beginning May 18th. (Variety)

The Los Angeles Times looks at the current crop of midseason replacement series and stresses that, besides for highlights like FOX's Lie to Me, the networks have some major problems with this year's offerings both scripted (Castle, Dollhouse) and unscripted (Chopping Block, True Beauty). "Executives can talk all they want about time-shifting and competition and retention levels," writes Scott Collins, "but what the networks really need are hits." (Los Angeles Times)

Tandem Communications has teamed up with Stanley M. Brooks and Jim Head to produce two telepics based on novels of Patricia Cornwell's "At Risk" and "The Front" for Lifetime; move marks the first time that Cornwell's work will be adapted. Telepics will be written by John Pielmeier (Capture of the Green River Killer). (Variety)

The Los Angeles Times talks with Portia de Rossi, the star of ABC's new comedy series Better Off Ted, which launches on Wednesday, about Proposition 8, her new series, and those motherhood rumors. (Los Angeles Times)

Kimberley Nixon (Cranford) has denied reports that she will star in the fifth season of Doctor Who, saying that she hasn't even auditioned. "Absolutely nothing [is happening with Doctor Who]," Nixon told Metro. "They film in my home town so it would be good from a convenience point of view. I haven't heard anything - just what I've read in the papers. I haven't even auditioned." (Digital Spy)

Turner Classic Movies has ordered ten-hour documentary series Moguls and Movie Stars: A History of Hollywood, which will depict the lives of such early Hollywood figures as Darryl Zanuck, Carl Laemmle, Samuel Goldwyn, Louis B. Mayer, and the Warner brothers. Series, written and produced by Jon Wilkman, is scheduled to air next year. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: "Caprica" DVD Takes Off in March, Pay Raise for "Burn" Star, CW Takes Bite Out of "Vampire Diaries," Pilot News, and More

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing.

It looks like Caprica will be heading to our screens sooner than we originally thought... or the two-hour backdoor pilot will be, anyway. Sci Fi Channel announced that it will make Caprica's pilot available as a limited-edition DVD on April 21st with an uncut and unrated version, ahead of the series' 2010 broadcast launch. Additionally, the film will be available for digital download at select online destinations. (Having already seen the pilot, I can say that it will definitely please BSG fans while also offering a glimpse into a series that's vastly different than anything we've seen so far on Battlestar Galactica.)

"Ever since fans first caught wind of the Battlestar Galactica prequel Caprica, they have been eagerly following its development," said Mark Stern, Executive Vice President, Original Programming for SCI FI & Co-Head Original Content, Universal Cable Productions. "We wanted to give them a chance to see the pilot in its original form and experience the prequel to the BSG story while that series' finale was still ringing in their ears. It also affords the creative team an unprecedented chance to get viewers feedback before production on the Caprica series begins this summer." (via press release)

Jeffrey Donovan, the star of USA's Burn Notice, has renegotiated his contract with Fox Television Studios and secured a pay increase that sees his per-episode fee rise from $55,000 to $150,000. The cost of the increase will be shared between cabler USA and FTVS. (Hollywood Reporter)

CW has ordered a pilot for vampire drama Vampire Diaries, based on the Alloy series of books about a young woman who is caught between two vampire brothers--one good, the other evil--who are battleing for the souls of everyone in their small town. Project, from Alloy Entertainment and Warner Bros. TV, will be written and executive produced by Kevin Williamson (Dawson's Creek, Hidden Palms) and Julie Plec. Also on tap at the CW: political drama The Body Politic, about a group of young staffers working for a Washington-based senator. That project, from CBS Paramount Network Television, will be written by Jason Rothenberg and Bill Robinson and executive produced by Peter Horton. (Variety)

The untitled Gossip Girl spin-off has cast Krysten Ritter (Veronica Mars, Breaking Bad) in the pivotal role as Lily's troubled older sister Carol. "Described as sweet but a bit of a disaster, Carol is an actress who's constantly making bad decisions in life and work," says Michael Ausiello. "Lily ends up moving in with Carol after a falling out with mom and dad." Producers Stephanie Savage and Josh Schwartz are still casting the role of young Lily in the 1980s-set spin-off, which is expected to air as an episode of Gossip Girl on May 11th. (Entetainmetn Weekly's Ausiello Files)

CBS has handed out a pilot order to multi-camera comedy Big D, about a couple from New York who move to the husband's Dallas hometown, where his Southern belle mother makes life very difficult for his wife. Project, from Warner Bros. TV, is written and executive produced by Jackie Filgo and Jeff Filgo. (Hollywood Reporter)

Loretta Devine has been cast in David E. Kelley's NBC dramedy pilot Legally Mad, where she will play Jeanette, a lawyer at the firm who is always teetering on the edge of a nervous breakdown. Already cast in the pilot: Hugh Bonneville, Charity Wakefield, Kristin Chenoweth, Kurt Fuller, and Jon Seda. (Hollywood Reporter)

SCI FI Wire has a brief interview with Dollhouse star Dichen Lachman, in which she talks about the series' Sierra, engagements, and blank slates. (SCI FI Wire)

Christina Wayne, AMC's SVP of Scripted Series, has departed the network, effective immediately. No explanation was given as to the reason behind her departure nor where she will go next, though it's been rumored she will take a position at pay cabler Starz. (Televisionary)

NBC has pulled the plug on Sony-produced drama pilot Lost in the '80s, citing creative differences between the network's new management and the studio. (Hollywood Reporter)

Peter Bart and Peter Guber, hosts of AMC's Sunday morning series Shootout, will host a series of specials called StoryMakers, in which the duo will gather together top actors to discuss current entertainment topics. The first special is set to air February 18th at 8 pm. (Variety)

Trends to keep an eye on this development season: cops, docs, and lawyers, while serialized and complex stories are said to be out, according to Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd. (How then to explain high-profile pilots like V, Day One, Happy Town, Unt. Jason Horwitch, Masterwork, etc.?) "Fox's freshman crime procedural dramas "Fringe" and "Lie to Me" also have performed well, further suggesting to networks that re-embracing traditional self-contained mysteries is the way to go," says Hibberd. "Nowhere is this trend more evident than at NBC, whose pilots include three crime dramas, two medical series and a lawyer show." (Hollywood Reporter)

Cheyenne Jackson (Life on Mars) will guest star on ABC's Ugly Betty, where he will play a gay dad in an upcoming storyline. (Variety)

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge has denied SAG's request for an injunction to remove ousted chief negotiator Doug Allen. The move, spearheaded by SAG president Alan Rosenberg, led to the delay of the first talks between SAG and the AMPTP in over two months. Given the legal resolution, talks are expected once more to resume between the guild and the studios. (Hollywood Reporter)

ITV Studios and Elisabeth Murdoch's Shine have formed a co-production venture under which they will develop pilots for ITV and international outlets but not for other UK-based television networks. Move marks the first deal of its kind in the UK. (Variety)

Paige Davis (Trading Spaces) will host syndicated lifestyle series Life for Dummies, being developed by production company A. Smith and Co. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Third Season of "Gavin & Stacey" On Tap, "Doctor Who," SAG Delays Strike Authorization Vote, and More

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing. This being a scant two days before Christmas, there aren't many television-related headlines to discuss but rest assured there are still quite a few.

Oh, what's occurrin'? The big news is, of course, that Ruth Jones and James Corden have announced--from Barry Island, no less--that they will write a third season of their hit comedy Gavin & Stacey. The third season, which had been commissioned by the BBC earlier this year, had been in doubt when Jones and Corden said that their schedules were a bit too full at the moment to write the next season of the romantic comedy, which airs in the States on BBC America. While pesky details like actor availability still have to be worked out, it's fantastic news that we'll get to see more of Nessa and the gang from Barry and Essex before long. The Gavin & Stacey Christmas Special, meanwhile, will air tomorrow night on BBC1. (BBC News)

Doctor Who executive producer Russell T. Davies talks at length about this week's Doctor Who Christmas Special, entitled "The Next Doctor." While there's spoilers aplenty for those looking for that sort of thing, some of Davies' comments seem to echo my recent theory that David Morrissey, who co-stars with David Tennant in the special, will be named the Eleventh Doctor later this week... and that he isn't just a man claiming to be the Doctor in Dickensian London but he is the future incarnation of the Doctor crossing paths with his past self. "...this other Doctor isn't lying," says Davies. "He's not a con man. So we've got this story about how these two men can possibly be together. It's a buddy movie, in a way. I mean, two of the best actors in the land - how lucky are we?" Only time will tell... (The Daily Mail)

SAG has announced that it has postponed its controversial strike authorization vote for two weeks. The ballots, which were meant to be delivered on January 2nd, will be delayed until after January 13th following two days of talks among SAG's national board, which has remained split over the option of a strike. (Variety)

Los Angeles Times talks to FOX Entertainment Chairman Peter Liguori and FOX Entertainment President Kevin Reilly about the challenges for the network in the next few months, Dollhouse, moving Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles to Fridays, and American Idol. As for why the network scheduled Dollhouse on Fridays, Ligouri said: "It's a night where there's not a hell of a lot of competition. So we're able to get the show on there. We're able to allow the show to grow. The expectations may be slightly lower for its performance." Hmmm... (Los Angeles Times)

Aussie actor Damon Herriman (Cold Case) has been cast in NBC's drama pilot Lost & Found, opposite Katee Sackhoff, Josh Cooke, and Brian Cox. He'll play Anthony Yeckel, "an oddball civilian consultant to the police's lost-and-found department who has an obsessive love of old detective TV shows." (Hollywood Reporter)

Lost's Jeff Fahey will guest star in an episode of CBS' Cold Case, slated to air in early 2009. He'll play the owner of a "boutique motorcycle customization shop who has cleaned up from his early days as a biker." Elsewhere, rapper/actress/mogul Eve will guest star in an episode of CBS' NUMB3RS; Wes Brown (We Are Marshall) will appear in at least six episodes of HBO's True Blood as a Luke, a religious hunk who bonds with Jason at church camp; Dina Meyer (Birds of Prey) will play Michael's former fiancee on USA's Burn Notice in the Season Two finale airing on March 5th. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

TV Guide chats with Prison Break's Jodi Lyn O'Keefe about her long-running stint on the FOX thriller, whether or not we've seen the last of Gretchen, and the potential SAG strike. (<TV Guide)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: ABC Gets "V," "Torchwood" Details, Renewals for "Burn Notice" and "Psych," and More

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing.

Details are slowly emerging about the next season of British import Torchwood. Producers have cast four actors for the series' condensed third season, entitled Torchwood: Children of Earth. Lucy Cohu (Meadowlands) will play Alice, "a woman keeping many secrets from the past," according to producer Peter Bennett. Susan Brown (The Riff Raff Element) will play Bridget Spears, "a character vitally connected to the government, which plays an important part in this story." Cush Jumbo will play Lois Habiba, a secretary who "hacks into some vital information," and Rik Makarem will play Doctor Rupesh Patanjali, a "junior doctor at St Helen's hospital who gets drawn into Torchwood's investigations." I can't wait! (Digital Spy)

ABC is developing an adaptation of classic 1980s mini-series V, about reptilian aliens who enslave Earth, with The 4400 co-creator/executive producer Scott Peters. The new version of V will focus on Erica Evans, a Homeland Security agent with a troubled son who attaches himself onto the aliens upon their arrival, which causes some problems at home. Warner Bros. is being the adaptation, which was sold as a spec script to ABC. Original V creator Kenneth Johnson recently tried to revive the franchise with V: The Second Generation but he will not be involved in the latest incarnation. (Variety)

USA has renewed dramas Burn Notice and Psych, with each earning 16 episode orders for 2009. The orders bring Burn Notice to its third season and Psych to its fourth. The second halves of their current seasons are slated to air in January with the following seasons set to bow next summer. No decision has yet been made about the fate of Monk. (Hollywood Reporter)

Pushing Daisies was only slightly down this week (5.6 million viewers; 2.0/6 in adults 18-49) versus its premiere last week (6.3 million viewers; 2.0/6) but Private Practice dropped 21 percent in the key demo week-to-week and Dirty Sexy Money dropped 17 percent as well. At least Daisies fans seem to be sticking around. Now if only we could get those numbers to just... go up. (Variety)

Eric Winter (Brothers & Sisters), Michael Weaver (Notes from the Underbelly), Brian Van Holt (Threshold), Reid Scott (My Boys), Kevin Sorbo (Andromeda), and James Tupper (Men in Trees) are among the upcoming guest stars on CBS' The Ex List, according to series star Elizabeth Reaser. (TV Guide)

The CW has ordered a pilot for Operation Fabulous, a Top Model spinoff to star Jay Manuel and J. Alexander that will be executive produced by Tyra Banks and Ken Mok. Project will follow the Jays as they travel the country giving women makeovers, selecting five women in each town and giving them head-to-toe fashion overhauls in order to boost their confidence. (Hollywood Reporter)

Mark Burnett Prods. has teamed up with Ralph Edwards Prods. to produce a new version of This Is Your Life, in which guests are surprised with a retelling of their life stories including appearances by important people in their past. Series began as a radio show in 1948. (Variety)

ABC has renewed reality competition series I Survived a Japanese Game Show, with 10 episodes to likely air next summer. (Variety)

Rock of Love 2 runner-up Daisy De La Hoya is getting her own series on VH1. The cabler has already set up a website to cast potential suitors for the Rock of Love castoff whose series is set to debut in spring 2009. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.